 | Download Example 1 bottom left input; Pres. 4, Bass 7, Mid 8, Treb 7, Vol1 3, Pwr 10, Drive 10; Nash S-63 w/ Lollar bridge/middle pickups |
| Download Example 2 bottom left input; Pres. 4, Bass 7, Mid 8, Treb 6, Vol1 6, Pwr 3, Drive 10; Nash S-63 w/ Lollar bridge pickup |
| Download Example 3 top left input; Pres. 0, Bass 8, Mid 7.5, Treb 5, Vol1 8, Pwr 2, Drive 5; Gibson LP Studio w/ Burstbucker bridge pickup |
| Egnater 4x12 cab w/ Celestion Vintage 30s; recorded in Sound Studio on a MacBook Pro using Elixir 20' cable, Essential Sound Products MuiscCord Pro power cord | |
Video Review: | |
The 1986ps SuperPlexi is clearly influenced by one of the most underrated amplifiers in history, the Marshall Bass head. These amps are sought after for their tonal similarities to the Lead series, with differences in the circuit that lead to more low end and softer highs. They came in two flavors, the 50-watt Bass and 100-watt Super Bass, just like their Lead counterparts. Guitarists quickly realized that not only did they sound great with a bass, but were excellent with a guitar as well. Readers who are not familiar with these amplifiers should listen to Duane Allman’s work on At Fillmore East, Malcolm Young’s AC/DC catalog, and Lemmy Kilmister’s recordings as bassist for Motorhead. That sound has gained attention from modern guitarists, such as Adam Jones [Tool], who is a major proponent of the Super Bass. Soultone has taken the iconic nature and characteristics of this sound and created their own interpretation, rife with new features and impeccable craftsmanship.
The Power Scaling controls on the left are the shining feature of the 1986ps. This innovative circuit drops the power output from full-bore at 50 Watts, down to a miniscule 10 milliwatts. This allows you to achieve power tube distortion, even when diming both volume controls, at any volume level. Working in conjunction with the Power Scaling knob is a Drive control that can adjust the level of the signal coming from the preamp. Working with both of these together, you can overcome issues with low headroom to craft everything from a beautiful, massive clean sound to completely over-the-top distortion that can even become abrasive and harsh if that’s what you’re into. Soultone even claims that when running the head with pricey NOS tubes, running the Power Scaling low can extend their life, which is a rather large plus in the eyes of budget-conscious players.
Considering how much power the guitarist has over the headroom in this amp, it is extremely easy to achieve great overdriven tone. Setting the EQ and Presence controls at noon, Power Scaling at 1 o’clock, Drive at noon, and plugging a Gibson Flying V into the upper left high-sensitivity input with Volume 1 at 10 o’clock is a great start to experience what this amp has to offer. Notes ring out with authority and punch, but without any sort of harshness that can be common in modern high-wattage master volume amps today. Beyond the satisfying, familiar crunch that the amp delivers, the there’s a surprising sensitivity to pick attack.Even with the relatively hot pickups in the Flying V, the 1986ps cleans up exceptionally well when playing with a light touch. Once you find the sweet spot, you might not even have to touch the volume knob at all to achieve a good clean—provided that you’re willing demand overdrive by smacking the strings with Nugent-like authority.
The real treat, however, was the tone achieved with a Gretsch G6118T, 125th Anniversary model. If there is one thing that the 1986ps SuperPlexi does exceptionally well, it is a great Malcolm Young tone. If Soultone decided to change the name of the amp to The Powerage, they certainly wouldn’t be out of line. Telecaster players might want to consider the SuperPlexi too, as it performed very well with a Fender Road Worn Tele, adding some extra muscle and punch while softening the high end slightly (but not detrimentally).
