Engl 530 Preamp

Two channels, with each two gainstages, transistor buffered effectsloop, headphones out. The headphones jack can also serve as a 2x1,5W poweramp, funny

I think that the preamp is build around the lead channel. This one is very versatile. Controlls for gain, bass, low-mid, high-mid, and treble and a contour switch.
The crunch is very impressive, this is the lead channel in low-gain mode. Great for blues and rock. I didn???t like to much gain, but in this case I must see again! In the high-gain mode, great searing lead with a lot of compression, but still you can hear what you???re playing, very good.
You can say that the lead channel in low-gain takes over where the clean channel in high-gain takes off, but they are definitely different channels. A lot of bass but you can dial that out, also very good with a nice poweramp.

Well build, steel jacks, very robust frontplate

I requested a electric schematic, but they didn't answer. I found it though, so when you're interested, contact me

Nice sounding tube preamp, but no mastervolume is not good! When you need a versatile, nice sounding tube preamp, consider this one. Great value for money. You can play metal with it very good, but I don???t like metal, also blues and rock sound great, despite the name ???modern rock???. It offers a lot more than for example a Soldano, but the quality of the sound is not much less

As other reviewers have pointed out, this amp does one thing very well...shred ;-) It has 'lots' of gain. The target demographic is definitely hard rock / heavy metal, and it meets this need well. However, I had to ding it's features score even a bit more for the lack of midi. It does have foot switch capability, but I can only stomp on so many things at once :P

Freeking sweet! Again, this comment applies to those who want a really good high gain sound, which is what I needed. I have it running through a VHT 2/90/2 power amp and just this preamp/poweramp combo with nothing else in the chain sounds fantastic for heavy rhythms. Like most amps, the pickups will make a big difference as well. I started out using the stock bridge pickup on an Ibanez 1570 which had a lot of high end in it. After switching to an Evo, the amp sounded best to my ear with most eq controls near center.

Some other reviewers commented that there's some noisy breakup if you run the gain past 70% or so which I found to be true on the setup mentioned above (although 70% is sufficient amounts for even fairly brutal applications). However, for those that want to experiment with chainsaw levels of gain I found a trick that seems to work great with this amp; place a compressor/limiter in the chain before the preamp. A moderate amount of compression on the raw instrument signal seems to 'massage' the peaks enough to allow for further gain cranking without introducing as much of the 'crackle' folks have noticed. The only catch is you need a really good compressor since any other noise introduced at this point in the chain gets the gain applied to it as well (can generate quite a bit of background hiss).

Well, I'm foremost a studio musician so I don't abuse the unit much. It sits nice and cozy in a rack in an air conditioned room. I haven't had any problems with it in the couple months I've had it.

Have never dealt with them. The guys at Engl of America (the American distributor) were easy to deal with and prompt though.

It really is a fantastic value. Although the features are limited, this is a inexpensive, relatively speaking, way to buy into the boutique class of amplifiers. Many of the features lacking can be made up for by other means. I haven't used that many amps but it sure does blow solid state stuff I've tried out of the water (and topped a Mesa dual rec I tried). I had friends that were very skeptical of the increase of quality that I would get from this type of amp but upon hearing it, they were converted ;-)

My influences are SymphonyX, Dream Theater, Blind Guardian, etc. Both SymphonyX and Blind Guardian use Engl amps so if you're into that style of music, it's something to think about.

I bought this amp as an addition for some heavy rock sounds. I guess it was made in 2006 or 2007, got it right out of the box.

basicly a 2 channel, stereo preamp with a high and low gain mode per channel. seperated per channel, 3 band on the clean, 4 band on the lead channel. has a gain and a volume control per channel. clean channel features an bright switch which is not remotely switchable. Lead channel has a contour function (switchable by the jacks on the back panel). this is basicly a midboost which compensates for the scooped sound the preamp has on the lead channel.

channels are switchable by 2 stereo jacks; one for channel and high/low gain, the other for contour and preamp bypass. further specs are an fxloop, frequence compensated output with a 1.5 watt stereo solid state poweramp for hifi speaker usage.

you have to choose which preamp channel to utilize hi or lo gain, because there is a considerable difference in volume between clean (or lead) hi and lo gain. So basicly it is a 2 channel preamp.
the headphones output on the front channel are a little bit silly for a serious preamp.

The 4 band EQ is something more amp manufacturers should utilize, since that is something that enhances sonic flexibility enormously. Especially Engl amps would greatly benefit by this approach (see sound quality)

the amp has 2 tubes, I think everybody should change these boys immediately, stock tubes are rather crappy.

that is all there is to it. baslcly a 2 channel preamp with some unnesesary options like lo/hi gain, headphones output and the built in poweramp.

it says 'modern rock' on the front plate and that is all it does. it is either clean or has a fair amount of gain on it, there is no in between. there is no use in expecting more than that.

I use it with a gibbie LP and a fender strat (with some pickup mods, are a "little" bit hotter than stock). and play a fair amount of music, but use this preamp only for the heavyer side of the musical spectrum.

clean.
well, I only have tried this with stock PU's, so this may be subject to change, but basicly, the sound is very flat, compressed and there is not much to alter with the tone controls. this is not a very positive comment, but compared to the mesa quad I own, well, it really doesn't offer anything worth mentioning. it is useable, especially on stage. it is compressed and that would make a lot of technicians rather happy, compared to the rather dynamic clean of the mesa.
the bright switch "brightens" this lack of definiton, clarity and lack of a third dimension a little, but not much. hi gain is totally useless, nasty high sizzle makes it unusable.

lead
this is what this preamp was built for. clean channel has a 4 band EQ and needs it. the high sizzle causes the lead channel to be piercing and treble should be kept down for a bearable sound (something like 9 o'clock). lo gain and high gain differ only in the amount of gain and volume, no tonal differences; high gain starts where lo gain leaves of.
the drive channel is pretty tight and blunt (when you have dialed a good tone), nice for modern rock sounds. good bottom end, but it lacks clarity and attack, at least with the stock tubes.
gain is over the top, I use only the high gain option and the gain at about 9.30 and that does the trick.
for purists, this amp is a piece of crap, compressed, not really detailled, but for a blunt rocksound this amp works pretty well. I'm content with it for the time being

have no idea yet, but I think the jacks are quite crappy. they used the cheap plastic ones. the first thing to die on this amp are one of those.

no idea either.

it is a one trick pony: modern rock, and well, you are warned in advance, since it says so on the preamp itself. so it does what it promises to do, but nothing more.

the amp is 2 channel, not 4, so keep that in mind, you won't get a very versatile amp, just a good rhytm amp. solotones are a little bit plastic.

