Budda Superdrive 30 1x12 Combo

2 Channels 30 watts, effects loop, pull bright switch, vintage modern tone pull. Great amp. Very good for clean and driving rock sounds. Loud enough to gig but you can also turn it down and play at home but probably not in an apartment. Quad EL 84s produce a good clean and rock sound although it's not quite a marshall but you do gain more sound capability. Walked into Sam Ash and saw it under a Managers Special Sale for a phenominal price. Could not resist.

Sounds great with a Les Paul or Strat. Amp seems to really "breath well" and plays as hard or soft as you need. Only had it for less than one month so I have not had a chance to really crank it full blast at a practice yet. Great for clean strat tones or old ZZ Top sounds. The funny thing is I was building a pedal board with at least 3 OD's and distortion pedals on it. I really don't need more than a tube screamer or boast to drive this amp. It produces a great rock sound on the OD channel all by itself! I did find the best sounds were to split my board and run the OD straight in the front and the delay and reverb into the loop. The loop does not have any volume adjustments and takes some time to get the blend and volume levels right. Run your OD pedals straight in and everything else throught the loop.

Everything was working great until today when I turned it on and there was no volume. I checked the tubes and eventually the amp started working again. After about 20 minutes the volume died and the power to the amp went - blown fuse. I called Jeff at Budda and he was very helpful in diagnosing the problem. He is sending out a new rectifier tube and fuse ASAP. Great service! I hope that this is the only issue I run into as this is a great amp overall. This amp does run pretty hot so it will probably eat a lot of tubes.

The Best! Jeff answers your emails and phone calls himself! Walked me through a problem and sent out new tubes. I hope that this fixes my problem as I really love the amp. This guy stands behind his products! I did buy the extended warranty so if I did happen to get a lemon I should be covered. I am in sales myself and know when someone is just out to close the sale and move on. Jeff at Budda cares about his customers. We just need more Budda amps out there in the marketplace.

Playing over 20 years. Finally found the amp that if I had to I would sell my Marshall and Fender and keep this one. Would buy it again no questions asked. Great sound and feel to it. I told my wife that a tube amp is almost like a living thing...she thought I was crazy but it's true! Not as tight sounding as my Marshall JCM 800 but much smoother and less shrill. Will experiment with different brands of tubes as times goes by.

2 years old. Like my 18 watt Budda it only weighs 5 more pounds at 47 I think. My review of the 18 watter was basically...sold all my Boogies (owned 8 over years), Feneder, many others over 45 years as the Budda sounds like my Boggie is supposed to. Of course more headroom especially clean, but for most gigs..dance band..vintage rock R&B, blues reggae, jazz..same band 14 years. personally I love the effects loop with TC GSystem and other time based effects. Plenty power for our gigs (weddings,parties small and very large occasionally...very few clubs thank God! Know this: 30 Budda watts is like 60 on other amps.
*** I just learned that one great feature is switching to 18 watts by jerking 2 center tubes and replacing the rectifier tube with $25 5Y3 tube. I can run stereo at home with my 18 watter and BAM! what a huge sound at low volume! awesome wife lets me wail and I have never wanted to play so much in my life...(that would be woodshedding/practice for all the Guitar Gods out there) Just make sure you are a clean player with Budda, unlike Line 6, all sounds are clearly heard especialy unmuted strings.

'53 Tele my dad bought new, 84' PRS I bought new, PRS Hbody 2, strats,

Buddas take exactly what you put in..from 53 Fralin rewound single coil to PRS 'buckers, and deliver in spades EXACTLY what the guitar is supposed to sound like...even Epi Casino P90's..spot on what goes in comes out ecpecially clean channel one... chicken Pickin' is scary in how awesome it sounds. Channel 2 also likes any pickup but really blasts with 'buckers.
Clean channel has planty of blues gain and sustain. Single coils shine here and strats are as persussive..snappy sounding as they are supposed to be. It has more headroom than any amp I have ever played. and is very dynamic. The 30 watter gets 10 just as the 18 watter did as it gets almost any sound you have ever heard style wise from, spanky plank funk/country,to Jazz, to SRV, to heavy vintage rock.
Distortion channel can get pretty hot and has the marshall K'rang cold! But neck position PRS is Santana-land for sure. Most will need no more than 30 watter...freakin' loud when you need it. I prefer the 18 watter as most gigs are small 200 to 300 people and the harder tubes breath the better the sound IMUO. A Lot of HIGH end stomps are not getting used much anymore...they suck more tone than most are willing to even investigate much less admit too.

