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Post by rocknrolla on Jun 10, 2010 11:04:06 GMT -5
Hey guys. I play in a band that does a lot of Metallica covers (and some hair metal stuff) and have been thinking about trading up amps. I currently have a Mesa Mark IV and like the tone for the most part and it nails the Metallica thing pretty much. My two problems are 1, this amp sounds different every time I turn it on and 2, I kinda want to build my own unique sound. I have never played a Splawn amp before but from what I have read the Promod sounds pretty kick-ass. Also, I hate using boost pedals so I need an amp that has enough punch to get the the tight master of puppets-esqe riffing on it's own. Am I barking up the right tree here?
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Post by sasquatch on Jun 10, 2010 12:47:24 GMT -5
I played MKIII's, MKIV's and Rectifiers before trying a couple other amps, and finally winding up with a Quick Rod. Oh... and I love my QR! A couple things to consider since the Splawn amps are quite a bit different than the Boogies. The Boogie have a lot more preamp compression and saturation than the Splawn amps. This can give the feel of the Boogie being a little more player friendly (subtle mistakes are often masked by all the saturation). I still think the liquidy lead sound of the MKIV's lead channel is one of my favorites, but with all that front end saturation you can often find yourself lost in the mix. Especially if you're playing in a two guitar band. IMO no other amp out there (especially for the money) compares to the Splawn QR. I don't have a Pro Mod, but they are somewhat similar with the PM having a little more modern character. The QR is tight, aggressive, plenty of low end thump (IMO) and the highs are smooth and singing. The midrange bite is outstanding and you'll never get lost in the mix. I find the Splawn amps a little more sensitive to speaker types too. I would recommend you strongly consider a Splawn cab too. Overall I'd say the Splawn is tighter, more defined, focussed and more articulate than the MKIV with more cut and attitude. It will probably take some getting used to at first. It did for me. It kinda pushed me to practice a bit more and clean up my playing a bit. I've had the amp for a year and a half now and have loved every minute of it.
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Post by rocknrolla on Jun 10, 2010 15:52:02 GMT -5
Thanks for the reply! ;D I play my Mesa pretty dry (no fx, gain on 7 and drive on 4) so I'm used to the amp putting my playing under the microscope. I'm hoping that the Splawn will help me practice more instead of the constant tweaking that I'm doing now. Now are the Splawn's tone controls post gain?
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Post by sasquatch on Jun 11, 2010 11:06:40 GMT -5
You know... I'm really not sure. I don't think so, but again, not sure. I think the Presence is post gain and works in the power amp section. The best way to find out for sure is to call the shop. More often than not Scott is the one who answers the phone. He'd be happy to help you out. I've found that the EQ controls seem to be more interactive with each other. More so than with other amps I've played. I've heard Scott describe the Treble as having more of a "blend" effect on the overall sound. One thing I can definitely say... use your ears when dialing in your sound on a Splawn. If you just set the knobs the way you have with other amps, it probably isn't gonna sound right. I wound up with most my settings at or around 12 o'clock. A little less on Bass (about 11:30) and a little more on Treble (12:30-1 o'clock). The only significant difference is I run the Presence at around 9:30-10 o'clock. That's a lot different than any of my Boogies or my Framus or Egnater.
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Post by DonaldDemon on Jun 11, 2010 12:44:44 GMT -5
The Pro Mod is awesome for really tight rhythm playing. As for Metallica tones, you won't get that scooped mids sound so easily. Splawns are all about the mids!
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Post by SmokinPaul on Jun 11, 2010 14:15:45 GMT -5
+100 DD! The mids are the all important element that will cut through the band and get you heard. If you scoop the mids, especially live.........bye bye! Buried!
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Post by rocknrolla on Jun 13, 2010 11:32:50 GMT -5
Mid are also what the Mesa mark amps are about too (as long as you don't dump them with the graphic eq). I usually crank the mid knob pretty high and boost them a bit on the eq. It really snarls and sits perfectly between the bass and cymbals.
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Post by Lewis on Jun 13, 2010 19:58:18 GMT -5
Have you considered the Nitro? Not to discredit any other Splawn amps because they all rule, but that's where the real balls are... ;D
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Post by rocknrolla on Jun 16, 2010 16:27:59 GMT -5
Yeah, I was all about the Nitro at first but it seems to be a more modern metal amp than I'm looking for. I have a pretty heavy pick attack so I don't use a ton of gain and I don't like the note to be overly saturated. Plus I really want the three gear option. Take everything I say with a grain of salt though because I've never had my hands on any Splawn amp before. I'm just basing everything from internet clips and forum opinions.  |
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Post by DonaldDemon on Jun 18, 2010 12:57:51 GMT -5
Yeah, I was all about the Nitro at first but it seems to be a more modern metal amp than I'm looking for. I have a pretty heavy pick attack so I don't use a ton of gain and I don't like the note to be overly saturated. Plus I really want the three gear option. Take everything I say with a grain of salt though because I've never had my hands on any Splawn amp before. I'm just basing everything from internet clips and forum opinions. sounds like the pro mod is more the way to go then |
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Post by trashedlostfdup on Nov 12, 2010 4:36:52 GMT -5
you are for sure barking up the right tree with this amp.
i am absolutely in love with my promod. i messed around with a lot of mesa's without much avail, and blindly bought a pro mod, and am so glad i did.
i like that the pro mod is very straight forward and easy to dial in, and you can't get a bad tone out of it. this is purely opposite of mesas (at least from my experiance and in my opinion), it takes forever to dial in a Mark to get it the way you want to sound. i am not that patient when it comes to amps.
the promod is very tight, and has a good solid kick in the pants without a boost. it seems as if the first gain stage hits so hard, that a boost (TS, OCD, etc) doesn't really add all that much, at least not enough for me to justify using one.
the tightness is perfect for fast tight palm muted riffs like Master of the Puppets, etc.
it really excells all around, and i couldn't be more happy with it.
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Post by themadhatter on Nov 1, 2011 8:32:20 GMT -5
+1 to the ablove. The PM doesn't have that "sag" to it like a Rectifier does. Tight and super tight..
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