Laney GH100S

This amp is a straight-to-the-point hi-gain valve amplififier. Single channel layout with Hi and Lo inputs, standard high/mid/lows and presence eq section. Resonance, bright and bass boost switches finishes the features with a gain and volume controls.

This is not intended to be a multi-channel amp. This is a no compromise hi-gain valve tone beast. This is its design function and thus deserves hi points for cutting the crap and focusing on the core aspect of valve guitar tone.

I was not impressed with the sound of the GH100S originally. From the ads that I saw in the mid-nineties, I was expecting the GH100S to sound like a Mesa-Boogie Rectifier. The gain is nowhere near that of a Dual-Rectifier or Peavey 5150. Using even hi-output pickups the GH100S sounds flabby and lacks enough gain to sound anything like a modern metal monster. BUT the heart of this amps unique tone is evident.

You have to overdrive the front of this amp with an additional gain boost in order to get the tubes to saturate. Don't bother with anything too fancy here either. Using the most classic of all gain boosters, an Ibanez Tubescreamer (TS-9) this amp comes to life!

EBMM Silhouette -> TS-9 -> GH-100S -> 2X12" Celestion cabinet

With the TS-9 tone and drive levels set to 12 o'clock and the output level at maximum, the GH100S comes into its own. The sound is warm with a crisp attack followed by smooth, sustaining midrange grind. The tone is unlike a Marshall or Boogie but unique. With all eq levels at 12 o'clock and the gain at full tilt, the sound lends itself nicely for both metal rhythm and lead. Muted riffing is meaty/chunky and well defined. Chords naturally compress and each note is equally sustained and heard. For leads the tone is full and round with excellent pick dynamics. Harmonics are clear and responsive. The resonance switch makes a dramatic difference by thickening and tightening the sound. Think "Black Album".

Awesome!

This amp is also VERY loud. Be sure to set the effects loop level to series and turn the effects loop dial up slightly to "1". This will allow you to set the Master Volume to lower levels without the amp tearing the room apart.

The bright switch has stopped working. I don't use is so it doesn't really bother me. Will get it fixed when I get a chance.

I have contacted Laney on several occasions regarding several questions of interest. They have always responded promptly. But the downloadable manual that is available for the GH100S is a joke!

Been playing for 14 years. My primary axe is an Ernie Ball Music Man Silhouette h/s/h (Dimarzio PAF Pro x 2 + Dimarzio "Custom" x 1). I also own Jackson, Charvel and Ibanez guitars which all sound great with their unique tonalities that come out through the GH100S. I have a Roland Cube 30 for the bedroom. The digital modeling on the Cube is cool but nowhere as dynamic and responsive as the GH100S

I've been looking for this tone all my life. I will not be returning to solid state or digital modeling at this stage.

The Laney GH100S (and now GH100Ti) is probably one of the most under-rated hardrock/metal amps out there. Try one out with a TS-9 and you will be addicted to it.

Bought second-hand & got a footswitch & manual for a different Laney amp.
Bass, Treble, Mid, Prescence, Gain, Master + 3 switches: Bass, Bright & Resonance. Also Effect loop with side-chain, Insert & bypass and a seperate 'Loop' volume control. Various speaker outs. No frills really, which suits me fine but footswitchable overdrive would be nice.

I think the guy who gave this amp a bad review must have been using something other than a GH100S. It is Ideal for all Rock styles. I mostly use an Ibanez Iceman for rock & metal stuff & it sounds great with this amp. I also play a Strat with Humbuckers for cleaner stuff & the Laney nails that too.
It is essential to crank this amp up! It really doesn't come alive until you crank the Master Vol over 2 & Gain over 4. Anything below this will sound a bit muddy.
I tend to use external distortion units cause i like to switch to a clean sound a lot & I've found that they sound better if I dont use the FX Loop & go straight into the amp instead.

