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If you saw my "Bought a Bass" thread then you know that I went to GC the other day to test a bunch of high-end amps that they had in stock. Specifically, I went to try a VHT Pitbull Ultra Lead, A Splawn Quickrod, Soldano SLO 100, Bogner Uberschall, as well as two Marshalls (Vintage/Modern and JVM410).
First up was the Splawn. Sounded merely ok for about 2 minutes then started sounding "funky" in a bad way. Soon after it just died. No blown fuses, nothing apparently wrong...just dead. No verdict on this one.
Next up was the Vintage/Modern. I had checked it out briefly a few months back and it sounded pretty good, and I had heard good things about it as well so I was very interested in it. In this case, my first impression was bad as this amp just doesn't cut it. It would be a decent choice for classic roots rock and blues but not really for hard rock unless its pushed with a pedal. It turns out that's why I liked it early on...the guy had a Rat pedal pushing it that I wasn't aware of. This amps higher gain tones are thin, buzzy, and shrill. They get better the more you crank it up, but they're never really pleasing to my ears. I definitely didn't care for this one.
The JVM was supposed to be next but somebody came in and bought it while I was playing the first two! I will say I was less than impressed with it the first time that I played it several months ago but I didn't give it near enough time and I've heard some people (Big D here for example) get some great sounds out of it.
The VHT was up next. I liked this amp alot but it is just way too busy for my tastes. I don't mind taking time to tweak an amp but this thing is ridiculous with its plethora of knobs, push-buttons, graphic eq, etc. I was able to dial in some very cool tones but this is what I would consider a "hard" sounding amp, most likely due to its KT88 power section. Very tight gain and in your face tone...not the kind of sound that's friendly to sloppy players. Your chops better be good to play this thing. This thing has a ton of clean headroom but its somewhat of a harsh clean sound IMO. This amp has a ton of versatility but its best suited for very heavy music. I could gig with this thing but its not the sound I was looking for.
Bring on the Uberschall. Sterile clean channel but great headroom. I'm guessing this would be great for someone who likes to use stompboxes for a different flavor as this channel retained its tone and clarity throughout most of its volume range. Channel two is what this amp is all about. There is more usable gain on tap than anybody would ever need. If you feel you need more, then I would guess that you are a lousy player. It's not a particularly warm sound...brutal is more like it. This thing really pummels you with its aggression. It's very tight, yet not as much so as the VHT. I personally dug it more for heavy rhythm playing more so than leads, but it kicks ass at both. Not a good amp for me as I like to be able to switch channels from rhythm to lead for heavy music and that's not an option here. If you need a tight clean tone and a blistering high gain tone only, you owe it to yourself to check this one out. Great amp but not for me.
I have played SLO's many times before but fired one up to compare. Great amp but it really comes alive at ear-bleeding volumes. Unless you play arenas or use an attenuator, look elsewhere. This amp matches up to a P-90 loaded Les Paul like they were made for each other. I was getting some classic rock tones to die for with that combo...very nice. Cleans are nice but not very sweet sounding. Clean channel can get raunchy but its not a tone I really care for. Once again, this amp was not versatile enough for my needs.
So, I'm about ready to pack it in when the manager asks me to try out another amp that I had completely overlooked...a Mako Amplification Custom Hundred. I had heard of the company before but knew little about them, but I decided to give it a go. WOW is all that I can say. This is a two channel amp with two modes per channel. The clean channel has "sweet" and "crunch" modes and they are good descriptors. In the sweet mode, it had a very pleasant clean sound...the best of the day. A very dynamic clean with some cool, bell-like tones and enough grunt to play some killer ass-kicking blues. Switch over to crunch and it had a tone very much like channel two of the new 5150III but more harmonically complex and not quite as hard sounding. You can do old Van Halen, Lynch, and Demartini rhythm tones all day long on this mode. Roll back the volume knob and the thing cleans up wonderfully. I could probably play an entire gig on this channel alone if I had to...but it has a second channel.
This is where the real aggression is. The modes are "normal" and "boost" and they are both simply awesome. In either mode, notes are thick, fat, and just plain awesome. Turn the gain down for a tighter response or crank it up for more sustain and compression, all the while retaining your guitar's tonal signatures. The boost mode retains the same basic sound while upping the gain and compression a bit. You could easily use this channel for heavy rhythm playing as well, but it's a lead players dream. Tons of usable gain while retaining clarity throughout its entire range. The tone is very much "hot-rodded" Marshall, but the best that I have ever heard it done to date. This thing was simply a tone monster that responds very well to the players touch and attack...I loved everything about it (except the price). Another cool note is that it sounded great at very low volumes...a great choice for someone who wants something that rock the big rooms, smaller clubs, and even a bedroom effectively. There are still a few more amps that I want to check out before I take the plunge, but so far, this one is leading the pack.
