»

[doobie]

Originally Posted by Huw [Fault&Fracture]

I thought they were meant to be really good. bummer. Why is that then?

i believe the 900's use diode clipping which produces the more fuzzy sound, wheather or not that makes it better or worse is up to your ears really!

there is a few good sounding laney's out there as well, depending on the preamp valves you put in them you can get some great sounds. mine's not been treated to great in the past tho which makes it a bit tempremental sometimes

[The Sloth]

If you are looking at a JCM 800 I would recommend also trying the Kerry King version, it has a little more gain. Also the JCM 900 SLX has a thicker sound than the standard 900, try one of those if you can. The Marshall DSL 100 is also pretty good sounding and more versatile...

[stuartmaxwell]

whilst I agree with your other points I have to disagree about the dsl

marshall havent built a great amp since the 800

[CRANIAL_MIND]

hmm the valveking looks alrite,i like the peavey supreme at cpt toms and it would go fine with my avt cab, anything i should know about it i.e common issues they have?

[stuartmaxwell]

the valveking is again a decent amp, but nowhere near that status of *brilliant*

you should get your hands on a second hand fender bassman 135 (loads on ebay) or a sovtek mig 60/100 or a marshall jcm800 or even a peavey triple x/5150, even the engl thunder 50 (which rolls in cheap) can sound awesome with the right pedals

[CRANIAL_MIND]

well im not really looking for a *brilliant* amp, just one thatll suit heavy metal/death playing( i use pedals so would only be using the clean channel), basically loud, clear with good bassiness but wont distort when used on clean at high volume. hmm ill have a look for some of the ones you mentioned 2nd hand but id probably be happier buying new so as to get the warranty etc...

[PVH]

For the sake of a warrenty you will get a far less superior amp. Most people wont sell you a duffed amp, normally they will say it isnt working etc....get a decent second hand amp, then pay for a service and re-tube, it will be fine....i havent had one single problem with my Sovvy, even after it fell on the ground from full stack height.

[stuartmaxwell]

Originally Posted by CRANIAL_MIND

well im not really looking for a *brilliant* amp, just one thatll suit heavy metal/death playing

brilliant amps suit metal and any genre. they improve song dynamics (esp seeing as you have no bass player and currently sound like a muddy mess) and fill the sound out nicely. Buy a brilliant amp now and never have to buy another one again, saving you LOTS of money in the long term.

My advice is to buy second hand and get Emerson Williams to service it and revalve it (which wont cost more than £100) The value of your amplifier will only go up as time goes on and Dennis will make it sing like fuck! Revalve and service the thing every few years (£100) and you wont go far wrong. The key to succesfully owning a second hand amp is to service it, nipping most problems in the bud before they break down on you.

Buying new amps are a false economy, straight away you lose £150 off of the value. You also find that new, factory/machine built amps have a warranty for a reason (see AVT for more info). Not too mention that most amps these days have too much wiring, effects/knobs and circuitry, therefore degrading the output into "pund o mince" territory

so here is the maths

-------------------------
brilliant second hand amp budget (inc post) £450
service and revalve £100

total = £550

then service every few years (10 years) £500

for you to buy and run that great amp for ten years it will cost £1150 (10 years of superb tone)

-------------------
peavey valveking £350-400

new cabinet as your current one sounds gash with your new head £400+

then replacement amp after two because you realised that your head is gash £500+

new pedals for new amp £100+

and so on

£1400 (3 years of headaches)

[CRANIAL_MIND]

(esp seeing as you have no bass player and currently sound like a muddy mess)

wow thanks, and ill think youll find we dont sound muddy, more tinny( kinda need more bass to be muddy). And it cant be that much of a mess the amount of people who tell us they like it(even though their not into death metal generally).straight away your advice seems less valuable.

My advice is to buy second hand and get Emerson Williams to service it and revalve it (which wont cost more than £100) The value of your amplifier will only go up as time goes on and Dennis will make it sing like fuck! Revalve and service the thing every few years (£100) and you wont go far wrong. The key to succesfully owning a second hand amp is to service it, nipping most problems in the bud before they break down on you.

Buying new amps are a false economy, straight away you lose £150 off of the value. You also find that new, factory/machine built amps have a warranty for a reason (see AVT for more info). Not too mention that most amps these days have too much wiring, effects/knobs and circuitry, therefore degrading the output into "pund o mince" territory

k i agree with that, sounds good.

brilliant second hand amp budget (inc post) £450
service and revalve £100

total = £550

then service every few years (10 years) £500

for you to buy and run that great amp for ten years it will cost £1150 (10 years of superb tone)

ok so how exactly do i get a brilliant second hand amp with cab (i assume seeing how the avt cab just WONT be good enough) for £450, a good head alone will probably cost me that much....

and ive seen a review sayin that the peavey valveking sounds worse through a valveking cab than an AVT one....

[Old Gold]

Originally Posted by CRANIAL_MIND

straight away your advice seems less valuable..

Don't be a pussy, Maxwell knows tone.