Very versatile preamp. Can play all styles with it. I play down tuned metal and hard core and it suits me perfect.
2 channels: clean and lead. Hi/lo gain switch for both channels, and contour switch on lead channel which boosts high middle and gets a little louder (great for solos).
it has effect loop and headphone jack, and integrated 1.5W power amp so you can practice with it directly to any speaker. (it has switch for guitar or HiFi speaker)
2 extra outs witch are frequency compensated. Not bad for direct recording or live. very usefull.
Also, line level pot in the back.

I have LTD Viper w/EMG 81
Clean is great, althought I dont use it but it is nice and cristal. Old strings seems like new.
I only use Hi gain setting with gain at half, and it is a killer!
Nice, aggressive crunch with tightiest low end I ever heard. It can be pretty metalic, chainsaw alike. Mids are clear and every note comes out clearly. Never Thought that engl could be that good.
Sound reminds me on the one that KranK has on their website. It could cover bands like Arch Enamy, Scar Symmetry, Unearth...
Only complain is on eq section of the lead channel. Bass and lo mid work well, but hi mid acts more like treble, and treble like pressence. So I'm gonna get extra eq, but I am an ass and it works just fine without it.
It can be a little noisy at hi gain, but I allways use noise reduction, so it is not a problem for me.
check out some clips on www.rocksolidamps.com

Belive that it is a quality piece of equipment, and that will not brake down just like that.

Contacted engl few times and they answered in a few days.
No problem.

I play in a band for about 10, that means solo few years more.
If stolen, definitive would buy another if the market remain the same (if nothing better comes out.) I hate those buttony preamps with milion of channels and presets that are all digital. I love simple, analog pot-style preamp like this one, which also has a pretty design.

Basic Features like any amp, but the fact that the lead channel has lo and high mid pots is great, allows for wicked tonal sculpture. Cool CONTOUR switch which boosts mids a lot, good for solos. Got a preamp defeat switch which allows it to be used in conjuction with other amps/preamps etc. No MIDI or presets, oh well, for the price who cares. One beef I have is the fact that all the jacks are un balanced which is annoying but not really that much of a problem. Also the FX loop has no wet/dry balance adjustment. Its got freq comp (cab sim) outputs but they are not great.

Using a Ibanez Prestige with passive humbuckers into crybaby from hell into Engl into puter soundcard via frequency comp outputs. I play mainly instumental metal/rock (check www.myspace.com/fionnmccarthy) the Engl sounds very good when the gain is up high, not bad at clean sounds better at high gain. It needs good tubes, the stock tubes are okay but I know it can sound better. (I will reply to this when I have changed the tubes). The high gain is a little brittle at times but with tweaking it sounds immense, for the price it's shit hot. The best thing about this pre is the clarity, the fact that with the gain full in hi gain mode you can hear every note, no mush, even with dense chords. It really shows you up as a player; you realise that you havn't been muting properly etc. Its freq comp outputs are okay, the headphone outs suck (but serve their purpose). If you thinking of buying any type of preamp or amp or multi FX forget them all and buy this, then buy some nice tubes (#30 extra) and you'll have something thats better than a Marshall, as good as a Mesa and soooooo much cheaper.

Had it couple of months and its fine. Polly needs tubes replacing every two years depending on how high your gain is set at!

Not needed to contact them!

Excellent product great tone. Built like a tank. I had a PSA1 for a while, that sounded wicked too but nowhere nearly as reliable. Check out www.myspace.com/fionnmccarthy and listen to two tracks called Its Time and You're the one for me, both recorded with the Engl the other track look on the bright side recorded with the PSA1, I love the Engl's tone so thick but not over powering. It allows room in the mix for other things, its great, buy one NOW!

Everything has been mentioned before... read the other reviews.

I play rock and metal. My main guitar is a gibson les paul equiped with a jb humbucker in the bridge. I have it coupled with an engl 930/60 poweramp

Clean channel: It's ok. not bad, not great just ok. It's a bit heavy on bass but that can be dialed out. It loves pedals! I use h&k tubeman for a great crunch with it.

Lead channel: This is the reason to buy one of these preamps! It does everything from old school rock to the most brutal metal sounds. I never take the gain over 11 o'clock.
It's noisy on high gain... but that doesn't bother me much.

Both channels have two settings (high gain and low gain) When you set a nice brutal tone on the lead channel in high gain, it doesn't sound right in the low gain setting. The gain needs to be higher in low gain for it to sound great for me. I just wish they had incorporated 2 more gain knobs for the clean/high gain and lead/high gain channels..

The best thing about the amp is the low mid and high mid knobs... it makes thing a lot easier to dial in the sound you want to hear. It can do anything from clasic rock to the most insane metal sound.

The headphone option totaly sucks compared to the 530 in a complete rig!

I give it 8 points becouse it does a great job for the high gain metal sounds i'm looking for.

I own one more than 3 years, it never broke down once.

I e-mailed them twice about the z-11 midi interface. I never heard anything from them again.

-I've been playin for more then ten years now.
-I've had a couple of amps before this one. Mostly marshalls... also own pod for home use.
-If it were lost or stolen i would try to find a preamp that has a high gain channel that sounds just as good as this one but has midi implemented in it (engl 570 or 580) but i would probably end up buying a new 530....

