Tried a Bogner 3534

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skoora

skoora

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This thing has an ass load of gain. I feel they captured the Ecstasy sound but with a ton of gain. I found ch 3 unusable with the gain above 10 O’Clock. CH 2 past 9-10 O’Clock leaves medium gain/classic rock behind (using LP) and you’re into high gain. Kind of reminded me of a 5153 where CH 2 has more gain than you need and then Ch 3 has even more..lol. Clean channel was pretty spot on the Ecstasy’s clean channel. I got to play a new Ecstasy before this and even that had more gain than I remember them having. On the Ecstasy it worked because the pre EQ switches were more effective on shaping the saturation. They didn’t have as much effect on the 3534. Definitely an amp for a gain junkie and had a nice big sound when turned up. I prefer the original Ecstasy but for a more compact form the 3534 is pretty good.
 
skoora":n6gmt1h7 said:
This thing has an ass load of gain. I feel they captured the Ecstasy sound but with a ton of gain. I found ch 3 unusable with the gain above 10 O’Clock. CH 2 past 9-10 O’Clock leaves medium gain/classic rock behind (using LP) and you’re into high gain. Kind of reminded me of a 5153 where CH 2 has more gain than you need and then Ch 3 has even more..lol. Clean channel was pretty spot on the Ecstasy’s clean channel. I got to play a new Ecstasy before this and even that had more gain than I remember them having. On the Ecstasy it worked because the pre EQ switches were more effective on shaping the saturation. They didn’t have as much effect on the 3534. Definitely an amp for a gain junkie and had a nice big sound when turned up. I prefer the original Ecstasy but for a more compact form the 3534 is pretty good.
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Damn you...now I have to try that myself...I love the 5153...and in a way my combo can get kinda close ecstasy tones with the presence set at 10:00.
 
We got our first one through at work last week and I’m in love! You’re right about the red channel. I think it’ll take a little more dialing in but the blue channel with the boost engaged was my heavy rhythm heaven! All woody and chewy with the mids up but still tight. It’s such a big sounding amp, even through a little 1x12 Cube cab. The cleans are great and the loop works perfectly.

My 5153 50w might get relegated to backup duty!

Cheers

Luke
 
So hoping to get one of these at some point! Also looking the the new 50 EVH Stealth as well.
 
Hi. Would you say low fat gains are not its strength?
Just curious if u were testing it with the boost on?
Thanks
 
diezelboy":1k82wjul said:
Hi. Would you say low fat gains are not its strength?
Just curious if u were testing it with the boost on?
Thanks
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It had so much gain, I couldn’t imagine using the boost. Low fat gains may be achievable with a low output guitar but with a LP I would have to put channel 2 gain, barely on to get what I would call a low gain sound and possibly have to roll back the volume on the guitar a little too.
 
I ordered one but am waiting until it comes. I never cared about the red channel on these anyway truly. I always used the blue channel. That is where I live. And the clean. The thing I wish it has was the plexi mode switch and I could use that for the red channel instead of the high gain it has. Smaller form factor was over due in today's world!
 
I feel a carry over from the ecstasy that would have made this amp a better contender for me would be the low/high gain structure switch. Where the gain monster I heard was the high setting and you could switch it to low for a wider range of low-medium saturation.
 
interesting finds - so you're saying the low gains are not its strong suit? and that low gains are better on the 101b?
Are the cleans on it more Fendery / lush than the 101b?
Thanks
 
diezelboy":iamxbtxv said:
interesting finds - so you're saying the low gains are not its strong suit? and that low gains are better on the 101b?
Are the cleans on it more Fendery / lush than the 101b?
Thanks
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The clean channel is the one channel that feels like a direct lift from the Ecstasy. And yes “ass load of gain” tells the tale on low gain tones..lol
 
I owned one for about a month. While I agree about not needing to push the gain on the red channel beyond 10 oclock or so, I did not find the blue to have too much gain at all. I really thought the blue channel covered lower gain classic rock sounds all the way through modern rock really well and quite seamlessly. One of my favorite tones in the amp was with the blue channel gain at about 10 with the boost engaged- killer, dynamic tone that you could use for so many styles.

My problem was never that the amp didn't have enough dynamic range or anything like that. It just sounded like a small amp to me. Of course, there are people above me saying how big it sounds, which is bound to happen - we all perceive differently. There is a thin quality to the individual notes that kinda annoyed me more and more over time, especially in the middle and upper strings. That's just me though. There are a ton of good qualities about that amp - plenty of bite, clarity, dynamics etc. Think I'm just not an xtc guy.

I do know that there were, at least within the first run of released amps, at least 2 different versions floating around. I couldn't tell you what the differences were, but they were still making adjustments in the beginning.

Anyway - great amp. They've been selling like hotcakes and I imagine will continue to do so, which makes me happy as I like to see a small company like Bogner staying busy.
 
I just picked one up. Awesome amp. Its like the EVH 50 wanted to be but with ToneToneTone!!! Love all 3 channels. 1 is chimey clean to plexi dirty, 2 is classic 70s rock to early EVH to 80s metal, 3 is 80s metal to 90s alternative and past. Boost is great, just adds more without effecting tone. Amp is very dynamic. Sounds great thru V30s..Has all gain you would want but its not just all gain. Turn the gain down and it doesn’t lose character just less gain. Sounds great at bedroom volumes doesn’t thin out or overly bassy or woofy like its big brother from what Ive heard, and gets as loud as shit if you want. Doesn’t sound small in the least. Good stuff :rock:
 
I ended up buying one and I absolutely love it! My 50w 5150 hasn’t been plugged in since. I seem to be living on the red channel with the gain at about 10 o’clock and the bass backed off a little. So unbelievably thick sounding!

The only issue I’m having is a high pitched tone that I think is coming from my pedal board. At first I thought it was the loop but it seems to be something out front. I’ve only got the standard MXR brick power supply so may have to go for something isolated. Who knows.

Either way it’s a killer amp.

Cheers
 
Does the Boost only work on the Blue channel, or also on the red channel?
I figured only blue.

Also, if it has too much gain (which I found my EVH 50W to have), throw in some 5751 tubes, which will tame it some.
 
Speeddemon":3hbrhpik said:
Does the Boost only work on the Blue channel, or also on the red channel?
I figured only blue.

Also, if it has too much gain (which I found my EVH 50W to have), throw in some 5751 tubes, which will tame it some.
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boost works on all channels.
no it doesn't have too much gain. I run the gain at about 3 o'clock
 
Nice to get some feedback on this amp. I'd love to play one myself as I love the options and form factor. I would help it would have a good thump to it for 2 EL34s and sound big.
 
This is a great amp, sounds fantastic at bedroom volumes or cranked. Very woody and chevy tones on all channels. No OD pedals necessary. All 3 channels cover everything from chimey cleans to zakk wylde tones. Very quiet also. Hiss is a non issue. And this is with JJs in the preamp which I HATE for tubes but sounds so good Ill just leave it for now. When I put some NOS in there watch out. Running it thru a Mesa 4x12 w V30s. Sounds glorious ?
 
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