I know this is 3 years old. I just started to research these things. I don't know if it is just your hands but man....you gt that thing dialed in perfect!!!!!
That gain was only at noon?! That's insane. Check out the mxr 10 band graph eq in front of the iron ball, totally killer sound and very unique. Sounds like a cross between engl and mesa.
Dude that is a seriously sick tone and heavy playing. I was looking into a mini head like this to turn my Marshall dsl40 combo into a cab as it is too damn loud for my area! Love the DEATH shirt btw. Cheers!
Great review man. I own this little beast. I have owned Over 50 high gain tube amps over the years. I miss none of them.... Maybe the ultimate 20 watt amp.
I played this and a few flagship Mesas and Diezels in a shop lately. Holy balls this amp kicked ass. It sounds like a big head but with all the mids and clarity you'd usually need a boost pedal for. Very versatile as well, the cleans are pretty glassy. Would take this over a 100 watt head any day
I love the Satch-esque tone when you kick that reverb pedal in. I have the amp; run it through a Mesa Mini-Recto in my apartment. Looking for the right pedals to help accentuate a huge sound at low volumes. May have found one :). I jump between drop-tuned 'chug' and a thick screamin' solo tone. This amp rides that middle line, with minimal adjustment to achieve both. I love it. Nice review.
That amp doesn't even need the protone OD, it sounds killer with the lead boost from the amp. Nonetheless, it sounds fantastic either way. Thanks for the demo!
I agree the lead channel with the lead boost on needs no overdrive. The lead channel unboosted I think sounds good when there is an od in front for a nice tight tone but it is all preference, there are so many tone options with this thing, the amps gain is just after 12 o'clock so there's plenty more.
duck2587 Every amplifier live needs a OD in front to cut some bass in the mix. Even my Ironball changed feel with OD in front for the better. Not about more gain, don't use any drive on the OD.
this is the best sounding demo of the Engl Ironball with a 7 string I could find on youtube. I bought it as well and it does sound massive indeed. Great riffing dude! Can you name some bands or songs that you played in here?
I have 2 special editions and a guy wants to trade me 1 of these and 5bills and something else for 1 of my special edition heads and i hope it works out. Ive got the pb1v2 qnd pb2 and screamer 50 combo too but to have power scaling and headphones will be awesome.
that's a freaking awesome demo and setup u got.....probably one the only ones that makes me want to buy it...but ya I thought that the unboosted gain sounds better with ur pro tone....very percussive and clear
Arjun Kaul it doesn't work :(....I may have used a wrong power adapter for it....but I liked it a lot.....now I use an e1, vt2, and a 6505 mini head, so it's not too bad
fck this was awesome bro 🤘💯 I first used the original Fireball 1 amp… switched than to the Powerball 1 which was the beste metal amp I have ever played 🤝🤘 but I’m searching something for at home what has the same killer sounds… and it seams I’ve just found what I was searching for 🤘💯 killer riffing man… tasteful… do you have an album with that kind of stuff?
Nice demo. Love the classic Death tshirt. If you would have played "lack of comprehension" or "The Philosopher" it would have been epic. Please do another and play these. I would love it.
Which type of 1x12 cab will you think will sound better with this head? And open back one, closed or half open? I demo it with a Mesa can (wide type) and was great but I don't know if I will buy the same or go with the 1x12 Engl sells for this amp. Killer Demo!!
this is a cool amp but i dont know wether i should get the mesa mark v 25 watt or this engl ,,??the mesa is bit to expensive than this cool cat..both are awsome amps though..this could end being my choice
saw your demo of hughes and kettner tubemeister 18 , between this or hughes and kettner which one do you prefer? i know they're price range are far apart but im not sure to decide on which one
They are both great but if you go with the H&K I suggest throwing a full set of jj's in there, it really transforms that amp. If I had to choose I would go with the ironball even though it is more expensive it is 100% worth it.
