Happy NADs!

Summer is known for many positive attributes; the warm weather, picnics, swimming in lakes, barbeques, pool parties, etc.  From a personal perspective, it provides the opportunity to drag these behemoths outdoors and let 'em breathe.  Such went the day yesterday.  Our own formidable Moderator, DetroitBlues, risked everything to navigate across the state through the infamous summer road construction.  Finding him surprisingly unscathed, we set out to unleash some new toys.  Having lost electrical power to lightning, we were immediately obligated to be louder than the generator.  Good god!  Opening these amps up brought smiles to both our faces.  You could stand in front of the speaker cabs with the amp dimed and let the sound rinse your soul.  I swear the mud-flap girl on the 575's truss rod cover smiled.  I got the text from the neighbor girl after we broke for sustenance.  It'd only been 3ish hours, she wanted us to resume; so, we got back at it.  Eventually we were visited by some curious onlookers who brought their own balcony box.  All in all it was the kind of day that makes me yearn for summer.

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Ha!  A Metro-Plex Mk II already enjoying the great outdoors!  Along with a Super and GPM.  The Michigan outdoors got treated to pure unadultered British tones in the best way.  

 
greatmutah2112 said:
Ha!  A Metro-Plex Mk II already enjoying the great outdoors!  Along with a Super and GPM.  The Michigan outdoors got treated to pure unadultered British tones in the best way.  
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Great googly moogly GM2112.  How in the wide, wide world of sports did you ID those models?!  I am impressed!

Monday was The Best day I've had in many months.  Good friend, music, weather, guitars...  It all went together tight.

 
Steiner said:
Christmas, St. Nick's Day, Birthday and New Year's:  as of today I am the official curator of the Metro Plex MK II 100W Prototype!!!  We should air her out at least once more before Pre-PSP!
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I'd be happy to if time permits.... But I have something going on every weekend until PSP.  

 
Steiner said:
Ain't it a beautiful thing?  This is George's triumph.  He has been after this for decades; the pinnacle of his career.   The man is a pioneer.  He has resurrected the sound, feel, clarity, overtones and magic of my favorite recordings.  For that, I would climb the highest mountain.  These won't be available for long.
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Another Michigan company making a great product. Down the rabbit hole.

 
Steiner said:
Great googly moogly GM2112.  How in the wide, wide world of sports did you ID those models?!  I am impressed!

Monday was The Best day I've had in many months.  Good friend, music, weather, guitars...  It all went together tight.
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The Super was the easiest one to ID. And I knew the Mk II Metro-Plex had to be that because it certainly didn’t have the layout of my Mk I.  I also watched his video demoing the new one plus his trip down the EVH/12301 rabbit hole.  Very informative and at the same time you can see just how much he loves and respects the original amps. 

 
Steiner said:
I'm finding, perhaps a tad late in life - just not too late, that I'm a BIG Plexi fan.  60's Marshalls get my creative juices flowing.  Not only are they capable of capturing the 60s/70s riffs, they can generate both face peeling high gain and quaint jazz melodies.  The factor I find most appealing is how they wrap every chord and note in an envelope of overtones that dance together in a secondary, complimentary woven blanket of alluring sound.

There's this guy out there building amps.  I've been aware of him for ~20years, always with respect to Marshall amps.  It hasn't been 'till recently that I dipped my toe into his offerings.  That dip has officially changed to full immersion.  The guy, George Metropoulos, has apparently cracked the code to the early Marshall DNA.  His latest release is the GPM 45-1796.  It's his take on the JTM 45 Plexi, and what a take it is!  Full disclosure, it's less than a day old yet it kept me up into the wee hours last night running it through the mill.  So far the amp has graciously shown it likes the H-137, H-575 and H-150.

My approach to evaluating amps is simple: plug in your guitar, put everything at 12:00 and see if it sounds+feels good.  If the answer is yes, spin the knobs.  If the answer is yes, go to the extremes -treble up, bass off and every combination imaginable.  If it passes all tests, you've found a good amp!  Next, search for "useable" tone.  How does it feel at low volume?  Go to high volume.  Feel?  Try high and low gain at different volumes; feel good?  These are the traits of a worthy amplifier.  

The video shows how close the old and new stand.  The major difference is the Metropoulos comes with the industry standard effects loop, Proprietary Master Volume that doesn't change the sound or feel at lower volumes, an added gain level that respectfully increases the gain of the amp plus a switchable solid state or tube rectifier option.  All in all an homage to 60s Marshall with modern updates.

Check it out!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HF4IdSgGwv0
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Sounds like you might AAS - amp acquisition syndrome!  It's a terrible disease with only one cure - buy more amps!!

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greatmutah2112 said:
The Super was the easiest one to ID. And I knew the Mk II Metro-Plex had to be that because it certainly didn’t have the layout of my Mk I.  I also watched his video demoing the new one plus his trip down the EVH/12301 rabbit hole.  Very informative and at the same time you can see just how much he loves and respects the original amps. 
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The Super Plex is George's updating the look of the JTM 45/100 with a nod to the past.  How many black amps does one get before adding a splash of color?  I don't have an original Metro Plex.  In the store, when trying both the Metro and Super, I preferred the latter.  Something tells me that I'll get an original Metro once the current rate of new model release slows.  While not being a huge EVH fan myself, I have seen others dedicate tremendous effort toward his style.  Given that and the close serial #s, it makes sense to try this:

Note the reverence in his demeanor and tone
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xF_rENhabi0

Jaguarguy said:
Sounds like you might AAS - amp acquisition syndrome!  It's a terrible disease with only one cure - buy more amps!!

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There is some Big ASS going on here.  Thankfully it is not as big as your ASS - that doesn't sound right...  I say thankfully only because I'd have to double the size of my house in order to display 1/2 if your collection!  Your muZeum is a sight to behold and, frivolously, be played.  I'm truly looking forward to your Z-fest.

 
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I wonder why he doesn't put 4 inputs on the metro plex? Being able to daisy chain the channels ( or not ) is a fun option to have.

I see DB is standing far enough away with that hollowbody so he doesn't get feedback from the amp volume!! ?

 
bolero said:
I wonder why he doesn't put 4 inputs on the metro plex? Being able to daisy chain the channels ( or not ) is a fun option to have.

I see DB is standing far enough away with that hollowbody so he doesn't get feedback from the amp volume!! ?
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He has the two channels jumped internally.  There are two gain knobs for the 12380 channel.  If you want one channel only, you zero out the other's gain.

I stood one foot in front of the 4x12 with the vol and gain just about dimed.  The 575 was unruly but not out of control.  You could feel the sound permeate through you.  We should try it again with the Golden Eagle!

 
Steiner said:
He has the two channels jumped internally.  There are two gain knobs for the 12380 channel.  If you want one channel only, you zero out the other's gain.

I stood one foot in front of the 4x12 with the vol and gain just about dimed.  The 575 was unruly but not out of control.  You could feel the sound permeate through you.  We should try it again with the Golden Eagle!
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I stood back not for feedback but for my hearing....

Plus with two guitars playing, there was a sweetspot in which the blend was perfect, sort of like panning without a PA system.

 
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