Mark V owner review of JP-2C (multi page post)

[bandit2013]

Ordered another Vertical 212 cab so I can use two or just one with the JP-2C. Since I also have the TC-50 why not get another vertical 212. Easier to manage, move around, pick up with two hands than the horizontal 212 cab. I have all the bases covered. 412, 212, and 112 so I can mix and match how ever it suits me.

 

[bandit2013]

Wow, it has been just a little over a year now since I got the JP-2C. I am still using the Stock power tubes that came in the amp. Mind you I did not use the amp every day as I have others to distract me too. I did have to swap preamp tubes as I had a few noisy one's and finally got around to getting new ones along with a full set of power tubes. I did notice the amp is not as bright as it was, it sounds dark and sinister but does brighten up with reduced gain settings or reduction in guitar volume. Perhaps it is time to swap power tubes. Original tubes are still quite bold on the bottom end so I may continue to use them a bit more. I could always install those in the Mark V and use the Green color coded quads I had on hand or go with the yellow color coded tubes that are new in box. (got those for the Roadster as I like those in that amp for some reason). I have no desires to go non Mesa tubes yet and will hold off on that until the warranty expires. Amp sound awesome so why change?

 

[bandit2013]

I have twins..... How cool is that. I will have to compare the two vertical 212 to the one OS Recto 412 and then the combination of one Vert 212 and the Horizontal 212. So far the most aggressive tone yet came from the Vertical and Horizontal 212 cabs combined. I did play though the new cab at lunch today after I unboxed it. Also had a bag of candy to munch on when I got back to work today. (I admit, it is the bit-o-honey that keeps me going back to Sweetwater, not exactly true... )

Benefit of two cabs, you can spread them out. Okay running two 412s may be the ideal as I have three of those. If I ever get another 412 it would have to be the straight cab to match the other one.

The punch I have experienced from the two Vertical 212 is so unreal :shock: . I was thinking about swapping in new tubes, not at this time. Awesome when a thought comes into reality and it pans out.

 

[dlpasco]

I have twins..... How cool is that. I will have to compare the two vertical 212 to the one OS Recto 412 and then the combination of one Vert 212 and the Horizontal 212. So far the most aggressive tone yet came from the Vertical and Horizontal 212 cabs combined. I did play though the new cab at lunch today after I unboxed it. Also had a bag of candy to munch on when I got back to work today. (I admit, it is the bit-o-honey that keeps me going back to Sweetwater, not exactly true... )

Benefit of two cabs, you can spread them out. Okay running two 412s may be the ideal as I have three of those. If I ever get another 412 it would have to be the straight cab to match the other one.

The punch I have experienced from the two Vertical 212 is so unreal :shock: . I was thinking about swapping in new tubes, not at this time. Awesome when a thought comes into reality and it pans out.

Wahoo!

 

[bandit2013]

Now I have an idea, how will two 412 cabs sound compared to the two Vertical cabs. I have enjoyed the Mark V running two 412 cabs on many occasions. It has been a while since I have used any of the 412 cabs. If and when I spend any more money, it will have to be for a straight 412 cab to match the salt and pepper grill on the other one for a full stack, if the straight has the bottom punch that the 212 cabs have. I could always run the horizontal cab with the slant front 412 cab. the 412 should fit on top of the 212 cab as they have the same footprint. 6 cones vs 4 would be interesting.

Here is the cab line up at my disposal:
2015 OS Recto 412 slant front cab to match the RA100 (stock speakers)
2000 OS Recto 412 slant front cab (all black) loaded with EVM12L black label
2014 Egnator traditional sized slant front 412 cab loaded with Celestion Creamback G12H-75 (thinking of swapping two with the MC90)
2016 Recto Vertical 212 cab (stock)
2016 Recto Horizontal 212 cab, standard size (stock)
2017 Recto Vertical 212 cab (stock)
2017 Compact 1x12 open back wide body (loaded with Organic Timbre Rhapsody G12F speaker)
2014 (forgot where I got it ) deep 1x12 cab with EVM12L black label.

I can also drive the RA100 combo speakers with any amp using an extension cable as this has two of the Creamback 75's in it and is open or partially open back. Actually sounds damn good with the TC-50. I can also do the same with the Mark V combo.

All I need now is the straight 412 cab (it that is where the money is at for the bottom bark with a little bite on the side).

So far the two Vertical 212 cabs have plenty of bit and so much punch, actually it is more like a kick as it really hits hard. The Vert and Horizontal mix also sounds awesome. If you have the Vert and Horizontal 212 cabs I would highly recommend trying them with the JP at the same time. That is insane Two verts is at the same level but with more bite. :x

 

[bandit2013]

Image of the speaker closet...

https://www.flickr.com/photos/159449305@N05/23985315888/in/album-72157687353762271/

I played the JP-2C through a few combinations, either one cab by itself or paired with another. IMHO, the vertical 212's win. The Horizontal 212 is also a great cab and has a very similar tone. I have been trying to down size a bit and found the 212 cabs seem to fill the best of both worlds. Lighter weight, smaller package and yet sound larger than they are. Long before the JP-2C entered my life, I would have thought the 212 cabs could never compete with the 412 cab. Believe it.

