Ok I've thought long and hard about it and I am probably going to be selling my current amp head. It's a Framus Cobra. There is absolutly nothing wrong with it. It's just I feel that the amp only has a select sound. It's a great sounding amp but I'm looking for something that can cover a lot more ground. I play everything from Danzig to Mortician. So I'm looking for an amp that has a good clean sound (jazzy almost), a good rock sound (early Danzig, AC/DC ect), a really over the top chainsaw distortion sound (Entombed, Dismember, Autopsy, Repulsion ect) as well as a thick distortion sound (Morbid Angel, Obituary, Napalm Death, Deicide ect).

I have a few ideas in mind

First off I was thinking of Laboga Mr. Hector. The only band I know of that uses it is Behemoth. Supposidly it can cover all the forms of rock/metal that I'm looking for. It even said it can emulate pedal sounds. But I am kind of hesitant cause usually when amps advertize they can pull these styles off it's usually just a cheap immitation of the sound. The reviews so far have been extreemly possitive but still I don't know if it would have the sound I want. They say it can cover death metal but they are most likley refering to Behemoth style sounds of really clear distortion. I'm looking for grityness.

The second choice I have in mind is an old JCM 800 or possibly a 50 watt plexi head. Just a bare bones single channel amp which gives me freedom to experiment with various distortion pedals I have around which may or may not be good.

I was also looking at a Carvin Legacy head. Deffinatly the cheapiest out of the bunch but the reviews on it have been really possitive. Although it probably is more of a lead/shread amp and not really ment for death metal but perhaps a few pedals would help?

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I've gotten great clean tones from my 5150, believe it or not. And although its a bit ballsy if you are attempting to pull out an old ac/dc sound...it can be done if you are patient enough to fool with the eq. But as for what you are thinking, I can't really comment except on the jcm, which is a pretty good amp from my experience with it.

A JCM or a TSL with a preamp would be the fucking nuts. Or go with an Engl. The Fireball I have has plenty of crunch and distortion... and its pretty decent for a straight up AC/DC of Priest style rock sound. The clean tone it gets with a nice guitar and some nice Duncan pickups is pretty damn good too. If you're really that particular, you should obviously try before you buy.

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http://rocksolidamps.com/index.php?...n&ii=119&mid=2#

Here are some sound clips and info on the Laboga for those who haven't heard of it.

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I tried a 5150 and didn't really like it. There is in my oppinion no guts to it. It's very midrange and high end.

I also tried some ENGLS (powerball and fireball) and wasn't overly impressed with them but they are great for what the do.

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ENGL. Any of their high end models can cover any type of music you need...maybe not the chainsaw grind, but another overdrive/gainboost could help with that. Special Edition E670, Invader 150 E640, and Savage 120. Very versatile tones...i love them. My new band has thousands of disposable dollars, and just so happen to have/get any amp. Currently running through a Powerball, and it is god damn amazing, other ones are much more versatile though

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i'd say jcm800

and casket, whered you play the engls? i cant find a single place in toronto with them

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how much would that thing end up costing you in CAD? i'm assuming they don't have a canadian distributor. couldn't you just get something custom built locally? commission the first metalized traynor lol.

My friend. He's gone through like 10 different amps. He just buys a head, tries it for a while, doesn't really dig it and sells it. He's long sold his Engls. I think he has a Diezel Herbert now. Can't remember.

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Not much more. The Canadian doller is pretty much on par with the U.S. Now. I think last week it was more if I'm not mistaken. Around the same price pluss shipping. So about 2 grand which is what my Framus cost.

No I don't think the officially have a Canadian distributor. But smaller music shops around the city can get any gear. With larger store names (Steve's or Long And McQuade) they are signed to distribute specific brands (kind of funny cause Steve's slogan is "IF we don't have it you don't need it lol). But with vintage guitar shops or smaller stores they can order anything.


Most hands go to the JCM 800 eh. I'm surprised no one has given me any feedback on the Laboga.

