Here at Château PGC we all have a bad case of tinnitus, caused by loud amps. Two of my favourites are the Marshall Jubilee 2555 and the Orange 40th anniversary custom shop.
In 2008, to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Orange Amps, they issued a limited run of 40 handwired guitar amps. Each amp had a different voicing. 30 watts of class A tube power switchable to 50 watts in class AB. Every one of the 40 heads was identified by a girls name instead of a serial number. These heads were simple as can be: presence-; bass-; mid-: treble controls and a volume knob. Hi- and low inputs with no effects loop. With a hidden selector the amp could be switched to 110 – 230 volts. The amps are not to be confused with the limited run of 400 OR50 amps produced in 2008.
I could lay my hands on two of these heads (5 percent of the total production): “Angie” – how Rock’n’Roll is that – and “Sally”. You need to turn the volume way up before it starts breaking up. I use these monsters of noise as a pedal platform. They take pedals very well. One channel simplicity.
My other go-to amps are two Marshall Jubilees. A silver jubilee from 1987 and an original jubilee from 1989 with the regular black tolex. The same amp was reissued in 1996 as the “Slash” signature. The Jubilee is a JCM800 on steroids. No need for pedals on these, … and the luxury of a master volume. But who wants to play a Marshall on low volume? Switchable from 100 to 50 watts. The clean channel has a clipping mode for crunchy rhythm play. The lead has a separate volume to control this beast.
For those about to get deaf, we salute you!