I don't know, when this preamp was made, but it is in a very good condition. VERY VERY versatile stuff. Can do anything between jazz and pure metal massacre. I play anything between the two styles mentioned above, and it can produce any sound, you want. It's a tube preamp, with singing clears and growling distortion. It has effects-loops/ stereo, a headpone jack 4 headphone or speakers. 2 footswitches can be assigned to it, and everything can be controlled thru them. It can also be bypassed, when othoer preamps are also used.

I use it with a 7-String Washburn, with DiMarzio Evolution7 pups, and an ESP ltd H-250 neckthru now with duncan designed pups (soon with EMGs) The thing is noiseless and has beautiful clean and real heavy lead souns. A gain is far more than anyone would need. I don't even put it over 12 o' clock. The high gain lead sound is awsome. Like a marshall with 3times the gain and the body. There is a bright switch on the clean part and a contour switch that I could call the "MESAIZATOR". When engaged, it produces almost the same sound as a Mesa dual or Triple recto, but with even more gain. You can try, if you don't believe it! ;) It is brutal overall. the cleans beat fender, the leads beat mesa. What else do you need???

Never head any problems with it. It's german made, which is a guarantee for quality and durability.The poti's are great and durable the construction is solid steel.

I never had to deal with them

This thing is one of the best preamps I have seen and tried. Versatile, easy to handle, and GREAT sound. ENGL is a shining star upon the skies of amplifiers!

My e530 was built in 2004. I purchased it from the gracious Derek B. at Rock Solid Amps.

Like many other guitarists, I find myself playing a wide range of styles, but I focus on jazz (especially John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins, John Scofield, John McLaughlin, Thelonious Monk, Wes Montgomery) and metal (Opeth, Monstrosity, Cannibal Corpse, Morbid Angel, Pelican, Isis, Corrosion of Conformity, Slipknot). Given that, I needed an amp that excelled at both lush, warm clean tones and brutal, yet defined distortion sounds. I have been searching for about 6 years for something like that, and it ended with this preamp.

It has essentially 4 channels, Clean, OD, Lo-Gain, and High-Gain. It has all sorts of other lovely features that I frequently use, but won't get into because they've been addressed elsewhere.

This preamp has everything I need and nothing I don't. One thing I'd like to stress is how wonderful having a Low-Mid and High-Mid control are for carefully sculpting the so-important midrange for metal. The Contour is especially effective, too.

For reference, I'm using this with my PRS Singlecut w/ stock #7 pickups and my PRS Standard 22 w/ an EMG 81 in the bridge and 85 in the neck. My power amp is a Class A Mesa/Boogie 20/20. I use a BBE 482 Sonic Maximizer for very subtle tone augmentation. My fx include an ISP Decimator noise reduction unit, Frantone "The Sweet" Germanium Fuzz, ZVex Ooh-Wah II, ZVex Seek-Trem, Analogman Bi-Chorus, Analogman-modded Electro-Harmonix Small Stone, Analogman-modded Electro-Harmonix Holy Grail, and Line 6 DL4. I am on Analogman's waiting list for his King of Tone and Bi-CompROSSor. I hope to shortly order a Teese RMC Wizard Wah and an Analogman-modded Maxon OD9 w/ 808 and Silver mod. My rack interconnects are Bill Lawrence ultra-low impedance cables, and all other cables are George L's. My rack is powered by a Furman unit, and my pedals are powered by a 1Spot that is plugged into the Furman. I use a Basson B212 Cabinet for brutal metal tones/performances (there is no better cabinet than Basson for metal), and an Avatar G112 open-back with Celestion G12H30 for pretty much everything else, particularly jazz, fusion, and prog. My two cabinets sit on top of Auralex Gramma isolation platforms.

Hands down, this is where this piece of art shines. People have commented on not liking the cleans, and I think they're absolutely insane, or they like the sterile, characterless cleans of something like a solid state amp. The cleans on this preamp are nothing short of lovely. I disengage the bright switch (just like the bright on your favorite blackface Fender), and keep the EQ relatively flat (slightly boosting the bass/mids and cutting the treble) and I get a jazz tone that will make your '57 Tweed Twin sound anemic and your Polytone sound like a parapalegic walks. Time after time, I've given compliments on my jazz tone, and people are surprised when they find out its an Engl preamp and a Mesa/Boogie power amp...I guess listeners expect the standard?

As for brutals, they are there in abundance. I'm particularly fond of how brutal they are, yet they are warm, articulate, and harmonically rich. You can hold a note, and listen to the 4th, 5th, 7th, and octave overtones quite easily. Simply stunning. Or, you can tune your guitar to A#, play something tremelo picked on the low strings and melt faces. Then palm mute and watch them lose control of their bowels. And if for some reason you decide to play a Dmaj7#5 or a C#6/9 with your brutal tone, you can hear every note clearly. SOOOOO defined....

The 2nd channel (I call it OD) is good, but not its forte. Same as the 3rd channel (I call it Lo-Gain). I use pedals to get those sounds.

I cannot say enough good things about how this preamp sounds. Yes, its noisy on high-gain settings, but damnit, what amp isn't? Get a quality noise gate (to me, there is no other than the ISP) and you're set.

I've only had mine for a year, so its hard to tell. Everything is very sturdy and well-built. It also uses top-quality components that you would expect to see in an Engl.

My only complaint is that my Bright switch on the clean side slightly sticks. Because of that, I can't give it a perfect.

Well, this is hard to rate. Engl itself is damn hard to get a hold of. Possibly because they're in another country, I'm not sure.

BUT, Derek B. at Rock Solid Amps (www.rocksolidamps.com) is an amazing business man and graciously answered all of my questions and helped me pick something out from his inventory.

Engl, I'd give a 5/10, but Derek deserves a 10/10. My rating is some sort of arbitrary average of the two.

I've only been playing for 11 years, but I'm also only 24.

