cjwise_17's Metal Amp Rig

There's something special about the Roland/Boss Chorus tone. My best friend has had one of these for many years, so I knew what it sounded like; but of course I didn't bother to check his settings. So I'm still playing with the settings, but I have yet to find a setting that I don't like. Sure; companies like Empress, Strymon, and Earthquaker all make extraordinary pedals, but this is definitely another example of why Boss STILL commands respect in the world of guitar effects. Boss is still an industry standard to this day for a very good reason.

EQ's are one of the most important, and probably one of the most overlooked pieces of a rig. This pedal probably isn't the best one, but it's definitely good enough for what I use it for, and it's built like a tank. Truly helps to hone in on certain frequencies of your sound and really help bring your tone to life.

I want to preface this by saying I really don't know a whole lot about delay pedals. I know basically what they do, and I know they are an essential part of anyone's pedalboard, but I've never had one to play with. The Carbon Copy continually pops up in almost every top 10 list, and I've seen so many of my favorite musicians rant and rave about this pedal, so it seemed like a no-brainer. I already know how awesome the MXR Reverb pedal is, and I thought the Carbon Copy would be a good compliment to my existing setup. I'm still learning how to use it, but so far, I've already found at least one setting that I really like. It really fattens up the tone when I'm doing chugging riffs. So far, I'm very impressed. (Don't judge me on this LOL) As I'm typing this, I'm reading an article about the best ways to use this pedal, and the effect that it can have on a rock/metal tone. I'm just now reading about something called "slapback delay", and the dial settings to achieve it. Oddly enough, the settings I've stumbled upon by accident and have been using thus far are not that far off from the recommended settings. I can't wait to get home and try this out again!

Take the 81/60's and give them steroids. These pickups truly do what James Hetfield himself has said: Gives you the punch of the passive humbucker, but the warmth and power of the active. I've played an 81/85 combo, and trust me: The JH bridge pickup is NOTHING like an 81. In my opinion, it puts the original 81 to shame.

Absolutely amazing little device; and I use the term "little" very loosely. The power, sound, and overall tone character coming from this thing is anything but little. This is definitely one of those instances where great things come in small packages. From squeaky clean and bright to serious crunch, and everything in between, this thing ain't just a one-trick pony. The tone shape knob is probably one of the most clever controls ever. Some of the cleanest clean tones I've ever heard, and the gain...ohhh...the gain...face melting gain, but still provides amazing articulation even at the highest gain settings. The FX loop is a great feature as well. Works with 8 ohm-16 ohm speakers, and definitely has enough power to rock a 4X12. This thing should be called the Micro Beast! Don't take my word for it, pick one up and check it out!

EDIT TO BELOW OK. Let's make two things perfectly clear: 1) This is an AMAZING PEDAL; it is a true amp in a box. 2) This is NOT an overdrive pedal; this is a distortion pedal. This is a full dirt pedal for anyone looking to "replicate" Eddie's legendary brown sound. HOWEVER; it is just a pedal. It is not capable of truly replicating the tube-driven tone that Eddie was famous for.

Very similar to my prior purchases, I bought this thing before I understood anything about how tone is truly carved. I bought it on a recommendation from a gentleman at Guitar Center as a replacement for my Boss Metal Zone and my MXR Fullbore Metal. I noticed right away that it was different than the other pedals I had been using up until then; it had a warmth and clarity to it that the others didn't have, and it didn't have that same horrible hiss that those other pedals had when the gain was increased. It was then that I began to hear the difference between overdrive and distortion. Mind you; at this point, I was still doing the "clean channel/cheap drive pedal/all the gain/no mids/SLAYER!!!" approach on a little 8" practice amp. Not long after that, I bought my first mini stack and my first tube head, and began to educate myself on how overdrive is used properly in conjunction with a tube-driven amplifier and a proper effects loop. I learned about the importance of midrange frequencies, and how to use them correctly. Having a three band passive EQ at the very front of the amp is very useful; just don’t scoop out your midrange at this stage (or any stage for that matter). The gain boost is cool, but I personally don't use it; this pedal delivers more than enough gain without it. The coolest feature is the amazingly user-friendly adjustable noise gate. All these controls give you endless tone shaping abilities; from the clean Malcolm Young style overdrive all the way to the face melting gain of a 5150. *DISCLAIMER: NO PEDAL ON EARTH can fully replicate or substitute the gain from a true EVH 5150 tube amplifier (or JVM, Dual Rec, you get the idea) That being said however, this pedal can at least get you in the ballpark. Great for boosting as well. Today, I have the EVH5150OD placed at the front of my Orange Micro Dark in a similar fashion to a tube screamer with a seven band EQ pedal placed first in my effects loop, and it works wonderfully. Definitely different from the golden standard tones from TS9's and OD808's, however it is a great option for folks who are looking for a little more dirt and grit while still retaining warmth and articulation.

To sum up: You'd be doing yourself a disservice by not at trying it out at the very least.

Definitely a must have. All digital, but gives the feel of analog. Spring setting feels 100% authentic. Pad setting is particularly cool; it gives really cool shimmery tail effect. I've mainly been using the Plate setting, and I couldn't be happier with the results. Truly authentic analog sound, extremely user friendly, and very versatile. Definitely love this one.

