Need help JP 2C or Mark V

Hi all - new here but have done plenty of reading. Long time bass player getting into guitar playing. I unfortunately live in BFE and don't have the ability to try before buying, any advice would be appreciated. I currently have an express 5:50 combo I really like but am looking for more gain, another channel, and a head/cab setup. I'm leaning towards either of these 2 amps. My uses vary and the sounds I like also vary a ton (probably weirdly).

The amp would be used mostly for home/bedroom use and recording but will also be used for praise music live at church and possibly someday small venue play. My favorite guitarists/sounds are extremely varied and include Joe Bonamassa, Metallica, Black Stone Cherry, Brad Paisley and Zac Brown band on the country side. I'm interested in something that can cover all these styles.

I know the Mark V is more flexible but I haven't seen or heard much on the jp-2c as far as blues tones on one channel and high gain on the other. I really like the sound clips I've heard so far but of course most are not lower-gain stuff. I like that there are 2 eq's and cab clone on the jp-2c also (for live use). I will eventually likely pair either with a torpedo live unit to record. Any advice is greatly appreciated!

The JP-2C utilizes "Channel Cloning" for channels 2 and 3; they are exactly the same. Versatility is great but in reality, most rock guitarists have a clean tone, rhythm tone, and lead tone and in the case of JP and Dream Theater, the rhythm tones are high gain and lead tones are high gain (I'm generalizing a little bit.) That is one reason you have not heard any blues tones out of the amp so far. I have also not heard anyone play a Strat through it with the Gain set low either. I agree the Mark V is focused on versatility but if you are looking for "more gain, another channel, head/cab setup" and, "like the fact there are 2 EQ's and a CabClone (for live use!)" than the JP-2C really delivers.

However, I'm sure an equal argument could be made for the Mark V on all points. I do not have a horse in this race because my horse is a Roadster, but I have played both of the Mark's in question and if I were to make a decision between the two I would use price as the major determinant.

The V has a lot of different sounds and different feels. If you're a tweaker and like an amp that can sound like many different amps, the V will suit you very well. The JP2C is more simple, but still very versatile. It may not have all the voicing options and different feels the V has, but it still covers more than enough. It covers the whole preamp gain spectrum very well. I actually prefer the JP2C for blues and crunch over the V. The JP has a softer feel and a more open, organic sounding gain. The V feels tight and has more midrange in its character. It's too bad more videos are not out there showing how well the JP2C can do the low gain stuff. It's still new though, there's no doubt they will come as the JP2C can do it very well.

I doubt you will be disappointed with either one. In my opinion, the V wins in the versatility department. It does so many things it's ridiculous. But the tone goes to the JP2C. It's lead channels have something very special going on that the V does not have. A few guys on here have sold their JP's and went back to the V. The reason being the feel. The JP is very fast and very tight, but the V is even faster and tighter. A lot of guys talk about the "sag" the JP has; a bounce to the feel of the stings. The V does not have this and can even be unforgiving to play. The feel can be a deciding factor as much as tone. You really need to get the heck out of BFE and try these babies out!

I own both. I agree with SamuelJ86's assessment and find it nearly identical to my experience with both. I think we only differ, in that I enjoy the bluesy tones in the Mark V over the JP-2C; but, in fairness, I haven't spent as much time dialing in bluesy tones on the JP, as I have in the Mark V.

I wanted the Mark V for its versatility and it delivers. It does many, many different tones very, very well. I did find that it was missing that certain something, and I couldn't put my finger on it until I got the JP-2C. The JP-2C has that missing ingredient.

Having both, I more fully enjoy the Mark V, as I'm not searching for that mystical special tone anymore. I'm just enjoying playing with the Mark V, with everything that it has to offer. I suppose, that if I only had the JP-2C, I would be searching for that special gritty/clean that I can't seem to dial in on the JP-2C... but I can with the Mark V. So it's a bit of a toss-up.

