Amp for JCM 800 Cleans

[D 2 Z]

Im looking for an amp to get cleans similar to the cleans produced by a JCM 800. If there is any amp similar to this then that would be good. Im looking for cleans similar to he ones in the song "under the bridge" by the red hot chili peppers. Sort of "round" and "smooth" if you understand what im saying. Preferably lower wattage and under 1000 dollars. Thanks

Right now im looking at the mesa 5:25, blackheart BH5, Egnater Rebel, and the Rivera CLubster.

[oacikgoz]

cleans of JCM800 suck! why do you want it?

[D 2 Z]

Is that not what JF Uses in the song under the bridge?

[rob2001]

Originally Posted by oacikgoz

cleans of JCM800 suck! why do you want it?

Not true. You won't get Fender cleans but they will do a very cool clean you won't get from a fender.

[Deaj]

Originally Posted by rob2001

Not true. You won't get Fender cleans but they will do a very cool clean you won't get from a fender.

True that! Set up right a 2204 or 2203 JCM800 will sound great from clean to mean.

[ecbluesman54]

I agree as well, I really like the cleans on my JCM 800. To each his own I guess.......
Of the amps you listed, the only one I have had a chance to play is the Mesa, and I think its a good amp. I dont recall however how the cleans would compare to a JCM 800.

[bosstone]

You can't beat a Marshall 2204. Just turn down the volume and use a RC Booster or Ibanez reissue Tubescreamer. They work perfectly for me. You should be able to find one for about $1K, less if you don't mind horizontal pickup versions that sound exactly the same and tend to be just about as reliable despite what some might tell you.

[Han Solo]

Originally Posted by bosstone

You can't beat a Marshall 2204. Just turn down the volume and use a RC Booster or Ibanez reissue Tubescreamer. They work perfectly for me. You should be able to find one for about $1K, less if you don't mind horizontal pickup versions that sound exactly the same and tend to be just about as reliable despite what some might tell you.

Absolutely. I use a Fulldrive for this with excellent results.

[D 2 Z]

Do you think a ceriatone clone does it justice? Its much cheaper and it would be new, not used.

How do some of the other marshalls compare? For example the 18 watt, 20 watt, etc.

[devilrob1979]

A Ceriatone clone's going to do it more than justice.

[mesanatic]

JF uses two Jubilee heads and a Superlead which may be what he uses for clean or one of his 2 Jubes set to clean.

That said a 76-80 JMP will get you there, and a bit better than a JCM 800.
A JCM 800 will too especially if you use a compression pedal, then crank your guitar volume when it's time to rock.

An 18 or 20 watt isn't going to sound the same and doesn't have the headroom to be loud enough to play clean by rolling off your guitar volume. For me any way.

[John Coloccia]

I doubt anyone will give me $1000 for my 2205. LOL. I'll offer it for sale right now at $1000 if anyone wants to fork it over.

Really, to my ears there's absolutely nothing elusive or special about that "Under the Bridge" tone. Just sounds like the normal skanky strat plugged into any 'ole just breaking up amp....dry as toast with no reverb.

I'm 100% serious here. If I wanted that particular tone on the cheap, I would go to the local Guitar Center, find the absolute cheapest, crappiest tube amp I could find, and turn it up a bit until I got the right amount of breakup. Try the middle pickup on a strat...maybe roll the tone knob back just a touch. I swear I found an old POS tube amp at a garage sale once for $10. I wish I'd bought the damn thing 'cause it totally nailed that tone.

You definitely don't need to spend bucks to get there. That's one of the coolest things about that song. The tone, by almost any standard, totally sucks but at the same time the playing and the tone fit the song perfectly and it all magically works somehow.

[bosstone]

Originally Posted by mesanatic

JF uses two Jubilee heads and a Superlead which may be what he uses for clean or one of his 2 Jubes set to clean.

That said a 76-80 JMP will get you there, and a bit better than a JCM 800.
A JCM 800 will too especially if you use a compression pedal, then crank your guitar volume when it's time to rock.

An 18 or 20 watt isn't going to sound the same and doesn't have the headroom to be loud enough to play clean by rolling off your guitar volume. For me any way.

There is almost no difference between the 76 JMP and 50 watters and all JCM 800s through at least 87. If anything, the JCMs have a little more gain on tap but that can be dialed out with preamp volume.

[D 2 Z]

Do you think using an attenuator will rob the jcm too much? Im in no situation to be cranking my amp but in all of my searching, i have not found a good hard rock amp with cleans i like at usable volumes. There are some but they are way more expensive than a JCM 800. Some say an attenuator wont do the amp justice but what do you guys think. Or should i just go with a low volume cclean amp with some dirt pedals thrown in front of it?

Theres also the egnater rebel which will be great if it can do some nice hard rock tones. Have any of you seen anything like that out of it?

[bosstone]

Originally Posted by D 2 Z

Do you think using an attenuator will rob the jcm too much? Im in no situation to be cranking my amp but in all of my searching, i have not found a good hard rock amp with cleans i like at usable volumes. There are some but they are way more expensive than a JCM 800. Some say an attenuator wont do the amp justice but what do you guys think. Or should i just go with a low volume cclean amp with some dirt pedals thrown in front of it?

Theres also the egnater rebel which will be great if it can do some nice hard rock tones. Have any of you seen anything like that out of it?

It all depends on how much you have to attenuate. At most gig volumes, most attenuators do a very decent job. If you are planning to play in the living room, forget it. All the ones I have tried really start to rob tone at low volume.

I went through literally dozens of amps with master volumes and ones without MV and with attenuators and a slew of 5 to 12 watt amps. I also tried three different popular attenuators. Nothing worked until I tried a 1993 Ampeg Vl 502. It is a 50 watt head that covers most Marshall sounds including JCM 800 and modified JCM 800 sounds very well and has built in attenuation that works of of tube voltage like simplified version of Power Scaling, rather than the old tired resistive load attenuation that most others use. It is by far the best solution I have found and you typically can find them for about $500.00. Try one. You will like it.