I mostly play and enjoy the sound of “classic” metal. 1980s Judas Priest. Metallica. Maiden. Etc.
What’s a good amp/fx setup to reproduce this sound at modest volumes?
I have a friend with a Marshall stack, which sounds amazing but I have neither the budget or the space for something like this. I currently have a Fender amp with a Boss GT-1 effects pedal, which is quite good but no matter what I do I never quite get this to reproduce the tone I’m looking for.
Will a small Marshall combo amp like a MG30GFX work for me? Does it make sense to go for low-wattage tube amps over solid state? Thoughts?
What model is your Fender amp? Is it an open-back cab, as well? The Boss GT1 is likely to be able to get you a useable sound so long as you’re running it through a 12 inch speaker in a closed back cab.
Honestly, a Boss Katana is probably the most affordable path to improve your tone. They’re surprisingly good.
If you wanna stick with your current gear but make some changes to the components you can always swap the speaker for whatever speakers are in your buddy’s cab. That will get you closer.
Ah yes I should’ve specified. It’s a Rumble 100. Yeah, that’s a bass amp as I was primarily playing bass when I bought it. It does sound surprisingly excellent when I play clean-ish guitar through it, but with the GT-1 I can’t quite get a satisfying overdrive tone, no matter what pre-amp simulation I select on the GT1. With the amp set to clean, 0 gain. The master volume is plenty to make it loud. But yeah, I just can’t get this combination to reproduce what I’m looking for.
Perhaps it’s the speaker cone itself which is holding it back. I hadn’t considered that yet. Thanks.
Honestly, your best bet is to get a guitar amp. Not only will the speaker in your amp be voiced for bass, but the preamp section will be as well. That’s not to say its completely unsuitable for guitar, but you’re just less likely to nail the tone you want.
Definitely recommend trading the GT1 and the amp in for a Katana. Those things are actually insanely good. I’ve owned an AxeFX2 for 11 years and I still want a Katana just because its convenient and straight up awesome.
Check out LambChopper678 and John Nathan Cordy on YouTube for some cool Katana demos.