Replacement for DSL

  • Thread starter Thread starter Melodeath
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Melodeath

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Hey guys, long time reader here. Figured I would reach out to some folks that have more experience with gear I'm interested in. I'm looking to replace my Marshall JCM2000 DSL50 head with something a bit higher end. I actually quite enjoy the DSL, but I find it gets muddy and falls apart pretty quickly on the OD channel, and OD2 seems damn near unusable for me. I'm looking for something to cover the same ground as my DSL and kind of in that Marshall-ish family. Not looking to purchase right at this moment, but eventually. Not really wanting to go the 5150 route, as I'm looking for something a little more versatile and less generic. My budget is probably about $3k
tops, or I would probably snag a Wizard MTL mk2.

I play mostly melodic death metal ie. In Flames (old and new), Wintersun, The Halo Effect.

Amps I'm considering: KSR Juno, Splawn Quick Rod, Engl Fireball 100, Fortin Evil Pumpkin (if they ever become available) also possibly a Peters FIre Hammer or Plasma Blade w/ clean channel


Anybody with experience with these amps, I would love to hear from you. Comparisons between them or to a DSL would be much appreciated as well. Thanks guys.
 
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Depends on whether you like EL34 or 6L6 voicing. Also, how many channels?

If you haven't, I'd hit that DSL with a boost pedal. They're great amps, but need good tubes, biased right, and a boost. OD2 red is useless.

If you want Marshall flavor, I'd look at the Splawn for sure, or an Engl Artist Edition. That's a killer amp.
 
Generally prefer EL34 but not too picky with power tubes. I've been using crunch Channel or od1 with a few different overdrive. I've had the DSL for probably 11 or 12 years now, and I guess I just want something that has more tone shaping options and has more usable sounds for me. Like I said, I do enjoy the DSL but I want something a bit more articulate under high gain and probably 2 or 3 Channels
 
out of all those , none , get a friedman you wont be sorry..
 
Melodeath said:
Generally prefer EL34 but not too picky with power tubes. I've been using crunch Channel or od1 with a few different overdrive. I've had the DSL for probably 11 or 12 years now, and I guess I just want something that has more tone shaping options and has more usable sounds for me. Like I said, I do enjoy the DSL but I want something a bit more articulate under high gain and probably 2 or 3 Channels
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Don't underestimate some good tubes, and an 10 band EQ.
 
If I may suggest something a bit unusual - Not sure where you're located, but if you can find a talented amp tech he can build you a Wizard MTL clone based on a Headfirst PCB. I have personally done this with his Wizard MCII PCB, and the result is my favorite amp of all time! I've owned a ton of amps including a real Wizard MCI, a few Friedmans, couple of Suhrs, vintage Marshalls etc - but my search is over, have no interest in any other amp (except perhaps a Vox style one just for the sake of it). Built with the right parts (especially transformers) you should be able to get a kickass amp built for $3k or less.

 
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Yea definitely NOT a Friedman for anything tone wise like old school in flames, or the halo effect etc… that is not at all in the direction you want to go. In flames style tones, especially the older tones, have tons of edge and bite: the Friedman isn’t gonna give you that vibe at all.


Out of all those choices, I’d be going KSR for sure. The KSR amps are just phenomenal, some of my favorite amps ever. The splawn quick rod is an amp I dig personally, but for the heavy saturation and gain structure of especially the newer type tones ( the halo effect etc), it’s not really going to give you the vibe you want here either. Read: this doesn’t mean it doesn’t sound good, not saying that at all. It’s just the saturation is not going to give you that sound or even in the ball park really. But then again, you dig the Marshall ball park, so you may love it who knows.


I know you said you don’t wanna go 5150 but…. There’s a reason all those albums had that amp on it in some shape or form :) you don’t need to spend 3k to get those types of tones.


I’d be more concerned about your cabinet choice personally. I can 100 percent promise you, as someone who owns 8 4x12s including an Engl 4x12, and as someone who has IR’s done by Nordstrom himself, that cab is a huge part of that sound. Huge. I’m not even going into the “fredman technique” and all that garbage, I’m talking about the cab itself: for whatever reason those cabs sound the way they do, it’s a huge part of the sounds that came out of nordstroms studio. You mic one up and you instantly hear it: it’s sonic footprint is glaring, and it’s saying “ hi, I’m the real reason those records sound the way they do :)”…. That and great playing and production, but you get the point. Get an Engl cab if you want that vibe.
 
When you say you want to avoid the 5150 route, do you mean the Peavey versions? I ask because you shouldn't count out the EVH line. A 100w EL34 or Stealth would be a choice I think you would be more than happy with. The blue channels of those amps will scratch all of your Marshall itches while staying nice and tight. The red channel is insane and will cover any level of brutality you are searching for. They both have massive low end punch and can get plenty of high end sizzle if its those classic In Flames tones you're looking for. EVH doesn't have the "boutique" badge of honor but its seriously some of the best production amps ever made. Offers the most versatility and bang for the buck than any other amp out there IMO.
 
Check out the monomyth skeleton key if you don't need multi channels. KSR is awesome too I haven't tried the Juno yet but own an Ares, owned a orthos mk2, owned Splawn QR and Nitro.

For what you are playing a KSR can do that pretty easily but I would go more in the modded Marshall territory
 
Seriously, I'd look at an Engl Artist. These amps are way under the radar. So does the Laney GH's, and VHR100R.

For more dough, I'd also consider a Bogner Ecstasy too.
 
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155 said:
out of all those , none , get a friedman you wont be sorry..
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I replaced my DSL50 with a Friedman JJ100. I was very sorry. Sold it and bought back my DSL50, never questioned the move after.

Friedmans are EXCELLENT amps, but for the ultra aggressive styles of music, I find they're just too polite and polished for my personal taste.
 
Just a bit of advice from someone who was on the same path you're about to go down 5 years ago....I ended up going through A LOT of amps in search of "better" tones than I could get out of the classic metal amps that I owned at the time, a couple 5150 variants, a 2 Channel Triple Rectifier, and a DSL50. I started with VHT, great amps that seripusly impressed me. After that, Friedman and Ceriatone which are both great, but didn't do what I wanted them to do for metal. Followed by Engl, and Diezel, which were just so damn compressed and smoothed out, never really had the "angry" sound I wanted. Finally, I got a Splawn Quick Rod and the search for a boutique high gainer was over for me at the time. The Splawn took what I liked about the Rectifier and DSL50, added it into one, and added some clarity to boot. I was happy.

That being said, I still have all the amps I had when I got started, and they get used more than most of my others, to this day. They are classic for a reason. They excel at high gain metal tones and even at 3-5x the price, you'll have a hard time beating them.
 
DanTravis62 said:
especially the old good in flames albums
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Yes sir! 5150 and Line 6 Pod XT Pros were the core of their tone. I remember way back in ‘06 seeing them live and bought that same rig a few weeks later. $600 for a block letter and $300 for the POD. The good ol days…
 
Bad.Seed said:
I replaced my DSL50 with a Friedman JJ100. I was very sorry. Sold it and bought back my DSL50, never questioned the move after.

Friedmans are EXCELLENT amps, but for the ultra aggressive styles of music, I find they're just too polite and polished for my personal taste.
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I hear this so much .
 
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