Played a José JMP today - a real one.

[ZEN Amps]

So gear attracts gear, and like-minded parties tend to attract via the interwebz.

Had an older local guy contact me recently via a mutual friend, said he had a 'modest' collection of amps he isn't using much, would I like to visit and chat. The dude is packing some serious fire power! Mostly old Marshalls and 60's Fenders. Had a 1966 JTM45, super clean and just awesome. Bunch of other 4-holers of various flavours and some JMP master volumes. A couple of nice cabs too, Pulsonics etc.

I eyeballed an ARRCO sticker on one of the JMP super leads, asked about it, and he said 'oh yeah I had that José guy mod it in the 80's when I was living in LA'. Additional gain control on front, master volume on back. Great sounding amp, really great. Not particularly high gain, maybe like a hot 2203.

He was a bit vague on specifics but it seemed like a 3-in-1 mod of sorts. In fact he spent most of the time complaining about how long Jose took, and how expensive the mod was. Mentioned he probably still has the paperwork somewhere, pretty interesting stuff.

He's on the fence about selling any off but was a great afternoon anyway, I'll be keeping in touch with him for sure.

Anyone here own a José? I know the basics but only from online sources - until today I didn't even know there was one down under.

 

[Jack Luminous]

A super clean 66 JTM45 would be more interesting to my own taste than a random Jose modded thing IMHO. Not many around, especially in good shape.

 

[ZEN Amps]

A super clean 66 JTM45 would be more interesting to my own taste than a random Jose modded thing IMHO. Not many around, especially in good shape.

Yeah man it was sweet, instant Angus tones and not insanely loud.

 

[burger]

There’s at least one other here in Melbourne…not mine!

 

[ZEN Amps]

There’s at least one other here in Melbourne…not mine!

Wow really, cool... and I knew you'd sniff this post out quick!

 

[LP Freak]

Must not of been too magical?

 

[rsm]

Did he happen to have a Vox AC-100 Mk II Fixed Biased amp head?

 

[braintheory]

I got to try locally once a real Jose modded late ‘70’s JMP2203 and the guy also had several stock ‘70’s 2203’s to compare. Jose’s are supposed to vary a lot, but like the one you tried, it didn’t seem to have that much more gain than the stock 2203’s. It sounded tighter and smoother than the stock ones. I actually liked the stock ones a little more since they sounded more gritty/less smooth, but it was nice

 

[ClintN667]

I'm completely speculating here since I've never actually seen one let alone hear one, but it seems like the only reason to buy an original Jose is for collector purposes. Those circuits have been tweaked so much over the years that a part from the old transformers, you could probably get something as good if not better off the shelf. I feel about the same way about a Cameron.

I could be entirely off base but I haven't seen proof to make me reconsider that belief.

 

[Kelly]

The Jose I heard didnt impress me at all. The stock jmp and jcm800 there blew it away. There's a reason noone sells an amp that's a direct copy of a Jose. The only one that was close was the Peavey VTM, and they dropped it completely after they introduced the 5150.

 

[hellzington]

@RedPlated has two Jose's. I believe one is a Model 1959 and the other is a Model 1992. I heard the videos of them but haven't played them in person. They both sound really great, especially the Super Bass, and they sound exactly like you'd expect a Jose mod to sound.

That said, I know a guy who owns another real Jose (verified) up in LA but honestly his doesn't sound very good. It's harsh and thin and brittle. The lesson is that like any vintage anything, they don't all sound great. Some sound insane, some sound awful.

In practicality though, while they are super cool, they're ridiculously expensive collectibles and you can get the Jose mod from a zillion makers at a fraction of the price and be guaranteed that they're going to sound great and give you "that sound." IMO if you're looking for that sound, no need to spend $10-15k on a dice roll. But cool collectibles and pieces of amp history for sure.

 

[mooncobra]

Jose mods are totally hit or miss. Some sound great, others not so much. But the good ones, whoa…. Pure rock glory.

 

[Deleted member 16554]

@ZEN Amps have you seen this?

 

[ZEN Amps]

@ZEN Amps have you seen this?

Yeah but not for a while, thanks for the reminder. Yep similar to that one really, except this one was a late 70's JMP, with the master in the 2nd speaker jack rather than new hole on front. Similar tones.