Electrosonic Amplifiers Solaris Head

Built in 2005.

This is a Solaris head with 12AX7 preamp, solid-state rectifier and 6V6 power tube. Mine has 3 tone knobs and an impedance selector switch. Around 7 (loud!) Watts of tonal goodness.

The Solaris is a Class A, single ended, single channel, non-master volume head. As seen on the web site (www.electrosonicamplifiers.com), the head can be built to your specs. Communication with Electrosonic is fast and easy, making the whole process of choosing the amp and options a breeze.

I give a "10" because you can really get as many features as you want with Electrosonic amps.

A truly great-sounding amp.

My Solaris was not built to be a high-gain monster - it cranks out nice shimmering cleans to bluesy overdrive at the turn of the volume knob. When dimed, it gets pretty raunchy, with tighter bass and less sag to my ears than other Class-A amps I have played with but mine has a solid-state rectifier and that was the way I wanted it. Interacts quite nicely with picking dynamics, but slightly less touch-sensitive than some other amps I play through.

It takes pedals very well - I use a Keeley BD-2 and Keeley DS-1 SEM in front of my amp, and they sound great!

The tone knobs are very good - totally useable through their whole range and much, much better than what I have experienced on almost every other amp I have heard. Dialing in the perfect tone to suit the guitar and cab is easy and painless.

The build quality looks very good, and I have no doubt that it is built to last.

With a hand-rubbed oil finish, this one isn't going to be taken to many gigs, but I bought it for my home and studio use, not for the road.

"10" on 10 for build quality.

Electrosonic amplifiers is an exemplary company, in terms of customer service and product quality. Josh was very quick in responding to emails and helpful throughout the whole transaction. The build time was very reasonable, and shipping was done in a profesional and quick manner. A very enthusiastic 10 on 10.

Having an amplifier custom-built was a fantastic experience thanks to Electrosonic amps. I am extremely satisfied with the overall transaction and with the product. My guitar-playing buddies are quite frankly green with envy over my little amp, and these are guys playing Rivera and vintage Fender amps, so I think it's fair to say that we know good tone when we hear it. A great amplifer, a fantastic company, and an unbeatable price.

Construction of my Solaris head was completed in early November 2004. I specified my Solaris as follows: EF86 preamp section, KT66 power tube, single tone & single volume controls, solid state rectifier, paper-in-oil signal caps, impedance selector, pine cabinet stained in Aurora Red.

This is a single channel, single ended class "A" amplifier, with an output of approximately 15 watts. This combination of components results in a medium gain amp, that has a warm, articulate, full tone. I cannot express how fantastic the clean tones of this amplifier really are. Awesome! I have already tried several excellent boost/drive pedals in front, and it sounds great with all of them. This amp really lets the tone of both your guitar, and pedals come through without adding any coloring of its own.

I use several guitars with this amp: 2 Les Pauls, Fender Jeff Beck Strat (currentl model), and 2 Carvins. All guitars sound fantastic with this amp. I also use a number of different pedals with this amp. Suffice to say, if the pedal is good it will sound great.

Again this is a medium gain amp, so heavy metal and massive amounts of overdrive are not its cup of tea. Great clean sounds, mild to medium overdriven blues tones, and 60s/70s blues rock are its strong suites. So far I have found this amp to be very versatile, just don't expect to use it for the heavy stuff.

I've only had the amp for about 10 days, so I can't really say anything about reliability. I have spoken to Josh on several occasions, and he seems to be a stand up guy. I have no doubt he will support his products.

The building process is interactive. Josh can provide a wealth of information to help you achieve the tone you want. He and I corresponded about my desires, and he recommended several of the options on my head. He seems to be a top notch guy.

I've been playing for approximately 25 years, and own a number of "boutique" tube amps (Hoffman, Mojave, Straub, Lustone, Carr). I have to say that my Solaris head is one of my favorites, mainly for it's fantastic clean to mildly driven and articulate tones. Just a really cool little amp.

Made in 2003. It has all of the features I wanted, and none that I didn't need. Electrosonic lets you choose all of the features you want for your amplifier. I chose the tube rectifier, EL84 output tube, and 12AX7 preamp tubes. I also opted to add on the 3 tone controls, high gain preamp, and an impedance selector. These add-ons added $150 to the price, and I'm glad I did it. This is a really great aspect to dealing with Electrosonic, picking and choosing features.

I am using it with my two guitars, a Les Paul standard, and a MIM Tele. It fits my style, because I got to have it built the way I wanted. Mostly classic rock. It has an EL84 power tube running in class-A(7watts). It doesn't seem to have that glassy, shrill sound that some of my EL84-equiped Voxes get sometimes at high volume. Instead, it has a very sweet clean sound with a very un-EL84 bass response. When pushed, it is very mean and mid-rangy with a very 70's classic rock vibe.

With the 2 12AY7 tubes that make up the high-gain preamp, the amp stays clean until a little past 10 o'clock on the volume, then gets a very cool on-edge sound, then classic Marshall sounds. At max, it has a very chunky 'blurred' character. The closest I could tell you how it sounds is like the guitar on Neil Young's 'cortez the killer'.

I have experimented with changing the preamp tubes to 12AX7s and 12AU7s. The 12AX7s gives an almost overdriven sound right off the bat, this seems to offer the widest range of distorted tones, while the 12AU7 is the cleanest, and offers the widest range of clean sounds.
For now, I think I like the 12AY7s that the Solaris came with. They seem to offer the best of both worlds.

The tone controls are subtle. I really like that. Most amps I've had have had wildly radical tone controls. I really don't like that because there is only a few notches that are really useable. With this amp, you get the sense that all the tone control positions are actually useable.

I've only had this amp for about a month, but have had no problems with it at all. The case is built of solid hardwood, and all the components look industrial strenth.
It has a clear coat over the paint, and seems very durable and scratch resistant. If I were going to tour with it, I would get a protective padded bag or road case just beacause this amp deserves to be treated well.

Working with Electrosonic is very interactive. I had control over this design from the start, and my questions were answered very promptly. Best Customer care I have ever experienced.

I have been playing for 25 years, I own a lot of stuff, vintage/boutique, and have played a lot of stuff through the years. This really is custom. Like I mentioned in my Vibracube reveiw(speaker cab for this Solaris) Josh at Electrosonic even tracked down the Lime-Gold paint to match my vintage Mustang. That is custom!

This amp has a sound somewhat like a classic marshall Plexi(I own one too) but a lot warmer, not as loud, and with a softer attack and feel to it. With the Vibracube speaker cab or my Marshal 4x12 it just sounds excellent.

I love this amp. I like the size, the sound, the look. I was told that I got the first one too. That is very cool.

If stolen or lost, I would replace it. But since this is the only one like it, I think a theif would have a difficult time selling it.

I am already thinking of my next amp I am going to have them build.

There is absolutely nothing that compares to this, at any price range.