No probs so far

Have not dealt with them

I love the simplicity of this amp. You dont neet to spend ages trying to model a 'Vintage' sound or tweaking endless controls just to make the distortion useable. It just sounds good. I also play a vintage 'Miles Platting' amp so I'm used to straight forward, quality stuff & minimal controls.
If you want to model loads of amps & sound a bit like Hendrix or Clapton, buy a Line6 amp. If you want your own, unique, powerful tone buy a GH100S (or the newer TI, which is identical).
My only criticism is the lack of a footswitch, otherwise Id give it 10/10.

not so many features: 100 Watt Tube Amp with 2 Channels, Clean and Distorted, not switchable (so you have to plug between the two intputs, if you really have to.. maybe a line switcher will help to solve this), variety of speaker outputs for different impendances, effects loop, resonance, bass and brightness switch
is very heavy and looks nice
two channels aren't that much, but do you really need more?

I use a Jackson WRMG Warrior with EMG HZ Pickups. I use no additional effects. As speaker cabinet I use a Behringer BG412H Ulrastack 4*12" enclosure. This setup kicks ass if you're looking for a brutal and not too noisy distortion. I actually play fast music from death to black metal and some hardcore and doom stuff. It's very loud and bassy and absolutely loud enough to play live. It can become noisy if you set the gain too high, but you won't have to set the gain to the extreme. If you set it a little bit more than a half you will be satisfied, believe me. With the Presence knob you can vary the tone the distortion very good. I've got also a Marshall Top with 4*12" which is also good, but the variety of distortion sounds is very small and it's just not as loud as this machine.

Just as I said, I can use this amp without any backup.
Unfortunately, I plugged the speakers wrong to the amp, so that I had to turn the volume to the max (8ohms instead of 16 ohms..). And it went like this for about 4 months, then the output transformator went down. So I had to pay about 300 Dollars for reperature. But never had problems with tubes or so on. I give it 10 because the output transformator broke down because of my own fault.

On the internet, you can't find any manual, but if you write them, you'll get the manual very fast.
As the output transformator went down, I asked for the manual and just gave it to my local dealer who has a contact for general amp repairs. I had to wait for a month until it was repaired.

I'm absolutely pleased with this amp. I'm now playing for 3.5 years and it suits every situation. I've got this amp for about one year now and I use it quite a lot. About 2 or 3 times a week very loud. I love it's simple usage. It has just everything I need and nothing more. Ok, a reverb would be good for recording, but thats all. And it's also difficult if you wan't to find a quiet volume level to play with other instruments. the volume knob is really sensitive on the lower levels. So I'd prefer you this amp for stage, rehearsal and recording, but not for home use, it's just too loud.
In comparision with my Marshall Valvestate 8100 Top trough two 2*12" enclosures, the Laney is really better. Ok, the Marshall 8100 is not a 100% tube amp, but you can also get a very rich distortion out of it. But not as brutal as the laney distortion. If look for a good setup for deathmetal, just buy this one. If someone would steal it, I'd buy a new one, maybe a model with a footswitch.

Less with features but do you really need 4 channels and lots of knobs?!
The Effect Loop is excellent....
For playing raw,heavy tunes..no other amp can compete with the Laney head.
The 100 Watts of really kicks ass!

Mainly I prefer playing my Les Paul with EMG 81/85 Pick Ups...or my IBANEZ ARTIST with DiMarzio Super Distortion PU's.
With this setup and with my old Laney Cabinet (4xG12M70 celestion speaker)the amp really sounds great....
Well it is hard to play ballads e.g. but for a heavy sound....perfect!

Fuse blown....but now it works fine!

no

Now I play it approx half a year...and it's a good amp!
Tony knew what he wanted!

