They all sound awesome. Similar but there's subtle differences in the flavor. It shines through when he combines all 3. Now I get his reasons. Thanks Pete!
Man, your videos are so easy to understand, so easy to enjoy, besides your ability as a musician you have gift as a teacher, never gets tedious or anything, really really good stuff!
Until I watched all the clips back to back, I thought you were just re-amping the same track. Then I realized you were playing the same riff for each amp. That really shows your consistency in playing riffs. You session monster you :)
Honestly, they all sounded fairly similar to me (in headphones at least) in the "mix" but out of the mix you could hear the intricacies much better. The Germino and SLO popped the most for me - although all amps didn't seem to be level matched and as you know, once we hear something louder, we often think "better."
Holy moley, that is an awesome piece you've put together for this demo. In the end, all the amps sound fantastic... I don't know that I could pick a favourite.
I was amazed by how open, big, but still clear the TopHat sounded, definitely one of my favourites for shure. The Germino, though, it's got that raunchy, tight, in your face VH1esque sound. Pair it with the SLO and you're good. Damn, I love amps and so do you Pete, I can really tell haha
With quality head phones I can see why the pt100 is your main squeeze. All of them sound incredible. Your knowledge and experience puts your credibility off the scale. Beutiful office and monster riffs I just absolutely love this channel. Don't worry about camera quality your an absolute authority on this subject! Many thanks for saving your subscribers time and money...💪🎸👂💣✌👍🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Loved the Top Hat's high end. The SLO's gravelly texture compared with the others' more sandy texture was readily apparent in the soloed track. The triple-tracked sound was (of course) the real standout. Thanks for the comparison using amps and talent that us mere mortals can only dream of possessing!
That Germino sounds crazy good! Also the blended tones where crushing I love to use multiple amps as well for my sound just adds more spectrum and girthyness
Loved them all, the Tophat and Garmino are my two favorites, I also have the Tophat Emplexador and just love it, especially blended with my Bogner Ubershall, great sounds ! Thanks Pete loved the video !
Fantastic, thanks Pete. Fascinating to hear the differences and how, when combined, they can compliment eachother. That tone in the last track was enormous!
Modded Germino all the way...gain, snap and articulation without the low sting fizz. I've always been a fan of extra filtering in 4 input 100 watters, both SB and SL with their fast attack... The Laboga was interesting as well.
I actually use two amps all the time, usually one wet and one dry but even when they're both dry I feel it fills out the the sound more. You hit it on the head when you said they complement each other and make up for the tones that the other doesn't have. Again thanks🎸
Great stuff Pete! All I can say is that this video tells me I made the right decision with the PT-100se. What an amp! I still love mine after all these years. Great video, stay healthy out there.
One of my first really good amps, I had one of the first made! Back when they came with american made 6L6’s from the factory! I wish I could remember what happened to it I have no memory of selling it
Thank you Pete for another great video. I would love to see an Amps in the Zone episode about the difference between setting up an amp in the room versus setting one up for recording. I often find that I need to compromise a certain amount of my comfort zone when recording (in my case using a modeler) because a mix requires different aspects of tone than when I am setting up a tone through my guitar cabs in the room. That means far less gain, bass, and a generally more narrow EQ to fit in a mix, especially a dense one. I notice that there is no real disparity between live videos of your tone (ie a video that includes room sound) and your recorded tone. Is it that your comfort zone tonally naturally fits into a mix or did you have to compromise and your ears adjusted? I find that I'm adjusting my ears and it has greatly influenced how I hear my own sound now. Anyhow, thank you again for the content and I wish you well.
Sweet...fun to watch/hear that tour. I think Mark Knopfler has been using a Soldano for years now, I only say that because most don't use Knopfler and a hi-gain amp in the same sentence; it just goes to show, Soldano isn't just for hi-gain purposes, something to be said if a guy like Knopfler is using it for Knopfler sounds. And adversely: I've recently heard 6L6 tubes getting saturated on an attenuated old Fender Deluxe and it sounded absolutely amazing. All tube path like a Plexi and also a non-master volume amp, so similar in those regards, but had that Fender warmth to it...without that attenuator it would have been impossible to be in the same room with it. But, damn, sounded so good.