If this preamp was taken from me, I wouldn't hesitate to get another. I think my review says the rest.

I searched high and low, deep and wide for something like this. I tried every Marshall, Mesa/Boogie, Crate, Line 6, Johnson (now Digitech), Peavey, VHT, Soldano, Fender, Victoria, Bad Cat, etc I could get my hands on. Many were good, some amazing, at one thing, but none of them were amazing at both cleans and brutals. I don't make abhorrent amounts of money, so having two amplifiers wasn't an option. Plus I'm married and I don't want to spend too much money on my love of music.

When I heard about Engl amps I did a fair amount of research (given there aren't any dealers in my area), and luckily I came across Rock Solid Amps. When I listened to the clips, I could tell that the tonal characteristics of their amps were what I was looking for. After much correspondance with Derek, we decided on the e530 preamp and I bought it on a whim (a whim to me is buying something before I've heard it in person). I feel incredibly lucky, because I can confidently say it, along with my Mesa 20/20 give me the tones I've been searching for.

It would have been nice if MIDI had been included. There is a MIDI module available. Also, all of the features of the preamp can be used by standard foot switches.

Yes, it does brutal beautifully. The only concern I had about buying this after reading the other reviews was in the clean and mild distortion range. The clean can run from bell like to smooth. The bright switch adds a nice jangle. When the hi gain is punched on the clean channel, it ranges from warm to crunch. The major point is that the sound is always present and forward.

The preamp is reactive. Whatever the channel or the gain setting, tone control is literally at your finger tips. Dig a little deeper with your pick hand and the thing responds. Smack it hard and it punches back.

It is only a month old, so I don't know yet. It is built very well. It weighs a couple o tons. The knobs and switches are good quality and smooth.

I have no direct experience of the customer support. Here is what I do know. When trying to find one of them, they seemed to be out of stock across Europe. I called a music store about availability. While I was on the phone with the store, they called Engl. Engl said they would make units the upcoming weekend. They did and I had one within a week.

For the money, I don't see how you are going to beat this.

It's one of the most versatile preamps I've ever used. I have two of them. I made a custom change on one so I can also use it in USA and Canada (normally I have 220 Volts here in Europe). You know the features. Two channels times two gain stages. Contour for the Lead channel, e.t.c. I even had an Engl 570 Preamp, but like the 530 more, it's more cutting through and wayyy easier to use. Although the 570 and 580 are also pretty easy to use, the sound is better on the 530 in my opinion. I use this amp live, in the studio, for rehersal, everywhere! The only thing I don't really like is the headphone out - but for stuff like this there are POD's around. The option to use it straight into a cabinet is amazing!!!

I use a MusicMan Luke with this Amp. It suits my playing perfectly. I use the Preamp through an Engl 840/50 Poweramp into a 4x12 Hughes&Kettner Custom Cabinet. It sounds killer. At home I use the preamp through a Hughes and Kettner Edition Tube 1x12 Combo, going directly into the Poweramp of the Combo. I get the best sound at bedroom level. When you turn the gain on the clean channel all the way up and activate the bright switch, I get the best clean I've ever heard (and I've heard a lot as I have worked as a salesman in a guitarstore). And I've owned all possible amps: Mesa Rectifier, Mesa Triaxis, Mesa V-Twin, Engl Powerball, Engl Richie Blackmore, Diezel VH4S..., Peavey XXX, Brunetti, Hughes&Kettner Triamp, e.t.c. there are more, but anyway, the Engl 530 Preamp with a cool poweramp blows them all away. Maybe there are a few with more options (as the triaxis for example) but the sound from the Engl is just the best. I could even buy four 530 for the money of one Triaxis... and then I definetly have more sounds available. The 530 is the easiest to tweak, I can get amazing sounds from jazzy clean to brighter cleans to crunch to rock, to hardrock, to full-blown metal. Even blues-sound are available (with a good guitar though). Soundwise I haven't heard or played anything better than this amp! A big TEN here!!!

Reliability... Yes, it's very reliable. I've used it on several gigs without a backup. My live rig is the following: Ernie Ball Music Man Luke Guitar - Sennheiser Wireless - Engl E530 Pream, effects loop goes into a TC G-Major - back to the 530 - then into the 840/50 Poweramp (Loud enough for everywhere (I play festivals of 40'000 people and I know that)... then into one ore two 4x12 Cabinets (Normally Hughes&Kettner - but might soon buy some Engls). So, I switch channels via the TC G-Major using a stereo Jack-cable (only use the Channels and the gain swiches - the Contour is normally not active, except at home through the combo it's cooler with contour). I switch the Engl/TC through Midi, using the Engl Z-12. These days I take my second Engl E530 with me for bigger gigs, just in case. And there, I ony use a Marshall Switch to change the channels, so not much more weight to carry around.

I've delt with Engl several times, because I always wanted some changes made. the recent one was the Power Supply option for use in Europe (220 volts) and Canada, USA (110 Volts). I have a switch on the back of one of my Preamps now so I can use it on both continents. We recently recorded our new album in Vancouver, Canada (together with Producer Darren Grahn (Metallica, Motley Crue, Bon Jovi) and I used the Engl on every track! Sometimes with some other amps together, but the Engl was always on! And the customer support is perfect! I couldn't ask for more!

I've been playing guitar for ten years now, played every kind of gear! Every kind of guitar and amp you can think of! The Music Man Luke and the Engl E530 match perfectly (and in every situation - no matter if stage, club, openair, studio, home) just use the right gear with it! If it were stolen, would buy one again within a minute! I hope they keep producing this nice amp as it's the end of my long journey searching for a great preamp! And the coolest thing is that it's light. No matter where I go, I only bring along my preamp and I've got my sound! Check out www.fairhavenrocks.com if you want to know more about my music and get in contact through the contact form if you have any questions! See ya on the road!

2003 model , this thing is the most versatile non-midi programable preamp i ever owned !
2 channels , clean and lead , with hi/lo gain for each one + contour for lead channel !

