JCM800 vs. JCM800 (2203 vs. 2210), also Rectifier RevG vs. RevF

[Lasse Lammert]

JCM 8000

here we go.....clash of the 80ies titans

I haven't spent much time with the 2210 yet, so these tones might not be the optimum (the two gain pots influence each other and the tone quite a bit), but from what I can tell so far:

The 2203 is bigger and more open sounding, it somehow breathes more and is more "in your face", more direct...
the max gain when slightly boosted with a TS (on these clips the drive was set to 9:00 and the level was set to 1:00) is sufficient for most styles of metal, the voicing is perfect for thrash...the preamp gain on this clip was on 4:00.

2203


The 2210 has got more gain on tap (in these clip the preamp gain was around 3:30 and the gain around 2:00-2:30), the voicing is similar to the 2203...definitely JCM800, overall the tone is a bit darker and less open though, also it seems to be more mid-forward (settings on the EQ were very similar to the ones on the 2203...the presence on the 2210 clips was turned higher though). the distortion is far more compressed ans somewhat "squishy"sounding compared to the 2203. this might be great for sludgier suff etc, makes the amp sound a bit "smaller" than the 2203 though....ALTHOUGH this compression is great for leads!
for most rhythm stuff I'd probably go with the 2203 (a matter of taste), but I've got the feeling that the 2210 might have the best lead tones on this planet, this compressed juicy character really carries the tone and lets single-string-stuff sing like crazy.
2210
2210-2


Rectifiers

...and the kings of the 90ies

RevF Rectifier '93 this is my good old blackface dual...I'm loving this one....I've just retubed it with =C= in the powersection and is so PISSES all over its old self with JJ tubes (one of which was fucked how I found out the other day )...
I'm loving this amp and I will never get rid of it.

RevF


The RevG Racktifier ('99 or 00 I think) was upgraded with Mercury Magnetics transformers and has Sovteks in the powersection...I think the RevG and RevF sound really similar...still both will find their use here in the studio and I'll never sell either one of them!
RevG


enjoy and leave a comment

 

[kaomao]

Yeah Lasse I agree, the 2210 sounds like that, fatter darker and has more mids.
A band left me that head here for re-amping and I tell ya is darker than a 2203, I think I like this dual channel better than the single channel.
I don't know if I should test the 2203 a little more and see if I have to buy it instead of the 2210, which I know better how it sounds.

 

[Mikaël-ange]

I think you do some mistake with recto labelling Lasse no?
Isn't revF rectifier and revG rackto...

 

[Metaltastic]

Racktifier (RevF? Shouldn't it be RevG? ) sounds best for this IMO, followed by Dual Rec in a close 2nd (a touch more 5k-6k, not too crazy about it), 2203 in a distant 3rd, and the two 2210's in DEAD 4th/5th, really was not diggin' those at all (very small sounding in terms of frequency spread, just very very stuffy sounding IMO) Sweet riffing btw, love that descending 16th note lick; is this you, or a band you're recording?

 

[MetalSound]

cool, thanks for the marshall comparison. i was always interested in the 2203. may get one some day.
but the rectos definately sound best (no wonder).

 

[Lasse Lammert]

Racktifier (RevF? Shouldn't it be RevG? )

damn, you're right of course....
so the clip below the racktifier text was actually the RevF dual and the other way round....so you seem to like the older one better

 

[HeadCrusher]

Very interesting! The 2210 is darker for sure. Imo it could use just a tiny bit of post EQ to get rid of a little fizz but it's not bad or anything. With that Riff you played it sounds the most evil out of all the amps from that comparison.
Do you have the exact EQ settings that you used for the 2203/2210? Would be interesting to see how they compare on both amps. TS? Also what year is your 2210 from?

To me the Recties and the 2203 sound kinda similar (the way they are dialed in here at least). Although the comparison really brings out the different mid-voicings of those amps.

 

[Rex Rocker]

I love the sound on both recto clips. Rackto seems a bit brighter, but I like both.

 

[Lasse Lammert]

thanks...
settings on the marshalls were roughly:
bass: 14:30
mid: 11:00
treb: 13:00
pres on 2210: 15:30
pres on 2203: 14:00

not 100% but this should be pretty close to the settings I used.

on the Recto:
bass: 11:30-12:00
mid: 11:00
treb: 12:30-13:00
Pres: 12:30


the 2210 was made in '86

 

[egan.]

Man that ractifier sounds awesome.

 

[HeadCrusher]

Cool, gotta give those settings a try. No TS I suppose?

 

[Lasse Lammert]

yes, TS on all of the tracks.
9:00, 11:00-13:00, 13:00

 

[HeadCrusher]

Cool, thanks.

Btw why do some guys give EQ settings in "Clock mode" when the knobs are marked from 1 to 10 on Marshalls?

Oh and I would like to use this thread to let you know (like didn't already, haha) that the TSL sucks so much compared to the 2210. With a JCM 800 you can smoke it pretty much only by pluggin in your guitar. Really, all the TSL does is pierce your ears with that annoying high end.

 

[Lasse Lammert]

Cool, thanks.

Btw why do some guys give EQ settings in "Clock mode" when the knobs are marked from 1 to 10 on Marshalls?

Oh and I would like to use this thread to let you know (like didn't already, haha) that the TSL sucks so much compared to the 2210. With a JCM 800 you can smoke it pretty much only by pluggin in your guitar. Really, all the TSL does is pierce your ears with that annoying high end.

cause it could get confusing with two different amps in the same post...one with o'clock and one with numerical settings...
and yes, the TSL blows (DSL is alright though)

 

[Harry Hughes]

Was always a big fan of Tom Morello's 2205 tone, so no surprise that I like the 2210 too