Awesome video Pete 😎🤘 They all sounded cool but to me the Jose Modded Germino sounded the best, all raw & aggressive Marshall tone 👌😎 Makes me wanna mod my 82 JMP 2204 with a Jose mod 👍It did sound huge with them blended 👍 Mick Mars is one those guys who blends amps, I believe in his touring rack he has a modded Marshall JCM 800 which he says he uses that for the midrange, a SLO 100 for just the overall gain & saturation & then finish it of with a Rivera Knucklehead for that huge low end thump 👍 A really cool way of doing it, obiously all the super expensive high end rack stuff helps, but that's a different story 😅
My favorite standalone amp from your demonstrations was the Jose/Friedman modded Germino, hands down... that really tight, mids-focused sound is just killer to my ears. But when you did the blend of three amps at the end, that tone was HUGE!! Hard to beat that!!
Love the heavy riff in this one. Killer amps, and great video. I'm wanting to add some amps to my collection for mixing purposes, and really enjoyed hearing what you had to say!
Fun video Pete! All sounded great, the Engl module is very cool, held it's own against the big boys. I've got room for that Soldano if you need to hide it from the IRS or something ; )
Very cool Pete. I believe Mick Mars is another one of those players who used 6 or 7 different amp heads to get his massive tone when tracking. Of course...it's nice to have that many hi gain/boutique type of amps to select from if you got the $$$$$$$!!
I liked the Top Hat and the Germino most because I like Marshalls and mids but I can see why the Soldano might be handy too. It did sound great. The PT100 was nice and tight and still had the nice mids as well. All great amps there.
Wow...great comparison Pete. They all sound awesome. The Synergy Savage module is really attractive to me though. Definitely considering going for one.
All the amps sounded great , but the standout for me was the TopHat !! Maybe all that old vintage glass ??? who knows right . Great guitar nerd video for sure . Awesome Stuff Pete !!!!
Soldano for the win!!! I love a little sponge to my grind. I would definitely like a little more bottom end. Combinding them was the best. This is where Modelers kick butt. They allow for easy sampling of different combinations. I love adding a super reverb to a heavy sound amp to get clean definition spongeliness with monster grin. PT you are the best buddy I really appreciate your reviews and insights.
If you ever get the chance check out the Trace Elliot Speed Twin 100. Right up your alley. Bought it cheap with only an iPhone to test it with. Still not bored with it yet. Top Hat my fave too.
AS Always..A Great Video by Pete. To my ears (and thru my event 20/20 monitors) The best for this were the Soldano followed by the Germino. It seems you need an amp that end in the letter O to get the maximum aggressive Rock Tones. and btw: none of the tones were less than excellent,in my view.
Your channel is the best man. You get it, and actually have inspired me to start my own little humble channel. Keep up the good work, good guys win in the end....
Big grain vs. fine grain sound - I like to use the analogy of a hot-rodded 70s muscle car vs. a Lamborghini. Both sound awesome but have a totally different growl. Thanks for the comparison! As always on your channel super fun to watch and informative.
Wow Pete. You were right to be excited about that new camera. I can really tell the improvement in image quality. Good thinking on that. Glad you updated a different kind of gear ;-)
As weird it might seem, I’m surprised I dug the PT-100 second to the Soldano. The mere presence of the SLO was just unfair to these other amps LOL! The Germino really did remind me of Steve Vai’s José-modded Marshall, too!
