20W boutique amp for Marshall sounds - recommendations?

[FELINEGUITARS]

Denis Cornell amps

http://www.dc-developments.com/cornell_plexi.htm

[Philly Q]

I was blissfully unaware of the existence of Cornell Plexis until this afternoon.  Now I want to drop a grand on one...

#$%!ing BKP forum giving me amp GAS!   :lol:

[charlie1234]

Cornell looks absolutely perfect except I need... reverb. Sorry.

Would a Cornford Hurricane give me some Guns n Roses tones?

[hunter]

I was blissfully unaware of the existence of Cornell Plexis until this afternoon.  Now I want to drop a grand on one...

#$%!ing BKP forum giving me amp GAS!   :lol:

No way, you're from UK and didn't know them? Have you realised that there is a new 7W version of the Plexi?

GAS^10

[Dakine]

You say 20watt but shoot for 18 watt, MAGIC number.
I cannot begin to list the players who have recorded classic albums with an 18 watt amp.

You have to register but 18watt.com has WEALTH of info. Can build your own or buy one VERY cheap imo.

Also, 18 watts is LOUD!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So, to NOT lose tone whilst pleasing neighbors think of power scaling!

Mojave have the Coyote which is uber cool 15 watter but costly which they say has power dampening. I am not 100% sure but am thinking thats their word for power scaling.
London Power has trademarked a box for power scaling (as refered to on Suhr's site in conjunction with the Badger, which btw is not all ptp "point to point" but some circuit board, not that it matters really).
And, power scaling is nothing like attenuation btw.

Dr.Z
Mojave
Reinhardt
65 Amps
Top Hat

the list goes on and on and on. And these are just the booteeky ones.

Also, maybe consider EL84's as they are in alot of 18 watters and give a real nice 'crunch' for that wattage/tone.

I could write enuff to send ya to sleep but am sure you will find a wealth of knowledge and help with a lil time.

Good luck :)

[WezV]

Cornell looks absolutely perfect except I need... reverb. Sorry.

Would a Cornford Hurricane give me some Guns n Roses tones?

surely nobody really needs reverb

I wouldnt overlook something that good because it lacked one feature that you can get other ways

[Philly Q]

No way, you're from UK and didn't know them? Have you realised that there is a new 7W version of the Plexi?

I knew about Cornell amps, but not the Plexi range.  But it's true, I'm much more ignorant about amps and outboard gear than I am about guitars.  I can go in a shop and try a guitar out quietly, but to properly test an amp I'd have to subject everyone in the shop to my sh!tty playing.  And I'm too self-conscious to do that.  They should have more soundproof rooms in music shops.

Yes, I did read about the Plexi 7 and I want one badly!  But I wonder if it's worth £650...?  The 18/20 is probably better value.

[froglord]

Dakine's absolutely right - you're going to need an attenuator, power scaling, or maybe a really good master volume. What a lot of guitarists don't realise is that wattage is not a linear measure of volume. All other things being equal, a 20 watt amp is nearly as loud as a 50 watt amp.

There's a good explanation here:

http://www.amptone.com/g112.htm

My Minimat is 2 watts nominal (8 watts at full distortion) and through a 1x12 it is LOUD. Loud enough for the neighbours to be complaining in seconds if I cranked everything to full. The thing that makes the Minimat usable as a bedroom amp (unless you're only playing clean) is the built-in attenuator.

Matamp do a sort-of Marshall - the King Street. It's not a clone, but is designed for that classic British rock sound. It doesn't have an attenuator, but they could add one if you wanted it.

The Cornell Plexis do look nice, too.

[Woogie]

I read that 100w is only 3db louder than 50w.

It's like a car with 100bhp isn't twice as fast as one with 50bhp.

[Ted]

I'm sure Matamp would do something for you.

Not really. Matamp don't do Marshall clones, period.

Thats not quite right.

Matamp do an EL34 amp called the King Street, it is their take on vintage Marshall and it is fantastic. I am a huge Marshall fan, but was in the exactly the same predicament you are in. Now I am a huge Matamp fan. I would recommend contacting matamp london , so you can try one if you want. They will fit an attenuator for you too. http://www.matamplondon.co.uk

Edit: I have just re-read your post and I STRONGLY recommend you try one.

[TwilightOdyssey]

I'm sure Matamp would do something for you.

Not really. Matamp don't do Marshall clones, period.

Thats not quite right.

Matamp do a EL34 amp called the King Street, ... I have just re-read your post and I STRONGLY recommend you try one.

That's very interesting. Thank you for clearing that up!

[Dakine]

Remember that IF volume is an issue (say at home when not gigging) then in many circumstances Master Volume (if desiring same overdrive tone at lower volume) and certainly not Attenuation are a fix.

This is a good read to explain some about 'Power Scaling' circuits (known as dampening elsewhere etc.) and how they can even be retro-fitted;

http://www.londonpower.com/pscaling.htm

Also, tube type plays a part in volume (as does single ended circuit design). Recently a friend put his all tube cathode biased EL34 50w up against a single ended 11watt EL84 and the 50w was blown away both tone (subjective) and volume/size of sound wise.

[indysmith]

http://www.matamplondon.co.uk.

I've never played any matamp's other than the minimat, so I don't know much about them - but ALL the clips on that site sounded absolutely awful to me! do they sound like that for real?

[Philly Q]

I don't know if this thread has helped Charlie 1234 decide on his amp, but it's been very interesting and informative for me.  Thanks guys!   :D

[HTH AMPS]

how about an AC15 - you should pick one up on ebay for around £600, they have both trem and reverb too.

if you MUST have reverb, give Cornell a call - they're custom amps anyway, just say you want 'amp x' with reverb (simple).

 :twisted: