Koch MultiTone 50

This is the most incredible sounding amp I've ever played. While it's not perfect, the features are amazing. It has 3 channels, clean / pre - overdriven / and straight balls. I find that you can get even the most metal of tones out of the 3rd channel and you really don't have to go further than 2 O'Clock with the gain knob to do it. It's a very noise free amp and when it's cranked to full tube saturation, I couldn't be happier with what it produces.

I round up to 9 because I'd really give it an 8.5. The ONLY reason being I feel the clean channel leaves a bit to be desired and sounds a tad lifeless. Aside from that It's amazing. Channels 2 &3 are where this really shines anyway. It offers a boutique sound that you can't get out of a Marshall or Mesa. Perfect belltone clarity even with the gain cranked.

I play an Ernie Ball Music Man with stock pickups with a TC Electronic Nova System in the loops.

It suits my style perfectly which is demanding. I play in a number of local cover bands and it's required to work upwards of 8 to 20 hours per week depending on the demands. These bands play up to 4 or 5 hours a night and it's never broken down on me once.

Here is the only place it suffers. The head itself is a gem. I'll try to keep this baby running forever. The 5 way Koch FS5 Footswitch is where it is SEVERELY lacking!!! Granted, I am NOT the most gentle on earth with my equipment sometimes. However, even with that factored in....the 5 way channel switcher cord is F-R-A-I-L! Unfortunately, it's a 6 pin midi connector that goes into the amp. For a footswitch pedal that needs to be connected and disconnected before and after every gig, if even one of the wires comes undone in the sheath, your pedal is rendered useless. Problem being with that is you cannot use a backup pedal because no backup or standard channel switcher pedal on the market it made with a 6 pin midi connector. The pedal also controls all 3 amp channels, the reverb switching, AND the boost. So.....as of now, the Koch FS5 is the ONLY way you can switch you channels without standing behind your amp and flipping the switch. Not very convenient when you must switch channels numerous times during a song, and if you don't have your pedal....you're solo boost is history! Thankfully my TC unit has an additional one.

I am currently without the FS5 because I'm waiting to purchase my 3rd. Problem number two....prices have gone up in the 6 years I've had this amp. $325 to replace it. That is RIDICULOUS Koch!! Come on!?!? This factor alone has caused me to think of buying a new amp since right now I have to turn my guitar volume down for "cleaner" tones until I have a new footswitch. This is a glaring flaw in design. The casing for the footswitch itself is a friggin tank but that does no good if the cable that connects it to the amp is so fragile. Koch simply MUST come up with a stronger means of connecting the FS5. No matter how much you baby your stuff...those little wires are GOING to break down after a couple of years. $300 + dollars is WAY to much for a glorified channel switcher / solo boost. Sorry.

Summarizing, I would happily gig without a replacement amp because the head is a horse. The pedal, if you have the cash....I'd ALWAYS have a backup ready if you can afford a 2nd one. Nothing sucks worse than gigging or practicing and having to make the conscious choice of...."Will my clean tone suck tonight, or should I play on clean and use a substitute distortion in front of a $2500 amp?

I'm not going to give an opinion here because it's a great amp and i don't want to bring down the average. But I will say I was highly pissed when I contacted Koch about the footswitch being so fragile and told them I didn't think it was fair to have to purchase a 3rd one at such a high price. I was basically told...."Search around, maybe you can find a used one."

I've been playing 20 years. I bought this amp 6 years ago and I've never looked back. This is the greatest sounding unit I've ever used. I know a perfect 10 is unrealistic but I'd have given it exactly that if not for the glaring problem that the footswitch causes. I'd say buy the amp and invest in a backup footswitch.

Koch top.
Features are good; see website manufacturer.

I think I am going to look if there is another and longer cable for the footswitch available. For some stages this is too short.

No modelling or what so ever needed; this amp just sounds good by itself!

