Suhr PT100 SE Review

rickenbacker198

Active member
After 3 months with the Suhr PT100 SE , this is my review.
I’m guessing my musical tastes are a mile from some on Rig Talk (I’m not so much for the chugga chugga) but I like it here, been a semi-lurker for years and I want to finally contribute with a review of this off the radar amp.
I play in P&W band at church, have a hobby basement recording studio, and too many musical projects on the go.
I play wall of guitar , shoegazer stuff, anything rock, as well as some emotional/ textural guitar.

My initial feeling on this amp were favourable, however
it took me a few days to really dial it in how I like it.
I’ve had different Marshall amps in the past I thought this would be a variation on that, and it is, but also so much more.

Coming from using Diezel amps I only have one big complaint about the PT100SE , that the presence, depth and feedback controls are on the back of the amp, annoying when you want to tweak it on stage.. or from your chair in the studio.

Other than that it has all the features you could ask for midi/ great loop/ bright switches/ feel control /3 channels…. a built in mosfet boost circuit that can be engaged on each channel etc..

The stock tube selection is bang on.
JJ 12ax7 in V1, Shuguang 12ax7 in the rest and JJ EL34L’s.
I resisted the fact that there’s a JJ tube in V1. I loathe JJ 12ax7’s in all my other amps. But after some experimenting I do admit John Suhr has it right with his tube selections.

I’ve gone through a lot of amps , maybe not as many as some of you other nutcases, but a good number.
Of all them the Diezels are the only ones I would miss on a daily basis. The Bogs and Wiz’s are noteworthy but I didn’t like them enough to justify keeping them.
I want my amps to be deep. I want to discover new tones and textures for years… otherwise honestly I just get bored of it.
That said , the Suhr is staying for a very long time.

I usually play PRS my #1 is a stock ‘01 SAS, also regularly play ‘94 & ‘14 McCartys and another SAS loaded with DiMarzios.
I’ve tried the amp with greenbacks , V30s and H30’s.
It works well with them all , but H30+ V30 combo is my favourite.

A rundown of the channels.

Ch 1 Clean -Reminds me of every Pearl Jam song ever -
There is such variance in the tones available here.
This channel is capable of crystal clean but only with the lowest gain settings, like 2 or lower,
Increase the gain and is has such a pleasant breakup mixed with a clear jangling bell like tone.
At higher gain settings it’s all out crunch overlapping with channel 2 but with a much different voice.
There’s a bright switch that adds top end and more pick noise.
Also a crunch switch that adds more gain.
It’s open and dynamic at all settings.

Ch 2 - Reminds me of a killer modded plexi- except it sounds great at a reasonable volume.
Think fine toothed saw type of drive.
This channel starts out hotter than you’d think , if you want Marshall like cleans the gain needs to be below 1.5
After that mayhem , there’s much more gain available than with a stock plexi. It’s raw, open and cutting but not too hard to control.
You can dial it in dark and smooth or dark and gritty. Bright and smooth with a pleasing percussion to every chord strike or bright and aggressive.
Basically if you like the character of the drive it can be shaped in a way you want.

Ch 3 - Take channel 2, tweak the character slightly, add some compression, and beefy low mids.
Think slow running chainsaw type drive.
There are copious amount of gain on tap here.
At lower settings it’s still crunch, percussive and open.
By mid gain power chords are fat and chunky.
With the higher settings leads become fluid , the touch response and feeling of push pull with the amp is remarkable.

The other stuff -
Each channel has a beautiful percussion once dialed in well, not the kind that smacks you in the face, more like tickles your ears.
The Eq is responsive, extreme settings are still useful , the depth is not nearly as aggressive as some amps, but fun nonetheless.
The boost circuit is available on each channel , it adds clean boost to the front end, adding gain and tightness.
The feedback control changes the feel, at lower settings it feels like a plexi at higher like a JCM 800.
The presence control has a wide range and I never felt the need for more than 6 with my cabs.

This amp is organic ,it has this tangible depth to the sound on all settings.
It fits just in the right spot between being untamed and controllable.
Simply inspiring and it makes me want to play more.


My evaluation is ..
I give it a 9.5/10
The only reduction is because there are controls on the back.
If tone was the only factor it’s 10/10.
If you play or enjoy anything other than extreme metal I cannot recommend the PT100SE enough.
 
hi, how do you compare it vs diezel amps. is plexi sounds on PT100 have some edge over VH4/Herbert/Hagen crunch channels
I'm also diezel fan, put curious to try PT100
 
Both equally versatile, but they are completely different amps.
The PT100 is definitely more traditional sounding, the Diezels are wider and more modern sounding, even the Schmidt.
Don’t get me wrong I love the Diezel voicing , Schmidt is my #1 right now.

For plexi sounds no comparison IMO Diezels are just not designed to copy that sound.
I find Diezels lacking a bit in that one area , from clean to light crunch. There’s not much range before high gain kicks in.

The PT100 can get very nice edge of breakup and light crunch sounds. Much better than any other amp I’ve had. It is feels full and alive even at such low gain.
I’ve had a few highly regarded amps over the years, none of them lasted long because there were 2 or 3 great sounds and that’s it. The PT100 has a multitude of tones available. Very dark, very bright, mids cranked , low gain or high gain add any pedal, cab speaker etc ...It’s hard to get a bad one.

To sum up my random rant;
The Diezels sound like Diezels. There’s Marshall influences, but Peters excellent skills pushed the design to be something completely new. .
The PT100 ch1 sweet Fenderish breakup, like a great plexi on ch2 and ch3 is a fire breather modded Marshall AND everything between these is there too.
 
Im glad my review was helpful And of course I completely get what youre saying about still experimenting with styles and so forth.

And yeah, like I said, of course its just my opinion but I think sticking to the more monochromatic color scheme might be the way to go.


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hi, how do you compare it vs diezel amps. is plexi sounds on PT100 have some edge over VH4/Herbert/Hagen crunch channels
I'm also diezel fan, put curious to try PT100
Videos and words may influence you to try one, but you'll never 'know' until you play it......And everyone's ears and minds will feel and convey something that You probably won't feel or think. reality rules...always
 
I had one for about a year. Didn’t have enough grind in the sound for my taste. And didn’t sound that great at low house volumes. Just bought a Splawn quickrod and for modded marshall sounds and more it fills that void.
 
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