Roland BC-60 BluesCube 310 Combo

Bought the amp in "new in the box" condition on EBAY for $360. Yes, every once in awhile even "I" can catch a break! Basic two-channel but with extra buttons like the "crunch" knob, boost button etc. Plenty versatile. Heck...when I started playing in '71 almost all the amps were one channel with "maybe" a second channel with less features. This amp is pretty heavy at 60 lbs but then it does have 3 speakers in it and it's a very solid cabinet. This is NOT a Behringer contruction project.

All I can say is after a few months I believe this amp to be the best I've ever played through. In 33 years I've had everything from crappy Jordan solid states to an Ampeg V-4 to Musicman RD-50 to a new Fender Cyberchamp. This amp toasts 'em all in my opine. The three 10" speakers give you that nice "whack" in your back that let's you know you're in charge onstage. The reverb is pleasant if not quite Fenderesque. You could actually play a gig with just this amp, a cord and your guitar and people would dig your sound. It's plenty loud. The club I play in Nashville is a medium-sized room that holds maybe 250 folks and I turn the master level to about 4 onstage and it's pert darn loud. I've turned it up all the way at home and I will say that "8" is not twice as loud as "4" is....there's an exponential curve as you turn it up. Let's just say that unless you're 30 feet from this amp it should be loud enough for anyone who doesn't play for U2. This amp comes closer to actual "tube" sound than any other I've tried but still has it's own voicing and character. I also own a Behringer Blue Devil with their "virtube" technology and a new Fender Cyberchamp with their "tube" voodoo. Both of those amps still sound transistor to me but not the Blues Cube....you can dial in that nice warmth and fuzziness if you need it.

no problemo with mine so far....even the gold knob tops are staying on. I bought a ATA case on EBAY for mine 'cause I like it that much I don't want to bang the mofo around taking it to the gig. It appears to be well constructed. I had to put a jumper box in to separate the speaker to amplifier connection because I use a talk box and the cabinet is very solid with a nice tolex covering.

3-year warranty. Never dealt with Roland before so I can't give any reports on how they work with people.

Been playing 33 years....rock, blues, country I would defnitely buy another to replace this one. The only thing I would do to improve the amp is offer a tremelo. Us oldtimers dig tremelo!!!! If you want a real amp and not some toy combo claiming to sound like a Fender Bassman then I'd check these amps out...you won't be sorry if you get one. Of course...there's also a single 12" speaker version if you can't handle the 60 lbs of this bugger.

you can find the features elswhere including other people's reviews.

i think the main questions everyone wants answered is "Is this as good as, better, or worse than a tube amp?" Well it obviously depends on the amp you're comparing it to. Even then there is no definite answer.
I own the bluescube in addition to a Traynor YCV-80 Custom Valve amp (look at musiciansfriend.com to see details) and used to own a Marshall AVT-50 (really not a very good amp, the blues cube is better than this one in every aspect without question). The Traynor series is about on level with the fender hotrod series, quality-wise. Traynors have a far better distortion channel though.
I have played many diferent high quality amps, marshalls (not the AVTs) Fenders Tubes (not the hotrods) and mesa/boogies. The blues cube comes close to these but in the end just can't quite fill their shoes in most catagories. But how does the traymor stack up to lower quality tube amps like my Traynor or the fender hotrods? The "Cube" may be lacking in some the subtleties that give tube amps their charater such as complex harmonics or individal note articulation when playing chords. But it does make up for these shortcomings.
1)The blues cube is very warm sounding both the clean and overdrive. It is has a nice tight bass to it. 2) It has "punch". It has that kind of hot gutsy sound usually found in tube amps It makes my Traynor just sound kind of dull.
So could a seasoned longtime tube using pro spot this as a solid-state? possibly. Could an audience? most likely not.
Some other notes: This does have enough disortion to get a metal sound but won't sound very good doing it. The spring reverb is not quite fender quality, but its just as good as most other onboard spring reverbs.
If you have a chance TRY IT OUT. dont just buy this based on harmony central reviews. You tube freaks, even if you dont want to buy it, will be quite suprised.
If ten is completely perfect i give it a nine for the price (but really its higher than nine)

no idea

dont know

a very good addition to my equipment. would be the PERFECT amp for starting out, though ive been playing about 6 years.

