Pete Thorn - Dialing In An Amp

[@juicervos]

This is a cool video with a bunch of great tips for dialing in a bunch of great amps I’ll never, ever be able to afford. Shout out to all the other basement rockstar dads out there.

[@SooBahkJoel]

Pete just seems like such a cool freakin' guy.

[@PeteThorn]

thanks Joel!

[@NegativeBodhiImage]

Pete Thorn beat my mother…. sand put out cigarettes on my baby sister's arms.. Its all an act ;)

[@MichaelEgan66]

@@NegativeBodhiImage wtf kind of comment is this?? Fuck sakes. 🤦‍♂️🤷‍♂️

[@cardbored_]

@@NegativeBodhiImage weirdo

[@NegativeBodhiImage]

@@MichaelEgan66 Hes a monster

[@jasonbone5121]

Love these Pete Thorn/TC videos - He certainly knows how to tweak a tone!

[@chrisheyes66]

I've had a '79 Lead 50 since the early 80's which has exactly the same controls as the JMP. Pete has just shown me where I've been going completely wrong for far too long. Top man

[@randykintzley5923]

Great reminder of what a real rock and roll amp sounds like. That Marshall is a beast

[@1972bacosta]

Man, this is the best Marshall tone I have seen in a long time, thanks Pete Thorn!

[@willdenham]

This is the only channel content I've come across that explains amplifier gain with such direct simplicity. So many channels with people using beautiful vintage amps on low settings, then stomping on a pedal to display gain characteristics or featuring a pedal this way.This does no justice to the true character and performance of a vintage tube amp or the pedal for that matter. My 65' Bandmaster at 4 with an overdrive is nothing like going straight through on 8. Thank you again for doing these demo's as well as the Fender combo one!

[@middle_pickup]

Pete is the tone master! What a wealth of knowledge this guy has!

[@Kasper911band]

KZbin can not capture the power and scariness of a 100 watt head and a 4x12 rig but Two great sounding amps!! Good job Pete!! 🤘

[@marcpaul4822]

Pete... Your playing is amazing and your enthusiasm is infectious but the fact that you share your knowledge is really appreciated.

[@TheNorthernChris]

Aw man. I haven’t heard a Marshall sound that good for ages. I always learn something watching Pete. Good work guys.

[@AndiPicker]

I come back to this video every few months - reminds me why I play Marshalls and Greenbacks!!

[@Genociv]

Love the fact that the Vox sounds clean and dirty at the same time almost. I'm so in love with AC30s! Got a UA Ruby, and couldn't be happier with the sound I get with it and my VS Audio Straight Flush!

[@gentlewolf1279]

Pete has to be one of the best players for dialing in a great tone with just about everything he touches! Solid video

[@rectangularcuboid]

Man, the Honey Pot through cleanish Marshall is KILLER! Totally stealing Pete's line about edge of breakup depending on "what school you're from."

[@insurrectusresistus]

This is the culmination of my search for tone. Thank you!!!

[@bmorr6734]

Pete is the best. Great player and top notch guy. He's Canadian to boot!

[@tcelectronic]

🙂🇨🇦

[@thecoastizclear]

that Marshall tone is damn inspiring

[@AvnerRosenstein-ULTRA-LXV]

Thanks for this video! There's a shit ton of players who do not realize that Master volume on an amp is essentially the volume for the Power tubes whereas Channel volume is volume for the Preamp tubes. The two sets of tubes have their own volume. With the master all the way up and channel volume low...you get this spongy sound that's way more akin to Rock/blues. With the master down and the channel volume up is more high gain for like Metal and it tightens up the sound. There's so many players that do not realize the reasons why there are master/channel volumes. Master volume is for loudness coming out of the power tubes. Channel volume or in this case preamp volume is for the EQ and gain stage volume. Experimenting with these two volumes can have incredible results on your playing!

[@jacobk4n3]

That AC sounds absolutely incredible man I could die.

[@hadleymanmusic]

Man Im havin to do this as a loner. Your music sounds just like I can imagine it , good! The more I listen it tells me how hard ill have to work to be as good. Thanks for your work.

[@greg24hoareau]

2 years after it still the best sound I've ever listened to...

