I've got a JCA22H that I traded for a set of EMG pickups a couple of years ago. The original power tubes were completely taxed and one of the preamp tubes was cracked and had a hole in it. I replaced the power tubes with matched NOS gold grid Russian 6P14P (EL84 equivalent) tubes and TungSol RI 12AX7 tubes, added both the depth knob and saturation switch mods and a Hammond choke and it now rivals my PRS MT15.
So you put $500 worth of parts and mods into a $300 budget amp and now it sounds like an amp you can buy used for under $800? Please tell us your secrets!
@@jakubhap7728Depends on the flavor of tone you like. The MT15 has a great clean channel, but the drive channels don't do the boosted Marshall thing like the Jet City does
yeah Doug is still running Jet City, he did the diagnostic work on the new JET CITY Elite 2.X that i was having some issues with and took care of me at and was great in every way. awesome in communication.
I have a 5150 Block Letter, a mid 80's OG JCM800, and a JCA50 Jet City, and although I love each of the amps, the Jet is the one I like the most. The 2 channel 50 watt head, is crazy loud, does a great Hi gain metal tone on the Lead channel ,and does a great Fender clean impression on the crunch channel, or even an 800 style crunch (with more gain and dialing eq). Takes pedals even better than the 800, IMO, and goes block for blow with my Block Letter in the Heavy stakes. I love it. Cant believe I paid only £250 (about $300) for mine new. Still blows my mind
I considered very hard getting a jca50h as my first tube head but then it disappeared from Thomann and I went with a Marshall DSL. I still want to try one for the 80s Soldano tones hahaha
A similar thing happened to me, I was very deeply involved into practicing my guitar skills when the Jet City JCA line came out. At that time also bugera had their amps released for a few years and I debated hard to which ones to get. I got neither as I partially stopped playing guitar and 10 years had passed when I decided to finally buy a tube amp. Now Jet City is gone from the market of the big boi amps, so ended up buying a 333XL burger last year. I don't regret getting the bugera, but I really want those Soldano style sounds, so I'm now chasing a good condition100HDM to mod the crap out of it!! A Marshall DSL is also a beast of an amp!!
I’ve got a 15 watt hard wired tiny terror that I had to turn down at rehearsal yesterday, running through a 1x12. It sounded killer! Probably depends on the preamp you’re using with the el 84s. I like to crank the master to 10 and turn the gain to about 6 out of ten. That would probably work on this amp too.
I've had one for years, loved it. On its own it plays great rock sound, but needs something on the front end to get into the metal zone. I don't play thrash, tho. My hard rock and metal are more melodic.
Mike Soldano himself admitted that the Jet City OTs were under spec'd. It would be interesting to hear what one would sound like with a MM OT or some sort of upgrade.
I feel like people just like hating on bugera amps... i have three and have had no issues with them. This amp is interesting... maybe not my flavor but sounds pretty good. \m/
If you can get a Jet City JCA22H you’ll be in Soldano territory for sure on the overdrive channel. It’s the Soldano circuit from the Hot Rod series according to Doug White.
Kyle… I know you are a tube amp junkie, but would you consider reviewing/dialing in a Boss Katana 100 MkII head through one of you killer cabs? I have a DSL20 but without an attenuator it’s very rare that I can play that at the volumes needed to really push those tubes. I also have the Katana head that I use to push a Marshall 2x12 (celestion K100’s). I actually use the acoustic channel and stack two overdrives and a boss GE-7 in front and recently have created a really good thrashy tone with a tight low end. I’m happy with it, but I’m curious how you’d fare dialing that in with your ear. Just a thought. I know we all love our tube Amps but I’d be willing to bet a lot of us have, or could easily obtain a katana head… Thanks bro
I've seen some nice mod videos for Jet City. I had the 22w i think it was but it had standard tubes and it didn't sound that great, I've heard changing tubes is a must.