There is also a huge tone difference between the vertical 212 and the OS Recto 412. The 412 seems to be all midrange and upper frequencies with some bottom end that is subdued. They are not bad cabs after all. The smaller 212 cabs seem to offer better tonal balance and are not dominated by midrange, tope end or bottom end. Even the Vertical 212 with the one speaker angled upward dose not have the same effect as the slant front 412 cabinet. What does work with the 412 cab is to run it with a Thiele cab to extend the bottom end a bit (I have used the small deep 1x12 with an EV speaker in it for that same effect (under the vert 212 cab on the left). Running two of the 212 cabs in parallel is ideal. I had considered a second Horizontal cab but opted for the Vertical as I like that one in particular for use with the TC-50 and the JP-2C. Mark V is okay and sounds great too but since mine is a combo I keep it on the floor or place it on top of the Horizontal 212. For some reason, the 412 cabs do not thrill me as much. The 212 cabs sound huge relative to their smaller size. I still like the 412 cabs so do not get me wrong on this.

My preference though is for the Vertical 212. Bass player and your sound person will hate you but damn it sounds so awesome running two of them or even one by itself. Seems that when you combine the 212 cabs with other formats (112 or 412) the tone just gets brighter and you loose that thump and punch with chugging or plam muting. The stock OS Recto 412 cab is great but may sound a bit tin like with the palm muting. Sure running two 412 cabs may be nirvana but it will not get as close to the two Vertical 212 cabs. The small 1x12 cab on top of the Vertical 212 on the right is the wide body open back loaded with an OTR speaker. Since I wanted to use it with the JP-2C I felt the MC90 was not suitable. However the MC90 sounded excellent in the cab prior to its removal. I was impressed with the performance I got with the Mark V with the stock speaker installed in the extension cab. I wanted to give the OTR a try with the JP-2C and so far it is rewarding, a bit darker in tone. It pairs up quite well with the Mark V combo I have loaded with the OTR speaker so if I do not ever use it with the JP-2C it sounds great with the Mark V combo. The EV loaded 412 cab I normally use with the Roadster. The salt and pepper grilled 412 was borrowed from my RA100 Rig. I doubt I will get any more speaker cabs as I have plenty to chose from. About lifting the 412 onto the horizontal 212, that I was able to manage by myself. However If I had to lift the other 412 loaded with the EV speakers, not possible. that one is extremely heavy compared to the newer 412 cab. I am happy I never went after a full stack as I would want to stack the cabs. May look cool by may require a step ladder to get to the rear of the amp to hook things up and to dial in your tone. With the one 412 on top of the horizontal 212 cab the amp was at eye level. I am 6ft tall. It would have been a bit shorter if I took of the casters but wanted to take things down when I was done with trying the speaker combinations out. I did not record anything this time.

Anyone deciding on getting the JP-2C, TC-50 or the Mark V should really consider the Vetical 212 cabinet. It is a bit expensive and almost cost as much as the slant front OS Recto 412 cab but it has a bigger sound, lighter in weight and easier on the back.

 

[bandit2013]

I figured out how to get the flicker picture on the thread without having to jump off-site. Cool....

 

[gag halfrunt]

Love the updates.

That's a great cab lineup. I also love the green PRS. Great color.

 

[bandit2013]

It may look like a PRS, it is not. I have 10 guitars but most are in their cases. What is in the picture is a Carvin CT624C (mahogany body set neck, royal ebony board, jumbo frets, thick quilted maple top in Deep moss green. ) The other is a Keisel DC600. Carvin guitars changed their name back to Kiesel which as the original business name from the start. Same company just different name. They were associated to Carvin audio (amps, mixers and sound reinforcement) but they split from each other a few years ago and went in separate directions.

Here is a link to what different options looks like.

https://www.kieselguitars.com/guitargallery/ct624

 

[bandit2013]

This evening I wanted to record the Mark V with its broken in OTR speaker. To be honest, it sounds ok and that is about it. That speaker is an improvement for the Mark V but for some reason I was not into playing though that amp for a while now. Instead I powered up the tubes in the JP-2C and enjoyed the enchanting mojo this amp has plenty of. It is not its shear volume or thick tone that draws me in, it is the feel and control I can get with the guitar volume control knob. This amp is quite reactive but I am sure there is a better term that could be used to describe its feel and character. I spent a little over two hours in a dark room with nothing shedding any light except for LEDs on the front panel and the heater glow that was reflected off on the glass doors covering the fire place. I could always move my gear into the studio and hear the shimmer of the snare drum wires and reverberating chambers of the tuned 8 drums adding ambience to the guitar. Instead I prefer the rattling of the glass vases and other ornaments the wife had decorated the family room with. She may have gone a bit overboard with the decorating. Sooner or later that large shelving unit will have to go along with all of the glass ware and other things when it comes time to rip up the carpet in favor of hard wood flooring. Perhaps I am just hanging on to memories of my past. Perhaps that is why I like to play the guitar in that room as it was her favorite room in the house. Sorry for the side track and now more to the point of why I am bumping this thread.

