Gallien-Krueger MLE/206

Made in 1990. Has all the conventional features (two channel, eq, etc) and many output possibilities. The most notorious thing about this amp is its ridiculously compact size.

Soundwise it does OK -- but let us be honest, it has shortcommings. Also remember, we're not talking about all-tube full-stacks, here.
Players looking for a good and loud clean sound will be surprised, the ones looking for a good crunch and warmth will be disappointed.

Those guys complaining that the amp hums should have it checked somewhere: Mine is perfectly silent.

Mine has been on three continents over the last 16 years and was - until recently - very reliable (the sort of thing you would expect from a solid-state amp). It is now having some type of problem with the bass-end sounds, which I'll have repaired.

I once needed to convert it from 110V to 220V. I asked a few times, but have never received an answer. Not even a standard type of reply. This is very bad in my opinion.

I have been playing for a long time, and have a lot of other gear. I am not a professional musician, in the biblical sense, however.

I certainly wouldn't like it to be stolen, but I wouldn't get me another one in that case. On the other hand I really enjoy this little amp and wouldn't sell it for any price. (OK, I admit I would actually sell it for a million bucks). In fact I'm even spending money to have it back in order (see above).

I love its power to compactness ratio. The other folks have written about this in this review. I don't think the sound is that bad, but it is the amp's obvious shortcomming.

I have not compared it to other products of similar proportions.

A product of the 80's. Two channels, compressor, chorus, reverb, two 6" speakers for practice, speaker out and balanced line out for performance... very powerful amp volume-wise. Only thing that could improve its features would be a lead boost.

Not so powerful here! Apparently Anakroyd got this for Christmas and couldn't wait to give it a arev review. Bottom line is the overdrive channel is complete crap (lots of gain, just sounds like shit), and the clean channel is harsh and sterile... But it IS loud!

Very durable products does GK make!

I'm a session player and have done national tours/albums. I prefer good tube amps, but I like portable stuff too. This one makes you wish you had brought another amp to the gig. If you're looking for something small for rehearsals, you will surely be happier with a modeling pre-amp.

Lost or stolen? I couldn't sell it fast enough! Bought it hoping it didn't suck. I was wrong!

What do I love about it? I love its portability, durability, and power.

What do I hate? It's tone is leaves much to be desired!

Did I compare it? At the time there was nothing like it that had any power, so there was really nothing to compare it to.

Anything I wish it had? Just ONE USEFUL TONE!

Other than being really loud and durable, these amps are horrid. If you buy one, I assure you that your tone will suck!

I purchase an MLS 206, stereo amp (2x70 watts) stereo effect loop active 4 band eq 3 channels (2 + boost footswitchable) shape control, solid state, beauty case size 8))
no effect inside

theres only a word : AMAZING
I',m very very disappointed to see previous reviews, this baby shines from clean to light crunches, the distorsion are very goods but different from old tube overdrive (I also have a marshall jcm 800 (1984) and a rack with tech 21 psa1+digitech tsr 24+ h&k vs250) I have 3 type of sound witch are very different bat both very very good

Of course this is not a metal amp but i think that buy a ferrari to go to supermarket is not a good idea.... 8)))

no trouble

GREAT! of course you must use it with a separate speaker ( mine is a marshall 1965b - 4x10)

Simply a very PRO amp try with a 335 or similar

Many features -- two channels, four band eq, chorus, reverb, compressor. One of the coolest features was how the foot controller used a standard MIDI cable. I did not have the foot controller -- GK wanted around $200 for one. I made one with about $15 worth of parts from Radio Shack and a MIDI cable.

While the amp is capable of many sounds, they're just not incredibly good. For certain styles it is a great amp -- it was very easy to get a good jazz tone, even without an outboard speaker cab. It's gain channel was not what I would consider 80s -- more like a bad immitation of 80s. It did feed back nicely like a good tube amp, but the tone was simply lacking. I found the chorus to be fine. The compressor was quite unnoticable. For what it is, it sounds okay. For the price that GK was selling these for when they were new, its sound is unacceptable.

I bought mine used and abused it for several years -- was my rehearsal/back-up at a gig amp and usually stayed in the trunk of my car where it rolled around in Chicago's extreme weather. It always worked perfectly. Then I sold it on ebay for around $100 more than I paid for it when I bought it from Guitar Center.

I did contact them to find out about acquiring a footswitch. They did still support the product even though they hadn't made it for several years.

This amp was great for what I used it for, but not a great amp -- especially for its new price-tag. These and other GK products were grossly over-priced. I loved it's compactness, ruggedness, and again the fact that a standard MIDI cable was the means of connecting the footswitch. I did not particularly love the sound. I bought it knowing that, but at the time there were no modeling amps -- which are not great either -- or other decent small amps on the market with enough power to compete with a drum set. It's size was its main selling point to me.

I would only buy another if it were grossly under-priced. I'd probably turn around and sell it on eBay for a profit. Today, there are many, many other products that serve the duty of being a back-up amp or rehearsal amp. To me, this makes the GK amps obsolete.

I bought this amp new , some 8 to 9 years back,thinking this would be the answer to convience and tone. Well one out of two I was right about, and tone wasn't it.It was very easy to tote this small package around but it was missing the most important element any guitar amp should have,sensitivity to the players dynamics! It was very clean and sterile sounding ,great for synth players.