I saw there is a Speaker Off function on this amp. I'm thinking about recording straight out of this thing, right into an audio interface and then adding some cab impulses. Is this feasible or is the line out of the amp already cursed with some analogue speaker simulation that you can't turn off?
Bertalan Oláh I honestly can't remember if you can shut the internal cab sim off. I know I've tried recording direct with it and the cab sim left little to desire so I just used it with the cab and mic'd it up. I don't have the amp anymore so I can't reference it
Nick Scarfo Thanks for your quick answer. I really do envy you for being able to mic up a cabinet for recording without getting impaled by the neighbours...
+Julian Nelson This amp can get any tone you’re looking for it’s very versatile. You can get a Marshall type sound from it for sure but it is not as crunchy as like an 800 or 900 is.
Nick Scarfo I just read on a few forums that there is such an issue with this amp. Tone-wise I'm quite sold on this amp and really want to buy it, so i'm just collecting personal experiences regarding durability before i purchase it. Really appreciate your reply. thanks and keep up the good work!!
+David Brown You don't have to use an overdrive, some do not like them in front of most engls however this was used here just to demonstrate a different tonal character without the boost engaged on the amp.
Nick Scarfo perfect, thanks for the reply :) then I guess it ll be between the Ironball or the Metalmaster!! I m waiting to see reviews of the Metalmaster, have you tested that one already?
Nick Scarfo yeah, it sounds great, so it ll be a close one between the Ironball or Metalmaster... lets see what happens, anyways, thanks for replying, I ll subscribe, looking forward to your next videos!
+James Guevara I would honestly get the Ironball over the Metalmaster. The Metalmaster does sound nice, but it isn't a true all-tube preamp since it's only running a single ECC83/12AX7 meaning that tube would be dedicated to the main preamp systems and the Gain will be "solid state" powered resulting in a bit of a knock in versatility and tone (there's a lot of cheaper tube amps that do this believe it or not. Many of the cheaper ENGL's like the GIgmaster, Thunder etc.. do it as well as other small heads). I have an ENGL Ironball I got a month ago and it's honestly keeping up with my Mesa Dual Rectifier tone-wise, I even had to put a tube screamer pedal on the Recto to make it sound as good as the ENGL; the only thing the recto did better was having more low-end headroom which is obviously just due to it being a 100w head (and it won't matter once you crank the Ironball at a show and have a bass player going with you etc..) Another good choice to look at is the Mesa Mini-Rectifier 25w head, with an overdrive it actually sounds ~95% as good as the Dual Rectifier I used to have. +Nick Scarfo Gotta say i'm jealous of your Vader Cab man. They don't make 'em anymore, and they're expensive as all hell now. For the last 5 years I had been planning to eventually buy a custom Vader with V30's to replace the not so great Marshall AVT 4x12 I had (i'm a small guy so smaller cabs are nice, but if I knew what the AVT cab would sound like i'd have sucked it up and carried a 1960/Rectifier cab lol)
I just bought this amp because of this demo and holy shit it's so much better in person
Whatever We Can That's awesome man! It's a killer amp in real life. Sounds like the bigger amps but in a tiny package!
Good demo, so many videos are over processed you cannot determine what the amp really sounds like.
I know this is 3 years old. I just started to research these things. I don't know if it is just your hands but man....you gt that thing dialed in perfect!!!!!
Todd Michael Thanks man! This amp just sounds great
That heavy tone is incredible!!
I am just buying it because of 4:19 ....dude! that harmonic! with just the boost ...this thing is mean!!
That Engle is a killer.sounds great.
I'd prefer that over a mesa mark 5 25 watt any day.
That gain was only at noon?! That's insane. Check out the mxr 10 band graph eq in front of the iron ball, totally killer sound and very unique. Sounds like a cross between engl and mesa.
