Experience = NAD?

Which amp do you like best?

  • Total voters
    21
I did a bit of driving yesterday and tried out a Mark V and a Mark Five:35. Unfortunately, neither dealer I visited had a Lone Star Special or an Electra Dyne. I really would have liked to try those two. The Marks sounded great, but even armed with the recommended settings from the manuals, now I very much understand why people seem to really like the simpler controls on the PRS amps. I'm really looking forward to trying out the Two Channel Custom on Friday, and I still think I'm very likely to be bringing one home.

In a somewhat tangential question, what are people's feelings on attenuators? An attenuator seems like it might be a fun way to expand the versatility of the amp by allowing me to have plenty of clean headroom when I want that, but also to play with power tube distortion without driving my neighbors insane. Is there a major down side (outside of cost and a bit of power tube wear) that I'm missing?
 
My friend has a particularly loud amp (sorry, I forget which one), and he has the Rivera Rockcrusher (sorry, forget whether it's the regular one or the Pro) "always on" between the amp and the cab.
 
FenianEMT said:
I did a bit of driving yesterday and tried out a Mark V and a Mark Five:35. Unfortunately, neither dealer I visited had a Lone Star Special or an Electra Dyne. I really would have liked to try those two. The Marks sounded great, but even armed with the recommended settings from the manuals, now I very much understand why people seem to really like the simpler controls on the PRS amps. I'm really looking forward to trying out the Two Channel Custom on Friday, and I still think I'm very likely to be bringing one home.

In a somewhat tangential question, what are people's feelings on attenuators? An attenuator seems like it might be a fun way to expand the versatility of the amp by allowing me to have plenty of clean headroom when I want that, but also to play with power tube distortion without driving my neighbors insane. Is there a major down side (outside of cost and a bit of power tube wear) that I'm missing?
Click to expand...

First, you may not need an attenuator, the PRS amps do have good master volumes.

However, if you get one of the better attenuators, here are the downsides:

1. You may put some additional wear on the tubes, over playing them softly. No big deal unless you've invested in expensive NOS tubes, but you can always save the NOS and change out the tubes for important gigs and recording sessions.

2. As you increase the attenuation settings (lower volume), things sound more congested and compressed. That isn't a big price to pay, because combined with sensible use of the master volume, you can usually keep things sounding at least halfway decent.

3. The speaker's distortion is one thing we hear a lot of with a cranked amp. If you're attenuating the signal a lot, you're not driving the speaker.

Of course, there is another way...there is always another way...

RealTraps and other companies make affordable gobos that one can put in front of and/or around an amp. They can absorb some of the sound and reduce the sound pressure levels in the room. It isn't necessary to completely muffle the cab, putting a gobo in a V angle configuration in front of the amp can do the job, though it takes a little experimentation to find the right balance, and it isn't as easy as an attenuator. Combined with an inexpensive isolation platform like the Auralex Gramma, it is possible to reduce the annoying sound pressure levels.

The attenuator is much easier, but it does affect the tone of the amp. The gobos don't affect the tone of the amp, but if not set up just right, the amp sounds muffled in the room. Pick your poison.
 
Thank you for the great responses! I've actually already picked up an Auralex Gramma, which is sitting in my living room waiting for the amp to come home. One more attenuator question: How well do they work with combo amps? It seems like the real question there would be whether the speaker cable is long enough to reach something like a Rivera Rockcrusher that's sitting on top of the amp (assuming it will fit there).

Given your praise of the master volume, I'll definitely give that a shot first. But it is good to know what my options are.
 
FenianEMT said:
Thank you for the great responses! I've actually already picked up an Auralex Gramma, which is sitting in my living room waiting for the amp to come home. One more attenuator question: How well do they work with combo amps? It seems like the real question there would be whether the speaker cable is long enough to reach something like a Rivera Rockcrusher that's sitting on top of the amp (assuming it will fit there).

Given your praise of the master volume, I'll definitely give that a shot first. But it is good to know what my options are.
Click to expand...