So I just got this amp used locally and plugged it in for the first time last week. I can’t even get an overdriven sound out of it. I’m going to put a fresh set of preamp tubes in it. What yours sounded at 9 on the gain mines almost sounds like at full crank. Anyhow, my real question was do you have a preference on mods for this amp or have played a modded one? I believe I seen you had a 100w version on your channel that was modded. Do you have any recommendations on mods or the best place to have it modded at?
Ebtech makes a little 2 channel passive line level converter box that worked great with the effects loop on my Jet City. Highly recommended for anyone wanting to run pedals into the loop of a Soldano.
I've got my jca50h warming up as I watch this. Not sure about the 20, but my 50 is a monster. It's probably my favorite boosted amp... And I own a shitload of very expensive high gain amps. I run mine through a Randal xl cab with WGS VETERAN 30s, and boosted with an OCD. It sounds killer. Nice video man, thanks
Active pickups run 25k pots, while passives run 250k/500k pots, you will definitely have to change the pots, not the input though, that should work regardless.
@@isatariq7533 Not true. You can run passive with 25K pots but they will be extremely muddy. All a pot is is a variable resistor. You also do need to change the input jack. Actives use stereo Jack's. Passives use mono
Is this the crunch channel of the jca22h? I bought a used jca22h this part summer. This demo sounds like the crunch channel. The overdrive channel has soooo much gain!
I know it’s been said a few times but you really should try the jca22h. I just picked one up for cheap and I’m floored by it. The overdrive channel is ridiculous and there’s no way it’s only a 20w amp it is louder than hell.
Yo I play in a hardcore/grind band, we do diy shows mainly like playing in basements or houses. Would this or a PRS mt15 be loud enough with a 4x12? Excellent vid as always and thank you for your time.
My experience is that 20 watt amps rule if you're on a stage where they mic you. You can crank the amp and get the right amount of power tube saturation, but playing in basements where you're not miced, it's not enough. 50 or 100 watts would do you better if you're not being miced. But the downside is that if you play shows where you're miced, inevitably they'll tell you to turn down and you'll be like "dude, I'm on 1, I can't turn down anymore!"
@@in.der.welt.sein. Agreed. I think a nice solution is using two 20 watt amps in stereo/dual mono. One into one cab, one into another. Or make one of those amps a 50 watt. Then if you need to mic one, mic the 20 watt.
I picked one these up for £80 a few years ago. I loved it so much I immediately sold it. ….. and bought the 100W version. As great as the 20W version is, I agree that the power section just can’t compete with the 100W. Largely down to EL84’s folding in when they hit a certain volume, but also bigger iron is always good. I’ve picked a couple of 100HDM’s for under £200 and with the extra channel and tone it’s definitely worth paying a bit more. Kind of wish they did a cathode biased 20W version with 6L6 or EL34’s or even fixed bias with 6V6’s. Marshall’s current 20W offerings are pretty hard to mess with. JCA 20H is a great candidate for mods, would be cool to see you dive into those. Great demo as always!
Just heard your band, you guys remind me a little of Come Back Kid and Stretch Arm Strong 👌. I play skate and pop punk but I listen to a lot of melodic hardcore as well hey check out a band named Darko because you might like them 👍
@@bigmike9527 no, he told me he wished he never sold it. He was planning on buying another one, he only sold it because he moved. But he came back too.
@@xthexadvantagex you always had 1000$ to throw around? I mean I do now, but I didnt in the 90’s it took me until 2007 to get my 5150, by then it had changed names
@@Ottophil no, no way. Indeed I saved up my thousand dollars in 2005 to get a splawn. Back then the prowess of the 5150 was well documented but I think you could grab one for like 500 bucks back then. Many people looked down on them though and the stigma of “peavey is shit” was strong.
The misinformation in the comments. 20 watts of tube power is plenty loud for 97% of people. No way you need 50-100 watts to jam with a drummer or full band. Probably the same group of people with 4 preamp pedals and 5 distortion pedals on one board. Look at my $2k 100 watt tube head, that needs tons of IC in front of it to sound good. Wear ear protection, dorks.
Dude, really solid review! Always appreciate hearing high gain tones by someone who knows how to use them!