18 watter for 2 years has no problems whatsoever.

Jeff and the guys always answer emails promptly and extremely knowledgeable.
No repairs yet but looks great

45 years of playing..10.5 as a drummer..Too much gear to list in terms of amps, stomp boxes and effects..it's rediculous but a very good wife!
Buy another asap.
I LOVE the tone and dynamics, but especially it speaks your guitar's resonance & pickup language..PERIOD!
Like others I wish the loop was foot switchable. Reverb was an issue, but the tone is so amazing I find myself going straight in..Direct Inject...besides on closer inspection most find they are tone suckers anyway despite what they may say about "true bypass--my a**"..still suck tone off...a few do not but rare. I am a tone fanatic..so..

Ok the players and vocalist are seasoned versatile top shelf performers (myself excluded) so I listen to their opinions as unbiased as they truly are..They say "sell the rest and bring the Buddas"!

Made in 2007.

The amp has a very versatile clean channel that I would describe as "elastic", it is very easy on the fingers, and it can do laid back jazz, raunchy blues and funky spank. Bright pull on the volume gives a more open tone.

The drive channel has a dirty plexi character, and is really versatile as all its gain ranges are useable, brightness increases with gain up and you have a mid pull modern function which is kinda like a loudness button.

The serial FX loop is OK. It's pedal level, and the level changes with different master settings. On any tube amp I wish for a bypasseable loop with a remote switch, but only few have it. The loop in the SDII30 is OK but not fantastic.

It also has a slave out which I don't use.

Cabinet quality is very high standards.

Tube sockets are cheap plastic which is very annoying.

One thing about me you should know: I am a gear head, an amp whore and a GASofanatic. So don't take for 100% what I am saying, as people like me dream about capacitor values, phantasize about speaker types while driving and should overall not be taken too serious.

Having said that, I own 4 tube amps at the moment, and I buy and sell a lot. The Budda is most likely to stay, and here is why:

CLEAN: If the amp is turned up, due to its construction, you cannot expect the biggest headroom ever, it's got its strength more on the thick and compressed cleans, with a bit of hair - which is perfect in my opinion. I mostly play it with Humbucker guitars and bright switch on. As said before, due to its tube rectifier construction it's an elastic response which is very easy to play, even with a very bright and clear tone.

DRIVE: I mostly play in modern mode, with varying settings, but prefer gain around noon, as the amp feels louder and more direct in a band context with less gain. At home I might wiggle gain up to even full, just for the fun. I prefer the modern mode, as it makes the whole amp much more interesting sounding to me. This channel, as the clean, is very versatile. It can do a very convincing 60s ,70s ,80s or 90s/00s rock, and doesn't need a decade switch for that. It really has many many useable settings, unlike most other amps that only have a few sweet spots. But don't be mistaken, it's not a tone tweaker amp, usually I switch it on, take 1 minute to dial in and then I suddenly realise 2h have passed without me touching it again.

The serial FX loop is OK. It's pedal level, and the level changes with different master settings. On any tube amp I wish for a bypasseable loop with a remote switch, but only few have it. The loop in the SDII30 is OK but not fantastic.

Please note that the amp gets VERY hot, and it eats tubes for dinner. A new quad of EL84s should be within your budget every 6 months. It's worth it!

I have been happy right away, but meanwhile changed the following things:
-Replaced the Budda Phat by a Celestion G12-65 Heritage (gives more of an 80s upper mid Marshall crunch)
-Replaced the output tubes by EL84CZ ("bigger" and less fizzy than the GTs)

It's addictive to play, and very pleasing to listen to. Highly responsive to what you put it. A great great amp indeed!!

