Always amazed by how nice these sound, clean and overdriven. Too bad everyone knows now, they can't be had for pennies anymore! Great video, keep making quality content!
I got mine for $300 as the 212 combo. It arrived damaged so eBay granted a full refund. Hope it keeps on chugging cuz I’m not trying to pay $600-800 to replace it.
+Quattro 4 wow, I think a lot of people would be interested by a clone of this amp. I don't think there is any, I saw one only for the preamp not the whole amplifier. Keep up the good work!
Finally! I wished you guys to do this video since I noticed this amp in the background during one of your first videos. Great demo of one of the greatest solid state beasts, ever.
Nice, you guys do great demos. I have a soft spot in my heart for these old solid state dinosaurs. I have a 70's solid state Peavey head that sounds alot like a Beta. They just have the nastiest, wooliest distortion. Fun amps!
It's a 1978 Mark III Standard. Crank the gain, bass and mids on both channels and it's has a similar tone. Doesn't sound particularly good for much else IMO though. If you look you can find them for 100-200 bucks. I wouldn't ever pay more than that.
Steve Floyd I'll keep my eye on them! I have a Musician 400 but it's a different pony than my Beta Lead Combo. I heard the Century 200 Bass Series and the Mark IV Bass head before, also great sounding heads. Big up for the ol' SS PV gears!
andrás schóber cool! The musician 400 is a cool amp, kind of weird sounding but they sure shot for the stars with those things! Always nice to talk to someone who is in to these old solid state monsters! haha.
Outstanding review ! there are amazing underrated solid state amps i have an Orange crush pro amp , sounds very similar to the Sunn beta ! A Review of the Orange crush pro would be awesome ! thnx !
Sunn Beta Lead with CMOS technology.....Ceramic metal oxide semiconductor...Set your level and drive first then turn up the volume...totally backwards from NORMAL amps....I like keeping one channel clean and the other one as dirty as I can get it!!
Nice demo but you left out one really cool thing about the amp. It can clean up like a tube amp when you roll down the guitar volume. It's a really cool, really versitile and unique amp.
I get one for $60 dollars just the only problem its that its not loud. I dont know whats wrong with them but my tech says its a fabric issue. I can use it in my room at Level 10 and distort amazing . Its good as a practice amp . does any happend the same that me , do you fixed, how ? Saludos desde México
How were you able to crank the master to 8 or even 5, and not blow your eardrums out? I can't put mine past 2 in a small room and I like my stuff loud as hell. I Loooooove this amp. Nice demo.
they loaded the amp down and used an impulse response (basically a cab emulation) so the recording is silent, they can crank the amp and lower the signal on their recording interface or DAW
+Félix Deschambault toutes nos vidéos en version française sont dans la playlist "French version". Le sunn beta n'est pas dans cette playlist car on ne faisait pas encore de version française à ce moment là. Il ya des sous titres par contre.
Sunn Beta Lead with CMOS( Ceramic Metal Oxide Semiconductor) Technology. The knobs are what they seem, they are like graphic equalizers. Set the Drive and then the level first, then volume...set the volume low and bring it up slow. I use one channel for clean and let the second channel stay as dirty as I need it......2 12" Eminence speakers with HUGE square drivers set at an unusual angle......Watch for falling objects on your shelves!!!
Hi. It was said he used a Sunn-Beta Lead head driving 4X12 Peavey cabinets but it's just speculations and if played it was just for some live shows. It was never part of his ''official'' rig.
Don't know how you got a beta in europe. I've been interested in them for a while and have never seen a single sunn product pop up for sale. That being said it sounds pretty amazing.
Decouverte de votre chaîne a l'instant car je recherchais des infos sur les amplis sunn et me voila bien servis avec un bon accent anglais a la française ;)
Hi. Thanks for the great review. One question: did you plug the speaker output directly into the Torpedo Live? The reason I ask is that it seems that the Sunn Beta Lead is 4 ohm and the Torpedo Live has an 8 ohm input, and if you know if this would be a problem? Thanks!
