Great solid state!

timmysoft

So today I tried a kustom kg100hdx and to my ultimate surprise it sounded bloody brilliant! I used to rehearse with an old kga65 which I always thought sounded great for a cheap 112 combo. I ran the kg100 through a cheap mid 2000,a Marshall mg cab and it lapped up my m5 patches, the eq section is pretty powerful although the mid sweep is perhaps a little "all or nothing". Drive channel was pretty decent too, at lower gain settings it had a quite nice valve like tone, it only sounded more solid state as the gain ramped up. Nice and loud too!

ICBM

Kustom amps are consistently great at all price points and whatever technology they use in my opinion. I really don't know why they aren't a lot more rated than they are.

Even the old Tuck'n'Roll models sound pretty good for what they are, although they obviously don't sound anything like a modern solid-state amp. As well as being some of the coolest-looking amps ever...

timmysoft

I was super impressed! Would be great (and cheap) for a stereo rig. 2 of these into 2 2x12s I think would be awesome!

ThePrettyDamned

ICBM said:

Kustom amps are consistently great at all price points and whatever technology they use in my opinion. I really don't know why they aren't a lot more rated than they are.

Even the old Tuck'n'Roll models sound pretty good for what they are, although they obviously don't sound anything like a modern solid-state amp. As well as being some of the coolest-looking amps ever...

:O there is a tuck and roll style new(ish) one, like a Twin! It sounds AMAZING for clean and crunch.  

Nice work mate I'll have to try some.  I've heard a 15 watt kustom practice amp and it took my Marshall MG15 to the cleaners.

midlifecrisis

I have a little kustom 10w solidstate practise amp, with little 6inch speaker actually sound really nice clean and distorted channel. jammed it at someones house, no drummer so was easily loud enough and sounds quite big for its size

timmysoft

I'm pretty determined to go solid state on my new project, with being the only guitarist I think it would be cool to have a couple of solid state stacks.

57Deluxe

For £76 you can stay Tube!!

http://www.thomann.de/gb/kustom_defender_5h.htm

ThePrettyDamned

timmysoft;279644" said:

I'm pretty determined to go solid state on my new project, with being the only guitarist I think it would be cool to have a couple of solid state stacks.

Stonehead!

Dave_Mc

ICBM said:

Kustom amps are consistently great at all price points and whatever technology they use in my opinion. I really don't know why they aren't a lot more rated than they are.

I really liked the (now discontinued, I think) Coupé I tried- sounded really good, and pretty versatile. Pricey, though (£900 IIRC), especially compared to the prices they go for in the states (at one point I seem to remember their being blown out, new, for something like $500... at that kind of money I'd have had one ) ).

I don't think they were that popular in the States, either, but at least we have the excuse that the Coupés were a bit expensive. )

ICBM

Dave_Mc said:

ICBM said:

Kustom amps are consistently great at all price points and whatever technology they use in my opinion. I really don't know why they aren't a lot more rated than they are.

I really liked the (now discontinued, I think) Coupé I tried- sounded really good, and pretty versatile. Pricey, though (£900 IIRC), especially compared to the prices they go for in the states (at one point I seem to remember their being blown out, new, for something like $500... at that kind of money I'd have had one ) ).

I don't think they were that popular in the States, either, but at least we have the excuse that the Coupés were a bit expensive. )

I agree that they were pricey compared to what they go for in the US, but having played one I actually think they warrant the price in terms of sound quality! (Same argument as Mesa - even though I don't entirely agree with it.)

The big thing that put me off it was actually the very cheesy-looking bright red and blue LEDs, they made me think it was a cheap Chinese solid-state amp… until I heard it.

I suspect in the US they're hampered by memories of the transistor Tuck'n'Roll amps, too, which no matter how good they sound to me, are definitely not for the "it must sound like a tube amp" school of solid-state buyers.

But I still haven't heard a bad one, anywhere from the tiny 10W practice amps upwards. Although taking a MG15 to the cleaners is hardly difficult .

timmysoft

The modern solid state heads like the kg, quad and quad junior all show up used for between 60-100 quid, at those sorts of prices I can collect all of them!

