Most versatile amps you've owned...

[Superunknown]

CCV
VH4
Wizard MC
Cameron 3 channel HG - Jose/Dumble/Clean

 

[Erock]

in no particular order:
Diezel VH4
Diezel Herbert
Bogner XTC 101B
Bogner XTC 20th
ENGL SE EL34
Cameron CCV

honorable mention:
Framus Cobra, loved the cleans and high gain. Mid gain didn't do it for me. Crunch was another high gain channel for my tastes.
Bogner Uberschall TJ, love the high gain and mid gain, clean is fine if you don't mind a little dirt and using the guitar vol. Not a true clean though IMO.
Mesa Mark IV, loved the high gain and clean was very good, didn't dig the mid gain at all. R2 got no love from me.
Wizard MC100, love the high gain and mid gain, clean is too bright for me where I dial my gain ch, shared EQ ftl.

 

[datriani]

I've owned/gone through countless amps Marshall ('72 Superlead, JCM 800/900, 6100LM, Major), Fender (twin, deluxe, super reverb, Bassman, Supersonic, Prosonic, Budda (Twinmaster, Stringmaster, SD18, Verbmaster), Bogner XTC, Vox AC30, Matchless Clubman, Fargen VOS, Mesa (Mark III, Triaxis, .50 caliber, .22 caliber, studio pre, quad pre, Recto), Peavey (5150, Classic 30), Soldano (SP-77 pre, SLO), Demeters, Carvin Legacy, etc. AND the most versatile amp (which happens to my current rig) is an Egnater M4 loaded with T/D, Vox, COD and SL2 modules.

I play in a top 40 cover band we do everything from 80's Guns and Roses to modern songs like Lady Gaga, Pink and crap like that as well as everything in between (Maroon 5, Poison, U2, Bryan Adams, Billy Idol, Madonna). If it wasn't for the M4 I'd be lugging around at least 4 amps with me to every gig with a massive switching/rack system but the M4 gets close enough to what I need for each song. I've seen so many cover bands where the guitar player has 2 sounds; clean and over the top gain and although his/her playing might be great, IMO it takes away from the song. Although I'm not playing the type of music I want (Satch, VH, Vai stuff) it's nice playing out live in front of large crowds and I want to be recognized as a true professional guitarist who does everything he can to recreate the original integrity of the song with the right tone. I'd love to be a studio guitarist one day and I guess having a versatile rig is pretty important to that which is why I've gone with the M4 for my situation.

Great posting.

 

[lolzgreg]

Ecstasy 101B for sure.

 

[Red_Label]

There's not much H&K love on this forum, but my Switchblade friggin' rocks. The lead guitar player in my band has a JCM 2000 with a Marshall cab (Celestion speakers / not sure which ones...) and everyone that makes a compliment about tone picks my rig over the JCM every time (and it sure isn't because of my playing ). I'm not knocking the JCM - God knows there are several Marshall amps I'd love to have - but the H&K is a very versatile and capable amp that seems to fly under the radar.

Yeah, I've always been a fan of H&K. The Triamp was the first "boutique" amp that I ever owned and it was an awesome amp that I still miss from time to time (those cleans!). I only sold it because I thought I was done gigging and it just wasn't a very good bedroom amp (and it was HEAVY!).

 

[philnz]

VHT Sig:X,
Hands down the most versitile amp I've owned & can think of.
3 footswitchable & boostable channels, power shift 40/100w on all 3, tonal modes plus a killer effects loop.

Hell, about the only thing it doesn't have is midi....which doesn't even bother me.

 

[stephen sawall]

Fryette Sig X for me ...every channel is very versatile and I feel it is the most versatile of all the Fryette amps.

The midi thing can easy be fix a Voodoo Lab Control Switcher.
http://www.voodoolab.com/controlswitcher.htm

The default is the clean channel so it can switch all three channels, boost and effects loop. Just like the footswitch that comes with the amp.

 

[van hellion]

most things diezel are quite versatile, my boogie mark 4, my evh 5153, and as i spend more time with the rhodes i notice it has plenty of tricks up its sleeve as well.

in the end, an amp is only as versatile as whos playing it. Guthrie and a suhr badger are capable of many different genres and thats a simple little amp

A Wood

 

[alxdgr8]

My Rhodes too

 

[Tawlks]

I've owned four amps in my five years of playing and honestly.

My peavey 5150 II was the most versetile, it just wasn't what I wanted. The JCA is better, but the peavey was more versatile.

Whoever thinks that a 5150 (especially the II/+) is a one trick pony has obviously never really taken the time to experiment.

 

[glassjaw7]

Didn't technically own either, but had an XTC 101B and Mark IV in my possession for awhile, and both were incredibly versatile.
My recto is very versatile also. It can do pop, blues, classic rock, modern rock, old metal, new metal (with a boost) and the clean is good enough to cover jazz and country and whatever else.

VH4 gets my number 1 vote though.

 

[blackba]

For me it would be these:

1. Mesa mark IVA (still own)
2. Laney Vh100R (sold)
3. Marshall 6101 LE (sold)

I first thought of my Marshall 2553 silver jubilee as a one trick pony, but with a few pedals and an extra volume knob for the clean mode, I have been able to get far more versatility than I expected.

