I am in a hurry to decide on what head I'm going to buy. I have a show coming up with Origin and it would be a little embarassing to be playing on a peavey 212 combo...Anyway I play brutal death metal (Guttural Secrete, Devourment, Disgorge) My main worry it the distortion cleans dont matter to me...I need good low end with lots of gain...My choices as of right now are the Crate GT3500H (Great LOW end), Spider II HD Line 6 (very wet/gainy distortion)...I'm NOT interested in a tube amp right now so if you have any other suggestions on what head i should get, or even better give details on the two heads of my choice please explain. Thank you.

I know you said no tube heads but a 5150 would really nail all those tones and Guttural Secrete are locals there pretty cool guys If you would like I could ask em what set up there rockin now

Don't buy any of the two heads you mentioned.


Randall Cyclone. Or almost anything Randall makes, except for the Titan/T2. The VMax is like the Cyclone.

yeah the shockwave will sound great for brutal death metal but might not give you the volume you need. Unless you can get a full stack of 4 ohm cabs to get the ideal ohmage.

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I second the notion of the 5150. I also agree that you shouldnt get either of the amps you mentioned. The 5150 sounds like exactly what you need.

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That would be really helpful if you did ask them for me. I'm guessing they are using rectifiers by the sound of there tone, also ask them what other amps they might suggest if you could. Thanks

engl

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y the 2 same threads??

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It was an accident. My computer lags so I clicked post twice I guess.

Could you perhaps give me some suggested settings? There is a 5150 at Guitar Center here in town and I want to try it without not know what the hell I'm doing.

Well to my understanding from other threads, you have owned a gt3500. I have an 8 ohm cab so that would give me about 160 watts from the crate. That seems to be pleny volume. The gt3500 sounds alot like devourment (molesting the decapitated) concidering they used a Crate GT-200DH...I'm really leaning on the GT3500 alot. Low end distortion (no muddiness) is what i need and it has it. I just hope when its get loud it would sound totally shitty and messy. So to be sure I want it Guitar Center is ordering one today for me to play on, then I'll serious pay attention on the sound.

It will. I know because I owned one. I am telling you, in the store you'll think that its as loud as hell and the best thing you've ever heard, but when you put it up against your drummer you'll be horrified.

Of all the s.s. amp heads I've seen/played, the Randall Cyclone impresses me the most. There's a local band that has two guitarists, one has a 350 watt Crate and the other has the 300 watt Cyclone, and you can't hear the Crate guy even though he has his volume and EQ's maxed, and the Cyclone guy does'nt even have his amp's volume maxed.

John, you used to swear by that GT-3500.
It'll be good if you aren't expecting that full 350 watts out of it.

I haven't tried the Cyclone, but like John said to me, if you can find an Ampeg VH-140, that'll do you really well. I got one that is less than reliable, but thats probably due to how it looks like it was treated. When it is working RIGHT, it sounds GREAT. And its louder than my buddy's Spider II Half Stack, which, gives you really great low end. I used to trash that amp until playing on it...

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Any amp should do what its promised. I had the Crate back when I lived with my parents ... and whenever they were'nt home for kicks I'd take an extra long cord, stand in another room and crank it up. Just so you know, kiddies, even this is not a sufficient test of volume that's going to tell you whether or not the amp is capable of holding it together in a band situation.

Yes, I used to think that the Shockwave was the end-all be-all in s.s., now I don't from experience, and I want to warn other people of my experiences before they shell out the 500$ for it as well. Nothing's wrong with that.

Damn that really sucks to hear that it wont cut it with a drummer. I mean i thought since it would 160 watts @ 8 ohms it would be fine, but if you owned one i guess u kow wat ur talkin about...I used to want a cylcone a long time ago but I was unsure how the distortion sounded, because it isnt like I able to try it out (since its discountinued) so even if I bought the cyclone I'd only be goin by reviews and your opinion (no offense) I'm just extremely picky when it come to my distortion. So the only remotly easy way gettin a Cyclone is from e-bay and it isnt like I can return it if I dont like it. Like I discribed before I need very High-Gain/Punchy Low-End distortion.

I would say go for a Randall. Try to get an older model, like a G2 or earlier models. The one I have suits me very well. Ive never tried the newer G3 ones so I wont say anything about those. Im sure you can find one if you just check out any local music shop(thats how i found my Randall head).

I think I'm gonna end up gettin the GT3500H. I played it loud the other day at The Guitar Center and it sounded good (good Low end without gettin muddy). I think it'll do the job with my band. I'm not gonna buy an amp that I could never play on first (cyclone) and I dont have the budget and willongness to maintain a tube amop(5150) If you can still tell me a good amo I could try out at a music store, tell me! Plus, Devourment has used the GT series heads for years until Ruben took over, then they started using a prosesser. Thanks for all your adivice though everyone. I appreicate it.

dont even consider a spider, i just took mine in yesterday for repairs that it needed 8 months ago. Thats right, it started fucking up 4 months after i bought it. they're built as well as a house built by crackheads... you know, cardboard and tinfoil... But, they do have a sweet low end

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dude theres no freakin maintenance with a tube amp. all you have to do is every once in a while buy some little glass things and plug em in. you would love a 5150, i can tell its exactly what your looking for. HAHA horray for my keen awsomness!! seriosly though, go with the randal if your goin solid state, or maybe tech 21....no you migh tnot be able to get your sound out,
GET a rack set up!!

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kinda sucks at band practice, my amp is slowly getting quiter. I guess the tubes are dying.
the other guitarist uses a line 6 flextone 212 or something and it is currently louder than my BV half stack.

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If you've got the cash, get an Engl Fireball or Powerball. You'll never ever have amp GAS.

But for something more affordable, grab a good 4x12 cab, an Engl E530/Digitech 2110/Modded ADA MP1 preamp and a Carvin solid state poweramp(the 9000W model, I think John Holland has one).

If you simply want solid state sound, get a preamp from Tech 21/Sansamp!! They kick ass. The Trademark 300(300W head) is a really good choice too. Best solid state shit you can buy in stores nowadays.

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twist the knobs to your liking. Pre gain is the distortion and post gain is the volume the amp is giving out. I'd buy that sucker without even thinking twice...that is of course if the price is right. Presence is for the reverb of the trems and resonance is the reverb for the bass...if that isn't right it is the other way around. Make sure you put it in standby and let it warm up before trying it. Enjoy.

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