New Amp: Mesa Dual Rectifier Roadster

Well here it is, the ultimate Rectifier (almost). Not quite the top of the range “Road King,” this amp shares most of its features. Four channels, including two clean channels supposedly ripped from the Lonestar amp series, a spring reverb tank, an insanely huge footswitch, and the two Recto distortion channels we all know and love, this seems like just about the perfect amp on paper.

And it is a hell of an amp, with one of the best spring reverbs and clean channels I’ve ever heard. My preference has been to run channel 2 in clean mode as my main clean sound, then use channel 1 in tweed mode for a slightly pushed clean sound. Channel 2’s “brit” mode replaces the “tweed” of channel 1, and I find the “brit” mode to be a bit underwhelming and too bright without enough bass to back it up.

Channels 3 and 4 are supposed to be the same as the classic rectifier drive channels, but it’s pretty clear they aren’t exact copies. These channels have a bit less gain than either my 3 channel or 2 channel Rev G rectiifiers, and unlike the 3rd channel of that triple rec, channel 4 on the roadster does not have the same very sensitive Presence control taper to manipulate the tone.

I also notice this amp, when compared to my other rectifiers, has a tendency to overwhelm the cabinet with bass frequencies resulting in the speakers farting out at volume. This problem is the worst on this amp, happens occasionally on the 3 channel, and only very rarely on the 2 channel - I guess this is intentional since it seems Mesa is designing their amps to accentuate this. Perhaps if I were using brand new speakers instead of vintage ones I wouldn’t notice as much.

It sounds like I’m not thrilled with this amp - I am, it’s a great amp. But I think in the quest to again offer more versatility, it falls a little flat as far as achieving the now classic rectifier distortion tones. It does get close though, and the extra versatility especially the dual clean channels can really add a lot of options. Coupled with the other cool features of this amp it’s hard to argue with its value, though I think it’s pretty indicative that these amps regularly sell for around the same price as standard 2 and 3 channel rectifiers. You’d think with all of these cool features and an extra channel it’d be worth more, but I’m sure I’m not the only metal player who would rather have a more standard rectifier.

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New Amp: Marshall Silver Jubilee 2555x Reissue

I saw this amp pop up in Guitar Center’s used section online for a reasonable price. I figured hey, if it’s a reissue it’s not a good price, but if it’s an original it’s a great deal and I’d be able to try it out and possibly sell it for a profit down the line. So I called the store it was located at and spoke with the associate who told me, with certainty, this was the real deal original.

Flash forward a week and a reissue arrives, with some weird blue spray paint on one side, and a big dent in the corner of the chassis on the back. Let’s just say I was disappointed.

Not with the tones mind you - in fact, I really enjoyed this amp. The rhythm channel is fantastic and gets a great dirty clean tone going, and the lead channel can be dialed in for some great 80s rock tones. The EQ on this amp is a bit more sensitive than the usual 80s Marshall design and covers a lot of ground, and is a bit darker as well.

I feel I have to return this one since it was not as described, and I feel I can get a reissue at a better price if I wait a bit longer. It’s a shame because it’s a really great amp and I’d love to keep it in the collection, but I’ll get another one someday - and probably a reissue at that as from my research it is a bit more reliable and has a better effects loop.

New Amp: PWE Event Horizon 3

I was just so thrilled with my PWE Event Horizon that days after it arrived, I spotted an EH3, the latest model, for sale online and marked down substantially. I couldn’t resist and wanted to find out the differences between them for myself, so I ordered it.

In short - this is another highly impressive amp build and it is quite different from the original EH I already have.

This one actually has a serial number, dating it to 2017. This time, it is a true three channel amp. The Hyperon control is gone, but the Tachyon control lives on but without it’s cool name as a 4-position rotary bright cap selector. There are separate bright controls for each channel.

Clean and Crunch channels share an EQ, but have separate gain and volume level controls. The “blow” channel returns and is similar to the high gain mode of the original EH, however interestingly the EH3 has less gain on channel 3 than the original EH has available on tap. However, this solves my only complaint with the original EH and you can now jump from clean, crunch, and lead tones all from the footswitch (which I’m sorely missing as it was not included). This time, the clean channel is capable of a bit more dirt and sounds even better than the original for chording and strumming, though I think the original EH’s clean could rival even the best jazz amps for that style of clean tone.

