Modern Metal Amps

[ShatteredVitreous]

Hello all

Looking for a little advise.

I have been recording with my JCM800 and whilst I do love the amp for my hard rock, classic sounding grunge needs, it's not a very modern sounding amp.

I have tried the JVM, JS and none JS, on numerous occasions and just never managed to warm to it.

I watched John from Sonic Studio's comparison test of around 10 modern Metal Amps with him using his Ownhammer IR, and largely he made most of the amps he tested sound the same (that in itself was interesting) with the exception of the MT15, the Ironheart60 (I was shocked how good that sounded) and the Dual Rec which just had so much character.

So far from reviews I have looked at:

Mesa Dual Rec

These appear to be raved about in equal measure to being hard to get a good sound out off. I love the idea of the Dual as I do love the Soundgarden tone from there Mesa days, but I am worried it will be flubby rather than tight.

I do have the chance to pick one up for £880 if I go that route.

Marshall DSL

A guitarist we had in the band used one and i absolutely did love his tone. So much so I bought the DSL40CR and love that. My only concern is the fact it may not sound too far away from my overdriven JCM800 and I am looking for a slightly different voicing.

I also find the DSL range confusing as to which is best. The DSL2000 seems to be raved about but is known to have issues.

PRS MT15

This amp really intrigues me as it is raved about everywhere with the only complain being the volume taper and the fact it can sound a bit dry.

I am not sure if it's just because it is relatively new, but it does have my attention for tight metal.

That being said I went to watch Alter Bridge a few years back and his tone sounded like a wasps nest being attacked by hornets. The gig was so shockingly poor I never listened to them again.

Not only was the tone terrible, they are by far the dullest band I have ever seen but that's another story.

His album tone is great though.

Orange Thunderverb50

This was recommended on this forum as a good amp to mix with the JCM800 but I am finding a good one hard to track down. I have tried 3 on eBay that where in dreadful condition, to the point I wouldn't want to judge it based on the condition of these amps.

Laney Ironheart 60

Slightly Marshall voiced but this is also looking like a great amp too. This I may need to try out but not sure if "tight modern Metal" is what this amp is for.

EVH 5150iii 50watt rev 2

This is my latest obsession but apparently these are fizzy but do sound really good. They appear to be really cheap on the second hand market too.

I never want to return to Kemper and I see that the Quad Cortex is out soon. As I can't test an AxeFx I don't know if this should be considered. For all you modern Metal guys (I don't even know what I mean by that), is simulation more appropriate than tubes?

I don't even know what modern Metal is, the aim is to just not have a classic sounding metal amp, but something different.

Really interested in your opinions on the amps I mentioned and any other you can throw in the mix.

Also your opinions on digital over tube for recording modern Metal.

Cheers guys

Mike

 

[ShatteredVitreous]

Oh I am trying to avoid anything under 50watt for the headroom. I know the MT15 is 15watt but apparently the headroom is more like a 50.

Cheers guys

 

[FracStrat]

Get a 6100LM

 

[Buzzard]

Mesa mutiwatt dual rec. maxon of 808 tightens it up. Evh 5150 3 stealth, perfect metal amp. Imo

 

[tallcoolone]

5150 is really the modern standard, several diff flavors to choose from. Make sure if you go 50w you get a newer one with the concentric gain and vol knobs on Ch1/2. Had a 100w but the thing was absurdly large--very satisfied with the smaller 50.

 

[Ufoscorpion]

Hard to go wrong with any EVH 5150 iii , my lbx ii blue channel is nasty .

 

[Old Punker]

I watched John's video too and thought he had a killer tone, but unfortunately he did make all of the amps sound virtually identical, so it was uninformative.

