Cornford Hellcat 212 Combo

I have had a devil of a time getting the effects loop to work. which would be a big deal if i had to have effects, but i play with only the amp and wah pedal most of the time. effects on the front end work perfectly fine, but i find that any effects at all take away from the tone regardless. 2 channels vintage (clean) and modern (high gain). it would be a nice bonus to have a third channel for over -the-top gain, but i dont need it 99% of the time, so i dont really care. its the loudest 35 watts on the planet.

i play a PRS modern eagle and custom 24. honestly i play it for hours on end just to hear the sound it makes. it really has no distortion. its just pure sweet gain. amazingly responsive to guitar volume and playing style. ive played on most brands of high end amps (marshall, bogner, boogie, bad cat, etc.) and ive figured that the amps themselves are instruments. i would choose cornford over all others every time without question because it is the right tone for me. santana is my hero, so dont buy this amp if you want to play anything heavier than iron maiden (though thats pretty heavy). pretty noisy on the modern channel when gain is high, but no more than other valve amps.

never had it out of the studio

never dealt with company

ive played for 17 years. if it was lost of stolen i would rush to the store for another (possibly the head and 4X, but i would have to play on first. I just want to say that for me it is the best amp on the planet (so far). it definately has a few issues, but for me the tone with my modern eagle and this amp is as close to perfect as i have ever heard. i may not play as well as my heroes, but they do not have better tone! bold, I know, but i feel its true.

Enough features but the effects loop was wired wrong, not really acceptable on an amp costing this much

Just too noisy at high gain settings, really nice clean and medium gain tones but not an amp for metal, its the truth go try one. gigged about 10 times with it and got fed up trying to control the unwanted feedback, not nice.

I've owned too much to list but this was nt a keeper, sold it on e-bay. I would nt buy another Cornford, I know the stars in the UK play them but lets be fair they would sound good playing a squire start through a marshall MG crap, yes Guthrie/Kilminster/Cyrka etc are that good. I've now got a Splawn Quick Rod, now thats a keeper.

35 Watts from four EL84s and five ECC83s through two Celsetion Vintage 30s with fairly basic features, 2 footswitchable channels sharing 1 set of EQ and reverb, also footswitchable. And that's it. Is all handbuilt point-to-point wiring a feature too? I think probably yes.

Considering it's slimness of features this amp is exceptionally versatile and really can go from soft soulful blues to snarling high gain rock just by switching channels and pickup and adjusting your guitars volume and tone knobs (remember those?), it really is as good at this as Cornford claim.

The only extra thing that I would like on this amp is two footswitchable volume levels like the Solo feature found on some Boogies. If you're a sole guitarist in a blues band, this amp would be just right as it is, but if you're in a rock covers band with 2 guitarists, as I am, that solo volume boost would be a real asset.

What does it sound like? Simply marvellous. You really cannot make it sound bad.

The Vintage channel can do really clean or good old fashioned crunchy distortion. It reminds me a bit of my old JCM800, though I daresay others would disagree, but it has a sort of Marshally roundness with a bit of Voxy EL84 sparkle thrown in for good measure. I tend to use this with the gain turned up pretty much all the way as my rhythm channel, although this is probably not where the best sounds come from as you can't then use the volume control to get a proper clean sound. With the gain at about 2 o'clock you can play softly and get some really nice lush clean sounds and then dig in a bit more to get it to begin to break up, adjusting the volume control does this too. This is what this channel does best, think of Hendrix's softer moments and you won't be too far out. If only it had that Solo feature I could use the modern channel more and keep the gain lower.

And so on to the Modern channel. This is where all your high gain rock (and metal too) can be found. With the gain on max there is huge amounts of distortion to be had, and endless sustain too, but it manages to keep its clarity with each note really clearly defined. I think this channel is where it sounds more EL84 like, I can get a really nice Rory Gallagher type sound (pity I can't play like him) with that tightly focused midrange and nicely defined top end. But, surprisingly for an EL84 combo, you can also dial in a lot of bottom end too. I find it can get a bit flabby if you try for too much of it but then this is an EL84 based combo, if you want lots of meaty bottom end you need 4x12s and big valves.