I have made a modification to my BC60 112 amp to allow boost to be footswitched (see my review for that amp). Here is the website for those that are interested:

http://bcsixty.tripod.com/

It may be different for the 310, but maybe not.

I'll leave the features alone because they are listed many times in other reviews here...I gave it a 7 due to the lack of boost footswitch and the fact that you have to buy the channel switching one....and c'mon...a footswitch for reverb????

I use an Epi Les Paul with a Duncan 59 Neck and JB bridge...pretty standard...and the amp sound great...like the best tube amp I've owned...except of course it's SS...
It really does respond to your pick....much better than I'd hoped...
The tone shaping controls actually work and both channels really do their job....I just got rid of a really good sounding Fender Hot Rod and this sounds like more of a tube amp than that did!

I don't have any idea yet..IT BETTER NOT BREAK!

I've heard some baaaaad stories about Roland but I've never dealt with them...

This amp is about as good as it gets without spending 2000 on a boogie or something...it will definitely kick butt on the lower end tube amps....sound wise...I like the 3 10" speakers...keeps the mud factor in check....

I have this thing for i think a year or so.
so it's not that i'm blinded because i just baught it!
I bought this amp because it's very versatile, I don't use effects i play straight from my '93 usa strat. on this amp. I mostly play Blues some rock and some ballads.
it has 2 channels the clean and the distorted, both of them have the standard things bass,middle,treble, you can put presence and reverb on both of the channels. for the Reverb and channel switching you can put an on/off switch to it, you can give the amp al little more bright by pressing the bright button, and there is an fx loop, what you can easily change (by pressing a button)in line out or line in.
and of course the tube simulater, and the knob for crunch (you can crunch the clean channel by a 3 step knob. and on the overdrive channel is a button to give a little bit more boost to the channel

What can i say, it sounds beautiful, for almost any style (not for the real heavy metal -> buy a pedal,).
you can get a very warm and creamy sound out of it, this is the sound i like the most.
like i said there is a tube simulater on it, what gives a perfect sound just like an old tube amp. i think better as the marshall jtm-610 310 combo that the other guitarist of the band uses.
you can use the crunch button to play with a little bit of overdrive,
i use it for som hendrix and some srv stuff.
the overdrive channel what can i say, i don't use it much, it is perfect for the classic rock thing and some old rock.

my first impression wasn't good because, i had one with a manifacture mistake, I coudn't get this thing all the way clean, so i went back and they give me a new one which sounded good and still sound good, it never gives me any problem.

like i said by reliability,
i went back to the shop and they gave me a new one right away.

I play for i think 3 years now and it's a perfect amp, for beginners and prof. because it isn't expensive.
If it was stolen i baught a new new one the next day.

oh btw, it's very very heavy, that's the only thing about it that i don't like

I'll start the review by saying two things. One is I've had this amp for a few years so the honeymoon syndrome that I read in other reviews isn't here. Second I've been playing over twenty years on and off so I've heard enough amps. This is a two channel with the typical clean and dirty channels. Controls are top mounted instead of on the cabinet face. Solid state with three Roland ten inch speakers. Channel switching / reverb jack which would require second pedal or y plug from a/b pedal / and effects loop. Reverb of course. Cabinet had nice tweed covering and is square instead of the typical rectangular shape. This amp can be seen on the Roland website although it appears they may have discontinued it.

This amp has had Stats and Pauls plugged in along with everything in between. You won't do the metal thing with it. Get a pedal for that. It will cover all other styles fine with a voice that leans twoards blues or jazz. It has a very true sound and covers clean to crunch fine. I said goodbye to a Marshall Valvestate 100 combo after
having this amp a couple years. You won't get the Marshall sound out of this amp. On the other hand the Roland covers everything else better. The Marshall didn't have the vibe of this amp. It has good lows and highs when needed. This amp has the muscle to work in a band setting without problem.

It's made by Roland. This company is known for it's quality products.
I had the same problem as another review with the gold caps on the control knobs being loose. Super glue cured it. Like Boss pedals are known for this amp is a workhorse. Several years and miles later this amp is still ticking. Made in America!

Never needed customer support.

If your new to guitar take a tip. Put the money in the amp instead of the guitar. I'd rather have a cheap guitar through a Marshall stack than a Les Paul though a cheap amp. If I ever need to replace I may look at the other Blues Cube models. This thing is the largest and heavy model of the Roland BC amps. A strong back needed to carry this one around.

