Eclipse, Butterslax or JJ?

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UpInSmoke

UpInSmoke

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Hey all,

I am trying to decide between a few amps. I want something that does the modded Marshall thing with the punch and articulation of the JCM and more gain and low-end, or just something similar but awesome. I had a BE-100 Deluxe at a time and it was fantastic but it felt a little too polished for what I wanted. But I still love the Friedman sound so I'd go back, maybe a different one.

I'm looking at the Butterslax, JJ, and Helios Eclipse mostly but am considering the Splawn QR, Nitro and the MGL50 HG. I had decided on the Butterslax but the Eclipse and JJ keep making me think twice. I've searched and read a lot, watched videos, the usual digging around, but figured I'd also just ask as I figure more people have more experience with them every day.

Whether you've just tried them, owned them, compared them or were buying yourself, which of them would you pick? Also, if you have any of them you're looking to sell, I'm hoping to do it this week or next. Haha
 
I have a Butterlslax (In Classifieds actually). and have had 2 Quickrods.
2 Different beasts. Quick rods vey stiff, thundering low end with a mid hump (some lie, some don't, can't dial out).
Have't had one in a few years.

Butterslax is that low mid, good bottom end riff machine with incredible lead note sounds and an amazing Plxi Channel 1. Still not sure I am going to part with it (maybe for a BE100dlx). It is still Friedman polite tho if you know what I mean.
My Monomyth 74 and JEL 2204 clone have more mid to upper mid Marshall bark.
Butterslax is a smoother beast. I Usually live on Channel 1 and 2 and boost.
 
I‘ve got a pair of Splawns - a QR and a Nitro - both Fully Loaded 50 Watt variants. All of Scott’s 50 watt offerings run lowered B+ by default, so thedy are not as stiff and unforgiving as earlier 100 watt variants before he started offering the Drop B+ option. The old/new switch and mid/cut switch each boost or cut a different point along the midrange spectrum. Noticeable, but not overwhelming difference. I find they allow the amps to get along more easily with a wider variety of speakers and cabinets. Before owning these 2, I had a 100 watt pair, again a QR and a Nitro, both before the old/new and mid/cut options. I love both amps, but the Nitro is a bit redundant if you have a fully loaded QR - 3rd Gear in the QR with ‘new’ style voicing and the mids cut is essentially a Nitro without the resonance control. 2nd Gear in Old voicing with the mids engaged is just a killer, tight, aggressive JCM on Steroids sound that stays clear and articulate at any amount of gain. A Splawn will let you know if your chops are dialed in, and may tell you to break out the metronome - but they sound so huge in a band mix, whether live or recording. Other amps that have more compression and feel easier, more forgiving to play can be a lot of fun, but just get swallowed up by a kick drum and bass rig. Never played a Friedman - but haven’t heard any clips online that didn’t sound fantastic. The Friedman that keeps turning my head is the Phil-X.
 
Honestly? Grab a used Wizard Modern Classic. It's in the same price range that you're looking at and is the only amp I've played that beats the JCM 800 in terms of punch, articulation, rawness, etc.
 
Owned a slax, currently own a quickrod. The quick rod is definitely more thunderous and unforgiving but closer to the jcm 800 than the slax. The slax is a great amp, but nowhere near as stiff as the quickrod. I boost the QR and didn’t boost the slax for what I needed at the time. I also owned a monomyth 800 with some tweaks to it. Probably my favorite amp I’ve owned and foolishly got rid of it. Although I have a skeleton key coming in soon I still wish I had that 800
 
I’ve owned the JJ, QR and Eclipse. My 2 cents:
QR - Closet thing to the JCM800 of them, great hot rodded Marshall sound. Can’t miss with this if that’s the sound you want. Price is better too.
Eclipse - Thought it would be my dream amp, be all, end all. While it is a great amp with the Marshall sound, just liked my simple JCM 800 better.
JJ - To me, a more modern take on the JCM800. Can definitely dial it in with more versatile sounds.

All great amps, can’t go wrong with any of them. If you’re like me, you’ll eventually end up running through them all anyway over time, so I’d just start with the best deal you can find and go from there.
 
If you think the BE is too polished .... I believe all of the Friedmans will be in that same realm of polish. Ive had all 3. If youre looking for that raw aggressive sound the Splawn or Eclispse would be more in that vein.
 
I hate to be the guy going outside your list, but have you considered the JVM?
 
I gigged Quick Rods and also had a Super Comp. I loved from Splawn to a Helios 100, which I found absolutely perfect. I ran it as a single channel amp as that was what I needed for my hard rock band. Raw and aggressive, but had a bit more control of the top end and it didn't get as fatiguing as the QRs did. Similar vibe with the Helios also being a little more forgiving and notes up high felt a little thicker. All things I liked just a little more

I did compare the Helios 100 to an Eclipse and found my 100 was a bit more raw and aggressive. More open and bigger in a way. Probably splitting hairs in a band mix, but my bit of A/Bing told me the 100 was a better fit for me. If I needed more live switching versatility though the Eclipse would win.

Never played any Friedman. The 'polished' label always turned me away as when I was in the rock band I was always looking for raw and aggressive.
 
Thanks all for the replies!

I had the BE for about a year and would play it, enjoy it, switch to the JCM and prefer it every time. I keep telling myself to try a JJ or BS before I decide though.

@Mikeyboyeee, I don't have enough posts to PM you, but you can message me about the BS if you decide you still may want to part with it.

I'd love to try a Wizard but absolutely no one around here has one that I can find, so it sounds like the Splawn really might be the way to go. It's cheaper too by a lot. I might wait to find one on here, Reverb fees and tax make it cost a lot more. I'm going to try to find a pretty loaded, newer one.

As for the Helios, I wish I could try one at some point. I feel like it might be the sleeper for my style.

-So, I do have a JCM800. Is the QR redundant if I boost and EQ the JCM? Or still far enough apart to really justify the 2k? My main reasoning for the BS or JJ is that they are pretty different in rawness. While I maybe didn't appreciate back then that having both could've been a good thing, now I see that, hindsight and all that.
 
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