I've been looking at Fryettes, is there any difference between the CLX and UL besides the tubes as lew said?
How's it compare to the powerball, especially for the br00talz? :D
To give a more detailed analysis than just preference (lew ;))
They are pretty much opposite ends of the metal tone scale. The CL is very dry, the PB is very wet. The CL tends toward dark and if you dial in a lot of treble it leas toward runch with bit of sizzle, where the PB has a very much brighter character and always has a somewhat fizzy top end to it. The both have very fast response, but the PB is faster and more aggressive. It also has a lot more gain on tap, but no more than half of it is usable on channel 3 and 4 (it goes to fizz and mush; I use channel 4 most, and with the gain on about 3-4), whereas you can whack the CLs gain right up, and theres a lot of it, but its all good.
Single notes sound fatter on the VHT and the mids are bigger, the whole sound is richer and fuller, whereas teh PB is more cutting and grinding with thinner single note sounds and more blended chords
If you want an extreme modern sound for mechanical, hyper-precise metal then the PB is better. Its bright character lets it stand up to heavy detuning better as well (the CL is tight enough but the top end may lack a little for some tastes/styles). The CL is thicker and more dynamic; you can impart different inflections to notes and chords with pick attack much better, where the PB is a more notes are on or off type thing. The PBs low end is pure thumping chug, and the amp doesnt have a lot of character in the low mids. The lows and low mids of the CL growl and snarl at you much more. The CL is a much nicer amp for leads, but they each have a different character for metal rhythm and I like both.
If their sonic characters are best represented in anything, or if any tones remind me of each, then the PB would be necrophagist (who I believe use engls, and if not they've managed to make something sound very 'engl') and unearth III or either of Misery indexes last two albums (I think they use mesa or peavey, but you could get those tones from a CL as well).
Except the cleans. I like the PBs cleans much better than the ULs; chimier and clearer; the CLs have a darker character and twang a bit too much. As such I currently have the CL red channel dialed in to a middy lead sound (which its great at) and a slightly scooped rhythm on the green, both with the gain on about 7.
Oh, and the PB turns down much better than the CL. The CLs alright at low volumes in the grand scheme of high wattage, high gain amps, but it doesnt come into its own at all until its more than a little loud. The PB comes into its own at a much lower volume and just gets louder, but doesnt really change the character of the sound as it does so.
Due to the characters of the sound, while on their own each amp can be very loud, I wouldnt be surprised if the CL chewed up the PB and spat it out in a 2 guitar live setting. Same with the JVM. But they're all recording amps so I dont care about that. If I were to gig, though, I would use the VHT out of the three of them. I think it would have the best ballance of fitting my style/songs and holding its own on a stage. For my recordings I fully plan to keep using the PB and introduce the CL as well. The JVM will no doubt get a look in, but I mainly got that to be able to provide more classic rock and 'early' metal tones to people I record.
