Peavey classic over JSX?

davet247 · #1 06-16-2009, 02:45 AM

I'm having an amp crisis!! I love my JSX head and cab (best sounding monster ever) BUT it's way too big for me and my tiny house!

I never get to play it due to it's might so I tried trading it for a JSX combo but was told by the shop that the combo is worth more new then my stack second hand, I'd have to pay £500 extra to downgrade!....SO...

After reading more about Satch's sound he says he uses a nice clean tube channel with pedals doing all the work? This got me thinking, I like the sound, size and weight of the Peavey Classic 30, what if I trade my JSX for the C30 and some vox Satch pedals?

Would that be dub or a good idea?

Thanks, Davet247.

littlephil · #2 06-16-2009, 05:56 AM

If the halfstack is too big, maybe you could sell the 4x12 and buy a 2x12 cab instead?
Also, I used to own a C30, and it has great cleans, but the drive channel was a bit lacking IMO. Obviously if you use distortion pedals on the clean channel it doesnt matter.
And in one of Satch's video lesson of Surfing, I'm pretty sure you can see a C30 in the background with a DS-1 on top. Its on youtube.
Heres the video. Its definitely a C30 he's using.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yp7MExJ454c

davet247 · #3 06-16-2009, 06:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by littlephil

If the halfstack is too big, maybe you could sell the 4x12 and buy a 2x12 cab instead?
Also, I used to own a C30, and it has great cleans, but the drive channel was a bit lacking IMO. Obviously if you use distortion pedals on the clean channel it doesnt matter.
And in one of Satch's video lesson of Surfing, I'm pretty sure you can see a C30 in the background with a DS-1 on top. Its on youtube.
Heres the video. Its definitely a C30 he's using.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yp7MExJ454c

Thanks Phil, the shop told me they'd swap my 5150 4x12 for a Marshall 2x12 but it's still too loud and I'd feel like I downgraded my speakers for no gain other than smaller size. Also I'd still need a Hot Plate and I just don't have the money for that. I love my JSX but it's just gathering dust. I'd use the C30 all the time and have enough money for all the Vox and Boss pedals if I traded my JSX, glad you found that video man, I'll take a look right now..

indeedido · #4 06-16-2009, 12:13 PM

I ditched my 4x12 cab for a 2x12 cab for my JSX. I also bought a JSX combo to replace my JSX head setup. I sold the JSX combo immediately and kept my Head set up. Reason being, the combo in comparison to the Head and 2x12 sounded extremely flat. The open back design of the combo to me falls short. It lost all of the umph. I get a great tone loud and at bedroom levels with the master volume so I'm not sure what exactly you don't like. Bottom line, I would not ditch that setup for a classic 30 with pedals. Amp tone is way better IMO than pedal tone. Additionally if we were to get the JSX combo, it isn't any less loud than the head. Maybe a 4db drop in 50 watt mode, but no less loud. You can take out two power amp tubes in your head and it drops to 50 watts.

smooth55 · #5 06-16-2009, 12:30 PM

To some degree, I feel like you're getting screwed trading in the JSX and cab for a C30 and money for pedals. That's a significant step down in amp terms and while the pedals are nice, those are nickel and dime things when compared with the money you'd spend to get an amp like the JSX. I like the C30, it's a great little grab-n-go amp that has a solid clean channel and a good vintage distortion (bluesy dist.). It will not get you the saturated distortion that the crunch and ultra channels on the JSX will. But, it's a great little amp for jamming, rehearsal, and small gigs. It will still be a bit loud for home use, especially if you like to push it.
I totally understand the desire to have an small amp you can play at home and the weight of a half stack is rough. You say that you'll get money for pedals. How much money? If you can't get at least 2 of the 3 Satch pedals along with the C30 for just the head, I'd say it's a bad deal. Sell it on the bay where JSX heads go for 900-1100. The store will probably resell it for around 1100 or so anyway. If you can get about $900 for the head, the C30 is about 600 and then you factor in about 300 for the 2 pedals and you're in business.
Then, there's still the cab to sell/trade in for a few more pedals or keep it for larger gigs. I think you'd be setting yourself up pretty nicely with a set-up that can work at home and at small-meduim gigs with pedals making up for the less versitile C30 amp. It sounds like you're a huge Satch fan...and why not...so you'll be covered for most of his tones between the amp's clean and distortion and his 3 sig pedals. I'd try out a lot of other pedals too because while the Satch pedals do Satch, they aren't as versitile as some other options out there at similar prices that can also do Satch.

davet247 · #6 06-16-2009, 03:03 PM

Yeah, my ideal would be to get a JSX combo as I could get another cab in the future to get the same sound as the head. But I simply can't afford £500 extra for the downgrade :-(

The shop will give me £800 (about $900) for the head, so I could get the amp and some pedals but the point is to get rid of the cab. I could get all the pedals with the rest of the money from the cab...