3 band eq for clean and 4 band eq for lead .

i wish it would be a little bit less noisy , but my hush fixed the problem easily .

very sensitive knobs , lot of sounds in this preamp !
i never use the bright on clean channel .

i just replaced my v-twin rack mounted , for a mesa recto recording , and then replaced it for the Engl 530 .

i loved the v-twin but it didn't have enough gain !
i liked the rectifier , but it didn't have a decent clean channel , + the bad feeling of "NO ATTACK" when you play it.

then i went into this unit , and what a surprise , cleans are really nice , distortions really brutal , this unit is much better than the rectifier preamp which is 3 times more expensive !
i guess that if it was written "MESA BOOGIE" instead of "ENGL" it would cost at least twice the price it is !!!

i really wanted good cleans , to play with my ibanez sa 1260 (with dimarzio pick ups :fast track 1 neck and paf pro bridge) , and brutal distortions to use with my ibanez rg 7620 (dimarzio custom 7 pickups).
this engl 530 is what i needed for only 350? used .
i only replaced the tubes ,by one electro harmonix and one sovtek LP.

seems to be build like a tank , it s german product ya know!!!!

don t want to know untill i need .

the best preamp , over many i owned( peavey rockmaster , rocktron chameleon, vamp-pro wich is crappy thing, mesa boogie v-twin rack mounted that i will buy again as a second preamp for blues rock things, mesa boogie recto recording preamp too expensive for what it gives,marshall jmp1 wish is a joke....+ those that i tryed lag spitfire , rocktron voudu valve,rocktron gainiac,mesa boogie triaxis too expensive, cae 3+se not my taste... )

Two channels, lead and clean, a hi/lo gain switch and contour on the leadchannel. This gives 6 sounds, especially versatile in the distortion area, which is what I bought it for.
Two line outs plus two 'frequency emulated' outs, which should emulate a 4x12, send, returns, headphone out which can also function as a 1.5 w poweramp. They've got things covered.
I needed a great sounding, affordable and rackmountable 'guitaramp', for live and recording use. Together with my fx, synthmodule and looper, everything goes into one linemixer in my 8 unit rack.
Channel switching works perfectly with my behringer FCB 1010, but I'm going to do it via a nobels ms4, so I can switch the contour and preamp defeat too. The dedicated Z11 is much too expensive imo.

My guitar's a LAG Roxanne, a handcrafted Hamer replica, with very hot custom LAG Alnico humbuckers.
My music style goes from 70's prog, fusion and psych, to metal and electro. I need a wide palette of sounds. Most important thing for me is a brutal and saturated, but tight and transparent distortion.
I've read remarks here about it being a very noisy amp. Ok, when you've got the leadgain above 7 in highgain mode, you've got noise, but only normal for those kind of settings. A little noisegate from my Boss VF1 takes most noise away without affecting sustain or tone.
Cleans are really clean, and stay that way: so for blues guys who need that breakup, it's not the thing probably. For my needs, it's perfect. Clean in higain mode gives a crunchy sound, which reminds me a little of a Vox. Still, little breakup.
Then : the lead channel. With the gain, two knobs for lo and hi mid plus contour, you can get a very wide array from overdrive to nuclear meltdown. I play a lot of dissonant chords, and even at a setting of 7 gain in higain mode, those chords still come through clearly. I'm ridiculously happy about that. The lowend is very tight.
Enough raving, time for a downside : as I've said, I use it direct, and the 4x12 emulation is not very convincing. It sounds very direct, and rather eq'd than through a cab. I can fix this in my daw though, and when playing through my keyboard amp KX1200, it does sound great. I haven't tried it through a guitaramp yet, but I'm sure it's great.
I'm going to try a Behringer UltraG and Rocktron Xpression for cab sim though. Another weird thing : the clean channel is much louder than the lead! And when you choose the higain mode for the clean channel, the soundlevel drops. No biggy, I just boost the eq (flat) in my VF1, and it's levelled. Still weird though.
Overall, after messing with the pod xt for a year, I'm on cloud nine.
Not a ten, just for the unconvincing cab sim.

Can't tell yet.

Forums on the Engl site don't seem to work, and there's no email contact adress, except for the webmasters. Mailed to him last week, haven't heard anything yet.
I bought it from Musik Schmid in Germany by mail, and I can send it in for free if it needs repairing. Two year warranty.

I'm very happy with it. It's a topsound, I had a Rivera BM60 once, and this is right up there with it, and more versatile and brutal in the distortion side. It sounds way better than Mesa's three times its price, or the Marshall jmp which costs twice as much.
If money were no object, I'd get the midi programmable 580, but in this price range, this can't be beat.
I need a 'guitaramp' that I can build into a rack, and can treat it like a line signal just like my midi guitar synth, to go to my fx and looper, so I've been using a pod xt for that. The bean shape was terrible, the rack too expensive, and the higains completely sucked. The 530 was a lifesaver ;-)
Higly recommended.

see http://engl-amps.com

I miss a headphone-out at the front and a beer cradle - oh shit NO, I miss nothing!!

Like the other guys wrote, this Preamp is a outrageous hammer! I can get what i want, what I need - real Rock'n Roll Sounds! Crunky and Clean to Heavy and Aggressive - everything.

The Leadchannel in High Gain Position is toooooo noisy - even with a gate you have to much noise while playing! I use Lead on Lo Gain with a booster (Engl 620 :-)

The Fuse was damaged one time - don't know why - but there is a spare one! No other Problems till now for 2 Years

PERFECT! This is the only word you need to describe the Engl-Support!

Warranty is 2 Years (german law)

Play over 25 years and this is one of the things I will use for livetime!

3 Band EQ on Clean, 4 Band on Distort'd; Mids are div'd into Hi/lo. FX Loop, Hi/Lo Gain switch that effects both channels simultaneously.
Contour switch which is like the bright switch in the clean channel, only more pronounced. It seemed quite plain in terms of features offered, despite its low price tag.