I missed this one because I was busy grumbling on Anderton's new video how I thought a Genesis 550 I had for a week sucked, which surprised me because every Japanese guitar I have had before that was really good. Oh well. Coffee is almost working now, so i will not grumble here. P.S. I am noticing as the years go by, I am kind of getting immune to coffee. I used to drink a couple of cups before my watch at sea and be good to go. Not now. I woke up at 2am NZ time and could not get back to sleep. I do not know how you have the energy to make all these vids and keep coming up with fresh riff ideas etc. I am carrying a nasty spinal injury that keeps getting worse. Always sore and tired. People know I am doing okay if I am playing lots. When it gets really rough I hardly play at all. It makes me play more when i am feeling not too bad though, because I love guitar and miss it if I have a week or two not playing. I should have played more and worked less. 18 years in fisheries here in NZ. I used to take 1000s of dollars worth of guitar gear to sea with me, but hardly got to play it, because it was a minimum of 84 hours per week non stop for months out there. I shake my head when people say hard work pays off. It does, but it has to be smart, so it is you who reaps the fruit of your labour. Slaving as crew or even as an officer like I was mostly paid off for the company, not me. Lucky I am in NZ though. This country has your back pretty well if you get disabled from working. Not sure what's next. Being a UA-camr ain't it. I tried my hand at vodka making which is legal here. I do not drink and and did not feel comfortable supplying it. Good reviews though. Really interesting and it takes some serious know how to make a good vodka. I am pretty much early retired now at 51. Too early to be laid up injured etc. Just sticking with the PT treatment and hoping they come up with a new way of fixing spines etc. In the meantime i am having yet another crack at trying to play Yngwie stuff. Picking patterns into muscle memory seems to be a big part of it, rather than focusing on what the left hand is doing like I tend to because I am a leftie who plays right handed (left hand can't be leading the way when trying to shred -- right hand has to be the boss). Gain on a Marshall? Mids. Pushing that mids control can add a lot of gain -- on the JMP four hole ones at least. I guess if you need it scooped you can do it after the amp in post or something, but do it with the mids control and you lose that snarling gain. My amp is a JMP50 replica. No matter how modern the distortion is that I hit it with, it still sounds old school and loose. It really sings though, because its overdrive creates all those harmonic overtones etc. I am thinking of modding it, but it has been over ten years since I attacked any of my amps with a soldering iron. I won't let myself pay somebody to do it, because i know I can do it myself if I can find my amp modding hat in all my stuff, i.e, remembering all the things I used to know about Marshall amps from trying stuff i read on Metroamps forum etc. Like anything we learn, it is a case of use it or lose it. Right now I am having to relearn layouts and schematics so i can change it to split cathode from shared and add a PPIMV etc. I want the amp to be able to still sound legit 60s Plexi, but also cover tighter JCM800 territory for when I have more energy and find my heavy metal hat in all my stuff :D
@@PeteThorn Better than a Rusty Cage though huh? I had one of the Elegant series Les Paul guitars in the 90s. Way too bling, but it was a bling time I guess. I left it on a table in the mess and went to make a coffee. Ship rolled and the guitar slid over an ash tray. We used to be able to smoke in the mess back then. Burned a whole in the back of my shiny new Custom Shop LP. Never spent that much on a guitar again. I am too clumsy to be trusted with an expensive Les Paul. I stick with my 90s Studio model that now has stainless frets, because it does not matter how many times I ding it up. Never broken a head stock though. Touch wood. :D I spent all that money on traveling. Lived like there was no tomorrow and I would always be at sea. No regrets because travel is great, but sometimes I think about what my guitar gear would be like if I had GAS then like now days. Being obsessed over guitar gear was not quite such a thing before the internet I think. At least lately i am playing at least as much as I am checking out guitar stuff on UA-cam etc. The other thing I make a point of doing is listening to records. With UA-cam making so much stuff available with a single click, I tend to forget to chuck an album on. Records are really good for getting me more into playing and trying to learn stuff or how to get certain tones etc. Like a benchmark to aim for I guess. Same with copying player's solos. I do not want to be clone of Randy or somebody, but I learn a massive amount from learning a player's stuff note for note. Stuff I would not think of doing myself. And, yeah, you taught me to finally play Eruption properly and stop BS'ing it. Cheers for that. Black Star next? :D
Love the sound of each one of those beauties; maybe the Soldano a little more. Pete, you're a genius tonehound; no neeed to justify your arsenal as we're all envoius. Great job!
Dude I have used that grain analogy for ever and know one ever knows what I'm talking about..... I usually compare it to gravel......for example a marshall jcm or jmp is like number 57 or 2b stone.....pedals/ss/digital amps are like sand, the Friedman small box is more like limestone, the soldano is more like river rock..... My dirty shirley has a coarseness in the grain of its distortion as well, I think a HUGE part of this is the 5881/6l6wgc sovtek power tubes used in both the soldano and dirty shirley, they have a coarseness to them, and a sort of extra aggressive sizzle on the top end, almost like the harmonics on top of the notes are serrated...... I don't know how else to describe it....... Anyways when I mention the grain analogy everyone looks at me like I'm dumb
Pete awesome video - was contemplating a Germino recently and a Metropolous DVL1 suddenly became available - I’d love to hear your take on a Metropolous someday
Amazing how similar they can all be made to sound. The PT15, Laboga, Germino had more density in the mids and low mids to my ears. Finally, a good recording of the updated Soldano - most of the recordings have been harsh. The one word that I use to describe the Soldano is thrust. The mids in Mike Soldano's creation just go right through you. Great comparison - nothing sounded short of amazing. The EVH guitar definitely lends more low end to everything.