I had issues with the cheap tube sockets. The amount of heat could long term stress the components. It's not a 10...

Was in contact with Jeff via email. He even forwarded my clips links to the whole team. Very nice company!

I am 37 and been playing since 20 years. My other amps are a Bogner Shiva, a Marshall Vintage Modern, a Vox AC30.

If all my gear was stolen, I would cry a lot for sure, but then it would be this amp I would buy again in an instant. Or I would try the whole Budda range and get a 30, a 45 or an 80.

When I compare this amp to my Bogner Shiva, then the Shiva has more volume and more "oomph", it is also a very "grown up" amp. But when I listen to my heart and how much fun I have playing the Budda, I prefer this 30W beast.

Like on all amps, I wish I could remote switch the loop on and off.

Buddas are very hard to find in Europe. They should improve their distributor network as many people are missing out on a great product.

Basic and clean:

Series effects loop
Two channel
Shared Eq
Slave Out
Selectable OHM

All you need...

It gets a 10 because I knew what it had and didn't before I bought it...comparing this amp to an amp with 3 channels, independent Eq's, silent recording, etc...is really unreasonable.

Versatility and sweet tone.

Whatever you want to play...this box will do it.

Whatever guitar you use...it sounds like that guitar.

Dynamics are clearly articulated.

Overtones are intoxicating.

Scared senseless of this amp...

The first one didn't work when I bought it from an online (M@@@@@@@'s F@@@@d) retailer...they said it worked perfectly...I sent it to Budda...they fixed it (or so I thought)...after a couple of weeks it exhibited the same behavior --- my 45-day guarantee had expired because all of this took awhile...called Budda...they didn't know what it was...sent it to Budda --- they replaced the entire chassis for a new one... - I thought that one would work flawlessly...well it didn't...after a couple of months of LIGHT use...it began to go downhill again...sent it back to Budda...it was a bad wire on the effects loop.

This amp has me worried about what is next...anything that is similar to what has occurred already makes me jumpy. And, I really don't need to hear about - it could be the tubes...well, it could always be the tubes then...

Reliability --- 2

It's a boutique amp...I expect near 100% functionality all the time.

Jeff and Brandon are both extremely helpful...and they stand behind their product. And, they handled me well...

Played many amps over 15 years of semi-pro and professional playing. This is the ONLY tube amp that has ever given me any issues --- the ONLY one...if it didn't sound exactly like I've always wanted --- I mean...this thing is extraordinary...

It's not always a tube issue...that means anytime anything occurs it could be a tube...well, I've had amps with '84s '34s 6l6's, with and without rectifier tubes...and a glowing row of preamp tubes (don't you just love tube glow...???)...and this is the ONLY amp that has ever given me reliability issues.

The early problems really have me jumpy...I'd love to hand Budda another 3-4000 for another SD30 and an SD18...but, I'm hesitant.

I'll give it a 5...because I'm just unsure how often this thing will function near 100%.

Already listed...

Really, everybody knows what they are buying before they lay the cash down...so, it gets a 10. Why buy something when you want other features that aren't offered on one particular amp or another.

Everything that is needed...nothing that is not.

Absolutely spiritual...cleans through monstrous overdrive. Budda has an animal in this one...

I recently had an audition in Nashville with a new rising artist...he and the band were simply blown away by the tone I can coax out of this little box.

So, blues, country, jazz, rock, nu-rock...whatever you need...it's there...and with plenty of mojo.

Can I give this thing a 12 instead of a 10...???

Here is the only problem...

I've had two now...through no fault of my own.

First one they fixed...it came back to me and broke down again...I sent it back and they replaced the entire chassis. This one worked for a few weeks/couple of months and - BAM! - it didn't work...a faulty wire on the effects loop...sent it back...not my fault...they fixed this one...now, every time something is strange it makes me worry. When in Nashville, like a bonehead...I forgot to take spare tubes...never needed a spare set with my Mesas, my Fenders, or my Marshalls...NEVER...they NEVER gave me one single problem...so, I just didn't think about it --- never again...called them up...said I should have had a spare set...too soon to the audition for a trip out to get some...so I popped one tube out, put it back in and the problems went away...call it divine intervention --- BUT, it's worth the problems for the tone...this thing is absolutely a brilliant design. And, when you have top pro's tell you how awesome the tone is...it should give you all the confidence to keep using the product. I'm selling my Rectoverb and a practice 6505 (got it on a trade up, if you can believe that) and buying another SD 30 1x12 for a backup.