You can look at the previous reviews to find out what it has, altough I am one of those guys who always tries to find one thing better with more options and I think I have met my match.
I give this amp a 9 because I would like to be able to have a foot switch to hit the lead channel boost for leads. Other than that You are not going to find another amp this versitale.

I am writing this review because of one of the reviews I read about 5 before mine. the reviewer said that it is good for blues and jazz although it is not good for heavy metal, and he gave it a low rating. I would like to defend the BC 60. The reason this idiot could not get heavy metal tones out of this amp is beacause he is using a mexican strat with single coils pickups. I have one of those also, and I don't try to play that type of music with that guitar, I change guitars and play through my Gibson Les Paul. Do you see any heavy meatal guys playing through single coils? I don't think so. If I were you I would not listen to that guy who knows nothting about sound. I agree with one of the previous reviewers, this is one of the best kept secrets.

I just got back from testing a 1962 blonde fender twin customized, and the price tag was 2800.00. I have to tell you when I was there I thought what an amazing amp, although when I got home and played through my BC-60. I was amzed at how good the BC sounded compared to the Twin, and with the BC you can do every style of music with out pedals,not just a clean blues tone.

the lead channel offers so many tonal verities it is unreal. it has a pre and post volume. when you play with this you can go from heavy grunge to light distorted blues leads. it is truely amazing.

If you look up records in the music industry, roland is only second to Mackie for returns and reliablity in their products. I use this amp as my main amp on stage and never even think about taking a back up. I gave up a long time ago (when I bought this amp) in dealing with tubes. I get that tube sound with this and not the hassle.

Not sure have not had to use them.

I would definatly get another one of these amps if stolen. I am always looking for a new amp. I am the type who thinks there is always something better out there. Well I can tell you, In this price range and higher I have not found anything that I would replace it with yet. If you come accross one of these get it, you will not be disipointed.

I will keep this review simple, hehehe.

Thumbs up to a reviewer before to to call this "maybe the best kept secret in guitar amps". That is exactly what describes it.

Okay I've been using this for half a year now. I play all styles of music ranging from soft blues to heavy metal.

This guitar has 2 channels, clean and lead, both with a universal EQ which is excellent i.m.h.o. Comes with effects loop, external channel switching, crunch option, tube rectifix (thumbs up for its amazing similarity to the real thing). Easy to use, reliable, versatile.

Solid state open back very heavy to carry amp, but very strong as well. 3 vintage sound speakers 10 inch each. 65 watts, although the output seems 85 for some reason, I wouldn't mind :) Seriously, I've played amps as small as lunchboxes and as awesome as Mesa Boogie road king, mark2, etc, and nearly anything in between. I love to try amps like these that are just a little less known.

God it's cheap, and I don't mean the sound, I mean the pricetag! I like to compare this to that Ibanez Jem7D guitar: "Good luck finding something that costs a couple of hundred dollars more and sounds as good as this" Bang for your buck.

Guitars:

Ibanez Jem7d, Jem7vwh (both awesome guitars), EB Music Man JP6, Fender American Strat.

It seems that every time I go to a big guitar store and try a new guitar, they set me up with some fender/marshall thing that just doesn't seem to monitor correctly. Don't get me wrong, I know that there are many people that find many uses for these amps, but a 600/700 dollar Fender or Marshall doesn't even come close to this Roland! It gives you exactly what you put into it, like all good ol' vintage amps do. Not suited for heavy metal? Nope. Not by itself. But: Run any effect you desire to give you your favourite metal tone, and trust this amp to spit out exactly the sound you put into it. That's the bit I love most.

I use either this or a Mesa to test new gear cause they both share that god given clarity and presence mastery. No muffling away and reshaping of tones like almost any Fender and Marshall under 800 bucks seems to do.

See the beauty is setting this amp to clean and then running a desired pre-amp for distortions. The clean of this amp is great, very great. Although Mesa's is (even) better, it's the same direction of sound.

Oh, I forgot to mention, there's Reverb on it and you'll know it, cause that sounds really nice too.

I'm not trying to praise this amp to heaven as it is not a $4000 mesa, but for this money, it's just a fantastic deal that you should take the time to check out. Especially if you are looking for a great backup amp.

It's a lower quality than mesa's, but it's certainly in the right direction of a great sound. Plus, no trademark tone reshaping like every damn Marshall does. I hate it when I hear a company instead of my guitar.