I liked the PT 100 and Germino. Its just when he hammers the e string, you can hear that clear dropped D blurp blurp blurp - its tight but got the perfect grind
For that riff I would choose the Soldano followed by the Germino. They all work though. (Edit: the triple track is genius and shows off the character of each amp wonderfully; huge sound).
I play an SLO 30 so I'm perhaps a little biased but for me they're close to the perfect all around amp. They're so harmonically rich and dense but at the same time they're unbelievably dynamic and sensitive. You can literally "clean up" the amp by just picking lightly, and or roll back your guitar volume and it is just so expressive and emotive. Truly a joy to play at low to medium gain as well. So yeah the Soldano wins for me.
Common thread here is if you put a mic anywhere near anything you play it's gonna sound amazing. As always, thanks for being a fellow geek Pete, awesome video!
Sounds huge with the amps blended in! On its own the Soldano was definitely above the others.
Surprised how much I really liked the Top Hat. It was a bit darker sounding but I really dig it!
I think I preferred the Top Hat over the rest
My favorite too
Agreed, chewy, meaty, but still clear though seemingly boosted in the lower mids. My favorite as well.
Pete, your ability to play a riff with consistent tone and technique, not to mention timbre and timing, is amazing.
Thanks!!
Top hat and Soldano are my favorites
The SLO100 sounds most harmonically rich, punchy and clear to my ears. Love that amp. The blended mix is sweet! 👍
They all sound awesome. Similar but there's subtle differences in the flavor. It shines through when he combines all 3. Now I get his reasons. Thanks Pete!
I like them all! I can see why Pete keeps them all even if the difference is subtle. That was fun listening. Thanks Pete!
Man, your videos are so easy to understand, so easy to enjoy, besides your ability as a musician you have gift as a teacher, never gets tedious or anything, really really good stuff!
Thank you Sam!
Really liked the Laboga and Soldano. Stood out to me!
solo them separately make all the difference to me how you show and explain everything makes your vids the best thanks for showing us
THAT SOLDANO!!! Loved those ever since hearing Black Francis of Pixies use one live. Such a great sound. Great video!
Until I watched all the clips back to back, I thought you were just re-amping the same track. Then I realized you were playing the same riff for each amp. That really shows your consistency in playing riffs. You session monster you :)
Honestly, they all sounded fairly similar to me (in headphones at least) in the "mix" but out of the mix you could hear the intricacies much better. The Germino and SLO popped the most for me - although all amps didn't seem to be level matched and as you know, once we hear something louder, we often think "better."
Holy moley, that is an awesome piece you've put together for this demo. In the end, all the amps sound fantastic... I don't know that I could pick a favourite.
If anyone asks, "what do you need all those amps for?", they're watching the wrong f*cking UA-cam channel. They can go learn to make glitter tumblers.
Haha!!! Glitter Tumblers!!
Nice one.... although, i do like the glitter tumblers, too... 😉
“Why all the hair? Why all the pearls? Why anything!?”
1. Germino. 2. PT 100W. 3. TopHat. I like a little darker with sweet midrange. Great video Pete!
This is exactly what I thought too.
I was amazed by how open, big, but still clear the TopHat sounded, definitely one of my favourites for shure. The Germino, though, it's got that raunchy, tight, in your face VH1esque sound. Pair it with the SLO and you're good.
Damn, I love amps and so do you Pete, I can really tell haha
If i'd had all those amps with cabinets, the whole city would be marching with pitchforks and torches, screaming and banging on my door.
Man, Soldanos always have such a visceral snarl to the sound that just makes me all excited inside like a kid
With quality head phones I can see why the pt100 is your main squeeze. All of them sound incredible. Your knowledge and experience puts your credibility off the scale. Beutiful office and monster riffs I just absolutely love this channel. Don't worry about camera quality your an absolute authority on this subject! Many thanks for saving your subscribers time and money...💪🎸👂💣✌👍🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Thanks Pete. Hope you have a great day.
