gaga fanboi review

[ultra high gain]

Warning: total fanboi lengthy just-plugged-in-once-and-i'm-too-damn-excited review commencing:

Holy ****, I was not expecting this at all. Plenty of punchy bass, and dynamics(?) of this magnitude even though a lot of claims of this amp are of a flatter compressed nature. And ... somehow... Marshally?... a lot of bite and sizzle, but in a smooth Mark kinda way.

You see, I previously owned a mkIV and fully expected to be disappointed at the lack of a pull fat built in, so I was thinking of tinkering with it to add/change a cathode bypass cap or two to make up for that. No need. If schematics are correct, the 1st and 3rd stages of the IV have the 2.2u (1st added with pullfat), but the 3rd stage in the 2C+ is a 15u, and I feel it balances it out perfectly. In any event, it sounds perfect just the way it is. And I'm using an active EMG 57 on the bridge, I'll get more punch and low end with passives too. Maybe the Het set too.?

And - what the hell - I do NOT remember the IV being this dynamic at all. Lower gain settings have a very rich, juicy, punchy, pick-attack-dependent zest that I absolutely was not expecting. The highs sit in just the right place to give it a ballsy grind that hangs with any Marshall, but without any extra fizziness on top. I am a huge Marshall fan too (and Diezel, Engl, Randall, Revv, etc for that matter, tone junkies are sick), and the JP2C can hang with the grindy crowd any day of the week.

Kick in the juicy analog spring reverb with lower gain settings, and it sounds like something EVH himself would have appreciated. Then again, after his Marshall days, he also cranked the **** out of the gain too like the rest of us sick *******s! I definitely wanna check out the 5150III S el34.

Cleans were as expected - lush, smooth, bell-like, chimey, Fender-like, and amazing. And that was just the bridge PU, I haven't even messed yet with the neck, parallel, single coil (my actives are splitable too, yay!), passives, out-of-phase, the unbeatable tele or strat neck PUP, etc. I can't wait to throw some comp, chorus, maybe some other verb and delay - ahhhh. I really do like the built-in spring reverb, there's something I like about most spring verbs that I can't quite put my finger on...

I did not like the pull presence on the IV, it seemed too scooped, but on the JP2C I like both pushed or pulled. I gotta hand it to Petrucci, I totally like the way he sets his amp up, and I did similar settings, and within seconds of tweaking I was in the glory zones. I'm very accustomed to the Mark way of doing things, so it was literally seconds.

I have had no where near the amount of Boogie experience as many others here and abroad have had, but I have owned a handful of Boogies to know how they operate, with the quirky pre-dist tone knobs. I dig the Rectos too. Starting in the 90's, I went from Mark III to Quad Pre, Triaxis, Triple ch Recto, Triaxis again, Dual ch Recto, Mark IV, and now the JP2C. I kind of went full circle back the the beginnings of Boogie metal gain.

I also did not really much prefer the harmonics/mid gain switch of the IV either. I forgot which one, but the less saturated setting is what I left it on. Shred is not like that at all. It bleeds harmonics and edginess without too much fizziness added (IV had the fizzies), I love it! Again, gotta hand it to Mesa and Petrucci, I really like all the sounds and features of this amp, and I'm glad I got it.

The power cable worked it's way out of the socket before I could plug it in, but I was armed with the knowledge of it's quirky location via YouTube, so I expected it to be there, but it was unusual that it came out. After taking the chassis out and reinstalling the cable it had a snug fit. There is an attachment on the headshell to snap into place the cable - and even screw it down securely - but I didn't need to screw it down. Good to know it's there if I need it. I'm a bedroom ******, so no need for now. Plus if it bugs me, I can get a small 6" or 1'extension to plug in the amp, and use the cable to plug into that. I appreciated that the chassis was snugly shifted over to one side of the headshell, making removal and reinsertion a breeze - just put headshell on its side and grab it by the xfmrs, then its just black on red/ silver on white for the reverb tank, done. I have a reissue JCM800 that is not so kind.

I have not experienced the powertube protector before, and it is a pleasant surprise to see. Placement and removal very much reminds me of computer RAM, with the two little levers to engage in order to release. Installing is a snap - just literally snaps into place easily. Ingenious!

As a previous owner of the Triaxis, I was kinda bummed that Mesa decided to ditch all the extra programmability. I was expecting the Mesa equivalent of the Diezel VHX to come out, sans the fx. Nevertheless, I haven't even messed with all the features I do have now with the JP, and I know it will come in handy in tandem with the Helix.

Looking forward to bugging you all with my silly antics in the future...

 

[bandit2013]

Yeah, the JP2C hit me like a ton of bricks when I first got mine. I wanted another Mark amp and was not very fond of the Mark V90W I had and still have.

Just curious what power tubes are in your JP? I would assume they are the STR443.
I am looking at getting one of the newer offerings, Mesa STR448 which is a spin-off of the Shuguang company specifically made for TAD, called the red base 6L6GC. It is supposed to be the STR415 equivalent. I will find out one of these days as I placed a pre-order through Sweetwater. They are not listed on Mesa's website though.