I've got a JCA22H that I traded for a set of EMG pickups a couple of years ago. The original power tubes were completely taxed and one of the preamp tubes was cracked and had a hole in it. I replaced the power tubes with matched NOS gold grid Russian 6P14P (EL84 equivalent) tubes and TungSol RI 12AX7 tubes, added both the depth knob and saturation switch mods and a Hammond choke and it now rivals my PRS MT15.
PRS better than Jet City?
So you put $500 worth of parts and mods into a $300 budget amp and now it sounds like an amp you can buy used for under $800? Please tell us your secrets!
@@stillpist😭😭😭
@@jakubhap7728Depends on the flavor of tone you like. The MT15 has a great clean channel, but the drive channels don't do the boosted Marshall thing like the Jet City does
yeah Doug is still running Jet City, he did the diagnostic work on the new JET CITY Elite 2.X that i was having some issues with and took care of me at and was great in every way. awesome in communication.
I have a 5150 Block Letter, a mid 80's OG JCM800, and a JCA50 Jet City, and although I love each of the amps, the Jet is the one I like the most. The 2 channel 50 watt head, is crazy loud, does a great Hi gain metal tone on the Lead channel ,and does a great Fender clean impression on the crunch channel, or even an 800 style crunch (with more gain and dialing eq). Takes pedals even better than the 800, IMO, and goes block for blow with my Block Letter in the Heavy stakes. I love it. Cant believe I paid only £250 (about $300) for mine new. Still blows my mind
I always love seeing your clips pop up in my gear searches, bud-always a good time!
I considered very hard getting a jca50h as my first tube head but then it disappeared from Thomann and I went with a Marshall DSL. I still want to try one for the 80s Soldano tones hahaha
A similar thing happened to me, I was very deeply involved into practicing my guitar skills when the Jet City JCA line came out. At that time also bugera had their amps released for a few years and I debated hard to which ones to get. I got neither as I partially stopped playing guitar and 10 years had passed when I decided to finally buy a tube amp. Now Jet City is gone from the market of the big boi amps, so ended up buying a 333XL burger last year. I don't regret getting the bugera, but I really want those Soldano style sounds, so I'm now chasing a good condition100HDM to mod the crap out of it!! A Marshall DSL is also a beast of an amp!!
I bought mine from Thomman , cost me about £250 lool, its killer (JCA50)
dude you deserve a lot more views, holy shit what a great job! thank you for that...
I’ve got a 15 watt hard wired tiny terror that I had to turn down at rehearsal yesterday, running through a 1x12. It sounded killer! Probably depends on the preamp you’re using with the el 84s. I like to crank the master to 10 and turn the gain to about 6 out of ten. That would probably work on this amp too.
I've had one for years, loved it. On its own it plays great rock sound, but needs something on the front end to get into the metal zone. I don't play thrash, tho. My hard rock and metal are more melodic.
I just bought one this week
Same
Mike Soldano himself admitted that the Jet City OTs were under spec'd.
It would be interesting to hear what one would sound like with a MM OT or some sort of upgrade.
Which transformer power or output? Though I suppose he would say that so his amps still sell.
Slave EL84 to EL34/6L6 100 watt tube amps sounds good too. ( xtra volume)!!!
I have a 22H that’s modded with Bognershall OD, feed back control, cap upgrade and a depth mod, and she’s LOUD.
I feel like people just like hating on bugera amps... i have three and have had no issues with them. This amp is interesting... maybe not my flavor but sounds pretty good. \m/
If you can get a Jet City JCA22H you’ll be in Soldano territory for sure on the overdrive channel. It’s the Soldano circuit from the Hot Rod series according to Doug White.
Kyle… I know you are a tube amp junkie, but would you consider reviewing/dialing in a Boss Katana 100 MkII head through one of you killer cabs?
I have a DSL20 but without an attenuator it’s very rare that I can play that at the volumes needed to really push those tubes. I also have the Katana head that I use to push a Marshall 2x12 (celestion K100’s). I actually use the acoustic channel and stack two overdrives and a boss GE-7 in front and recently have created a really good thrashy tone with a tight low end. I’m happy with it, but I’m curious how you’d fare dialing that in with your ear.