Since I always have at least some complaints about any amp, here’s my issue with this one: the “blow” channel completely flubs out when using high output pickups. I’m not sure if there is a mismatch, crossover distortion, or maybe just simply too much bass being allowed out of the input gain stage (that last one seems most likely), but when playing this amp using say, my Seymour Duncan Blackouts, EMG 85, or Duncan Invader and hitting a few palm muted chords, all of the upper mids and treble detail fade out and the lower strings overtake the sound. Interestingly, if I throw on a boost like the Boss SD-1 or Ibanez TS-7 I’m so fond of, this problem goes away completely. I think it’s pretty clear that a boos pedal which cuts some bass solves the problem completely, so maybe a few component changes to the input gain stage to cut some bass would prevent this problem from happening? The problem is not present on pickups like my Duncan JB and lower output though, and that’s most of my guitars so it’s really a minor issue. Interestingly, the original EH does not suffer from this issue, at least not as much.

That minor complaint aside, this is a heck of an amp. I’ve done a lot of comparing between my amps and especially between the EH3 and the original EH and I really think I can justify keeping both as they really are two different amp designs. The EH3 even has only 3 preamp tubes - compared to the EH’s 5.

Critically important on the EH3 is the Negative Feedback control. On the EH, it’s just a nice adjustment to dial in different textures to the tone, but there’s not really a bad setting on it. On the EH3 however, it can take the amp from ear piercing and terrible, to completely muted and lifeless. I’m not complaining - I like that it’s so much more adjustable and versatile than it was before. Manipulating this control is #1 the first thing any new owner should do before even touching any of the brightness and front panel EQ controls. I didn’t understand this at first and really struggled to get tones I liked, and thought the original EH was a better amp. After spending a bit more time tweaking, mainly this control, that’s not the case at all. I find this control can land me squarely in the classic tone ballpark that I love so much and a really minor tweak can take me up into modern rock territory. My preferred method is to set it fairly low and add the sparkle with the brightness controls, so I can get all three channels sounding a bit different from each other to cover more ground. Amazing amp!

New Amp: PWE Event Horizon

While searching around for a Fryette/VHT Sig:X amp, I spotted this PWE Amp. I’ve seen these compared to Landry’s, Bogners, and other boutique modded Marshall type designs and heard glowing reviews of them. It was an auction, so I waited until close to the end and just put in the starting bid and figured if I’m lucky, I’ll get it. Boutique amps like this are hard to sell sometimes because their names aren’t as recognizable or searched as often as the big names, and I was lucky and won it for a fair price.

When it first arrived, it sounded great right off the bat and I was enjoying some of the more interesting non-standard controls. However, it popped a a preamp tube and the clean channel died (actually got the tube so hot it physically cracked open and turned white). I put in a brand new tube hoping it would fix the issue, and it did for a while but then the same issue happened again. Maybe Guitar Center has desensitized me to things like this, but the way I see it a tube amp is a complicated device that needs regular maintenance and the occasional tech touch-up to keep running well. I send an email over to Ted Stevenson, the designer and builder of these amps. I received a prompt response with some general troubleshooting directions, and after the first few attempts didn’t fix the issue (I located a run on the PCB leading to that tube that was 400v instead of 200v like the other side), we spoke on the phone for a while and he helped me trace that run and helped me figure out the issue. That really says something to me - as someone who bought a used amp Ted has no obligation whatsoever to help me out and he could’ve just told me to send the amp in for service and that’s it. I was able to touch up a solder joint inside and I was immediately back in business.

The clean channel now is running at the correct voltage - before it was running at a much higher voltage which did result in a marginally cleaner tone, but I’m much happier now using the amp as intended and can get a little hint of grit on the clean channel with the gain maxed, which is my preference.

The drive channel sounds incredible with almost no tweaking - and there is a switch that takes this channel from a normal/classic gain up to a high gain mode. I love both modes on this amp, it gets nice and saturated, and is very full sounding and polite, if anything. Dial in the Hyperon and Tachyon (bright switch) controls, or use the negative feedback control on the back, and you are in aggressive metal territory with extra presence and cut over the same thick core tone - and that’s before even touching the high sensitive 3-band EQ controls, or the presence and depth controls (on the back). This amp has incredible versatility. It also came with a 3-button footswitch, which allows switching channels, turning on/off the effects loop, or switching to the “blow” channnel, which is just channel 2 with an alternate volume control.

