Which Engl combo should I get, which to avoid?

[beyondcosmos]

I'm looking to get an Engl combo amp for practicing, rehearsal, small jams/gigs. I had an Ironball for years that I ran through my Pro 2x12 and really loved that sound, so I'm leaning towards that. I also know the Ironball combo features the same power soak + line out for DI recording that the regular Ironball head has.

On the other hand, I keep seeing other models pop up on the used market like the Screamer and Thunder. They all seem to have similar features (save the Screamer being a 50 watt) so I'm wondering if any stand out as better or worse in comparison to others. For what it's worth, I'm aware there are other great combo amps out there, but at this point I'm very honed in on the Engl sound and really prefer sticking with that.

 

[Emperoff]

I'd get the one that's lighter if moving it around. So stick with the Ironball combo. The others are way heavier and 20W are enough for any situation. You could even slap a neodymium speaker on it and shave off 3kg.

 

[MaxOfMetal]

Yeah, go with whatcha know. Grab the Ironballs.

You know, until they do the right thing and make a Sav combo.

 

[Emperoff]

Yeah, go with whatcha know. Grab the Ironballs.

You know, until they do the right thing and make a Sav combo.

They did (kinda). It's called the Sovereign and was sold for a very long time. Heavy as fuck, though. I sold mine because I hated carrying it around.

 

[beyondcosmos]

Appreciate the responses, thanks guys.

 

[Kosthrash]

The Engl Metalmaster 20 combo is worth mentioning too, discontinued though...

Outside Engl, I'd consider trying a EVH Iconic 40 combo too.

 

[spawnofthesith]

I have a Thunder 50 head, and it sounds awesome, very easy to dial in and use. They can be found for great prices too

But if you know you like the ironball already, that's a safe bet

 

[TheWardRobe]

Engl fanboy here. Got a Screamer 50 combo, Gigmaster 30 combo and Powerball II with 4x12 (probably replacing that soon by an AMT E2 though).
As far as I test-heard online and can say from what I have, combo-wise: Don't go with the Gigmaster (as far as I know the Rockmaster is similar); everything else is cool. I mean, the Gigmaster is a nice thing, pretty lightweight and still has a by-default nice tone. It just doesn't have the power you expect from an Engl. Especially used Screamers cost almost no money and got four channels. I bought it for its lead sound, but crunch and clean also leave possibilities. Thunders and older stuff is rather rare here, no idea about them.
If I ever have the money, I'll get an Ironball 20 SE. Seems like the ultimate dream machine.

 

[l1ll1]

Screamers are great, really solid sound, deep and powerful.

 

[gnoll]

Maybe an unpopular opinion but I don't think there is an Engl sound as such. Their amps can sound pretty different to each other. So if there's something you know you like it might be safest to go with that. Or at least make sure you can try first if you go for something else.

 

[BabUShka]

Maybe an unpopular opinion but I don't think there is an Engl sound as such. Their amps can sound pretty different to each other. So if there's something you know you like it might be safest to go with that. Or at least make sure you can try first if you go for something else.

I've only owned a Fireball and Powerball, and can confirm. They are so different amps. The PB is smooth, tight and super compressed - while the Fireball is more on the very aggressive side with lots of harmonics and it just sparks a lot. But they both have a very distinct and alike voicing somewhere in the sound, I think it comes from the power amps.

Always been corious about the Screamer and Thunder combo, they go for like 300 EUR used here. Not convinced from the YT demoes as there are few good quality demos of the high gain sounds around, but I would still love to try them and see if they are tight and mean like other ENGL's on the high gain.

 

[Emperoff]

I've only owned a Fireball and Powerball, and can confirm. They are so different amps. The PB is smooth, tight and super compressed - while the Fireball is more on the very aggressive side with lots of harmonics and it just sparks a lot. But they both have a very distinct and alike voicing somewhere in the sound, I think it comes from the power amps.

Always been corious about the Screamer and Thunder combo, they go for like 300 EUR used here. Not convinced from the YT demoes as there are few good quality demos of the high gain sounds around, but I would still love to try them and see if they are tight and mean like other ENGL's on the high gain.

Lots of bands used the Screamer and Thunder in the 00s here. The Screamer is as Engl as it gets (basically the same as the famous E530 preamp). If choosing between the two, definetely get the Screamer.

Most Engl circuits are very similar. Their differences in voicings are sometimes included as switches in flagship amps such as the Savage, SE, etc.

 

[gnoll]

I think we can safely say that they have some different "families" of amps but then even within the family there can be differences. Like Powerball and Fireball should be pretty similar on paper, but then still seem to end up a bit different!

But then I think the Savage family is pretty different to those amps, and seems different to, for example, the Invader also.

And then all these smaller amps, I don't really know anything about them.

The switches/buttons and stuff seem to have become a bit more refined with time I think. I mean the original Savage does have a bunch of switches, but a lot of them are kind of useless. It's basically a 2 channel amp where each channel can activate an extra gain stage, and then there's a bunch of switches. Rough/smooth bypasses the tone stack and sounds pretty terrible, contour just scoops things way too much, and the rest are like, "meh". Except depth, that one is good.

But I think some of the later amp designs are more like true 4 channel amps? And even the Savage mk2 seems like that since the gain pots don't interact but I don't know how it works exactly.

 

[beyondcosmos]

Along this same type of thinking/amp shopping, if I were to get a dedicated head for the Pro 2x12 I still have, what would you recommend? The 'less powerful' versions like the Retrotube 50 and the Savage 60 appeal to me because they'd likely be a lot easier to get rich tones out at lower volumes, but of course there's reviews I've found where people have said those just don't compare to the full 100 watt or 120 watt models...
As of now I've only ever played through the following (all at Guitar stores, never owned them):
-Powerball II
-Fireball 100
-Original Special Edition with EL34s (to this day it's my dream amp)

I'm not sure when this will happen, but a variety of these as well as the Savage Mk 2 in both the 60 watt and 120 watt versions keep popping up on the used market. I know there all quite versatile, but if there are any that are more metal-dedicated I'd like to go with that one. Any recommendations or advice in general?

 

[gnoll]

Hm well what does metal-dedicated mean? I have a hard time imagining an Engl that doesn't do metal.

Engls tend to have good master volumes and I don't think 50/60/100/120 makes much of a difference for low volume playing.

You have to figure out which amps you like. Trying stuff is best, listening to clips is okay, listening to opinions on the internet is sort of terrible.

Personally I would choose a Savage or Savage-related amp. But they're tight and for playing something sludgier they're not so good. I like them for punchy palm mutes in the vein of European power metal or for some fast tech-death. But if I wanted weighty heavy power chords with lots of balls for nu-metal or something, then they wouldn't be my first choice because I think they're too tight to do that well.

 

[Emperoff]

It's shocking how the old myths still stand. A 50W tube amp is enough to disintegrate your hearing. I've done a truckload of gigs with a 20W tube combo.

You probably couldn't tell the difference between 50 and 100W models at low volumed anyway. If you're getting combos, get a light one. If you're getting heads, get the 100W.