Ideally I'd like to keep the head in storage until I can afford to run it properly and trade the cab and my peavey bandit combo (cab £250 + Bandit £100) which might scrape me a C30 but no money for pedals, but as you say I could get them later...

The JSX is the ultimate amp, I love it. But I just wish there was something between the mini colossal and the combo that didn't compromise the tone, ya know? I've seen Satch play through C30's with pedals and it sounds great! I read he only uses his JSX clean channel live, and before that it was just clean JCM's and his sound hasn't changed that much?

Having said that I love the tone of the JSX Crunch & Ultra with the Fat switch... I don't know what to do :-/

ColinMmmmm · #7 06-16-2009, 03:16 PM

Isn't there a 50 watt JSX coming out?

davet247 · #8 06-16-2009, 03:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ColinMmmmm

Isn't there a 50 watt JSX coming out?

Really?? How much?? Oh, thought you meant combo, yes seen the 50watt head but it dosen't help my size problem... I wouldn't mind a combo with a hot plate but the head and cab thing is just too much hassle... I know the combo is heavy but it takes up much less space and has the 1/2 power thing.

indeedido · #9 06-16-2009, 03:29 PM

If you are going to run pedals, you might as well run them into the JSX. Sound won't be any different in that vs the Classic. You still control the volume the same

davet247 · #10 06-16-2009, 03:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by indeedido

If you are going to run pedals, you might as well run them into the JSX. Sound won't be any different in that vs the Classic. You still control the volume the same

Yes but the head and cab are HUGE, thrice as heavy and 10 times as loud! lol. All things I'm trying to cut down on.

smooth55 · #11 06-16-2009, 04:18 PM

Basically, it's the cab that seems like the problem. What about getting just a 1X12 cab to run the head through. As long as you match the impedences you'll be fine to run the JSX into that and it'll be quieter than a half stack. Trade the big cab in for a small cab and a pedal or two depending on what the shop will give you. I think if you trade in the JSX you'll regret it and somewhere down the road you'll buy it again...at inflated prices.

davet247 · #12 06-16-2009, 06:55 PM

Can you recommend a good 1x12? I'd still need a hot plate tough and it's still not a handy jamming amp... Maybe I want the impossible! lol.

RSVampire · #13 06-17-2009, 02:29 PM

as you run more and more speakers your amp will actually produce more and more sound so you may not even need a hot plate after you ditch 3 speakers for a 1x12 cab

smooth55 · #14 06-17-2009, 03:32 PM

I can't really recommend anything to you because it's so subjective, open back, closed back and very speaker dependent. I'd take the JSX to the music store, or use one at a GC, etc. and just try it out with different cabs. There are several that are made for companies' 5 watt heads that are usually able to be experimented on. I'd give that a shot and then look at reviews on harmony central.
Like RS said, depending on what volume you want to play at, you may not need a hot plate when only going into the 1X12 and using the amp's master volume. The JSX with a 1x12 won't be the most portable situation, but you'll get to keep a killer amp and still use it at home.

davet247 · #15 06-17-2009, 06:07 PM

Sounds good but the head itself is cumbersome and heavy, it weighs more than a lot of combos... Just wondered if I even need that much power? I played a Satch cover concert (100 seater) recently and it was way too much for the gig. Not to mention the hernia inducing loading and unloading of it all...

I wanted the c30 as a biting, tube tone with pedals to push the sound further into Satch solos. I like to play Tom Morello kind of riffs more so than Thrash (Ballz n' Chug) style but also love the hollow satch singing tone. I want to get away from that 80's metal sound as I'm too tempted to do on extreme gain amps, I want to move on to something more vintage. Think Audioslave type of sound, would the c30 be good for that?