Soldano killed my Krank

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savant421

savant421

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As hilarious as that title could be, it's true. As some of you may remember, i was on the hunt for a Krank Nineteen80 after playing one at a rehearsal spot. Killer Marshall tones, very thumpy. Liked ALOT. Fast forward to last week, one shows up used at local GC. Made the deal....happy camper. Get it home and it's....eh. Maybe becuz I didn't have the matching Krank cab but I was excited to play around with it.

THEN.....a Soldano SLO100 shows up on Craigslist of all places for a ridiculous price. I jump on it. Now I've owned Jet City's and SLO-Clones and other SLO knock offs, all great amps in there own right but could a genuine SLO be THAT much better? I've always said to myself it was just marketing hype. Well....the short answer was hell yes. The sounds just seem to bloom, liquidy awesomeness that's hard to put into words. The amp almost knows what your fingers are going to play and reacts appropriately. I didn't believe the hype until i actually played one. Now I'm a true believer. After making sweet guitarist love to my SLO I plugged the Krank Nineteen80 back in and uh....what??? (Butthead voice). Wasn't even close. Harsh highs, messy sounding....i felt cheated almost. Maybe u could say I bought a dud since the Krank I fell in love with sounded SO good but once I played the SLO it was almost like it ruined my ears. I began to see the flaws in my other amps that the SLO just doesn't have. The only neg i have with the SLO is it's better with Marshall sounding cabs, didn't sound as good with Mesa cabs IMO and it's not STUPID loud like other amps can be so....if that's a neg. True story. Believe it or not ;)
 
I don't see any way a Krank 1980 will ever get used by you again, lol
 
Before reading this I just imagined Mike Soldano walking into your house, kicking the ninteen80 head off your cab, saying “you’re welcome,” and then walking away.

Perhaps that is what happened, in spirit.
 
There is a reason why the SLO is at the top, along with some others...killer amps period.

Nice score!
 
I had a kinda similar experience. I had a SLO, but was curious about the 1980 for a while (I read lots of praise about on forums), so I bought one that I found for $400 on eBay at the time and immediately it sounded to me like a much worse version of the SLO I had. Looser, messier sounding and an even more rubbery feel to it, but I remember the cleans being nice on it. I ended up trading it in at my local guitar center and got $400, so I guess I broke even. They actually thought it sounded great and were surprised I was getting rid of it
 
Definitely a classic amp. As much as I love EVH's old tone this tone he gets fro his SLO is absolutely stunning here. Persevere through the bad audio in the beginning and listen to the SLO solo and outro. The SLO mops the floor with his 5150 tone.

 
mnemonic":3m8k13qa said:
Before reading this I just imagined Mike Soldano walking into your house, kicking the ninteen80 head off your cab, saying “you’re welcome,” and then walking away.

Perhaps that is what happened, in spirit.
Click to expand...

That would make a great commercial!
 
harddriver":21sm9hq1 said:
Definitely a classic amp. As much as I love EVH's old tone this tone he gets fro his SLO is absolutely stunning here. Persevere through the bad audio in the beginning and listen to the SLO solo and outro. The SLO mops the floor with his 5150 tone.

Click to expand...

I’ve listened to this many times. Sounds absolutely killer. Can’t recall exactly, but I don’t think he’s using much effects here. Looks like it’s just a SLO into a Marshall 4x12.
 
I like this one, too. Audio isn’t spectacular, but you can tell it sounds killer in the venue. Skip to around 12-13 minutes in.

 
Mr. Willy":3c8nqph6 said:
I like this one, too. Audio isn’t spectacular, but you can tell it sounds killer in the venue. Skip to around 12-13 minutes in.

Click to expand...

23:50 "Look at the size of those tits" :D
 
Being an owner of a Soldano Astroverb 16 1x12 combo amp (not an SLO, too much amp for me) and a Krank Nineteen80 Jr. 20 watt amp head, it's all apples and oranges. The design and build of the SLO trumps a lot of high gain amps on the market for being a well built, high gain, finely tuned, one trick pony. If I had a need for an SLO in my cover band gigs, I would probably buy the Soldano Decatone amp head instead as I would a clean/dirty/lead channels to cover my musical needs.

I know from playing both the Astroverb 16 and the Nineteen80 Jr., the way that Mike and Tony voice their amps is very different so it will appeal to players who are into high gain tones in the low wattage amps. My Nineteen80 Jr. amp head sees a lot of rehearsal or gigs due to its sound & versatility. The high gain tone of the Nineteen80 Jr. appeals to me which is why I bought it. If the Astroverb 16 had a clean channel with a seperate EQ, I would use it more, but it sits in my practice room and gets turned on only for home practice, at the moment.

Guitar George
 
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