Soldano SLO Mini SS 30

[mrbadwr3nch]

Yeah, I saw that. They also all look identical. Looks like some factory in China came up with the idea and sold it to a bunch of amp makers with the only differences being a couple of component values inside and slightly different cosmetics. I wouldn't be surprised if they are all made in the same factory using the same exact parts.

Even with the loop, the Hotone Britwind still has two footswitchable channels, reverb, decent sounding DI out, footswitchable boost, and rated at 75 watts. And the channels sound close enough to what they're modeled after that you don't really need to guess what it is when you hear it.

Really not sure why these are so much more expensive with a much smaller feature set. I could see them being $129 or even $149 but at their current price it looks like you're paying $100 simply for the name on it.

That is exactly what is happening. This is how Chinese production works across a myriad of product categories from aftermarket auto parts/accesories to HiFi audio. The quality ranges from pure trash to pretty darn decent depending on the individual product type.

9 times out of 10 you can find an unbranded, identical product on AliExpess/Alibaba that is basically a direct sale from the Chinese factory that produces the units for branded sales (legit under terms of most Chinese manufacturing contracts). The unbranded direct sales are usually 1/4 to 1/10 the price of the exact same product with the brand logo applied.

Wait 6 months and you'll find these on Alibaba for $40.00.

Stop buying stuff produced in China.

 

[Jchrisf]

Please don’t rag on the playing and string noise. Just messing around last night setting the master as low as possible with my LP Junior straight in. Pickup is the SD Retrospec’d (un-aged Antiquity)

This is below TV/conversation volume.

This recording sounds better than your tube amps to me.

 

[RenatoNYC]

To be honest, I was blown away. It sounds super convincing… and when you consider how tiny it is and how much it costs, it is remarkable. Forget not having to warm up. I have mine driving a 2x12”.

It’s tiny!

 

[guitarman3001]

Has anyone compared these to the Joyo Bantamp series?

Here's a JCM800 model. 2 channels, footswitch. Hybrid - one 12ax7 in the preamp and a SS power amp.

 

[BrianWampler]

That is exactly what is happening. This is how Chinese production works across a myriad of product categories from aftermarket auto parts/accesories to HiFi audio. The quality ranges from pure trash to pretty darn decent depending on the individual product type.

9 times out of 10 you can find an unbranded, identical product on AliExpess/Alibaba that is basically a direct sale from the Chinese factory that produces the units for branded sales (legit under terms of most Chinese manufacturing contracts). The unbranded direct sales are usually 1/4 to 1/10 the price of the exact same product with the brand logo applied.

Wait 6 months and you'll find these on Alibaba for $40.00.

Stop buying stuff produced in China.

No, this is not what's happening.
These are amps produced by Boutique Amps. You will not find this same amp on anything like Alibaba, Aliexpress, or anything like that unless a different company rips it off and makes a copy.

 

[BrianWampler]

Just an update on the load box issue...

So in the past day I have chatted with both Two Notes support and Boutique Amps Distribution support. Two Notes claims that the Captor/Captor X can be used with any Class D amp as their speaker input is electrically isolated. However, the engineers at BAD are still insisting that load boxes including the Captor/Captor X are not supported and advise against it.

At this point I don't want to risk voiding my warranty so I will probably just keep it plugged directly into my cab for now. It's just too bad these mini amps do not have a headphone jack...

Who did you speak with?

 

[Xevyn]

Who did you speak with?

I spoke with a nice fellow named Blad and sent him the link to the Two Notes KB which he then said he would show to the engineers. He replied back a while later and said that the engineers still insisted on no load boxes and plugging only into a cab directly.

I also sent him videos to the various videos by Pete Thorn, etc and suggested that they may want to let reviewers know in the future as it gives the wrong impression that they support it.

 

[Xevyn]

Has anyone compared these to the Joyo Bantamp series?

Here's a JCM800 model. 2 channels, footswitch. Hybrid - one 12ax7 in the preamp and a SS power amp.

View attachment 627109

I tried a couple of the 1st versions of the Joyo...I think it was the Jackman and the Zombie and while both are good bang for the buck amps I found them a bit noisy. I'd be curious to know how the Joyo VIVO would compare since its based off a 5150.

 

[tracyk]

I have no real need or use for this but I want to try one anyway. It could be neat to build it into a lightweight 1x12 combo for jamming.

How sensitive is it to touch/volume knob changes?

 

[politoleo]

I spoke with a nice fellow named Blad and sent him the link to the Two Notes KB which he then said he would show to the engineers. He replied back a while later and said that the engineers still insisted on no load boxes and plugging only into a cab directly.

I also sent him videos to the various videos by Pete Thorn, etc and suggested that they may want to let reviewers know in the future as it gives the wrong impression that they support it.

The Class D amp used in the mini has a full bridge configuration, so the load (speaker) must be floating, i.e. there should be very high impedance between his terminal and any potential.

That means that load box cannot be used as they are generally not isolated.

In the specific case of the one you are using it should be ok as Two Notes stated it's isolated.

 

[Vondragonnoggin]

Has anyone compared these to the Joyo Bantamp series?

Here's a JCM800 model. 2 channels, footswitch. Hybrid - one 12ax7 in the preamp and a SS power amp.

