At 6:00ish what do you have on? Or is that the guitar straight in? Also what speaker do you have in the cab? The two rock one? Also are you playing it at 40 w or 20?
Hey JC, how did you capture the sound for this video? Mic or CaptorX? Sounds fantastic but I know it's not like being in the room. It's like looking at pictures of the Grand Canyon then seeing it in person. You can't fully capture the experience...
Just curious - have you tried to replicate the Traditional Clean through your Kemper in any way? If so, what were your results? Also, how did you try to do this? (Kemper Power Head into cab, or FRFR, etc.)
I had once a conversation with a professional guitarist. He used a Kemper extensively, on stage exclusively. He told me that the Kemper is great for all sorts of driven sounds. However, he also said that he never found (or that he is still searching for) a satisfactory clean profile.
Catching up on this 2 months later.... I find it's easier to sound good playing lead with an overdriven tone; playing lead with a clean tone doesn't let you hide anything! I'm really impressed with your fluidity here; kind of amazing, in fact. Regarding the amp, it sounds kind of compressed (in a good way). Were you using a compressor, or does the amp have compression built-in? Or maybe it's the recording chain or mastering for UA-cam? -Tom
Is that true even with very high gain pedals. Suppose you’re going for a heavy rock/metal tone. I know that’s not what the amp is designed for but could it achieve that?
@@jonathanpappas628 for high gain, i find really hard to fing a good tone ! Always lack of présence and too much mid ! I try with ( friedman BE-OD deluxe, wampler gearbox, evh 5150) ! The friedman is the best for me ! (The less worst i should say! 😉)
Going with Bartel's Roseland, John. Pricey, but Marc is an engineering genius. He was the mind behind the successful ToneKing brand. Two Rock always seemed dark or low midrange heavy and so you don't have the range you might want. Bartel is already swamped with orders for his incredibly refined, super innovative, overbuilt amp! Look into it, my friend, I think you will shake your head in disbelief over the attention. Probably the last amp I'll ever buy. Best!
You dont need range when you have a 100 watt Two Rock. Anyway there's really not many brands at that are in that strata but both Bartel and Two Rock are. Six in one, half dozen in the other.
@@TCMx3 Politely disagree. Some artists say what they need to say with a stick and mud, while others with a cascade of colors and a full complement of brushes. The Bartel is the latter... a full palette. Granted, you may do fine with the Two Rock, but even Meyer does not use them exclusively. Sold my Two Rock 2 years back which sounded exactly like John's demo. The Bartel can do the Two Rock sound and the Fender sound and the Marshall sound and everything in between. The converse is not the case.
@@kennethgarcia25 You are extolling the virtues of an amp to the person who actually owns it, while you are yet to. You dont have to listen to me if you dont want but I do actually know what Im talking about. Not sure why I bothered trying to help you have realistic expectations since you already know everything.
@@TCMx3 Please... let's see beyond dichotomies. My point was a general one in which the artist is the one who knows what their art is supposed to say and the way to choose and use the tools they can to make their art. What I was saying was that the Two Rock was not for me and I owned and played it for two years. Having also had Bartel amps, I can say that my Comet served me well. There is no one answer to all objectives. Enjoy what takes you there.
Well, if I've always considered Andy Timmons the King of Tone, you'll now be my prince of tone, John! What a taste you have playing and searching for the tone :)
Your borrowed amp is a Wonderland.... Interesting to know about the captor X issues but that the master vol means it is still possible to play at bedroom volumes (in the event I decide to sell my horse and get one).
Really beautiful sound. You mention difference with what you've experienced playing the FM3... Now that you've had some time with the Two-Rock, any recommendation on dialing in similar in the FM3? Cheers, D
If you run the master at 9 on the TC just straight in with no pedals, it's sort of at the level where the amp starts to open up. I would say bedroom levels but loud bedroom level. Hit it with a clean boost and a tube screamer with the drive at around 12 and it will take your head clean off, in the best way imaginable.
Probably not a compressor. The traditional clean had a naturally compressed sounding tone and notable sag when you hit it hard from the demos I've seen
Can you show us how you practise outlining chords as you improvise? What your approach and methods you use to grow as a player in this aspect of your playing?