Most of my guitars have single coils and I think this is where this amp excels. My '66 Telecaster just sings and between us we really can go from beautiful soft lushness to all out rock mayhem in a flash without once touching the amp. But this amp likes humbuckers too, I can do the same trick with my Les Paul. Gary Moore was actually in the shop when I was trying this amp out (that was a humbling experience, I can tell you) and if he plugged his Les Paul into this amp I have no doubt he could conjure up any of his trademark sounds with ease. I've also got a Strat and P90 equipped PRS and they all sound like the different guitars they are but the amp always adds it's own sound signature to the mix too, which is good. And then adding a wah to may Tele, with the treddle all the way down the sound just screams, it sounds so good I can't begin to describe it properly.

My only slight quibble, and I'm picking on it now because it's an expensive amp, is that the Modern channel is maybe be a little noisy. Don't get me wrong, every other amp I've ever heard with this amount of gain has made at least this much noise but most of them cost half as much. I would have to say that this doesn't worry me loads as you can't hear it once you start playing and as I most often play in the local pub rather than posh recording studios; when it sounds this good, who cares?

I haven't had it that long but the point (no pun intended, honest) about point-to-point is that, if ever it does go wrong, it can be mended. When looking to buy this amp I also had the Mesa Lonestar Special in mind which is another great sounding amp and has all the features you could ever wish for, including that Solo feature I've been harking on about. But it's all those features that made me go with the Cornford instead; I really quite like the fact that this amp doesn't have much to go wrong. Anyway, I don't think I've had it quite long enough yet to be able to give this a valid rating but I'm fully expecting it to be the last amp I buy and to be able to pass it on to my children in fully working order.

This amp has never once gone wrong, but then I've only had it a month. I did have a query over the output valves which I emailed to the address on the Cornford website. The next day I got a reply from Paul Cornford himself, fantastic. Try emailing Marshall, do you reckon Jim Marshall would reply, in person, the next day? Ok, I'm being silly, but the point is, I got a quick reply and it was an answer to my question not just a standard fobbing-off reply.

Overall I love this amp. It sounds just superb and really can do any style of music you want in a trice. You don't need to fiddle with the controls on the amp much, you're better off adjusting the controls on the guitar and I think this is what defines this amp. Wherever you place the dials it still sounds simply superb but by adjusting the volume, or switching pickups, or maybe cutting a bit of treble off with the tone control, you can drastically alter the tone coming out of the speakers. Or you could just try picking differently because that works marvelously well too. If only it had that Solo feature it would quite literally be perfect.

The Hellcat has two channels which share EQ, Reverb and series effects loop. Unlike most two channel amps the Hellcat doesn't have dedicated clean and dirty channels. Instead either channel can be clean or dirty. It's 'only' 35 Watts, but it is without a doubt a gigging amp. The shared EQ is a compromise, but a sensible one. Channels and reverb are footswitchable and footswitch is included. Wisely, the footswitch cable is detatchable at both ends, so only lead would ever need to be replaced, and not the pedal.

I'm using this with a PRS Custom 24 and a Fender Deluxe Power Tele. For what looks like a simple amp, it's extremely versatile. I use it for many different styles of music. I really fail to imagine any style it can't handle. I've had my fair share of good amps: Mesa Tremoverb Combo, Mesa MKIII head, Grove Tubes Trio/D75, Vox AC30, Soldano Dectatone head, Marshall TSLs/JCM800 combos and heads, Marshall JMP1/9100 and some others, but I think this would compete with any of those at any type of tone. I doesn't sound like any amp I've heard before, it has a character all it's own. It's a sound I've wanted since I cared about my sound.

The two channels are labelled 'Vintage' and 'Modern'. They had to call the something. Vintage, with the gain set low, is where the really clean tones are. A fair amount of headroom too. With the gain up higher it sounds like real valve power amp overdive. Depending on your approach to playing, this channel goes somewhere from AC30 to Plexi via JCM800: Fingered chords 'ring', but dig in with a pick and the sound hardens up and snarls. Magic!
The Modern Channel is all new, it's not really like any other amp. Very differenr to he other channel, but still appropriate in the same amp. At lower gain settings it's uber-dynamic and transparent. It's always responding to the pick. At high gain settings, it's untouchable. I bought a Tremoverb Dual Rectifier hoping for a sound like this. It's full on gain, very complex but always tight and responsive. I was always mildly disappointed with my Dual Rec', and the Hellcat nailed it's coffin. They sound nothing alike, but the Hellcat does the brutal Rock/Metal thing which the Mesa pokes at with so much more class.
I never thought an EL84 amp would be what I would end up with. Stangely for an amp with EL84's there's no 'squish' or 'sag'. The amp always has the attack there when I play a bit harder. It doesn't much like an open back cab either. With the bass up it's got a closed back 'thump' to it. But clean sounds still have that 'air' of an openback cab. Black Magic?
I've used also tried the amp with a Mesa Recto cab and an open cab with G12Ms. Neither sounded as good as the internal speakers. Both lacked the life and space. The Mesa was dark with all the low end one could want, but was nowhere near as satisying. The other cab sounded harsh. Yuck. On the basis of that I think I'm now a convert to pine cabinet consruction. Used into a Palmer ADIG-LB it does it keeps it's character and dynamics very nicley. It likes pedals in the front end too. The effects loop worried me at first, it didn't work! I swapped the leads around and it worked. The 'send' and 'return' were labelled in reverse! A small, easliy remedied problem. The Reverb sounds like a spring reverb, albeit without the hum.
I've heared it said many times that you can't hide bad playing with a Cornford amp. Conversely, I found this amp makes averything I play sound so much better. I feel I have a special tone now.

