Should I take the Wizard plunge??

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drspearing

Member
I have a couple Marshall based amps. A Bogner 100B and a Landry LS100 that I have tuned to my liking. However, I've been interested in the Wizard MC2 for a while and even more so since I heard the Lynch videos on the Monsters of Rock cruise. One thing to note: I do not like bright amps. I've never had a problem cutting in the mix (even with my Bogner) and anything that is fizzy, buzzy or remotely harsh on the top end really turns me off in a big way.

1. Will there be any overlap with the amps I have?
2. Is the Wizard able to be tamed in the high end?
3. Is the master volume good enough to play at reasonable volumes?
4. Are the boosts usable? In other words, does the lead boost have enough of a gain boost to use to step out for singing type solos?
5. Is the clean channel of the MC2 "plexi-ish"? Is it usable?

I may add more questions as I get them.

Thanks in advance!
 
Some people think a Marshall is too bright.. if you fall into that camp then stick with your bogner. I'm just the opposite. sold the ecstasy as soon as I tried it out because there was no upper mid and high end sparkle with string zing... no bite for me. The wizard on the other hand is punchy and clear with all the marshall "crushed glass" characteristics intact. I also use vintage 30 speakers which accentuates all those great qualities. Marshalls are inherently bright amps- compared to the boutique stuff- that were made to be played at volume... same with the wizard m/c. I would try before you buy.
 
Let me just add that while there is much Marshallness to the Wizard tone, most Wizards have a generous amount of low mid warmth compared to JMP/JCM era Marshalls. Also, Wizards generally have a 'harder' feel vs. the creamier nature of the aforementioned Marshalls, regardless of preamp gain levels. Think of it as 75 % Marshall, 25 % Hiwatt.
 
Decided to give it a try. 2013 MCII with the "C" transformer and 4x12 with RI Greenbacks.

Wizard.jpg
 
The Lead channel is quite similar as I recall. I asked Rick to add a little more gain to the Lead boost which is nice. The Rhythm channel is a little different in that it is less bright than the MC I tried. That voicing change, along with the Rhythm channel Bright control on the back, allows me to balance the channels out a little better IMO. The Added Rhythm gain is also quite useful as I like my clean channel to break up a bit. I don't use the Contour on the front of the amp that much.

Initially the fx loop added a lot of high end. I emailed Rick and he walked me through a fix which had me remove a single capacitor (which he is no longer putting in the amps). Now it's golden and I have rack and pedal effects in the loop.

Rick said the amp would sound better after a couple months when the transformers fully magnetize. Something to look forward to although the amp sounds pretty good right now.
 
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