Friedman VOX Proto NAMM 26

[laxu]

Like I said maybe his 50 watt sounds like that. I’ve played quite a few over the years even modern versions and they were all way more open and raw sounding. The BE is very modern sounding, very smooth and the feeing amp isn’t anywhere where near what a Marshall feels IME. The Soldano is based on a Marshall circuit but it sounds or feels nothing like one. I could say the same about Bogner etc. Also Mike or Bogner never claimed those amps sound identical to a Marshall. I think Dave should follow their lead.

I’ll just keep my thoughts to myself on Blug’s stuff since it seems you like them. Let’s just say it’s not far from what I feel about Friedman.

Sounds to me you have a very particular preference to how you want your Marshall-based amps to sound/feel.

To me most Marshalls have a particular feel to them where it's in that sweet spot where they don't feel too loose, or too tight whether you are playing blues or hard rock. The JTM45 is a bit looser from what I remember, and the more modern examples might get a bit tighter depending on how you dial them.

My BluGuitar Amp 1 ME is not different in that regard, it feels like some Marshall. The Amp 1 Iridium on the other hand feels quite a bit like my Mesa Mark V where it's far more immediate, with a lot more bottom end oomph and punch. I would be interested to hear your thoughts on the Amp 1. I might heavily disagree, but that's alright.

I ended up selling my Bogner Goldfinger 45 SL because I felt I could get the same tones out of the BluGuitar, and I really did put them head to head through the same cab at about 100 dBA @ 1m volume levels. I had a buyer lined up for the Bogner too with a price decided already so it was more like "Do I want to sell this or not" type of thing.

Bogners tend to have that quirkly treble control where unless you crank it, it has massively less high end than any Marshall. That makes them more smooth sounding and that can be a pro or con depending on what you are looking for. I thought the Goldfinger was a great amp.

It's been years since I tried the Friedman BE 50 Deluxe, so my memory can be a bit spotty. I was actually putting it head to head against the Goldfinger, and ended up buying the Bogner because I felt it had a more "old school" sound/feel to it. The BE was more modern, but that's not a bad thing either.

 

[Boudoir Guitar]

Sounds to me you have a very particular preference to how you want your Marshall-based amps to sound/feel.

To me most Marshalls have a particular feel to them where it's in that sweet spot where they don't feel too loose, or too tight whether you are playing blues or hard rock. The JTM45 is a bit looser from what I remember, and the more modern examples might get a bit tighter depending on how you dial them.

My BluGuitar Amp 1 ME is not different in that regard, it feels like some Marshall. The Amp 1 Iridium on the other hand feels quite a bit like my Mesa Mark V where it's far more immediate, with a lot more bottom end oomph and punch. I would be interested to hear your thoughts on the Amp 1. I might heavily disagree, but that's alright.

I ended up selling my Bogner Goldfinger 45 SL because I felt I could get the same tones out of the BluGuitar, and I really did put them head to head through the same cab at about 100 dBA @ 1m volume levels. I had a buyer lined up for the Bogner too with a price decided already so it was more like "Do I want to sell this or not" type of thing.

Bogners tend to have that quirkly treble control where unless you crank it, it has massively less high end than any Marshall. That makes them more smooth sounding and that can be a pro or con depending on what you are looking for. I thought the Goldfinger was a great amp.

It's been years since I tried the Friedman BE 50 Deluxe, so my memory can be a bit spotty. I was actually putting it head to head against the Goldfinger, and ended up buying the Bogner because I felt it had a more "old school" sound/feel to it. The BE was more modern, but that's not a bad thing either.

If this is "Marshall-enough" for you...then I think some of us are just a lot more picky:

Post in thread 'What Amp Are You Playing Today?'

Jun 7, 2025

Dual BluGuitars today!

• Amp 1 Iridium Edition Classic ch -> Bluetone 4x10 (10" Greenbacks) -> Shure SM57
• Amp 1 Mercury Edition Classich ch -> Mesa Mark V 90 combo (Celestion C90) -> Austrian Audio OC16

Sounds crushing in the room, and the looser, rawer, sizzlier Mercury complements the tighter Iridium pretty well.

