| Well there's a lotta ways to get there.
But you need tubes, no doubt about it. I've had the JMP-1 and it was fairly convincing from a recording standpoint, but I felt it was a bit wimpy live. I was using it with a Soldano power amp live into a pair of ADA 2x12s stereo with Celestions.
Mostly I've been happy with my Bogner Shiva with a few pedals. Not crazy about the overdrive section on the Shiva, though.
I've also used a Soldano x88 into a VHT 50/50 power amp. The band liked that best. (I still preferred the Bogner)
I've had the Randall RM-4 about a week, so I haven't played at band volume yet with it, but it sounds really good at apartment level. I've got the XTC, Brown and Top Boost modules. Again, I'm running it through the VHT power amp, generally into an ADA 2x12. Finding one is more than enough these days. I've also got a couple 4x12 cabs but I find I don't really need it live or for recording to get a good sound.
Still, even a great combo amp will get you there with the right pedals. The other guitar player in my band got awesome distortion out of an old Fender blackface Pro Reverb with a TS-808. Robert Keeley's mods for pedals really open up the sound. (robertkeeley.com) Vai, Lynch among others use his mods.
Most clubs I play at mike the guitar cabinet, so I really don't need a large amp. And for the smaller ones that don't, a 4x12 is overkill.
Still, for your setup, you've got a cabinet and poweramp you like. The Randall might be really good for your application. But at this point, I haven't heard a great clean sound out of the modules I've got. Perhaps the Deluxe module would be right for that. But then again, I not what I was looking for. The Bogner has that more than covered. The Randall website has some clips that show what each module is capable of -- check it out! |