+Tim Ellegaard as it is a solid state amp there is no worry about mismatching the impedance. You will just get a bit less power output when you increase cabinet impedance. It is not like a tube amp in this regard where mismatching the impedance is a very bad idea!
Hey guys I really hope you can read this. I'm a brazilian guitar player and I'm going to France in April. I'd like to know how can I get my hands around one of these amps, the Sunn Beta Lead. I know they are hard to find, but are there any websites or places you can point me and make it easier for me to find them? Thanks very much. By the way, nice review and channel. Just Subscribed.
+CalifornianSoul it's not easy to find one in good shape. The websites to find used stuff in France are: fr.audiofanzine.com/ , www.zikinf.com/ and www.leboncoin.fr/ . I hope it will help! Thanks!
Rob so the Beta Lead and Beta Bass are the same amp? Is reverb the only difference between the two because the Beta Basses seem to sell for less. Is the Beta Bass okay for guitar?
+TimB4305 everything is the same but the frequency response of the eq which was tweaked for a bass guitar. I played on a sunn beta bass and didn't really find it different from the lead. And you won't miss the reverb as it is a crappy one.
Hated this amp. Bought one new in 1973ish. The amp had no presence, even a solid state hohner amp blew it away. I traded it for a 50 watt marshall jmp and never looked back. To be fair, the amp sounded good in the showroom but failed at the gig(s).
agreed, i still own beta series, and use it for synth. Love sunn amps, have had a slew, but the betas are by far the worst in the fleet and the distortions are horrific.
I'm glad that it's a matter of taste. So i had the chance to get mine even though there are hardly any of them for sale around here. I really like it a lot! Even though i got two really "nice" sounding Tube amps... This one is not about "nice" it's really nasty loud as hell and bad ass! Maybe you had to grow up in the 90s to like it...
The amp sounds very nice, if you want to hear more of it listen to Nirvana live at the Pine Street Theatre. What I was referring too is these guys can barely speak English and can barely play guitar. I've been playing guitar for 1 year and I can guarantee I can play the first song (which is School by Nirvana) better than them.
![Sunn Beta Lead - amazing solid state amp [grunge, doom, stoner, drone, sludge]](/img/n.gif)
This is an absolute tone monster of an amp. I now have to find one.
+TimB4305 sorry for that! is it difficult to find where you leave?
2 Guys 1 Amp yes, these are impossible to find in Australia. How much do they sell for in Europe?
+TimB4305 between 400 and 800€ I would say.
Good news, they're being reissued.
Bad news, nowhere near as cheap as they used to be unfortunately.
Always amazed by how nice these sound, clean and overdriven. Too bad everyone knows now, they can't be had for pennies anymore! Great video, keep making quality content!
+britlitemail Thanks!!!👍
I got mine for $300 as the 212 combo. It arrived damaged so eBay granted a full refund. Hope it keeps on chugging cuz I’m not trying to pay $600-800 to replace it.
The Ref Fang and Nirvana opening riffs are reasons to subscribe on their own.
Super démo, merci beaucoup ! :)
Merci!
Love this amp. Working on the schematics and layout for a diy clone build.
+Quattro 4 wow, I think a lot of people would be interested by a clone of this amp. I don't think there is any, I saw one only for the preamp not the whole amplifier.
Keep up the good work!
Hey is this for sale yet?
@@AudioStorm1980 hillbish designs makes sunn beta amps
@@petheato3291 and hilbish's stuff is great. I have a pb-10 that I use a 100w tube slave with.
When you love an amp brand so much you name your band after it
Jack Towers mastodon pfp 🤘
I'm gonna start a band called the Laneys
@@dylandenney3980 I’ll name mine The Hiwatts
I have it tattooed on my shoulder lol
Finally! I wished you guys to do this video since I noticed this amp in the background during one of your first videos. Great demo of one of the greatest solid state beasts, ever.