Solo’d amp time stamps
PT100 12:37
PT15 12:52
Engl Savage Synergy 13:10
LaBoga Solo 13:28
Top Hat Emplexador 13:47
Germino 14:05
Soldano 14:22
That SLO, man...sheesh...just awesome.
Loved the Top Hat's high end. The SLO's gravelly texture compared with the others' more sandy texture was readily apparent in the soloed track. The triple-tracked sound was (of course) the real standout. Thanks for the comparison using amps and talent that us mere mortals can only dream of possessing!
Love your videos man - you have a great way of describing tone in such an articulate way for all of us tube amp nerds. They all sound great!
Thanks Pete that was very informative,and all of the amps had their own unique flavor. Nice Riffs too.
That Germino sounds crazy good!
Also the blended tones where crushing
I love to use multiple amps as well for my sound just adds more spectrum and girthyness
Love this series🙂
Came for sounds, replayed for the riffs as always 👍👍👍👍
I liked the Germino and Soldano the best in different ways. I don't think there's a bad sound in the bunch.
Loved them all, the Tophat and Garmino are my two favorites, I also have the Tophat Emplexador and just love it, especially blended with my Bogner Ubershall, great sounds ! Thanks Pete loved the video !
Fantastic, thanks Pete. Fascinating to hear the differences and how, when combined, they can compliment eachother. That tone in the last track was enormous!
I loved the PT-100 and the Germino.
Best demos on youtube!
Modded Germino all the way...gain, snap and articulation without the low sting fizz. I've always been a fan of extra filtering in 4 input 100 watters, both SB and SL with their fast attack... The Laboga was interesting as well.
I actually use two amps all the time, usually one wet and one dry but even when they're both dry I feel it fills out the the sound more. You hit it on the head when you said they complement each other and make up for the tones that the other doesn't have. Again thanks🎸
Very cool video! I think my favourite was the Top Hat. Love that full bodied sound.
Great stuff Pete! All I can say is that this video tells me I made the right decision with the PT-100se. What an amp! I still love mine after all these years. Great video, stay healthy out there.
Great video Pete, that Germino and Soldano really stood out to my ears but all great sounding amps!
+1
They all sound great! That's a fantastic collection, I can't imagine a more fun room to be in. I don't think I'd ever leave LOL!
BTW, does Dave still do mods for the general public?
You're the first other person I've heard talk about big and small grain gain before I'm quite excited about it
Perfect Blend! Picked the best ones to blend for my ears... Awesome stuff once again. Would like to hear a block letter 5150 added someday
One of my first really good amps, I had one of the first made! Back when they came with american made 6L6’s from the factory! I wish I could remember what happened to it I have no memory of selling it
Love type of video. Thought the laboga and tophat were surprisingly chunky. Awesome
I dig the tune just as much as the amp comparisons! Such a great song writer man. Longtime viewer of you channel. Always great to watch and learn👍
Great job Pete, I learned sooo much. There are subtle tones but they all sounded great! Killer tone when all mixed...awesome A+
Thanks!!
The SLO sounds SO thick! Love the midrange on those amps. PT100 was great too. Great video Pete! More stuff like this please!
Love the Germino
Thank you Pete for another great video. I would love to see an Amps in the Zone episode about the difference between setting up an amp in the room versus setting one up for recording. I often find that I need to compromise a certain amount of my comfort zone when recording (in my case using a modeler) because a mix requires different aspects of tone than when I am setting up a tone through my guitar cabs in the room. That means far less gain, bass, and a generally more narrow EQ to fit in a mix, especially a dense one. I notice that there is no real disparity between live videos of your tone (ie a video that includes room sound) and your recorded tone. Is it that your comfort zone tonally naturally fits into a mix or did you have to compromise and your ears adjusted? I find that I'm adjusting my ears and it has greatly influenced how I hear my own sound now. Anyhow, thank you again for the content and I wish you well.
Sweet...fun to watch/hear that tour. I think Mark Knopfler has been using a Soldano for years now, I only say that because most don't use Knopfler and a hi-gain amp in the same sentence; it just goes to show, Soldano isn't just for hi-gain purposes, something to be said if a guy like Knopfler is using it for Knopfler sounds.