No problems yet. It has an aura of dependabilty, like a St. Bernard. I'll always take my V-Twin for back up though. Oh what an idea! How about conford make point to point pre-amp pedal!? I'd buy it.

Cornford excell at customer service. Before buying the amp I emailed them asking a few questions. Paul replied within hours.

I've come via loads of other amps to get to this one. Simply: It's better. I can't imagine anyone not liking this amp. Unless they just shelled out for some Line6 vetta and were to convince themselves they hadn't just wasted their money! But that would be denial. There's nothing i dislike about the amp, but I would prefer sea foam green leather covering to make it match my guitar. Yum. It's lot of money and a lot of amp. I guess you get what you pay for. Unless you bought a Line6 amp.

This is the first review of this amp here at HC. It packages the superb Hellcat head in a combo format, and has taken 2 years to develop. Two channels, Vintage and Modern (not as some people think clean and dirty), reverb, hi and lo inputs, EQ (shared), series effects loop and 2 Celestion Vintage 30s. Footswitchable reverb and channels. 35 watts Class A, 5 12AX7s and 4 EL84s. Covers all the bases from clean to metal. It doesn't have a headphone socket. Some may not like the shared EQ for both channels.

I use Music Man Axis Super Sports with humbuckers and piezos exclusively. I play rockabilly through classic rock to modern metal and instrumental rock. The amp does all of these extremely well. Each channel does its own thing. "Vintage" covers clean to crunch (think Vox AC30 to AC/DC) and is excellent for blues, rock and well, anything else. The reverb is lovely. "Modern" covers the overlap from GNR right through to metal with amazing articulation and clarity. I've heard the sound described as "creamy filth" - not a bad description! There is some noise on the Modern channel at high gain, but this is not surprising for a valve amp. The amp has its own personality and sound, so if you're looking for the Marshall or Mesa sound, probably best to buy one of those. If you want something more adaptable and individual, try this out. And 35w is exceptionally loud but usable (as opposed to 100 unusable watts).

The amp responds very well to guitar volume changes and pick attack. The EQ controls do shape the sound; the mid is especially good. The piezos also sound good.

The amp is superbly constructed with top-notch components. I've had no reliability problems at all, although I've not had it long (they only came out in May 2004). However, I have had other Cornford amps and they are rock solid. But always carry spare valves...

Previous contact with the company has always been excellent and responses rapid. It's nice to get emails back from the guy who designs and builds them.

I've been playing for over 20 years and suffered from GAS. I've made a concious effort to slim down my kit - I realised I could only play one guitar and one amp at a time (I never did the stereo thing!). I've had Cornford, Mesa Boogie, THD and Marshall amps (all of them with their strengths and weaknesses) but this one is the one I'll keep.

I chose it because of the convenience of the combo format, the channel switching, the cool design, the build quality, and the reputation (and my previous experience of the Mk50 heads and the Harlequin). I considered a Mesa Lone Star but was put off by the reliability scares here at HC. The Cornford Hurricane was the other on the short list, but it doesn't have channel switching and the extreme distortion possible with the Hellcat. But in the end, all of these things are subjective and only you can be the judge of what works for you.

Finally, #1899 may seem like a lot of money (it is!!) but consider - you do get what you pay for; the Hellcat head is #1699 and a 212 cab is #499...seems good value after all.

My only other amp is a Line 6 Vetta (I'm not a valve snob) which I also love but there's always that part of me wants valves. I would definitely replace it if stolen or lost.