Which Soldano head?

  • Thread starter Thread starter geetarmikey
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geetarmikey

geetarmikey

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Obviously, the SLO100 is the daddy in this situation, but they're pretty rare here in England. Been looking on ebay and there's the HotRod, Decatone, Avenger, HotRod Plus and it looks like they're all "based off the SLO100's overdrive channel" from the descriptions.

The Decatone is looking the best at the moment, but what do you guys think?

Thanks!
 
I used to have a Hot Rod 100+ with the XL Mod and I really liked it. I found that it got a little bit muddy with the gain cranked all the way up, and it never quite got to that 'liquid lead" state like the SLO. It's definitely a different beast than the SLO, perhaps a little bit more modern and not quite as tight. I'm not sure.

I've heard it said that the Deca is warmer than the HR, but I've never played one.

Cheers
 
I've owned a Hot Rod 50, which cost me under 1K, and really liked it for what it does
The Decatone I've also owned and wasn't a fan of, much people I know don't really like it either
On a budget: Hot Rod, if not get the real thing (SLO100)
 
Yeah I had a decatone for a while and while it's a well-built amp and does have some great tones, but it is not a patch on a SLO - just didn't have the singing gain that the SLO has.

If you’re looking for a good lead channel and a rock or blues rhythm then decatone will do it for you, but it's not got the balls of the SLO, not even close :)
 
Of the available heads you listed, I'd grab an Avenger.
 
If you have the cash and patience I'd wait around for a SLO, you will thank us later. :thumbsup: If you only want the SLO lead tone and don't need a clean channel grab the Avenger. But I think it's nice having a clean channel you can throw some dirt pedals in front of.
 
Thanks, guys. Definitely gonna wait around for a SLO100! Any production years that aren't as good as the others?
 
Are there any DIY Soldano SLO100 clone kits that are generally considered good?
 
geetarmikey":21bo3j9z said:
Thanks, guys. Definitely gonna wait around for a SLO100! Any production years that aren't as good as the others?
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Yes.
No.

Depends on who you ask. They differ in construction over the years because some manufacturers for parts (capacitors etc) may have gone out of business or other companies came out with parts with better tolerances. Tonally IMHO they are nearly identical if not identical allowing for the age of tubes. I've played SLOs made from 1990 to 2000 year of madke.

SharkDiver will disagree with me on this.
 
I think once the clean/crunch switch came into being, the schematic was largely set, though looking at various gut shots there are obvious component differences here and there over the years. No idea if they add up to any real differences in how they sound.
 
tripstan":25tbs8z6 said:
If you have the cash and patience I'd wait around for a SLO, you will thank us later. :thumbsup: If you only want the SLO lead tone and don't need a clean channel grab the Avenger. But I think it's nice having a clean channel you can throw some dirt pedals in front of.
Click to expand...
Absolutely...they regularly sell for ~$2400...and worth every penny.
 
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