This amp is really great. I play top-100 music and it fitts all styles. Perfect smooth clean,nice chrunch and some good rockin' as well. Have a fender twin reverb as well, but this one is more diverse (especially the gain channel is way better).
Nice open and defined sound. I had several compliments on my sound from sound technicians. Usually play pubs and small clubs

Play it now for two years. Regularly live and so far so good, no problems.

I am glad that so far I didn't need them. No comment

I use this with a charvel 5 and a custom made "strat"model guitar. And play it through the Koch 2x12 speaker cabinet. I regularly play it through a 4x12 Marshall which is good, but I prefer the combination with the Koch. In the effect loop I have a g-major blended in. For me personally this is the perfect sound to match all my styles.

And by the way; drummer always complains that I am too loud... and most of the time I don't pass 75% of all volumes on the "50% mode"; so unless you are playing stadiums, I think the volume is quite enough.

I am very satisfied with this amp!

Frankfurt, Germany (1,450.00 EUROS - Brand new)

Well, you can read most things on the reviews before mine or in the website. This Amp has everything you can dream of. I have no more words. What I find the best is the extra notch for Solo/Rhythm volume. Excellent. What i find as well awesome is the power reduction in the back. I always use it reduced to 50% since when I play live i play at church (building for like 1,500 people) and the thing is extrem loud with 50% reduction and not so loud.... amazing.

The lead guitar in our team uses a Marshall TSL601. In no way can this amp or any other amp touch this beauty. I will extend the reason why i bought this amp on the next part.

So, I went to my dealer in Frankfurt and wanted to buy a Marshall TSL 100 Head with some Vintage Marshall Cabinet. My budget was about 2,000 Euros and wanted an Amp that will play 3 channels: Clean, Crunch, Lead.

So I tested all kinds of amps in this price and was about to take the Marshall. Then I asked the guy: Do you have something better on this price range... even if I pay a little more. Then he said: wait. He brought this Amp with KOCH in front... I almost started laughing at the name. Who names an Electric Guitar Amp "Koch"... anyways. To make it short, he started playing it. DAMN! This Amp axed the balls of every other amp and ate them scrambled for breakfast!

No other Amp matched the sounds of this Amp. On the clean it sounded like a Fender (actually better) and on the lead side it was so much clear and waaaaay less muddy than the Marshall. Of course Marshall has its own thing going and its own sound. But if you want a GREAT sounding amp that has a killer Clean and Lead sound. This is it!

So I bought the head with a TS212H. Great cabinet. Well it is my first Amp and I don't think i will ever change it. Just to rehearsal is way to big.

Thinking of either buying another TS212H for our Rehearsal room and just carry the head or buying a Studiotone!

So far so good. I have it since almost a year and I use it very seldom since I started playing e-guitar in the band for like a month. In my flat is way too loud and I usually use my Boss-ME50 to practice.

So I cannot say, but the finishes and all... is simply a dream. Many things on this Amp are handmade, so I'm not expecting to go wrong or anything anytime.

Besides the guys at Koch are very friendly and promt to answer any questions. Seems Dutch ppl are in general much more friendly than Germans... sorry. But I'm glad when I don't have to deal with german customer service cuz they SUCK!

So I would give them 10 as well here!

If it got stole I would save again and buy it brand new! Great european product!!

Oh yeah, almost forgot. I wish they had installed some castors on the TS212H Cabinet... but that is another product, huh?!

If the Head would come together with the cover it would be perfect. But that would be too much to ask.... probably.

This amp head was manufactured in 2002. Three channels (clean, drive, and gain), the gain channel being placed after the eq - cool. FX loop, reverb, Rhythm volume, dampening switch (dampen the cone of the speakers), 4, 8, 16 ohm outputs, and a penthode/triode switch (full or half power). The 50 watts in full or half mode is plenty of power with the right speaker compliment (I use a custom built 2-12, closed back cab with Celestion G12H 30w speakers).

