Played some great amps today. Diezel, Soldano, Bad Cat.

[JeffB]

Re: Played some great amps today. Diezel, Soldano, Bad Cat.

I cannot remember which one I played, but it was a 15W BadCat combo, and i was throughly unimpressed (especially for over 2K). I had the thing wide open (well almost wide open), and it just sounded like a slightly ballsier Vox to me..still kind of loose with a bit more "oomph" than a typical Vox.... but not Marshall-like at all really. After hearing all the talk about them on the net I was really disappointed. This was a combo though. perhaps the head and cab w/ right speakers would make a big dif.

That said, I just don't dig many El-84 amps period, so take that FWIW.

And I'm in agreeance regarding the Soldano. I'm not a big 6L6 fan, but Soldano (at least the SLO) is a different animal.

Great report Joe....

[drpietrzak]

Re: Played some great amps today. Diezel, Soldano, Bad Cat.

I liked the Bad Cat I tried. But, for the price was just not seeing the cost-tone ratio for me.

[Scott_F]

Re: Played some great amps today. Diezel, Soldano, Bad Cat.

If you keep in mind what Matchless and Bad Cat are all about, the Vox on steroids comparison holds pretty true. If you love the AC15 and want a more ruggedized, slightly ballsier version, those companies make it.

Different strokes for different folks. I dig these tones a lot.

[OlinMusic]

Re: Played some great amps today. Diezel, Soldano, Bad Cat.

I like the Diezels, but they kinda remind me of that focused Boogie tone, not really ready to go to a gig with that and NO Marshalls. I really realized it when I heard Neil Schon playing them. Great amps.

I LOVED THE VHTs, they are as toneful as a Marshall, but they have more. They are HIGH GAIN AND BROWN at the same time. I can't say enough good about them as High Gain amps. I only liked the Bogner XTC Classic more.

As far as the Soldanos, the jury is out, for me personally, but we all now they are amazing amps!

[Gearjoneser]

Re: Played some great amps today. Diezel, Soldano, Bad Cat.

One thing about the Bad Cat is there's a few 15W models, and some are voiced more like an AC-15. This one that I tried was the Hot Cat version, so it was designed for gain. I agree with some of the posts about it being too expensive for what it offers. Single channel amps have to be something that's exactly YOUR tone, or else they simply aren't worth that kind of money. The channel switchers are versatile enough to justify big money.......although these prices are starting to get ridiculous.....used CAR prices!

[philthis]

Re: Played some great amps today. Diezel, Soldano, Bad Cat.

great info Joneser, way to go!

[Kev]

Re: Played some great amps today. Diezel, Soldano, Bad Cat.

nice info! How does 5150 fit in :P

[Gearjoneser]

Re: Played some great amps today. Diezel, Soldano, Bad Cat.

nice info! How does 5150 fit in :P

5150's are pretty nice amps. The first year they came out, in the early 90's, I bought a brand new one, just because they were one of the few affordable amps that could do it all.

What separates amps like Bogners and Diezels from the 5150, is that their gain channels sound wider and and richer. The 5150 has a great clean/pushed clean channel, but when you go to the gain channel, the tone thins out a little.
The 5150 will also have more operating hiss when you stop playing. The superior design and components of the Bogners and Diezels allow it to be almost dead silent when you stop playing, even with the gain pretty high. They're also more versatile in their EQ. Still, 5150's are a worthy amp to own, especially since you can find them used for $600. At least Peavey was smart enough to use a big output transformer.