And adversely: I've recently heard 6L6 tubes getting saturated on an attenuated old Fender Deluxe and it sounded absolutely amazing. All tube path like a Plexi and also a non-master volume amp, so similar in those regards, but had that Fender warmth to it...without that attenuator it would have been impossible to be in the same room with it. But, damn, sounded so good.
Awesome video Pete 😎🤘 They all sounded cool but to me the Jose Modded Germino sounded the best, all raw & aggressive Marshall tone 👌😎 Makes me wanna mod my 82 JMP 2204 with a Jose mod 👍It did sound huge with them blended 👍 Mick Mars is one those guys who blends amps, I believe in his touring rack he has a modded Marshall JCM 800 which he says he uses that for the midrange, a SLO 100 for just the overall gain & saturation & then finish it of with a Rivera Knucklehead for that huge low end thump 👍 A really cool way of doing it, obiously all the super expensive high end rack stuff helps, but that's a different story 😅
My favorite standalone amp from your demonstrations was the Jose/Friedman modded Germino, hands down... that really tight, mids-focused sound is just killer to my ears. But when you did the blend of three amps at the end, that tone was HUGE!! Hard to beat that!!
Love the heavy riff in this one. Killer amps, and great video. I'm wanting to add some amps to my collection for mixing purposes, and really enjoyed hearing what you had to say!
The labago and germino were very percussive. Love them both.
Really cool video and loved hearing the different tones. Killer lick, as well. Awesome content as always Pete!!
Fun video Pete! All sounded great, the Engl module is very cool, held it's own against the big boys. I've got room for that Soldano if you need to hide it from the IRS or something ; )
Very cool Pete. I believe Mick Mars is another one of those players who used 6 or 7 different amp heads to get his massive tone when tracking. Of course...it's nice to have that many hi gain/boutique type of amps to select from if you got the $$$$$$$!!
Love that riff!!!!
Germino for the win! Had no idea... Thank you Pete!
As a 5150 III owner I’m particularly looking forward to this one Pete! 😃
I love these amps in the zone videos! I think my favourite is the Germino, and I also like the PT15. Great work Pete!
I liked the Top Hat and the Germino most because I like Marshalls and mids but I can see why the Soldano might be handy too. It did sound great. The PT100 was nice and tight and still had the nice mids as well. All great amps there.
Still yet to try a Soldano. I don't play high gain all that much. I really like the way they sound. I really want to try one...
Crikey! That blended version was amazing - my favourite amps were PT100, Germino and laboga! Thought I would have liked the SLO more!
Thank you Pete !! This video is so amazing
Wow...great comparison Pete. They all sound awesome. The Synergy Savage module is really attractive to me though. Definitely considering going for one.
I liked the 15 watt amp - way more than I thought I would. Maybe something in the circuit or smaller iron but it sounds awesome.
Laboga has some interesting grainy texture in sound, really dig it.
Top Hat - sounds SO good!
All the amps sounded great , but the standout for me was the TopHat !! Maybe all that old vintage glass ??? who knows right .
Great guitar nerd video for sure . Awesome Stuff Pete !!!!
Awesome. The PT15 sounds great to me.
Soldano for the win!!! I love a little sponge to my grind. I would definitely like a little more bottom end. Combinding them was the best. This is where Modelers kick butt. They allow for easy sampling of different combinations. I love adding a super reverb to a heavy sound amp to get clean definition spongeliness with monster grin. PT you are the best buddy I really appreciate your reviews and insights.
They're all AWESOME amplifiers & I have to say that your PT 100 is basically the best of everything!
I liked them all. Great tones out of all of them.
If you ever get the chance check out the Trace Elliot Speed Twin 100. Right up your alley. Bought it cheap with only an iPhone to test it with. Still not bored with it yet. Top Hat my fave too.
AS Always..A Great Video by Pete. To my ears (and thru my event 20/20 monitors) The best for this were the Soldano followed by the Germino. It seems you need an amp that end in the letter O to get the maximum aggressive Rock Tones. and btw: none of the tones were less than excellent,in my view.
exactly what i needed. thank you for the effort of recording and demonstrating.
really nice.
Greetingz,
Mariusz
Your channel is the best man. You get it, and actually have inspired me to start my own little humble channel. Keep up the good work, good guys win in the end....