I play in a Funk-Jazz-Blues-Pop dance band. My main axes are a 76 Strat with DiMarzio Virtual 54s, and a PRS, solid 1 piece mahogony body, with Duncans (50s at neck, JB at bridge). The amp is quiet at all volumes, except for the obligitory OVERDRIVE hiss. The Multitone is a wonderful sounding amp with the tone and gain staging being meticulously tuned and tested. I haven't heard a bad tone come out of this amp. It came with Ruby EL34s and 12AX7s (yawn) so I went to my favorite Tube Store and bought four NOS GE 6V6GTA, plugged them in, rebiased the amp, and switched out the preamp tubes with some NOS and EH 12AX7s. The Multitone sounded great with the Rubys, but sounded much more responsive and musical after the new tubes - BTW, the GE 6V6GTAs are incredible sounding tubes, but they have controlled warm-up heaters so you MUST let them warm-up at least 20 minutes before running a signal to them for best results. The clean channel has that Class A chime that is so hard to get in an A/B type amp, and the mids are smooth with tight low end. The drive for the clean channel is ballsy - definitly Blues orientated - and sings with that great tube distotion. The Post EQ overdrive channel can easily take crunch over the top if you like. It is very complimentary to the other sounds of the amp! I set it up for a Santana type OD sound and smile wide whenever I kick it in. I rate it a solid 8-9 with the Rubys, but an 11 with the NOS tubes!

I've only had this amp a few months and I don't use it for every gig (I also own a Crate tweed VC30, and a 66 Super Reverb amp head with a custom built 12-10, 2 ohm cabinet), but I haven't had one bit of trouble with the amp. I heard that some of the Koch amps were blowing power tubes, so I was a bit worried before I went to 6V6s. Not a problem! The amp took the new tubes and biasing great. I only hope I don't have to send the amp to Amsterdam if it ever craps out!

N/A

I've been playing over 30 years (started at 6 years of age) and I've owned old Marshalls, Fenders, Gibsons, Silvertones, new Mesas, and Riveras, but this amp is special. The tone is beautiful, the versatility is awesome, and the quality is second to none! If my Multitone 50 were stolen, I cry like a little girl and then call the dealer for a new one.

I dont know what year my multitone was made.Our band play rockmusic.
This amp is very versatile.It has 3 channels and a lots of features.
We play in small to big clubs and on large stages.For me 50watt in
combination with 2x90watt Jenssen speakers is enough.And the most important are the tubes.

I have a Fender Strat HM USA with EMG pickups.The amp is very quiet.
To complete the sound I use a Boss CH1 Chorus pedal and a Superfuzz
by VoodooLab.The clean sound is wonderfull and the leadsound is heaven.
Koch has its own sound and my opinion is that the combination with the Jenssen speakers is a good choise.

I have owned 3 types of Koch amps and they have done their job perfectly.But you to take good care of your gear.It is the same as your health.

I Bought mine second hand in the best guitar shop in Hollland.If I have a problem I can always depend on Juke-Box.Frans you are the best.Remember the name Juke-Box in a town called Boekel.But the people from Koch are also helpfull.

I play music for more than 15 years.Most of the time in a band.I have
owned Mesa Boogie/Marshall/Rivera and Traynor and all of them are tube amplifiers.The most important thing for me is: SOUND.No I don't like to compare because i already said that sound for me is the most important.You never know mayby I Will buy a Brunetti or a Orange next
month.I think that many guitarist change amplifiers in search for the ultimate sound.