• laxu

• 
• 

 

[metropolis_4]

Years ago, I went on a quest for the ultimate Vox style amp. I tried a bunch of amps that that all claimed to have improved things about Vox to create a better Vox sound.

Some of them were amazing, and they did “fix” some things, but I started to realize all those things that made them “better” also turned them into something different from a Vox. Those flaws were part of what made a Vox a Vox to me.

Ultimately I discovered that my favorite Vox was… a Vox.

 

[laxu]

If this is "Marshall-enough" for you...then I think some of us are just a lot more picky:

Post in thread 'What Amp Are You Playing Today?'

Jun 7, 2025

Dual BluGuitars today!

• Amp 1 Iridium Edition Classic ch -> Bluetone 4x10 (10" Greenbacks) -> Shure SM57
• Amp 1 Mercury Edition Classich ch -> Mesa Mark V 90 combo (Celestion C90) -> Austrian Audio OC16

Sounds crushing in the room, and the looser, rawer, sizzlier Mercury complements the tighter Iridium pretty well.

• laxu

• 
• 

That's two amps together so it's already a different thing. I'll also be the first to say that I'm no expert at recording.

 

[Boudoir Guitar]

That's two amps together so it's already a different thing. I'll also be the first to say that I'm no expert at recording.

Wasn’t trying to shame the recording or anything - just that some folks “sounds like a Marshall” is pretty broad.

I gigged a 50 watt JCM800 for a couple years a long time ago and it surprised me till the day I sold it how much Inhad to work to get it to sound the way I thought a Strat into a Marshall was supposed to sound.

 

[Frodebro]

Wasn’t trying to shame the recording or anything - just that some folks “sounds like a Marshall” is pretty broad.

I gigged a 50 watt JCM800 for a couple years a long time ago and it surprised me till the day I sold it how much Inhad to work to get it to sound the way I thought a Strat into a Marshall was supposed to sound.

There is no singular, Marshall “sound.” There is a distinctive flavor, but many different incarnations of it. Angus Young is very much Marshall, but so is Eddie Van Halen. The ‘Strat into a Marshall’ that most people think of would involve a JTM, 1959, or 1987. Definitely not a JCM.

 

[Elric]

The weirdly sexual/misogynistic amp names have not aged well. But I think Dave’s a great Amp Designer and I’m glad he’s had success. He’s contributed a lot of cool products to the amp realm, IMO. I get it that some people may like other company’s products better but the Friedman stuff is up there, IME.

I think the silly names, him being so prevalent, visible, opinionated, etc, has caused a little bit of ‘popularity backlash’. That effect where something that used to be cool/exclusive now feels ubiquitous and no longer has that exotic cachet and people start to slag it. If the guy had only made 250 BE100s and dropped off the face of the earth people would talk about him in hushed tone like he was some kind of reclusive genius and people would claim that the BE100 was the all time ultimate modded Marshall.

 

[ejecta]

The weirdly sexual/misogynistic amp names have not aged well. But I think Dave’s a great Amp Designer and I’m glad he’s had success. He’s contributed a lot of cool products to the amp realm, IMO. I get it is some people like other company’s products better but the Friedman stuff is up there, IME. I think the silly names, him being so prevalent, etc, has caused a little bit of ‘popularity backlash’. That effect where something that used to be cool/exclusive now feels ubiquitous and no longer has that exotic cachet.

He gets a lot of dislike from modeling super fans as well because he’s pretty vocal about his disdain for the sole use of modeling for every situation. That has hit some the wrong way who’ve bought into the modeling hype.

 

[Frodebro]

The weirdly sexual/misogynistic amp names have not aged well. But I think Dave’s a great Amp Designer and I’m glad he’s had success. He’s contributed a lot of cool products to the amp realm, IMO. I get it that some people may like other company’s products better but the Friedman stuff is up there, IME.

