I have completely fallen in love with the ENGL sound and I am seriously considering selling/trading my Bogner. Am I right to assume the powerball is their marquee amp and and is "the ENGL" sound?

What about the fireball or savage?
how bad is the noise gate on the powerball?

any and all information is appreciated


and....GO!

I have a Powerball. Savage's are pretty spectacular, though. They carry KT88 power section, which I'd now probably prefer to the 6L6.

Noise Gate on the Powerball is not very transparent. Too tight for my liking....but then again, I don't actually use the high gain channels on it anymore.

My gripe with the Powerball is that the clean channel is actually out of phase with the gain channel. So going from the 2nd stage of the clean channel to the 1st stage of the gain channel (something I did a lot of) caused this odd phase shift that was super noticeable due to using two amps.

The mod I had made was to correct the phase of the gain channel. Essentially, to do this, most of the gain was sucked out of the gain channel. This is fine with me, as I'm not really as into highly saturated gain as I am into layered overdrive tones.

Most of my gripes have come with growing out of the death metal thing and I love the modded version of the powerball I've got now.

I can totally respond to pointed questions about the powerball, though. I definitely have some experience with it.

Eric, you will be so happy if you get rid of your uber for the PB. The savage is cool, but not really similar at all to the 'ball.

word thanks

ive read that the 2nd gen of the powerball has an improved gate. is it truly necessary if you don't have the gain cranked? I love using feedback when i want it and really like to use my hand as my noise gate but if its just that retarded 3khz squeal then thats a total turnoff.

i just love that smooth rounded high end and that crushing mean sounding, cutting mid range that seems to be the hallmark of engls. thats the powerball???

I have the 2nd gen powerball. It's certainly an effective gate, just not the kind of gate I would personally use.

The gate is only active on the high gain channel, so it never interferes with the clean.

I personally didn't feel like the mid range cuts quite enough, but I love my mids.

When most people think of ENGL sound, they do think of the Powerball. It's the talisman of the brand, for sure.

well, im super seriously considering it now. thanks for da info.


hey blue wanna buy an uberschall?

wish I was a gearhead and/or could afford this stuff. Bastards.

Hahahah nah I'm good thanks

I'm currently saving for a Powerball m'self since we had that talk in Lowell, Eric...even though it turns out my amp is completely fine but wanted to be a dick the one day it was important, haha.

I have an e530. Doesn't count, I suppose.

The Powerball is definitely not their flagship amp...that title is held by the SE...and before that, it was the Savage SE, and the Savage 120 before that. Personally, I'm not a fan of the Powerball for myself, although I have heard it sound decent when other people were playing. Unlike the 5-6 times I tried a Powerball and was unimpressed, I knew I needed a Savage 120 the first time I tried one out, and bought one 6 months later.

I've never tried the Fireball, but it should be mentioned that there are now two versions of it...the original 60W version, and a more recent 100W revision, which was intended to address most of the complaints that people had about the original. I've got the impression that it's somewhere between the Powerball and Savage 120, sonically speaking.

The Powerball is extremely compressed and naturally has a rather mid-scooped tone, while the Savage 120 is more middy and raw, and like brian_dc mentioned before, they have KT88s, which pretty much make any amp they're in sound HUGE while retaining clarity and punch.

I've tried an Invader 150 once, a few years ago (in the same room as a Powerball and my Savage 120), and I remember thinking it was pretty cool, and definitely preferred it over the Powerball, but I was still quite happy with my own amp.

It might also be worth your time to check out the Blackmore model.

What I meant is that when people think of ENGL, they often think of the Powerball sound. Definitely not their best amp.

Is there anywhere in the Boston/North Shore area that sells Engls? I've only heard the Powerball (as far as I remember) in real life, and I'd hate to buy it if I can check out better models.

Boston Guitar Works in Brockton carries Engls, but I've never been there, and word is that they only ever stock one or two at a time, or something like that. Don't know of anywhere closer that has them. I've got a few recordings of my Savage 120 online that you can check out, though:
http://netmusicians.org/index.php?section=id&value=1310
http://netmusicians.org/index.php?section=id&value=292
http://netmusicians.org/index.php?section=id&value=5432

Thank you sir, I'll check those out.

Eric, Do it! Ive seen your head hurt every time your bogner failed.. Though, im still voting for your getting a JMP with KT66 tubes with a TS9....

Try the Engls at Boston Guitar Works, but please don't buy. They overprice their shit soooooo much.

Pretty sure Axe Palace sells Engls. Could be wrong.

Oh shit that's right...our new guitarist's friend is in a band with the guy that owns that place, or something like that.

Actually it looks like they sell a ton of other high quality amps, but no Engls.

+1 on the JMP. I just got rid of my Mesa Tremoverb, which was as amazing amp for a '76 JMP. I use a hardwire cm-2 to boost it, and holy fuck the amp is amazing. Kind of a one trick pony, but what kind of faggo quasi-pussy needs cleans?

Get a real amp:

Correct. He couldn't get an Engl dealership arrangement originally, because of BGW being too close by, although this may be changing after NAMM, so keep an eye out. I'd definitely buy from Nick over most other dealers, he's a good dude.

Yes, only single channel amps (in my opinion) are needed. Less circuitry, more concentration on tone. So, Joeyumbrella...we need more JMP's! I think your trade for the Mesa is very fare. I know this guy at the Kingston practice space that has a 74 plexi jmp, mastervolume moded that has been in a road case since 76' for sale... do want!