Which combo should I get for AC/DC tone?

Silverdome · Jul 18, 2022

Just based on my own experience, and I'm sure there's other good recommends in here but hands down the best AC/DC tone was through a Plexi style amp. It was unmistakable and effortless to dial in with a humbucker Gibson guitar.

Darralld · Jul 18, 2022

The Origin will do it for sure. I have the 20 head. Only thing you won't like is no clean channel to switch to if you need it.

Caffeinated · Jul 18, 2022

In a nutshell, DSL will let you dial a tone that works and at sane levels so good for bedrooms. Origin will probably get you slightly closer as it's closer to the original amp in most ways but it's going to need diming and will be a lot of fun/get the police called on you 🥳

Also, from old threads, running an Origin 50 *combo* flat out for extended periods and regularly can cause problems due to the way the valves are mounted. If you want to do this without surgery, the head is a better bet as the valves are better located from a heat /melting point of view.

GratefulDean · Jul 18, 2022

I am not sure about the Origin but the DSL 40CR is an incredibly versatile amplifier. You can do AC/DC, Stones, and even jazz and blues. Add some pedals upfront, or in the loop, and the possibilities are endless. I play mostly bedroom levels as we are cheek to jowl with the neighbors in our 'hood but I can also crank it to the point that my wife can tell which song I am playing from several doors down (which is her way of saying it's too loud). And you can't beat the price.

curt miller · Jul 18, 2022

I'm currently using a DSL40CR. My band plays classic hard rock, including ACDC.
My guitar is an EVH Striped series. Signal chain is RevvG3 into a Boss DM 2w. Sounds good. I recently put in a Scumback BM 75 65 watt 16 ohms speaker. But the amp delivered the goods stock.
Hope this helps.

Brian Krashpad · Jul 18, 2022

Uncle Fester · Jul 18, 2022

ACDC sound is Pure and Simple. In the 70s Plexus , JTM 45s Black Flags could be had cheap 78 a Black Flag in really good condition $700, and that was a Ton. ACDC is Power tube saturation. A Marshall Studio 15 has a true attenuated .5 watt Headphone jack that By Design you can plug the Vintage 30 into it and crank the Master to saturate the tubes. Don't be fooled that Hal watt will drive a 412 cabinet and typically I am 4 on the Master a 7 -8 on the Pre. These are Rare Amps and going for $600 - $900 condition. Other than that I would get the Studio Classic Vintage 20 is a mini Flexi.. Johan Segeborn on You tube Made Videos on the Line up. SV 20 Silver Jubilee (is killer) JCM 800 and the DSL. The SV 20 and 800 are Straight Away. But the Silver is amazing. Acrylic Recording did an extensive feature on the SJ and the range of tonealiy and Nuances or damm near endless. The Studio 15 needs a decent set of tubes Some call it a Baby Flexi for the Saturation and I call it the Baby Brother of the 800. Go watch Johan,, and then Acrylic. You will know with a certainty

Mark5150 · Jul 18, 2022

I bought the DSL 40 and I love it the only thing I've done was to replace the original speaker ( which was pretty crappy) to a cream back. And what a huge difference. The one thing I've found was to make sure to run it on high power. Low power makes it lose that extra punch. You won't go wrong with the Marshall

sroberts5150 · Jul 18, 2022

I would go for the 40c. Green channel w good gain. Or red channel, gain on 2. Either way, Dino little amps. And they get loud!

Thepartyprogram · Jul 18, 2022

All the above are not bad, but they lack the mojo. Plexi 100 and an sg. Crank that motherfucker up and That's all you need

peterplexi · Jul 18, 2022

I would run two. Studio Vintage on one side and a Studio classic on the other. Turn them up as loud as you can, roll down your guitar volume untill solo time!!

taylodl · Jul 18, 2022

I bought the DSL40CR so I could use it in my home studio without getting the police called, band practice, and (small) gigs. It handles that job quite well (though it's a bit on the heavy side). I also bought the DSL40CR because I play a wide variety of music - I needed something that could play reasonably clean and yet be able to get quite heavy.

