What flavor am I missing?

  • Thread starter Thread starter ZEEGLER
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I’d vote either 5150 or soldano. They are both classics. I even know someone who’s looking to sell a pre-bad Avenger with a loop that works fine. 😎
 
How about a KSR Orion or Ares? I have the big brother Gemini and can't say enough good things about the tones.

Another thought is ENGL Fireball. I haven't played one myself, but most people seem to love them.

I'd stay away from the Egnater Vengeance and Armageddon. They're not bad amps per se, just kind of boring and bland.
 
Engl; with dual / stereo power, 6L6CGC 100W per side:

IMG_0334.JPG



purchased new several years ago.
 
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anomaly said:
Do you know how to dial them in? That's the important thing. You just don't know what you're missing man.
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My Mark V 25 is everything to me. I still haven't found everything good that is offers.
 
KSR would be different than what you have, but similar enough to be familiar. Try to get one with an NFB knob or have Kyle add it.

Mesa Mark IV would be a lot different. So would a Bandlander. Go 100w on the Bandlander over a 50w.

I can't recommended ENGL. There's a few that sound killer, but they're not built to the same quality as other amps that go for the same money in the US.

If you're looking to play aggressive metal you're going to pick the Uber over the Ecstasy every time. The 5153 is basically a metal oriented XTC.
 
Diezel or butterslax, or an axe fx and get all the flavors ..
 
It's really not that many builders. There is only so many high gain amps. I like them all.

Orange hasn't been mentioned.
 
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ZEEGLER said:
I have been winnowing my amp collection down, and plan to end up with 4 amps and two cabs. I'm only really interested in high gain channel switchers.

I have an Uberschall Rev Blue, Mesa Roadster, and Rivera Knucklehead II. So I have one slot left to fill. I know that many of you are going to suggest a Marshall of some kind, but I've had them all, and I'm done with Marshalls.

I've been thinking of a 5150/6505/6534. I have a 5150 III, but it's on the chopping block for two reasons. It sounds great, but it's way too big and bothers me esthetically, and the power and standby switches on the back is fucking retarded.

Also on my radar, an SLO! The problem is, I rarely ever see them for sale used around here, and it would have to be a BAD SLO because I need a decent loop. I had a Hot Rod 100 Plus that I would still have if not for the loop.

Then there's the Ecstasy. I hear so many people say they prefer the ecstasy to the Uber, which kinda blows my mind because I fucking love my Uber, but I've never played an Ecstasy.

The Egnater Armageddon intrigues me too. I rarely see them for sale, but it seems like it would be right up my alley. I've never played one of these. The only thing that worries me, is that no one talks about them. Ever.

There's an ENGL Invader up for sale nearby. I've never played one. On paper it seems like a great amp, but no one ever really talks about ENGL stuff either. I also hear they are a mess to repair and not necessarily particularly reliable?

Other amps that come to mind: Egnater Vengeance, Randall Thrasher, Randall Satan, Randall RD100, Peavey Invective, Hughes and Kettner Tri-amp.

What else should be on my radar?
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Another option leaning towards the SLO would be the Mezzabarba MZero/Trinity outstanding amps IMHO!
 
Engl Artist Edition, or Inferno. You'll get a Marshall vibe, but Engl flavor too.

The 50 watt Ecstasy is a killer amp, but it's also Marshall vibe, but has the Bogner low-mid flavor. Killer amp.

I'd also look at a Badlander. I would have bought one if they had more speaker output choices, having 2x16 ohm cabs. Sure, it's a safe mis-match going into the 2x4 ohm inputs, but how much of a tone suck would it be? I didn't want to roll the dice.
 
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I'm constantly on the lookout for VHT/Fryette, Diezel, Mezzabarba, Rhodes/KSR. Most of these brands rarely show up for sale.
 
Have a look on the Mesa Mark line as well. It`s on the other Boogie spectrum of a Rectifier
 
napalmdeath said:
Engl Artist Edition, or Inferno. You'll get a Marshall vibe, but Engl flavor too.
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Both great amps. Artist more towards Savage direction, drier, more aggressive. Inferno towards Fireball/Invader, smoother, politer.
 
GearGasms said:
My Mark V 25 is everything to me. I still haven't found everything good that is offers.
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That amp nails old school Metallica. I had one with (2) 1x12 MC90 Thieles. Was a killer setup. Especially with an EMG-loaded guitar.
 
napalmdeath said:
Engl Artist Edition, or Inferno. You'll get a Marshall vibe, but Engl flavor too.
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mcstinger said:
Both great amps. Artist more towards Savage direction, drier, more aggressive. Inferno towards Fireball/Invader, smoother, politer.
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If we're talking ENGL, I'd add the Steve Morse Sig. to the list. I believe it's also of the Invader lineage and gives a Marshallesque vibe.

The Inferno & Steve Morse sig are my 2 favorites of the ENGL lineup and I have both. Direct comparison the Inferno is a bit more compressed and more straight forward. It has some flexibility in tone shaping, but not near as much as the Morse. The Morse is more open sounding and you can do so much sculpting of the mids on Ch 3.
 
My Engl E651 Artist Edition is probably my favorite amp - it does Marshall and more; though my Mesa JP-2C is quickly becoming a fav.

Now for something completely different: Bogner Line 6 Spider Valve?
 
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MadAsAHatter said:
If we're talking ENGL, I'd add the Steve Morse Sig. to the list. I believe it's also of the Invader lineage and gives a Marshallesque vibe.

The Inferno & Steve Morse sig are my 2 favorites of the ENGL lineup and I have both. Direct comparison the Inferno is a bit more compressed and more straight forward. It has some flexibility in tone shaping, but not near as much as the Morse. The Morse is more open sounding and you can do so much sculpting of the mids on Ch 3.
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I had the Morse, it's a great amp with huge amount of tonal options, I really liked it. However, I was never able to dial it to be downright aggressive, which is not a problem with the Artist. I also have the Savage SE and in a way I like the Artist better.
 
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