Hi, there aren’t any blindfold challenges with a two rock, boutique amps, and fenders… it would be great to see if people can really tell the two rock apart
Mick Taylor on That Pedal Show has a Two Rock, which he uses a pedal platform as well as clean. Amazing tones too. To be honest though a Deluxe Reverb RI with the volume set on about 5 (when it starts to breath) is pretty amazing too... You don't have to spend the earth to get good tones.
Does this work for home volumes? Appears to be since you don’t appear to be in an auditorium but curious on your thoughts on it for home (assuming you’re not running an attenuator), thanks!
Hi. Nice playing mate. And nice sound. However, I think the mic of your cam is quite much compressed as well which modifies the sound heavily. The sound is very nice but considering the camera mic factor it is a bit confusing. Thanks anyway 👍
To me, this is not traditional clean though it is reminiscent of a traditional blackface fender. It is entirely modern to my ears and has to much pick attack sustain (or something else) to be useful to bring out the melodies and picking variations I try to play. It is nice sounding, but so is reverb which quickly gets old to my ears and which covers everything else up, stuff I don't want covered up. Maybe if the reverb and delay were shorter and the sustain more pointed and punctual I would like it for my style. Ambiance from guitar is popular in modern church music though. It's just not my cup of tea. Unfortunately, so many modern tube amps also fail to get me out of monotone on my semihollow guitar.
@@bluesenthused7244 "Best" in what? Best-sounding? How is that objective? It's a clean amp, it's not rocket science or black magic. I've played a Fender Twin and I have a Mesa .50 cal and a Roland Jazz Chorus 120. I'm not impressed at all by this Two Rock. I have free amp sims that sound just as good.
@@ErebosGR Fenders are great, I’m sure the Roland is too, but two rocks are in a league of their own in terms of dynamic range. They have this huge bandwidth. I have not played any fender (bar one vintage prinston which was awesome) that compares to a two rock. I would take a two rock over a vintage fender any day of the week. Any milkman I’ve played the two rock blows out of the water. This is just my subjective opinion and I’m not trying to talk down on anything, Eli and the guys at two rock have vintage fenders, but I highly doubt you’ve got free amp sims that sound and feel the same as a 100 watt valve amp with the best dynamic range in the business, if you do please send me a link. Two rocks have this huge 3D tone and feel that’s not comparable to anything I’ve ever played like I’ve mentioned. Yes you do have to be a reasonably good guitarist to unlock the full potential of a two-rock. You won’t plug into a traditional clean and sound like Eric Johnson or matt schofield, certainly not like Mayer. If most people plugged into them it would just sound like a vintage fender, which isn’t bad at all but your fingers will unlock the true potential of these things. Like I said it’s the best amp I’ve ever played in my life and I’ve been around the block. I would hesitate in calling this amp a “rip off” unless you’ve gotten your hands on it and have played amps like Milkman and vintage fenders to compare to. Unfortunately video is not going to give you the full dynamic range of a tube amp in a room and it certainly isn’t going to give you the full tonal story either.
@@bluesenthused7244 You're using words you don't understand. Dynamic range simply means the range from "very soft" to "very loud". Also, amps don't have bandwidth. What you mean is headroom, to which you are attributing some kind of "magical" quality. Any transistor amp can have more headroom than a tube amp. That's why Rolands have been used for cleans for decades. "3D tone" is nothing but "note bloom" which is caused by sag. If a power amp has enough sag, it will bloom. The speaker though plays a bigger role in that than the amp.
![Two Rock Traditional Clean - King of Clean Tones [it can do more than John Mayer tones, right?]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/I__wzKfP98w/mqdefault.jpg)
![Two Rock Traditional Clean - King of Clean Tones [it can do more than John Mayer tones, right?]](/img/tr.png)
ua-cam.com/video/ws7clVgSGiw/v-deo.html here's a comparison with my Mesa Boogie Lonestar....
I am a Mayer fanboy, but this is probably the best tone I've ever heard from you, and the tones so far have been amazing!
Definitely one of the best sounding amps you’ve played through on here. So natural and warm.
At 6:00ish what do you have on? Or is that the guitar straight in? Also what speaker do you have in the cab? The two rock one? Also are you playing it at 40 w or 20?
Hey JC, how did you capture the sound for this video? Mic or CaptorX? Sounds fantastic but I know it's not like being in the room. It's like looking at pictures of the Grand Canyon then seeing it in person. You can't fully capture the experience...
