Friedman 50watter vs JCM 800 2205

[tallcoolone]

Does it really makes any tone difference if this model is PCB instead of Handwired as the other more expensive ones?

No they are solid amps on their own. They do a better high gain "modded Marshall" than both of the amps in my sig. If that's what you are looking for go with the Runt or the BE

 

[Im247frogs]

I own a Friedman Smallbox and while it is PCB construction, they are through hole plated and its a very high quality board.
If you want a BE-50 type amp, I'd suggest buying a BE-50 since you haven't mentioned a money limit yet. Three channels, lots of available gain on tap, whatever else you buy in your lifetime you'll probably never sell it. Keep an eye out they come up for sorta kinda reasonable prices occasionally.

 

[MichiMarshall]

I went with friedman runt 50 watter. Using a catalinbread talisman reverb. Sounds quite nice althought there is a slight hum in the background. What speakers would you recommend in a 2 x 12 open cab configuration?

 

[tallcoolone]

I went with friedman runt 50 watter. Using a catalinbread talisman reverb. Sounds quite nice althought there is a slight hum in the background. What speakers would you recommend in a 2 x 12 open cab configuration?

V30 for classic rock high mid grind, G12H30s for even more top end bite, G12M greenbacks for vintage low mid grind, H75 creambacks for punch and tighter low end. Greenbacks are much quieter than the others if that is a concern

 

[MichiMarshall]

Well i already have a 4 x 12 marshall cab loaded with original greenbacks made in UK. Still undecided if i should purchase a 2 x 12 pine cab or baltic birch cab which will be used with the Friedman Runt 50 watter that i just got. Any advice?? I will be playing classic rock, some country licks, blues, etc and do prefer open back to simulate fender combos.

2x12 TRM extension guitar cabinet 212 Vintage tweed style. Finished pine | Reverb

PLEASE NOTE: We don't have a warehouse so, these are custom made to order cabinets meticulously handcrafted one at a time in our New Hampshire wood shop. Please allow 4 - 5 weeks lead time for your cabinet to be professionally built. TRM 212 2 x 12 extension guitar speaker cabinet v...

reverb.com

I have 2 spare speakers from my fender red knob twin stored in boxes and fully working:

Fender Special Design 8ohm 12" 100 watt Speaker | Reverb

Fender Special Design 12" Speaker 100 watt 8ohm in great working condition.

reverb.com

I want to know im heading the correct direction.

 

[V-Type]

I have X pattern V30's and Gt75's. Classic Rock,Modern Rock,Metal,Blues,etc.... The Vintage 30's help push the gain if thats what you are looking for from the Runt 50. I imagine Green Backs or Cream Backs would sound just as good.

 

[Crikey]

Okay but still need recommendations for big box 50 watt friedman

Great price and value with the Runt 50
The Runt kicks arse. Love mine and i play it more than my 1987x

 

[PowerTube44]

I had a 2210 and the clean sound sucked donkey balls.

 

[MichiMarshall]

Pine or baltic birch ply cab? Fender special blue design 100 watts speakers or Celestion V30s?

 

[Crikey]

Ur kinda all over the place man. "Pristine clean" is tough--in a packed 100 person capacity club, or alone at home in the basement (where I am now--not judging)? And what's with the need for a "full sized" headshell?

I've gigged with the Smallbox--which by definition does not fit you parameters--and the Twin Sister (dual Dirty Shirleys) and they both cover everything you are describing esp with a boost on the floor. I hate king sized heads BTW LOL

some people tweak if the head shell , in their opinion, appears smaller than the cab. They'd hate to see my jam 900dr on my small Marshall 2x12 cab

 

[Deftone]

I had a 2210 and the clean sound sucked donkey balls.

Is it supposed to be a "Clean" channel? My 2205 says "Boost" and "Normal" I was under the impression that the Normal channel is for rhythm and the Boost channel is for leads?

Best cleans I have ever heard out of a Marshall came from my JCM900 4500 Dual Reverb.

 

[Im247frogs]

Best cleans I have ever heard out of a Marshall came from my JCM900 4500 Dual Reverb.

