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#1
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About 2 years ago I bought Fender's cheapest Strat ($400), I haven't changed the pickups yet, not sure what to buy. Then, about a year ago I bought a 20 watt Marshall Valvestate 2000 practice amp. It has a pre amp (10 inch celestion speaker), and it's more than loud enough for playing in a bedroom.
![]() I also have a Boss MT-2 Metal Zone pedal. ![]() ..and an old DOD Stereo Chorus FX65 ![]() Okay, together they sound really good for chords; to get a Van halen type of sound, but here's the problem: When I play individual lead notes it has a Boxy sound that I hate. The sound reminds me of Brian May's Vox amp. It doesn't sound that way with just the amp alone, but I don't really care for that sound either (the sound is almost there, just needs a little something [maybe 30 more watts of power?]), Is there some pedal effect that you could recommend that might give it a decent sound? Or am I just going to have to get a 50 watt combo amp w/a 12" speaker? Guitar player's sound that I like: Eddie Eric Johnson Jeff Beck Yngwie Steve Stevens Thanks for any help |
#2
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For your price range, I would ditch the amp and the pedals and just get a Line 6 amp.
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#3
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I really, really hate small Marshall valvestate amps, but your answer depends on whether you are limited to your bedroom. If so, and if I were you, I would ditch the amp completely and buy a line 6 Pod and a very good set of headphones. There is no small amp / pedal combo that can get you a decent sound. You physically can't move enough air around.
My two cents. |
#4
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The Metal Zone is probably #2 on my list of [censored] distortion pedals, right below some piece of [censored] DOD pedal called Grunge something-or-other.
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#5
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[ QUOTE ]
The Metal Zone is probably #2 on my list of [censored] distortion pedals, right below some piece of [censored] DOD pedal called Grunge something-or-other. [/ QUOTE ] So what do you like? |
#6
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[ QUOTE ]
I would ditch the amp completely and buy a line 6 Pod and a very good set of headphones. [/ QUOTE ] I live in a house with double pane windows, so I don't have to use headphones. But I'm not planning on joining a band either, so I can't imagine needing a 100 watt amp. Just something with enough balls that draws me to want to practice with it. Now, because I don't care for the sound of my amp, I just practice unplugged in front of the tv for the most part. [ QUOTE ] line 6 Pod [/ QUOTE ] I'll have to check that out, plus somebody suggested a Line 6 amp, which I think I listened to one about 4 years ago. Was kind of expensive as I remember. |
#7
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How much can you spend? You're never going to get a high quality sound out of a 20-watt solid state practice amp.
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#8
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[ QUOTE ]
How much can you spend? You're never going to get a high quality sound out of a 20-watt solid state practice amp. [/ QUOTE ] Hopefully I can get something for less than $500. My brother gave me an old cabinet with 4 celestion speakers in it, but it has no power amp. I assume a marshall 50 watt head (tube amp) would cost over a thousand. |
#9
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[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ] How much can you spend? You're never going to get a high quality sound out of a 20-watt solid state practice amp. [/ QUOTE ] Hopefully I can get something for less than $500. My brother gave me an old cabinet with 4 celestion speakers, but it has no power amp. I assume a marshall 50 watt head (tube amp) would cost over a thousand. [/ QUOTE ] Okay I've been out of the market for a while and wouldn't know what kind of particular unit to go for, but I would definitely try to find a quality tube head if you've already got a 4x12 cab for free. Maybe save up a little while and try to find a good Marshall JCM800 50W head or something like it. Unless you don't want a setup this big. Because you'll not be able to push a Marshall half-stack much before you're waking up your neighbors. However, if you want a real quality setup just skip the little amps and save up for a real one. Then you won't ever have to buy another. Also, if you're using a standard strat with single-coil pickups you're going to have a pretty thin sound when running the bridge pickup, which I assume you spend most of your time at since you're playing van Halen. For hard rock/metal it's much better to have a humbucker back there. Maybe you should sell the Strat and get an Ibanez or a Jackson. There are a lot of relatively high quality entry-level electric guitars on the market these days. edit: posted this while you posted above. Sounds like you don't need this much sound. Still, it would be sweet to take advantage of that free 4x12 cab. |
#10
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just get an effects processor or line 6 amp. doesnt sound like youre ready to drop the bills on a real amp/guitar.
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