I think the silly names, him being so prevalent, visible, opinionated, etc, has caused a little bit of ‘popularity backlash’. That effect where something that used to be cool/exclusive now feels ubiquitous and no longer has that exotic cachet and people start to slag it. If the guy had only made 250 BE100s and dropped off the face of the earth people would talk about him like he was some kind of reclusive genius,

Honestly, I don’t even think about those names in any negative way. They were a chuckle from some while others wrung their hands initially, but now they’re just amp names like any other. And they’ve been out there for so long now that nobody is going to get any mileage out of criticizing them at this point.

 

[ejecta]

Honestly, I don’t even think about those names in any negative way. They were a chuckle from some while others wrung their hands initially, but now they’re just amp names like any other. And they’ve been out there for so long now that nobody is going to get any mileage out of criticizing them at this point.

Yep that’s why I think it’s not really about the names of his amps. It’s something else.

 

[JiveTurkey]

As a fan of modeling AND amps; its about bitching about modeling and then offering an overpriced "solution" to all of modeling's "problems".

 

[Frodebro]

He gets a lot of dislike from modeling super fans as well because he’s pretty vocal about his disdain for the sole use of modeling for every situation. That has hit some the wrong way who’ve bought into the modeling hype.

The guy puts food on his table and keeps a roof over his head from selling tube amps. He’s supposed to hate modelers, it’s in the rule book.

 

[Chocol8]

I have nothing against Dave or his brand, and I would certainly own his products, but I certainly would prefer NOT to have an amp named Pink Taco. I have nothing against joking about it etc. but after a while it is no longer funny and doesn't help sell to adults, and women.

 

[Boudoir Guitar]

As a fan of modeling AND amps; its about bitching about modeling and then offering an overpriced "solution" to all of modeling's "problems".

How many folks are left in this imaginary pool of "modeling rules and tubes are useless" people?

 

[ejecta]

As a fan of modeling AND amps; its about bitching about modeling and then offering an overpriced "solution" to all of modeling's "problems".

Which in fairness his “overpriced solutions” seem to sell well. So maybe there’s a demand because a lot of players agree with him?

 

[ejecta]

The guy puts food on his table and keeps a roof over his head from selling tube amps. He’s supposed to hate modelers, it’s in the rule book.

I don’t buy into that but I can see how some would think that’s the case. It’s also possible he really doesn’t like modelers. I mean that’s a real possibility regardless of how he makes his living.

 

[Boudoir Guitar]

I have nothing against Dave or his brand, and I would certainly own his products, but I certainly would prefer NOT to have an amp named Pink Taco. I have nothing against joking about it etc. but after a while it is no longer funny and doesn't help sell to adults, and women.

And to be clear, while his newer products don't bear those names -- he's still selling an amp called the Pink Taco V2. I there's plenty of non-overlapping Venn diagram region of "people that aren't gonna buy an amp called a Pink Taco" and "boring woke snowflakes that can't take a joke".

 

[Frodebro]

I don’t buy into that but I can see how some would think that’s the case. It’s also possible he really doesn’t like modelers. I mean that’s a real possibility regardless of how he makes his living.

My point was that nobody should get their knickers twisted when a big name tube amp builder poo-poos on modelers. Anybody who is actually outraged (or even upset) by something like that has bigger issues of their own to sort out.

 

[ejecta]

I have nothing against Dave or his brand, and I would certainly own his products, but I certainly would prefer NOT to have an amp named Pink Taco. I have nothing against joking about it etc. but after a while it is no longer funny and doesn't help sell to adults, and women.

I wouldn’t own it because it uses el84’s and sounds small.

 

[Frodebro]

And to be clear, while his newer products don't bear those names -- he's still selling an amp called the Pink Taco V2. I there's plenty of non-overlapping Venn diagram region of "people that aren't gonna buy an amp called a Pink Taco" and "boring woke snowflakes that can't take a joke".

A little outrage can be a marketing boondoggle, too. Look at the pissing and moaning over that Toneprint that Satchel created, which inspired him to move forward with an actual P-Melter pedal, which quickly sold out and became a collectible.