Big grain vs. fine grain sound - I like to use the analogy of a hot-rodded 70s muscle car vs. a Lamborghini. Both sound awesome but have a totally different growl. Thanks for the comparison! As always on your channel super fun to watch and informative.
PT15, Soldano, Laboga. They sound killer but I'm biased i like loose sounding amps. And am a Soldano owner. Great job Pete.
I have that emplexador and it sounds amazing
Wow Pete. You were right to be excited about that new camera. I can really tell the improvement in image quality. Good thinking on that. Glad you updated a different kind of gear ;-)
I didn’t actually get it yet! Just used lots of contrast. New camera soon
As weird it might seem, I’m surprised I dug the PT-100 second to the Soldano. The mere presence of the SLO was just unfair to these other amps LOL!
The Germino really did remind me of Steve Vai’s José-modded Marshall, too!
Thankyou for all your great videos, no EVH 5150 lll 50 watt high gain on this video
With Soldano using 6L6's I always thought of the SLO 100 as more of a hot-rodded Fender. 6L6's are good for a tight, punchy headroom tho...
I missed this one because I was busy grumbling on Anderton's new video how I thought a Genesis 550 I had for a week sucked, which surprised me because every Japanese guitar I have had before that was really good. Oh well. Coffee is almost working now, so i will not grumble here. P.S. I am noticing as the years go by, I am kind of getting immune to coffee. I used to drink a couple of cups before my watch at sea and be good to go. Not now.
I woke up at 2am NZ time and could not get back to sleep. I do not know how you have the energy to make all these vids and keep coming up with fresh riff ideas etc. I am carrying a nasty spinal injury that keeps getting worse. Always sore and tired. People know I am doing okay if I am playing lots. When it gets really rough I hardly play at all. It makes me play more when i am feeling not too bad though, because I love guitar and miss it if I have a week or two not playing. I should have played more and worked less. 18 years in fisheries here in NZ. I used to take 1000s of dollars worth of guitar gear to sea with me, but hardly got to play it, because it was a minimum of 84 hours per week non stop for months out there. I shake my head when people say hard work pays off. It does, but it has to be smart, so it is you who reaps the fruit of your labour. Slaving as crew or even as an officer like I was mostly paid off for the company, not me.
Lucky I am in NZ though. This country has your back pretty well if you get disabled from working.
Not sure what's next. Being a UA-camr ain't it. I tried my hand at vodka making which is legal here. I do not drink and and did not feel comfortable supplying it. Good reviews though. Really interesting and it takes some serious know how to make a good vodka. I am pretty much early retired now at 51. Too early to be laid up injured etc. Just sticking with the PT treatment and hoping they come up with a new way of fixing spines etc. In the meantime i am having yet another crack at trying to play Yngwie stuff. Picking patterns into muscle memory seems to be a big part of it, rather than focusing on what the left hand is doing like I tend to because I am a leftie who plays right handed (left hand can't be leading the way when trying to shred -- right hand has to be the boss).
Gain on a Marshall? Mids. Pushing that mids control can add a lot of gain -- on the JMP four hole ones at least. I guess if you need it scooped you can do it after the amp in post or something, but do it with the mids control and you lose that snarling gain. My amp is a JMP50 replica. No matter how modern the distortion is that I hit it with, it still sounds old school and loose. It really sings though, because its overdrive creates all those harmonic overtones etc. I am thinking of modding it, but it has been over ten years since I attacked any of my amps with a soldering iron. I won't let myself pay somebody to do it, because i know I can do it myself if I can find my amp modding hat in all my stuff, i.e, remembering all the things I used to know about Marshall amps from trying stuff i read on Metroamps forum etc. Like anything we learn, it is a case of use it or lose it. Right now I am having to relearn layouts and schematics so i can change it to split cathode from shared and add a PPIMV etc. I want the amp to be able to still sound legit 60s Plexi, but also cover tighter JCM800 territory for when I have more energy and find my heavy metal hat in all my stuff :D
The sea can be rough on guitars! Rusty strings! 😛
@@PeteThorn Better than a Rusty Cage though huh?