But, the early issues give me pause...with this particular amp I own - not all Buddas.

How good are they?

Fantastic!!! An easy 10 here...

7 because of the reliability with this particular amp.

If this was based on tone alone...there isn't a high enough mark.

Two channels/shared Eq/Serial Effects Loop/2 Speaker Outs - selectable Ohm...we all know what we were buying - a two-channel amp without any bells and whistles...going for tone - not a bunch of lights.

It gets a 10 because if I needed more, I would have bought a different amp. If you need more, then buy a different amp.

This thing is spiritual...you can coax any tone you want from this amp...from chimey clean to pure tube saturation. Very sensitive to your playing...a very organic amp - it responds perfectly.

I use a variety of Fenders with Dimarzio p-ups. The Tone Zone seems to work very well with my setup...the Fast Track I and Cruiser p-ups work well in the Neck position.

I give Jeff a 10+ for the design.

Here's the issue:

First amp...they replaced the chassis and gave me a new one.

The second lasted a few months and then a faulty wire on the effects loop sent it back to the shop...it's fixed and working quite well.

I'm a bit hesitant about using it without a backup...but, Brandon and Jeff @ Budda are fantastic...I have no problem using the amp or buying another one because of their commitment to get me an amp that is reliable. I thank them...

However, I give it a 4 for reliability...I'll update this in a year to an 8 if this last fix gives me a year of uninterrupted service.

Perfect...wonderful...the best!!!

The should be commended...

I give it a 7 because of the reliability issues...if I see the year of good use...I'll easily give it a 10+.

One other thing...I plan on purchasing another 30 and an 18 over the next year. I think I just have a couple of amps that are completely atypical for the company.

This is a series 2 with a printed circut board, not point 2 point. Amp is said to be lacking on features, but I think it has all that are needed without having, "too much". Two Channels: Clean & Hi-Gain, which are footswitchable. 30 watts, but extremely loud!!! Amp will cover any moderate size club gig. Slave out, with slave level. Effects loop. 4 el84's, 3 12ax's, 1 au4 rectafier. Push/Pull Vintage or Modern Distortion. Push/Pull Brite Swith. Clean volume, drive level, and master volume knobs. It does have a shared EQ b/t channels, which I have heard numerous complaints about. However, i don't think it's a big problom, my settings b/t clean and dirty channels haven't differed that much on seperately EQ'd amps i've owned in the past, and be honest, neither have yours;). I'm giving this an 8 for you, "features freaks" out there b/c it does'nt have a built in compressor, ring modulator, or microwave. But in my heart it's a 10.

I already put the rating @ a 10 b/f I wrote this sentence. I've had the amp for around 1 1/2 months, so i've had time to experiment some. This amp can pull off almost any sound with absoulute perfection. This is by far the best sounding amp i've ever owned.

Clean channel: Nice and warm, but not muddy. However with a pull of the bright swithch, you can let the chime ring; even with humbuckers. When pushed, this amp will give off an awesome vintage overdrive sound. This is all done with just a roll of the volume knob; THIS AMP IS EXTREMELY PLAYER SENSATIVE!!! Channel has a volume knob so you can keep in step with dirty channel.

Hi-Gain channel: PERFECTION. Crisp bass, slathery midrange, defined top end PERFECTION. Can cover country to metal. Awesome response from this amp; you can feel the sound coming from your fingers. Nice tight sound overall, not sloppy as with some amps I have owned in the past. Amp is not noisy; obviously some hiss will appear @ high volumes, but it's not overbearing. Brings out pedals remarkably; chorus sounds sweeter, delay is more pronounced, nothing gets muddy. Best sounding distortion in the biz, it will fit your taste no matter what it is.