Wow! The tone, the playing...Amazing.
sir, thanks for this killer demo
i am wanting this amp more and more.. damn
awesome killer dude I don't know how I missed this vid so glad I got it
Dude that is a seriously sick tone and heavy playing. I was looking into a mini head like this to turn my Marshall dsl40 combo into a cab as it is too damn loud for my area! Love the DEATH shirt btw. Cheers!
Wolfz666 Thanks man!
sold my DSL 40c to help pay for the Ironball
This is a real demo no fancy editing just like it should be
Great review man.
I own this little beast.
I have owned Over 50 high gain tube amps over the years.
I miss none of them....
Maybe the ultimate 20 watt amp.
Yes it’s truly one of the best small heads out there. Sounds like a full size 100 watt head it’s crazy.
Hey Nick, nice vid, and what an awesome playing !! amazing riffs and really catchy bro, love your t-shit as well :))
Excellent demo. Ironball can really pump out some metal madness sounds.
I'm getting my iron balls tomorrow woot !. Very nice test man, that amp is solid !! awesome tone and nice playing mate, \m/ Metal on !!
Lol Iron Balls! That made my day!
I played this and a few flagship Mesas and Diezels in a shop lately. Holy balls this amp kicked ass. It sounds like a big head but with all the mids and clarity you'd usually need a boost pedal for. Very versatile as well, the cleans are pretty glassy.
Would take this over a 100 watt head any day
Riffy Racoon Yeah man it really is an amazing amp. One of the best clean channels I've ever used!
I love the Satch-esque tone when you kick that reverb pedal in. I have the amp; run it through a Mesa Mini-Recto in my apartment. Looking for the right pedals to help accentuate a huge sound at low volumes. May have found one :). I jump between drop-tuned 'chug' and a thick screamin' solo tone. This amp rides that middle line, with minimal adjustment to achieve both. I love it. Nice review.
Doug Prazak awesome man!
such a sweet set up. i looking to get the fireball 25 and probably a mesa recto 2x12, the compact one. wish i could get my hands on that vader.
Best Ironball demo by far. Really reveals the heavy gain tone of this amp. I can't wait to plug it in to my 2x12 that gets here in two days.
Robert T Thanks!
What tubes and pedals (to chug) are you using?
Ok, you are using the Dead Horse, are you engaging the clipping diode?
Robert T I do not think that I had the diode engaged. The settings are in the beginning of the video if you want to check it out again.
Robert T It was the stock Engl tubes.
That amp doesn't even need the protone OD, it sounds killer with the lead boost from the amp. Nonetheless, it sounds fantastic either way. Thanks for the demo!
I agree the lead channel with the lead boost on needs no overdrive. The lead channel unboosted I think sounds good when there is an od in front for a nice tight tone but it is all preference, there are so many tone options with this thing, the amps gain is just after 12 o'clock so there's plenty more.
duck2587 Every amplifier live needs a OD in front to cut some bass in the mix. Even my Ironball changed feel with OD in front for the better. Not about more gain, don't use any drive on the OD.
this is the best sounding demo of the Engl Ironball with a 7 string I could find on youtube. I bought it as well and it does sound massive indeed. Great riffing dude! Can you name some bands or songs that you played in here?
Ionut Luca Thanks man, glad you enjoyed it. Most of the riffs played were from my solo material. Hopefully releasing that sometime next year.
I have 2 special editions and a guy wants to trade me 1 of these and 5bills and something else for 1 of my special edition heads and i hope it works out.
Ive got the pb1v2 qnd pb2 and screamer 50 combo too but to have power scaling and headphones will be awesome.
that's a freaking awesome demo and setup u got.....probably one the only ones that makes me want to buy it...but ya I thought that the unboosted gain sounds better with ur pro tone....very percussive and clear
+isaac thrash Hows your SS30? :P What happened to it?
