New Amp: Marshall Vintage Modern 2466

These always intrigued me, but having owned a “real” plexi like the 1987x and choosing that over the JTM45 type Marshalls, I never made this amp a priority. Well that was a mistake!

I expected it to only do a JTM45/100 approximation, and a mediocre one at that but I am pleasantly surprised. The body and detail controls allow a lot of fine tuning to the sound - just like jumpering the inputs of a Plexi or JTM - but in “high dynamic range” mode engages another pair of tube gain stages what push it into that coveted “modded” territory. While it’s no modern ultra-high gain monster, it’s surprisingly aggressive sounding, the mid boost is very effective at thickening it up for classic sounds, and like all bright Marshalls it excels when boosted too. Of course, it is still focused on the more classic JTM style sounds, so its voicing lends itself more towards those tones and it can be very loose in the bass response compared to more modern cascading gain designs. That means it isn’t a replacement for a high gain Marshall style amp on its own, since it requires pedals to get there, but it excels at classic low to mid gain rock and gets dirty enough for early metal styles too.

I’m looking forward to doing a few more comparisons between this and my 1987x, and 2203. It’ll be interesting to see which I like the most.

New Amp: Splawn Modded 1987x Plexi

I’ve always loved my Splawns - starting with the 2008, then adding a 2018. Once I got the 2006 though, I was blown away, and I was much more interested in trying out some of the older revisions of the circuit. I happened across this Marshall 1987x modded by Splawn, dating to 2003, and I had to find out.

The core tone is classic Splawn, with thick mids, and it retains the same bright cut as my 2006 Quickrod. It does have noticeably less bass response compared even to the 2006 - which itself is less bassy than the 2008 and in turn the 2018’s I’ve had. It’s cool to see how over time, more and more bass was added to the tone as players tune lower and lower.

Despite lacking the modern super-deep bass thing, it does have a killer core tone, perfect for 80s hard rock and metal. It has a footswitchable rhythm mode and solo boost, but lead is obviously the focus of this amp. The only negative I can say is that just like all of my other Splawns, the gain control is really more of a “suggestion” and panning it from 3 to 7 is hardly any different, adding a little more compression but not drastically affecting the tone. Couple that with the somewhat odd, Splawn signature mids voicing and it’s really not able to cover classic plexi crunch tones, despite what the head shell might indicate.

New Amp: Ceriatone King Kong 50

I’ve been looking for one of these on and off since the Chupacabra first hit the scene almost a decade ago. I really should’ve ordered one way sooner - but something about waiting 6-8 weeks bothered me. That was a pretty dumb attitude to have because I waited far more than that to get one, and I frequently saw them listed for sale for nearly brand new prices.

I finally located one - priced less than a brand new one - so I jumped on it. I have to say, I am extremely impressed. This may be one of if not the best amp in my entire collection. It can be dialed so many different ways and can really authentically capture classic Marshall tones, flip a few switches and it’s into 80s metal territory or further which is perfect for me. I’m very impressed with this amp and it is certainly a keeper. I think it’s time I looked at a few other Ceriatone models - the DZ30 and AH50 Deluxe both really pique my interest.

New Amp: Marshall 2555x Silver Jubilee Reissue... again

I felt that I didn’t really give his amp a proper chance, so here I am trying it again… and at a better price than I paid for the first one as an added bonus!

My first impression is that it’s very meh through my vintage G12T-75’s, which I love for most things. However, it comes alive through Vintage-30’s…. no surprise there as it was designed with that speaker in mind and Jubilee cabinets come equipped with those from factory.

I’ve since rewired my cabinet so I no longer have the G12H-100 connected that I initially played this amp through the first time I had one. I still think that’s a great speaker and I’ll have to try it back to back with the V30’s and see how it performs with this amp. The more I collect amps, the more I am finding that certain amps just don’t get along with certain speakers.

New Video: 2018 Splawn Street Rod

A little more detail after the comparison between the different circuits of Splawns I’ve owned. I loved this amp but it was just a bit too big for my studio, it’s the largest 1x12 I’ve seen! Great tone though - a bit brighter and bassier than previous circuit iterations. Overall a fantastic amp.

In this video, I play a 1989 Kramer Baretta in Snakeskin finish

New Amp: 2x Marshall JCM900 Mk III - 50w and 100w

Two lovely new Marshalls arrived this week - a pair of JCM900 Mk III’s. I have had the model 2501 for a while (50w Mk III 1x12 combo), and love it, but I’ve been trying to get away from combo amps and keep the heads instead. I spotted a Mk III for a good price on Guitar Center’s listings, so I pulled the trigger. Then the very next day, another one, this time even cheaper! I figured I could return the other one if necessary, so I ordered that one too.

The first one arrived and ended up being a 2500 model, 50 watter. It’s in pretty rough shape both externally and has a loose tube socket rivet, which makes it a big question mark even at the price I got it for… I have some time in the return period to decide. I’ve already spent some time cleaning it up and it does sound great, however.

The second arrived a day later, a 2100 model, 100 watter. I have no preference between 50w and 100w, but since I have the SL-X and a 100w JCM800 2203, I think it’d be cool to have all three of them in 100w form, even if just for the sake of comparison. This one is much cleaner condition wise - hardly any rust at all. On a closer inspection, this head shell has been recovered - a few spots lifting on the back but overall a quality tolex job though it doesn’t match the factory Marshall material. The main pause on this unit is the grid resistors for the power tubes clearly burned out internally - there are some burn marks on the PCB and it has had a professional repair internally - the resistors are now mounted directly to the power tubes like a vintage Marshall would have done. A fuse was also moved to a holder for easier replacement - overall good modifications though I wish the scarring inside weren’t so visible, just for the sake of possibly selling it on later.