The best cleans you've ever heard, or the best cleans you've ever gotten?

 

[Deftone]

The best cleans you've ever heard, or the best cleans you've ever gotten?

The best cleans I've ever heard....out of one of my Marshalls.

 

[tallcoolone]

some people tweak if the head shell , in their opinion, appears smaller than the cab. They'd hate to see my jam 900dr on my small Marshall 2x12 cab

Sh!t, I’ve had the ‘terrible T’ on stage at least a dozen times lol. But I don’t do many MTV shoots Smaller head always looks ok IMO

not mine, but an example:

 

[Crikey]

Sh!t, I’ve had the ‘terrible T’ on stage at least a dozen times lol. But I don’t do many MTV shoots Smaller head always looks ok IMO

not mine, but an example:

View attachment 149625

terrible T! love it! rofl

 

[Spooky88]

The best cleans I've ever heard....out of one of my Marshalls.

This man is correct! I have a JCM 900 4502 that is the cats meow! I own a BE100d, while it is a good amp, my 900 DR kills it.

 

[NewReligion]

Im looking for a 50 watt full tube amp standard marshall size box as the JCM 800 2205, meaning big box. Crystal clear cleans and nice overdriven crunch sounds with a colorless send and return. No need for 100 watts as i am not playing on any stadium.

I like the on and standby switch in front as the BE-100

Any recommendations for a particular Friedman big box 50 watt model?

There is only about 6db difference between a 50 watt vs 100 watts. You can always pull 2 power tubes from a 100 watt & set the amp impedance to half of the cab & be just fine. I’ve been doing this most of my 52 years of playing.

David

 

[Matt G Murphy]

I currently own three different Friedman models. Runt 50, Twin Sister, and Smallbox. I like them all and they all do different things. I only recently purchased a model 1960 cab. Up until then, all of my cabinets were 24" wide. The full size boxes ~29" did not work for me and I purposely did not buy a Friedman BE50 a couple years ago when I had a great deal on one simply because it was 26" wide.

The only problem I had with any of the Models was the Runt did not have enough hair in the dirty channel from my application. Since I do not use boosts at the head of my signal chain, my fix was to get a Legendary Tones Hot Mod EVO II. It is a plug n' play simple mod that plugs directly in to v3 slot. It is fantastic and quiet. Since the Runt 50 has a dedicated v1 for the clean channel, the mod has no effect on the pristine Fender-like clean channel. If you go that route make certain to order the one for "reversed wired" heads.

I use a couple 2x12 closed back cabinets with varying arrays of speakers, the 4x12 1960 cab with standard g12t75s, and a Vintage 30 loaded open back 1x12. The V30 works very well in that cabinet with any of the three heads. The Celestion Type-A also sounds good in an open back cab and it saves a little money compared to some of the other speaker options. Just one player's experiences. Good luck with your pursuit! Take time to enjoy it.

 

[V-Type]

The Hot Mod and Lynch Mod are cool options if you dont want to use od or dirt in front of the Runt. I find the gain maxed at 11 and with power tubes cooking at higher volumes the thing is a tone monster. Also of note is you can get more gain playing with the presence. I still find the Runt gainy-er than my old 800 and Super Lead was. Also the MV is quit useable from bedroom volume - stage volume. I had mine modded for a footswitchable 2nd MV on the gain channel for a lead boost option. Thing rips. If you use a pedal board for tones the Runt 50 can nail it all. Next for me is the JEL20 and its matching 1x12 cab.

 

[vivanchenko]

If you want crystal clear cleans, then you want a 100W amp. The point of greater wattage is greater clean headroom, not loudness. There are other ways how to get loud. I do have a 2204 clone, and it starts to break up pretty early.

That said, below is a nice video demonstrating how Friedman compares to Marshall. Based on this review, I would pick the Marshall, which definitely has the better cleans, more pleasant break-up and it's 4 times cheaper. My 2204 clone sounds significantly better than my 50W Origin, though. I believe that a 2203 is what best fits your description.