Just a thought. I know we all love our tube Amps but I’d be willing to bet a lot of us have, or could easily obtain a katana head… Thanks bro
that active guitar sounded really good
Great video!! Subbing!! I have a JCA22H that was modified and it absolutely slays!! Glad to see some Jet City love on here!! 🤘🤘🎸🎸🤘🤘
I think it sounded pretty rad. I like your tweaking and ear, dug the tones. I’m a fan of boosting, so do it if they need it I say. Cheers. New sub
I have owned the combo version of this twice since they came out. Fantastic amp! I will own another one in the future.
So question can i swape with el84 for 6l6
@@jessetate9701 no. I would not do that.
@@theaverageguitarplayer maybe just a speaker upgrade
Excellent! the video you were looking for! ....to use effects like delay, Do you have any idea?
Jet City is making updated versions of these with custom options
I've seen some nice mod videos for Jet City. I had the 22w i think it was but it had standard tubes and it didn't sound that great, I've heard changing tubes is a must.
Not sure about this one but it did sound better with the active pickups.
I had the 100 HDM, flipped it, not sure if I miss it or not
not really an active pickup person but i really liked how it sounded with the emgs
Hey cool! You've finally done it. Thanks.
So I just got this amp used locally and plugged it in for the first time last week. I can’t even get an overdriven sound out of it. I’m going to put a fresh set of preamp tubes in it. What yours sounded at 9 on the gain mines almost sounds like at full crank. Anyhow, my real question was do you have a preference on mods for this amp or have played a modded one? I believe I seen you had a 100w version on your channel that was modded. Do you have any recommendations on mods or the best place to have it modded at?
Ebtech makes a little 2 channel passive line level converter box that worked great with the effects loop on my Jet City. Highly recommended for anyone wanting to run pedals into the loop of a Soldano.
I've got my jca50h warming up as I watch this. Not sure about the 20, but my 50 is a monster. It's probably my favorite boosted amp... And I own a shitload of very expensive high gain amps. I run mine through a Randal xl cab with WGS VETERAN 30s, and boosted with an OCD. It sounds killer. Nice video man, thanks
The 20 is not even based on a SLO, it's based on another Soldano amp called the Atomic 16
@@erikwithakayy I think the 22H channel 2 is based on Soldano's SLO circuit
@@steverherb That's correct. 22H = SLO, 20H = Soldano Atomic 16
For next FAQ: For low volume home guitarists, lunchbox head or full sized head with quality attenuator and why?
It sounded awsome man,
A good equaliser would sort the bottom out.
Unfortunately, no loop on this one
@@belligerentamateur yeh that's a bummer
Wow, that amp LOVES active p/u! BTW, can I replace active p/u with passive, without having to replace the pots and input jack?
Active pickups run 25k pots, while passives run 250k/500k pots, you will definitely have to change the pots, not the input though, that should work regardless.
@@isatariq7533 Not true. You can run passive with 25K pots but they will be extremely muddy. All a pot is is a variable resistor. You also do need to change the input jack. Actives use stereo Jack's. Passives use mono
They make a two channel version with an fx loop now - the JCA22H.
Is this the crunch channel of the jca22h? I bought a used jca22h this part summer. This demo sounds like the crunch channel. The overdrive channel has soooo much gain!
You seen the first official play-through demo for the new 5150 ICONIC amp? It sounded kinda weak.
I know it’s been said a few times but you really should try the jca22h. I just picked one up for cheap and I’m floored by it. The overdrive channel is ridiculous and there’s no way it’s only a 20w amp it is louder than hell.
This Jet City betten than PRS MT-15?
Its better than the Evh 5153 50 watt IMO
Yo I play in a hardcore/grind band, we do diy shows mainly like playing in basements or houses. Would this or a PRS mt15 be loud enough with a 4x12? Excellent vid as always and thank you for your time.
Depends if you want it to be heard or felt. It will be heard for sure. But felt a bit less. Id look for something more powerful.
