OK.
im sure there may be alot of reviews on this amp already.
but i feel i may be able to shed some light on this old classic that keeps returning for more tricks!
the dual rectifier is one of the most love/hate relationship amps ever built.
known as unforgiving, flubby, or too fizzy on the high end to some.
and to others, this amp is the end all classic of hard and heavy.
NO ONE can say this amp is not a classic. It does have its place in guitar history and i now realize why.
First off... I had a dual rectifier long ago.
And i hated it! I totally agreed on the flab and fizzle lifeless sound.
But, I was playing this amp with starter cables, a starter guitar with low end pick ups, and fingers that were use to playing the line 6 insane tone with the gain kicking! so... i sold the amp right away!
7 years later! with a new guitar and awsome pickups. And I can now play a guitar awsome! "compared to when i was young."
I now have a bigger understanding of tone and dynamics. Recording definatley helped me out with that.
So... I played one in the local music store, a really small boutique store i had no idea about! And i picked up a quality axe and a jazz 3 pick and started to play loud.
I was totally blown away with the direct tone... no pedals or eq.
there is so much that goes into creating a amp with a SOLID TONE.
and this amp has one, and i like it. if you dont, i understand you have to keep searching for that tone your looking for.
the amp still had that sag its known for, but i grew to like it. it creates a voice that makes your fingers shape the vowels. something you cant do on alot of solid state gear.
So this sag is more of my friend now.. and i feel it has a singing quality.
The gain is also at a respectable level so you can hear the wood and action of the guitar.
The low end of this amp is just gut wrenching.
NOW.
shredding. shredding on this amp is very possible.
on its own, its very versitile and just requires alot of tweeking and a/b testing.
THE TS808.
i almost say forget about trying out this amp without one if you want to chromatically annihilate the neck of your guitar.
this pedal is magic.
not even for gain. it just structures your tones dynamics to your liking without changing your tone.
with this pedal and amp, you can really play anything from country to metal.
thats about it....
oh... the only thing this amp is not capable of doing with a natural voicing of its own, would have to be necrophagist ect... style of saturated gain.
look into a 5150 or engl head.
I play mostly dream theater style of music. Which dabbles into alot of tones and styles. john will agree that you can achieve a plethora of tones.
On a ending note. This amp sits right in the MIDDLE.
If you have a big palette for music of many genres, the mesa sound gives you a very basic tone that can be found in any genre of music.
hopfully, i will have soundclips up soon...
until then, you can check out my recordings which use dual recto emu. ala guitar rig 3. BUT.. i purchased the amp again because of the tone i use with my recordings. i achieve the same tones from guitar rig 3 with my real dual rectifier.
anyways. i hope this review sheds light on the old classic. if not, i would love to hear your views.
peace!
thanks for listening.
im sure there may be alot of reviews on this amp already.
but i feel i may be able to shed some light on this old classic that keeps returning for more tricks!
the dual rectifier is one of the most love/hate relationship amps ever built.
known as unforgiving, flubby, or too fizzy on the high end to some.
and to others, this amp is the end all classic of hard and heavy.
NO ONE can say this amp is not a classic. It does have its place in guitar history and i now realize why.
First off... I had a dual rectifier long ago.
And i hated it! I totally agreed on the flab and fizzle lifeless sound.
But, I was playing this amp with starter cables, a starter guitar with low end pick ups, and fingers that were use to playing the line 6 insane tone with the gain kicking! so... i sold the amp right away!
7 years later! with a new guitar and awsome pickups. And I can now play a guitar awsome! "compared to when i was young."
I now have a bigger understanding of tone and dynamics. Recording definatley helped me out with that.
So... I played one in the local music store, a really small boutique store i had no idea about! And i picked up a quality axe and a jazz 3 pick and started to play loud.
I was totally blown away with the direct tone... no pedals or eq.
there is so much that goes into creating a amp with a SOLID TONE.
and this amp has one, and i like it. if you dont, i understand you have to keep searching for that tone your looking for.
the amp still had that sag its known for, but i grew to like it. it creates a voice that makes your fingers shape the vowels. something you cant do on alot of solid state gear.
So this sag is more of my friend now.. and i feel it has a singing quality.
The gain is also at a respectable level so you can hear the wood and action of the guitar.
The low end of this amp is just gut wrenching.
NOW.
shredding. shredding on this amp is very possible.
on its own, its very versitile and just requires alot of tweeking and a/b testing.
THE TS808.
i almost say forget about trying out this amp without one if you want to chromatically annihilate the neck of your guitar.
this pedal is magic.
not even for gain. it just structures your tones dynamics to your liking without changing your tone.
with this pedal and amp, you can really play anything from country to metal.
thats about it....
oh... the only thing this amp is not capable of doing with a natural voicing of its own, would have to be necrophagist ect... style of saturated gain.
look into a 5150 or engl head.
I play mostly dream theater style of music. Which dabbles into alot of tones and styles. john will agree that you can achieve a plethora of tones.
On a ending note. This amp sits right in the MIDDLE.
If you have a big palette for music of many genres, the mesa sound gives you a very basic tone that can be found in any genre of music.
hopfully, i will have soundclips up soon...
until then, you can check out my recordings which use dual recto emu. ala guitar rig 3. BUT.. i purchased the amp again because of the tone i use with my recordings. i achieve the same tones from guitar rig 3 with my real dual rectifier.
anyways. i hope this review sheds light on the old classic. if not, i would love to hear your views.
peace!
thanks for listening.
