Fractal Audio AMP models: Brit JM45 (Marshall JTM 45)

I just picked one up used - should be here soon hopefully. I had a Pink Taco for a long time and it kicked ass. I've been using a Badger 35 for my "real" amp lately - we'll see if it is dethroned :)

Make sure to post your findings. The small DS is on my shortlist too.
 
If you'd like a modernized version of the JTM 45, try the Dirty Shirley model. Dave Friedman based his amp on the JTM 45. It has a master volume.
It's my preferred amp model at the moment, for everything from clean to hard rock. A single amp model. I just drop Depth and Negative Feedback a little, and vary gain per scene.

The day I got my Pink Taco at Destroy All Guitars a while back, Cliff basically hooked me up to all of the Friedman stuff. I would have considered the Dirty Shirley instead but getting the good stuff required running the amp louder than I knew I'd be able to play around here. The Pink Taco held it's own no problem though. I'm really looking forward to the mini Shirley.

Also, he also had a Metropoulos Metro-Plex that he had me play through - that is probably the most glorious sounding amp I've ever played through. Seriously, if I was playing places that would accommodate it, I'd be playing that amp with an FX8.
 
I'm not sure which thread I read it in, but the JTM45 is very close to the Sunn Model T amp and gets great stoner metal sounds when the Master Volume is cranked up. I tried this the other day and it sounds monsterous!

I believe the Sunn is more closely related to the Marshall Super Bass.
 
Another great write up! Thanks Yek.

One comment on "woman tone". I've always thought of it as the post-Bluesbreakers/Cream era tone, when Clapton was playing Marshall 100w amps and was more about dialling back of the tone controls on the guitar rather than the amp. Clapton explains it in this video.

Regarding the JTM45 on the Bluesbreaker album (one of my all time favourite albums), there's lots of material on the internet about how loud the amp was when it was recorded. Here's a quote from the excellent book "Strange Brew: Eric Clapton & The British Blues Boom 1965-1970" by Christopher Hjort (itself a quote from a Mojo article):

Gus Dudgeon, engineer "Nobody had ever come in wanting to play that loud, not even when I did the Stones audition" and from Mike Vernon, producer "I went to talk to Eric...Is this absolutely essential? Because Gus is having kittens, he doesn't know how to record it. He's never had to deal with anything like this volume in his life. Can you turn it down? And Eric said very politely, ' No, I can't, because if I turn it down, the sound changes. And I can't get the sustain I want' "​

Also from the same book but this time a quote from much later (1998) interview:

Eric Clapton "When they tried to set up recording, I wouldn't let them put the microphone anywhere near my amplifier....I intuitively knew it wasn't going to sound good miked close"​

One of the great things about the Axe is we can get "that" sound without "that" volume :)

The term woman tone came about when Clapton was in John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, and thus originally while EC was using a JTM45 Bluesbreaker 2x12 combo and an Gibson LP - but as I wrote in post #3 in this thread and as you also write, the woman tone is mostly or almost exclusively about the rolled or dialed back tone control.
Santana also utilized this and has continued to do so for most of his career, but it came from EC.
 
The day I got my Pink Taco at Destroy All Guitars a while back, Cliff basically hooked me up to all of the Friedman stuff. I would have considered the Dirty Shirley instead but getting the good stuff required running the amp louder than I knew I'd be able to play around here. The Pink Taco held it's own no problem though. I'm really looking forward to the mini Shirley.

Also, he also had a Metropoulos Metro-Plex that he had me play through - that is probably the most glorious sounding amp I've ever played through. Seriously, if I was playing places that would accommodate it, I'd be playing that amp with an FX8.

Let us know how the Mini Dirty Shirley works out for you - stoked on your behalf.

The Metro-Plex is #1 on my (very short) list of real amps that I gas for.....but we have so many great Plexi models in the Axe already AND (I admit, more importantly) the Metro-Plex is 3500$ US + shipping + VAT + taxes and more to get it to Scandinavia - it would probably end up somewhere between 4500 and 5000$ US before it arrived at my door step. So I'll just keep dreaming of the Metro-Plex.
 
I'm a huge Clapton fan so what I did to replicate his cream era tone was use the jtm45 tone stack in the normal 100 plexi amp then I changed the power tubes to kt66 and increased the sag a little to create a good model of the jtm 45/100
 
I just picked one up used - should be here soon hopefully. I had a Pink Taco for a long time and it kicked ass. I've been using a Badger 35 for my "real" amp lately - we'll see if it is dethroned :)

Please let us know how you go. I haven't had a "real" amp for a few years now and GAS is started to kick in and this may well be the first one to get (been thinking of a Badger 35 as well actually).
 