[@Millo1868]

Some of my favorite amps! Amazing sound.

[@90sPunkRockCovers]

Man that JMP sounds killer, sounds like an old '77 I had, God I miss that amp.

[@muzjikstb]

The gain is so rich with both amps. Will have to look at adding some more chime to my marshall tones at some point : )

[@patricklongshanks378]

Just bought a vintage JCM 800, so this is so helpful.

[@michaellrakes5521]

When done right with little to zero effects in the way of the amps sound; it's hard on any given day to match the sound of a proper Marshall Amp. And that goes back to the early JTM45s all the way to to the JVMs of today. ALL of their tube amps are amazing and produce that classic hard rock crunch that can crack your rib cage into powder. Great video!

[@erictoniaschwab1009]

Michael L Rakes So true. I miss the days of being able to wind up a Marshall half stack and just ripping the paint off the walls. Venues don’t really allow that anymore.

[@michaellrakes5521]

@@erictoniaschwab1009 lol sucks doesn't it? First time I ever got to feel and hear one raw opened, was my 10th grade talent show in highschool. I had slaved away for about 3 years, saving up money from working odd jobs and such and had gotten a JCM900 2500 SL-X half stack that I loaned the other guy playing guitar in my crappy garage band. Meanwhile I had just saved up and gotten a brand new JCM 2000 DSL50 half stack that had just came out and we were the only band who didn't use the schools equipment. we cranked it wide open, along with the bass player who had just gotten an old Trace Ellliot 400watt head with a 12" horn and 18" Sub. Only guy mic'ed was the drummer and the singer. They tried to turn down our amps thru the PA but couldn't and just deafened the auditorium. Fell in love with them forever after that hahaha

[@wyreandwood]

Damn straight! This bloke gets it.

[@ROOKTABULA]

9:35 "I'm a wolf child girl, And I'm howling' for you-ah, Wild Flower"!!

[@DevinRyanVitek]

Ed Berger you do know he was quoting a Cult song, right?

[@loosechangetrio1]

I have a 1978 JMP 2203 I got put back to stock. This vid has really helped confirm my amp tech has done a great job with how Pete went through all the controls. Master on 4 is way loud though.

[@MrChadDrye]

Awesome Pete! I'd love to hear you do one with a dual rectifier or similar.

[@billbethurem7393]

Hi Pete ….Thx again for your awesome videos....they stand tall against the rest out there....I accidently came across this video.....I have a '79 2203 with EL34s, a '77 2204 with 6550s, and yes, I have a Handwired Vox AC30, so this video here was made for me.....Anyway, just wanted to thank you again for your insight, I've been running the 2204 A/B with the AC30 and I think I found what I feel was missing from my sound, those two amps compliment each other so well, we played an outdoor show this weekend and I can't put into words how my sound cut thru and how full it was, without drowning out anyone else....we had a great soundman as well running the show.....I took your suggested settings, tweaked little to my ears...and...I'm there man.

[@descentintozachstrom]

thanks for the vid Pete. awesome advice for getting into rock playing

[@timjohnson7919]

That Rush riff...just took me away to a different place :-) Great tones!

[@MarkJPerry]

Great video Pete - your attention to detail and musical wisdom greatly appreciated.

[@blakjack3053]

Pete is one cool dude put'n out some of the best guitar gear content on KZbin! I actually have that JMP amp and he's right about dialing in the sweet spot as I use his same settings, except for the preamp that I tend open up for the style of music I dwell on.

[@chrisautrey5051]

Guitar lives in the midrange. Especially single coils.

[@inhabitantmusic9051]

Here I thought I really wasn't sure where I should be! I was surprised to find that I was pretty close to where you would be! Great video! 😀

[@brianwarner308]

i feel ya Pete, it's hard to not start playing that ACDC stuff when u get that sound!!

[@MartinRodriguez-fk5jk]

Like always, a great lesson!!! Thanks for share your knowledge with us!!!!

[@jasonlewis2483]

Love these practical application videos. I used to think that unless you had a high end brand amp, good tone was impossible. I met a recording engineer several years ago that could make anything sound great and he essentially was doing what you're doing here. He just sat down and started playing open strings and palm mutes for a couple minutes and then voila, perfect tone. Thanks for the great videos.