This amp has built in effects,and I wasn't impressed by any of them . The distortion was fuzzy and fake,the reverb had no depth ,and the chorus just wasn't lush.I guess you just can't get everything in one small package or maybe I expected too much!But it is convienent to crry around,if thats what your looking for.But I have to say it's volume will surprise you,it can get pretty loud for being so small.

I've never had any problems with the amp ,the three years I've owned it.

Never needed support.

I don't want to come across as saying this amp is totally useless . I just don't think it's a good choice for a guitar player looking for the responsive dynamics that enhances the sound of your instrument. But keyboard players may love it as a personal monitor.

This amp has lots of features.Lots of inputs,outputs,and effects,bla,bla.bla...(that you'll probably never use).Like a balanced output,for example.Why do I need a balanced output?

I have four Fenders,all Strats.I play guitar for about 20 years,but I started to play Drums(just for fun).My main instrument is the guitar.
This amp has lots of features,but no tone,no caracter,no nothing.
It's a really bad sounding amp.The speakers are too small,there's a very loud hummmmm,even with the volume all the way down.Very annoying.
The rever doesn't do anything,the compressor is ridiculous(just one button-on/off style),and it doesn't really compress:it just makes you sound a little louder.The overdrive is very bad sounding.
This amp is one of the worst amps I've ever played.

Now I'm using this amp only to amplify my metronome,when I practice the drums.For this it does its job.
But for guitar playing I'm really looking for anything better,maybe a Fender.Until there I'll only play the guitar trough my BOSS GT-5(with headphones).Fortunately there's no GK amp simulation in it.

This is the most versatile amp for it's size--bar none. I have played a keyboard through the stereo input in the back (bypassing the preamp) while a guiatrist simulataneously plays a distorted effected sound through the preamp and amp stages. Great for paractice and the sounds remain distinct. You can run any stereo line level signal through the 2X65Watt stereo amp while a guiatr is played through the amp. and this amp is loud! I've played organ and piano through it w/o an extension cabinet at band rehersals and I cut through the guitars drums and PA with plenty of power to spare.

From a guitar standpoint I think the GK 250ML is the best solid state amp ever made. The 206 MLE is a later model, a little more refined, but the tone suffers slightly. Still the sound is fine for most applications. I use it mainly for a keyboard amp though, believe it or not. The compression and chorus are fine but the reverb needs to be turned up all the way to have any noticeable effect. Channel switching is great and there are plenty of tonal variations available with the 4 band active EQ. If I only played guitar, I would prefer the 250ML, however. It has most of the same features with a little better tone...sort of Albert King-ish.

Built like a tank

It's out of warranty and the parts and accessories are no longer availabel from GK. But they responded quickly to my inquiries.

I've been playing guiatr keyboards and bass for 30+ years. I will NEVER part with this amp...I might even buy another, if I can find one.

This is a versatile little combo that sports two 6 1/2 inch speakers. The amp section is stereo that can put out 70 watts per side. It has two channels, one for clean and one for distortion. There are many features including controls for gain, boost, lead master, shape, volume, compression chorus, reverb, eq (including lo and hi mids), and output level. Outputs include a stereo headphone jack, speaker outputs for both left and right, stereo line out, balanced line outputs and effects send. Inputs include the usual instrument input, stereo aux input, and an effects return. There is also provision for the optional footswitch. This amp is the most versatile that anyone could hope for in such a small package. This solid state amp is literally not much larger than a medium sized boom-box. Yet everything on it is maximized for professional use. It can pack a sonic wallop through its 6 1/2 " speakers, although the full power of the amp (as in most amps) won't be revealed unless you add extension speakers. I have used this amp for jazz gigs for five years and I intend to use it indefinitely for small to medium gigs with my vocalist. With its many output configurations this little baby can go anywhere and interface with any number of sound systems. It's size permits me to take it onboard planes and put it in the overhead compartment. An optional shoulder bag is a must-have if you intend to travel with it.

The EQ on this amp is quite active. I don't need to crank the treble a lot to get high end because it's there already. Although the speakers are relatively small, the low end is quite strong and present. I find myself cutting it, less I get mud. The chorus is good and the reverb is serviceable. Both effects are stereo. The compressor is a single button operation. With tweaking, you can get many useful sounds from this amp. I have never gigged with the distortion channel. For the few occasions that I use distortion, I am using a separate effects pedal that also gives me chorus, reverb and delay. All sound quite good coming out of this amp. The internal effects are nonetheless serviceable.

This amp has never failed me over five years of gigging. It is as sturdy as can be with a metal body and well-made controls. The only control I worry about is the speaker on/off switch on the rear panel. It is a small flimsy plastic thing that sticks out. Before I glued it on with super glue, it had a tendency to get knocked off. Once at home I fried the right speaker by putting a loud bottom-heavy signal from a tape player through the stereo aux input. It could be that the speaker was defective or my signal exceeded that which it was rated to accept. I don't know. The left speaker was fine. Even with these misgivings, I have never taken a back-up to the gig. I find the amp totally reliable in a gig setting.

I've not dealt with the company for any problem with the amp.

My playing encompasses jazz, pop, and contemporary stylings. I'm looking for clean sounds that can be played at medium to loud volumes. This amp has done the trick for over five years now. I do use a small amp stand to help it project since it is a little thing.My other amp is a Polytone which I use when I'm gigging with my full band. But more of my gigs are with a vocalist so I'm using the GK. I like to travel light. If it were stolen or lost I would not hesitate to buy another. I do wish the full load of 70 watts per side could be delivered to the internal speakers.