Please let us know how you go. I haven't had a "real" amp for a few years now and GAS is started to kick in and this may well be the first one to get (been thinking of a Badger 35 as well actually).

You cannot go wrong with the Badger. It is a fantastic amp - very versatile and takes pedals well. Works very well with the FX8 and AX8.
 
I'm a huge Clapton fan so what I did to replicate his cream era tone was use the jtm45 tone stack in the normal 100 plexi amp then I changed the power tubes to kt66 and increased the sag a little to create a good model of the jtm 45/100

There really is something special about KT66s. I remember when the Budda Superdrives came out and everyone was in love with them. I went and tried several out and decided I just didn't "get" it. Then I stumbled on the 45 which had KT66s in it and that was the ticket - fantastic sounding amp.
 
Because of Q2.04 ? ;)

Nope. I haven't even updated my AxeII to Q2 at all. I have a backload of gear "work" to catch up on. I got my QSC Touchmix back from service and haven't opened it up yet. A coworker sold me his XL+ with MFC to replace my Mk1 for a great deal and I haven't opened the packages yet. I got a little Mooer Organ pedal that hasn't been plugged in yet. And now the Dirty Shirley arrives. Sigh.

Oh, I did get a Logidy Epsi a week or so ago and did manage to play around with it some. Not too sure about it yet. The Epsi after the Boss GP-10 worked well but it sucked hard with a Tech 21 Blonde pedal. I was thinking I'd put together my backup rig on a Pedaltrain mini.consisting of the Logidy, Zoom MS100BT, a wah, and maybe another pedal or two. But the GP-10 with another expression pedal and the Epsi is a pretty simple and complete rig as well.
 
Nope. I haven't even updated my AxeII to Q2 at all. I have a backload of gear "work" to catch up on. I got my QSC Touchmix back from service and haven't opened it up yet. A coworker sold me his XL+ with MFC to replace my Mk1 for a great deal and I haven't opened the packages yet. I got a little Mooer Organ pedal that hasn't been plugged in yet. And now the Dirty Shirley arrives. Sigh.

Oh, I did get a Logidy Epsi a week or so ago and did manage to play around with it some. Not too sure about it yet. The Epsi after the Boss GP-10 worked well but it sucked hard with a Tech 21 Blonde pedal. I was thinking I'd put together my backup rig on a Pedaltrain mini.consisting of the Logidy, Zoom MS100BT, a wah, and maybe another pedal or two. But the GP-10 with another expression pedal and the Epsi is a pretty simple and complete rig as well.

Amplifire?
-
Austin
 
i've been having a nice time with this amp too....after watching this vid...



at 3:23

totally nailed it like this...

brit JM45
everything on default except
gain = 3
pres = 3

cab = F103 - basketweave tv

T808 in front
drive = 7
tone = 6
level = 7

magic when you dig in. use the volume control on your guitar.
 
i've been having a nice time with this amp too....after watching this vid...



at 3:23

totally nailed it like this...


Been watching that same video.. and other various Gary Moore related items. On a kick.. I'll have to try these settings Simeon. I've tried some of your other suggestions recently and you and I must have similar ears. Your settings tend to work well for me.
 
I can't stay away from this model. I love the sqwacky sound with no sustain. I've been trying it out with a different guitar every night. It works well with all of them. I could pretty much nail the tone from about 0:47 of this video with my Reverend Warkhawk II 390:

 
Spent some time with the Dirty Shirley Mini tonight. My cab is a Bogner Cube with a V30. I used my Tele and PRS hollowbody. The amp sounds very good. Three gain settings all work well - you can get a ton of gain on this thing. Overall the amp is fairly dark. Once the master is past noon the bass needs to be around 7-8 o'clock and the treble needs to be nearly dimed. I'll give it some more time for sure but it has definitely not dethroned my Suhr Badger yet. Not sure it will to be honest.
 
Spent some time with the Dirty Shirley Mini tonight. My cab is a Bogner Cube with a V30. I used my Tele and PRS hollowbody. The amp sounds very good. Three gain settings all work well - you can get a ton of gain on this thing. Overall the amp is fairly dark. Once the master is past noon the bass needs to be around 7-8 o'clock and the treble needs to be nearly dimed. I'll give it some more time for sure but it has definitely not dethroned my Suhr Badger yet. Not sure it will to be honest.

Would you say that it's just a play at home amp or would it be loud enough to play in a band with reasonable headroom?
 
Would you say that it's just a play at home amp or would it be loud enough to play in a band with reasonable headroom?

It should be loud enough for most gigging in small clubs and/or micing. I'd take it on gigs without hesitation. I suppose if you had to compete with a 50 watt half stack you'd be in trouble without a bigger cab than I use but that's not my situation.
 
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