The amplifier does not quit there. Packed with the head is a separate two-button footswitch. The first switch, simply labeled “Fat”, adds a 330uF bypass capacitor to the second gain stage. When engaged, there is a minor increase in volume, gain and bass. Soultone claims that it is more effective for more conservative volume settings. Its effectiveness seems to be entirely dependant on how the amp is set, however. Some settings made the Fat boost hardly noticeable at all; others can cause the amp to go from moderate to shaking the walls! There are some great sounds to be had here. The other switch either activates or deactivates a true bypass effects loop, located on the rear panel of the amplifier. With the extreme attention paid to every small detail of the construction of the 1986ps, Soultone decided that versatility should also be applied to the effects loop by adding separate Send and Return level controls.
This leads to a question: with all of the enhancements, high-quality components, low-noise circuitry and killer tone to boot, what can be said against the 1986ps? The price (starting at $2,199 with black levant covering) is roughly comparable to the price that one of its decades-older counterparts commands now, minus all the added features and newer, more reliable components. Considering that older, single-channel British heads are in demand with players and collectors, however, scoring one at an affordable price has becoming more of a chore in recent years. Though the amp might cost a bit more than an original, the case could be made that the 1986ps would save more money in the long run on the expensive maintenance and upkeep that vintage heads sometimes require.
Modern metal rockers probably won’t be interested, although the SuperPlexi certainly has enough gain to satisfy players in the classic metal genre (late seventies to mid-eighties). Tonally, it is most definitely a classic rock-oriented amplifier, not suited for the modern rock crowd that enjoys extreme saturation and low-mid emphasis in their sound. For the player that is searching for the same type of tone on more of a budget, a simple single channel head without all the bells and whistles is probably in order.
For fans of the smooth, crisp overdrive tones of the ‘60s and ‘70s, the Soultone 1986ps SuperPlexi is definitely worth a good, solid test run. Players frustrated with Plexi-style amps with lack of low-end and harsh top-end sizzle should give it a try, too. I would highly recommend visiting Soultone’s website to get their detailed run down on their design and component selection process. For the price, features, solid construction and excellent tone, the 1986ps might signal the end of a tonal journey for quite a few rock guitarists.
Buy if...
Classic cleans and great British overdrive are your thing, and not having to spend a few bones on a good power attenuator suits you.
Skip if...
You need a more modern tone and the ability to switch between multiple channels, or you’re looking for the sharp, upper attack that 100-watt heads have in spades.
Rating...
Starting at $2199 - Soultone Amplification - soultoneamps.com |
Duane Denison of the Jesus Lizard, EGC Chessie in hands, coaxing some nasty tones from his Hiwatt.
The Jesus Lizard’s sixth album, Blue, served as the band’s final statement from the frontlines of noisy rock for the next 26 years. By the time of their dissolution in 1999, they’d earned a reputation for extreme performances chock full of hard-hitting, machine-like grooves delivered by bassist David Wm. Sims and, at their conclusion, drummer Mac McNeilly, at times aided and at other times punctured by the frontline of guitarist Duane Denison’s incisive, dissonant riffing, and presided over by the cantankerous howl of vocalist David Yow. In the years since, performative, thrilling bands such as Pissed Jeans, METZ, and Idles have built upon the Lizard’s musical foundation.
Denison has kept himself plenty busy over the last couple decades, forming the avant-rock supergroup Tomahawk—with vocalist Mike Patton, bassist Trevor Dunn (both from Mr. Bungle), and drummer John Stanier of Helmet—and alongside various other projects including Th’ Legendary Shack Shakers and Hank Williams III. The Jesus Lizard eventually reunited, but until now have only celebrated their catalog, never releasing new jams.
The Jesus Lizard, from left: bassist David Wm. Sims, singer David Yow, drummer Mac McNeilly, and guitarist Duane Denison.
Photo by Joshua Black Wilkins
Back in 2018, Denison, hanging in a hotel room with Yow, played a riff on his unplugged electric guitar that caught the singer’s ear. That song, called “West Side,” will remain unreleased for now, but Denison explains: “He said, ‘Wow, that’s really good. What is that?’ And I said, ‘It’s just some new thing. Why don’t we do an album?’” From those unassuming beginnings, the Jesus Lizard’s creative juices started flowing.