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well it sounds sick obviously. in that price range you'd better be able to get any sound you want. but its a polish boutique so you better have insane-o chops or else you'll look like a tone questing douche playing it. that's why a custom would be cool. infuse the money with some individuality. ordering in obscure gear to play at home is an old mans game.

you could get a peavey xxx for a quarter of the price and its 3 channels sound exactly like what you're looking for. if you're gifted with incredible ears, maybe that won't cut mustard idk.

its your money, and i wish it mine

JCM800... he did say he wan'ts jazzy cleans, not really gonna get that out of an 800 at least not at gig-able volumes since the power section breaks up quickly.

I'll just go ahead and suggest the Fireball since its the only head I've owned, and although I've played a lot of other amps I wouldn't trade it for any of them.The Fireball really does almost everything and the Powerball gets even closer(extra channels, independent EQ, and gains). They take some time to "settle in" and get used to but honestly I think you'd like it, given the kind of sounds you want.

The cleans are ultra clean and high gain cuts like a bitch. Try one with sovtek lps' in the preamp and it sounds extremely raw, 5150-ish. Or tone down the treble and presence and you can get dark, middy oldschool death metal sounds like you're describing.

As for less over the top gain for rock it really depends on your pickups, and I mean a LOT on your pickups. A paf pro in one guitar makes it sound like van halen and a tonezone in my other guitar sounds like all out brutal death metal, all the settings kept the same, so watch out for that.

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There's a French band, Ataraxie, who now use the Laboga Mr Hector amps, and they sound pretty good- really heavy sound (although their album was recorded before they got them). I've heard good things about them (Laboga), and they're an 'up and coming' manufacturer that's just starting to get noticed a bit more

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I'de recommend the Savage SE or SE instead, much more versatile then the powerball and the fireball. I still have a powerball and it's a great head but the savage does cover way more ground, it also has a better clean channel.

Depending on your budget you could stretch to an Invader, Savage SE or SE. Both great amps and the Savage SE can be had for good prices, it's NLA from engl though but some are still around used. (it's basically the Engl SE's kid brother and was around 1600 euro's new)

I've played the powerball live numerous of times and same goes for the SE, they both hold their ground extremely well.

If you want great cleans and a great distortion channel that could rip someone a new asshole, I'de definetly check out the Diezel VH-4 and the Soldano SLO-100 as well.

The Carvin Legacy wasn't for me, but it might rock your boat.

My budget is around $2000-$2400.

Bassically the distortion sound I want is something that's not super tight or overly bassy. More loose and well rounded distortion. So that's why I was also leaning towards the Marshall JCM 800 or possibly an old Plexi.

Would the ENGL give me that? OR would it be more of a tighter/sharper distortion sound? Cause when I tried my friends either the settings were bad but it really sounded way too sharp in the high end range and too Thunked out in the low end.

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Well, it depends on the rest of your gear as well but loose and well rounded distortion isn't what the powerball/fireball's are good at.

I think the Savage (or Savage SE) might fit you better, the 3'rd channel is more rounded then the 3'rd on the powerball and can definetly do good rocksounds.
The 4th is very hi-gain and tight, but it will depend on your settings as well, the Savage has more tone-shaping options.
Best advice I can give you is trying to get your hands on a Savage or SE to do a test-drive.

For those kind of ammounts I'de probably check out the Bogner XTC, VHT pitbull and Soldano SLO as well. Maybe not in your range when they're new, but very much in your range in the used market. By the description in your first post I think you won't be dissapointed by Bogner.

I have no idea what Toronto is like when it comes to testing out gear, we have most stuff in one store so I just try shit out there for a few hours to see what it's like. (got a shop near me that sells Soldano, Bogner, Engl, Diezel, Mesa, and some other stuff.)

+1 on the SLO

hell, check out alot of soldano's stuff.

I recall my friend telling me of an amp tech in burlington who worked for soldano for a while. I'll see if i can track my buddy down and ask him again.

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I'll check everything out. Might as well.

But my mind is most likley on the JCM 800 or plexi. I have a Pro Co Rat pedal, a DOD Death Metal distortion pedal, and I'm looking at getting a Seymour Duncan Twin Tube Mayhem pre amp. Would those sound good through a 800 or plexi? (Not all at once obviously)

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What exact type of Rat to you have?