+Péter Nagy-Miklós thanks! Sure it is one best SS amp!
I have lost track of how many times I have viewed this video!! Sounds amazing!! Great job!!
This head sound killer
+jean-baptiste bienvenu merci!
La Jaguar est de 63 !!
Merci les guyz !!! Et je kiffe toujours autant vos vidéos ! C'est du beau boulot !
I found one of these in the trash by the curb one day several years ago. Im not sure if it works but i still have it
NJ area?
Probably mine
love all of the tones you're getting in your reviews! would be awesome to see one for the Orange CR120
+Paul Probst thanks!
Why not, you have one?
I wish dude, they are getting a lot of praise recently
Paul Probst Check out Dave Simpson
Just ordered myself a Beta, so I guess I’ll just listen to these demos on loop in the meantime 😝 it’s ridiculous how good this amp sounds
McLean Effect Pedals lol same
@@nickwolfe2848 congrats! You’re going to love it
Sounds absolutely beautiful.
+wowzabowzaable thank you! 😍 don't forget to subscribe if you want to support us for more 😊
You guys always have the best amp demos!
Nice, you guys do great demos. I have a soft spot in my heart for these old solid state dinosaurs. I have a 70's solid state Peavey head that sounds alot like a Beta. They just have the nastiest, wooliest distortion. Fun amps!
Which one is that Peavey?
It's a 1978 Mark III Standard. Crank the gain, bass and mids on both channels and it's has a similar tone. Doesn't sound particularly good for much else IMO though. If you look you can find them for 100-200 bucks. I wouldn't ever pay more than that.
Thanks!
Steve Floyd I'll keep my eye on them! I have a Musician 400 but it's a different pony than my Beta Lead Combo. I heard the Century 200 Bass Series and the Mark IV Bass head before, also great sounding heads. Big up for the ol' SS PV gears!
andrás schóber
cool! The musician 400 is a cool amp, kind of weird sounding but they sure shot for the stars with those things! Always nice to talk to someone who is in to these old solid state monsters! haha.
Just seeing that amp gives me happy feelings from my youth!
It's my old jag 63 sold to Xavier !!! very nice video, happy for Xavier and you !!! christophe and xavier, see you soon ;-)
Fred MUGSLUG Oui elle déchire cette gratte !! See U you soon !!
+Fred MUGSLUG Merde c'était pas une reissue? Ahahahah
Merci Fred!
Outstanding review ! there are amazing underrated solid state amps i have an Orange crush pro amp , sounds very similar to the Sunn beta ! A Review of the Orange crush pro would be awesome ! thnx !
+motorrebell thank you! Yes a well designed solid state amp can sound really good 😊
not quite underrated these days
Great video guys. When are you going to do more? I really enjoy your videos
such a harsh distortion... totally unique sound
Anyone have the OEM footswitch pedal that came with the Sunn Beta Lead series?
Looking for...thanks in advance.
sounds sick with jag
+aquarius 👍✌️
Sunn Beta Lead with CMOS technology.....Ceramic metal oxide semiconductor...Set your level and drive first then turn up the volume...totally backwards from NORMAL amps....I like keeping one channel clean and the other one as dirty as I can get it!!
Greetings from La Paz, Bolivia!!! 🤘 🇧🇴
They are great amps!
Hi. How dirty and powerfull is the distortion on this amp ? Thanks
I had one that squeeled and hissed like crazy. I could dial in a good tone with effort
Nice demo but you left out one really cool thing about the amp. It can clean up like a tube amp when you roll down the guitar volume. It's a really cool, really versitile and unique amp.
Wow. It sounds glorious ✨🙌✨
...love the accent! A solid state umph...
This was really helpful
+James Christopher nice to hear! Thanks
one of the guitarists from red fang use this
+NewYork Tattoo Yes! Great band!
oh wow , it is such a worth amps to have now
can i buy urs
That jaguar lived by its name, it bites!