When comparing tone, the verbiage can make it seem like the Mark V doesn't sound good. That's not the case, it sounds great. It's just that the JP-2C, to me, sounds and feels better, but in a narrower subset of tones. Luckily for me, that subset is the one I use most often. Overall, the difference in quality of tone is minimal, and extremely subjective.

Based on your post, I would lean toward the Mark V. Since you are thinking of going with a Torpedo with either, the cab-clone isn't an important factor. I have a big MIDI setup, so MIDI integration was important for me.


They are both great amps, and you can't go wrong with either one. It will come down to your priorities.


~Icarus

Echoing the above:

The JP2C does a subset of tones REALLY well, and people seem to really enjoy it. But all it's tones can be summed up as a single clean, and IIC+ leads. The IIC+ lead channel is a versitile and nice sounding channel. And the 4 volume 1 levels available on the JP2C are better than 1 on the V, even if it's still not the same as directly controlling it.

The Mark V, though maybe not quite having that Magic sag for Mark IIC+ playing, does have a ton of fantastic tones on tap. Between the clean voicings, and bold switch it's going to be more flexible there by far. Edge, Crunch, and Mark I are all good and very different tones, and for recording I love having them available even if live you're forced to pick one. And the lead channel is still excellent, with it's varied voicings of MarkIIC flavour and triode/pentode options. As a recording tool, the Mark V replaces an entire rack of amps in my mind.


So to simplify:
The JP-2C does the Mark Lead thing VERY well, and that channel is very flexible.
The Mark V does a lot of things quite well, and has a lot of flexibility and different sounds.

Probably can't go wrong with either.

Wow - all very helpful and thorough responses...much appreciated all. Sounds like I need both! From what I'm gathering it sounds like the Mark V will be more flexible for my recording purposes and I'm leaning that way now. I guess I need to save my pennies and keep the JP-2C on the list for later! Thanks again and any other thoughts are welcome.

As a former Mark V owner and now a very happy JP2C owner, I agree with pretty much all that was stated above. You really can't go wrong with either if you like the Mark series tone.

To me, the JP is the one that I prefer. It's the closest to the tone I've been searching for for years. But the V is also a great amp that I enjoyed for almost 7 years and only sold to afford the JP. They do sound and feel a bit different, so alot has to do with taste and what you need out of the amp. I'm mainly a Metal player so I feel that the JP gets me closer to what I need with my band and sounds better doing those kind of sounds, at least to my ear. My main issue with the V was ch 3. I could get some amazing lead sounds out of it, but heavier crunch sounds didn't quite have the warmth, girth and chunk that I like. With the JP I can get the rythm sound I like, aswell as those amazing liquid lead tones.

But the V is capable of some great tones that the JP can't get, so I'm sure I will be a owner of the V again sooner or later.

Both of these amps are incredible. After having a JP-2C, I finally figured out how to get the tones I liked, which I first really experienced on the JP-2C, on the Mark V.

I prefer the tightness of the Mark V's IIC+ mode and really don't need two lead channels. I love R2 on my Mark III, and being able to dial in a solid crunch on the Mark V sold me on it.

Really, to me, the JP-2C is what shaped how I used the Mark V:

Channel 1: clean, dialed in as I had it on the JP-2C
Channel 2: crunch
Channel 3: IIC+, dialed in as I had it on the JP-2C

I'd rather have a crunch channel, tighter Mark IIC+ mode, and Mark IV mode than two IIC+ modes and the integrated cab clone and midi switching. For me, that's all it really comes down to as I now consider the IIC+ and JP-2C tones to be close in sound and feel (besides the tightness) that I don't feel like the JP-2C *really* had anything "special" over the V.

The V's speaker needs to be on the floor, not on wheels. That's the biggest tone differentiator I've really seen between them. The V is a brawny, huge sounding beast of an amp. As is the JP-2C.

Both are great. Figure out which options are most important to you and choose accordingly. You'll be thrilled.