You may be concerned that being more of a jack-of-all-trades amp it's not excellent at anything. Well, I have good news for you - while it can play many styles reasonably well it masters the 70's classic hard rock sound you're looking for! If AC/DC, Deep Purple, and Black Sabbath appear frequently in your set list - this amp has you covered! Everything else it handles either very well or well enough that no one is going to give you that WTF are you doing look.

It's the most versatile amp you can buy for the money.

Graham G · Jul 18, 2022

No you need at least "2" Plexi 100's & SoloDallas schaffer replica ,( the Radio one)

.
I've said this before but it's worth saying again, the really tricky bit, is the playing & then there's the school boy outfit of course :band:

deee · Jul 18, 2022

i've read angus favored the jtm 45, which is not the more aggressive sounding 50w and 100w plexi design(s) that came in the mid 60's. it may be worth some research. sometimes harder and louder is not better

marshallmellowed · Jul 18, 2022

This is so true. You "think" you're nailing AC/DC, until you plug an SG into a 100 watt Plexi-style amp & 4x12. Then, you can you say you're at least pretty damn close.

JBA · Jul 18, 2022

Before you do anything, go into your katana post parametric eq and choose a 1khz frequency (you can also try 1.2) set to around -6 dB to -8db (see what you like best), then Q set to 0.5. Now set your gain to 10 o’clock on the lead channel (standard channel if you have a K-II) plus you are better off on vintage and not modern. Start with all other controls at noon and dial in from there. I can very convincingly copy any sound my dsl40cr can make on the katana by using using its parametric e.q.’s. ;-) Another tip to get a better tube sound and less harsh breakup on the katana is lower your guitar volume pot a bit. If I normally run with 10 on the guitar volume pot for the dsl then I need to drop to 7 on the katana for example.. Last tip is keep your reverb really low to nothing for AC/DC and always less bass if anything and never more.

Best of luck.

bujin1 · Jul 18, 2022

I have a DSL40CR and use the clean channel with gain set to about 3 (base on a clock face) highs about 1, mids about 11 and highs about 2... Remember angus didn't use too many (if any) pedals. He got extra crunch from digging in a little harder... The DSL40CR is the most versatile amp and when you pair it with the 6 button foot switch it really opens up performance options. Good Luck and have fun!!

jamvu · Jul 18, 2022

Ok, this is simple. No pretenders, this is the rig for Angus tone.

JCM 800, preferably a vertical input.
Angus Young Custom Shop SG or a Gibson Les Paul Standard

No pedals needed, just raw fucking power.

Any questions?

dro · Jul 21, 2022

jamvu is correct. They can be found. May need a little love. But if that's the tone you speak. Get the amp that made the tone in the first place. Not an amp to settle for.
In today's world you can have anything you want, shipped to your front door.
You might also consider Bluesbreaker if you are set on a combo. As the early stuff was done with a cranked JTM45.

faerdi · Jul 21, 2022

Sorry to say that, but according to Fil (Solodallas) this is wrong.

„Despite what was always believed – and precisely – that these were JTM45, our research (and pictorial evidence) has shown that these were always JTM50s. These, particularly (shown), were two reissue JTM45s that were used as a cheap and convenient way for AC/DC to carve JTM50s out of them. Older and original JTM50s of Angus’ have been seen previously in older pictures (shown above). These were for live use. The only JTM45s in authentic JTM45 configuration were used on Ballbreaker and Stiff Upper Lip.
For all the rest of the work, since Highway To Hell in 1979, JTM50s were always used.“

History of the JTM50

The Black Flag JTM50 is a rather rare and coveted after amplifier made by Marshal between 1966 and 1967. It was one of the transitional steps between the JTM45

solodallas.com

Which combo should I get for AC/DC tone?

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