All Things ENGL!

la szum said:
2 x EL84s scare the F out of me when it comes to anything that has to do with
chugging, fast riffing, and big bottom Metal. It's odd because the Fireball has
2 x 6L6 in the Power Section of the Lunchbox Engl, while the Ironballs are
all 2 x EL84. :idk

The Special Edition Fireball comes with big ass KT77s, which makes the power tube
choice in the Ironballs even more interesting.
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I've had a few EL-84 amps that did high gain pretty well, but ultimately they all fall apart if you turn it up loud, which is kind of the point of a low wattage amp. I really don't get it either, if they're going to put smaller tubes in it, at least go with 6V6s. EL-84s are the polar opposite of most of these amp's large counterparts that come with 6L6s sound like.

As much as people love to hate them, at least Marshall did it right with their lunchboxes and learned from their misgivings on the older DSLs with EL-84s and put EL-34s in all the 20w models they have now. I really don't get why Synergy went with them in their new 20w head, when they already had a 30w head with 6L6s...
 
Lots of people like there small lunchbox amps with EL84s and it works
in certain applications. Just not my applications. If I need a low volume
solution I am looking elsewhere---especially for heavier tones where
the low end needs to stay tight. If I am playing Americana or Indie Pop
then 2 x EL84 like in a Vox AC15 is doable. I just don't get how that
power section can hold up for anything Hard Rock or Metal. :idk
 
Will Onyx said:
IMO the el84 lunchboxes aren’t necessarily meant to carry the stage. They give the tones and let the PA do the heavy lifting.
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I could probably make it work the way I’m using my amp, but without experiencing ”big boy” tubes (and also transformers) I always felt like I wasn’t seeing the whole picture with the EL84 amp. Might be a different story today though. The FB25 is damn loud for home use.
 
Using an Ironball going direct and just using a small cab for some stage volume could be fine maybe? Or just going direct. But it does severely limit the usability of the amp for high gain if the power section starts thinning out with volume.

I’ve barely cranked my amps but I remember the Tubemeister not sounding good when pushing the master up while using the built in power soak.
 
Shame-less-plug

For me the fireball 60 is close to a one trick pony, but that trick is pretty damn good. Pretty much a scooped punk/metal tone or mid forward punk/metal tone, just seems to have 2 sweet spots for each.

I’m not a crunch afficiando but seems to do ok there. Cleans are surprisingly good for such a metal amp. Considering the price you can sometimes get these for (the same price as a synergy module alone lol), super good buy for the right price.

Anyway, paired with a tubescreamer and noise gate, gg, be stoked on that tone for a long time. I kind of want to upgrade to a v2 or a 100w v2, or maybe even a powerball 2 but am not in a huge rush.

 
[Nathan] said:
Shame-less-plug

For me the fireball 60 is close to a one trick pony, but that trick is pretty damn good. Pretty much a scooped punk/metal tone or mid forward punk/metal tone, just seems to have 2 sweet spots for each.

I’m not a crunch afficiando but seems to do ok there. Cleans are surprisingly good for such a metal amp. Considering the price you can sometimes get these for (the same price as a synergy module alone lol), super good buy for the right price.

Anyway, paired with a tubescreamer and noise gate, gg, be stoked on that tone for a long time. I kind of want to upgrade to a v2 or a 100w v2, or maybe even a powerball 2 but am not in a huge rush.

Click to expand...

You got some great tones out of it! I’m still over the moon on my FB25. It probably has a bit less gain on tap than the 60(?) on the lead channel and is a bit of a love it or hate it kind of sound. I’ve found it quite versatile with the clean channel as well! Also the 25 has a noise gate. I find I play it more and more without any boosts up front.

On the 60 is it just one gain dial for both channels or a fixed volume on the clean channel?
 
[Nathan] said:
Shame-less-plug

For me the fireball 60 is close to a one trick pony, but that trick is pretty damn good. Pretty much a scooped punk/metal tone or mid forward punk/metal tone, just seems to have 2 sweet spots for each.

I’m not a crunch afficiando but seems to do ok there. Cleans are surprisingly good for such a metal amp. Considering the price you can sometimes get these for (the same price as a synergy module alone lol), super good buy for the right price.

Anyway, paired with a tubescreamer and noise gate, gg, be stoked on that tone for a long time. I kind of want to upgrade to a v2 or a 100w v2, or maybe even a powerball 2 but am not in a huge rush.

Click to expand...

Fun video! I believe I heard the different FB variations sound different and it's not just wattage?
 
Progressive_disclosure said:
You got some great tones out of it! I’m still over the moon on my FB25. It probably has a bit less gain on tap than the 60(?) on the lead channel and is a bit of a love it or hate it kind of sound. I’ve found it quite versatile with the clean channel as well! Also the 25 has a noise gate. I find I play it more and more without any boosts up front.

On the 60 is it just one gain dial for both channels or a fixed volume on the clean channel?
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One gain dial for both but 2 master vols. The built in noisegate would be super handy.

Mongillo19 said:
Fun video! I believe I heard the different FB variations sound different and it's not just wattage?
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Hmm not sure if there's a huge difference. I just thought it was the regular small stuff on 60 vs 100. Wasn't aware of one or the other being vastly better. I haven't even heard much in the way of difference between v2 and v1 but I'm all ears.
 
Mongillo19 said:
Fun video! I believe I heard the different FB variations sound different and it's not just wattage?
Click to expand...
Thr MK II has way more midrange. People used to complain that the old ones would get drowned in a mix fast. Supposedly the 100w Mk I also had a much bigger sound and wasn't just a difference in wattage. Never played the old one but I purposely avoided it because of the complaints. The new one is awesome and I'd love to pick up a 25 at some point.
 
MatrixClaw said:
Thr MK II has way more midrange. People used to complain that the old ones would get drowned in a mix fast. Supposedly the 100w Mk I also had a much bigger sound and wasn't just a difference in wattage. Never played the old one but I purposely avoided it because of the complaints. The new one is awesome and I'd love to pick up a 25 at some point.
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So a v2 100w is the only way forward, got it :rofl
I really admire the simplicity of the Fireballs with minimal options. Just had a look at the 100w Fireball NEW prices here, very close to a new Powerball v2, its never easy. If I can get my hands on either from a mate to test out that would be awesome.
 
My affection for Engl amps is coloured by availability, in that I can get hold of some of their range whereas I cannot for many other brands. I don’t see a Fireball 60 anywhere, including on the Engl website. It may be discontinued, as I can see reviews.

Having said that, and really liking my FB25 and AE50, I will probably go for the Invader II if it is available when I have the $$$, or the Powerball II.

The Clean on both my Engl amps is wonderful. The AE50 has Crunch and the FB25 has Lead, as I think of these things. Now I want Clean, Crunch and 2x Lead channels ala the Powerball II, Invader II or Founders Edition. Which is fine – I can add an OD in front of the FB25 for Crunch (currently Suhr Shiba Reloaded) and a distortion to the AE50 for Metal (Wampler Dracarys) if I want in the meantime.
 
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