Am I missing out on anything with boutique amps?

[braintheory]

Just get a wizard MTL2 and your ears will tell you what you been missing fr .

Solid advice here. To answer the OP, that is an example of an amp that will be significantly better in things like clarity, note definition, punch and chugs. The amps he mentioned (Driftwood, recent Diezel’s and Savage II) were honestly some of the more disappointing amps for me

 

[glpg80]

Solid advice here. To answer the OP, that is an example of an amp that will be significantly better in things like clarity, note definition, punch and chugs. The amps he mentioned (Driftwood, recent Diezel’s and Savage II) were honestly some of the more disappointing amps for me

Honestly I find MTL to lack anything in mids that make a Marshall a Marshall. Every time I hear a recording I don’t hear anything I’d prefer, but it’s the latest rig talk hype.

Wish we could hold more amp fests - it really helps people find what they like and don’t.

 

[stratjacket]

Pretty much agree with everyone here, you’re only missing out if you’re not happy with your sound. Curiosity killed the cat after all. “Better tones” is completely subjective. I love and play my $800 used JVM205 as much as I do my $4k Soldano SLO.

 

[braintheory]

Honestly I find MTL to lack anything in mids that make a Marshall a Marshall. Every time I hear a recording I don’t see anything I’d prefer, but it’s the latest rig talk hype.

Wish we could hold more amp fests - it really helps people find what they like and don’t.

The MTL is hollow in the mids. That’s true. It’s more a Hiwatt/Marshall hybrid imo. It’s really not a Marshall flavor imo. Better not to view it that way, but more as just its own thing. It’s an amp that recordings seem to not capture well. Definitely not the perfect amp for everyone, but it punches really hard and has a rock solid quality to the notes that I’ve not yet heard in anything else, but still feels good to play overall and very open sounding

Agreed, would love more ampfests. I went to one from this forum about 6 years ago (Peters ampfest) and it was really great. Amazing and refreshing to see how much nicer guys actually were in person lol

 

[Samhain]

You're missing the "Boutique" price tag cuz everyone know $$$ equals tone.

 

[cragginshred]

If you ever get a chance to try a Slo 100 you will hear an articulation of the gain structure that has zero fizz. Just note distinction.
The 5150 line all have way too much gain and gobs of compression which provides the opposite of note articulation.

They are fun to play through but the Slo 100 or BE deluxe 100 are a billion times better and closer to Marshalls without the shrill top end
The BE deluxe amps have a system volume and amazing master volumes that don't exist on other heads. Both my Slo 100 and Be deluxe were purchased used/mint so I did not pay anywhere near full price.

Add in real estate and overhead to be hand wired in the USA and with inflation the price is consistent with what Mike Soldano charged EVH in the early 90's

But as it has been said if you dig what you have rock on!!

 

[Mark Skid]

Marshall, VOX, Ampeg, Fender tweed, and HIWATT for me. If I were to purchase a new MV amp, it would be a Wizard.

 

[braintheory]

If you ever get a chance to try a Slo 100 you will hear an articulation of the gain structure that has zero fizz. Just note distinction.
The 5150 line all have way too much gain and gobs of compression which provides the opposite of not articulation.

They are fun to play through but the Slo 100 or BE deluxe 100 are a billion times better and closer to Marshalls without the shrill top end
The BE deluxe amps have a system volume and amazing master volumes that don't exist on other heads. Both my Slo 100 and Be deluxe were purchased used/mint so I did not pay anywhere near full price.

Add in real estate and overhead to be hand wired in the USA and with inflation the price is consistent with what Mike Soldano charged EVH in the early 90's

But as it has been said if you dig what you have rock on!!

I agree with some of that (have an ‘89 SLO myself), but the OP specifically is looking for modern metal tones and the SLO and Friedman’s are really not suited toward that

 

[LP Freak]

Not to mention if you have a 3000$ amp, you are more likely to move it with gloves on and keep it in a display case so it holds value.

