Pedal Vs. Amp Distortion

[Stevepage]

You can actually pick up a JVM for around £500.

I don't own a JVM any more but I loved that amp. It did everything I needed it too, the best Marshall I've played with.

I only sold it so I could have more money towards a PRS and use the rest to buy a 1 x 12 combo because the JVM was way more than I needed.

[Twinfan]

Interesting that Dave (Twinfan) seems to be heading that direction at the moment himself after much time with pedals. I'm sure he's not going to suddenly ditch the pedals, but it seems a good example of it being personal preference and that your preference might change with time and with what you're trying to achieve.

Actually Andy, I've got four pedals sat here by my PC waiting for pics to be taken before I sell them  :lol:

I've moved to amp gain almost exclusively.  I have a couple of fuzz pedals (as amps don't do that tone), a BB Preamp on my main board as a backup for gigging, plus a Centaur clone on my small board for home use.

On a normal live gig, I won't use any gain pedals at all.

[d1dsj]

I prefer my amps drive but I still have a distortion/ fuzz on my board just in case my amps went down and I have to use my Crate Powerblock as an emergency backup.

[Doadman]

Mmmmmm, it's been great to spark a good response and I find on this particular forum I'm far more likely to get intelligent and thoughtful responses from people who really know their stuff than I can from any other forum. Every response has been interesting to read so thanks to you all. Am I any nearer a solution? No, but I have been able to expand my knowledge and understanding and that's never a bad thing. So, what have I discovered?

1) There's no clearly defined right or wrong to this question. Whether an amp has better distortions or not depends on the amp you're using and the same is true of pedals.

2) Although there haven't been many concrete suggestions on amps I could look at in my budget, I get the impression that I should keep a very open mind. The Marshall JVM 410H remains an option, as does the Blackstar HT Stage 100. To those two I am inclined to add a Marshall DSL50/100, Laney TT-50, Laney VH100 and Laney GH100.

3) As tastes change I should perhaps look for an amp that does the ranges of distortion I want but also has a decent clean channel to use distortion pedals on if that's the sound I decide I'm after.

[Telerocker]

There is no way wrong.

- I prefer amp distortion with my rockband cause I can really press out the dynamics of my Orange Rockerverb.

- But I also play in a coverband with a hornsection and on stage the overal soundvolume is at least half of my rockband. So I have to turn the Rockerverb down. Still sounds goods, but the mastervolume is to low to hit the sweet spot of the Rockerverb. For heavy stuff in the coverband is use a Suhr Riot, which is specially designed in the front of a clean channel. It sounds massive and very much like a good tube amp. Really it does. Watch the vid.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Feyne-dQxjg

- On the drivechannel I turn the drive to half and for blistering solo's I use the Emma Reezafratzitz, which is an outstanding distortionpedal with great tubeamp character and respons. This setup delivers fat distortion with long sustain at relatively low volume. The Emma does well in front of the clean channel too.

- I must admit that ampdistortion is more touchsensitive and has more an organic feel/sound then pedals in front of the cleanchannel, but with the Riot I come close and on low volumes it evens sounds better then the drivechannel.

[Telerocker]

Mmmmmm, it's been great to spark a good response and I find on this particular forum I'm far more likely to get intelligent and thoughtful responses from people who really know their stuff than I can from any other forum. Every response has been interesting to read so thanks to you all. Am I any nearer a solution? No, but I have been able to expand my knowledge and understanding and that's never a bad thing. So, what have I discovered?

1) There's no clearly defined right or wrong to this question. Whether an amp has better distortions or not depends on the amp you're using and the same is true of pedals.

2) Although there haven't been many concrete suggestions on amps I could look at in my budget, I get the impression that I should keep a very open mind. The Marshall JVM 410H remains an option, as does the Blackstar HT Stage 100. To those two I am inclined to add a Marshall DSL50/100, Laney TT-50, Laney VH100 and Laney GH100.

3) As tastes change I should perhaps look for an amp that does the ranges of distortion I want but also has a decent clean channel to use distortion pedals on if that's the sound I decide I'm after.