My only suggestion to improve this beauty is that if channel 2 is set to the low gain mode, I wish pressing the blow switch also engaged the high gain switch as well. That’d turn it into essentially a 3 channel amp, where a clean, crunch, and lead tone could all be footswitched. The default arrangement only goes from clean to crunch, or clean to high gain modes, though it is still nice to have that second volume level control available for solos and the like. I suppose if it were wired like this from factory, I’d be complaining that it switched for me and I couldn’t have my crunch tone louder for solos instead, so I’m really nitpicking here. Count me a big fan and hugely impressed by this amp.

New Amp: Orange Rockerverb 50 Mark III

Yes - that’s right - two Oranges on the same day. The Thunderverb arrived from UPS (had to go pick it up at the distribution center because the package was marked return to sender… I wasn’t going to let that happen) and this amp popped up at a Guitar Center about 50 miles away.

I drove down and took a long lunch break to pick this amp up. Disappointingly, the local GC was a bit of a mess but they did try their best to help me - basically I’d placed the order online and they had to cancel it, but I wanted to use Paypal because I got 5% cash back that quarter. When they cancelled, it didn’t appear back online and I couldn’t just pay with Paypal in store. Finally we worked around it by buying a GC Gift Card online with paypal, which I then immediately redeemed in-store for the amp. Kind of a roundabout way to solve the problem but either way, I got my 5% cash back which is what I really wanted (especially on an amp in the $1000+ range!).

Unlike the Thunderverb, this amp also has two channels but the dirty channel has an extra gain stage - 4 total - while the clean channel only has 2. The tube complement between these amps is the same and if I had to bet, the circuit is probably very similar as well.

However, the Rockerverb is voiced quite differently to the TV. It’s hard to describe exactly, but the Rockerverb is more modern and when I think of current bands using Oranges this is closer to that tone for sure. It’s a bit brighter, maybe a tad more scooped, definitely smoother sounding. That’s not to say this is a scooped amp, this is still a British ultra-strong mids machine, but the mids have a different character to their grit than the Thunderverb.

This being the Mark III model, the reverb mix control is dialed back to more sane levels, and I can easily turn it up to around half before it starts to get too crazy. The Thunderverb has the same Reverb setup as the earlier Rockerverb Mk I, and even the 9 O’clock mark is usually too much reverb and as much as the Mark III has set to full.

One cool features I was not expecting is that all of the front panel knobs on this amp have soft detents. As you turn the knob, it very softly clicks into place a number of times during its travel. The clicks really add a feeling of high quality to this amp and it’s really a pleasure to dial in, and the detents are spaced apart just enough to feel like they have an appreciable effect, but not so far that you can’t fine tune your sound. It’s also really great for home playing, for example I know in my head that up 3 notches (6 or 7 total) on the master “attenuator” volume control is as loud as I can reasonably get away with at home, so when I’m alone I click up 3 notches from where I was then back down 3 when I’m done… really convenient.

I can see why the Rockerverb is Orange’s top seller (as far as the “big” amps go) and it isn’t even close to stepping on the toes of the Thunderverb and really does completely different tones. It’s a shame the Thunderverb is discontinued since I think it really does the more classic Orange tones better, and with the recent discontinuation of the OR50/OR100 models it really only leaves the Custom Shop 50 for true classic tones. Maybe Orange will have something up their sleeves on the way - but I’ll certainly be on the lookout for a classic OR of some kind now.

New Amp: Orange Thunderverb 50

I’ve been wanting and Orange for a long time, and the OR15 has become one of my favorite amps to test out guitars since they are so commonly found in Guitar Centers and the like. I’ve read the OR15’s single channel is derived from the Rockerverb, so that amp made my list. However, I’ve also been interested in the AD30HTC, Thunderverb, Rocker 30, and OR50/80/100/120’s for various reasons. I have played the AD30 extensively and found it to be great at the classic rock mid-gain crunch tones, and it’s very bright and cutting - a bit different from the 70s darker Orange tones. I really couldn’t figure out the exact differences between the Thunderverb, Rocker, Rockerverb, and OR50’s so I would be happy to get any of those models and start collecting a few of them to compare to each other.

This Thunderverb popped up for a reasonable price, though I wish it had the Orange colored headshell instead of black. Cosmetics take a back seat for me though, especially for amps, so I placed the order.

