Wizard Amps: Guys swear by them, clips don't do justice. Are there any clips - even of other amps - that come close?

[nightlight]

Try before you buy is always the best option, but there are limited Wizards floating around.

Things must be easier Stateside, but out here, people haven't even played most of the amps I have left, and they are not exactly unobtanium.

See a few Wizards on Reverb, but don't have the finances, so this is an esoteric discussions.

 

[DanTravis62]

I remember Reza posting on one of my older videos, "That sucks, learn to mic up a cab".

Yeah he told me I wasn't good enough at guitar to warrant the Larry I owned.

BTW i'm literally 4000 times better at guitar than he is.

 

[nightlight]

Yeah he told me I wasn't good enough at guitar to warrant the Larry I owned.

BTW i'm literally 4000 times better at guitar than he is.

His tones aren't great either, imo, but why bother telling a pompous ass like that.

 

[mermer]

Thanks for the review. I guess that the question remains the same though: why is no one able to capture this beast on a recording? And why is it on such a few recordings?

I am curious about it also. I would definitely expect to see Wizard amps in documentaries of Mastodon, Alice in Chains, Soundgarden etc. because it nails these kind of sounds exceptionally well. I am not sure why the artists do not prefer them; might be the trademark sound of the Wizard amps for some reason

 

[peterc52]

I am curious about it also. I would definitely expect to see Wizard amps in documentaries of Mastodon, Alice in Chains, Soundgarden etc. because it nails these kind of sounds exceptionally well. I am not sure why the artists do not prefer them; might be the trademark sound of the Wizard amps for some reason

They play what theyre used to. Also where do they try them?

Mastodon uses the same as always. Prob not gonna change

 

[Techdeth]

The Hellrazor is just unreal . So I’m my mtl2 . I find all of Rick’s amps offer something niche to them . Shit my old 6l6 mtl2 sounded like what you think the new fryette would hope to sound like . Pitbull on steroids .

 

[inyarak74]

This probably won’t help, but I have a MCII that I love so I’ll chime in.

It’s the epitome of “you have to actually play one.” Loud. Good guitar. Good 412. Spend ample time with one.

I say “ample time” because, for me anyways, it took a while to bond with the amp. It sounded great right away, but it was weird. Incredibly touch-sensitive, dynamic. Awesome as that is, it can be kinda crazy at first. Not unlike getting on an ultra high performance motorcycle or race car—it’s amazing and exhilarating, but it takes some time to get the hang of it. Hard to control at first. There’s definitely a “feeling it out” phase, way more than other amps IME. But once you get the feel of it, holy shit.

My MCII is quite different from my other amps—I have a bunch. Totally its own thing IMO. It’s “own thing” is defined by its touch-sensitivity/dynamics, clarity, punch and massive sonic footprint.

The tone—the character of OD—is great but it is not what separates it from other amps. If there is something unique about its tone, I’d say it is its clarity, richness, harmonic content; other than that it is just a killer M-type tone.

It is the feeling under your fingers, the symbiotic interaction with the amp, that sets it apart. And that is something clips can’t really capture or convey.

Also; the MCII is an amp that truly comes to life loud, live, in a mix. She wants to be opened up. Sitting alone noodling on it can be fun for sure. But when you put the spurs to her, let her breathe and get her blood pumping, loud, live: it’s a visceral experience.
My $.02.

Nice description

 

[thegame]

Yeah he told me I wasn't good enough at guitar to warrant the Larry I owned.

If that's true then Reza isn't even good enough to take delivery of one....Oops a daisy!

 

[mermer]

They play what theyre used to. Also where do they try them?

Mastodon uses the same as always. Prob not gonna change

I see Bill from Mastodon trying new stuff like Synergy etc. I would like to see & hear him with a Wizard, his riffs / playing are super cool

 

[peterc52]

I see Bill from Mastodon trying new stuff like Synergy etc. I would like to see & hear him with a Wizard, his riffs / playing are super cool

I’ll bet they ship it to him free of charge. But Rick don’t do stuff like that

 

[Jakem]

Is a MCII made in 2019 the most recent version?

 

[ZEN Amps]

Is a MCII made in 2019 the most recent version?

I don’t think so. I bought a new one in 2021 and Rick said it was “updated this year”.

 

[RedB4Black]

I don’t think so. I bought a new one in 2021 and Rick said it was “updated this year”.

he updates them from time to time, you just don't hear about it unless it's a big enough change to merit a mkII, etc. designation.

If you have an MCII that isn't an MCII mk2, then you don't have the latest version.

 

[mermer]

I currently dig the Rhythm channel on MTL MKII with Leopard boost a lot. It sounds very big, articulate, classic but modern in a sense, many different sounds with the knobs on the pedal and on the amp. Feels great as well. I sometimes like it even more than the Lead channel, to be honest.

 

[gbsmusic]

I was in the same boat I got a couple friends that have them and I said I would never pay that much for an amplifier but I finally broke down in bought MC 40 MKii and it is by far the best amplifier I have heard felt and played! The Soldano SLO 100 was my all-time desert island amp and now it is number two I still love those amplifiers but this is just better in every way and I can get the goods at a lower volume. I paid dearly for it but I don't regret forking out the money at all it's been about 3 months now.

 

[LPMojoGL]

I was in the same boat I got a couple friends that have them and I said I would never pay that much for an amplifier but I finally broke down in bought MC 40 MKii and it is by far the best amplifier I have heard felt and played! The Soldano SLO 100 was my all-time desert island amp and now it is number two I still love those amplifiers but this is just better in every way and I can get the goods at a lower volume. I paid dearly for it but I don't regret forking out the money at all it's been about 3 months now.

I get that:

 

[Philhouse]

All this Wizard chat, any members got or know of a Leopard pedal they want to sell perhaps?
I've got a real itch to try one but they're kinda hard to find nowadays.
Thought I'd ask. I'm in Aus, so I don't normally frequent the classified section as it's generally US based sales and there's no point for me on the other side of the globe, but a pedal is easy enough to post.
I've got plenty of the common boost options already (Klon, Koko, TS9, SD1 etc...) but I really would like to give the Leopard a try.

 

[TexasBaritone]

Nah, Larrys just sound like Fortins, but not as good.

 

[TexasBaritone]

There's a ton of guys who use them live and in the studio - or, they use them in the studio and use a kemper profile of it live, like Wolf Hoffman.

Richie Faulker (new guy in priest) uses them both live AND in the studio

Matthias Jabs and Rudy Schenker used them both live and in the studio for years and years, not sure if they still do

Dan and Justin Hawkins from the Darkness, Dan still uses them live IIRC

Jeff Waters from Annihilator used them both live and in the studio forever, I think he just got an endorsement with Hughes and Kettner though

And I'm not even a wizard fanboy or something, and these are just off the top of my head

Yes, and here are additional artists using Wizards.

https://www.wizardamplification.com/artists.htm

 

[LPMojoGL]

All this Wizard chat, any members got or know of a Leopard pedal they want to sell perhaps?
I've got a real itch to try one but they're kinda hard to find nowadays.
Thought I'd ask. I'm in Aus, so I don't normally frequent the classified section as it's generally US based sales and there's no point for me on the other side of the globe, but a pedal is easy enough to post.
I've got plenty of the common boost options already (Klon, Koko, TS9, SD1 etc...) but I really would like to give the Leopard a try.

+1