Collins Amplification SOHO 50 Head

The amp I have was the first prototype that started the SOHO series. Collins built the amp for Matt King after discussions about a custom amp. The SOHO I have came with the custom matching 1x15 open back cabinet with a British voiced alnico Weber. The amp is very simple, where-in lies its beauty. I plug in my guitar cable, turn all the knobs all the way up (depending on which club I'm at the two volumes are at 12:00) and let her rip. It has 4, 8, and 16 ohm taps. It has presence, bass, mid, treble, two volume knobs and a switch to tie them together.

Absolutely amazing tone. I through a Bugle Boy 12AX7 in it recently and it sounds even better. A little reduction on the guitar's volume cleans it up nice and up all the way you get full crank! I've used it with a Music Man 4x12 and the combination was full on punchy, articulate, and reproduced every little nuiance of the amp. The sound is where this amp is worth every penny. It absolutely loves my strat and gets the punch really going on a Tele.

I play in an original band that blends funk, punk, rock, jazz, and even a little chickin' pickin'. My old set up was 2 different tube amps (THD and BF Twin Reverb) and several pedals. I am loving carrying stuff to gigs now because the amp/cab combo is very light, portable, and covers everything I need.

I have received MANY compliments on the amps tone. I couldn't be happier.

I do all my own work on my amps and I am very happy with the build on my SOHO. It's very well laid out and incredible work. Collins has several pictures on his site, check it out.

My band plays 8 gigs a month with 1-4 hours per gig (not including rehearsals) and I just bring this amp. No problems thus far. It certainly gets it's share of wear and it will be with me for the long haul.

I emailed Collins about throwing in 5881 tubes instead of the EL34's and he wrote back quickly with detailed instructions about what to change in the amp. Fantastic guy. I still owe him sound samples. Hopefully, I'll get to those before too long...

I own several varied amps and have tried lots of stuff. This amp definitely has it's place as one of the great ones I have owned. I won't ever sell it and if it was stolen I would have him build me the EXACT same amp again.

I received this amp on a trade deal for a Guild Starfire III. Best trade deal I've had yet.

Totally handwired. Two volumes, bass, mid, treble, presence. 2 EL34's, 3 12AX7's. Mercury Magnetics OT, WeberVST PT. Exactly the same layout as a Marshall plexi, except that it has two inputs(Hi and Low) and a switch to tie them together. This amp does not have a bunch of bells and whistles and it doesn't need any. I like to keep things simple. This amp is simply a refinement of one of the best-sounding amps of all time. It has every feature I want or need, no more and no less. I'll give it a 6 in this category because it is not feature-laden.

I play a lot of rockabilly-influenced stuff but I prefer more amp gain than some guys. My main guitar is a Gretsch Anniversary. This amp is pretty much perfect for what I do. Craig Collins actually voiced it using his Gretsch. It's not particulary noisy, especially for a plexi-based design. What I really dig about this amp is how great it sounds at lower-volumes. Most plexi's don't sound that great until you crank the volumes up to at least 7 or 8. You can get gorgeous, compressed, jangly tone out of this amp even with the volumes on 3. If you've ever tried to do that with a Marshall, you'll understand why this is impressive. The Collins Soho is a perfect club gigging amp. I can get a pretty impressive array of tones just by adjusting my guitar's volume control. It also loves pedals. This amp could be used for anything from country to hard rock. If you're looking to do the scooped-mids metal thing, however, you might want to check out one of Craig's other amps. I'm pretty darn picky, so a 9 is a GREAT score.

I've had this amp for about a year and It's seen a lot of use. I don't abuse my stuff, but it isn't babied either. I try to always have a backup, but this is as reliable as a tube amp can be. I have very confidence that Craig Collins stands behind his amps.

Craig is a good guy. He asked a lot of questions about my other gear, what styles of music I play and who my favorite guitarists are. He really took the time to set this amp up specifically for me. Very cool.

I've been playing for 15 years. Considering that fact, I really should be a better player.... If it were lost or stolen, I would definitely save up my pennies to buy another one. This amp was basically designed for me, so I pretty much like everything about it. I got the chance to A/B my Collins with a '74 Marshall JMP and my amp ate it's lunch. The Marshall did one thing very well: LOUD, cranked rock n roll. My amp does that plus sounds killer at lower volumes. The Collins Soho is just a very, very good amp.