This pure tube (3 or possible 6 channel) amp was made about late 2000 I think. Let me just say that I've owned all sorts of amps over the years and there is nothing, ABSOLUTELY NOTHING WHATSOEVER, that can touch this amp in my opinion. I bought this amp solely on my guitar tech's recommendations on that it is the Holy Grail to him - believe me, he is as as fussy as me and he isn't wrong ! I play every single musical style in existance and am a complete fuss arse when it comes to tone and I simply cannot fault this amp at all - in fact I'm in complete genuine shock as I cannot make it do anything less than damn great sounds ! For the features, please visit Koch's website at http:\\www.koch-amps.com. The likes of Santana, Paul Reed Smith and Blues Saraceno use Koch....need I say any more ????
I will be using this amp in every way possible and I am positive that this will be the last amp that I will buy for my needs. I have the 50 watt version and it's enough to blow the foundations of my house on half power at low volume settings ! I can dial in phenomenal sounds in seconds - Van Halen, Lukather, Albert Lee, Ty Tabor, Peter Green, Clapton, Metallica, Page.......I just simply cannot believe this amp !!! I'm now selling my Marshall TSL122 as the Koch makes it look and sound like a total joke. Need I say more ?

I normally use a Strat Plus with Kinman AVnW's, a 1990 Gibson Les Paul Standard and a PRS Custom 24. It suits every single guitar and the sounds are nothing but stunning. The first channel is clean and is beautiful, warm and sparkling. The second is a 'drive' channel which does not contain a phenomenal amount of drive (see next channel for that) and responds wonderfully to the controls. The 'post' channel will handle anything from an extremely passable clean, through to the most floor shaking saturated beautiful distortion that I've ever been privileged to hear. Most amps suffer from the EQ being really bad and non resposive (a big "Hi !" to Marshall at this point !), but Koch have this thing worked out big style. Just mess around with the sample settings and you'll see exactly what I mean ! :) Some hum is heared when you wind the distortion on the post channel right to the maximum, but what amp on the planet doesn't do that anyway ? There's no his or crackling......SHEER QUALITY !!!

I've not had this amp long at all (less than a week), but my guitar tech advises me that he knows alot of pro's on the road (in all situations) that use the TwinTone combo's (1x12 version) and they cannot fault these amps for build and reliability.
As far as I am concerned, these amps are investments. They are all 100% hand built and every attention to detail has been taken care of. The materials used will be able to tell you everything you need to know (Bourne's pot's, gold plated jacks and enson speakers for example). If I had my way, I'd have another 6 of these just to put in every room of the house ! Backup.....naaaaa.....however, I always carry my Boogie V-Twin just in case of any blow ups. This, however, will soon be replaced with a Koch PedalTone.

I've not spoken to Dolf, but my tech knows him well as Phil is the sole UK distributor. 12 months warranty with this amp anyway. Phil's a 100% honest guy and if he speaks so highly of Kock Amps on the whole in that I have no reason to doubt him. With build quality like this I really don't think that I will be bothering Dolf for the next 30 years !

I've been playing for about 11 years and own (and have owned) ALOT of gear in all sorts of areas. Most of my floor pedals are Fulltone (Fulldrive 2, 69, Clyde and Deja 2) with some BOSS bits and bobs.

If it were stolen, I would track down the varmint and force them to eat Pot Noodles and then watch Jerry Springer constantly for 12 months. Yep, I'd be very angry indeed ! To be 100% honest, I'd never even contemplate buying another amp by another manufacturer. I do own 1999 Fender 'Evil Twin' but I hope it likes early retirement as it's starting now ! As for my Marshall combo.....need I say anymore except GET OUTTA MY LIFE !!!!

I love this amp to bits and it's already my faithful buddy. Like I said, I've heared and owned alot of amps and nothing touches this. I was going to buy a Boogie HeartBreaker but I now see it as a 'Wallet/BackBreaker' due to the cost and weight - it certainly does not tug at the heart strings like the Koch does. This amp is how a Boogie SHOULD have sounded.

In summary, Koch have listened to what serious guitarist want and have given it us as well as some more. These guys deserve every success that that will undoubtedly have and I feel genuinely honoured to have this amp. Now I can stop wasting money looking for that 'Holy Grail of amps' as it's sitting in my lounge with it's valves glowing away very nicely indeed !

I really cannot speak highly enough of this amp range (TwinTone, MultiTone and PowerTone) and it's gonna be extremely difficult for you to find one due to availability. When you do hear one, just watch your life change ! :)