I don't like the DOD DM pedal one bit but to each his own.

I've played the jcm800 with a Keeley modded rat (based on the classic) and it sounded pretty good. Also tried other pedals like the TS-9 (not the original thing from the 80's) and an OD-1, but those didn't sound as good.

Just grab whatever pedals you can when you try it out and take your time. The Soldano Hot Rod might be an idea as well if you're looking for that overdriven marshall-like tone.

Thinking back about that post, yes, when it's about gear I really get into it.

What would you rather have, a simple single channel amp with a lot of tapdancing involved to get the right sound or a boutique amp that keeps it's value and has every tone at it's disposal?

Just a thought but it might be an interesting variable as well.

For the most convincing versatility you should check out an Egnater. If you are willing to wait (they are a bit behind) I would say that it would be your best bet. They're the ones that use the modular preamps, Bruce Eganter was the guy who designed the ones for the Randalls as well. For your Jazzy cleans you could use a Bassman or a Twin/Deluxe module. They have a two different Marshall modules that would totally dominate the AC/DC territory. Most of your "mayhem" distortion would be coming from pedals, but they also have higher gain modules if wanted more gain to start with. There are clips at indoorstorm.com under the video review section. The dude has a really irritating voice and a totally dated playing style but you can still get a decent idea of what the modules can do, which is a lot.

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Well even if I have a single channel amp. I'm only going to be playing one pedal at a time. So there is not that much "tapdancing".

I just find with boutique amps they don't really have a raw type sound that I'm looking for. I just have to look into them more. But the Plexi or JCM is deffinalty my top choice now.

Oh and my Rat is from 80 something with some type of special chip in it. I can't recall the specs but I know it's an old one.

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I just checked them out. Pretty damn good. I don't like how you buy all the different modules. And from what I understand they are damn near impossible to come by

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One more question if I do get a Marshall and it's only a 50 watt is it going to make a lot of difference or will the pedals help beef up the sound. Cause I heard a cranked 50 watt sounds better than a half cranked 100 watt.

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That's true, because the powertubes go into saturation quicker.

Solvable by not beeing a pussy and cranking the 100 watter.



Or.. using a power brake.

True, they are very rare to come by and have about a 3 month wait for a new one. I think you would be pretty happy with a Plexi or a JCM800.

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Yeah the powertubes will break up more, but keep in mind that half the wattage ≠ half the volume. With a 100W amp and its 50W counterpart, there will be a volume difference in only about 3dB, which is barely noticeable to the human ear, so don't think a 50w amp is going to get breakup anywhere close to apartment/loud TV volumes!

You can always get the amp biased a lot hotter, that helps.

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I'm going to second Soeru's recommendation of a Fireball, on first glance it seems the most un-versatile amp ever, but its amazing what it can do. The cleans are simply superb, and the really high gain stuff is immense. But the best bit is how it reacts to different pickups. I've played loads through this amp (my Dad runs a small business making custom fenders etc) and I've got everything from Surf tones to Blues Rock to really loose open Doom/Stoner. Whack a set of EMG's in front and its tight as hell, put a set of single coils in front and its twangy and ultra-clean. Awesome amp. If you are going to play live though I recommend a cab with V30's and an EQ, just to keep those mids up.

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I just recently saw an old Marshall JCM 800 head with the toggle switches instead of the red and black flip ones. Which I heard are the best Marshalls. It's only 50 watts and it's going for $900. Would it be a good deal and if I got it rebiased to 100 watts.

I don't think I'm going to go with the fireball. I'm sure it's a great amp but i'm looking for more of a vintage sound.

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Unless you are playing Download or Ozzfest this year I highly doubt that you will need the very small amount of volume that a 100w has over a 50w. Plus I read somewhere that 800's were stupidly loud even in 50w. I assume you'll be using it with hi-output p'ups too, which would help with the volume.

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Uh you cant "rebias" an amp to be 100 watts. Its got two power tubes and an output tranny to match so there isnt anything you can do about that.

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