Trick for bedroom level playing on CH2 or CH3, the JP2C will have more bass influence when using the 100W power and at a reduced channel master volume level. Sometimes I feel it is too much low end. To compensate, turn on the shred mode. It is almost like you are running the amp at gig level but without the volume.

What also sounds great is loading the amp using two 8 ohm cabs. Not sure why but the 4 ohm load sounds awesome with the 100W and 60W power. I normally just leave it at 100W.

Yeah, the dynamics are what drew me in. On par with the Badlander 100W and Royal Atlantic 100W amps. The MWDR has more sensitivity than the others and is not as tight as the JP or other two I listed. What I like best about the JP2C, you can dial it in to mimic other amps. I have been able to get very close to a Marshall Silver Jubilee characteristic. I do not have any other Marshals to compare with.

For interests in the EVHiii5150 EL34-100W. I would consider the 50W model first. I have the 100W model and not very impressed with it. Needs a noise gait as the noise floor of the el34-100 is very noisy. Not good for dynamics. I should get it out now that I have two EVH guitars. I love the SD78, Frankenstein version, and the Wolfgang pickups are not that far off. Awesome with the JP2C as well as the other amps.

What I found most rewarding was the JP2C is forgiving with different pickup combinations, active to passive. Tone woods are also notable. Perfect with single coil strats too. Why I have two Badlanders, it is sort of like the poor man's JP2C, well it was when I got the first one. The second one cost me more than the JP2C price of 2016. Ouch. I guess it still holds true, after buying all of the amps I have, I am now poor. My amp and guitar collection keeps growing. I have tried to slow down. After getting the 2nd BAD, Mesa announced the Mark VII. I do have some interest in that one and plan on using it as part of a stereo setup, with the 2 BADs or by itself.

 

[ultra high gain]

Wow that is a super nice collection! I like how you have the JP2C white front panel with matching cab. Delicious!

I just got another splittable EMG81 to try out for brutal tones, and I'm in the process of installing D activators with parallel/phase options. I really want to mess with the clean channel of the JP2C of all things!! I like tones like the Fixx, very clean, compressed, some dimension D or light chorus with a slow rate.

With the EVH, yeah, I would expect a high level of noise because of the high levels of gain. I don't think it will bother me. Same with the lack of dynamics: I had a 5150, triple recs, Soldano Hot Rod 100, and I very easily get used to the compression. For those type of amps, I see it more as a feature than a downfall. They have that big easy to play feeling that just feels like butter.

I'm using the 16 ohm output on the JP2C. My first Mesa with a 16 ohms!! I forgot the type of 6L6s are in there, I'll have to check again. I have a Rivera rockcrusher, but I don't think I'll need it, the master is very good on the JP2C. Better than the IV for sure. The IV is one of the those "breathe on the volume knob and it goes to 11" amps. Louder than my Marshall DSL for sure. I can crank my DSL all the way and it doesn't hurt, but with the IV, I was unable to. I think the JP2C sounds fantastic at low volumes. Of course, it just gets better with volume. I'm so glad I took the chance and got one.

 

[bandit2013]

Curious what power tubes your amp has. I would assume they are STR443. I would be surprised if they are the STR440 (sort of out of production on those). There is a new contender that works quite well with the JP2C, STR448. Bottom end is not dominant so at reduced volume the low end retains good balance to the mids and upper frequencies. The Clean channel offered up the most surprise, not as boxy sounding as the STR443 or STR440. More lively character with some top end chime. The STR448 was a game changer for me. However, the ideal power tube to get is the STR415 as that will take the JP2C up a level in performance. The STR448 is a close second to the hard to get STR415.

 

[ultra high gain]

Yeah, the JP2C hit me like a ton of bricks when I first got mine. I wanted another Mark amp and was not very fond of the Mark V90W I had and still have.

Just curious what power tubes are in your JP? I would assume they are the STR443.
I am looking at getting one of the newer offerings, Mesa STR448 which is a spin-off of the Shuguang company specifically made for TAD, called the red base 6L6GC. It is supposed to be the STR415 equivalent. I will find out one of these days as I placed a pre-order through Sweetwater. They are not listed on Mesa's website though.

Trick for bedroom level playing on CH2 or CH3, the JP2C will have more bass influence when using the 100W power and at a reduced channel master volume level. Sometimes I feel it is too much low end. To compensate, turn on the shred mode. It is almost like you are running the amp at gig level but without the volume.

What also sounds great is loading the amp using two 8 ohm cabs. Not sure why but the 4 ohm load sounds awesome with the 100W and 60W power. I normally just leave it at 100W.

Yeah, the dynamics are what drew me in. On par with the Badlander 100W and Royal Atlantic 100W amps. The MWDR has more sensitivity than the others and is not as tight as the JP or other two I listed. What I like best about the JP2C, you can dial it in to mimic other amps. I have been able to get very close to a Marshall Silver Jubilee characteristic. I do not have any other Marshals to compare with.