It’s a great amp and I’ve learned a lot about Oranges in the process. This one has 3 gain stages on either channel, so it can be dialed to be two clean channels, or two overdriven channels in any combination you please. I am loving this for classic rock covers, and it doesn’t really get all that high gain - certainly not as much gain as the OR15’s I’ve played. It really needs a boost to get into metal territory, even classic metal.

The amp is dark, but has a very meaty midrange. A brighter boost like my Boss SD-1 really wakes this up and unlike some of my other amps, adding this boost also adds a lot of treble detail to the tone and helps give it more presence. This is awesome to me as it’ll do the more polite classic tones but just kick on the boost and suddenly I’m in 80s metal territory, or even modern metal tones if I want to go there, especially with Channel B’s shape feature which is essentially a V shaped EQ anywhere above about 11 O’clock.

New Amp: Marshall JCM800 Model 2205 Split Channel

I am on quite the streak with Marshall amps lately. On the same trip returning that Blankenship Plexi, my local GC happened to get this amp in stock, also on a customer return - they actually had to pull it from the back because it was not out on display.

I’m not sure why this amp was returned - I gave it a complete playthrough and tested every feature at every reasonable volume before taking it home for myself. A nice bonus, no shipping charge for once!

While we most commonly think of the “JCM800” as the sound of the 2203 and 2204 amps, the moniker “JCM800” is actually a range of models. You could buy a 1987/1959 circuit plexi circuit in a JCM800 shell, as well as your popular 2203/2204 circuits, or even this “split channel” circuit.

Lots of conflicting information floats around about these split channel JCM800 amps, model numbers 2205 (50w) and 2210 (100w) and their combo amp equivalents. Officially introduced in the year 1982, though I have seen some units with 1981 serial numbers, these were designed to push guitar tones and amp design into the next decade. With louder and higher gain tones demanded by artists of the time, and Eddie Van Halen’s famous Marshall Powered “brown sound” at the forefront of everyone’s mind, this amp was designed to offer both more gain as well as a more classic clean-ish normal channel, plus an effects loop and direct preamp line out for studio and modern PA usage.

Early models (82-84/85ish) had an odd placement of the EQ section, resulting in quite mixed reviews compared to the classic 2203/2204 models, which continued on from the JMP range that preceded the JCM800 range. With slow sales and mixed reviews, the split channel range was completely redesigned sometime in 1984 or 1985. The exact time is difficult to pin down but I have done my research and talked with others on the Marshall amp forums and found a few examples of 1985 and even 1984 models with the new circuit design. This redesigned circuit has less channel bleed, more gain, and the gain is structured differently - a bit more the Marshall sound we know and love, but darker and more saturated.

The premise is still the same though - both channels run in parallel much like a Plexi, but instead of separate inputs, they share the same input jack and can be footswitched to alternate between them. The “normal” channel is very much a stripped down non-master volume circuit (and can get extremely loud) and has only bass, treble, and volume controls. The “boost” channel is the evolution of the “high treble” channel on a plexi, and gets a lot of gain plus has the addition of a clipping diode circuit for even more gain. This channel has the usual 3-band EQ, a channel volume, and gain control. Both channel share a master section with an overall master volume, presence, and a reverb control which mixes in a tube driven spring reverb tank - groundbreaking features at the time.

My experience in the past with a 1982 model was disappointing, but I had played a 1988 model in a store long ago but didn’t have the money for it. This 1985 unit has the later circuit and sounds every bit as good as I remembered. It has a good amount of gain, but not so much that it gets overly saturated with a boost, and even the clean channel is bright and snappy and sounds great, if a little loud and hard to control at times. The master volume makes it surprisingly easy to get a decent tone at home studio volumes too. My only complaint is the reverb implementation is a little weak sounding, but it is the first attempt ever from Marshall at this sort of design. It can be turned off from the knob or footswitched off as well. The real highlight is the boost channel, which is just a killer 80s rock and metal tone, though I feel it really has to have the bass maxed out to sound good. The treble control is incredible sensitive, I usually set it around 3 for most music but if I take it up to 5 or 6, and especially if I lower the mids as well, it becomes a very aggressive thrash metal tone machine.

New Amp: Blankenship Variplex 1959 Clone (Kruse Modded)

I’ve been thinking a nice Plexi would be a great addition to the quiver, and I spotted this one online at Guitar Center’s used listings (big surprise!). The Kruse mods listed was a volume control, and since I’d likely be adding a master volume anyway I figured that’d be one less thing I’d have to deal with.