Mic seemed to be the best way to get across the tone!
Origin spirit!
@@johnnathancordy wait is it the aston origin or aston spirit?
@@john808welk spirit I think?
Probably the best and most helpful review I’ve seen on the Trad Clean! Nice job!
Sounds beautiful. Especially with your playing mate 👍🏻
Definitely the best amp on the planet.
This aged well 😜
@@Giballi24 2nd best? Maybe 3rd? 😂
Lolllllllll 😜 at least someone beat me to it
@@Giballi24 what is better? BTW love your videos
@@allenhayesmusic thank you! It’s the Sterling
WOW! That tone.... great playing too. Thanks.
How this compare to TwoRock Kemper profiles? Is it a close experience, assuming a rmic’ed amp sound?
Perhaps in a video like this they would be indistinguishable, but nothing replaces the feel of a real tube amp.
Wow! Great video! Thank you for sharing! I enjoyed every minute of it!
Just curious - have you tried to replicate the Traditional Clean through your Kemper in any way? If so, what were your results? Also, how did you try to do this? (Kemper Power Head into cab, or FRFR, etc.)
I had once a conversation with a professional guitarist. He used a Kemper extensively, on stage exclusively. He told me that the Kemper is great for all sorts of driven sounds. However, he also said that he never found (or that he is still searching for) a satisfactory clean profile.
Yes, you have found Two-Rock!
Hey there, what cab/speakers specifically were used to record this? Thank you
Catching up on this 2 months later.... I find it's easier to sound good playing lead with an overdriven tone; playing lead with a clean tone doesn't let you hide anything! I'm really impressed with your fluidity here; kind of amazing, in fact. Regarding the amp, it sounds kind of compressed (in a good way). Were you using a compressor, or does the amp have compression built-in? Or maybe it's the recording chain or mastering for UA-cam? -Tom
Today John has carefully colour matched his guitar with his legs……impressive, I shall watch the video again while listening to the amp…
Was there compression added (either via a pedal, or post)?
question, do you need the amp head plugged into some sort of cab too? or can you play it on its own
Isn't the Litigator based on a two-rock? Can you do a shootout? I'd be curious to see how close the stomp gets tone wise.
Just wait twenty more minutes!
The Litigator is sort of based on a Dumble but not any specific circuit - it's a bit of an idealised circuit
Gorgeous sounding Amp. I can't imagine how wonderful it must sound in person. I'm very interested in how well it plays with pedals. Thanks
using it as a pedal platform is basically what this amp was designed for. you will get the purest representation of your pedals with this amp.
Is that true even with very high gain pedals. Suppose you’re going for a heavy rock/metal tone. I know that’s not what the amp is designed for but could it achieve that?
@@jonathanpappas628 for high gain, i find really hard to fing a good tone ! Always lack of présence and too much mid ! I try with ( friedman BE-OD deluxe, wampler gearbox, evh 5150) !
The friedman is the best for me ! (The less worst i should say! 😉)
Going with Bartel's Roseland, John. Pricey, but Marc is an engineering genius. He was the mind behind the successful ToneKing brand. Two Rock always seemed dark or low midrange heavy and so you don't have the range you might want. Bartel is already swamped with orders for his incredibly refined, super innovative, overbuilt amp! Look into it, my friend, I think you will shake your head in disbelief over the attention. Probably the last amp I'll ever buy. Best!
You dont need range when you have a 100 watt Two Rock. Anyway there's really not many brands at that are in that strata but both Bartel and Two Rock are. Six in one, half dozen in the other.
@@TCMx3 Politely disagree. Some artists say what they need to say with a stick and mud, while others with a cascade of colors and a full complement of brushes. The Bartel is the latter... a full palette. Granted, you may do fine with the Two Rock, but even Meyer does not use them exclusively. Sold my Two Rock 2 years back which sounded exactly like John's demo. The Bartel can do the Two Rock sound and the Fender sound and the Marshall sound and everything in between. The converse is not the case.
@@kennethgarcia25 You are extolling the virtues of an amp to the person who actually owns it, while you are yet to. You dont have to listen to me if you dont want but I do actually know what Im talking about. Not sure why I bothered trying to help you have realistic expectations since you already know everything.