The GH100s, identical precursor of the GH100TI (except this one has a different name slapped on it) This amp is low on features, which in this case is a very positive thing as it means less fiddling and more playing. Single channel, no reverb and thus no foot switching. It does have an effects loop, but i prefer to serial input my rack effects. As i use preamp distortion and effects i have the gain of the GH100s set right down, and so i have to compensate for this by upping the master volume rather high. This is no problem for the amp and even using this method there is loads of headroom. The three channel EQ is nice - its great for scooping out thsoe pesky mids for some full on chunkin' riffs. Strange feature of a resonance switch... which when activated sounds like using the wrong impedence of speaker (ive never understood this feature). Oh yeah and this amp weighs 23Kg and like every other head i know the handle is rubbish, so dont be thinking you can carry this thing anywhere without causing serious injury to you back. Not many features, but what it does have is great.

I play with a BC Rich NJ series Warlock, and i use a Marshall 2x12 1936 cab. I play rock/metal anything from U2 to Sepultura. For me this amp is perfect...for starters its loud (an understatement) and secondly its heavy as hell. Iommi knew what he was doing when he designed this one. Has great presence and has cutting treble and bass. Its a bit of a shame that the amp is so loud as it makes it inpracticle for use in the bedroom - by the time the amp is turned up enough for the valves to sing, the paint is being vapourised off the walls. But the amp was specifically designed for stadium use so this has to be expected.
The amp distortion is fine, but i prefer to use preamp to get a more chunky sound. Having said this, the tonal capabilities of this amp is vast. By adjusting the ratio of gain to master, you can get most sounds from Santana to Edge, and of course much heavier tones too.

After five years with the same valves playing at high volumes virtually every day, it has never presented me with a problem. I have gigged with it a number of times now and its never ever cut out or started playing up. It heats up very quickly due to the valves, but this is normal. The build quality of the amp is so reasuring that it seems like you could drop it down a flight of stairs with no adverse affects on the performance. The build quality puts any marshall to shame. If there was a nuclear war, the Laney GH100s would rule post-apocolyptic earth.

I have never had a problem with my amp, but a mate has had several problems with his VC30. Customer support is apparently a bit on the sketchy side, which is a bit of a shame.

Have been playing for 13 years, at the moment i use the GH100s with a Marshall 1936 2x12 and a Zoom 9030 aswell as a dunlop wah and a big muff. If stolen i would replace this amp with an identical one - even if it cost twice as much as the first one. If you want to play metal, then this is for you...but beware of the single channel, for it means that those oh so essential clean to distorted moments are not possible without the use of an effect pedal. This is THE definitive heavy metal amp, with simple but funcional features. Reliable, well built and earbleedingly loud. Great looking chrome work and grill. Exceptional tone possibilities but takes a while to really get to grips with the tweaking of the gain/master volume ratio. Not to everyones taste, but i cant really fault this amp in terms of sound and reliability - the two things you should be looking for in an amp. (I would have given it an overall 10, but then where would you put Mesa Boogie? Well?) :)

Nope, it's not a versatile amp. If I wanted a crunch tone I'd have bought a Fender, if I'd wanted just about anything other than BRUTAL SET FOR STUN METAL I'd have bought something else. No footswitches, no reverb, not very much at all except for an excellent FX Loop. This amp has more power than I'd ever need and leaves my old JCM 800, lying in the dirt (Even after a Soldano Hot Mod).

I run mainly my Kelly Std loaded with Duncan Invaders through this, also a BC Rich Ironbird with a tonezone and occasionally a Strat Plus with a hot rails. My band plays fairly 'Stompin' metal where a precise yet really brutal sound was called for. I tried so many amp and effect combinations before I found this amp that I was beggining to think I'd never find it. My rhythm sounds tight and very VERY heavey, I run the Master around 5 with the gain at 5.5 to 6 (Doesn't sound like much but you really have to hear it). The distortion tone is totally unique and brutal and not to put too fine a point on it has balls a plenty. If you need more gain than this amp can give you, well, you need a jackhammer not a guitar :?)

I've blown up 2x GH100l's , killed a Marshall, and blown a Hot Mod. This amp has been gigged remoreslessly and lovingly handled by the bands roadie and still hasnt gone wrong yet. I've had it for just about a year now so I guess it's coming around to tube changing time, at gigs I use a GH100l as a back up but I think I'm just going to hunt down another one of these.