It finally arrived and just… wow. This thing is trashed. First of all, the amp came with no tubes at all, and no power cable. I borrowed a spare power cable and tubes from my stash and powered it up. It sounds like a wet fart and any volume level - and that’s not an exaggeration. I’m not sure how else to even describe it, it sounds like a broken speaker flapping around, especially on the lower strings. The modifications include removing the standby switch for a rotary selector with different wattages indicated (a variac style volume?) as well as another master volume that replaces the presence knob.

It’s really a shame to see this modifications done to this amp. I didn’t know much about Blankenship before, but after some digging I’ve found them to be highly expensive, true to component Marshall 1959 clones with impeccable quality and top of the line components. Inside are Mercury and Classic Tone transformers/choke, high end Sozo caps, and a beautiful red point to point turret board. Sadly, the mods are pretty shoddily done and caked in some glue/epoxy making it difficult to even tell what is wrong with it.

Another screw up saved by Guitar Center’s return policy, though still sad such a special amp is essentially going into the trash/repair bin.

2021 Update: This one has a happy ending! The new owner contacted me, and Roy himself even chimed in and this amp has been fully restored to its former glory. My only regret is that it’s not mine anymore!

New Amp: Marshall JCM900 Mk III Model 2501

After my great experience with the JCM900 SL-X head, I knew the next on my list would be the Mk III in some form. I spotted this one online for a great price and had to have it, despite the combo form factor growing increasingly less appetizing for me (my music room is starting to get very tight on space!).

This one dates from 1990, is equipped with EL34 tubes, and is essentially the 50w Model 2500 head in a short chassis mounted into a small combo amp. It also comes equipped with one of my all time favorite speakers, the Celestion G12H-100 from the same year. Despite its compact size, it is fairly heavy and kind of cool for a combo amp, comes equipped with inset side handles much like the Marshall 1960 cabinets do, so moving this amp around is a breeze. Really, it’s the ultimate single channel “jam” amp and couple with a 2x12 or 4x12 speaker cab could likely cover just about any gig (the larger speaker cab only needed to fill out lower frequencies in the room, the 1x12 gets plenty loud on its own!)

Much like the SL-X, this was the continuation of the single channel Super Lead Mk II amps of the 70s and 80s. It has a single channel, but two footswitchable master volume controls and a second gain control - in this case controlling the amount of clipping diode distortion added in the preamp. The nice thing about the Mk III is that you can turn this extra gain completely off by rolling the knob down to zero, essentially lowering the voltage passing through the clipping circuit so the diodes never reach minimum voltage to activate. This gets you the classic 3-stage gain structure of your favorite 2203/2204 JMP’s and JCM800s. While the overall circuit does have some differences, this is very authentic sounding and can nail those classic tones as well as a few new ones with the additional controls and effects loop.

New Amp: Marshall JCM900 SL-X Model 2100

It’s really hard not to habitually search the Guitar Center used listings. It gives you access to a completely haggle free experience - some items grossly overpriced but others so underpriced it’s criminal. This is the latter - a beautiful SL-X head dating from 1993 complete with EL34 tubes - the most desirable in the SL-X run. The only issue I can spot is one of the plastic caps on the top handle cracked away - talk about a minor issue barely worth mentioning.

This is my first single channel Marshall amp and it’s a blast. This is the continuation of the Mark III, and by extension the Mark II series Super Lead amps. You get the bare bones features - one channel - with some cool modern features like two gain controls, two master volumes (footswitchable) and a high/low power switch - in an amp with just incredible tone.

Interestingly, it doesn’t feel “high gain” by modern standards - it’s certainly not the high gain metal monster I was led to believe by internet reviews and really it’s no slouch at classic Marshall tones. I can see why bands like Kiss used these on tour in the 90s - they are great at nailing those classic tones they were known for but can go just a bit further if you want them too.

Despite having 5 gain stages and a second gain control to dial them in, this is not going to replace a modded Marshall, or a Marshall with a boost. Instead, it allows you to dial in a bit more saturation to use with that same boost or a subtle variation on the classic Super Lead Mk II sounds. It has far less gain than my Splawns or the Mesa Marks and Rectos of the same era, for example. It really is your favorite classic Marshall tones, just pushed to 11… or maybe 12.