[@manuelbastian]

You can get good sound out of a lot of stuff, but make no mistake: These amps are classics and sound so good because you heard them on tons of records! NOT the reissues! A lot of times those old Marshalls are even cheaper than the reissues and they win the battle every day of the year! If you want that classic tone, use the old stuff! There's no shortcut to that. That stuff always sounds great, no matter where you set the dials...

[@jasonlewis2483]

Manuel Bastian True. But the technique is what i was referring to. There's no arguing that a Ferrari will outrun a Camaro or a Kia Optima, but all 3 have the ability to get you where you want to go and be reliable. Though some more than others right? LOL

[@manuelbastian]

+Jason Lewis True! 😃

[@rikh78]

best amp you can buy, get a used one for under £700 and you can't go wrong. I have an 83 2204 and it's killer

[@duffmatty63]

That was simply pure fun. Thanks Pete. I think you are spot on when saying the classic 'great' riffs were likely inspired by amps like these doing what they were designed to do... WORK. Thanks for all you do for the music community.

[@charlesb7831]

Fantastic stuff , helped me dial in my jcm 800. Few things I was overlooking! Thanks again, Cheers!

[@Earlvis]

It’s important to understand that the tonestack impedes signal when the tone controls are less than wide open. I always turn all tone controls wide open to start and then back down the frequency range that is too much. The end result is that one of the three (treble, middle, bass) is always wide open which gives you more of what the amp has to offer.

[@patrickkish6662]

For a minute I thought I was watching the Food Network. Learning how to cook up some tasty jams.

[@tcelectronic]

😂

[@robgroden]

This tone is perfect, really love the Darkness riffs. Just need to figure out how to get this out of my Helix!!!

[@Polentaccio]

Those two amps really are amazing together! Forgot how much you need to crank those JMP/2204's to get the goods.

[@AndiPicker]

I swear that a lot of the "classic plexi" tones that folks rave about are actually these JMPs and 800s. Such a great sounding amp - though I think I may have to get a Pete Thorn installed on mine.

[@JayMoreau]

Pete is one of the absolute best. Thanks!

[@billbethurem7393]

Finally a vid that seems to be tailor made to me....I have a '71 SuperLead, a '79 JMP 2203, and a handwired Vox AC30.....I am glad I stumbled across this vid....I mainly play through an early JCM800 cab with Celestion G12-65s, but have one cab with Vintage 30s and two cabs with 75s......when I play single channel amps, my leads seem to get lost in the mix....so I play a JCM900 MK III out so I can channel boost....but I've been looking to find the sweet spot on my early Marshalls, and you have given me a great reference......this is very refreshing as opposed to the whackos that don't know what the heck they are doing....thx man...can you refer me to a vid of yours that suggests how to front end a boost to cut through....I have a few different ODs I uses....an Analogman TS9, a Radial Tonebone Hot British, a Reverend Drivetrain II, and an original Marshall Guv'nor…….Thx again for your no nonsense and pro approach....

[@vintagesound8112]

Bill Bethurem hi. Sounds like you have the same issue as me getting your solos heard over a band with a single channel amp, this problem is even worse when you have two guitarists. The only way I found to overcome this is to set the amp to your solo volume, on my Vintage Modern is 7 on the MV. So the amp is really cooking. Then back my guitar volume down for rhythms. Obviously your rhythm sound will be quite clean but at least when you open up the volume knob your leads will definitely be heard. You need a venue where you can get away with some volume though. I have tried every boost trick under the sun and this is the only thing that works. All the best. J

Holy shit the sound of that Marshall!

[@michaelsteven1090]

uhh..laptop speaker?

[@JeeWeeDonkers]

So far for 'everything on 10 (or 11..) on any Marshall'.. great video, very educational and a lot of fun!

[@BigMikeGuitar]

The Rush riffs slayed! I love the Signals and Grace Under Pressure period.

[@dwightburns6699]

Me too...a big Andy summers influence then..

[@DevinRyanVitek]

Ladies and gentleman, the reason why I’m going to pursue a career in guitar. ROCK N ROLL PETE!!

