Pete Thorn demos the Friedman Jose amp

[JonPearson1994]

Always wanted an SLX, what are they like?

If you get an EL34 model, as a stock amp they are bright and fairly gainy, but as you turn up the dial on the preamp knob (there are two gain controls, sensitivity and preamp), it tends to start fuzzing out a bit. If you keep it at more of a super crunch level, they are in line with the Marshall heritage tonewise, more or less, but as I said on the brighter side of that line.

With a few tweaks in the preamp, you can get them to a point where you have access to more of that gain, and then they become something more like a modded JMP 2203, but with the benefit that they already have the extra gain stages so you don't have add tubes. Really, they were so close from the factory to making the modded Marshall that everyone wanted.

Keep in mind, it's a 4 gain stage amp. It isn't going to get quite as saturated as modern stuff, or even a 5150 for that matter. But it has enough for me, and I'm a metal player.

Not to self-promote, but I did a review of my amp down in the amp reviews section, there is a rambling video of me going through some tones (and talking way too much). I start off with a drop tuned 7 string but if want to hear a standard tuned guitar just skip to around the 10 minute mark.

 

[ChurchHill]

Always wanted an SLX, what are they like?

They're pretty good. Lots more gain than the JCM900 Dual Reverbs. They don't have the clarity of a 2203, not quite the same kerrang as a 4-holer or a Jubilee, but still definitely a Marshall. They get fizzy at high gain levels. The 4th tube gain stage adds a lot of compression. Honestly, I like the High Gain Master Volume Mk III that came before the SL-X better. That one has more of the clarity of a modded 2203, isn't as fizzy but gets just as much gain, and just sounds more like a Marshall should, to me.

Neither sound like the Jose, but the Mk III is closer. All three are worth owning. For the price of a Jose, you can still find and SL-X and a Mk III and still have enough left over for an OG JCM2000 DSL or an RI Jub. OTOH, the Jose isn't just close to the sound of those 80s modded Marshalls, it IS that sound, period. Whether that is worth it or even worth pursuing is a matter of preference.

 

[JonPearson1994]

They're pretty good. Lots more gain than the JCM900 Dual Reverbs. They don't have the clarity of a 2203, not quite the same kerrang as a 4-holer or a Jubilee, but still definitely a Marshall. They get fizzy at high gain levels. The 4th tube gain stage adds a lot of compression. Honestly, I like the High Gain Master Volume Mk III that came before the SL-X better. That one has more of the clarity of a modded 2203, isn't as fizzy but gets just as much gain, and just sounds more like a Marshall should, to me.

Neither sound like the Jose, but the Mk III is closer. All three are worth owning. For the price of a Jose, you can still find and SL-X and a Mk III and still have enough left over for an OG JCM2000 DSL or an RI Jub. OTOH, the Jose isn't just close to the sound of those 80s modded Marshalls, it IS that sound, period. Whether that is worth it or even worth pursuing is a matter of preference.

The Mk 3 still has some diode clipping, doesn't it? I've always wanted to try one, for whatever reason that variant is rare around here while the others are fairly prevalent.

 

[shar-vell Dan]

A 900 SLX is not a 2203 sorry. But i doubt the average drunk boomer at a bar can tell the difference.
Ive turned down a dozen 900's cuz they have a host of problems.

 

[ChurchHill]

Seemed like he understood how the amp works very well to me.

Check out Rocco Pezzin's Jose demo for a really thorough demo of all the features. Start at 2:42.

Not saying anything bad about Pete. I've enjoyed many of his videos, especially his deep-dives, and he's really knowledgeable. It's just that this one felt rushed, as someone else here said. He was obviously in the middle of a tour or something, not in his typical environment in some of the interspersed comments.

Just sayin'... he could've dialed the amp in better because it sounds better and is capable of a lot more that what Pete included. It's not like Pete's never had a real Jose on his channel before. Both his videos of Vai's and Mars' OG Joses are great demos of those amps. The Friedman Jose is on that level, but the video didn't go nearly into the amp like his previous videos did for those OG amps.

 

[ChurchHill]

The Mk 3 still has some diode clipping, doesn't it? I've always wanted to try one, for whatever reason that variant is rare around here while the others are fairly prevalent.