I'm just getting into playing metal and I don't really know what 'modern metal' is either. I recently bought a Mesa Rectifier Solo 50W head used and I am very impressed so far. It is most definitely a metal amp, but with 2 channels and 5 modes you can do anything from beautiful clean tones right up to the most brootal metal (in Modern mode). Channel switching works perfectly (no delay), it has an FX loop, master volume for both channels plus a Output knob which is a global master, and a solo boost. I can get cranked tones at bedroom volume no problem and it will also get loud as f#@k when you want. It has a large low end thump which you can dial out and definitely tightens up beautifully using an OD pedal as boost as @Buzzard said. Bear in mind that John was using the Mini Rec in his video and from what I've heard I would steer clear of that and instead get a used single or dual Rectifier. Your cab choice will also have a major impact on your tone. I'm just using a Mesa 1x12 Widebody ported cab that works really well with my amp. If you like bands like System of a Down and Ramstein then this is your amp.

Hope this helps.

 

[tschrama]

Diezel Herbert

 

[tschrama]

If ur willing to go boutique: Peters Amps

 

[Trelwheen]

Mesa Rectos are good, I had one for years. But the Triple Crown series are just simply much better sounding amps IMO. The TC100 is not only one ferocious bitch, it's also one of the most versatile anps I've ever played through. Three channels, from clean to the most available drive of any amp in Mesa's history. Channel masters, global master and solo boost.... Everything is footswitchable. All kinds of outputs. if you're going to play it through speakers I highly recommend the Road King 4x12.

Another very hard-hitting amp is the Hopkins Modded 1987 or 1959 Pandora. I can easily get mine to thump hard enough to knock shit over in the studio. He does other mods too, check his videos....all his creations are different flavors of beautiful mayhem. It's so cool to have an amp that can go all the way to the stratosphere of modern and still have that authentic Marshall voice.

 

[wakjob]

I belong to a "metal guitarist forum", and I've never heard a complaint about the Laney IronHeart series.

Everyone seem to like theirs, whether it be the IRT Studio... all the way through to the big wattage heads.

 

[ampeq]

Trelwheen is right, the Mesa TC100 is a hell of an amp. Duel Rec’s are great but the TC100 can do it all. I like it with any of their 2-12” or 4-12” cabs. Although I don’t care for them, mainly because they are too modern sounding, Hughes & Kettner makes some good amps for metal bands. I’m not a JVM fan either but I’m surprised you didn’t like it for the modern sound. If you could find one because they are out of production, Carvin made an amp called the V3, (full size) 100w 3-ch and has a tone of stuff going for it. It was a very modern sounding amp with great control and lots of extras. Best thing is they are cheap to buy and work great.

 

[clutch71]

You have a JCM800 and a DSL40CR so I would rule out the DSL as they will be similar. Mesa Boogie Dual Rec and Thunderverbs are both quality amps and do the High Gain thing well.

 

[Im247frogs]

If I could play metal worth a shit, and hard serious reasons to buy an amp, I would have to consider an Engl. Everything Ive heard and seen is sick.

 

[Filipe Soares]

just buy a 5150III 50w head and try different pre amp tubes and speakers. I have one and love it.

btw... try some engl shit too.

 

[DDJ34]

Has anyone tried the Mesa Triple Crown?

 

[DDJ34]

Always wished I put EL34 in my Triple Rectifier.

 

[Drinkingdeath01]

Try anything listed above but throw the Mesa Mark series on the list. They are very versatile and tighter then the Recto's. The different models vary in tone so I'd check out some YT videos first.

Also check out the Peavey 5150. They're a sweet metal amp and can be found for a good price.

 

[Sapient]

Grandmeister 40

 

[GuitarIV]

I belong to a "metal guitarist forum", and I've never heard a complaint about the Laney IronHeart series.

Everyone seem to like theirs, whether it be the IRT Studio... all the way through to the big wattage heads.

This. I had my IRT Studio for years now and it's been reliable, sounds great and once you put a Tubescreamer or a SD-1 in front of it you have instant modern metal. They have that british flavoured crunchy distortion, a bit like a hotrodded Marshall, just with more compression but the amp is surprisingly dynamic as well so you are not limited to only one musical style.

I've been thinking about getting one of the 120 watt big brothers used as they are cheap on the second hand market and the only complaint I have with my Studio version is that it sounds a bit whimpy in the low end which is natural when you compare a 15 watt amp to a bigger 100 watt Marshall.

Good luck in your pursuit!