I had one of the Elegant series Les Paul guitars in the 90s. Way too bling, but it was a bling time I guess. I left it on a table in the mess and went to make a coffee. Ship rolled and the guitar slid over an ash tray. We used to be able to smoke in the mess back then. Burned a whole in the back of my shiny new Custom Shop LP. Never spent that much on a guitar again. I am too clumsy to be trusted with an expensive Les Paul. I stick with my 90s Studio model that now has stainless frets, because it does not matter how many times I ding it up. Never broken a head stock though. Touch wood. :D
I spent all that money on traveling. Lived like there was no tomorrow and I would always be at sea. No regrets because travel is great, but sometimes I think about what my guitar gear would be like if I had GAS then like now days. Being obsessed over guitar gear was not quite such a thing before the internet I think. At least lately i am playing at least as much as I am checking out guitar stuff on UA-cam etc. The other thing I make a point of doing is listening to records. With UA-cam making so much stuff available with a single click, I tend to forget to chuck an album on. Records are really good for getting me more into playing and trying to learn stuff or how to get certain tones etc. Like a benchmark to aim for I guess. Same with copying player's solos. I do not want to be clone of Randy or somebody, but I learn a massive amount from learning a player's stuff note for note. Stuff I would not think of doing myself. And, yeah, you taught me to finally play Eruption properly and stop BS'ing it. Cheers for that. Black Star next? :D
Love the sound of each one of those beauties; maybe the Soldano a little more. Pete, you're a genius tonehound; no neeed to justify your arsenal as we're all envoius. Great job!
Thanks!
Dude I have used that grain analogy for ever and know one ever knows what I'm talking about..... I usually compare it to gravel......for example a marshall jcm or jmp is like number 57 or 2b stone.....pedals/ss/digital amps are like sand, the Friedman small box is more like limestone, the soldano is more like river rock..... My dirty shirley has a coarseness in the grain of its distortion as well, I think a HUGE part of this is the 5881/6l6wgc sovtek power tubes used in both the soldano and dirty shirley, they have a coarseness to them, and a sort of extra aggressive sizzle on the top end, almost like the harmonics on top of the notes are serrated...... I don't know how else to describe it....... Anyways when I mention the grain analogy everyone looks at me like I'm dumb
Pete awesome video - was contemplating a Germino recently and a Metropolous DVL1 suddenly became available - I’d love to hear your take on a Metropolous someday
George’s amp builds are great
I preferred the Top Hat amp, which was quite surprising. Thought for sure Mr. Soldano would crush everyone else. GREAT video.
I remember you said you had a JCM 2000. My favorite. That be great to see you work on that.
Amazing how similar they can all be made to sound. The PT15, Laboga, Germino had more density in the mids and low mids to my ears. Finally, a good recording of the updated Soldano - most of the recordings have been harsh. The one word that I use to describe the Soldano is thrust. The mids in Mike Soldano's creation just go right through you. Great comparison - nothing sounded short of amazing. The EVH guitar definitely lends more low end to everything.
I liked the PT 100 and Germino. Its just when he hammers the e string, you can hear that clear dropped D blurp blurp blurp - its tight but got the perfect grind
Awesome video Pete. Would've loved to have seen an EVH somewhere. I had to leave after SLO to get a coffee. lol
That was fun! Great stuff and a proper way to demo. Kudos!
Thats freaking bad ass!!! THANK YOU!!
PT 100 AND SOLDANO
For that riff I would choose the Soldano followed by the Germino. They all work though. (Edit: the triple track is genius and shows off the character of each amp wonderfully; huge sound).
I play an SLO 30 so I'm perhaps a little biased but for me they're close to the perfect all around amp. They're so harmonically rich and dense but at the same time they're unbelievably dynamic and sensitive. You can literally "clean up" the amp by just picking lightly, and or roll back your guitar volume and it is just so expressive and emotive. Truly a joy to play at low to medium gain as well. So yeah the Soldano wins for me.
Like the Laboga actually. Was thinking about getting a caiman 50. Great job as always Pete.
I was digging the Laboga too, even though it seemed to have less gain dialed in.
That Top Hat sounds amazing!
Great video as always Pete 👍
Common thread here is if you put a mic anywhere near anything you play it's gonna sound amazing. As always, thanks for being a fellow geek Pete, awesome video!
They all sound great, but there's something about the PT15. I don't what it is, but it sounds so clear.