XXX vs 5150 MK1 vs 5150 MKII vs 6505

[Noumenon]

Gah. I've been going nuts over how BAD my XXX is sounding, so today I borrowed a 5150. And wow. I didn't remember it sounded THAT good. Although, last time was with no EMGs and a bad setting. It was still quite heavy on the bottom side.

Anyway.
Out of the three, 5150, 5150MKII and 6505.
Which wins?

If I sell my Triple XXX I'll get like 6000sek for it, and add another 1000sek or so and I can afford a used 5150. Bad idea?

 

[JeffTD]

5150 = 6505.

I'd go for that one. Not a huge fan of the MkII, and if your argument is over the clean channel being better on the II... who buys a 5150 for the clean tone?

 

[AudioPhile777]

5150 = 6505.

I'd go for that one. Not a huge fan of the MkII, and if your argument is over the clean channel being better on the II... who buys a 5150 for the clean tone?

Sorry for the minor hijack...

If YOU had to choose between your 5150/6505 and jSX... which one would you keep?

 

[JeffTD]

JSX... more versatile, more suited to my style.

 

[Pman]

Sorry for the minor hijack...

If YOU had to choose between your 5150/6505 and jSX... which one would you keep?

JSX... more versatile, more suited to my style.

i guess you already made that decision (by selling the 5150 for the jsx)

 

[AudioPhile777]

JSX... more versatile, more suited to my style.

more versatile in what way?

 

[JeffTD]

Erm... how many ways are there? It can get a wider variety of good tones than the 5150? An actual clean channel? Option to use 3 kinds of powertubes?

 

[006]

XSr™

~e.a

 

[Nebulous]

Option to use 3 kinds of powertubes?

6l6, EL34....I only count two?

 

[JeffTD]

6l6, EL34....I only count two?

Well, 4, actually... E34L and KT77 as well.

 

[PhilR]

I recorded a 6505 not so long ago. It sounded decent, but had very little low end power.

 

[Noumenon]

Man, the more I play with that 5150, the more in love I fall. It rules compared to my XXX. Just wating for a used one to show up at our music store so I can trade in my XXX and put some cash in-between.

Anyways, picking up my Samson S-Direct+ and Ibanez TS-9 today after work. Gonna be great for tomorrows gig. Well, I won't use the s-direct then, but still

 

[JeffTD]

Man, the more I play with that 5150, the more in love I fall. It rules compared to my XXX. Just wating for a used one to show up at our music store so I can trade in my XXX and put some cash in-between.

Anyways, picking up my Samson S-Direct+ and Ibanez TS-9 today after work. Gonna be great for tomorrows gig. Well, I won't use the s-direct then, but still

Seriously dude, the 5150 is such a badass amp... even after raving about the JSX, I'm ordering another one this Saturday.

 

[Torniojaws]

I recorded a 6505 not so long ago. It sounded decent, but had very little low end power.

The low end power comes from bass both in live band situations and in recording

 

[Ermz]

5150 all the way. I've compared the 6505 to the 6505+ a few times, and the original has always won out. The + can record decently... but has too much of a hollow, modern edge to it.

The JSX I'm yet to be impressed by. Basically, I'm waiting on Neb to get some decent tubes in his then I'll crank the hellraiser through it and prepare to jerk off furiously.

Here's a short clip of a 6505+ I recorded the other day (with processing to make it ready to sit in a mix).

http://users.tpg.com.au/afiteam/6505%2B.mp3

Obviously not perfect yet, but it's meant to sit with a triple recto in the full mix. It still gives you an idea of how the amp can sound. It seems to be able to achieve that aggressive edge from Kreator's 'Violent Revolution'.. or at least close to it.

 

[Nebulous]

Nice Ermz. Bit muddy though, too much gain or too much volume?

 

[JeffTD]

Sounds like there wasn't a tubescreamer used, or an EMG 81 style pickup - ends up sounding a touch muddy with too much gain, and a bit harsh.

Then again, the original sounds smoother and cleaner than the 6505+, so that could be what I'm hearing.

 

[deathtotaliban]

I recorded a 6505 not so long ago. It sounded decent, but had very little low end power.

I recorded a 6505 recently as well and I found just the opposite I thought it had plenty of low end. I used the fredman miking technique and got some good results

 

[Ermz]

Yeah, there was no TS, but it was an ESP loaded with an EMG 81. I found the monitoring environment very hard to hear details in. But aside from that I think I may have processed it in a way that made it a bit too mid-focused and muddy.

Will see how it comes up when I do the actual song mix.

But that's essentially the 6505+. A bit full-on sounding. I prefer the original.