For interests in the EVHiii5150 EL34-100W. I would consider the 50W model first. I have the 100W model and not very impressed with it. Needs a noise gait as the noise floor of the el34-100 is very noisy. Not good for dynamics. I should get it out now that I have two EVH guitars. I love the SD78, Frankenstein version, and the Wolfgang pickups are not that far off. Awesome with the JP2C as well as the other amps.

What I found most rewarding was the JP2C is forgiving with different pickup combinations, active to passive. Tone woods are also notable. Perfect with single coil strats too. Why I have two Badlanders, it is sort of like the poor man's JP2C, well it was when I got the first one. The second one cost me more than the JP2C price of 2016. Ouch. I guess it still holds true, after buying all of the amps I have, I am now poor. My amp and guitar collection keeps growing. I have tried to slow down. After getting the 2nd BAD, Mesa announced the Mark VII. I do have some interest in that one and plan on using it as part of a stereo setup, with the 2 BADs or by itself.

Whoa! You were right on the mark! Yup, they're 443s. I fully enjoyed your expose on power tubes, very enlightening, and makes me wanna roll some Mesas to hear the differences.

Ha ha, looks like I was suffering from hearing hangover when hearing Marshall in a Mesa. Bwahahahaha!
I guess I was just so used to my Engl Invader, that the JP2C sounded Marshally in comparison, sorry about that! The JP2C is rich and smooth, like one would expect out of a boogie, with that surprising low end chunk that no other amp seems to replicate. Like, holy sh**, what a low end. The Diezel Herbert is like a sledgehammer, much like the rectifier, but the marks are like rebar rods, very concentrated in a single spot. I love that. The palm mutes are devastating.

I'm done with passives now too. I never thought I would say that. I can't stand the sluggy feel for palm muted thrashy aggressive sounds. I used to HATE emgs, but now I can't live without em. Using the 57 bridge. Gonna check out a blackout....

 

[bandit2013]

I never bonded with the active pickups. I do not mind having active tone controls as long as I can turn them off.

For me, it is all about expression and what I can get with a passive pickup. I want to take the full advantage of the amp's dynamic characteristics. How well does it clean up on the high gain channels with a nasty grind dialed in? Roll back on the guitar volume and it just sounds amazing, much better than the clean modes. I blame this desire all on the Royal Atlantic RA100. If it was not for that amp, I would not have discovered how to use the guitar volume to clean up the Hi gain. So why blame the RA100, I have been running two in stereo. Trying to change channels on both amps was not easy with the type of footswitch it uses. I can manage that with the two Badlanders much easier.

What I found with actives, I could not get that volume roll back trick to work. Always felt like there was some sort of compressor/sustainer working against me. Sure, I do have a few Carvin DC400 with the active controls but that is for the tone, however, the signal from those are hot as if you were running with a grid slammer. I can still roll back on the guitar volume with those and have the same effect as I get with passive pickups. I can also turn off the active section as well.

The EMG's that I did like were the 57/66 set. I loaded those up in a Squire Contemporary active strat with the reverse headstock. It took me some time to get that guitar up to a good feel. It needed some fretwork to smooth out the ridges in the fret wire. Decent axe for $450. Besides it has a poplar body and is not as resonant as Alder so the actives make sense. When it comes to my go-to axes, they are mostly Charvel MIM models, I also have two EVH guitars. If I need that additional push, I have an optical compressor/sustainer pedal I can add to the front end.

The JP2C was the pinnacle of the Mesa excellence. It only got better with the STR415. So far I have yet to find tubes that surpass them. The STR445 are very close as are the STR448. I tried the STR445, borrowed from the Mark VII as I was surprised how on par it was with the JP2C in the IIC and IV modes. Also, the STR448 or the STR415, I no longer had to use the shred mode to cut bass when I was running at a reduced volume. STR443 and the original STR440 had more low end when you back off the volume. The trick to retain that gig level tone was to turn on the shred mode. As for the clean channel, the STR448 were tops with plenty of added chime, the STR415 were close. I did not experiment with the STR445 tubes for very long.

This is my full rig setup at home. 2 BADS, Mark VII and JP2C. All 4 amps pushing air with the V212 cabs. I finally got a second Mesa Switch track so I can complete my 4-amp rig. Still working out the details but so far I am not disappointed. This is one massive wall of sound. Nuts? yes. Is it necessary? No. The Badlanders just blend well with both the JP2C and the Mark VII. I was thinking on getting a second JP2C so I could do the daisy chain hookup and use just one footswitch. That was until I saw the price, ouch. Mark VII was just a bit more affordable. Can't daisy chain them since the midi commands overlap for different functions. Bummer.

 

[ultra high gain]

That is an amazing set up!!! I bet it sounds killer.
Yeah, active tone is not as good as passives for lead tone, or to volume roll-off, but I am addicted to the tight thrashy palm-muted grind of actives, and there's no turning back. I did confirm that I do not like the 81, but I love the 57. I'm going to try some fishmans next.