My experience is that 20 watt amps rule if you're on a stage where they mic you. You can crank the amp and get the right amount of power tube saturation, but playing in basements where you're not miced, it's not enough. 50 or 100 watts would do you better if you're not being miced. But the downside is that if you play shows where you're miced, inevitably they'll tell you to turn down and you'll be like "dude, I'm on 1, I can't turn down anymore!"
@@in.der.welt.sein. Agreed. I think a nice solution is using two 20 watt amps in stereo/dual mono. One into one cab, one into another. Or make one of those amps a 50 watt. Then if you need to mic one, mic the 20 watt.
@@lowqualityguitarvideos that's what I usually do, run two amps in stereo.
Depends on the speakers. Highly efficient ones will sound twice as loud. Look for a decibel rating of 101dbl or higher.
Needs a pedal pushing the front end
I picked one these up for £80 a few years ago. I loved it so much I immediately sold it.
….. and bought the 100W version. As great as the 20W version is, I agree that the power section just can’t compete with the 100W. Largely down to EL84’s folding in when they hit a certain volume, but also bigger iron is always good. I’ve picked a couple of 100HDM’s for under £200 and with the extra channel and tone it’s definitely worth paying a bit more. Kind of wish they did a cathode biased 20W version with 6L6 or EL34’s or even fixed bias with 6V6’s. Marshall’s current 20W offerings are pretty hard to mess with. JCA 20H is a great candidate for mods, would be cool to see you dive into those.
Great demo as always!
Just heard your band, you guys remind me a little of Come Back Kid and Stretch Arm Strong 👌. I play skate and pop punk but I listen to a lot of melodic hardcore as well hey check out a band named Darko because you might like them 👍
It sounds bitchin' with those actives. Nice
Sounds great !
it really suffers without that depth control. great mod platform
Why is there music playing under the entire video? Well, at least the first 6 minutes
I just wish the smaller ones had a loop
This amp is probably the best $199 I ever spent on a piece of gear
ALMOST AT 8 THOUSANNNNNNNDDDDDDDDD .... come on guys help a guy out
There must have been something qrong with mine. I didn't like it, sold it to Truck Driver Shawn and he didn't like it either
i hate when you get a fool testing a amp and all they use is distortion , but play so damm clean sound need to know the character of the amp
Clean sounds are only for dudes who have had their peepee removed
I have the JCA50 but this sound sooo much better. Mine sounds muddy and like dogshit no matter what I do but I have no idea why 🥴
bs kick in those overdrives
ALL SORTS OF STUFF
Nissssssssssssssssssce 🍻
I had a buddy sell his 6505 and got a jet city. He regrets it. I say just save your money and go right to a peavey
sounds like he regretted buying the peavey also 😂😂
Back in my day you would have been made fun of for using save up for and peavey on the same sentence. Not for good reason albeit.
@@bigmike9527 no, he told me he wished he never sold it. He was planning on buying another one, he only sold it because he moved. But he came back too.
@@xthexadvantagex you always had 1000$ to throw around? I mean I do now, but I didnt in the 90’s it took me until 2007 to get my 5150, by then it had changed names
@@Ottophil no, no way. Indeed I saved up my thousand dollars in 2005 to get a splawn. Back then the prowess of the 5150 was well documented but I think you could grab one for like 500 bucks back then. Many people looked down on them though and the stigma of “peavey is shit” was strong.
The misinformation in the comments. 20 watts of tube power is plenty loud for 97% of people. No way you need 50-100 watts to jam with a drummer or full band. Probably the same group of people with 4 preamp pedals and 5 distortion pedals on one board. Look at my $2k 100 watt tube head, that needs tons of IC in front of it to sound good. Wear ear protection, dorks.
Soaked in torment, victim of lies, materialistic, lost in demise.
I reject your values, I have my own faith, I have no trust, in the human race.
\m/
Hmm that amp sounds off
If you're not using an OD, you're doing it WRONG!
I have this amp. I hate it :/
Not really impressed....