I've got a Rivera Rockcrusher sitting on a shelf about 10 inches underneath my HXDA. The speaker cable isn't very long. Maybe two inches out of the back of the combo. I had to get a female/female adaptor and some short Mogami cables to get it hooked up. Piece of cake though.
 
That seems entirely workable. Given how much everybody raves about the HXDA (and how great it sounds in the videos), I feel like I really aught to try one. But at a bit more than a grand over the price of a Two Channel Custom, I'm just not sure if I can justify the price this time around. And I don't think I'd really be hurting with the Two Channel Custom. Just leaves me with another amp to GAS after. :rolleyes:
 
FenianEMT said:
That seems entirely workable. Given how much everybody raves about the HXDA (and how great it sounds in the videos), I feel like I really aught to try one. But at a bit more than a grand over the price of a Two Channel Custom, I'm just not sure if I can justify the price this time around. And I don't think I'd really be hurting with the Two Channel Custom. Just leaves me with another amp to GAS after. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...
There's ALWAYS another amp to GAS after.
 
FenianEMT said:
That seems entirely workable. Given how much everybody raves about the HXDA (and how great it sounds in the videos), I feel like I really aught to try one. But at a bit more than a grand over the price of a Two Channel Custom, I'm just not sure if I can justify the price this time around. And I don't think I'd really be hurting with the Two Channel Custom. Just leaves me with another amp to GAS after. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

I thought the Custom was an incredible value, first of all, and second, the lead channel in some ways reminds me of the HXDA.
 
It looks like Experience is not, in fact, NAD. Apparently there are no Two Channel Customs to be had. In fact, it's starting to look like the only way I'll lay eyes (or ears) on one in person is if I special order one through a local dealer. I'm not terribly happy about the idea of ordering my first high-end amp without ever hearing one in person, but given the descriptions and what I've been able to find on YouTube, I'm still leaning that direction.
 
Ooohh no!! I was hoping to buy that very thing at the Experience tomorrow!!!! Ouch, that hurts!
 
FenianEMT said:
It looks like Experience is not, in fact, NAD. Apparently there are no Two Channel Customs to be had. In fact, it's starting to look like the only way I'll lay eyes (or ears) on one in person is if I special order one through a local dealer. I'm not terribly happy about the idea of ordering my first high-end amp without ever hearing one in person, but given the descriptions and what I've been able to find on YouTube, I'm still leaning that direction.
Click to expand...

You could always get one from a dealer with a 24 hour approval period. Then the most you'd lose is some shipping cost.
 
Yeah. I have to admit that I'm seriously disappointed. There wasn't a single amp on the sales floor. There were some seriously beautiful guitars, though even the selection there seemed a little limited if you weren't looking for a 594 or Custom 24. Still an awesome event (especially for free). I guess I just had the wrong expectations. I'll be back tomorrow, regardless.
 
LSchefman said:
You could always get one from a dealer with a 24 hour approval period. Then the most you'd lose is some shipping cost.
Click to expand...

It seems like there are very few in stock with dealers anywhere. And the reality is that I'd be absolutely shocked if I turn out to dislike it enough that I would return it.

The scarcity is really strange to me. In the tech world that would strongly suggest that the product is about to be discontinued (or already has been quietly discontinued). I know this is a little different, but it's still perplexing to me.

I'm still sort of hoping they might have one at the Interactive tent tomorrow. That would really help to cut down on the concern about ordering one. But at this point, I'm trying not to get my hopes up.
 
I was told by a staff member at the registration table that amps are available for sale at the Experience. I hope that is the case tomorrow. Paul generally has tons of amps, boxed and stacked in piles at the factory on any given day. It would be weird indeed if someone couldn't simply bring one / some down to sell. Especially if all the dealers are right there to do the transaction.
 
I talked to people from four different dealers (at least two of which asked PRS staff about stock). The folks from Music Villa had a list of some sort that did include some amps, but I failed to ask which ones other than ascertaining that there definitely were no Two Channel Custom 50s. If I had to guess, I'd bet that there are some Archons around somewhere. But again, none on the sales floor tonight.
 
I would be mighty surprised if there weren't one at the Jam Stage. That, or they're coming out with something new you might like just as much!
 
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