vitor gracie
Well-known member
Ok, so I've been after one of these for years. I really wanted to pay the right price and needed to hear it through the correct cab. I played one in Nashville about 5 years ago or so and it sounded just as everyone describes it negatively. Shrill, ice-pickey, too bright etc...whatever. Shortly after 'not' pulling the trigger I fell in love with Port City Cabs and promptly replaced my 2X12s with the standard 2X12 from Port City.
Fast forward to this afternoon; I landed a FANTASTIC deal on an OS 2X12 loaded with Scumbacks and thought it sounded a bit dark for my PRS Archon. I had been after a Marshall sound for a long time but couldn't land on the right amp. I REALLY really need a flexible clean for my sounds. I had gotten attached to a lot of cool amps that do that sound, but almost always had an unusable clean for me. That, or the clean usually ended up sounding like an after thought. Fuchs, Splawn, and even a Freidman Brown Eye (Which I A-B'ed to the Stiletto for hours) all had great Marshal type sounds (I even picked up a Marshall Vintage Modern, and returned it the next day) but had nothing close to the kind of clean I need.
When I heard my new cab (and how smooth & round it was on the top end) I immediately thought it would match perfectly with a Stiletto. A little searching and I found an Ace at a West Hollywood Guitar Center. It was priced unbelievably low and I knew I had to hear it.
I was there for hours and am proud to say it completely nailed the tones I was after. A customer and employee heard me A-B it to the Brown Eye and they totally both agreed it sounded better (more versatile) Everything as far as the gained up Marshal thing that the Brown Eye did, I felt the Stiletto could do easily. I'm dead serious. But what the Mesa had that the Brown Eye didn't were all the in between gain sounds that I needed. The voicings were really where I found the value.
This is an incredibly under rated amp and you can get them for dirt cheap....as low as $800 in good condition.
Lastly I have to say that I definitely think V-30 speakers are the worst pair with this amp. Green Backs, or in my case, Scumbacks, are the correct voicing for this amp. My other Port City has V-30s and it REALLY sounds crazy bright, so I get why people are turned off. I think you just have to consider that when you're in a loud room or a stage with a drummer, and you're trying to compete with his high hats, cymbals, and another guitarist, the attack of the amp is what really gets you to cut through. Sitting in a music store with no other noise playing quietly is where this amp does NOT shine, but pushing it a bit, with some power, and I think it's a perfect tool for doing that British tone we all love.
To be fair, I also own a TA-30 ...so if I need clean cleans, I can run both rigs, but the clean on the Ace is PLENTY clean for my taste and does the dirty/clean break up thing perfectly.
I may consider the high end roll off mod later, just to use this at home, but I'd like to wait and see.
Thanks for reading.
Fast forward to this afternoon; I landed a FANTASTIC deal on an OS 2X12 loaded with Scumbacks and thought it sounded a bit dark for my PRS Archon. I had been after a Marshall sound for a long time but couldn't land on the right amp. I REALLY really need a flexible clean for my sounds. I had gotten attached to a lot of cool amps that do that sound, but almost always had an unusable clean for me. That, or the clean usually ended up sounding like an after thought. Fuchs, Splawn, and even a Freidman Brown Eye (Which I A-B'ed to the Stiletto for hours) all had great Marshal type sounds (I even picked up a Marshall Vintage Modern, and returned it the next day) but had nothing close to the kind of clean I need.
When I heard my new cab (and how smooth & round it was on the top end) I immediately thought it would match perfectly with a Stiletto. A little searching and I found an Ace at a West Hollywood Guitar Center. It was priced unbelievably low and I knew I had to hear it.
I was there for hours and am proud to say it completely nailed the tones I was after. A customer and employee heard me A-B it to the Brown Eye and they totally both agreed it sounded better (more versatile) Everything as far as the gained up Marshal thing that the Brown Eye did, I felt the Stiletto could do easily. I'm dead serious. But what the Mesa had that the Brown Eye didn't were all the in between gain sounds that I needed. The voicings were really where I found the value.
This is an incredibly under rated amp and you can get them for dirt cheap....as low as $800 in good condition.
Lastly I have to say that I definitely think V-30 speakers are the worst pair with this amp. Green Backs, or in my case, Scumbacks, are the correct voicing for this amp. My other Port City has V-30s and it REALLY sounds crazy bright, so I get why people are turned off. I think you just have to consider that when you're in a loud room or a stage with a drummer, and you're trying to compete with his high hats, cymbals, and another guitarist, the attack of the amp is what really gets you to cut through. Sitting in a music store with no other noise playing quietly is where this amp does NOT shine, but pushing it a bit, with some power, and I think it's a perfect tool for doing that British tone we all love.
To be fair, I also own a TA-30 ...so if I need clean cleans, I can run both rigs, but the clean on the Ace is PLENTY clean for my taste and does the dirty/clean break up thing perfectly.
I may consider the high end roll off mod later, just to use this at home, but I'd like to wait and see.
Thanks for reading.