I bought the amp used. When I got it, the amp was cutting out @ times. After looking @ tubes when this happened I saw that when the amp cut out, some of the output tubes had no fire. I called Budda directly, and he said I needed to change the output tubes. Since then, amp workes fine. I feel the amp is reliable, It is put together very cleanly. I gig with no backup. I will admit, any probloms make a fella a little leary, even if it is just a routine maintenance issue. I wanna give it a 10, but i'm gonna be stubborn and show a 9 for this catagory.

The best ever!!!! Owners/designers answer the phone directly. When I had called about the aforementioned tube issue, the "Budda Guys" were there to explain the problom, and talked with me about numerous other questions i was able to come up with as well. I know they're busy, so I try not to bother em', but they're there when you need em' fo' sho'! They also reply to e-mails same day on any I sent, amazing. Overall extremely helpful and informative.

I've been playing guitar for about 5-6 years. I have a Frankenstien strat with a Gibson classic in the neck and a Seymour Duncan in the bridge -> Budda -> Guyatone SV-2 -> Boss TU 2 -> Boss PS 5 -> Boss CE 5 -> Boss DD 3. If this amp were stolen, i'd cry and then buy another one(well, after a little while, these baby's are'nt free). I compared this to an Orange AD-30 when I bought this. This amp suited my style(s) best. If I have to say one thing I wish this amp had, it would be rubber feet on the bottom ( which I bought some adhesive ones form Wmart and applied for $1.79) b/c the metal ones make my heart skip when I set this down on concrete;)

I think it depends on what you define as features - which is why I gave it a seven. 2 channel, all tube (including the rectifier), effects loop, shared eq, bright switch for the clean channel. Can switch cabinets for a lead channel. I do this and haven't seen anyone write about it, so I thought it may be helpful to add my 2 cents.

I have a PTP Superdrive 30 rackmount. I was told it was the last PTP made (those sales people...) loved the tone and had to get it (It's very cool living across the street from GC!).

I wish the footswitch had a light and the volume was more pronounced when switching to the lead channel. I always wondered if there was a problem with the amp. If anyone knows, please let me know. It has never really bothered me, but I've always been curious.

Right now I'm mostly playing a LP studio I bought a few months back. Sounds awesome!! I have used the usual axes into this amp and it always delivers awesome tones! You can get pristine clean sounds to some pretty heavy tones too. It may take a while to "learn how to play" this amp. For me, the amp really is a new intsrument I had to spend some time with and experiment to get the sound I want. I used it in cover bands playing everything from Pink Floyd to Metallica and this amp always delivered. It truly is the sound in my head. I use Bag End birch cabs for the main speakers and Bag End Red Rocks for the extension cabs. It is a very unique sound and cuts through everything! Before I bought the Red Rocks cabs, this baby hung right in there with a Mark IV and a Bogner Shiva (no BS) - I'll bet w/ the extension cabs it will smoke it!!!! I'll have to hook up with somebody that has one and see.

Everybody gives my rig a double-take... until they hear it. I would say 90% of the people that hear it are blown away! The other 10% love the modelers - enough said.

I feel that I can depend on this amp, but I always gig with a back-up (It just makes good sense). When I bought this amp I heard a rattle in the amp when I played a low E with the neck PU. Read more about this later. Besides that, I haven't had any problems.

I called Jeff and told him about the rattle in the amp. I took it to his shop and dropped it off. He called me and said that the amp rattled against the rackmount chassis and repalced it with a new one (newer version) free of charge. I didn't think to keep the old one. What was I thinking!? I've also emailed the company and gotten a response from Jeff the very next day.

I'd say their customer service is right up there with Peavey. If you've dealt with Peavey, you know what I mean. Jeff is very cool and really takes care of his customers. I'd say they should get an 11.