@@TCMx3 Please... let's see beyond dichotomies. My point was a general one in which the artist is the one who knows what their art is supposed to say and the way to choose and use the tools they can to make their art. What I was saying was that the Two Rock was not for me and I owned and played it for two years. Having also had Bartel amps, I can say that my Comet served me well. There is no one answer to all objectives. Enjoy what takes you there.
Bartel roseland for me for the win 🥇
Well, if I've always considered Andy Timmons the King of Tone, you'll now be my prince of tone, John!
What a taste you have playing and searching for the tone :)
Your borrowed amp is a Wonderland.... Interesting to know about the captor X issues but that the master vol means it is still possible to play at bedroom volumes (in the event I decide to sell my horse and get one).
Really beautiful sound. You mention difference with what you've experienced playing the FM3... Now that you've had some time with the Two-Rock, any recommendation on dialing in similar in the FM3? Cheers, D
Have you tried to achieve this tone with the FM3? I tried several times but without success, hope Fractal model this amp, such a beautiful clean tone
Beautiful tone!! Have you compared it to a Mesa Boogie Fillmore?
Running the master at 9 o clock, how loud was it in the room? “Bedroom” level or a bit louder?
If you run the master at 9 on the TC just straight in with no pedals, it's sort of at the level where the amp starts to open up. I would say bedroom levels but loud bedroom level. Hit it with a clean boost and a tube screamer with the drive at around 12 and it will take your head clean off, in the best way imaginable.
It'd be cool to see you take a crack at Eric Johnson's fuzz tones. I know he's been using one in place of his Dumble SSS.
How's the VHT stack up against this amp? With the same speaker cabinet of course...
Tradizional Clean Vs Silver Sterling Sig?
Assuming you put a high gain pedal infront if it, do you think this amp could handle heavy rock/metal sounds if it had to?
Hey Jonathan - it wouldn't be my choice to be honest, I think you'd probably find it having a bit of a spongey response?
Nice. Please do a video with pedals using two guitars ( single coil and humbuckers )
How does it feel compared to a modeler ? ... sounds like you have a compressor pedal on ?
Probably not a compressor. The traditional clean had a naturally compressed sounding tone and notable sag when you hit it hard from the demos I've seen
Did you like the ceriatone ots clean about as much as this?
Got to play JMs Wheel with this one. Clean sounds so close to it!
Sweet sounding amp for sure. Can you get the California Tweed to sound similar at all?
Since the QC hasn't seen the light of day in forever, maybe see if it can capture all that low end energy?
Can you show us how you practise outlining chords as you improvise? What your approach and methods you use to grow as a player in this aspect of your playing?
What’s the idle hiss like on the amp?
Great playing. The tone of that amp is amazing
It's fantastic init!
Hi, there aren’t any blindfold challenges with a two rock, boutique amps, and fenders… it would be great to see if people can really tell the two rock apart
Sounds really beautiful, even though I'm not there in the room.
Mick Taylor on That Pedal Show has a Two Rock, which he uses a pedal platform as well as clean. Amazing tones too. To be honest though a Deluxe Reverb RI with the volume set on about 5 (when it starts to breath) is pretty amazing too... You don't have to spend the earth to get good tones.
You certainly don’t lack for great gear my friend!
This isn't mine!
@@johnnathancordy I never said it was. I just wish I had friends with that good taste in amps ☺️
@@rtbmusic1135 ah yeh! It helps to spread the gas over your peer group!!
John you should get your hands on A dr Z I recently got one and it’s amazing as well!
Which one?
@@johnnathancordy I got a maz 18 jr no reverb
Is this the 40/20 6v6 or one of the 6L6 versions
It's the full daddy - 100w!
@@johnnathancordy are the 40/20s just as good?
@@GanthardBlack I've never played one I'm afraid!
@@johnnathancordy fair enough thank you
Does this work for home volumes? Appears to be since you don’t appear to be in an auditorium but curious on your thoughts on it for home (assuming you’re not running an attenuator), thanks!
13 months and mine still hasn't shipped yet 😢
OOF - that's....long
Nice to hear you play something clean without all the effects! Normally it sounds like your playing a keyboard synth.
great video...great sound... but not sure i would want to pay the amount they want for it !!!
Me either!