Never had to find out yet, every time an amp of mine goes belly up its outside of warranty anyway (Do they put a timer in these things??)

I've been playing for ten years now, my rig is now about as simple as it could get. Guitar - Tubescreamer(Set flat. No gain or volume boost)-Jim Dunlop limited wah thing(Once in a while if Im feeling adventerous)- Amp. When Im recording I tend to whack a noise gate through the loop, sometimes use a compressor for certain rhythm parts in the studio. Getting a sonic maximiser fairly soon.
Before I bought this I did an a/b with a 5150 and for me this won hands down, not processed and BRUTAL. If anyone actually had the gall to steal this from me I might well break down and cry, along with making sure that if I caught him I'd push his head right up his....well...you know.

I don't find this amp versatile! ABSOLUTELY NOT! I've played this amp for 4 years now (I also play with a Marshall 80W combo)and I have never been satisfied! This amp doesn't allow you to work with external (distortion)-effects. You have only one channel... you can't switch between bright and distorted tones... It doesn't allow anything.

Huh... another laugh! I've only used humbuckers (that's my kind of thing!) but I never got the right distortion I've wanted. Always missing the edges. I've played heavy metal (groovy style) and it went downhill! I couldn't rely on the amps' distortion 'cause it was too light... and when I've tried to add some extra input to it (through a Boss metal-zone) it went even worse... Now I'm playing in a heavy-rock band... and I can't use it at all! The sound just don't has a compromise at all! I vomits its sound out!
I guess this amp is just good enough to play a grungy-style of music... no strong metal music; neith softer rock!

Depending on it? Whahahah, what a laugh! In two months I've had 3 valves went down! And I was very carefull tough! The amp just can't stand anything!

Keep laughing! A manual? Whahaha! Customer support? whahaha!

So I've been playing this piece of junk for about four years. Luckely I've also had an Marshall VS100 and a Marshall VS80... Thank God for Marshall!
Now I'm trying to sell the piece... but of course, no-one wants it!
The only thing I've loved about it was the aggressive look... that's all... I hate just anything else!
I did compare it with other amps... but the ones I really like I already had... so it was just a matter of power...
I wished it would have a clean channel and could be more reliable! It would have turned my opinion in much better direction!
Suggestion? Laney's still got a long way to go!

I guess this amp is fairly new. This amp is very versatile. I can play punk, ska, "grunge", "emo", metal, and other stuff on this amp. This is a one channel amp, which is bad cause i love the clean tone and i love the overdriven tone and i wanna switch it wit ha footswitch. IT's got an easy to understand effects loop which is totally cool and useful. I wish it had channel switching cause like i said the clean and overdriven tone is soooo beautiful. Way bettter than any marshall. I use all the features but the only one i wish it had was a footswitch to switch from clean to overdrivven ( i know that the gh100l (?) has this but htey dont' sound the same). Also, i wish the bright and bass switch had a footswitch for it. I use my fender jag stang w/ jb pickup in the bridge through a proco rat (original) and a dano chorus into the amp. I have a vintage EH small stone in the fx loop (so ican't heard the bleeding of it).
it's got sooooooo much power it'll knock your ASS off! IT's got from left to right on the front: on (on!), standby (standby), Resonance (tightens bass signals, cabinet dependant), Bass, Mid, Treble, Master Volume, Gain, BRight (treb boost), bass switch (bass boost), lo input, hi input. it has an output for every ohm setting, slave output/in to use w/ other laneyheads, fx loop, and tube biasing swithc for el34 and 6l6's.

I use a jag stang w/ a jb in thebridge and even w/ the coil split on it sounds great. It sounds great for punk, some ska, "emo", "grunge", and metal. It can be very noisy when cranked but what do you expect. It can make crunchy sounds, trebly sounds, bassy sounds (there the hardest to come buy. The clean channel is clean at any volume but depends at what the gain is (mast vol: 10, gain hast o be like at 0). The distortion will KNOCK YOU OFF YOUR ASS!!!! SOOO fucking great.