The Distortion is indeed brutal, yet when set on High Gain it is an unbearably noisy amp. You can get some great tones with a bit o' patience - Both clean and Dirty; a full spectrum is indeed available it is let down by an unstable high gain, which the M/B V-twin preamp that I tried b4hand didn't have. It is good because it is a obscure company which will only add to your search for indiviual tone, but you're gonna need something to squash that noise. If a noisegate works the next time I try it, I'll amend this rating as a perfect 10.

It is well built, what else do I have a right to say? on't own one...yet

Again...

I have been dicking around for 10 years, I am nowhere near as good as I should be...yet :) I have owned an Epiphone Flying V, a Big Muff (Siamese Dream's aplenty) a Solidstate Marshall (Pre-Valvestate). I wish it had MIDI Patch Memories like the 620 apparently did. I tried out a Mesa/Boogie V-Twin RM Preamp which was also good, but a bit carbon copy James Hetfield.

2 (or 4??) channel 2-tube preamp... Check the other reviews... I mainly use the extremely overdriven channel and I find the eq very good but you'll still need external control of the sound. Let's say it's as good as it gets before it enters your outboard compressor, equalizer etc...

I bought the preamp mainly for DI recording in DAW... I've been using Rocktron Chameleon, POD, Roland VG-88, H&K Tubeman, Amplitube etc... etc... Finally I found the answer to direct recording heavy distorted guitars. Here's what I found out: The Engl 530 is the closest I've heard to a real miced up heavy guitar sound (no I haven't tried the rectifier preamp yet, and I don't feel I have to). Still DI is a compromise... What I do is double-tracking the guitars and hard panning them left/right, then running them through a room ambience impulse modeler... Just a tiny bit of ambience so you can feel it rather than hear it. Then I run them through the tape compression emulation of PSP Mix Saturator... That's it, I'm done... I never have to search a guitarsound again.

It's fairly new, can't comment on that yet... But it feels sturdy to say the least...

The only criticism I have is that the machine itself is quite noisy which is annoying in a one room recording environment, but just be sure you turn it off before you record vocals and it shouldn't really be a problem. Still, because of its sound, I wouldn't like to go back to a life without it!

two channels, clean and lead, with a boost feature for both. the variable output gain is nice, if your power-amp needs some adjustment. the headphone-output is ok but the sound definitly is not what a real amp sounds like (i did not expect that btw) for the rest please take a look at the other reviews.

I use the 530 with a gibson les paul and a modified ibanez. what i like most about the engl is the flexibility. all the knobs do do exactly, what they are supposed to do. the eq works very good, but most of all i like the whole spectrum of distortion. from totally clean and punchy to total, never ending distortion it is all there. i owned an engl preamp 13 years ago which had some nice sounds but had some setbacks to, but the 530 seems pretty perfect to me - good sound very little noise

cant tell because its pretty new, but the case and knobs seem to be very sturdy, the design is ok too.

No idea, sorry!

I.m playing for 15 years now and tried different amps. For the price payed you get a lot. i really like this machine, if i ever loose it, i buy it again.

2 channel tube preamp (2x ECC83). 3 band EQ for clean channel, 4 band EQ for lead channel. Gain and volume knobs for both channel, plus bright on the clean and contour for the lead. Very easy to use.
Built-in 1.5 W poweramp, effects loop.

Here is my rig:
Jackson guitar w/DiMarzio Evolution pickups - Boss GT5 in loop - Marshall EL84 20/20 poweramp - Mesa 1x12' cabinet
The sound quality is very good and the amp is extremely versatile. Using the four channels of this unit you can go from nice clean sounds to crunch, lead and even savage distortion. This preamp really kicks ass and truly delivers that nice tube sound, even at high gain settings. When connected to my Boss effects, it can give me all the sounds I want. Truly amazing, it just sounds as good as my Boogie studio preamp.

Very dependable. Unlike my Marshall poweramp, which overheated lots of times, this unit is very sturdy. Built in Germany, enough said.
I would use it without a backup. I've neve had problems with it. That's a parfect 10.

Never had to deal with them

I mostly play heavy metal and this unit suits my style very well. If you're looking for a high gain preamp and can't afford a Boogie, then this amp is definitely for you. The tone is very good, but I only wish the preamp was delivered with a footswitch. I give it only a 9 for this reason and also because it's hard to find Engl amps in Europe unless you live in Germany

2 channel preamp - sounds great, I think everything has been said.

This is the Holy Grail of preamps, I've had several, (mesa, rocktron,tube works ect..)

Built very sturdy. Looks good, sounds better!!

Never had to deal with them, that a 10 right there!!

Sounds great, Heres my rig - Les Paul > Lexicon MPX G-2 (+R1 pedal) > ENGL Preamp (in Loop), one lead goes to a Korg DRT tuner > BBE sonic maximizer > Carvin T100 tube rack amplifier > Genz Benz G-flex 2/12 cab. The setup will knock your balls off. Crystal Clean to Van Halen instantly....

This 19" Preamp has four Tubes and 3 channels which can be switched by foot-switch or MIDI (Option).Effectloop and headphone-jack which has enough power to run through small speakers for practicing.
I think it has all Features a non-digital Preamp can have.

I play a Jackson Soloist with humbuckers. The Preamp runs through the ENGL 2x50 tube power amp to the 4x12" Marshall. A quadraverb is linked with the effectloop to use an extra-EQ in the lead-channel and chorus/reverb in clean-channel. Like many other guitarists I was searching for a couple of years for the real power metal sound with high distortion, though I play many kind of music style. I ended up with engl. The clean channel is even with high level clean, though I dont't care. The crunch channel has gain like a marshall at full lead level ( If you press all the boost- buttons on the engl). So the lead-channel has ultra high gain that shreds everything else away. The difference to other good preamps with high gain (like ADA MP1) is that the engl sounds more aggresive and with a lot of pressure. And it doesn't make to much noise (I hate noise). There may be other good units out there, but it is probably impossible to create the engl-sound with them. On the other hand it is not possible to create any sound with the ENGL 530. I give it a 10 for the brutal distortion and sound character with low noise. Jazz-guys may find it useless.

