Members goldwing68nv Posted April 14, 2007 Members Share Posted April 14, 2007 well,i got a chance to play an Engl Fireball head,side by side,with a Peavey JSX head...and i was VERY surprised on the results.the JSX on the -ULTRA-high gain channel,believe it or not,was heavier than the Fireball,on its highest gain channel,and sounded a bit clearer.both amps have a very high,crushing clear gain,but the JSX sounded better,imo.the JSX has a sweeter tone,probably due to the EL34 tubes and the Fireball sounded a little more raw/brittle.the CLEAN channels,on both amps,were equally impressive.the CRUNCH channel sounded a bit nicer on the JSX.i think it's a little darker,whereas,the Fireball CRUNCH channel still has that rawness to it.a bit harsh,just a bit.the JSX,immediately,comes across as a bit smoother,darker,sweeter...the other big difference was that the JSX can dial in much more,clear-not boomy,thumping bottom end,with the BASS & RESONANCE knobs.very impressive.i found myself looking for more low-end bass boost on the Fireball,in comparison.i guess i never thought that the JSX head could produce such awesome,brutal gain/tone and i'm blown away by it,especially for how high the Fireball is revered for extreme gain...dont know how the Powerball compares to the Fireball,in tone,but i just thought i'd share this interesting finding about the Peavey JSX head... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members troublehead Posted April 14, 2007 Members Share Posted April 14, 2007 Fireball high gain rhythm = chug, chugga, chugga JSX high gain rhythm= honk, honka, honka JSX has excellent lead and mid-gain rhythm tone though............. All my opinion:wave: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Herald of Light Posted April 14, 2007 Members Share Posted April 14, 2007 No, THIS is a shocker! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members -->CHRIS<-- Posted April 14, 2007 Members Share Posted April 14, 2007 Try the XXX. Its crunch channel is the JSX's ultra channel. Then it comes down to which you need more, the JSX amber, or the XXX ultra. The XXX ultra channel can do some amazing things. The JSX amber channel can do some amazing things. Great amps made here in the USA! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Herald of Light Posted April 14, 2007 Members Share Posted April 14, 2007 The XXX is like a fizzier, mufflier JSX to me. The fact that the "crunch" channel is like the "ultra" channel of the JSX is not a good thing if you ask me. Making a three channel amp that is already stuck in TEH BREWTALZ HIGH GAIN mode when you set the gain on the "less" distorted channel to 2 is beyond me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members nihilism Posted April 14, 2007 Members Share Posted April 14, 2007 Clips? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members shred-o-holic Posted April 14, 2007 Members Share Posted April 14, 2007 well,i got a chance to play an Engl Fireball head,side by side,with a Peavey JSX head...and i was VERY surprised on the results.the JSX on the -ULTRA-high gain channel,believe it or not,was heavier than the Fireball,on its highest gain channel,and sounded a bit clearer.both amps have a very high,crushing clear gain,but the JSX sounded better,imo.the JSX has a sweeter tone,probably due to the EL34 tubes and the Fireball sounded a little more raw/brittle.the CLEAN channels,on both amps,were equally impressive.the CRUNCH channel sounded a bit nicer on the JSX.i think it's a little darker,whereas,the Fireball CRUNCH channel still has that rawness to it.a bit harsh,just a bit.the JSX,immediately,comes across as a bit smoother,darker,sweeter...the other big difference was that the JSX can dial in much more,clear-not boomy,thumping bottom end,with the BASS & RESONANCE knobs.very impressive.i found myself looking for more low-end bass boost on the Fireball,in comparison.i guess i never thought that the JSX head could produce such awesome,brutal gain/tone and i'm blown away by it,especially for how high the Fireball is revered for extreme gain...dont know how the Powerball compares to the Fireball,in tone,but i just thought i'd share this interesting finding about the Peavey JSX head... Disagree 100% Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members goldwing68nv Posted April 14, 2007 Author Members Share Posted April 14, 2007 ...actually,on the high gain channels of both,the JSX & the Fireball,i specifically observed the qualities of rhythm chugging,and imo,the JSX,sounded better.the Fireball had a dry/raw/slightly bright-harsh tone to it,where the JSX has a smoother,slightly darker chug tone to it.i found it hard to believe,but to my ears,the JSX sounded heavier,overall,with a better fuller bottom end,that was clear & very tight.i a/b'd these two amps back & forth for about an hour,trying out all the different channels,rhythm & lead riffing,different picking attack,legato,pinch harmonics,tapping,arpeggio sweeps...and the JSX always came up the winner,even if by a little...i guess my point is that i'm really surpised at what a great amp the JSX is,with all the tweaks & mods that Peavey's team designed into it,with Satriani's input/feedback...for me,the JSX covers ALL ground from clean,crunch & enough CLEAR high gain to satisfy my metal tastes from Exodus to Bolt Thrower...honestly! i've tried the XXX & it's just too buzzy of a tone.the JSX seems like what the XXX wished it could be.......................sure,the XXX may have more gain on tap,but,first & foremost,it's always about tone quality.plus,on the JSX,you can use EL34's or 6l6's and bias the amp,yourself,with the turn of a simple bias adjustment knob inside the amp,right next to the power tubes...not bad at all,i'd say!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members goldwing68nv Posted April 14, 2007 Author Members Share Posted April 14, 2007 disagree 100%...no way! play both amp heads,side by side,and there's no way you cannot agree...the ear's dont lie! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members troublehead Posted April 14, 2007 Members Share Posted April 14, 2007 disagree 100%...no way! play both amp heads,side by side,and there's no way you cannot agree...the ear's dont lie! I've owned both and also agree with him:p Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members -->CHRIS<-- Posted April 14, 2007 Members Share Posted April 14, 2007 The XXX is like a fizzier, mufflier JSX to me. The fact that the "crunch" channel is like the "ultra" channel of the JSX is not a good thing if you ask me. Making a three channel amp that is already stuck in TEH BREWTALZ HIGH GAIN mode when you set the gain on the "less" distorted channel to 2 is beyond me. Ah, but when you use vintage output pickups its no longer in super gain, super saturated mode. The amp can do anything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Herald of Light Posted April 14, 2007 Members Share Posted April 14, 2007 Ah, but when you use vintage output pickups its no longer in super gain, super saturated mode. The amp can do anything. This is a possibility. I still think that amp is weird. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members code_blue Posted April 14, 2007 Members Share Posted April 14, 2007 What if you turn the pres. and treble down a hair? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Lord ToneKing Posted April 14, 2007 Members Share Posted April 14, 2007 Fireball high gain rhythm = chug, chugga, chuggaJSX high gain rhythm= honk, honka, honkaJSX has excellent lead and mid-gain rhythm tone though.............All my opinion:wave:Bingo:thu: I owned a JSX too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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