[@greg24hoareau]

You’re the best Man ! Sounds great!

[@casperboo5465]

Great video pete, and so helpful you make it so easy to follow and understand, many thanks great demo, Cheers

[@trevorwesterdahl6245]

Excellent video. Back in the day, everyone went to see live bands. Bands fought to get the attention of local radio stations. Success equalled a packed house. If popular enough, radio stations shared music between cities. All fought to create their own unique "sound" and national exposure, record deals, and tours. It led to entirely different genres of music. It was driven by fans, not studios. Today, music is written in studios and is controlled by those who own the distribution channels. Radio stations are no longer truly local. In fact, most just play prescibed lists with no real decision making driven by listeners. Sattelite sources that let you choose playlists don't count. Most youth don't even see the bands they like live. If they do, its usually a massive, overproduced show that likely is more about dancers and light shows than musical talent. With auto-tune and similar tools, we don't even hear natural/real vocals anymore. Those in control have been morphing music so all the genres get bent towards one form of "pop music". I think the industry has set itself up to fail. Its getting repetetive, stagnant, and uninspiring. Fortunately, multiple musicians have figured out they can produce and distribute their own music. I suspect that is going to take hold much like TV channels are dying and independant sources are winning. Studios went too far. Looking forward to those musicians who get back to playing live, writing original music (inspired by the tones they get from their equipment) who publish and distribute it. Society is craving it.

[@middle_pickup]

This video is so valuable.

[@hamrecordings]

I’ve played through a lot of modellers and plugins since the original Line 6 Pod. They all do a pretty convincing job at “sounding” like a cranked tube amp but I’ve yet to play one that “feels” like a cranked tube amp. Being in the room with a dimed Marshall or AC30 is a really unique experience.

[@matthias7455]

That marshall sounds great. Back in the day when they were really affordable I played through some that were probably not properly maintained and thought they sounded crappy and harsh. Shows that when these amps are cared for, then they sound awesome.

[@AndyK.23]

How did I NOT see this cool video before now? Sure, all you need for great JMP tone is to crank the master up to ear-killing levels!

[@MrUnklekracker]

My first and always loyal love,... the 1979 MARSHALL "JMP Mk2 Master Model 100w Lead".

[@SsWargazmSs]

The sound of the two blended is awesome. It still has a good punchy crunch but the tone is meatier sounding. I thought it sounded really cool. 👍✌

[@Nagaroon88]

finally someone who understands this amp. Great video!

[@hardrockerdave94]

I’ve got one of these master volume JMPs and yeah the EQ controls are basically just for show 😂

[@peterschaefer1665]

Love this series of vids Pete thanks!

[@punkpop101]

Pete is the man!!! The only thing I would like is for Pete to warm people about the problems amps turned up this loud can produce to your hearing. Search for tinnitus, hyperacusis and sensorineural hearing loss to see what problem you might get if you don't protect your hearing. The amps sound amazing but we need this kind of tone at safer volumes.

[@stevendobias2960]

Oh yeah Pete goes Old School! Rock and Roll will never die!

[@MarcBaumbach]

I thought this video was good until you played Digital Man by Rush. Then I knew it was great!

[@ThePileCast]

I have a JMP-2203 and it is one of my favorite amplifiers, funny to see you dialing it in to what I basically run as my settings. I also have a Mesa Mark iic+, and that is a lot trickier to dial in. I have a managed to get a number of good tones with it, but it still makes me a lot of fiddling to get what I desire out of it.

[@MacawAviculture]

I finally gave up on Mesa amps...could never get the sound I thought it 'should' have, but I did love my old Mesa Triaxis when I used to ONLY play through a rack setup. My 2 new favorite amps are my Soldano Hot Rod 25 and surprisingly my Marshall DSL 20HR!

[@1cleandude]

Great info as always Pete you are one of the best!!!

[@billducas]

Pete knows tone. While some just go with diming an amp, or have all of the tone controls on 5, Pete dials it in with his ears and not his eyes. I was told almost 40 years ago that on a Marshall, keep the tone controls all below 5 or 6. This is what Pete does.

[@Zelomeisterdude]

When you had the master all the way up and used the pre-amp gain as a master volume the amp sounded the best to my ears.