This unit is seems very reliable. I bought it used and own it now 9 years (gigs included). One time I had to change one of the lead-channel tubes, but this has nothing to do with Engl.

I had never to deal with them.

Since 11 years I shred my Jackson. I like the style of chilli peppers, Incubus, papa roach and also slipknot. On my journey to the perfect metal sound I started with marshall tops and the preamp which sounded all boring to me. The Peavey rockmaster was ok, but I didn't trust it, maybe a good alternate if the budget is low. I tried a Zoom multieffect which was totally useless. I also tried the Digitech 2021 which was interesting because of the effects. The distortion was ok but not perfect. Then I owned a ADA MP1 for one year. It had a great sound and high distortion and for sure I would still have it, but then I heard about the brutal sound of the Engl, and the guy who wrote that in a guitar-mag was right! Just mesa boogie I didn't try (just a combo).
I wish it would have a multieffect included, but that is not what it is made for. And it could be a little lighter, the metal case is like the sound! The ADA had a third of the weight and had tubes as well and not just chips. But allover I have to give a ten. A preamp can be different, but not better.

I bought this amp brand new, so I guess it was manufactured somewhere this year. I decided to buy it after testing it at the store, which was a pretty convincing affair. I wanted to replace my good old - but sadly discontinued productionwise - H&K Attax pre-amp. The amp has two main channels (clean and lead) with the usual tone and effect loop amenities (see other reviews below), and lo/hi switches per main channel. It's a pretty straight forward kind of pre-amp, (thankfully) devoid of flashy unnecessities. Although it's an all-tube pre-amp, I didn't get any crunch out of the clean-lo gain channel, not even with a Gibson LP.
I extended this amp with the Z11 midi switcher because midi is a prerequisite for me. The amp itself may be reasonably priced (less than ? 600), the options are pretty costly though. All in all, including the rackmount plate, the amp is no bargain. With the Z11 mounted, channels, lo/hi gain per channel, bypass and contour (on the lead channel, a handy feature to get a few dB's extra on a solo) can be switched through midi which is enough for me.

The rig I mounted this pre-amp in includes a TC G-force fx unit and a Peavey Classic 50/50 (tube) power amp, driving one BagEnd and one Celestion monitor. I play Gibson LP (Alnico 495 humbuckers), PRS Standard (PRS humbuckers), Blade R4 (Levinson single coil pick ups) and Ibanez JS 1000 (DiMarzio 395 mV humbuckers) guitars. I play anything from jazz via hardcore to heavy metal, except blues, live, in studios and on rehearsals so I use it quite intensely. After tweaking it some, I got great sounds out of the 530 for all my guitars. As with any pre-amp, the channel producing the most distortion tends to be noisy and feedbacky, but nothing the G-Force noise gate couldn't handle without eating my sound up. As I said above, the clean lo gain channel stays clean. The lead hi-gain will give you all the distortion you want. Frequencies and slopes on the tone controls have been designed with an ear for guitar, as they all seem to have effect on guitar sound key freqencies. This makes the amp suited for many applications, you can get almost any sound character from it.

So far so good. I still have my good old Attax for backup, coz tubes have the hand of God in them in many aspects.

I don't know about the Engl guys in Germany (rumour sais they're good), but the importer here in Holland is a mess. It took them ages to deliver, after a litany of false promises and excuses. My rating includes the benefit of the doubt for the guys at the plant in Germany.

I've been playing guitar for more than 30 years now. Apart from the rig mentioned above, I have a Marshall JMP-1, another Peavey Classic and a H&K power amp, a TC G-major fx unit, more BagEnd and Celestion monitors, and a Mesaboogie DC-50 combo for cheap, quick and dirty stuff (all my gear except the combo is rack gear). The way it looks now, I'd definitely replace it if I lost it somehow.

I bought it used, but ENGL still builds the 530. The features have already been described by others. The preamp defeat feature makes it more versatile for rack systems, because you can use another preamp (or a multi-fx with preamp functions)in the fx-loop and take the 530 out of the signal path (also you probably will not want to do that). The small power amp for practicing and the speaker sim make it even more versatile. I only miss the ability to produce a really different second high gain sound - so thats why I got some more preamps. It has always got the typical (good)sound of its own.

I use a Les Paul Studio, a self-built Warmoth "Paulocaster"(Strat with Duncan HB's and mahogany body with quilt-top), a Rockinger Strat w/ Fender Noiseless PU's etc. The distortion has got something of the modern brutality but with a certain traditional warmth - like a mixture between marshall and rectifier. It cannot replace either, but has its own sound. Like with all my amps, I soon found the one "right sound" and hardly touched the knobs after. Right know I am looking for a decent tube power amp, but even with my Peavey M-4000 (a solid-state PA-amp, right fellas!) it never sounds thin or harsh, but meaty and full. Plus it's not noisy, though I mostly use the distortion channel in high gain mode with gain all turned up. Maybe the clean sound could be warmer, but most metal-heads will like the way it cuts through - or it will get what I miss with a tube slave.

Never had problems. Outer appearance and feel of pots and switches is very sturdy.

Never had to deal with them problemwise, but they were very open and friendly at the Frankfurt MusikMesse.

I've been playin for like 20 years now and had (and still have)lots of gear. I use it in one of the two fx-loops of my Roland GP-100 and a JMP-1 in the other. Channels and hi-gain option are switched by the GP-100, so I can control all 4 Channels, two preamps - a third if you count the Roland - via my MIDI-board. My latest sound: both loops switched on, one preamp on each stereo side - cinemascope!! If it was stolen, I would buy a new one, except I had the money for the new Rectifier preamp (and if it would be worth it, haven't tested it yet). I consider it the best value-for-money tube preamp; maybe Egnater, Hafler etc. sound slightly better, but I bought my whole gear for what they cost without anything else. For the price I bought it used, it's a flat-out steal!

