Fireball 100 and Powerball II

[RichIKE]

I'm Wondering if anyone around here has extensive experience with both of these amps. I am interested in both but i am wondering if the powerball is worth the extra 500. Unfortunatley I am only able to try out the powerball and the fireball would be a blind buy. Im looking for an amp that can do modern metal like djent, deathcore and the like.

 

[nostealbucket]

Both are really great amps. Both can djent (with the right guitar...).
I've only played through a fireball before, though, it has nice cleans, yet a brutal distortion.
Tosin Abasi used to use a powerball.

 

[RichIKE]

anyone know of any places around illinois that have a fireball in stock or anyone willing to let me try theirs??

 

[zimbloth]

As an ENGL dealer and user with extensive experience with both, I definitely can recommend the Fireball 100 over the Powerball II - despite its lower price tag. The Powerball II is a bit more versatile and feature-rich, but IMO the Fireball 100 just sounds way better. I've been using the Fireball 100 live for quite some time now and I've never been happier with my sound. Owning a shop with a ton of elite tube amps, I could own anything I wanted, but I still rock the Fireball 100. Sometimes I try to talk myself into getting something more extravagant like an Invader, Special Edition, or a Diezel but I always come back to the Fireball 100.

The Fireball 100 is super tight and articulate like the Powerball, but way ballsier, warmer, and more aggressive sounding. The responsiveness is excellent too, never stiff. Epic lead and rhythm tones. Mid-boost feature is rad, the noisegate works great, infinite headroom, etc. The Powerball II is a nice amp too but I think their other 4 channel amps like the Invader 100 and Savage 120 are the better bet if you need all those features. If you just need a straight-forward non-MIDI high-gain head, IMO you can do no better than the Fireball 100.

Feel free to hit me up sometime if you want to chat about the amps.

 

[RichIKE]

pm'd thank you so very much for your input.

 

[Pyramid Gallery]

The Fireball 100 is super tight and articulate like the Powerball, but way ballsier, warmer, and more aggressive sounding.

Precisely what I wanted to know. Reminds me of the whole TSL vs DSL thing that I got to hear for myself as well. Same deal.