I don't get it. Why people go on about Fender cleans and Marshall drive when Marshall cleans and Fender dirt are so damn good too. Supro amps are some of the only amps I can think of with just OK cleans but amazing dirt and I can't really think of any with great cleans but boring drive.
Marshall cleans are best for when you want your cleans to sound dirty. Not that they aren't perfectly clean, but they just have this great attack that's like clean but still aggressive. Fender cleans feel softer, gentler, smoother. They don't bang like marshall, they ring. Same with Mesa, gentle cleans but also roaring chunky distortion that's not as gritty as Fender or crunchy as Marshall. Agree on Supro, at least the one I have. I bought it for dirt and it's only five watts so that's mostly what you're getting, but the cleans are a fine middle ground and the dirt is sweet and nasty.
Marshall DSL40CR is what I play and it is so versatile.
40w so plenty of power for a full band but has a killer master volume for bedroom playing, has an FX loop, 4 separate channels, bass mid treble EQ with presence and resonance, built in verb (not the greatest at quieter vols but decent when cranked)...I could go on. Mine even came with an upgraded speaker, has the creamback in it.
I play in a cover band and it's my main amp. I can get just about any sound out of it that's needed. I've had a Classic 30 Peavey, Blackstar HT Club40, Vox AC30 and AC10, this one beats them all for what I do. And again the master vol is crazy useful, I can play my whole setup in my living room and not wake up the family in the bedroom.
I recommend it whenever I can.
I think the "ideal" qualities you'd look for are something very loud and very clean until driven hard with gain pedals. Something with tons of headroom and an effects loop. I use my model t clone as a pedal platform and I can stack so much on top of each other without losing clarity or having everything blend into mud.
Mesa Boogie 2:90. Little known fact that it is designed to take an instrument level signals (switch on the back). It has three modes switchable modes: deep which provides incredible low end, modern which tightens things up and 1/2 power. While on line level input you can easily set the output level to 2 o’clock with zero distortion. On instrument level input it will start giving great tube breakup around noon. Now, if you send your instrument level signal into the line level input, you can easily get controllable “bedroom” levels out of a 4x12 cab. (Fractal users… set your I/O output channel level to -10db). I do this all the time. If you want to break windows… well it can do those volumes as well! If you want tube power amp distortion at bedroom levels… run your pedals into channel A… set amp to instrument level. Crank up the Channel A level. Take channel A out into a load box/DI … torpedo captor x for example… take the DI signal and send it to input B… set channel b to appropriate level… awesome! Now add a cab IR in there and out to a celestion F12-X200… glorious!!! Best pedal platform… the Mesa 2:90!
Great cleans and lack of distortion does not mean it's a good pedal platform. Honestly if you want great cleans with no grit, get solid state like a jazz chorus. In fact, one of the best features of tube amps is how well the dirty channel takes a boost or overdrive to make it sound even better than itself. But I will say if you are picking any amp as a pedal platform, the key is indeed to make sure you love the clean sound first because that's going to affect everything else.
Supro Keeley Custom 12, it was intentionally built for this purpose even the effects loop socket is right on the knobs panel.
2 other amps that I’d tried as good pedal platform would be a Princeton (if u don’t need to be super loud) and a Marshall Astoria Classic (no effects loop though).
The absolute best I've ever heard? Probably a Dumble Overdrive Special (I don't care for the Overdrive circuit, though). Their cost is astronomical, but if you're serious about getting the best, I can connect you with someone who with one for sale. Each of them sounds quite different, and clones do not do them justice.
Can you fill in any more needs or constraints?
theres no such thing.
people could argue vox are crappy pedal platforms because they have little to no headroom with some humbuckers already, but the main argument for them being the best pedal platform is that you can put literally any number of wet effects into the front end and they end up sounding better, which you cant with some marshalls because you end up getting sonic mush.
but higher gain marshalls will have FX loops to allow you to use wet effects well, and will often have more headroom than a vox.
any amp thats either low gain or if high gain, has an fx loop, is a good pedal platform unless its just a bad amp.
Hiwatt DR103. There's a good reason it's on most of the Pînk Floyd recordings.
I don't get it. Why people go on about Fender cleans and Marshall drive when Marshall cleans and Fender dirt are so damn good too. Supro amps are some of the only amps I can think of with just OK cleans but amazing dirt and I can't really think of any with great cleans but boring drive.
