School me on the Diezel VH-4!

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severinsteel

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Hey guys, so I'm wondering if a Diezel VH-4 would be a good purchase for me. This is what I currently own in high gain territory.

Mesa Dual Rectifier (Rev C, pre 500)
Peavey 5150
Friedman HBE modded Marshall

I also have a few vintage Marshalls. Would the VH-4 be redundant, or a welcome addition to the arsenal?

And what would be the advantage of the S?
 
I have had my Vh4 for two years. I have looked up and down for another amp (GAS) and never once found one that can come close to the tone or versatility of the 4. I will be getting an Uberschall as an addition and not a replacement. The 4 for some reason to my ears does not like mesa cabs. Don't know why but I plugged into one and it just was not there.

I have a clip I recoded that shows the clean and the mean. Channel inserts on the back are just flat out fucking genius. You can also run both loops at once. I run my delay through the serial and at one point ran other effects through the parallel . Currently nothing is going through that loop.

One thing to note.....the amp loves drop tuning even as close as E flat can change the complexion of the amp considerably. Go to drop C crank the master and make sure you are in a different room :D !

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s1ugLvqgvKQ
 
well

i own

jj cantrell

5150 block logo

and a vh4

i dont findn them redundant at all
 
Rezamatix":2qwda9uw said:
but then again some people are fucking lame too...so there is always that.
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lol


I agree that playing the VH4 is a special experience. I've spent time with the VH4, D-Moll, Herbert and Fokker. The VH4 is the first one I played and is still the standout for me. It is capable of so many great tones and has usable features that many other amps do not have even today.
 
I traded one in once. Aside from letting go of a mint jcm800 combo, it was equally the worst gear related decision I ever made. So I ended up buying another. Can't see myself selling it again.
It's a pretty dry amp however. Some people don't get on with it. I really like it as I like to run pedals to juice It up. It's hard to describe tonally. It's just a solid platform with a lot of integrity and clarity to it. I'd give one a try before you buy and maybe take some pedals. I find I need overdrives to get it to scream the way I want it to.

I saw someone running a VH4S with two 1x12 on YT. Pretty cool rig. I never considered going to a cab that size so was always put off the idea of having to purchase or transport two enormous cabs everywhere and went with the mono version. You'd always have to run two cabs with the S. You can't run it mono or run one side unloaded. Forgive me if you know that already.
 
The only real advantage the stereo version has over the regular version is in studio. You can run a total of 4 cabs with it...if those cabs are mixed with various speakers you can see the obvious benefit when it comes to mic and speaker options at one time. As said, the stereo version is true stereo (50 watts a side) and must be run with a cab on each side (power section). It is not as saturated as the Herbert or several other high gain amps but it has plenty of gain. It is very clear, articulate and versatile. It is an honest amp so mistakes will not be hid. You get out of it what you put into it. It has a lot of girth to it and the clarity can fool you into thinking it doesn't have enough gain but that is not true. It takes some time to get used to it but once you do it is impossible to live without.
 
buy a Vh4 its cool. Then sell me your Pre 500 dual recto :)
 
I never thought I´d see the VH4 be called a mid-gain amp, but I suspect I´m waaaay out of the loop :) It does sound very cool, though, and one of these days I´ll get one to fill out the more modern side of the stable.

As for the VH4S, it´s for stereo applications which in my book makes little sense without post-preamp stereo FX.
 
Rezamatix":3h8gw0cp said:
Dave L":3h8gw0cp said:
I never thought I´d see the VH4 be called a mid-gain amp, but I suspect I´m waaaay out of the loop :) It does sound very cool, though, and one of these days I´ll get one to fill out the more modern side of the stable.

As for the VH4S, it´s for stereo applications which in my book makes little sense without post-preamp stereo FX.
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First get one, and then let me know what level of gain you think it has. Its definitely not HIGH gain like a 5150 or Uberschall..but hey maybe Im crazy. :lol: :LOL:
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This^^^^. I need a boost to give it a little. Although from what I recall in my clip, I did not have a boost. At the time she was loaded with Winged C EL 34's. I am now running 6L6's and it does fucking slam. I hit the front end with a KoKo Boost and an Old SD1 with the level cranked, drive just a bit. It is an amp that will NOT let you cheat. I have several spots in our tunes that I string skip, tap and if you are not on.....you will know it.

Look at this amp as a spoiled angry bitch that will have her way :D !
 
It's one of those holy grail amps. I had an Einstein and a Herbert. I should have gotten the VH-4. If I did, I probably would have kept it.
 
PBGas":22k099wm said:
It's one of those holy grail amps. I had an Einstein and a Herbert. I should have gotten the VH-4. If I did, I probably would have kept it.
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For sure! I just cannot see me parting with that thing. It's like a girl you been with for years that you still want to fuck everyday. Rare as it might be but these things do exist.
 
Thanks for the replies guys! Looks like I missed out on that one for sale over at the Emporium.

I've been watching a bunch of amp shootouts, and the thing that strikes me as very interesting is that they all seem to sound very similar. In the mix, they pretty much sound like almost the same amp but with an EQ adjustment.
 
They can sound somewhat similar but also very different. There is nothing like an opened up power section of the Herbert. Herbert is far more saturated. It is also very forgiving in comparison to the VH4. The mid cut options can really tweak with frequencies and take you various places. The Herbert has a bit more give/sag then the Vh4 as well.
 
1meanplexi":3moyn3yy said:
PBGas":3moyn3yy said:
It's one of those holy grail amps. I had an Einstein and a Herbert. I should have gotten the VH-4. If I did, I probably would have kept it.
Click to expand...

For sure! I just cannot see me parting with that thing. It's like a girl you been with for years that you still want to fuck everyday. Rare as it might be but these things do exist.
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I made the mistake, believe me. I loved the Herbert for everything except playing live. It just got lost and I had to crank it. I borrowed a friends VH-4 and it had no problem making it's presence known.

:rock:
 
The VH4 is the most aggressive Diezel amp, it has a quality to it that plays and feels like no other amp. The Herbert is totally different, as it's less aggressive, more polished, and a monster low end. The Hagen falls right in the middle of those two amps. It has some of that VH4 aggressiveness, with a lot of the Herbert's low end. Out of the 3 I prefer the Herbert, but what I prefer is the Herbert and VH4 ran in stereo.
 
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