I have a VL 1002 and a VL 503 , this one is so much more versatile that I plan to take the amp out of the chassis and to rack mount it with other fx racks .
( And the VL 1002 is TOO loud ! .... ans SOO heavy :lol: )
I will put KT88 and will change the footswitch to make it switchable by normal jack , midi controled .
I don't understand how you can say the 1002 is too loud??? It has one of the best attenuators you can have and works beautifully at home and most gig volumes. You don't have to take it out of attenuator mode at all to play most gigs.
Maybe outdoor you can use this power without being deaf ,
but if you always use the attenuator that means you don't need the power .
And the attenuator eats a bit of tone I think .
You just have to EQ a little differently to get the sound where you want it when in attenuator mode. I have the 502 and use it mostly in attenuator mode and don't really need to use in without the attenuator all that much. The beauty of the amp is that you have the option to get great sounds at whatever level you want. I have owned dozens of amps and have been tried The Sholtz Power Soak, Weber MASS and Hot Plate to get that range and nothing worked as well as the Ampeg built in attenuator. I would suggest that you try totally new EQ settings for the attenuator and I am sure you will be happy with what you find. If you already know what sounds good without the attenuator, you can quickly go back to those settings if you need to. I have a friend with a VL 503 and 1002. He usually gigs 3 to 4 times a week and does everything from jazz to Hendrix and even a little Jeff Beck with his 1002 with a variety of Marshall 4 X 10" vintage 4 X 12" and a newly acquired Marshall 8 X 10" cab and always uses the attenuated mode unless he plays outdoor gigs. He has some of the best tone I have ever heard. He learned all the Phil Brown songs from the "Jimi" CD and can cover everyone of them to a T and that is real hard to do. It took him over three months of constant woodshedding to pull it off. Yah, the amp can sound fantastic attenuated and you always have the power waiting if you need it.
I am actually just today putting the 503 on eBay. I have the 502 that I actually connect better with personally and the 82lbs. of the 503 is starting to feel heavy. It is in near mint condition and has the original GE 6550A tubes that check out like new and very well matched, if anyone wants to check it out.
I could have another VL-503 but I suppose that you live in the States ?
Could you elaborate when you say that you connect better with the VL-502 .
I plan to use the VL-503 but still using the VL-1002 so it could be interesting .
[quote="erniebull"]I could have another VL-503 but I suppose that you live in the States ?
Could you elaborate when you say that you connect better with the VL-502 .
I plan to use the VL-503 but still using the VL-1002 so it could be interesting .[/quote]
It is a little hard to say. I think it is a combination of having the 502 longer, trying different tubes in it, using in with bigger cabs and the weight. I got the 503 around Christmas and to play loudly I have to go out in the garage which is a hassle to heat and I didn't really play it that much. The 502 seems more compressed, which I like and maybe more aggressive. I have also dialed it in for some songs that I like. I really haven't given the 503 a fair shake but I do want to scale down a little.
Yah, I do live in the States. I know someone in the UK who says he wants it but I never count the money until it is in my hands.
If you need money , then sell it , but I wouldn't sell one of my VL !
The beauty with the 503 is the 3 channels , and the first one is gorgeous , more clean than the ch1 of the 502 .
Plus you have this ch2 dedicaced to crunch , witch is much better for this matter than ch1 or 2 of the 502 .
Ch3 of the 503 is merely the same , plus the slope feature .
Plus all the extra features like being abble to set the bias yourself ,
the line out witch I read is very good ...
Hey ramalam,,, I noticed a VL-503 on ebay just a few days ago ,, asking price was $750,,in near mint condition,,loaded with the EVM speaker ,,Buy it now,,,$900 ,,, is that your amp,,,?
I also own a Vl-502,,Its the best sounding amp I own ,,next is my Stealth GT-50 combo,,,
I took my Stealth to the local music store just last week to show it off,,, The owner of the store ,,,"which is the man that gave me my first guitar lessons 35 years ago",,,and his nephew,, now plays with the band "The Lovin' Spoonful",,and the guitar instructors where totally blown away with my little 2x8 homemade combo,,,,,I had the amp running to a new Peavey 4x12 half stack,,, one by one the guys would come by and listen ,, all the time i was playing the master volume was on 0 "Off" ,, 'till all the guitar lessens were done ,, then I parted their hair ,, when i cranked the master to almost 3,,,,lol
That sounds like my amp and ad except the eBay ad just started this afternoon.
You got to love these Jackson amps. I am still looking for anXLS 500 but no luck for almost a year now. I had a couple of opportunities for the 1000s but I don't want the power and cost of replacement of 4 power tubes at a time.
I am definitely keeping the 502 that I seem to bond with better than any amp I have had before.
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