Amps that cover a lot of ground

[Cheap]

I'm looking to pick up an amp to start building up my collection for doing some session guitar work and am having a hard time knowing where to begin.

I know I can probably get away with having 2-3 amp heads to cover everything I'd need (lots of Nashville sessions) and don't need a 5150.

What would be a good recommendation to jump into in order to end up with something that can cover a ton of tonal ground. I was thinking something like a JCM 800 2203 head or the Invective, etc. I don't really have a preference as it's hard to find a true piece of shit these days--just looking for something cool and the budget will vary depending on how sick the amp is although I'm not looking at Friedman/Wizard territory (yet).

For reference: Heaviest I'd probably go is the tone off The Kindred's 'Life In Lucidity' record or anything Karnivool. Cleanest would be something in the vein of Joey Landreth when he's not goosing his rig with boosts/gain boxes. LOTS OF EFFECTS but mostly after the fact in the box

 

[BurningRome]

Fryette / VHT Sig X.

It does it all, no exaggeration.

In the end I believe you'll get mostly suggestions for the Kemper and Axe FX but out of all the amps I've cycled through which have been a lot of Orange's, EVH, Rivera Tre, Peavey's, Fender, Fryette's like the UL, Deliverance etc I would with out a doubt do the Sig.

3 channels and they can all do clean, tons of tone options AND the FX loop volume works like an attenuator. Flip it on turn it down all the way and crank your channel volume and you have manegable bedroom volume that sounds really good.

 

[Andromalia]

Well, for session work an axe fx makes an awful lot of sense so yes, I'd advise that. ^^

 

[protest]

Mesa Mark V

 

[laxu]

I'd look at the Friedman Runt 50. Does the Marshall thing very well but without needing to crank the damn amp to ungodly levels and has a fairly good clean channel too.

 

[LiveOVErdrive]

SSO cliche time:

Kemper, axe fx, helix

 

[budda]

A couple dirt pedals and a deluxe reverb or Dr. Z. Session engineers wont care if you have flavour of the month gear, they will care about chops and knowing how to dial in the tones that fit the song best. An OCD, soul food and maybe a fuzz will cover your dirt needs. Add a blue sky and decent delay and you're well on your way.

 

[Cheap]

Ah right, I forgot to mention that I've tried the Fractal thing 3 times and the Kemper thing twice, but haven't been into it enough to make any music so I'm kind of leaning into the being an amp guy thing haha

 

[Cheap]

A couple dirt pedals and a deluxe reverb or Dr. Z. Session engineers wont care if you have flavour of the month gear, they will care about chops and knowing how to dial in the tones that fit the song best. An OCD, soul food and maybe a fuzz will cover your dirt needs. Add a blue sky and decent delay and you're well on your way.

Preach! That's exactly why I'm trying to approach it as like how can I dial in whatever is needed but only have a few amps.

I keep meaning to try a few Dr. Z heads but can never seem to find any near me. Deluxe reverb could be a good way to go for probably 60% of what I need

 

[Cheap]

I'd look at the Friedman Runt 50. Does the Marshall thing very well but without needing to crank the damn amp to ungodly levels and has a fairly good clean channel too.

Do you think a Runt would suit better than just an old JCM? I wonder how hard it would be to A/B em somewhere....

 

[mikah912]

Ah right, I forgot to mention that I've tried the Fractal thing 3 times and the Kemper thing twice, but haven't been into it enough to make any music so I'm kind of leaning into the being an amp guy thing haha

Whatever Mesa Mark (IV, V, JP2C, Mark V:25) fits best in your price range. Those amps can do virtually anything.

 

[TheWarAgainstTime]

Definitely a Mark V

A friend of mine is a session player and he takes his Mark V to almost every gig. I say almost because sometimes he's hired to play bass he's done a handful of country gigs, pop rock, shoegaze, hardcore, etc.

Any time I play in stereo, my Mark V is always my left channel amp because it covers so much ground and blends in a mix with anything else I put next to it. Just a killer amp all around

 

[Kyle Jordan]

Mesa Mark V
Mesa JP-2C
Mesa Mark IV (used)

Great clean channels that take pedals wonderfully and gain tones that are legendary. The JP-2C is last for crunch tones as it's a bit more metal at it's heart, but I still like what can be gotten from it in that realm.

Clean Pedal Platforms:

Port City Pearl
Mesa Boogie Lonestar
Fender Twin Reverb (@budda already mentioned the Deluxe)

You've mentioned a JCM 800 multiple times and I'm not the biggest 800 fan in the world, but I will say for versatility, don't sleep on the JCM 2000 series DSL heads, both the 50 and 100 watters. I can't compare them to the new DSL heads, but the original DSL 100 is my favorite Marshall and covers a large amount of ground. I never liked the TSL quite a much, but I'd say give that an shot too. Maybe even a JVM.

 

[TedEH]

I don't see this come up very often as a recommendation, but from my small amount of experience with the Roadster, it also seems to cover a ton of ground. It's another one that's up there in terms of price though.

 

[StevenC]

Versatile amp for session work? VH4 if the studio you're working in doesn't already have one.

 

[laxu]

Do you think a Runt would suit better than just an old JCM? I wonder how hard it would be to A/B em somewhere....

Absolutely. I feel the Friedmans cover the JCM sounds and a lot more. I like how Marshalls sound but find them so incredibly inconvenient because pretty much all of them only deliver the goods when turned up very loud.

The Mesa Lonestar is another favorite of mine with a good clean channel and personally I like its gain channel too but opinions vary.

 

[narad]

My favorite versatile head is the Bogner XTC 20th. It's not going to be as metal as the JP-2C, but can get very heavy in the Marshall camp and has the best cleans of like anything mentioned here IMO. So presumably those pedals will sound great.

The JP-2C crunch sounds great but it always has that Mesa quality to them that's a bit unescapable (though I should probably spend more time with mine before making that claim) -- with the Bogners they'll all be perceived like mid-gain Marshall.

 

[odibrom]

... As already suggested, Mesa Boogie's Marks... or for an added versatility, how about some rack stuff? A Triaxis + 2:90 could be a classic choice for lots of ground. Add an EQ in the loop and you've got a hell of tones at your fingers.

 

[Quitty]

A JVM is probably the most "balanced" amp i know. Solid, cheap and very flexible.
And if you want to go a little higher in prices, maybe a Bogner XTC?

I'm a bit surprised these haven't been mentioned so far.

 

[KnightBrolaire]

Mesa Mark IV or a Marshall JVM410. Tons of tonal options and they're relatively affordable (compared to bogner/friedman/etc). Either of those amps can deliver damn near any tone you can think of.