Sound Wise

[permutare]

Looks like people having been saying that to get good quality distortion/overdrive, one should target the amps first, followed by guitars followed by effects.. (the order doesn't really matter, but amps are priority)

so I'm investing on an amp, preferably a Marshal with the rack(the thing on top of the amp, what do you call it?)

so yea, any particular amps(with or w/o the top rack) preferably similar to the ones at Beat Merchants(Arab Street) or even better?
if so, may i know the price range? and the shops that sell em...

 

[Dime]

firstly that thing is called the head while the thing below is called the cabinet(cab in short).to start off what do you play and budget?

 

[permutare]

500max for cab....
if cab+head is even better =D

play: MCR, Bullet For My Valentine, Van Halen
hard rock, hard metal,

 

[Godspeed64]

So am I right to assume you're gonna rely on amp distortion only?

 

[Dime]

whats hard metal?like metal isnt hard enough.

If you got the $$ jvm series is not bad.but price of half-stack not too sure.maybe a combo save some cost and get some pedals to go with it.

 

[permutare]

wait, how much do you think the ones at Beat Merchants cost?
cab + head....

 

[Godspeed64]

Beat Merchants? Don't they use Marshall AVTs?
Probably around 1.5k?

 

[subversion]

firstly that thing is called the head while the thing below is called the cabinet(cab in short).

if there's a cab underneath the head, it's called a half-stack... eg:

if there are 2, it's a full stack... eg:

 

[Soldi]

500max for cab....
if cab+head is even better =D

note that u need a HEAD to amplify a guitar. the cabinet is a box with speakers


(my friend thought that one could plug into a cabinet....)

 

[fiqthefallen]

(my friend thought that one could plug into a cabinet....)

your friend really need to use some common sense...

anyway, great that you're getting a head+cab combo. better sounding than those single or dual speaker amps...

btw, i recalled beat merchants used a JCM in one of the rooms before...

 

[subversion]

anyway, great that you're getting a head+cab combo. better sounding than those single or dual speaker amps...

owning a stacked set up isn't an exclusive entrance into the 'better' tone domain, there are some killer combo out there.

 

[Phil]

Separate heads and cabs might not necessarily sound better then combos, but imho, I prefer the former.

Tubes are just not meant to be placed inside a speaker cabinet. Take tube rattle for example, it's just like a torture chamber for the tubes. Just as Bob from Eurotubes.com would say.

 

[permutare]

yea.. i was shocked when i checked davids guitar..
indeed, they used the 1.5k..
damn, gotta really invest on that..

 

[permutare]

anyway, where can i get guitar pro5, other than the internet?
and roughly how much does the software cost?

 

[fiqthefallen]

anyway, where can i get guitar pro5, other than the internet?
and roughly how much does the software cost?

i got 5.2... but i didnt buy it...
it has more tones for you to consider, but be prepared to have enough RAM in your comp coz it lags more than version 5...

of course i have to agree not all head+cab combo are good. i tried the epiphone one at swee lee (not the valve jr. not sure which one) and it was certainly not my type of sound...

 

[RazrAsh]

u COULD try going for the crate powerblock or a Zvex nanohead. :lol:

 

[MadWerewolfBoy]

I think we're really guiding permature in the wrong direction.

If your budget is $500, please do not atempt to get a brand new marshall half-stack. It would most probably be those budget types that sound like cock. Try to find a second hand one, much more worth it.

But a word of advice is that, to untrained ears, distortion units (effect pedals etc) would seem to be more important than a high end amp. I would advice to moderate every equipment you're planning to get so that everything is in the same range eg not a super high end amp with louya pedals or guitars.

Get a moderate/average combo amp, and get a solid distortion unit (don't need to go botique, maybe get a modded ds-1 or a mt-2) and you will be closer to what you are after rather than getting a gigantic big ass amp with nothing else.

 

[subversion]

more often than not, high end amps contain impressive drive.

 

[MadWerewolfBoy]

Yup, but I think those aren't anywhere near his max budget of $500.

 

[Godspeed64]

Slightly raise your budget a bit..
Then you can own an Epiphone Valve Jr + cab..
Or a Blackheart Head + cab..

If you're determined to go Marshall, a second hand AVT combo amp would be best..
If you want a stack, a mini stack ala MG15MSII would be an option..
Raise your budget by twice and you can perhaps get a Ceriatone combo that follows the Marshall circuit..