EXPRESS 5.25 vs SUBWAY ROCKET

[jppom]

Hi everybody.

I own a Subway rocket for 3 years. It is a great amp but sometimes I feel it a little bit dark on the clean channel.
This is why I am interested in the express.
Same size.
Same speaker size.
More functions 5w switch, adjustable contour, mini switch for teh 4 modes)
The deal seems seems very attractive but ... when I tested it in a shop this morning I was a little bit disappointed on the following points :

-The 5w switch do not provide a better clean sound than my rocket with the master very low.
-The lead channel was not precise limit fuzzy

Is it because I tested it on a guitar which was hollow body because I do not spend too much time tweaking knobs?
Is the tone coming from that amp immediate?

Does somebody had that feeling or is it me?
For 3 times the price of my used Subway rocket, I need to take a good decision.

 

[bobby wasabi]

I own both a subway rocket w/o reverb and a 5:25 head.

I had the subway rocket for about 6 years before I picked up the 5:25.

I really like the subway rocket, but the shared eq can be frustrating. The clean channel needs the mids low but the lead/contour needs the mids at around halfway, IMO. It's a compromise that leaves the cleans dark and somewhat honky.

I bought the 5:25 because I felt it would have much of the same vibe as the subway rocket (EL84's) but with more features. I was pleasantly surprised. I consider the following upgrades over the subway rocket:
-I can set the eq (including contour) just right for each channel.
-Clean is spanky and warm.
-addition of reverb is nice
-I like the 1/4" control inputs on the back. I use the channel control input with a 2-loop bypass pedal to switch loops while changing the amp channel at the same time. I run a blues driver only for the clean channel and an SD-1 with an MXR smart gate only for the burn channel. Sweet! I liked the sound of the burn channel better with a boost pedal in there.

Granted, I have the 5:25 head running through a 1x12 widebody cab, so it will sound different than the 5:25 combo. I tried one of the 1x10 combos once at the music store and it definitely didn't sound as full or warm as my setup.

When I first got the 5:25, I only used 30W mode since it sounded soooo good. However, I wasn't able to turn up the masters too much for my church gigs. I tried the 5W mode and it's all I use now. It sounds great.

 

[jppom]

thanks very much for the feedback.

What about the serial loop? is it better than the subway one?

IMO, the subway generate a lot of noise when the master knobs are above 3. Did you notice an improvement on the express series for that point?
Are you able to obtain as a minimum the sounds of the Subway?

Thanks again.

 

[bobby wasabi]

The loop works good on the 5:25. I used to like the parallel loop with mix on the Subway, but I think I just keep it at 100% now anyways. Not sure which is considered "better". Both work fine.

Yeah, I think the 5:25 has less hiss than the Subway, particularly in the clean channel. Not by much though.

Not sure if I can get all the sounds of the Subway on the 5:25. The Subway sounds great just guitar to amp. It's a great little amp. The 5:25 sounds similar, yet different...perhaps a tough comparison for me to compare a 1x10 combo with a head into a 1x12.

 

[jppom]

thank you so much for all the details.
I will give it a chance.

 

[soundchaser59]

The only way you will know for sure is if you go back and test the amp with your own guitar. In my always never humble opinion, for plugging guitar straight into the amp nothing......NOTHING...... will change the sound more than using different pickups. If you dont use your own guitar to test drive the amp, you will miss out on something really special. I had a Subway Rocket (no reverb) and thought it was the best amp I ever had, until I got my Epxress. The Express will do the SR sounds and more, plus each channel has its own tone controls. The Express is quieter at full volume, especially if you use a noise gate pedal. I get cleans at full volume using the 5w setting, but only if I dont have any pedals other than the Barber Tone Press.

The only thing that I liked better on the Subway was the sound of the Contour control. They are different, and I wish the Express contour control had the same sound that the Subway contour has.

Also keep in mind that the Express 5.25 stock speaker is not nearly as good as the older stock speakers. Change the speaker to a Tone Tubby or a Weber if you want to hear what the Express will really do.

Another trick I use is put 5751 tubes in all 4 slots for 70% gain instead of the stock 100% gain. The full compliment of 12AX7's will make the tone controls harder to use because they will overdrive more easily. 5751's give me a much cleaner sound, then I put a clean boost in the fx loop to make it louder.