So, how does a band—especially one who so indelibly captured the ineffable energy of live rock performance—prepare to get a new record together 26 years after their last? Back in their earlier days, the members all lived together in a band house, collectively tending to the creative fire when inspiration struck. All these years later, they reside in different cities, so their process requires sending files back and forth and only meeting up for occasional demo sessions over the course of “three or four years.”
“When the time comes to get more in performance mode, I have a practice space. I go there by myself and crank it up. I turn that amp up and turn the metronome up and play loud.” —Duane Denison
the Jesus Lizard "Alexis Feels Sick"
Distance creates an obstacle to striking while the proverbial iron is hot, but Denison has a method to keep things energized: “Practice loud.” The guitarist professes the importance of practice, in general, and especially with a metronome. “We keep very detailed records of what the beats per minute of these songs are,” he explains. “To me, the way to do it is to run it to a Bluetooth speaker and crank it, and then crank your amp. I play a little at home, but when the time comes to get more in performance mode, I have a practice space. I go there by myself and crank it up. I turn that amp up and turn the metronome up and play loud.”
It’s a proven solution. On Rack—recorded at Patrick Carney’s Audio Eagle studio with producer Paul Allen—the band sound as vigorous as ever, proving they’ve not only remained in step with their younger selves, but they may have surpassed it with faders cranked. “Duane’s approach, both as a guitarist and writer, has an angular and menacing fingerprint that is his own unique style,” explains Allen. “The conviction in his playing that he is known for from his recordings in the ’80s and ’90s is still 100-percent intact and still driving full throttle today.”
“I try to be really, really precise,” he says. “I think we all do when it comes to the basic tracks, especially the rhythm parts. The band has always been this machine-like thing.” Together, they build a tension with Yow’s careening voice. “The vocals tend to be all over the place—in and out of tune, in and out of time,” he points out. “You’ve got this very free thing moving around in the foreground, and then you’ve got this very precise, detailed band playing behind it. That’s why it works.”
Before Rack, the Jesus Lizard hadn’t released a new record since 1998’s Blue.
Denison’s guitar also serves as the foreground foil to Yow’s unhinged raving, as on “Alexis Feels Sick,” where they form a demented harmony, or on the midnight creep of “What If,” where his vibrato-laden melodies bolster the singer’s unsettled, maniacal display. As precise as his riffs might be, his playing doesn’t stay strictly on the grid. On the slow, skulking “Armistice Day,” his percussive chording goes off the rails, giving way to a solo that slices that groove like a chef’s knife through warm butter as he reorganizes rock ’n’ roll histrionics into his own cut-up vocabulary.
“During recording sessions, his first solo takes are usually what we decide to keep,” explains Allen. “Listen to Duane’s guitar solos on Jack White’s ‘Morning, Noon, and Night,’ Tomahawk’s ‘Fatback,’ and ‘Grind’ off Rack. There’s a common ‘contained chaos’ thread among them that sounds like a harmonic Rubik’s cube that could only be solved by Duane.”
“Duane’s approach, both as a guitarist and writer, has an angular and menacing fingerprint that is his own unique style.” —Rack producer Paul Allen
To encapsulate just the right amount of intensity, “I don’t over practice everything,” the guitarist says. Instead, once he’s created a part, “I set it aside and don’t wear it out.” On Rack, it’s obvious not a single kilowatt of musical energy was lost in the rehearsal process.
