I’ve been using jcm800’s for decades.I love them. Currently I have the 20 watt one , I love that one too.
However , I bought a boss katana to play at home and I think that’s great too. Easy to use , sounds great , and does everything I could ever need and more .
I’m not playing in any bands right now , so looking at what gear I have and what gear I need.
so with my jcm800 I generally need to have some kind of solo boost (something in the fx loop) a Wah , a delay , a drive or 2 . And obviously it’s heavy and all that. The issues I have are the same as everyone has with these , often needs a drive in the front , no useable solo boost etc .
And also it means carrying an amp head , cab, and flight cased pedal board.
It occurred to me that the boss katana and the boss foot switch could do all of that and more .
I could get jcm800 sounds out of it (and probably pretty much anything else) and use a boss footswitch to give me a solo boost , and any other fx I’d ever have on a pedal board like delay , drive , and maybe even Wah, and I’ve got access to anything else I’d need too. And it’s lighter , and there’d be less stuff to carry round. I’d need a smaller board with a wireless and tuner on it and that’s it !!
I have the 50 watt mkii combo and tbh I’d need to get the 100watt one , maybe the head / cab or the artist one.
Is this a step too far ? Has anyone gone down this route ?
Comments
A decent solidstate amp and a few pedals is a far better and still cheap way to go. IMHO
I think they sound terrible too, although the Mk2 is less so than the Mk1, which I found unusably grating. (And the 100W less awful than the 50, although I haven’t tried the Artist.)
So add me to the ‘yes’ column.
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
I used to use a 1959SLP with a Marshall powerbrake. Awesome sound but as you say, no solo boost.
Now I use my old AC50 clean into my 2x12 or 4x12 cab and use pedals for the sound. Or sometimes I use a good valve combo if my backs playing up. This then opens up all possibilities.
Here's a vid I put up recently, its a Vox vs Selmer comparison, but also shows the difference between using an attenuator vs pedals...not much in it really.
https://youtu.be/KtFSClcPD8c?si=4LbP2GsljlLBiyMH
I sold the JCM as I wasn't gigging on guitar. But I still regret it - I still want to go on little jams occasionally and don't want to disassemble my rack, and although I don't often play clean, a good Marshall valve clean sound is still not able to be duplicated by any modeller.
I'm particularly annoyed with myself for selling it as now I have 1 kid at uni and 1 about to go I have no spare money to get another. Otherwise I would have bought another already.
I used it with a Weber Minimass attenuator to knock even the 5W down further and a Pedal Train Jnr with some fun pedals. It was an ace little rig.
Keep it.
I also had a Katana - it was no more than ok.
https://soundcertified.com/speaker-ohms-calculator/
I can't help about the shape I'm in, I can't sing I ain't pretty and my legs are thin
But don't ask me what I think of you, I might not give the answer that you want me to
The Artist combo and Head are even better.
I love mine.
Ive also got an excellent Boss Katana Bass combo that also works really well with guitars.
Using both the Boss GA-FC and GA-FC EX Pedals with them gives one some great options.
My trading feedback: https://www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/210335/yorkie
Not A JCM800 example, but our other guitarist gigs a Katana 100 when his Mesa Mark V is broken (often), and for rehearsals. It sounds OK, but not as good in either situation.
At home I have a DSL40CR, which is much easier to use at lower volumes, has a much better FX loop, wider range of sounds and, with a speaker swap, sounds very nearly as good for the JCM800’s range of sounds.
Then I plugged in to mess about and play along - nope thats why I play through my Orange all the time, ok is ok but more is more
For as much as I love the power of the helix, plugging into the vyse head is special. I'd be the first to admit the helix is 90% as good it's just missing something.
I've only played a katana at a practice room. I thought it was pretty good. I still think the old peavey stuff is better.
My suggestion is buy a second hand peavey for fifty quid, keep the marshall and get some cheap miab pedals.
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein