I’ve gone off the Marshall sound. What to try next?

[zenmindbeginner]

When “M” style gets old and stale...

“D” style is usualy what the doctor ordered

 

[Buck Woodson]

Another consideration for the OP is hitting the Marshall differently. I say this based on my experience yesterday with my Les Paul custom now with Suhr Doug Aldrich pickups.

They are described as high output but I would classify them as just one or two ticks closer to high output midway between PAF and high output. What this means for me is it sounds good to mostly fantastic and distinctive with many different amps.

Through my Metropoulos Super-Plex and DVL-1 they sound different and better than all my other guitars. So, essentially an entirely new, different, and better Marshall experience.

 

[Stratburst70]

To the OP: whose tones do you like? Instead of concentrating on what you don’t want, give us some ideas on what tones you’re striving for. That’ll help us help you better.

 

[JaiRamana]

Friedman is Marshall based but has its own modded and suped up take. I don’t get tired of it!

 

[NorCal_Val]

What to try next though as M style crunch and lead is the basis for heaps of pedals and amps in a box tones? If you’ve moved on from Marshall based crunch and lead tones, what did you gravitate too?

Straight to more modern metal type of tones. I basically jumped from EVH/modded Marshall-type tones as my touchstones, to Fear Factory/Devin Townsend/Meshuggah type guitar tones.

 

[PurpleJesus]

I got into music in the 80s and loved 70s classic rock and 80s rock and hard rock, so a lot of the tones I loved were Marshall based from classic Marshall crunch to hot rodded Marshall leads.

For the last several years I’ve been playing clean amp platforms with pedals, but I’ve noticed the last couple of years I keep flipping pedals looking for my ideal crunch and lead sounds. I thought my ideals were the Marshall tone, but every time I have one for a while, and lately when I listen to demos of M style pedals like the Bogner La Grange for example, I think to myself that I don’t like that tone anymore.

What to try next though as M style crunch and lead is the basis for heaps of pedals and amps in a box tones? If you’ve moved on from Marshall based crunch and lead tones, what did you gravitate too?

Hiwatt

 

[jlectka]

When I did the “different flavor” thing I ended up with a HiTone Lowatt (Hiwatt clone) and never looked back. Definitely a singular animal but takes drives pedals beautifully.

 

[RichSZ]

I have this on my wishlist:

Divided by 13 FTR 37.

http://www.dividedby13.com/ftr37.html

Only get this amp if you want the most versatile and pedal friendly amp on the market. By itself it is plays and feels like a Fender lineage with capability to get into the MArshall territory.

Of course nothing is going to play like a cranked plexi except for a cranked plexi. I've had this amp since 2005, experimented with different speaker combos and have a Blue and a real G12-65 and can play pretty authentic Tool to Sheryl Crow with the right pedals.

 

[jimijimmyjeffy]

If you're talking pedals, the new crunch frontier for me is fuzz. Superior crunch IMO, if you get the right ones for you. Better than most MIABs IMO for organic crunch.

Not sure regarding your possible thoughts about your amps.

 

[TubeStack]

I went from a lifetime of Marshalls to Mesa, mainly an Electra Dyne head and Rectoverb 25 combo. The Dyne is kind of a like a Marshall-y preamp married to a Mark series power section. Incredible amp, love it.

 

[effectsman]

If you're talking pedals, the new crunch frontier for me is fuzz. Superior crunch IMO, if you get the right ones for you. Better than most MIABs IMO for organic crunch.

Not sure regarding your possible thoughts about your amps.

Which fuzzes? I know you are a big Strat guy, and while I still like mine, I've moved away from the single coil sound, especially with OD tones, to hum buckers.

It's funny that I still enjoy all the Marshall based tones of bands from the 80s and 90s like GnR, The Cult, STP, Audioslave, Billy Idol, however when I play I really don't like how I sound with Marshall or hot-rodded Marshall tones. I seem to be searching for something else for "my sound".

 

[jimijimmyjeffy]

Which fuzzes? I know you are a big Strat guy, and while I still like mine, I've moved away from the single coil sound, especially with OD tones, to hum buckers.

It's funny that I still enjoy all the Marshall based tones of bands from the 80s and 90s like GnR, The Cult, STP, Audioslave, Billy Idol, however when I play I really don't like how I sound with Marshall or hot-rodded Marshall tones. I seem to be searching for something else for "my sound".

Well with humbuckers you do have a large selection of types of fuzzes that sound great with them.

Tonebenders can have good crunch, like my FacelessFx mk1. Bosstone derivatives can have good crunch, like PTD Bone type pedals. A lot of silicon fuzzes have good crunch, perhaps like a Carcosa? Gilmour got crunch from a Colorsound Power Booster. There are so many, you just have to gradually listen to fuzzes people mention.

The Lance Keltner demo of the "Rockett Trombetta pedal" (not yet named prototype of the WTF) was quite crunchy. ZZ Top like.

But the thing is, I love amp crunch. But a great fuzz has its own mojo and crunch even though they typically are not intended to imitate any amp tone. Transistors just sound naturally crunchy to me.

And fuzz bias/gating effects really enhance a crunch.

You could argue fuzz transistors can be crunchier sounding than tubes. Then, any of them can be pushed into a rounder sustainier thing too.

 

[Tootone]

VOX AC30. Maybe its time for some classic hairy clean chime.

Make sure you get Celestion Blue Alnicos with it... Greenbacks will put you back in Marshallesque territory.