Denison issues his noisy masterclass with assertive, overdriven tones supporting his dissonant voicings like barbed wire on top of an electric fence. The occasional application of slapback delay adds a threatening aura to his exacting riffage. His tones were just as carefully crafted as the parts he plays, and he relied mostly on his signature Electrical Guitar Company Chessie for the sessions, though a Fender Uptown Strat also appears, as well as a Taylor T5Z, which he chose for its “cleaner, hyper-articulated sound” on “Swan the Dog.” Though he’s been spotted at recent Jesus Lizard shows with a brand-new Powers Electric—he points out he played a demo model and says, “I just couldn’t let go of it,” so he ordered his own—that wasn’t until tracking was complete.
Duane Denison's Gear
Denison wields his Powers Electric at the Blue Room in Nashville last June.
Photo by Doug Coombe
Guitars
- Electrical Guitar Company Chessie
- Fender Uptown Strat
- Taylor T5Z
- Gibson ES-135
- Powers Electric
Amps
- Hiwatt Little J
- Hiwatt 2x12 cab with Fane F75 speakers
- Fender Super-Sonic combo
- Early ’60s Fender Bassman
- Marshall 1987X Plexi Reissue
- Victory Super Sheriff head
- Blackstar HT Stage 60—2 combos in stereo with Celestion Neo Creamback speakers and Mullard tubes
Effects
- Line 6 Helix
- Mantic Flex Pro
- TC Electronic G-Force
- Menatone Red Snapper
Strings and Picks
- Stringjoy Orbiters .0105 and .011 sets
- Dunlop celluloid white medium
- Sun Studios yellow picks
He ran through various amps—Marshalls, a Fender Bassman, two Fender Super-Sonic combos, and a Hiwatt Little J—at Audio Eagle. Live, if he’s not on backline gear, you’ll catch him mostly using 60-watt Blackstar HT Stage 60s loaded with Celestion Neo Creambacks. And while some boxes were stomped, he got most of his effects from a Line 6 Helix. “All of those sounds [in the Helix] are modeled on analog sounds, and you can tweak them endlessly,” he explains. “It’s just so practical and easy.”
The tools have only changed slightly since the band’s earlier days, when he favored Travis Beans and Hiwatts. Though he’s started to prefer higher gain sounds, Allen points out that “his guitar sound has always had teeth with a slightly bright sheen, and still does.”
“Honestly, I don’t think my tone has changed much over the past 30-something years,” Denison says. “I tend to favor a brighter, sharper sound with articulation. Someone sent me a video I had never seen of myself playing in the ’80s. I had a band called Cargo Cult in Austin, Texas. What struck me about it is it didn’t sound terribly different than what I sound like right now as far as the guitar sound and the approach. I don’t know what that tells you—I’m consistent?”
YouTube It
The Jesus Lizard take off at Nashville’s Blue Room this past June with “Hide & Seek” from Rack.
Phat Machine
The Phat Machine
The Phat Machine is designed to deliver the tone and responsiveness of a vintage germanium fuzz with improved temperature stability with no weird powering issues. Loaded with both a germanium and a silicon transistor, the Phat Machine offers the warmth and cleanup of a germanium fuzz but with the bite of a silicon pedal. It utilizes classic Volume and Fuzz control knobs, as well as a four-position Thickness control to dial-in any guitar and amp combo. Also included is a Bias trim pot and a Kill switch that allows battery lovers to shut off the battery without pulling the input cord.
Silk Worm Deluxe Overdrive
The Silk Worm Deluxe -- along with its standard Volume/Gain/Tone controls -- has a Bottom trim pot to dial in "just the right amount of thud with no mud at all: it’s felt more than heard." It also offers a Studio/Stage diode switch that allows you to select three levels of compression.
Both pedals offer the following features:
- 9-volt operation via standard DC external supply or internal battery compartment
- True bypass switching with LED indicator
- Pedalboard-friendly top mount jacks
- Rugged, tour-ready construction and super durable powder coated finish
- Made in the USA
Static Effectors’ Street Series pedals carry a street price of $149 each. They are available at select retailers and can also be purchased directly from the Static Effectors online store at www.staticeffectors.com.