View attachment 627109

I have a JaCkMan XL and it’s a very loud 20 watts driving a 212 cab. Sounds nothing like a JCM 800 though. It is Marshall-esque sounding, can get kind of close with an SD-1 in front. It’s clean channel on the XL is super clean though. It’s the kind of clean to use as a pedal platform and it’s dynamite skipping the dirty channel entirely and running a PedalPalFX 800 JCM Emulator (original silver version) on the clean channel.

If I wanted a SLO in SS form, I’d prefer to run a Master Effects Sloverdrive pedal in front of the clean channel of the BanTAmp

SLOverdrive | Soldano SLO / x88r preamp | Master Effects

The SLOverdrive is based on the Soldano SLO/x88r preamp.

www.mastereffectspedals.com

 

[Al Rose]

I tried a couple of the 1st versions of the Joyo...I think it was the Jackman and the Zombie and while both are good bang for the buck amps I found them a bit noisy. I'd be curious to know how the Joyo VIVO would compare since its based off a 5150.

I've got a MeteOR-II, 2 channel Joyo. For the $$$ it's a cool little amp, but my MicroTerror sounds better. The Joyo is supposed to be similar to the Orange Rocker, but having had a Rocker, I will say the MicroTerror is much closer to that Orange sound. I have the SLO Mini on order from Sweetwater for the next shipment, so I'll put that in the list to compare them. Again, they (the Mini amps listed) so far have been just toys, albeit cool, inexpensive and fun toys.

Al

 

[Jchrisf]

I've got a MeteOR-II, 2 channel Joyo. For the $$$ it's a cool little amp, but my MicroTerror sounds better. The Joyo is supposed to be similar to the Orange Rocker, but having had a Rocker, I will say the MicroTerror is much closer to that Orange sound. I have the SLO Mini on order from Sweetwater for the next shipment, so I'll put that in the list to compare them. Again, they (the Mini amps listed) so far have been just toys, albeit cool, inexpensive and fun toys.

Al

Looking forward to hearing your comparison. I have a Laney IRT Studio and that amp sounds so good.

 

[Moony]

@BrianWampler

May I ask if the preamp of the SLO Mini is similar to your SLOstortion pedal that is discontinued?
Or is it Mike's design?

And are there any plans for a new SLO pedal under B.A.D.?
I'd be very interested in such one!

 

[Nightwinflyer]

Remember folks, you are buying essentially a solid-state overdrive pedal and a crappy Class D SS poweramp in a cute little box with a famous brand logo.

I'd rather buy something like a H&K Ampman/Stompman or Quilter Superblock for this kind of money.

That may be true, but solid state amps are all over some of the most famous rock and metal albums.

 

[guitarman3001]

That may be true, but solid state amps are all over some of the most famous rock and metal albums.

Toy ones like these?

 

[JamesGurley_]

Sadly it doesn't feature the Clean channel. The big boy got 3 channels: Overdrive and Normal, which can be "Clean" or "Crunch". The Mini only come up with Overdrive and Crunch, and the latter is dirty even at low gain.

 

[CJReaper]

Toy ones like these?

If you consider the Pignose amp a "toy" it was the amp used to record Michael Schenker's rhythm tracks on the Obsession album:

"Schenker’s lead tones sound massive and powerful, especially on “Only You Can Rock Me” where Nevison recorded Schenker playing his trademark Gibson Flying V through a 50-watt Marshall stack turned up full blast, with the natural reverb of the warehouse setting providing the “larger than life” live sound the band was seeking.

The rhythm tracks, however, were created using an almost opposite approach, with Schenker plugging into a tiny, battery-powered five-watt Pignose 7-100 with a five-inch speaker that was recorded bone dry. The crunchy, nasal midrange of the Pignose occupies a relatively narrow range of the sonic spectrum, making Schenker’s solos sound much bigger in comparison than they would with the accompaniment of the usual wall of rhythm guitars also played through Marshalls. Schenker also used the Pignose with a Cry Baby wah pedal for the horn-like melodic parts he played on “Ain’t No Baby,” “Born to Lose” and “Lookin’ Out For No. 1 (Reprise),”

 

[guitarman3001]

If you consider the Pignose amp a "toy" it was the amp used to record Michael Schenker's rhythm tracks on Obsession album:

"Schenker’s lead tones sound massive and powerful, especially on “Only You Can Rock Me” where Nevison recorded Schenker playing his trademark Gibson Flying V through a 50-watt Marshall stack turned up full blast, with the natural reverb of the warehouse setting providing the “larger than life” live sound the band was seeking.


The rhythm tracks, however, were created using an almost opposite approach, with Schenker plugging into a tiny, battery-powered five-watt Pignose 7-100 with a five-inch speaker that was recorded bone dry. The crunchy, nasal midrange of the Pignose occupies a relatively narrow range of the sonic spectrum, making Schenker’s solos sound much bigger in comparison than they would with the accompaniment of the usual wall of rhythm guitars also played through Marshalls. Schenker also used the Pignose with a Cry Baby wah pedal for the horn-like melodic parts he played on “Ain’t No Baby,” “Born to Lose” and “Lookin’ Out For No. 1 (Reprise),”

So do you think these mini amps are going to take a place in amp history right next to the now classic Pignose amps?

 

[CJReaper]

So do you think these mini amps are going to take a place in amp history right next to the now classic Pignose amps?

Who knows? Those little Marshall Lead 12 heads have a cult following, Bob Bradshaw used to put them in his racks as a preamp so these could find a similar niche.