Hi. Nice playing mate. And nice sound. However, I think the mic of your cam is quite much compressed as well which modifies the sound heavily. The sound is very nice but considering the camera mic factor it is a bit confusing. Thanks anyway 👍
You're not hearing the camera audio, you're hearing the micd amp, but thanks!
(When I play the amp, the camera audio is muted)
Okay 👍 Thanks for clarifying that mate. Again awesome playing and lovely sound.
Is this tube amp or solid state amp??
It’s a two rock… most definitely a tube amp, possibly the best clean amp in production
Looooool
kick ass.
are you micing it?
YEssir
@@johnnathancordy which cabinet and mic, love the clean tone you get outta it
This is the head and not the combo, right?
I want it, I want it, I want it.
The thing about this amps is you better play well. It punishes
sounds great, but too much like Mayer too me. I would not like to every solo I played has this characteristic sound
way cheaper than a horse John. way cheaper.
To me, this is not traditional clean though it is reminiscent of a traditional blackface fender. It is entirely modern to my ears and has to much pick attack sustain (or something else) to be useful to bring out the melodies and picking variations I try to play. It is nice sounding, but so is reverb which quickly gets old to my ears and which covers everything else up, stuff I don't want covered up. Maybe if the reverb and delay were shorter and the sustain more pointed and punctual I would like it for my style. Ambiance from guitar is popular in modern church music though. It's just not my cup of tea. Unfortunately, so many modern tube amps also fail to get me out of monotone on my semihollow guitar.
Meh…….Any Fender backface is better. Plus I don’t care for that whimpy Mayer guy.
Yeh no
Also isn't that what Robert Downey Junior got in trouble for
...his mom must be dating a chad. LOL!
Nope! My Mum is happily married to my Dad. I just work 60 hour weeks! 👊🏻
@@JakeLoosemore ...is *he* called chad? maybe goes by chadwick/chadwodd or jim?
@@christopher-miles 🧂
$4k?!? Wow what a rip-off.
Do you know anything about guitar amps? This is possibly the best clean amp on earth bar the dumble SSS
@@bluesenthused7244 "Best" in what? Best-sounding? How is that objective? It's a clean amp, it's not rocket science or black magic.
I've played a Fender Twin and I have a Mesa .50 cal and a Roland Jazz Chorus 120. I'm not impressed at all by this Two Rock.
I have free amp sims that sound just as good.
@@ErebosGR Fenders are great, I’m sure the Roland is too, but two rocks are in a league of their own in terms of dynamic range. They have this huge bandwidth. I have not played any fender (bar one vintage prinston which was awesome) that compares to a two rock. I would take a two rock over a vintage fender any day of the week. Any milkman I’ve played the two rock blows out of the water. This is just my subjective opinion and I’m not trying to talk down on anything, Eli and the guys at two rock have vintage fenders, but I highly doubt you’ve got free amp sims that sound and feel the same as a 100 watt valve amp with the best dynamic range in the business, if you do please send me a link. Two rocks have this huge 3D tone and feel that’s not comparable to anything I’ve ever played like I’ve mentioned. Yes you do have to be a reasonably good guitarist to unlock the full potential of a two-rock. You won’t plug into a traditional clean and sound like Eric Johnson or matt schofield, certainly not like Mayer. If most people plugged into them it would just sound like a vintage fender, which isn’t bad at all but your fingers will unlock the true potential of these things. Like I said it’s the best amp I’ve ever played in my life and I’ve been around the block. I would hesitate in calling this amp a “rip off” unless you’ve gotten your hands on it and have played amps like Milkman and vintage fenders to compare to. Unfortunately video is not going to give you the full dynamic range of a tube amp in a room and it certainly isn’t going to give you the full tonal story either.
@@bluesenthused7244 You're using words you don't understand. Dynamic range simply means the range from "very soft" to "very loud". Also, amps don't have bandwidth.
What you mean is headroom, to which you are attributing some kind of "magical" quality. Any transistor amp can have more headroom than a tube amp. That's why Rolands have been used for cleans for decades.
"3D tone" is nothing but "note bloom" which is caused by sag. If a power amp has enough sag, it will bloom. The speaker though plays a bigger role in that than the amp.
@@ErebosGR Don't be so angry man, lawyers and doctors need amps too loool I kid I kid