 

[Red_Label]

in the end, an amp is only as versatile as whos playing it. Guthrie and a suhr badger are capable of many different genres and thats a simple little amp

A Wood

I agree with you that the player makes the biggest difference. But having spent a lot of time in country bars playing in country/classic rock bands, and lately going back to more modern rock or metal (at least metal to my ears)... I can say that I've had some very versatile amps that did an okay job of most things, but were a master of none, or just one or two. But to find an amp that does a convincing job at country twang ala Paisley, and have it also be able to nail an 80s brown tone, followed by a modern metal scooped rectified tone is something else entirely. The latter tone being the one that I see the least included in great amps that can cover country/jazz clean through modded Marshall tones. I thought that my XTC did an okay job at bringing the tight low end and scooped mids for the modern stuff... until I A/B'd it sitting next to the KT88-loaded Ultra Lead. In reality, the XTC will do anything and everything decently up to the point, but its metal tones just aren't that convincing to me when it sits next to an amp that really does do those.

At any rate, my abilities, experience and background render me capable of covering a wide variety of styles on many amps... but I won't even pretend that I can do them as friggin' kick-ass as you or Govan do.

 

[Rev]

I have never had a versatile amp. Ever amp I've owned did one thing great and that is pretty much where I kept it. I have always wanted an XTC and it seems a lot of guys around here have good feelings towards that amp. An XTC has been one of those dream amps that I have always wanted to try and now that the 20th has me even more intrigued.

 

[Red_Label]

I have never had a versatile amp. Ever amp I've owned did one thing great and that is pretty much where I kept it. I have always wanted an XTC and it seems a lot of guys around here have good feelings towards that amp. An XTC has been one of those dream amps that I have always wanted to try and now that the 20th has me even more intrigued.

Now that I've been able to take a step back from the XTC (by virtue of having another great amp to compare it to), I will say that it's a very versatile amp. But to me it sounds like a Bogner no matter what you play through it. It's got a strong character. If you like the low-mid growl of the Bogner tone, then it's great. If not, then I could see why someone would find themself a bit disillusioned or maybe slightly surprized after finally acquiring their "dream amp". The other versatile amps that I've owned (Triamp, YCS100H, and some modelers and rack gear) had less of a signature personality to my ears than the Bogners do. Both the XTC and the Shiva have a very characteristic tone to them. I happen to like it. But I gotta say that the VHT Ultra Lead sounds more transparent to me and that's why I am really stoked about it right now. Maybe it's allowing me to hear more of my tone/sound as I switch channels, tone settings, and styles. Whereas the Bogners' stronger personalities seem to assert themselves more and say "hey... I'm playing through a Bogner", instead of "hey... it's me -- Red Label... doing my thing". I dunno... might be talking out of my ass. But those are my impressions thus far. And I've heard others say similar. Got my first gig with the VHT this weekend and I might have more of an opinion on the matter.

BTW... as you can see from my sig, I do love Bogner amps. They've been my dream amps for over 10 years. But having now owned two of them I can definitely say that they are unmistakably Bogners no matter what you do with the tone controls. You can play with the mids and try to dial-out that definitive mid-growl/howl/roar/whatever... but when you do so the amp loses its identity and becomes very mushy, bland, and boring to my ears.

 

[Rev]

I have never had a versatile amp. Ever amp I've owned did one thing great and that is pretty much where I kept it. I have always wanted an XTC and it seems a lot of guys around here have good feelings towards that amp. An XTC has been one of those dream amps that I have always wanted to try and now that the 20th has me even more intrigued.

Now that I've been able to take a step back from the XTC (by virtue of having another great amp to compare it to), I will say that it's a very versatile amp. But to me it sounds like a Bogner no matter what you play through it. It's got a strong character. If you like the low-mid growl of the Bogner tone, then it's great. If not, then I could see why someone would find themself a bit disillusioned or maybe slightly surprized after finally acquiring their "dream amp". The other versatile amps that I've owned (Triamp, YCS100H, and some modelers and rack gear) had less of a signature personality to my ears than the Bogners do. Both the XTC and the Shiva have a very characteristic tone to them. I happen to like it. But I gotta say that the VHT Ultra Lead sounds more transparent to me and that's why I am really stoked about it right now. Maybe it's allowing me to hear more of my tone/sound as I switch channels, tone settings, and styles. Whereas the Bogners' stronger personalities seem to assert themselves more and say "hey... I'm playing through a Bogner", instead of "hey... it's me -- Red Label... doing my thing". I dunno... might be talking out of my ass. But those are my impressions thus far. And I've heard others say similar. Got my first gig with the VHT this weekend and I might have more of an opinion on the matter.

BTW... as you can see from my sig, I do love Bogner amps. They've been my dream amps for over 10 years. But having now owned two of them I can definitely say that they are unmistakably Bogners no matter what you do with the tone controls. You can play with the mids and try to dial-out that definitive mid-growl/howl/roar/whatever... but when you do so the amp loses its identity and becomes very mushy, bland, and boring to my ears.

I am a fan of the Bogner roar. However, I don't think there is a "ONE" amp. I like to have different flavors for different moods. Now you've got me wanting to try a UL.

 

[Badronald]

Marshall JTM45.

 

[Red_Label]

I am a fan of the Bogner roar. However, I don't think there is a "ONE" amp. I like to have different flavors for different moods. Now you've got me wanting to try a UL.

You know you need it!

Or the Sig:X. I'm very curious about that one now...

 

[Red_Label]

Marshall JTM45.

Wait... wut?

I should have titled the thread "most versatile amps you've owned, without needing pedals to get there".

 

[Neeklaus]

Peavey XXL

non "amps"
Rocktron Chameleon
Digitech GSP1101