Arjun Kaul it doesn't work :(....I may have used a wrong power adapter for it....but I liked it a lot.....now I use an e1, vt2, and a 6505 mini head, so it's not too bad
Im sure you can get it repaired. Why dont you write to AMT on facebook, Im sure they'll guide you. or email support at amtelectronics dot com
Arjun Kaul I did, but they wanted to Skype and I couldn't because of work
That tone for the last 1;30 was outstanding
Thanks!
Very good and authentic demo of this amp!
Harry Haller thank you!
Nice demo! Not the usual layered guitars and heavy production to make it sound better than it really is.
bohdilama Thanks!
fck this was awesome bro 🤘💯
I first used the original Fireball 1 amp… switched than to the Powerball 1 which was the beste metal amp I have ever played 🤝🤘 but I’m searching something for at home what has the same killer sounds… and it seams I’ve just found what I was searching for 🤘💯 killer riffing man… tasteful… do you have an album with that kind of stuff?
Nice demo! This amp is on my radar!
Nice demo. Love the classic Death tshirt. If you would have played "lack of comprehension" or "The Philosopher" it would have been epic. Please do another and play these. I would love it.
How does it compare to the Mesa Boogie Mark V 25 and EVH 5150 III? Trying to decide what lunchbox amp to get.
Do you think I can play Trivium with this amp alone or do I need some boost pedal and wich one? I'm thinking of buying a Ironball
Symbolic!! \m/
Which type of 1x12 cab will you think will sound better with this head? And open back one, closed or half open? I demo it with a Mesa can (wide type) and was great but I don't know if I will buy the same or go with the 1x12 Engl sells for this amp. Killer Demo!!
+Gamalier1972 I would recommend closed back and using at least a 2x12 cabinet. The 1x12's can sound very thin.
Great playing. Great tone. Is this s song i can listen to somewhere?
Sick af playing bro👌🏻
this is a cool amp but i dont know wether i should get the mesa mark v 25 watt or this engl ,,??the mesa is bit to expensive than this cool cat..both are awsome amps though..this could end being my choice
saw your demo of hughes and kettner tubemeister 18 , between this or hughes and kettner which one do you prefer? i know they're price range are far apart but im not sure to decide on which one
They are both great but if you go with the H&K I suggest throwing a full set of jj's in there, it really transforms that amp. If I had to choose I would go with the ironball even though it is more expensive it is 100% worth it.
really nice video and tone. gj
Such atmospheric clean and soooo toothcrushing lead |m|
Keep on rocking, viking |m| x_x |m|
I saw there is a Speaker Off function on this amp. I'm thinking about recording straight out of this thing, right into an audio interface and then adding some cab impulses. Is this feasible or is the line out of the amp already cursed with some analogue speaker simulation that you can't turn off?
Bertalan Oláh I honestly can't remember if you can shut the internal cab sim off. I know I've tried recording direct with it and the cab sim left little to desire so I just used it with the cab and mic'd it up. I don't have the amp anymore so I can't reference it
Nick Scarfo Thanks for your quick answer. I really do envy you for being able to mic up a cabinet for recording without getting impaled by the neighbours...
What is better for metal : ironball, metalmaster or gigmaster?
Derrota Mundial I have only tried the Ironball out of the 3 but I'm sure each one can get a great metal tone
Ironball is best from this 3 small guys
That sounds great! It seems pretty versatile right? Think I may have found what I'm looking for here. Thanks
Larry Tate yes it is very versatile!
wow!! the high gain tones you have here in the video are exactly what I'm looking for but can I get those exact tones at bedroom volume?
Yes this was at bedroom volume and it sounds even better than the audio in this
+Nick Scarfo awesome, sold.
+Nick Scarfo thanks for the feedback, man. just realized I asked you twice lol...my apologies.
+terry lafauci no worries man
Can this amp nail any old school death/thrash metal tones? Can you get any Matshally sound out of it EQ'd the right way?
+Julian Nelson This amp can get any tone you’re looking for it’s very versatile. You can get a Marshall type sound from it for sure but it is not as crunchy as like an 800 or 900 is.
