Marshall Amp Forum - View Single Post - So I just went amp shopping and got a shock...

sharpant · 07-24-2009, 08:15 AM

I'm currently in search of a new head so I went down to machine head to check out some amps.

Machinehead Music, Guitar Shop - Where service counts!

i tried three different amps

Engl Powerball http://machinehead.co.uk/product_in...roducts_id/2429
Hughes and Kettner Trilogy http://machinehead.co.uk/product_in...products_id/379
Black Star one series 100 http://machinehead.co.uk/product_in...roducts_id/2335

Engl Powerball

This was the amp I couldn't wait to try, it looked amazing too, now for a sound test!
The cleans were very impressive for a 'high gain' amp but they somewhat lacked character.

Cruch- The crunch was awful for any kind of classic rock / hendrix / Srv Etc it just fails awfully. Really disappointed with the low gain channel which by the way is very high gain if you want it too be.

Lead Channel- This was very good for riffing and low end. It was also good for leads but not breathtaking. It also got fizzy at times.

All in i was left disappointed with the powerball 6/10

Hughes and Kettner Trilogy

I'll be honest and say that I only tried this for 4/5 minuets but the only word to describe it would be bland. The cleans were average, the crunch was better than the powerball and the lead channel was average too. Considering how cool this amp looks I really wanted to like it but just didn't 5/10

Blackstar one series 100

This amp left me breathless. The clean can either be warm or bright, the cleans are far superior to the two amps above. The bright channel sparkles and you can hear clarity in every note. The warn channel is so fat and warm.

The crunch channel is where this amp excels, I played my PGM301 through it and thought wow that sounds nice, then i plugged an American strat and almost fenited.

The other channel is the super crunch, which is basically a boost. It was soooo good. There was so much tone and I could hear the EL34 character shining through. There is a lot of gain on tap but it could be boosted by something like a fulltone ocd.

An extra function of this amp is the built in attenuator, you can play it at 10/20/30/40 and up to 100 watts.

The dials are really sensitive and have a huge impact on the tone, for example if you lower the mids it instantly sounds more American voiced.

I have nothing bad to say about this amp, I simply loved it. If only it had built in reverb Trust me to like the 1 that looks the worst of the three!

Blackstar has defeated Engl and H+K, now all i left to try is an orange rockerverb.

All I have to say is that if you get a chance to try a Blackstar series 100 out.....

Do it!

07-24-2009, 08:15 AM	#1 (permalink)
sharpant Junior Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 22	So I just went amp shopping and got a shock... I'm currently in search of a new head so I went down to machine head to check out some amps. Machinehead Music, Guitar Shop - Where service counts! i tried three different amps Engl Powerball http://machinehead.co.uk/product_in...roducts_id/2429 Hughes and Kettner Trilogy http://machinehead.co.uk/product_in...products_id/379 Black Star one series 100 http://machinehead.co.uk/product_in...roducts_id/2335 Engl Powerball This was the amp I couldn't wait to try, it looked amazing too, now for a sound test! The cleans were very impressive for a 'high gain' amp but they somewhat lacked character. Cruch- The crunch was awful for any kind of classic rock / hendrix / Srv Etc it just fails awfully. Really disappointed with the low gain channel which by the way is very high gain if you want it too be. Lead Channel- This was very good for riffing and low end. It was also good for leads but not breathtaking. It also got fizzy at times. All in i was left disappointed with the powerball 6/10 Hughes and Kettner Trilogy I'll be honest and say that I only tried this for 4/5 minuets but the only word to describe it would be bland. The cleans were average, the crunch was better than the powerball and the lead channel was average too. Considering how cool this amp looks I really wanted to like it but just didn't 5/10 Blackstar one series 100 This amp left me breathless. The clean can either be warm or bright, the cleans are far superior to the two amps above. The bright channel sparkles and you can hear clarity in every note. The warn channel is so fat and warm. The crunch channel is where this amp excels, I played my PGM301 through it and thought wow that sounds nice, then i plugged an American strat and almost fenited. The other channel is the super crunch, which is basically a boost. It was soooo good. There was so much tone and I could hear the EL34 character shining through. There is a lot of gain on tap but it could be boosted by something like a fulltone ocd. An extra function of this amp is the built in attenuator, you can play it at 10/20/30/40 and up to 100 watts. The dials are really sensitive and have a huge impact on the tone, for example if you lower the mids it instantly sounds more American voiced. I have nothing bad to say about this amp, I simply loved it. If only it had built in reverb Trust me to like the 1 that looks the worst of the three! Blackstar has defeated Engl and H+K, now all i left to try is an orange rockerverb. All I have to say is that if you get a chance to try a Blackstar series 100 out..... Do it!