After some extensive A/B testing, the 50w is brighter but punchier, but overall I think the 100w has a slight edge on the tone - but that might also be related to the replaced/new components internally (it also has several new caps - I checked the values and they are the same as the factory schematic) which warm it up a bit more. The jury is still out on these two but I’m leaning towards keeping the 100w and sending back the 50w, and someone who appreciates these will get a good deal on it.

New Video: Mesa Mark IV Overview

A long-form video detailing some of the history, circuit design, features, and tones this iconic amp can produce. Took a while to finish this one and it is very long at 38 minutes but I think it came out pretty well!

New Amp: Kasha Rockmod 50 Head

I spotted this online for what seemed like an incredible price for a USA made boutique amp with top of the line components. I’ve had a few smaller name amps and been really blown away by them (PWE) and some that were awful (Kruse) so I really didn’t know what to expect here.

I know it’s a cliche, but all I can say is “wow!” This is a great sounding amp, really amazing tones. Channel 1 is a very full sounding clean tone, not too sparkly but reminds me the Normal channel on a plexi. Channel 2 is crunch, and with the gain about half does a great single channel JCM800 impression with a lot of brightness and grit just like the real one sitting only a few feet away. Channel 3 is the highlight for me, of course, as a fan of high gain tones. It keeps the same core tone going from the previous channel, but now you have a standard “gain” control as well as one titled “post” which effectively is a saturation control. Tweaking these two controls back and forth already results in a variety of great tones before even touching the EQ. Count me a big fan of this amp, and it looks great with so many tubes inside through the mesh front panel, and the HUGE Mercury Magnetics transformers inside.

Another really awesome feature, which I can’t wait to play around with more, is a switch on the front panel called “OT,” short for Output Tubes. It allows you to select from A or B right on the front panel - and all tubes are running so you can switch while playing and really hear the differences between them. Basically, you can put in two different pairs of power tubes, say 6L6 and EL34, and swap between them. Currently, it has a pair of 6550’s and a pair of EL34’s, and it’s very cool to hear the differences between those. This is what I expected from the Egnater Renegade, but was disappointed in the preamp section of that amp even though the blendable power section was cool. While the Rockmod doesn’t allow me to blend the two tube types, the preamp section is fantastic so I’m totally happy with this feature.

New Video: Splawn Comparison

While it’s not secret that Splawn Amps have gone through a number of revisions and circuit changes over the years, I haven’t seen many direct comparisons. Since I have three from a wide range of years, I thought I’d record some clips of the amps at different settings to show how different they sound.

First up, the 2006 Quick Rod. This amp has the offset input jack and 3x 12AX7 preamp tubes. The clean channel gets dirtier if the overdrive channel’s gain is turned off, so I turned it way down for this video. It’s a bit of a quirk of this amp, but you can’t have a pristine clean and a high gain sound footswitchable - you have to sacrifice your clean tone for the high gain overdrive tone. That said, this is still my favorite of the three.

Second, a 2008 Quick Rod, which has a much darker/smoother circuit and an additional preamp tube for the clean channel, bringing the total to 4x 12AX7’s.

Last, a 2018 Street Rod, while a slightly different design and lower wattage than the QR’s it is an almost identical circuit and the most up-to-date version I have.

Enjoy!

In this video, I play this sweet Charvel Model 4 in Rainbow Crackle finish

New Amp: Mesa Triple Crown TC-50 Head Gold Tolex

I’ve been occasionally looking for good deals on Mesa amps to add to my collection lately, and after acquiring a Mark V (and being thrilled by it) I started to look at some of other models in the range. I’m covered on Rectifiers, but I have little to no experience with the Electradyne, Royal Atlantic, and Triple Crown models. From what I understand, these share a similar architecture and design ideology.

After spotting a TC-50 on Guitar Center’s used listings for a very good price - and an interesting color I couldn’t quite place (it looked creme to me in the pictures), I snagged it.

Instead of creme or tan like I expected, it’s GOLD tolex! Combined with the carbon fiber front (both top and bottom) and gold piping, it’s quite the striking look. I’m pleased that it’s a bit of a darker gold, so its not too flashy or bright like “gold tolex” would lead you to believe.

I’ve already spent some time dialing it in and my first impressions are good, but not mind blowing. As with any amp, I think it’s important to spend some time with it, try different speakers and settings, as well as guitars, so anything I say below could change as I get more time with it. The spring reverb is fantastic though - no complaints there.

The drive channels sound a bit like a Mark series amp, especially with the “tight” switch turned on, but the EQ structure is different - more like dialing a Marshall amp. Set to the “normal” setting, it gets a little flubbier in the bass but also fuller - really akin to a rectifier style amp. The “tight” switch does not only affect the bass though, it adds some hair and midrange grit to the tone as well - it’s really more accurate to call it a “voicing” switch than anything else. The tone flows nicely from Channel 2 to 3, you can keep the same core tone and change EQ, gain, or volume and it still sounds like the same amp, which is a plus. The Mark V can be a bit of a “3 amps in one box” whereas the TC50 is definitely just “one amp with 3 gain levels.”

The Cleans and “drive” mode on the clean channel are superb right off the bat - it’s the drive channels that will take a little more time to get along with. With the presence dialed back, or alternatively the treble down and presence up, it is easy to dial a great classic rock crunch on this channel, or a full sounding dirty clean.

More Details Here