I get one for $60 dollars just the only problem its that its not loud. I dont know whats wrong with them but my tech says its a fabric issue. I can use it in my room at Level 10 and distort amazing . Its good as a practice amp . does any happend the same that me , do you fixed, how ?
Saludos desde México
I just bought a silverface Concert Lead yesterday, I can't wait to bust some windows out with that thing.
+ScreamingBonesJones very good choice! 👍✌️
Sounds great 👍
How were you able to crank the master to 8 or even 5, and not blow your eardrums out? I can't put mine past 2 in a small room and I like my stuff loud as hell. I Loooooove this amp. Nice demo.
+Rob thank you!
they loaded the amp down and used an impulse response (basically a cab emulation) so the recording is silent, they can crank the amp and lower the signal on their recording interface or DAW
I would imagine an ISO cab. I usually put my cabinet in a closet and close mic it and have A head sitting on my desk.
Digital cab
Niiiiice Red Fang.
+Living Land Thanks!
ca c de l'accent coupé au couteau ou je m'y connais pas
Pourriez faire la demo en français aussi tant qu'à y être?
+Félix Deschambault toutes nos vidéos en version française sont dans la playlist "French version". Le sunn beta n'est pas dans cette playlist car on ne faisait pas encore de version française à ce moment là. Il ya des sous titres par contre.
Cobain play this in his early days in Nirvana and after he switched to a mesa preamp + Crown amplifier for live shows...
Super review !!!
J'en ai une également, il faudrait qu'elle soit révisée...Un conseil sur l'endroit ou faire ça?
Merci!! Christophe a fait réviser la sienne chez Valve's House Music (VHM) à Paris dans le 18ème
Merci !
Cobain didnt use these on recordings
He used three sunn beta lead heads live
Sunn Beta Lead with CMOS( Ceramic Metal Oxide Semiconductor) Technology. The knobs are what they seem, they are like graphic equalizers. Set the Drive and then the level first, then volume...set the volume low and bring it up slow. I use one channel for clean and let the second channel stay as dirty as I need it......2 12" Eminence speakers with HUGE square drivers set at an unusual angle......Watch for falling objects on your shelves!!!
Psst, the "C" stands for complementary, not ceramic. Great tips, though.
That Jag is 64 or later.
You are totally right! That's a 64... I think I said 62... My mistake...
When did Cobain used sunn o???
From what I read, he used a Sunn beta lead in the beginning of Nirvana. I suppose it was for "Bleach" album.
His first bleach era amp was a randall commander head with a boss ds1. The bleach was recorded with a 68 Fender Twin and ds1.
+Bill Kaitsiotis Hi! He used it live essentially during the bleach era.
Hi. It was said he used a Sunn-Beta Lead head driving 4X12 Peavey cabinets but it's just speculations and if played it was just for some live shows. It was never part of his ''official'' rig.
Thank you for picking an underplayed Nirvana song.
Might be a stupid question, but is this thing full analogue? (The "Digital CMOS technology" text confuses me.)
+Sil -Eighty yes it is kind of a marketing thing for this era 🤓
They used mosfet gates but use it linearly. It is 100% analogue!
I see. Thanks for the answer. This amp sounds really great.
+Sil -Eighty don't forget to subscribe! 🤗
Don't know how you got a beta in europe. I've been interested in them for a while and have never seen a single sunn product pop up for sale. That being said it sounds pretty amazing.
In France there are some popping once a while on the used market. This one was in a really crazy good shape :)
Where are you from?
You can find great deals on the german ebay but mostly combo amps. Although i bought my Beta Lead combo locally for 250 euros.
Decouverte de votre chaîne a l'instant car je recherchais des infos sur les amplis sunn et me voila bien servis avec un bon accent anglais a la française ;)
Really nice demo!!!
Killer sound!!!
First song is Red Fang...what is the second song?
Melvins?
If i remember well... i think there was some nirvana, red fang and mastodon!