First up was the Splawn. Sounded merely ok for about 2 minutes then started sounding "funky" in a bad way. Soon after it just died. No blown fuses, nothing apparently wrong...just dead. No verdict on this one.
Next up was the Vintage/Modern. I had checked it out briefly a few months back and it sounded pretty good, and I had heard good things about it as well so I was very interested in it. In this case, my first impression was bad as this amp just doesn't cut it. It would be a decent choice for classic roots rock and blues but not really for hard rock unless its pushed with a pedal. It turns out that's why I liked it early on...the guy had a Rat pedal pushing it that I wasn't aware of. This amps higher gain tones are thin, buzzy, and shrill. They get better the more you crank it up, but they're never really pleasing to my ears. I definitely didn't care for this one.
The JVM was supposed to be next but somebody came in and bought it while I was playing the first two! I will say I was less than impressed with it the first time that I played it several months ago but I didn't give it near enough time and I've heard some people (Big D here for example) get some great sounds out of it.
The VHT was up next. I liked this amp alot but it is just way too busy for my tastes. I don't mind taking time to tweak an amp but this thing is ridiculous with its plethora of knobs, push-buttons, graphic eq, etc. I was able to dial in some very cool tones but this is what I would consider a "hard" sounding amp, most likely due to its KT88 power section. Very tight gain and in your face tone...not the kind of sound that's friendly to sloppy players. Your chops better be good to play this thing. This thing has a ton of clean headroom but its somewhat of a harsh clean sound IMO. This amp has a ton of versatility but its best suited for very heavy music. I could gig with this thing but its not the sound I was looking for.
Bring on the Uberschall. Sterile clean channel but great headroom. I'm guessing this would be great for someone who likes to use stompboxes for a different flavor as this channel retained its tone and clarity throughout most of its volume range. Channel two is what this amp is all about. There is more usable gain on tap than anybody would ever need. If you feel you need more, then I would guess that you are a lousy player. It's not a particularly warm sound...brutal is more like it. This thing really pummels you with its aggression. It's very tight, yet not as much so as the VHT. I personally dug it more for heavy rhythm playing more so than leads, but it kicks ass at both. Not a good amp for me as I like to be able to switch channels from rhythm to lead for heavy music and that's not an option here. If you need a tight clean tone and a blistering high gain tone only, you owe it to yourself to check this one out. Great amp but not for me.
I have played SLO's many times before but fired one up to compare. Great amp but it really comes alive at ear-bleeding volumes. Unless you play arenas or use an attenuator, look elsewhere. This amp matches up to a P-90 loaded Les Paul like they were made for each other. I was getting some classic rock tones to die for with that combo...very nice. Cleans are nice but not very sweet sounding. Clean channel can get raunchy but its not a tone I really care for. Once again, this amp was not versatile enough for my needs.
So, I'm about ready to pack it in when the manager asks me to try out another amp that I had completely overlooked...a Mako Amplification Custom Hundred. I had heard of the company before but knew little about them, but I decided to give it a go. WOW is all that I can say. This is a two channel amp with two modes per channel. The clean channel has "sweet" and "crunch" modes and they are good descriptors. In the sweet mode, it had a very pleasant clean sound...the best of the day. A very dynamic clean with some cool, bell-like tones and enough grunt to play some killer ass-kicking blues. Switch over to crunch and it had a tone very much like channel two of the new 5150III but more harmonically complex and not quite as hard sounding. You can do old Van Halen, Lynch, and Demartini rhythm tones all day long on this mode. Roll back the volume knob and the thing cleans up wonderfully. I could probably play an entire gig on this channel alone if I had to...but it has a second channel.
This is where the real aggression is. The modes are "normal" and "boost" and they are both simply awesome. In either mode, notes are thick, fat, and just plain awesome. Turn the gain down for a tighter response or crank it up for more sustain and compression, all the while retaining your guitar's tonal signatures. The boost mode retains the same basic sound while upping the gain and compression a bit. You could easily use this channel for heavy rhythm playing as well, but it's a lead players dream. Tons of usable gain while retaining clarity throughout its entire range. The tone is very much "hot-rodded" Marshall, but the best that I have ever heard it done to date. This thing was simply a tone monster that responds very well to the players touch and attack...I loved everything about it (except the price). Another cool note is that it sounded great at very low volumes...a great choice for someone who wants something that rock the big rooms, smaller clubs, and even a bedroom effectively. There are still a few more amps that I want to check out before I take the plunge, but so far, this one is leading the pack.
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