WEll this amp does hold up but for the 3 weeks i had it the fuses had blown twice. Not a big deal but could fuck up at a gig. You might need a backup but i wouldn't need to gig w/ a backup. If i blow a fuse i just replace it. BANG, 2 seconds. done. The tubes hold up (as usual, sovtek el34s)

i've nver dealt with them but i heard they are asses.

This is a great amp and is way better than my hottrodded bassman. It makes all the jcm 900s and 2000s sound like shit. If it were stolen i'd be pissed and try to find one around 400 if not, i'd get a dif. amp cause i doubt i could find one around 400 bucks again.
I \still wish it had switchin from clean do distorted. BUY THIS AMP!!!! hey, No mOtiv uses so it's gotta be good!

Ok this is a early to mid 90's amp(I bought it used so I'm not exactly sure what year) with 100 watts(all tube) single channel with a hi and lo input. These I've found are more then enough. The hi imput is just plain mean, killer metal tones when you crank the gain over 5-6 but it gives a real nice overdrive-classic metal tone when you ease it back a little. And it you throw a stomp box in front of it or even through the effects loop, you can get what ever you want. And if you wanna do some Floyd or even some CCR or something the lo imput in just about perfect and once again if you throw a stomp box in front of it you can get anything you want. Actually if you crank the gain when you plugged into the lo imput you can get a pretty decent blues/metal tone real similar to the tone of la grange. I only use guitars with humbuckers so I can't testify that it'll sound great with your fender but it'll probably rock. Ok what else about this amp... It's a simple layout- left to right, a resonance switch; Presence, high, mid, low, -EQ, a bass boost and a bright boost, your master volume and your gain, then the side by side inputs. the back panel is a mess, individual outputs for every imaginable ohm speaker cab, the effects loop, a bias switch so you can use either El34's or 6L6's, the standard fuses and other crap most of which I never even look at. So it's really quick to set up. Ok now my opinion, I play a lot of heavy covers, from Sabbath to old school Metallica, to Megadeth, to ministry but we also do Floyd and CCR some Police and other less intense stuff(go ahead and make fun), but I also do mainly Punk originals, and this amp handles it. I run no effects at all and the tone is just perfect, just by tweaking the gain you can play either rythum(i know I spelled that wrong) or lead and whatevers in between. ok so the problems... no reverb, it's not essential cause I don't run a box to make up for it but hell it would be nice on some solo's. No foot switch to change from lo to hi imputs... Iknow that makes no sense but if you could do it it would be sweet for those clean to distortion sounds

I use Gibson Sg's and V's, Ibaneze Icemen and, BC rich's and they all crank... The hotter the pick up the more distortion but the Gibsons give a fatter sound... It gets a litte noisy (feedback wise) but that's probably cause I play it in little practice spaces... but it's real controlable I've never been able to do a better feedback solo then with this amp... The variety of tones is like I said pretty amazing for a single channel amp... there isn't really a clean channel but the lo imput is pretty clean if you want it to be or dirty if you want... the distortion is mean not brutal..it sound 's good pleasing to the ear.. not like those wussy solid state jobs....

YOu can't stop it with a gun, a tank or by throwing it out of your car at 75 miles an hour...

I never had to get this one fixed but I have another laney that broke on me... When I called the guy was a dick cause it seems the other amp I had was made before these new people bought the company. So they gave me a hard time... But what are you gonna do... The amp is worth dealing with jerks maybe once every 100 years

I've been playing for about 8 years, I own another Laney Amp an AOL series Protube 50, I currently run them (one at a time) through a prehistoric cab with celestions. And I already listed my axes. I'd buy it again... It turned out to be just what I was looking for even though I wasn't looking for it. I love just about every thing and don't really hate anything. I was trying out tube combo's when I stumbled on this thing... so I wasn't really testing other heads but hell the only thing I found that I would rather have was a MESA heartbreaker but I'd rather keep the 2 grand in my pocket... Just try one