A German made 19" Preamp, bought in 1999.
The features are:4 channels, (2 x ECC 83), Clean, Lead, Crunch and Heavy Lead via Gain Lo/Hi switch, Bright switch in main channel 1, Contour switch in main channel 2, Preamp Defeat switch, Stereo FX loop;Per main channel:3-band EQ (Lead: 4-band), Gain and Volume controls;Power amp:2 x 1,5 watts (solid state);
Outputs:Stereo Line Out and frequency compensated Stereo Line Out with level control; Stereoheadphones/speaker 4-16 ohms, 2 x dual footswitch jacks;
I use this preamp in combination with a 2x50w Engl amp, for effects a boss SE70 and to controll a Engl Midi Switcher.
Great stuff, just one problem: the boost switch delivers a few problems. In the distortion section it's too loud and in the clean one not enough power

I use a Jackson USA limited and a Gibson Les Paul Studio, and they sound great, the clean sound is very warm and punchy and if you change to the second channel it delivers you hell. There's everything from
ACDC, Clapton to Slayer, Machine Head.

Use it at a very hard level. You can depend on it.

No Problems yet.

The best preamp i've ever used. perhaps it's no triaxis but it's only the quater price. Just get some. It's great.

Guess this amp is made in 1999. There are two main channels, Clean and Lead, with a switchable Lo Gain /High Gain function. This delivers 4 basic sounds. The clean channel has bass/middle/treble control and a bright switch, with boosts some highs and cuts some mids - good for bassy guitars like Les Pauls etc. In the Lead channel, the mid control is divided into low mid & high mid controls, great for adjusting the chracter of the distortion from classic to modern sounds. Also there is a contour switch for the lead channel, which bosst the mids for soloing. The amp fas two uncomsated outs, two compensated outs for direct recording, a headphone output and a 2x1.5 watts mini stereo transistor power amp, A serial FX loop is also included.

As far as it goes for me, this amp is pretty back to basics - no unecessary features, but all features (with the bright switch as only exception) are switchable via two stereo footswitches.
The only thing that I found out is that for comfortable switching (especially in combination with other rack components) you have to buy the Z-11 midi switcher to make the preamp midiable and to avoid a major tapdance. And this Z-11 is only rackmountable with a special rackmount-unit called Z-8, which has to be bought separately, too.

This is why it get only a 7 on the category scale. (The additional Engl-gear is quite expensive...)

I use singelcoil-equipped guitar as well as humbucker-equipped ones with this preamp, depending on the sound I want to achieve and the style I actually play.
This preamp fit every style form country to brutal metal, at least in combination with a good power amp & cabinets/speakers.
The EQ is very effective and the preamp reacts very sensitive to a guitar change, so you shouldn't change from humbucker-equipped guitars to singlecoil-equipped guitars and back without readjusting the EQ sections to get the best sound out of it.

It gets a 10 in sound for the quality, but please be aware that this preamp can only show his *complete* abilities with a good poweramp & cabinet. And also please be aware of the typical direct Engl sound - there is no chance to hide behind the distortion and the compression. If you make mistakes, this amp doesn't forgive...

When I play a gig, I usually have a backup amp with me. But that is just to "go for sure" in case something happens - tubes, you know... you never know when they gonna break... not that I'd expect that this preamp would break down! Typical Engl heavy duty.

What can I say about the Engl customer support... great guys. If something's wrong don't fear to contact the Engl distributor (Erich Koch GmbH) - Very helpful & very effective. BIG 10!

Playing for about 12 years, I really like this preamp. I play it in combination with a Reussenzehn Slave 200 poweramp and two ADA 2x12 vintage cabinets. The only things I will change are the speakers of the cabinets. (Have to replace them with Celestion Vintage 30's asap, for imho Engl's sound best over V-30s...)

If it were stolen... might be that I buy another one. But I'm also very interested in the bigger brother - the 580. Just a guestion of money...

But this is one of the best sounding preamps I ever heard - just plug and play, easy & fun to use.

This preamp is the most versatile I ever heard. You can play some blues with its funky crunch channal or some trash/death with the mos dynamic distortion channal. this preamp has 2 channels + a lo/higain switch for both channels at once. The clean channal has a bright switch to encance the treble end the lead channal has an extra contour switch.

I used 2 humbuckers and one singlecoil. This preamp shows you which pu you are playing with. You can hear it in the lead channel whne you lower the guitar's volume. the distorion is the brutals I ever heard. Perfect for metal sounds.

The amp was never broken yet....

I use an solidstate amp and a tube amp. I love everything about this preamp. Even with a nontube amp it sounds awesome

This was build in 1999, 4 Channels, two complete equalizer sections, contour switch (good for switching the same sound louder for soloing), bright switch on clean and crunch channel,tube Preamp with solid state poweramp for headphones or small speakers (good for Practising)Footswitch-Connectors for all channels, brigth and contour switch, stereo out, sym and asym line outs, separate level-poti for the effect loop

Suits any kind of music-style, 4 basic sounds (clean, crunch, lead + one more for incredible distortion sounds...)+ 4 solo sounds (same sounds but louder) in one analog tube-preamp... that should be enough for everyone... ;-) clean channel is what it should be, brilliant crispy and clean. crunch goes up to 70's rock-sound, lead gives you more distortion than a fully cranked-up marshall-anniversery top. If you need even more, then it's time to check the 4th channel ;-)

This amp is now 1 1/2 years old, never had trouble with it, don't use a backup while playing live...

Great support, warranty is 12 months... manuals are very easy to understand...

One of the greatest preamps ever built... tried Rocktron Piranha, Marshall JMP-1, Hafler & Bogner, Digitech GSP's, but this amp was exactly the sound that I had been looking for...