The Great Thing About The PRS Single Channel Amps.

[László]

I don’t get tired of them.

It’s true that I have a couple of Mesas, and to be perfectly frank, the Lone Star I bought to because my son was touring with one. I wanted him to have something for recording when he’s in town. He uses it, and it does (for me) have a nice Blackface-oriented clean tone.

The Fillmore...well, yes, it’s a great amp, but I bought it because it was there. I just kinda felt like getting one. I do like it.

But when I switch to the PRS amps, OMG happens. It’s like the giant Mac Daddy of the World comes into the room and says, “Well, what do you need besides these amps?”

The answer, of course, is ‘nothing’. Should I have bought a JMOD instead? Well, the JMOD wasn’t out when I got the Lone Star. And the Fillmore was inexpensive enough that I thought, WTF, and hell, it’s nice on the stuff that I want to use a ‘Mesa Tone” for,

Anyway, just sharing my thinking out loud here.

 

[Ck77]

Agreed. I have many types of amps, mesa , diezel, bogner, ect... but a cranked recording amp or 25th anniversary has balls and mojo that dont quit...lol

 

[László]

Agreed. I have many types of amps, mesa , diezel, bogner, ect... but a cranked recording amp or 25th anniversary has balls and mojo that dont quit...lol

Exactly.

I’ve met Doug Sewell, who designs and builds the amps, and he is definitely obsessed with great tone, and getting the best possible response from an amp.

As far as I’m concerned, his PRS CAD amps are masterpieces.

 

[veinbuster]

I’ve met Doug Sewell, who designs and builds the amps, and he is definitely obsessed with great tone, and getting the best possible response from an amp.

As far as I’m concerned, his PRS CAD amps are masterpieces.

100%.
I wish I knew enough to have him build me a custom amp.

 

[László]

100%.
I wish I knew enough to have him build me a custom amp.

I feel the same way! Unfortunately, I only know what I like after I hear it.

 

[Big Mike]

I have yet to play a PRS amp. Just haven't had the opportunity.
I do love single channel amps most, usually of the marshall variety. My main amp is a 50 watt plexi I built.

That said my homage to my tonal icon, David Grissom, will not be complete until I get a DG30 at some point.

 

[Deleted member 5962]

I have yet to play a PRS amp. Just haven't had the opportunity.
I do love single channel amps most, usually of the marshall variety. My main amp is a 50 watt plexi I built.

That said my homage to my tonal icon, David Grissom, will not be complete until I get a DG30 at some point.

Ha, I had you pegged as an HX/DA man. Looks like you'll want both.

 

[László]

I have yet to play a PRS amp. Just haven't had the opportunity.
I do love single channel amps most, usually of the marshall variety. My main amp is a 50 watt plexi I built.

That said my homage to my tonal icon, David Grissom, will not be complete until I get a DG30 at some point.

The HXDA is the best Plexi (for me) that I’ve ever played, but you built one already so...yeah, the DG30 is also an amazing amp. It sounds like it’s influenced by several vintage amps, yet it’s also got a more complex tone than any of them. I get beautiful sounds with it.

If you get one, I’d recommend the matching cab. It’s fingerjointed pine, ported (even has grille cloth on the rear ports, a nice touch), and it truly compliments the tone of the amp. It’s not just a cab with a matching color and face plate.

 

[László]

One thing about the DG30 is that Doug told me that it’s his most time consuming build to get right. I believe it. It’s one of those rare amps that sounds completely righteous vis a vis high quality vintage amps, yet at the same time it stakes out new territory for itself.

Very cool amp. Really.

If you get the opportunity to try one, it sounds best if you open the master up past 12:00, and adjust the level from the gain control, old-school. Once it’s dialed in, you can then tweak the master, but the amp’s design is such that the master affects the tone of the amp in a different way than most master volume amps.

The master volume doesn’t work the way the master does on, say, a Mesa or most other master volume amps. It’s very active. Hard to describe, but take my word for it that the amp sounds best being set up with the master more open than you might otherwise set it, and then adjusted from there.