Did you experience any issues with the sound (sudden decreases). Especially when you switch on the effects loop?
No actually there is a very slight increase in volume when I have something in the loop.
Nick Scarfo I just read on a few forums that there is such an issue with this amp. Tone-wise I'm quite sold on this amp and really want to buy it, so i'm just collecting personal experiences regarding durability before i purchase it. Really appreciate your reply. thanks and keep up the good work!!
Have you ever used the line out function to the house for a gig in lieu of a cabinet?
I have not and would not recommend it. I think the line out/cab sim on this leaves much to be desired.
Thoughts on this amp vs Hughes vs Friedman? Mostly bedroom/home playing.
The Ironball sounds the best at low volumes
Great sound ! What model this guitar is?
Aleksandr Panov thanks it's a 1998 Ibanez RG7620
Recomandation for Deathmetal?
Suoy Idl It is a great amp for death metal but it can do a lot of other types of music too. It is extremely versatile.
Me too
Why would one have to use and overdrive on an Engl? Thats like putting gravy on gravy...
+David Brown You don't have to use an overdrive, some do not like them in front of most engls however this was used here just to demonstrate a different tonal character without the boost engaged on the amp.
will this amp plus a 2*12 cab be enough to deal with a loud drummer?
James Guevara Yes you would have no issues with playing with a loud drummer. Even on 5 watts you would be loud enough.
Nick Scarfo perfect, thanks for the reply :)
then I guess it ll be between the Ironball or the Metalmaster!! I m waiting to see reviews of the Metalmaster, have you tested that one already?
I have not tried the metal master yet but I've seen one review and it sounded great.
Nick Scarfo yeah, it sounds great, so it ll be a close one between the Ironball or Metalmaster... lets see what happens, anyways, thanks for replying, I ll subscribe, looking forward to your next videos!
+James Guevara I would honestly get the Ironball over the Metalmaster. The Metalmaster does sound nice, but it isn't a true all-tube preamp since it's only running a single ECC83/12AX7 meaning that tube would be dedicated to the main preamp systems and the Gain will be "solid state" powered resulting in a bit of a knock in versatility and tone (there's a lot of cheaper tube amps that do this believe it or not. Many of the cheaper ENGL's like the GIgmaster, Thunder etc.. do it as well as other small heads). I have an ENGL Ironball I got a month ago and it's honestly keeping up with my Mesa Dual Rectifier tone-wise, I even had to put a tube screamer pedal on the Recto to make it sound as good as the ENGL; the only thing the recto did better was having more low-end headroom which is obviously just due to it being a 100w head (and it won't matter once you crank the Ironball at a show and have a bass player going with you etc..) Another good choice to look at is the Mesa Mini-Rectifier 25w head, with an overdrive it actually sounds ~95% as good as the Dual Rectifier I used to have.
+Nick Scarfo Gotta say i'm jealous of your Vader Cab man. They don't make 'em anymore, and they're expensive as all hell now. For the last 5 years I had been planning to eventually buy a custom Vader with V30's to replace the not so great Marshall AVT 4x12 I had (i'm a small guy so smaller cabs are nice, but if I knew what the AVT cab would sound like i'd have sucked it up and carried a 1960/Rectifier cab lol)
Is there a place for headphones on this amp ?
Jordan Childress Yes on the back
Hi man! The review is completely without any pedals?!
I use some pedals, I explain it in the beginning of the video
Is this loud enough for full band setting
weemankyle Not unless you mic it up to a pa
@@NICKSCARFO83 that's unfortunate
Metalll
Stock tubes? preamp re tube?
hadley101 Stock tubes all around
I’m fucking sold!
Thank you
All questions and doubts have been answered
Let’s play shows together someday! 🔥
which Tuning?
Drop G#
Still have the amp?
+duck2587 No
why?
The lead tone RULED !