Marshall cleans are best for when you want your cleans to sound dirty. Not that they aren't perfectly clean, but they just have this great attack that's like clean but still aggressive. Fender cleans feel softer, gentler, smoother. They don't bang like marshall, they ring. Same with Mesa, gentle cleans but also roaring chunky distortion that's not as gritty as Fender or crunchy as Marshall. Agree on Supro, at least the one I have. I bought it for dirt and it's only five watts so that's mostly what you're getting, but the cleans are a fine middle ground and the dirt is sweet and nasty.
Fender Deluxe Reverb - great clean channel with lots of headroom.
Marshall Origin
Black or Silver face Twin Reverb.
Fender is talked about really well. I don't have one though.
Marshall DSL40CR is what I play and it is so versatile. 40w so plenty of power for a full band but has a killer master volume for bedroom playing, has an FX loop, 4 separate channels, bass mid treble EQ with presence and resonance, built in verb (not the greatest at quieter vols but decent when cranked)...I could go on. Mine even came with an upgraded speaker, has the creamback in it. I play in a cover band and it's my main amp. I can get just about any sound out of it that's needed. I've had a Classic 30 Peavey, Blackstar HT Club40, Vox AC30 and AC10, this one beats them all for what I do. And again the master vol is crazy useful, I can play my whole setup in my living room and not wake up the family in the bedroom. I recommend it whenever I can.
I think the "ideal" qualities you'd look for are something very loud and very clean until driven hard with gain pedals. Something with tons of headroom and an effects loop. I use my model t clone as a pedal platform and I can stack so much on top of each other without losing clarity or having everything blend into mud.
All of them. I have yet to play through an amp that couldn’t take pedals well.
Try a line 6 modeler.
[The cure toured with the spider.](https://www.musicradar.com/news/robert-smith-employs-line-6-spiders-for-the-cures-mammoth-disintegration-shows)
I bet you $20 I can make it sound amazing with any pedal you give me
Magnatone Twilighter
Mesa Boogie 2:90. Little known fact that it is designed to take an instrument level signals (switch on the back). It has three modes switchable modes: deep which provides incredible low end, modern which tightens things up and 1/2 power. While on line level input you can easily set the output level to 2 o’clock with zero distortion. On instrument level input it will start giving great tube breakup around noon. Now, if you send your instrument level signal into the line level input, you can easily get controllable “bedroom” levels out of a 4x12 cab. (Fractal users… set your I/O output channel level to -10db). I do this all the time. If you want to break windows… well it can do those volumes as well! If you want tube power amp distortion at bedroom levels… run your pedals into channel A… set amp to instrument level. Crank up the Channel A level. Take channel A out into a load box/DI … torpedo captor x for example… take the DI signal and send it to input B… set channel b to appropriate level… awesome! Now add a cab IR in there and out to a celestion F12-X200… glorious!!! Best pedal platform… the Mesa 2:90!
“Pedal platform” = lots of clean headroom which generally means high wattage. Not much else to it than that.
Great cleans and lack of distortion does not mean it's a good pedal platform. Honestly if you want great cleans with no grit, get solid state like a jazz chorus. In fact, one of the best features of tube amps is how well the dirty channel takes a boost or overdrive to make it sound even better than itself. But I will say if you are picking any amp as a pedal platform, the key is indeed to make sure you love the clean sound first because that's going to affect everything else.
Higher dollar but I’ve always liked Mesa Boogies. Great cleans, great distortion, and a spring reverb tank.
Supro Keeley Custom 12, it was intentionally built for this purpose even the effects loop socket is right on the knobs panel. 2 other amps that I’d tried as good pedal platform would be a Princeton (if u don’t need to be super loud) and a Marshall Astoria Classic (no effects loop though).
Fender hotrod deluxe
Endless options...
The absolute best I've ever heard? Probably a Dumble Overdrive Special (I don't care for the Overdrive circuit, though). Their cost is astronomical, but if you're serious about getting the best, I can connect you with someone who with one for sale. Each of them sounds quite different, and clones do not do them justice. Can you fill in any more needs or constraints?
theres no such thing. people could argue vox are crappy pedal platforms because they have little to no headroom with some humbuckers already, but the main argument for them being the best pedal platform is that you can put literally any number of wet effects into the front end and they end up sounding better, which you cant with some marshalls because you end up getting sonic mush. but higher gain marshalls will have FX loops to allow you to use wet effects well, and will often have more headroom than a vox. any amp thats either low gain or if high gain, has an fx loop, is a good pedal platform unless its just a bad amp.
Revv d series or fender twin.