ThePrettyDamned

ICBM;280014" said:

Dave_Mc said:



ICBM said:

Kustom amps are consistently great at all price points and whatever technology they use in my opinion. I really don't know why they aren't a lot more rated than they are.










I really liked the (now discontinued, I think) Coupé I tried- sounded really good, and pretty versatile. Pricey, though (£900 IIRC), especially compared to the prices they go for in the states (at one point I seem to remember their being blown out, new, for something like $500... at that kind of money I'd have had one ) ).



I don't think they were that popular in the States, either, but at least we have the excuse that the Coupés were a bit expensive. )










I agree that they were pricey compared to what they go for in the US, but having played one I actually think they warrant the price in terms of sound quality! (Same argument as Mesa - even though I don't entirely agree with it.)

The big thing that put me off it was actually the very cheesy-looking bright red and blue LEDs, they made me think it was a cheap Chinese solid-state amp… until I heard it.

I suspect in the US they're hampered by memories of the transistor Tuck'n'Roll amps, too, which no matter how good they sound to me, are definitely not for the "it must sound like a tube amp" school of solid-state buyers.

But I still haven't heard a bad one, anywhere from the tiny 10W practice amps upwards. Although taking a MG15 to the cleaners is hardly difficult .

This is true...

... But when I first started, I could plug into a Marshall!

gearaddict

ThePrettyDamned said:

timmysoft;279644" said:

I'm pretty determined to go solid state on my new project, with being the only guitarist I think it would be cool to have a couple of solid state stacks.

Stonehead!

+1

Still loving mine!

imalone

timmysoft said:

The modern solid state heads like the kg, quad and quad junior all show up used for between 60-100 quid, at those sorts of prices I can collect all of them!

Gotta catch em all!

Dave_Mc

ICBM said:

(a) I agree that they were pricey compared to what they go for in the US, but having played one I actually think they warrant the price in terms of sound quality! (Same argument as Mesa - even though I don't entirely agree with it.)

(b) The big thing that put me off it was actually the very cheesy-looking bright red and blue LEDs, they made me think it was a cheap Chinese solid-state amp… until I heard it.

(c) I suspect in the US they're hampered by memories of the transistor Tuck'n'Roll amps, too, which no matter how good they sound to me, are definitely not for the "it must sound like a tube amp" school of solid-state buyers.

(d) But I still haven't heard a bad one, anywhere from the tiny 10W practice amps upwards. Although taking a MG15 to the cleaners is hardly difficult .

(a) Yeah I know what I mean. I'm with you- I sort of understand the argument, and if someone makes it you can't really argue against it, but I don't really agree with it, either (to me something's price should bear a relation to how much it costs to make).

(b) Yeah the cosmetics as a whole didn't really work for me (though now you mention it I have a vague recollection of the LEDs looking cheesy too). IIRC they had a pretty cheesy advertising campaign in the guitar mags, too, which maybe didn't help.

None of that would have annoyed me enough to stop me getting one had I been able to get one for the $500 I mentioned above ) But at £900 you're a bit more picky... especially since I already had most of the tones it did covered at least decently with my engl.

(c) That may well be, I haven't tried them )

(d) LOL! I haven't tried very many of them... I think I tried one of the solid states when I was trying some guitars one time, and was a bit annoyed they didn't have any "decent" amps to plug into. It didn't really sound or feel like a tube amp, but I have a vague recollection of feeling it didn't sound too bad for a cheap SS amp.

daveyh

Some of my favourite guitar sounds were done on solid state Randalls in the '80s. I have dirt cheap Soundlab practice amp that sounds fucking brilliant.

Dave_Mc

I also seem to remember someone (maybe a couple of people) on Ultimate Guitar saying the Coupé benefitted from a speaker swap- again, not the end of the world or anything, but at £900 you'd sort of hope it already had a good speaker in there (granted, "good speaker" normally means V30 which probably wouldn't suit the style of amp, but still... ) ).