This is my favorite amp, and I've played several: Fender, Marshall, Vox, Bogner, Mesa, etc. I also own a Mesa DC-5 (great amp). I would definitely get another if something happened to it (assuming I could afford one now). The cabinet switching is a great feature. I originally had a 12x10 cab and switched speakers this way (amazing tone). I traded it for the Bag End cabs after 1 gig because I just didn't have alot of room in my car and it was hard on my back. If you can swing it get a 12x10 cab. It really adds to the versatility of the amp. This amp is definitely worth the money and I may get the 18 watt version when I have the extra cash. If you are looking for a new amp, you should definitely give these a try. Quality all the way.

This is a PTP series one I got. Serial# less than 100.
Has the channel switching and cabinet switching feature. Cab switching is cool may never use it though, we'll see. I wish it had a boost fswitch and maybe a "modern" footswitch.

Plenty of gain. Play hard and you can get metal. One of the most touch responsive amps out there. Very responsive to pickup output. My Lp with a duncan 59 sounds way more tame than a san dimas explorer with a dimarzio distortion. I would put it in the same class as the Bogner Shiva which is also very sensitive to touch and guitar pickup output. This is more sweet sounding than the Bogner so in that respect I liek it better.
I compare it to making a guitar sound like a piano. The notes are well defined in chords. It's like the antithesis of a Mesa Boogie.
Very quiet overall. Clean is great sounds cool when cranked, kind of like the Budda twinmaster.

I've owned practically one of everything Budda ever made. There stuff doesn't need backing up.

One of the best in the business.

I been at it almost 20 years. I have an old JMP head. I switch most of m y gear up alot but this is a keeper (the Budda not the Marshall). I owned a higher watt superdrive from the PCB series, the 80, it sounded great but only at high volumes. I took a guess that I just needed the same amp but with a lower watt rating and I was right. This amp sounds awesome at low volumes. I would say this is my favorite amp now and the Shiva is number two.

2 channel(clean & dirty) 30 watt jobby that sounds like 100 watts. It is really loud. It's simple. Plug it in and play it won't sound bad I promise! I see a lot of folks wish it had a presence control. I don't miss it. That's my 2 cents. If I had one wish I wish it had seperate volume controls. I love running the clean channel at around 9 and the dirt around 3. But there's a volume difference. I'll live just fine with it!

Sound?! I've never heard anything better! Honestly it took me a little while to figure out how the tone controls complemented each other. Don't just turn it on and dime everything! It is so versitle and just unbelievable sounding. I'm running the clean and dirty channel around 3 or 4 depending on my mood. But I find myself using the guitar volume to get my tone. People who have played this amp can't believe how responsive the volume control on the guitar plays off the amp. I can go from stupid clean to brutal distortion by turning up my guitar volume. It's freeking tone heaven!!!! It's a sooped up fender vibroverb on channel one and a totally modded marshall(think early Van Halen)on the 2 channel. I can't wait for my wife to leave the house so I can crank this thing up!!! If I could trade this for anything I would keep this. I've played the Dr Z's, Bogners, Mesa's, Marshalls, Fenders, etc etc. They're all really great amps but the Budda is better

I want to say 10 but I can't. I got the first one and had a problem with it. It had a rattle, sounded like in the transformer but I returned it and got another one. The second one I got had a problem with the volume issues but The Budda guys sent me new tubes and it's been great ever since. I waited 3 months before posting just to feel better about the amp. Bottom line I now trust it. I've played out with it a few times no problem. It's been great since. I'll post an update in 6 months. Damn thing is built like a tank as far as construction is concerned

These guys are great. They care of thier customers. They went above and beyond. I appreciate that. I don't question spending the money I did on this product

I've been playing for 30 years. I've owned about 30 different amps. All of them were good for what I needed at that time. A few were great. None approach the sound of this amp. My G&L Legacy deluxe through my Budda is the best guitar sound I ever made. I can't really describe it. It's just that good. I thought when I first got this amp I wasn't going to like it like I had hoped. You have to learn how to use it. It's easy but you still have to experiment a bit. Plus the initial problems didn't help either. But once the smoke cleared I'm left with an absolutely incredible amp. One I can't see ever getting rid of. It's small, loud and kicks all sorts of ass. My only concern is the reliability which I'm getting more comfortable with every day. Thanks Budda!