When I first got the amp, I made the mistake of setting it up with the master around 10-11:00, and I didn’t quite get the Grissom vibe from it. Anyway, I learned, and have been rewarded for 4 years or more with killer tone. So happy with this amp.

 

[sergiodeblanc]

Exactly like Les said: You gotta crank the master to get the smooth compression and harmonic complexity thing going on with the DG30.

I’m not a Grissom fan, nor do I dig, or aspire to get his Americana kinda tone thing happening, but I absolutely love this amp!

Boost on, Master dimed, and Volume at about 11 o’clock, with a light compressor in front is a lovely clean tone that sustains like you’ve got a dirt box running.

The amp has “sexy” cleans, like Sade Cherish The Day tone.

 

[Big Mike]

The HXDA is the best Plexi (for me) that I’ve ever played, but you built one already so...yeah, the DG30 is also an amazing amp. It sounds like it’s influenced by several vintage amps, yet it’s also got a more complex tone than any of them. I get beautiful sounds with it.

If you get one, I’d recommend the matching cab. It’s fingerjointed pine, ported (even has grille cloth on the rear ports, a nice touch), and it truly compliments the tone of the amp. It’s not just a cab with a matching color and face plate.

I built 3.
:facepalm

 

[László]

I built 3.
:facepalm

That’s actually pretty cool.

The last electronic project I built was a Dynaco hi fi FM tuner in about 1972. The amazing thing was that it actually worked!

But an amp, never. I’m duly impressed.

 

[Deleted member 5962]

I built 3.
:facepalm

Same or variations on the theme?

 

[László]

Exactly like Les said: You gotta crank the master to get the smooth compression and harmonic complexity thing going on with the DG30.

I’m not a Grissom fan, nor do I dig, or aspire to get his Americana kinda tone thing happening, but I absolutely love this amp!

Boost on, Master dimed, and Volume at about 11 o’clock, with a light compressor in front is a lovely clean tone that sustains like you’ve got a dirt box running.

The amp has “sexy” cleans, like Sade Cherish The Day tone.

Yes, its cleans are very inspiring!

 

[Barquentine]

Fillmore amp - £2,299.00. Inexpensive ?

 

[Big Mike]

Same or variations on the theme?

1 72ish spec 1987 circuit (Lead spec, my favorite amp)
1 68ish spec 1986 (bass) circuit
1 68 ish spec lead circuit, with 2 switches to take you to bass circuit.
then there's the 50 watt Jubilee....







(not actually a germino...just a bass spec 50 in a germino cab)

 

[Big Mike]

Fillmore amp - £2,299.00. Inexpensive ?

Les is a pro working musician...I think that's probably reasonable low to mid level for acceptable work tool. Studio needs are very different than hobbyist/weekend warrior gig amps.

$1400 bux here...it's fairly reasonable for production amp of good quality.

 

[László]

Fillmore amp - £2,299.00. Inexpensive ?

Yes. In the US the Fillmore 50 head is $1500, a little over £1200.

 

[Big Mike]

Yes. In the US the Fillmore 50 head is $1500, a little over £1200.

Yeah the conversion and such makes it a different animal overseas.
I remember my shock when I was speaking with some UK friends and visiting the UK for work in a previous life.
"Marshall" has always been my pinnacle for tone...and it's relatively viewed there like a Peavey or Hot Rod series fender is here.

It's a solid 1500 buck amp. 2300 with what else is available in that price range..US Dollar...very different argument.

 

[Big Mike]

Side note, I did find it interesting recently following Grissom's Instagram lately, that he answered someone's comment of 'what amp do you request if they can't provide a PRS DG Series'

Answer, AC30.
Which makes a lot of sense based on how he plays, uses his pedalboard, etc.
And the topography and design of the DG amps. They're less 'plexi' and closer to a Vox thing to my ear from clips.