 

[andrekp]

No kidding! Maybe if you don’t like the “Marshall Sound,” knitting would be a good next hobby.

seriously, this is an endless mantra at TGP. Every day there is some variation of, “I don’t like how my amp sounds. I play it clean and get my distortion from pedals. Maybe I just don’t like my amp.”

modern guitar players have lost their historical knowledge, yet continue to insist on historical tone. The only thing that sounds like an overdriven Marshall, is an overdriven Marshall, or reasonably, something close in design. Same with ANY amp.

Everyone needs to stop thinking that a pedal is a solution to a fundamental problem. And the amp you use is fundamental. OP, find the amp you actually love the sound of. One you love clean, lightly overdriven, and heavily overdriven. Find that. Put your energy into that. Nothing else will work right until you do. And avoid the TGP tendency to try to make everything a Swiss Army knife. There is no rig that will play George Benson and Metallica equally well. Pedals can’t solve that either.

And, to be clear, I love pedals. I make them. I use them. I never object to their use in a general sense. But finding a pedal you like should follow, not precede, finding amp tones you like.

 

[effectsman]

No kidding! Maybe if you don’t like the “Marshall Sound,” knitting would be a good next hobby.

seriously, this is an endless mantra at TGP. Every day there is some variation of, “I don’t like how my amp sounds. I play it clean and get my distortion from pedals. Maybe I just don’t like my amp.”

modern guitar players have lost their historical knowledge, yet continue to insist on historical tone. The only thing that sounds like an overdriven Marshall, is an overdriven Marshall, or reasonably, something close in design. Same with ANY amp.

Everyone needs to stop thinking that a pedal is a solution to a fundamental problem. And the amp you use is fundamental. OP, find the amp you actually love the sound of. One you love clean, lightly overdriven, and heavily overdriven. Find that. Put your energy into that. Nothing else will work right until you do. And avoid the TGP tendency to try to make everything a Swiss Army knife. There is no rig that will play George Benson and Metallica equally well. Pedals can’t solve that either.

And, to be clear, I love pedals. I make them. I use them. I never object to their use in a general sense. But finding a pedal you like should follow, not precede, finding amp tones you like.

I think you’ve missed the essence of my post, or I have failed to communicate it adequately. I don’t hate Marshall tone, and just the other day I played the SV20 head and 2061x and loved both. When I practice covers from Billy Idol, STP, The Cult, GnR, etc I use Marshall tones and try to recreate it as faithfully as possible. I also still enjoy listening to them on the stereo.

What I mean is that then when I am just playing myself and am dialing in crunch and lead tones, although a lot of the music I liked and still like uses Marshall’s, I seem to be rejecting that for MY OWN tones. What is confusing is that the music I most like/d uses Marshall’s but I seem to be rejecting that.

I like my amps which are tweed Bassman style which I run cleanish. If I were to sit down with an amp designer like John Suhr who did the PT100 I would probably keep the clean channel the same, but the voicing of channels 2 and 3 I don’t know how I would voice them. 5 years ago I would have left them as is. Now I would be looking for something different, but what I’m not sure?

I take your point about the amp being the fundamental starting point. I’ve been trying to listen to more music to see if I have that Aha moment where I here a player and go “that’s a great sound!” Then I can try to see what they have and recreate that tone.

My initial question was just looking for ideas by asking others if they had gravitated away from Marshall tones, where they had ended up.

 

[cam0122]

Amen!!!

 

[cam0122]

The bamboo pan flute is a sure shot, Marshall not.

 

[Jr Deluxe]

Try a valvestate.

 

[andrekp]

I think you’ve missed the essence of my post, or I have failed to communicate it adequately. I don’t hate Marshall tone, and just the other day I played the SV20 head and 2061x and loved both. When I practice covers from Billy Idol, STP, The Cult, GnR, etc I use Marshall tones and try to recreate it as faithfully as possible. I also still enjoy listening to them on the stereo.

What I mean is that then when I am just playing myself and am dialing in crunch and lead tones, although a lot of the music I liked and still like uses Marshall’s, I seem to be rejecting that for MY OWN tones. What is confusing is that the music I most like/d uses Marshall’s but I seem to be rejecting that.

I like my amps which are tweed Bassman style which I run cleanish. If I were to sit down with an amp designer like John Suhr who did the PT100 I would probably keep the clean channel the same, but the voicing of channels 2 and 3 I don’t know how I would voice them. 5 years ago I would have left them as is. Now I would be looking for something different, but what I’m not sure?

I take your point about the amp being the fundamental starting point. I’ve been trying to listen to more music to see if I have that Aha moment where I here a player and go “that’s a great sound!” Then I can try to see what they have and recreate that tone.

My initial question was just looking for ideas by asking others if they had gravitated away from Marshall tones, where they had ended up.

I think I got your post, it’s just that I think you are treading a misguided path, probably facilitated by TGP. Amp tone comes from an amp. You have to find that tone for yourself. It doesn’t come from the wrong amp being forced/tricked into making the tone you want. TGP tends to teach everyone to look for universality. One rig to rule them all. Pedals into clean amps, fuzzes that clean up, etc. The reality is that you are better served by finding a tone you love, working it up to its best, and accepting (and here’s the part TGP can’t accept) that it might not work for every kind of music you decide to play. You learn to accept it as YOUR tone, for all its pluses and minuses. Kieth Richard (or whoever) doesn’t sit fretting about chasing some perfect tone, he just sounds and plays like Kieth, and has for decades now. THAT’S what you should be looking for. Start with the amp, the rest takes care of itself.

 

[thesjkexperienc]

My two favorites are the Model H by Bearfoot that does cranked Hi-Watt (and HP tweed twin) sounds and a BJFE Emerald Green that has a Vox flavor.