UPDATE

As time has gone on, I’ve grown very disappointed with this amp. First off, the FX loop doesn’t work worth a damn. I’ve tried two different reverbs, a delay, and my 10-band EQ; and it doesn’t play nice with any of them. It’s almost like it overloads or something. I’m not an electrician, so I wouldn’t have the slightest idea where to start.

Second, the sound quality has diminished. It’s muddy, and I can’t seem to get my high end mids to make any sort of impact. Even though I run a Maxon OD-9 on the front; level 75%, drive 10%, and tone at 1 o’clock, it doesn’t seem to make much difference. I’ve tried every EQ setting I can think of on both channels: I’ve tried pushed mids, scooped, presence and resonance adjusted accordingly, and I just can’t get a good, sharp tone. I’m sure this is nothing more than a tube issue; I just can’t afford to replace them right now.

Furthermore, Musician’s Friend kinda screwed me on this because I found out they actually sent me a demo model, still charged me full price, and didn’t do anything about it. I’m assuming that some of my problems are related to this.

I’m hoping I can find someone who can help me with this sometime soon. Because of these issues, I can’t do better than 3 stars. I’ll update this again after I’ve had a chance to get it looked at by a professional.

I can’t say enough about this little 20W beast. I never believed it was possible to achieve truly professional tones on a bedroom setup until now. I’m thrilled that I have finally joined the 6505 club! Peavey somehow figured out a way to pack all the features (and a few more) of the 120w 6505 into a small package that can be utilized at lower volumes without sacrificing any tone quality, and has an affordable price tag. The bright switch creates clean tones that are way better than most people give it credit for; and the crunch voicing is seriously cool too. The lead channel is hotter than napalm when the gain is dialed in at 50%; but it is pure Armageddon when it’s dimed. This thing is the real deal and is very much a true 6505. I love the onboard attenuator; it really makes this thing amazing for home players like myself. It really pushes the EL84’s to the sweet spot. This thing truly is a fire breathing beast from hell!

This amp is good for hobbiests who want semi professional quality tone and either can't afford, or don't have the room for a couple 4X12 stacks. 15w head, cool onboard fx, four channel, and plenty of volume. The only reason this doesn't get five stars is because Marshall's official product documentation on this amp is extremely inaccurate. The spec sheet states that the factory speakers are rated at 8 ohms when in fact both speakers are rated at 16 ohms. I found this out after I swapped out the factory speakers for a pair of Celestion GTEN30s. Overall very happy with this amp though.

This was the first guitar I ever bought at the age of 25 (38 now); and I had never even held a guitar when I bought it. I just knew I had to have it. Little short (long) story: I had known that I wanted to play a guitar ever since I was 10 and heard "For Whom the Bell Tolls" for the first time. When I finally decided to pull the trigger, I knew a couple things: 1) This was not going to be a temporary interest; this was a true passion that had never been realized. Which leads to number 2) I didn't want a crappy beginner guitar that I would outgrow (or get bored with) in the first year or two of playing. I couldn't afford (or justify) buying a high-end guitar for a beginner, however I knew it was a good idea to get something that was not only simple enough to learn on, but was good enough to grow into; and preferably something that looked cool too. I couldn't have made a better choice. On pure aesthetics alone; this guitar is both beautiful and brutal. The black cherry flame-top is just killer, and rosewood fingerboard adds some elegance and refinement. In addition, IMHO, the inlays on the C-1+ are the coolest ones that Schecter has ever done. As far as build quality, I couldn't be more pleased. Solid construction, amazing sustain, very comfortable to play. The only complaint I have is that the bridge feels like it could maybe be a little more secure; but that could be my fault for not adjusting it properly. I swapped out the Duncan Designed HB-102 passive humbuckers for the active EMG JH Set, and now it gets better tone than any guitar I’ve played with the 81/85 combo. In a nutshell, this is a professional quality guitar for an extremely reasonable price. This was my first guitar, and will always be my favorite. Definitely keeping this one forever.

Perfect for practice. Pairs great with the Micro Dark or Micro Terror. Great tone characteristics. Definitely too small to get any true bottom end out of it, but that's not really what guitars are supposed to do, is it?!

Originally, I had bought the Marshall MG15CFXMS with the head and two 10" speaker cabinets. I upgraded the factory speakers with Celestions, but I was still not satisfied with the tone from the solid-state Marshall. I am just a bedroom jammer, so I wanted something small and portable, but still something that wouldn't disappoint on tone. So I got ahold of an Orange Micro Dark. This thing is small in size, but HUGE in tone, and the buffered effects loop is the icing on the cake. Fantastic little amp. BUT HERE'S THE RUB: Only a single speaker output. I'm not an amp technician of any kind, so I had no desire to go in and start splicing wires and daisy-chaining stuff on the chance that I did something wrong. I did NOT want to fry my newly acquired amp, or the speakers. A good six months worth of research led me to the Radial CabLink. This little indestructible box creates a safe parallel or series connection (depending on your setup) to run multiple cabinets from a single output. My Orange is now powering both cabinets, and it is nothing short of pure crazy gain-filled awesomeness. Can't say enough about this. As is the case with all of Radial's products, this thing is built like a tank, and is more than roadworthy. Love my Bone!

I bought these to replace the factory speakers in Marshall 10" cabs that came with the MG15CFXMS package. Definitely an improvement over the factory speakers; however I definitely still have my eye on the G10 Vintage as they are essentially the 10" version of the Vintage 30's. I don't have any 12" speaker cabs; nor do I see myself getting one anytime soon.