A JVM has lots of options and will satisfy most of your needs, however I think a DSL sounds a bit better. Take a look at Orange too, a (used) Rockerverb, Thunderverb, the new Thunder and Dual Terror. Really underestimated is the Hughes & Kettner Trilogy, used you can pick this one up for no money, when you can lay your hands on one, cause you don't see them much. A used Budda Superdrive 30 or 45 could make you happy too.

[dave_mc]

I should probably clarify- when I say "amp distortion", I mean either amp distortion on its own, or the distorted amp with a pedal for a boost. I count that as amp distortion too. I only really count "pedal into clean amp", where all the distortion is coming from the pedal, as pedal distortion. :oops: :lol:

[Doadman]

That Hughes & Kettner Trilogy sounds like a similar concept to the Marshall JVM410 in many respects. It certainly sounds like a fantastic amp but a search on Ebay produced no results. Still, I'm in no immediate rush as the Marshall DSL401 I have now is good enough for gigs through my 4X12 so I'll be patient and keep my eyes open. Once I've got a Yamaha Pacifica as my backup guitar, changed the scratchplate on it, put the pickups from my Jackson in it and loaded the Jackson with Bareknuckles; then it will become a more pressing matter for me and hopefully by then I'll have tried a few of these amps for myself.

[Transcend]

you should also look into the H&K switchblade that is another awesome amp.

Also if you can find one

an old Marshall 6100 head

its pretty much identical to the JVM but is older and generally a bit cheaper but the head is blue

[Brow]

you should also look into the H&K switchblade that is another awesome amp.

Also if you can find one

an old Marshall 6100 head

its pretty much identical to the JVM but is older and generally a bit cheaper but the head is blue

I absolutely hated the Switchblade myself, thought it sounded like a really cheap and nasty distortion pedal, but that's just me and my opinion  :lol:

A +1 on the 6100 (black) or 6100LM (anniversary model with Blue tolex if I recall?) though. I tried 1 years ago and really liked it, but if I bought it I wouldn't have been able to have bought a cab for it, so I went with my JCM800 instead.

[Transcend]

Yeah i thought it was the other way around and that the anniversary one was black for some reason.

Probably because the blue one comes up a lot more on ebay

[Telerocker]

you should also look into the H&K switchblade that is another awesome amp.

Also if you can find one

an old Marshall 6100 head

its pretty much identical to the JVM but is older and generally a bit cheaper but the head is blue

I absolutely hated the Switchblade myself, thought it sounded like a really cheap and nasty distortion pedal, but that's just me and my opinion  :lol:

A +1 on the 6100 (black) or 6100LM (anniversary model with Blue tolex if I recall?) though. I tried 1 years ago and really liked it, but if I bought it I wouldn't have been able to have bought a cab for it, so I went with my JCM800 instead.

I think the Trilogy sounds way better then the Switchblade, although some people get great sounds out of it.

[JamesHealey]

I play a Trainwreck Liverpool, JTM45 and Super Lead.

All of which I get my OD sound from cranking the two Marshalls I boost with a TS9 type pedal the Wreck needs no help in the gain department.

I don't like the whole clean amp + dist pedal thing i've tried it but for me it lacks authority and girth of tone, also lacks in the dynamics dept.

Nothing quite roars like a 100w Super Lead dimed with a TS9 boosting it.. pure rock!

[Telerocker]

I play a Trainwreck Liverpool, JTM45 and Super Lead.

All of which I get my OD sound from cranking the two Marshalls I boost with a TS9 type pedal the Wreck needs no help in the gain department.

I don't like the whole clean amp + dist pedal thing i've tried it but for me it lacks authority and girth of tone, also lacks in the dynamics dept.

Nothing quite roars like a 100w Super Lead dimed with a TS9 boosting it.. pure rock!

You're right. I would like to fire up my Rockerverb to the massive burning sound this amp is known for. But in the coverband I play I often have to play on low vol.levels and in this case the Suhr Riot does the trick very well on the clean channel. So it a second best option.

[murraymurray]

have you tried running a boost in front of the dsl to tighten it up (get rid of the mush) then an eq in the loop for a solo boost?
i used dsl's for shows a few months back and really liked the sound i got out of it with an od1 boosting the front end.