Blackstar St. James 100 vs ENGL Marty Friedman Inferno E766

The Blackstar St. James 100 and the ENGL Marty Friedman Inferno E766 are both amplifiers sharing high gain, transparent, crunchy. The ENGL Marty Friedman Inferno E766 leans bright and saturated. Current prices: $2074.33 vs $2300.

Similarity
citedBlended from circuit-archetype lineage, dynamic feel, tone-signal overlap and tone-vector distance — the tone vector itself is derived from editorial description text, not a measured acoustic signal, so this reflects how similarly the catalog copy describes the two, not a lab measurement. Shown only within a gear class, and only where there's enough evidence to be meaningful.

39% — somewhat different

Shared tone character
citedDerived from overlapping tonal signals across both listings.
  • high gain
  • transparent
  • crunchy
Citation fame
citedCitation/mention fame — how often this gear is cited across artist rigs and gear discussion.
17%
0%
Price

$2074.33via Reverb

$2300via Reverb

Description

The Blackstar St. James 100 is a 4-channel, 100-watt 2x12 tube combo from Blackstar's premium St. James series, offering multiple distinct amp voicings selectable per channel alongside onboard reverb and effects loop, aimed at players wanting a single, versatile combo covering clean through high-gain tones. The series is built around Blackstar's refined take on classic and modern tube amp voicings, packaged in premium-finished cabinetry distinct from Blackstar's more budget-focused amp lines.

The ENGL Marty Friedman Inferno (E766) is a 100-watt tube amplifier head designed in close collaboration with Megadeth guitarist Marty Friedman. Powered by EL34 output tubes and four ECC83/12AX7 preamp tubes, the E766 features two channels (Clean and Lead) with four selectable voices: Clean, Crunch, Soft Lead, and Heavy Lead. Each channel provides independent 3-band EQ, gain control, and switchable gain boost for dialing in extreme distortion. The built-in noise gate with rear-panel threshold control manages high-gain noise, while the tube-buffered FX loop with balance control integrates external effects processors. A bright switch adds extra bite across all channels.

Genres
citedGenres this gear is documented as being used in.
—
  • Hard Rock
  • Jazz
  • Blues
  • Metal
  • Heavy Metal
Tonal lean
—
  • bright
  • saturated
  • sustaining
Good for
citedOccasions this gear suits — judged per model, or derived from its wattage, connectivity and category.
  • Live
  • Silent Recording
  • Live
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Blackstar St. James 100 vs ENGL Marty Friedman Inferno E766 — Shared Character & Differences — NodeTone