Soldano SLO 100 vs Soldano Hot Rod 50 - side by side

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Hey everyone

Fortunate enough to pick up a Soldano Hot Rod 50. All the info on this amp says "The Overdrive channel is identical to the SLO circuit and gives awesome sustain even at moderate settings". Is it really identical??

This a direct comparison of the Soldano SLO 100 & the Soldano Hot Rod 50 - using the same guitar (Tom Anderson Drop Top Classic), same mic, same EQ settings on both amps. Whilst I wouldn't choose these EQ settings if I was to gig with these amps, this gives us the chance to compare them both.


 
The difference seems pretty subtle, especially considering the price difference. What are your thoughts having played through both of them in the same room?
 
I've owned both and the difference is huge in the room. The SLO wins by a mile. There is some extra sizzle and a ton more sustain with the SLO. The deyoung transformers have some extra magic that can't be duplicated
 
AmpliFIRE":3g0db43z said:
I've owned both and the difference is huge in the room. The SLO wins by a mile. There is some extra sizzle and a ton more sustain with the SLO. The deyoung transformers have some extra magic that can't be duplicated
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This. X 10000. I've owned an HR100+, nice amp for 1k. But it just doesn't compare...and I didn't own both at the same time. But as soon as I turned the SLO up....the clarity and thump was unmatched. HRs are nice. But they aren't SLOs. And you have to be there in front of it to get it. That's why you just can't put too much stock into YouTube. Thanks for the effort to compare though.... :rock:
 
can't really compare 50 watts to 100. 100 will always sound better at the same dial on the master due to more headroom. It will have more highs and lows than the 50 watter.
 
Cool, but way too much talk and not enough rock :doh:

I own both an SLO 100 and an Jet City 50 (which is modeled after the HR 50)

The SLO just has that 3D singing thick lead sustain that the 50 does not have anywhere close to
 
I've owned the SLO,HR100+,HR50 and the Avenger with DeYoung iron and liked them all , still own the 98 HR100+ amp with MM iron and no XL mod in it .
Yes the SLO has a clearer tone but it also has a more HIFI sounding tone with the better parts on the PCB and DeYoung iron it if that's what you want.
With my 98 HR100+ and MM iron it sounds more old school RNR to me , like a hot rodded Fender with a high gain Marshall preamp stage .
So imho it's all just personal opinions on which is better , the HR amps was never designed to be a poor mans SLO which a lot of people seem to spew false BS about on the web .
And the Deyoung iron alone doesn't give the SLO it's unique tone , the SLO has different components on the PCB which helps shape the unique SLO tone .
That's why the Avenger I had with DeYoung iron got sold , it still sounded like a HR amp on steroids .
It didn't sound like single channel SLO at all to me even with the DeYong iron hitting the sweet spot .
 
here is the deal and please don't take it personally.

You cannot compare the 2 as it is a waste of time. Want SLO tone? Buy a SLO. Even Michale Soldano used staples from the legendary SLO era on printed pdf manuals of all other Soldano products claiming they give the legendary SLO tone...here is a little secret....they really don't they just make you buy Soldano products in increments until you end up with a SLO ;) One will end up there eventually...so go immediately to it :)
 
Take a look at the schematics for all these amps and you'll see the real differences, of which there are few.
 
FourT6and2":2bro20yg said:
Take a look at the schematics for all these amps and you'll see the real differences, of which there are few.
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:yes: You get what you pay for with these. There is a crispness to the SLO tone that can't be matched and clarity that is second to none. I came back to the SLO after 7 years and the fact that this amp has remained unchanged essentially since its inception speaks volumes. Still nothing that touches it for an articulate high gain amp. Such beautiful guts inside these amps and that heater wiring shows you don't need to twist pairs to get the noise taken care of. Bus wire ran straight is another way to skin the cat.
 
Also keep in mind there is a big difference in a HR and HR+ amp.
A more fair comparison to the SLO would be the HR100+ amp that uses the same tube layout .
 
Shawn Lutz":h45dq25x said:
here is the deal and please don't take it personally.

You cannot compare the 2 as it is a waste of time. Want SLO tone? Buy a SLO. Even Michale Soldano used staples from the legendary SLO era on printed pdf manuals of all other Soldano products claiming they give the legendary SLO tone...here is a little secret....they really don't they just make you buy Soldano products in increments until you end up with a SLO ;) One will end up there eventually...so go immediately to it :)
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That's a little presumptuous. I've owned several HR50's because they have six knobs and they absolutely rip! Best bang-for-the-buck in my opinion, and incredibly fun to play! I've had countless opportunities to purchase an SLO and I've never felt the urge to do so.
 
So what's the difference tone wise between the SLO and a SLO clone with Onetics transformer?
Close enough? Huge difference?
 
Lots of truth here. An HR is a really good amp, reliable and built well. And used you can find them for around 1k, making them a steal IMO. The SLO is its own thing, a bucket list amp that I've owned twice. They seem to have a similar voicing but don't get an HR to get SLO tone. If you want an SLO just save up to get the real thing.
 
philb":3g5x2dn7 said:
So what's the difference tone wise between the SLO and a SLO clone with Onetics transformer?
Close enough? Huge difference?
Click to expand...
Just get the real thing. There's only one. Seriously.
 
Even in the video... it's pretty clear to me the SLO not only sounds better, but is quite a bit different from the HR.
 
The SLO seemed to have a fair bit more gain. I would like to hear it with the gain turned up on the HR and EQd a bit different (trying to match) instead of running both amps the same.
 
The only HR to me that sounds very similar to the SLO is the HR25 (which I own). Had a chance to A/B them side by side before buying one and the 25 was extremely similar. The HR25 seemed more smoother and less fizzy though. Played a HR 100 that same day also. It sounded great but had a different vibe from the HR25 and SLO.
 
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