Grote Andreas second song is school by nirvana
Sonic Titan
cool, thanks
Hi. Thanks for the great review. One question: did you plug the speaker output directly into the Torpedo Live? The reason I ask is that it seems that the Sunn Beta Lead is 4 ohm and the Torpedo Live has an 8 ohm input, and if you know if this would be a problem? Thanks!
+Tim Ellegaard as it is a solid state amp there is no worry about mismatching the impedance. You will just get a bit less power output when you increase cabinet impedance.
It is not like a tube amp in this regard where mismatching the impedance is a very bad idea!
Thanks! :-)
Cool!
Sounds great, but I prefer the Beta Bass even for guitar.
Awesome review! How did you mic the cabinet? Which microphone and pre-amp?
Thanks!
We use a torpedo live. The cabinet impulse file is specified at the beginning of the video!
Ah I see! Thanks :-)
Hey guys I really hope you can read this. I'm a brazilian guitar player and I'm going to France in April. I'd like to know how can I get my hands around one of these amps, the Sunn Beta Lead. I know they are hard to find, but are there any websites or places you can point me and make it easier for me to find them? Thanks very much.
By the way, nice review and channel. Just Subscribed.
+CalifornianSoul it's not easy to find one in good shape. The websites to find used stuff in France are: fr.audiofanzine.com/ , www.zikinf.com/ and www.leboncoin.fr/ .
I hope it will help!
Thanks!
Reverb.com is where I got mine. They have 2 more for sale as we speak. One is a Beta Bass, which is the same exact amp without the reverb.
Rob so the Beta Lead and Beta Bass are the same amp? Is reverb the only difference between the two because the Beta Basses seem to sell for less. Is the Beta Bass okay for guitar?
+TimB4305 everything is the same but the frequency response of the eq which was tweaked for a bass guitar. I played on a sunn beta bass and didn't really find it different from the lead.
And you won't miss the reverb as it is a crappy one.
Yeah that sounds like red fang.
N O R E C E S S !
Like for Red Fang!
hahaha i was surprised 😂
Vous avez un accent à couper au couteau 😂😂 sinn exellente video 👌👌
Fuck. Yes!
ce qui est mythique c'est votre accent de frouze!
La jazz master est très très cool
Jaguar
Rudy, tu peux éviter de faire des doigts d'honneur quand tu joues ? :)
Il était pour toi celui là! :))
School, nice
+Zaynarai 👍✌️
Is Rudy egyptian? Just curious.
No!
Meanwhile i got one...
Just had to buy it ... You're to blame... Hahaha 😁👍
Hated this amp. Bought one new in 1973ish. The amp had no presence, even a solid state hohner amp blew it away. I traded it for a 50 watt marshall jmp and never looked back. To be fair, the amp sounded good in the showroom but failed at the gig(s).
Salut les French accent
The overdriven tone was muddy , especially the bass. One of the worst distorted tones I’ve ever experienced.
Evangelion01 I don’t know anyone who doesn’t like cool and different :) . At least one doesn’t need a fuzz pedal
agreed, i still own beta series, and use it for synth. Love sunn amps, have had a slew, but the betas are by far the worst in the fleet and the distortions are horrific.
Ryan Matticola yea well that’s just like...your opinion ... man
I'm glad that it's a matter of taste. So i had the chance to get mine even though there are hardly any of them for sale around here.
I really like it a lot!
Even though i got two really "nice" sounding Tube amps...
This one is not about "nice" it's really nasty loud as hell and bad ass!
Maybe you had to grow up in the 90s to like it...
I almost feel like this is a joke.
The amp sounds very nice, if you want to hear more of it listen to Nirvana live at the Pine Street Theatre. What I was referring too is these guys can barely speak English and can barely play guitar. I've been playing guitar for 1 year and I can guarantee I can play the first song (which is School by Nirvana) better than them.
The guy that keeps coming in with his Jaguar and playing Nirvana songs kinda sucks but the other guy is okay.
Why