Express 5:25 and Studio22+.....after a year of comparison

[tonejam]

for anyone who's interested....
I've used a Studio 22+ for the last 20 years. I've LOVED that amp with a passion! It's served me well in all sorts of situations.
About a year ago I bought an Express 5:25 (10" speaker), mainly because I got such a great deal, I couldn't afford NOT to buy it! I had no intention of replacing the studio 22.
The first couple of times I tried the Express, I didn't like it all that much. I just couldn't get the sweetness out of it that the Studio offered. The Express sounded brash and aggressive to me....too "in your face".
Anyway, after a year of getting used to it, and tweaking both amps (valves, speakers, all the usual) I finally have to admit....I'M IN LOVE AGAIN.
I prefer the Express, for both clean and overdriven sounds. Even with the 10" speaker (now a Weber alnico Blue Pup) it has a bigger, more defined sound than the Studio (which has a Weber 12" alnico Blue Dog, so its a fair comparison).
I'll never sell the Studio 22, its a great amp, and a good back-up should anything go wrong with the Express. Incidentally, with both Webers connected, the Express sounds fantastic!
I've been contributing to this forum for the last year, but finally, I feel like I belong!
cheers! Bill.

 

[J.J]

It's always good to hear reports like this.

I still have a JCM800 that was my main amp before I got the Express. Now it just never gets used. I probably should sell it, but just can't bring myself to do it.

 

[Newysurfer]

It's always good to hear reports like this.

I still have a JCM800 that was my main amp before I got the Express. Now it just never gets used. I probably should sell it, but just can't bring myself to do it.

I'm an ex JCM800 owner :mrgreen:
Still a great amp IMO and Mesa's can't do that Marshall distortion tone.
I only sold mine cause it was so beaten up, needed major repair & was so bloody heavy

 

[J.J]

I'm an ex JCM800 owner :mrgreen:
Still a great amp IMO and Mesa's can't do that Marshall distortion tone.
I only sold mine cause it was so beaten up, needed major repair & was so bloody heavy

The Marshall still has it's cool thing going on, that the Mesa can't do, but I don' really miss that. I have a 100w head and virtually never get the chance to crank it enough to get the tubes cooking. Funny thing is I sold a 50w 2x12 JCM800 combo to get it. It was in great condition and I wish I still had it. It reaimins the only gear regret I have

 

[joesnewmatch]

Thanks to the OP for the thread.

Please let us, or at least me, know why you chose the Weber blue, and how it changed the tone of your combo. Thanks!

 

[Newysurfer]

I'm an ex JCM800 owner :mrgreen:
Still a great amp IMO and Mesa's can't do that Marshall distortion tone.
I only sold mine cause it was so beaten up, needed major repair & was so bloody heavy

The Marshall still has it's cool thing going on, that the Mesa can't do, but I don' really miss that. I have a 100w head and virtually never get the chance to crank it enough to get the tubes cooking. Funny thing is I sold a 50w 2x12 JCM800 combo to get it. It was in great condition and I wish I still had it. It reaimins the only gear regret I have

Yeah - I had the 50w JCM800 and it was still too loud.
I got no use for a 100w head anymore so I hear ya :mrgreen:

 

[tonejam]

thanks, joesnewmatch, for getting the thread back on subject! :lol:

As far as the Weber is concerned, its worth remembering that I play mainly country, old rock, and jazz. As far as overdriven sounds, I appreciate something like Gary Moore's sound on "Still got the Blues", that's about as heavy as I get.
What changing to a Weber Blue Pup did for me, was to take a bit of the brash, "in-your-face" sound out of the amp, and make it a bit smoother and sweeter. I also replaced the V2 tube with a 12ay7, which dropped the gain a little. I don't need as much dirt in my sound as the metal players!
In my opinion, the Pup is a great sounding speaker. It's only 30 watts, so at a loud gig, I use it as well as the Blue Dog in my Studio 22+ cabinet.
Hope this gives you some idea of why I changed speakers.

 

[joesnewmatch]

Excellent explanation, thanks!