New toys.

[Kiwi]

 

I came back from the UK yesterday with an entire suitcase of stuff I'd managed to squirrel away over the last 7 years in it's own suitcase. All of it bought for less than market due to being in the right place at the right time. With the delivery of a couple of V30 loaded 1x12 cabs today, I spent a decent chunk of this afternoon, jetlag permitting, putting a couple of the preamps through the MPX G2 (which I already owned).  

My favourite amp is a Princeton Deluxe which is being shipped over, it nails the sound I've always wanted to hear.  But I didn't expect how much I would like the Marshall JMP-1!  I even preferred it to the Mesa Studio pre. 

[ezbass]

The JMP1 was a rack staple back in the day. I had one, but can’t remember much about it.

[Kiwi]

Yes, that was the reason for acquiring it but i never realised how punchy it is. I've developed a new appreciation for it. All the recordings I've listened to don't really do it justice.  Too much compression.

[ezbass]

I can’t remember what preamp I was using but it was a Marshall, although not the nice valve driven one you have there (maybe a Valvestate). I definitely had a Marshall 2x12 cab and a Digitech RP10 in front of it all.

Edited August 18, 2023 by ezbass

[Kiwi]

8 hours ago, ezbass said:

I can’t remember what preamp I was using but it was a Marshall, although not the nice valve driven one you have there 

Heh, ironically the JMP-1 is solid state distortion but uses a valve to filter the sound a bit.  Their 9000 series preamps sound nice too but maybe a little less sweetened.

 

I have a bunch of paperwork to do today but I'll hopefully have some time to try the Triaxis out later.

[Kiwi]

Unfortunately the paper work took longer than expected but I did get to put the Triaxis through it's paces.  It's lovely.  Tight, thick, articulate, compressed, smooth...everything you would expect to hear on an eighties/nineties rock track.  It's a different beast altogether compared to the JMP-1 BUT...my version of Triaxis has a 'british voiced' Lead 1/red channel which I presume is supposed to sound like a Marshall.  It's definitely got a bit more midrange but nothing like the unfiltered punch of the JMP-1.

 

 

For shits and giggles I thought I'd try the pedalboard planned for the Fender PRII through the Marshal 20/20 power amp as well given a couple of the pedals are supposed to be preamps.  It sucked!  The sound was weak and lifeless - no warmth or mids, slightly harsh top end.  Maybe there was an impedance mismatch somewhere.

[FretMystic]

Wow that first photo really looks like a great weekend of plugging in and tone shaping! Get a rack of guitars and a six pack and it is go time! 

 

I am new to the forums so I am still learning and getting to know the different categories of threads. Just saying hello. 

[Kiwi]

21 hours ago, FretMystic said:

Wow that first photo really looks like a great weekend of plugging in and tone shaping! Get a rack of guitars and a six pack and it is go time! 

 

I am new to the forums so I am still learning and getting to know the different categories of threads. Just saying hello. 

Welcome aboard!  Feel welcome to make your own gear thread, if you haven't done that already.

Update:  I've been playing around with this stuff for nearly a couple of months now.  I really like the triaxis.  It has nearly all the sounds I want to hear and it has plenty of midrange attack.  By comparison, I'm finding the Studio Pre is a little looser, a little more old school and it seems more sensitive to pickup output. I am probably going to list it for sale soon. 

The Marshall is great. It's got those classic sounds that we know well from records.   I can also get the triaxis to sound like it if I boost lots of treble and select the british voice.  But yeah, it's going to stay with me for a while. 

The Carvin Quad X is a really interesting beast.  First impressions was it's very hifi - lots and lots of presence.  It's a bit of a swiss army knife in the sense that there are loops for each of the four MIDI selectable channels and a master effects loop as well as inbuilt spring reverb.  If anything, it's a little excessive.  The gain channels (3+4) sound very tight and crisp, the tonal curve is a little flatter than the triaxis which suggests that putting some kind of filtering in the channel effects loops may be worth while.  Either eq pedals or perhaps amp sim pedals like the Joyo American Sound.  But as they stand, the eq isn't quite as ear-friendly as the triaxis.  This is a shame given it's potential versatility but it's not a lost cause by any means.

The Fender Princeton Reverb II is just lovely.  I've been playing around with preamp valves and at the moment it has a set of TAD 12AX7's with an EHX in v2.  I had the opportunity to compare the EHX to a Mullad, a Mazda, the TAD and a JJ Tesla Ruby.  The EHX and Mullard were very close to each other tonally - lots of warmth and slight compression without losing attack.  Very nice to listen to at higher volumes.  A full set of TADs was a little modern sounding and hifi.  The Mazda was half way between the TADs and the Mullard.  The Ruby was a little harsher than the Mazda but not quite in TAD territory.  So the TADs are doing the heavy lifting with something in v2 for shaping tonal character.