Matchless Hurrican

The Hurricane 15 is a 15 watt, class A, single channel, el84 powered amp with a tube tremelo circuit. The tone controls are as follows - volume, tone, speed, intensity, and master volume. There are 4, 8, and 16 ohm outputs on the back. Matchless only made a few of these (in comparison to the Lightning) so they are a bit hard to come by. My amp is a 2X10 version (matchless modified celestions). The tremelo circuit is really good but I don't use it often because I have no way of switching it on and off w/o going back to the amp and turning knobs - not very convenient at a gig. I have a Fulltone SupaTrem for that reason.

I am a strat/tele player and this amp is definitely a good match for single coils. I've played a P90 equipped tele through it and it sounded fine too, but I feel this is a strat amp primarily. But then again, I'm a strat guy ;-). Since my main gig involves pop and modern rock stuff, I need an amp that will deliver a good solid tone my pedals can work with. In short, Matchless amps have been my choice for years now because their basic sound is so good. The Hurricane is a great compromise for me because I've owned a DC30, HC85, Chieftain, etc.... and they all sound incredible but weighed like 100lbs. I gig a lot so convenience and ease is a determining factor in gear purchases. The Hurricane 2X10 probably weighs in at half that of it's big brothers yet retains all the tone. No Matchless sounds alike but they all sound similar and they all have that legendary build quality. To be more specific on tone, I'd agree with other reviewers of this amp in that it has the Vox AC15 tone with a bit more bottom and clarity. It can get agressive but not "brutal" or "scooped" or anything like that. The tone of the amp is midrange pronounced but that is tamed by the 10" speakers. I also agree with swapping the tubes out. I put a NOS Amperex GZ34, a JAN GE 12ax7, and a Mullard 12ax7 in the amp and that totally beefed up the tone. I really like the Ei (Yugo) EL84's much better than Sovteks for new tubes. Of course, a set NOS Bugle Boys would probably sound a bit better but the new Ei's sound great to me. I also replaced one of the Celestions with a Jensen P10R just for grins. I love that tone...I know it's a little unorthodox but it sounds really cool. That speaker produces a more Voxish quality, sort of like Phil Keaggy's tone on the "Crimson and Blue" record. Incidently, the Jensen is like twice as loud as the Celestion. Speaking of volume, these amps are extremely loud for their wattage rating. Don't be fooled by their small stature.

Extremely reliable. Can't afford to bring two Hurricanes to a gig. I confess, I wing it usually but I haven't been embarrassed...yet.

None. The new Matchless company has said nothing about doing repairs on previous amps and I suspect they won't. Rick Perotta and Mark Sampson are good guys and they - so far as I know - are not affiliated with this new company.

1996 vintage. Came with Sovtek EL84 power tubes, Sovtek 12AX7 front end tubes, Chinese 12AX7 effects and rectifier. No headphone jacks. Can plug in an external cab (with or without built-in single 12-inch Celestion working).

1996 Gibson LP Standard. 500T p/u on bridge. 496R on neck. Use standard 10's. Like Blues. Stock amp sags when asked to punch out a loud riff. Bass a little weak. Mid-range is good. Tremolo is okay, stock. Preferred to have the reverb, but that model wasn't available, at the time.

Built like a tank. 15 watt practice amp that weighs a good 35-40 lbs. Very heavy duty transformers and chassis. Good attention to cabinent, coverings, & speaker grille. Built to last.

Celestion looks like the vintage Greenback. Big magnet. Lots of potential sound.

No problems. Matchless is out-of-business (again). Circuit is class A, like the early Vox AC-15. So, there are amp techs out there that know how to work on the amp.

First thing to do is toss out that lousy Chinese rectifier. Imagine charging nearly a grand---and putting a $5 rectifier into the circuit. I was lucky enough to find a new Mullard GZ34. But, a good RCA or GE 5AR4 will do wonders to the bad sag that this amp has. Even, a good used Mullard or US made rectifier will do wonders for this amp.

Then, put in the new Sovtek 12AX7LP for the front end. I used Tungsram (Austrian) EL84's power tubes. What a big difference! The thing sound like it got a shot of testosterone.

The Tungsrams gives the amp a growling dark tone---very similar to the original Vox AC-30 top boost. Best of all the EL84's are self leveling---so you really don't need to worry about re-biasing the amp.

And the good rectifier adds real punch to the bottom end. Really makes the thing project.

The Sovtek 12AX7LP's boosts the pre-amp gain, so that it can more easily overdrive the amp. I think it cleaned up some of the original muddy highs, when the original crappy Chinese 12AX7 were in the unit.

This is one amp that is so well made, that there is no excuse for not using good tubes. And it really takes to good tubes well. Like two different amps, afterwards.

Guarantee you, a few simple plug-in mods---and you'll be very happy with this unit.

The Hurrican is basically the same 15 watt amp as the Lightning except the Hurrican adds a tremolo circut and substitutes a single tone control for the bass and treble controls. This is a simple amp... on/off switch, preamp, tone, intensity, debth and master controls. On the back is a direct out, and 4-ohm and 8-ohm speaker connections. These should not be treated as extension speaker outputs to be plugged in simultaneousl... only one should be plugged into at a time (mentioned in the literature). The amps simplicity is appealling to me... good tone is easy to find, gig after gig. I'm not into lots of knobs... so I rate accordingly. The controls work extremely well, though my only beef is the pre-amps limit of clean to grind. The features work for Jazz, Country and Rock.

I use a Les Paul Standard and a Strat -- though with either guitar it won't sing like a Marshall, this amp will grind - perfect for the Stones like tones. The amp sounds best with the strat... similar strat tone as what's his name in Steely Dan... quite a great tone actually.

However, I prefer playing a Paul... so I compromise alittle... It's still a great tone though, and friends have commented on how great my tone is with it. Note, I usually don't use pedals... so what I like with this amp is to set the pre-amp to 6 or 7, and play rhythm with guitar volume on 3 to 5, then solo at 10. The pre-amp softens the sound just enough. Great tone that is easy to set up... and this thing is lighter than a Boogie.

Too much gain makes the low end mushy... this is a fact of life in dealing with the EL84 tube.

Those little tuber (EL84?s) get microphonic easily. Tap on them occassionally when operating and replace when loud tapping noise occurs. This is a well built amp... Heavy Duty transformers... the weight of this 15 watt amp is that of a 50 watt.

Never used. But I did call once and they sent me amp literature at my request.

I'd miss this amp if stolen.