[@manuelbastian]

Although a lot of those amps had a bright cap on the gain pot, which makes the gain pretty much a set to 10 and forget kind of control.

[@mrbigg7255]

And that’s the way to set up a Hot Rod Deluxe. People bitch that the drive channels suck but when you peg the master it really sounds good.

[@bisaillion]

holy crap guys, can you please automate his voice level in post.

[@calebbohrer3757]

He really needed some compression

[@johnhancock3812]

your tone dialing in is just how i would do it:)

[@DaveSheremata]

NICE! Really curious to see what you’d do with a Boogie Mark I, IIC+ and a IV or V....please Pete?

[@williamsimmons4678]

Thx pete !! rarely do demos show you how they r dialing in the sound

[@davidbakerscuba]

So every dial on all amps somewhere between 4 and 6, lol. Killer video. I loved it!

[@thomasbailey9605]

Nothin like a cranked up Marshall! lol Dang that sounds righteous!!

[@RodolfoSantanderYei]

This guy made me go back to the Back in Black album and hear it all day long!

[@tcelectronic]

Mission accomplished! 😉

[@michaelnachoescamilla6241]

And now I am hearing that Vox. Good NIGHT!

[@HeleneLogan]

The 'Lo-Gain' option explains how Andy Summers used Marshall's. EXPLAINED. A BIG thank you from a Fender/Vox pedal-holic gal who finds herself cursing at the rehearsal studio where ALL the working amps are Marshalls/rectifiers. LOL

[@AdrianRP1]

You never indicated whether or not you were using any pedals. Did I miss that? You and I have the same ear for tone! Me, early 80s Scorpions Black Out tone for me! Thanks!

[@HollywoodRareGuitars]

Pete doing the Billy Corgan fuzz trick on the low input!

[@zandig666]

Dang that sounds great !!

[@jalaskabtu]

my inspiration, keep rocking

[@klewis2048]

Digital Man sounded great! Now I need to find the other video you mentioned...

[@Amp_Expert]

1979/1980 JMP (serial number on faceplate front), but 2-input and master volume instead of 4-input and no master volume Mk2 2203....3 gain stages + Cathode Follower. 2nd gain stage cold clipper and no couping capacitor on the 3rd gain stage with a bright cap across the pot...basically a JCM800.

[@BenvanGeest]

Analog Man by Rush sounded EXCELLENT as well as all the rest of course. Another GREAT one, Pete! Cheers!

[@luiza.8216]

Fantastic!!

[@TravisPhillips22]

That’s how I like my amps to sound!!!

[@jaeger28]

Cool video. Another nice twist would have been to run a delay pedal in front of the Marshall, kinda like in the old days with the tape delay into Plexi kinda vibe, as I find that also particularly hard to dial in right, especially using the high input. Works pretty good with my old DD-2 but it's very finicky getting the FX level and Repeats just right.

[@vill8665]

Really good sounding and useful advise!!

[@cpfs936]

It would've made the video a good bit longer, but there are good things to be had by jumping channels on that Vox.

[@SxSxG666]

I start with the trebble and turn it up until it sounds sharp but doesn't hurt the ear. Then I go to the bass and turn it up until I can feel the palm mutes shakin' my guts but the overall sound doesn't get muffeld. Then I go to the mids and I still don't really know what they do after 20 years of playing guitar :) I think it kinda is the compromise between sounds good and can be heard in the mix. Gain depends on what kind of music you want to play. But generally less is more. Too much gain destroys everything and doesn't make you sound more heavy at all.

[@stiffrichard2816]

The pre-90's MV's sound best with either with the gain fully dimed, or the master dimed/preamp low as shown here, and they do have a nice clean tone. With a Boss chorus pedal and an MXR delay, it's quite luscious!

[@MetaphysicalMusician]

SOUNDS AMAZING 👍

[@scottlurken9667]

Very cool, thanks Pete!!

[@JoseyStranded]

That JMP 2203 is my favourite of all Marshall amps. My favourite rock sound. Sounds better than the 800 version of 2203. And the clean is great too.

[@alecdawson1668]

That Rush tone at the end was epic.