HX Stomp thru Studio Monitors in stereo OR Catalyst

[adagosto]

Hi all, need some help.

 

I currently have my Stomp XL running out of the headphone jack into a stereo splitter and into a pair of Mackie MR5 studio monitors. I also have a couple of pedals in the loop but I tend not to use them a ton. The sound I get is really pretty good, especially on clean and cleanish amp models.

 

I just got back from one of the big guitar stores and tried out the Catalyst 60, 100 and 200. Without having either of those amps side by side in my room with monitors, it's hard to say which sounds better.

 

Anyone with experience using both systems in the same room (Stomp into monitors vs a Catalyst)?

 

I can say this, the dirtier the amp, the less convincing it is with a Stomp. I find that to be true even when the Stomp is connected to a real amp (Vox AC30 or Mesa Boogie Express using the 4CM)

 

Anyone out there can offer up your wisdom here?

 

All I really want the Stomp+monitors setup to do it be a quieter version of a tube amp, add stereo and it sound really good and convincing. For clean tones I think I'm done. But will I gain anything by getting a Catalyst 100 (I liked that one a lot).

 

I think I need to sell my Boogie and make room!!

[rd2rk]

When you run the stomp into monitors you are most likely using a cab or IR.

At best, with good monitors it sounds like what you'd hear in the sound booth of a studio with the amp being mic'd in another room.

And you're lucky at that using the HP out vs the Line Outs. The HP out has a low watt amp designed to drive HPs which is then being amped again before it hits the speakers.

 

If you use the stomp without a cab/IR and the stomp's line outs into a Catalyst's RETURN (not the Input) it sounds like a real amp and speaker, right there in the room with you, because...it IS a real amp and guitar speaker (no HF Driver) right there in the room with you!

 

My Catalyst100 sounds WAY better (even at low volume - 55-75db) than any of the FRFR solutions I've tried AND better than the tube/112 amp I USED TO have.

 

I have the Catalyst100. The difference between the 60 and 100 is MAYBE the 100 sounds bigger because the cabinet is bigger and obviously you can't get it as loud as the 100/200 watt versions, and the 100 has proper MIDI connections (no HOST required). The difference between the 100 and the 200 is that the 100 sounds like a 100watt 112 and the 200 sounds like a 200watt 212 - way louder and bigger because it's got twice as much power pushing twice as much speaker pushing twice as much air.

 

Lastly, the Catalyst's RETURN can be configured to be used with or without the Cat's two FX (reverb and delay or mod) thus sparing considerable DSP in the stomp. AND the Cat's amps sound great on their own so it's a great backup in case the Stomp fails at a gig, AND you can use the Stomp's switches/Command Center to expand your control of the Cat. I do recommend that you get the LFS2 FS to go with it. The LEDs are very useful (is the boost ON or OFF?) and despite what some have said, I've had no noise problems at all when switching channels with it.