The most disappointing amp you've ever played?

[redchapterjubilee]

FYI, a 1990 JCM800 vs a 1983 JCM800 are very different sounding amps.

That is what I hear. I’ve never had the chance to find an earlier Marshall than that one at a “sure why not!” price. I have a friend who is a serious JCM devotee and he talked my ear off one night about the right inputs, the right speakers and cabs, the right pedals, the right pickups, etc for maximizing JCM800’s in person for what we hear of them on our favorite records. But I didn’t fancy changing my entire rig to go in that direction. And I suspect it still wouldn’t be my bag. I run into JCM2000’s a lot in backlines and I can make it ok if I turn the treble and presence off and roll the guitar tone down a few notches. My band partner has a 50w Fargen with the decades switch and I don’t care for it much either. Sacrilege I’m sure, but I get the ideal Marshall in my head from my 59 Bassman LTD head + 2x12 cab. Turn it up halfway and there it is.

[46346]

Selmer Zodiac with the crocodile tolex. It probably needed service but I was very underwhelmed. I later played a Treble N Bass 50w and I thought it was great, especially as a studio bass amp.

Mesa Boogies usually sound boxy and flat to me but I do recall liking the 90s Tremoverb model.

oh man, i appreciate this, as this is one graily amp that i've been jonesing for since 2007, and have yet to find a nice deal on a good specimen. it was that rare instance where i coveted a bandmate's rig, it was so cool looking, and in this case it sounded damn good, fantastic crunch when cranked, without the need for a boost pedal or OD. but it was also noisy and finicky, like an old Vox, though the tone was like a slightly congested JTM-45. we actually toured the Southwest USA with that amp, and by the time we got to SXSW, it was giving us grief, personally i would not have taken it out, but it was his only amp.
my Ampeg Reverberocket of the same era held up just fine. but the early weeks with the Zodiac in the band were impressive!

[46346]

i started playing my first gigs at the dawn of the JCM 900, and even though i was an inexperienced player, i thought the Marshall guys were idiots. my first gig was with a SF Bassman Ten, i got lucky stumbling upon. i kept trying the 900, but i never liked anything that i, or anyone else got out of them.
and the stores were really pushing them, so i thought that was the Marshall sound. Disappointing is the word!


the JC-120 on the other hand, did exactly what i wanted a Jazz Chorus to do. i was really into Adrian Belew and his complex, extended range feedback oscillations. i could tell it wasn't the *only* amp for me, but it anything but disappointing in living up to its reputation.

[46346]

Exactly. I still don't know how Adrian Belew got such good stuff out of it.

i know how!

[Kinx]

British amps in general. Just not my thing but the one that really stunned me was the ‘90 JCM800 half stack I had for a hot minute. I expected instant Fugazi or Ratt and it was mostly just clanky and harsh. I’ve since learned how to deal with them if I have to in a backline situation but I’m just not a Marshall guy at all.

FYI, a 1990 JCM800 vs a 1983 JCM800 are very different sounding amps.

that applies mainly to 100 w single channel versions (2203), the 50w 2204 single channel remained pretty consistent throughout the 80s.

as for the thread, my biggest disappointment in amp was Friedman BE100 halfstack in my friend's studio. I believe there is something wrong with it, because it just sounds dull, muddy, bassy and not very defined. My '90 2204 sounded much better on the same cabinet.

[redchapterjubilee]

that applies mainly to 100 w single channel versions (2203), the 50w remained pretty consistent throughout the 80s.

It was a 2203. Single channel.

[panoramic]

a gorilla practice amp in the 80's and then a Kustom smaller tuck and roll combo I had briefly.

[OffYourFace]

Exactly. I still don't know how Adrian Belew got such good stuff out of it.

i know how!

Boss pedals and a modified Strat
The old boss pedals sounded right thru those amps. Also the way they cut thru a band mix with that stereo chorus is why everyone used them. Johnny Marr paired his with fender amps and that was his sound.

[Maggieo]

Exactly. I still don't know how Adrian Belew got such good stuff out of it.

i know how!

Well, SHARE!!!

[Maggieo]

Exactly. I still don't know how Adrian Belew got such good stuff out of it.

i know how!

Boss pedals and a modified Strat
The old boss pedals sounded right thru those amps. Also the way they cut thru a band mix with that stereo chorus is why everyone used them. Johnny Marr paired his with fender amps and that was his sound.

I only ever had EHX pedals. That might explain everything.

[hulakatt]

my Ampeg Reverberocket of the same era held up just fine.

The 60's Ampegs I've seen and played might be some of the only amps that can make the build quality of golden age Fender amps look cheap and flimsy. I owned a '65 Jet that was as solid as the rock at Gibralter.

[OffYourFace]

i know how!

Boss pedals and a modified Strat
The old boss pedals sounded right thru those amps. Also the way they cut thru a band mix with that stereo chorus is why everyone used them. Johnny Marr paired his with fender amps and that was his sound.

I only ever had EHX pedals. That might explain everything.

I wish I had kept my old echo flanger. As you probably know it was an effect he used a ton. EHX renamed it as the poly chorus. There may have been a slight change but it was basically the same pedal.

[Maggieo]

Boss pedals and a modified Strat
The old boss pedals sounded right thru those amps. Also the way they cut thru a band mix with that stereo chorus is why everyone used them. Johnny Marr paired his with fender amps and that was his sound.

I only ever had EHX pedals. That might explain everything.

I wish I had kept my old echo flanger. As you probably know it was an effect he used a ton. EHX renamed it as the poly chorus. There may have been a slight change but it was basically the same pedal.

Those were great. Never had one, but played though some friends'. Epic.

[46346]

Exactly. I still don't know how Adrian Belew got such good stuff out of it.

i know how!

Well, SHARE!!!

i was about to, but looked at the clock and it was 4:09 AM!

going seriously off topic, but here we are...

i got to talk with him at length, in the '80s and again in the '90s and the '00s but i was mainly obsessed with his late '70s/ early '80s sound. he kept the JC 120 fairly flat, though a bit of boost on the bass knob. the chorus setting was often cranked, then footswitched on when needed.

i watched him do his sound check ritual once: after setting up, he would try different positions in front of the amp to find exactly where specific notes would sustain and feedback. he actually put colored tape on the floor for each note's position!

he used various pedals of course, and not just for modulation or drive (Foxx Tone!)
but nearly all of them gave a midrange bump of a different flavor. in the '80s he had two
straight-up EQ pedals - graphic EQ's usually with a big radical midrange bump setting. i think those pushed the two JC-120's , with nearly full-range speakers, into his signature controlled feedback on lead parts.

i am probably going to come back here with some SERIOUS specifics - but first i want to make sure it's OK

[OffYourFace]

i am probably going to come back here with some SERIOUS specifics - but first i want to make sure it's OK

yes