The only thing you are missing is a good 2204 clone which you could pick up for around 1000 or under. Granger, Ceriatone, even chinese knock off. Just to mix up the tones. Then you can waste your money on boost pedals instead! lol It really is difficult to part with gear once you have acquired it. Even stuff I don't use or look at... just can't do it!

Not me, I bring $10k in gear to make $100 at a gig…fuck it! ?

 

[LP Freak]

You're missing the "Boutique" price tag cuz everyone know $$$ equals tone.

Sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn’t. It’s usually people that can afford boutique gear that make these claims.

 

[Mark Skid]

I agree with some of that (have an ‘89 SLO myself), but the OP specifically is looking for modern metal tones and the SLO and Friedman’s are really not suited toward that

What is "modern metal"?

 

[cardinal]

Eh. For many things I'd rather a 6505+ than an SLO. I've had both.

 

[glpg80]

Eh. For many things I'd rather a 6505+ than an SLO. I've had both.

A 6505+ made in USA with a few tweaks (Choke, OT upgrade, biased correctly, etc) at volume give SLOs a run for their money. Also 6505+ aren’t compressed or grainy once cranked - they aren’t bedroom amps. It’s why I keep mine around - I know what it can do at band practice volumes and not at home practice TV volumes.

 

[cardinal]

A 6505+ made in USA with a few tweaks (Choke, OT upgrade, biased correctly, etc) at volume give SLOs a run for their money. Also 6505+ aren’t compressed or grainy once cranked - they aren’t bedroom amps. It’s why I keep mine around - I know what it can do at band practice volumes and not at home practice TV volumes.

Yeah, I get frustrated with the 5150/5152 amps at low volumes. At least mine are a bit muddy. I don't know if they all are. A boost fixes that. But all the low end rumble recedes to the background if you can get it up to room-rattling levels.

 

[Smash]

My bedroom volume is most people's gig volume. I have a Wizard. I played a lot of amps. I could go the rest of my life playing my randall rg150h or the evh 5150 amp i had before it. But that would be such a waste. The way a wizard sounds and especially feels is vastly different from the soldanos or diezels or anything i have tried. It breathes fire. I have never played a MTL or even a MCII. Mids on this aren't Marshall mids, but they are in a similar place. Definitely not hollow. My amp is loud and rude. I wouldn't recommend it if you aren't the type of guy to jump in a river and grab an alligator by the tail. But if you like to be on the edge of fuckin insanity, then it is there.

 

[Metalhex]

What is "modern metal"?

Maybe it has more to do with style than any amp. I like to chug and power chord stuff , like Ola Englund style. I suppose you can do that with most medium to high gain gear though. Just disregard the modern metal tag then.

 

[Smash]

Maybe it has more to do with style than any amp. I like to chug and power chord stuff , like Ola Englund style. I suppose you can do that with most medium to high gain gear though. Just disregard the modern metal tag then.

Yes. Chugging and power chord stuff is life.

 

[DanTravis62]

Depends. For modern metal you're probably fine as you are, though I vastly prefer diezels or wizard mtl for that sound.

I'm not an expert on the satellite radio metal though.

 

[panhead]

I went through a phase in the late nineties Bogner Naylor Wizard VHT THD Demeter Hiwatt Soldano and a modded Cameron etc. I was playing out 3-4 times a week and we had a full blown sidefill monitor mix like 7500 watts. I noticed that all these amps sounded very similar through that system, only at practice did they make a difference. I bought a peavey 50 watt classic cheap as fuck and ran through a greenback cab. Ended up doing that for two years, then went back to early superleads and never bought any amps again.

 

[Mark Skid]

I went through a phase in the late nineties Bogner Naylor Wizard VHT THD Demeter Hiwatt Soldano and a modded Cameron etc. I was playing out 3-4 times a week and we had a full blown sidefill monitor mix like 7500 watts. I noticed that all these amps sounded very similar through that system, only at practice did they make a difference. I bought a peavey 50 watt classic cheap as fuck and ran through a greenback cab. Ended up doing that for two years, then went back to early superleads and never bought any amps again.

The guy who purchased my LP Deluxe last Saturday said almost the same thing. Is this the older style Peavey, or newer? Tube amp, right?