Yep. For the SL-X, they basically replaced the clippers with another tube stage (gross oversimplification). They're fairly rare because they didn't make them very long, only a couple of years I think, before they were replaced by the SL-X.

 

[JonPearson1994]

A 900 SLX is not a 2203 sorry. But i doubt the average drunk boomer at a bar can tell the difference.
Ive turned down a dozen 900's cuz they have a host of problems.

Not in it's factory state, no. But it doesn't take much to get it there honestly.

 

[geetarmikey]

Check out Rocco Pezzin's Jose demo for a really thorough demo of all the features. Start at 2:42.

Not saying anything bad about Pete. I've enjoyed many of his videos, especially his deep-dives, and he's really knowledgeable. It's just that this one felt rushed, as someone else here said. He was obviously in the middle of a tour or something, not in his typical environment in some of the interspersed comments.

Just sayin'... he could've dialed the amp in better because it sounds better and is capable of a lot more that what Pete included. It's not like Pete's never had a real Jose on his channel before. Both his videos of Vai's and Mars' OG Joses are great demos of those amps. The Friedman Jose is on that level, but the video didn't go nearly into the amp like his previous videos did for those OG amps.

Sounded like Pete couldn't get a bad sound from it if he tried to me!
Rocco's vid was great as well

 

[geetarmikey]

If you get an EL34 model, as a stock amp they are bright and fairly gainy, but as you turn up the dial on the preamp knob (there are two gain controls, sensitivity and preamp), it tends to start fuzzing out a bit. If you keep it at more of a super crunch level, they are in line with the Marshall heritage tonewise, more or less, but as I said on the brighter side of that line.

With a few tweaks in the preamp, you can get them to a point where you have access to more of that gain, and then they become something more like a modded JMP 2203, but with the benefit that they already have the extra gain stages so you don't have add tubes. Really, they were so close from the factory to making the modded Marshall that everyone wanted.

Keep in mind, it's a 4 gain stage amp. It isn't going to get quite as saturated as modern stuff, or even a 5150 for that matter. But it has enough for me, and I'm a metal player.

Not to self-promote, but I did a review of my amp down in the amp reviews section, there is a rambling video of me going through some tones (and talking way too much). I start off with a drop tuned 7 string but if want to hear a standard tuned guitar just skip to around the 10 minute mark.

I'll check that out then!

 

[ChurchHill]

Sounded like Pete couldn't get a bad sound from it if he tried to me!
Rocco's vid was great as well

I agree, Pete did get some good sounds from it. Honestly, almost all of the vids I've seen sound good, even the cheap cellphone cameras. The only ones I haven't cared for are when someone sticks a boost in front of it that strips out all the low end or drastically changes the sound.

To me, the Jose has a very distinctive sound. There's a certain aggressiveness in the mids, not sure how to describe it, like the lower part of the upper mids maybe (???), but it's unique to this circuit. Sure, there are a lot of amps that come close, but there's something that makes the Jose stand out.

 

[shar-vell Dan]

 

[JonPearson1994]

Yeah you definitely need to fix the DC heater circuit. The underspecced the that rectifier. Mine was cooked pretty good, I just rebuilt it on a terminal strip.

 

[mentoneman]

Check out Rocco Pezzin's Jose demo for a really thorough demo of all the features. Start at 2:42.

Not saying anything bad about Pete. I've enjoyed many of his videos, especially his deep-dives, and he's really knowledgeable. It's just that this one felt rushed, as someone else here said. He was obviously in the middle of a tour or something, not in his typical environment in some of the interspersed comments.

Just sayin'... he could've dialed the amp in better because it sounds better and is capable of a lot more that what Pete included. It's not like Pete's never had a real Jose on his channel before. Both his videos of Vai's and Mars' OG Joses are great demos of those amps. The Friedman Jose is on that level, but the video didn't go nearly into the amp like his previous videos did for those OG amps.

Rocco’s vid is currently the best jose demo imo.

this next one is short and pretty sweet sounding too:

 

[2dor]

I wouldn't consider it for "modern metal" based on what I'm hearing...But I'd say it's got enough gain and aggression for just about everything else.

If you stick the right boost in front & dial it right, I'm sure it'd deliver in spades though. If it's got a fast tracking bass / transient response then I'm not worried one bit - the thing has tons of gain on tap & does sound raw; Ola supposedly just got one recently.