The JP-2C does many things better than my other amps despite only three useful channels and no additional voices to complicate things or make you wonder why this voice was added as it is not in any way favorable to any style of playing. For the two hours of playing I had not realized where the guitar volume was on my guitar, I just focus on what I am hearing and it sounds good. Sure enough I though things were quite loud but sounded really good I decided to roll of the guitar volume a bit only to find it was already all the way down just before cutting off. I was playing one of my Carvins that most would mistake for a PRS but is not, this one has a TOM bridge and is black and brown in color and 22 frets. The volume pot tents to get bumped a lot on this one guitar and it seems there is no bushing on the volume pot as it rotates effortlessly and sometimes rolls on its own. One of these days I will fix that with a new pot. I love how reactive the amp is just to the guitar volume itself. You get that sweet mellow tone and softer clip that is just perfect for Led Zeppelin leads. The amp to me does not seem to get softer in loudness when the guitar volume drops (it probably does but does not seem to sound weaker by any means) it just sings with a bit of life to it, almost as if the guitar was playing itself (that would probably sound better than my skills would allow). If you want to heat things up dial up the guitar volume and the amp begins to breath fire. There is something about this amp that sticks with you from the second you heat up the tubes to the point at which you shut it down (I am not referring to the ringing in the ears but that could be one thing I should be concerned with). Compared to the Mark V, I normally just leave the guitar volume maxed out and never touch it. Roadster is almost the same thing but that does have a bit more character to it. The JP-2C is just unique in that it has taught me to use the guitar volume like one should. There is more to this amp that what may meet the eye and some if not most of it comes from the guitar and player. I am 30 some years into learning how to play the guitar and the JP-2C is probably one tool that has lead me to new tricks and improving my techniques (yeah they have gotten rusty over the years..)

 

[Jesse Daly]

Please excuse the bump, just read the entire 9 page thread. Thank you so much for documenting all of this. I have been dying to get my mits on a jp2c since they were announced. And I finally ordered one in white bronco, which will arrive by Tuesday. So I am trolling the jp2c forums trying to learn what I can about the amp and especially looking at what to do about a cab. After reading your thread I am very seriously considering the vertical 2x12 (recto?), and it would be a good fit for me in terms of size and weight.

The only hitch is that there is an 80s mesa vertical 2x12 halfback for sale locally for only $400 that has evm12ls in it. Should get the halfback or the modern 2x12? I suspect the halfback would weigh a good bit more, but the evm12ls seemed to be a win in the 4x12 so perhaps it's a smart move... not sure...

 

[bandit2013]

I would consider the half back 212 with the EVM black shadow. That would be insane. Those that have that cabinet love them. I believe that is also paired up with the MC90 up top which is the open back portion and the grill is the expanded metal type. I tried to find one local to me but could not seem to locate one, so the newer Mesa cabs were the other option. I believe there are a few in the forums that have the half back 212 with the EV in it that are using the JP-2C. They gave the cab some great reviews paired with the amp. The current Vertical 212 cab is good too as it sounds huge compared to the V30 loaded 412 cab. Perhaps that is a good idea, I may look again for one of those vintage Mesa cabs myself. Besides, they look really good with the metal grill.

Sorry to put you though all 9 pages of rabble. I guess I really like the JP-2C that I turned my review into a daily blog. oops, overkill :roll: .

I would recommend Donny Boiler's review as it was much better written than what I had done. It is more to the point and much easier to read.

Here is a link to his review: https://donstickguitar.net/2017/09/11/review-mesaboogie-jp-2c/

 

[bandit2013]

I did find a listing on Reverb. Looks like the total load with both speakers combined is 4 ohms. there is a stereo split 8 ohms each. Hard to tell if the bottom has an EV in it as the power rating on the label in the pictures only indicated 180W so I would assume both speakers are the MC90. If it had the EVM12L BS it would be rated at 290W or 300W since the Mesa EV black shadow was a 200W speaker. However the bottom portion is ported to the front similar to the Thiele cab with open back on top.

Since I have a wide body 112 with MC90 and the EVM12L black label loaded in a deep 112 cab I may try it with the JP-2C running at 4 ohms so it would be about the same. I may shove the other EV speaker in the open back 112 wide body cab just for S&Gs as I do not like blowing out MC90 speakers, done that too many times before.

 

[Jesse Daly]

Oddly the halfback I am looking at has evm12L black shadows bottom & top both, still for the money I don't think I can go wrong. If only I weren't so attracted to the 2x12 vert in cream bronco with brown corners, handle, and cream&tan jute grill.

Still I don't know if I am $600 dollars attracted, especially if the halfback potentially sounds better.

 

[bandit2013]

If the speakers have the huge magnet and the aluminum cast frame baskets, jump on it.


https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&ccid=jO0Q%2fqKq&id=CB5ED8D38677AEC24462506AB59B75F6DB9B0B79&thid=OIP.jO0Q_qKqGEvZs9djWLXW9QEgDY&mediaurl=https%3a%2f%2freverb-res.cloudinary.com%2fimage%2fupload%2fs--IqziK1i3--%2fa_exif%2cc_limit%2ce_unsharp_mask%3a80%2cf_auto%2cfl_progressive%2cg_south%2ch_620%2cq_90%2cw_620%2fv1460241242%2fq4fyco1z8kc3bbpwalkp.jpg&exph=465&expw=620&q=mesa+boogie+evm12l+black+shadow&simid=608022115386983689&selectedIndex=0&ajaxhist=0

 

[Jesse Daly]

yup that's them

 

[bandit2013]

A single EVM12L black label is great, a pair is awesome. Double that and you get explosive. I could not be in the same room with the EV loaded 412 cab without some hearing loss with the amp wide open. Even the Roadster is a ear drum killer and that amp is not as loud as the JP. The 212 will be loud enough for just about anything. I used to run an EV in an extension cab with the Mark V combo loaded with an EV that I mounted with the traditional method, on the front baffle, had to mod the grill to fit. That on its own shook the house beyond belief. No doubt the EV loaded 212 will surpass your expectations.

 

[Jesse Daly]

Some people report that running the top of the halfback open with a nice alnico like the celestion alnico cream or fane axa, with the evm12L in the ported bottom still... I may try that or perhaps a jensen blackbird or the wsg version which is supposedly less dark. (did I read you had used a blackbird?)

Then I could source an empty ported 1x12 either mesa or perhaps Port City and slap the other evm12L in it...

I can think of at least half a dozen places that i might book gigs at that are really going to require a 1x12 format...

my rocket 44 might cut it, but I am thinking even if I am just playing clean the noise floor on the jp2c sounds like it might be quite preferable in more intimate spots...

 

[bandit2013]

the black bird takes a while to break in. It does not like distortion out of the box. How boring that was to break it in. I got better and better and then when I bought a Celestion Crème 90W alnico, tried it and then wanted to compare the blackbird and pocked one of the screws though the webbing of the cone. I put that in my Carvin V3MC and has been there since then. That amp gets used every other week end. I would never have noticed the tear was there.

the Celestion Crème 90W alnico sounded great, right out of the box. Clean tone was not bad as that had more of a vintage tone, but open up the amp, that sounded better than the EV. Another similar speaker is the Celestion Red back. it is 150W, just a tad bit less bright but really sings when pushed hard. This has more midrange and would complement the EV speaker. The WGS Black hawk HP100 did not survive the first tryout with the Mark IV combo. It suffered the same fate with that amp as when I ran the JP-2C into the Celestion Crème at 100W. It did not take long before I realized I did not flip the switch. 100W blew out a 90W speaker, yes it did, the JP-2C peaks at 145W RMS. I popped an MC90 doing the same thing. Not sure how accurate the meter is on the attenuator but I would assume it is as the Roadster and RA100 never rose above 100W.

Fane Studio 12L is also an insane speaker, I was able to really push that with the Mark IV at master volume levels to the point the amp just becomes more compressed. That speaker really projects (close up it is not as loud as it is farther back, that sort of purplexed me) Also has that british tone but plenty of bottom end. May be a hard fit in the cab as it has a extensions on the frame for mounting bolts other than around the ring. Never had a chance to try the JP-2C though it. I sold the Mark iv combo with the speaker mounted in it.

 

[Jesse Daly]

Well my JP2c showed up at the UPS pickup today and after I got my daughter to sleep I went ahead an hooked it up.

HOLY CHRIST!!!!!! I am just playing at bedroom levels in my apartment at night on my homemade 4x8+12 cab and I am next to tears with how damn good this baby sounds!!!

The reverb is freaking glorious! And the number of different tones available just with the foot-switch and pickup selection is mind boggling.

BEST AMP EVER

I can't wait to take it to rehearsal and open it up!

I am truly shocked how good it manages to sound at low volume, it goes against all conventional wisdom, big bottle high wattage amps have no right sounding this good at night on the 3rd floor. I am running it at about half the volume I would watch a movie at in my living room and I just simply can't believe it!