The 10 I give here is not an overall, it's a comparison to price/quality ratio. Compared to the finest, I'd go for 8 or maaaaaaybe 9. It may not be perfect, but it's never a *bad* amp, no matter what you compare it to.

It's very strong and has no tubes which obviously reduces the odds of having it crap out by unloading it and breaking a tube. Or worse - having a tube crap out during a gig. It is very heavy though but the reliability kind of makes up for it. One of the little gold-ish knob covers came off though cause it wasn't glued very well and that just aint rite :)

A 9 here.

Never had to deal with.

The original price was 550 euro but the guys I bought it from got them by masses, making them very cheap for obvious reasons. Even cheaper, man, aside from the Jem7dBK that was the best bargain I've seen so far.

Anyway, as I said, it's not a Mesa, but for even twice its price it's nearly impossible to find an amp that is seriously better. Go see for yourself.

Oh my God. I wouldn't even know where to begin. First of all, i can't believe that some guy actually submitted a Negative review about this baby but then again, to each his own. I play blues and rock usually in a kind of mixed style and this thing offers EVERY bit of sound versatility that I could ask for in an amp, and that is not even considering the extremely low price. And yes, mexican strats do seem to sound very satisfying on this. But then again, you're either doing something seriously wrong or you're using a very low quality guitar if there actually comes a bad sound out of this.

It comes with 2 channels, a normal and a lead. The normal channel has an option Crunch switch which can be set to off-1-2, accompanied by a volume switch. Both channels have bass/midtone/trebble options.
The Lead channel has pre- and post volume switches for the distortion and a "boost" switch. It also contains a reverb, a presence, and ofcourse a switch for Roland's Tube Logic technology. It has 2 foot switch options for channel select and reverb. It also comes with an adjustable send/receive for an effects pedal or an amp lineup.

It has 3 "vintage-sound" speakers in it which, contrary to the other reviewer's statement, can sound as powerful as you like them to.

As mentioned above I use a salsacaster with this (mexican strat) and this thing just sounds great with single coils. Clean is like Wow. Go a little easy on the trebble and hit the tube tech switch, add a little reverb and Warm and Creamy are the first words that go through your head. If you want it sharper, fine. The tonal quality is simply great and very versatile on this. Before I bought it I put it right next to Fender and Marshall amps that were at LEAST twice as expensive and for some reason none of them picked up the mood better than this one. I know that quality isn't always related to the money you pay, but I doubt I've been this convinced before. The tube technology sounds better than some of the most expensive real tube amps out there, Plus it saves you the trouble of replacing broken tubes. As for noisyness, this one simply isn't noisy. The sound range is pretty versatile, including the distortions, but for the unnatural heavy distortions you'd have to buy a pedal. This amp's lead is mostly for quality rock, including that with some very serious kick, but not the kind of distortions that drown themselves. And to top it off, I love it how some people look for typical Nirvana-like distortions in a pedal simply cause their expensive trendy amp can't do them, but since the lead EQ's on this have very significant influences, I can get close to many popular quality sounds. I just love it.

It's solid. No loose bolts and parts, and it looks pretty sturdy. I only have it for some months but I know people who've used it for many years including gigs and never had serious damage so I doubt it's unreliable. I wouldn't use a backup, neither do I know anybody that does.

Never had to deal with them. I'm not sure about the support on this one since Roland doesn't pay much attention to this model on their site, but Roland does have a very respectable service. I would expect the same for this one.

If it were stolen, I'd buy it again, and again. I like other amps too for sound and style variation's sake but I'd surely hang on to this one. It's pretty heavy and big and that is the only thing that's in the way but also logical. It was originally 520 dollars or something which is still a sweet price for this, but I got a major discount at a local store. Such a quality amp and I don't even feel lighter. This is great.

It's a really versatile combo that does it all for me. 2 channel with a couple of distortion settings for the clean channel and a boost switch on the distortion side. Good effects loop, 3 10" vintage speakers. No speaker out, which bothers me, I'd like to be able to hook a 2x12 to this. Also, lots of stuff isn't footswitchable, which can be a pain to get the full versatility of this amp live.

Lately I'm playing a '63 SG with p-90's and '56 LP also with p-90's. I play mostly kind of cleaned up punk emo stuff, but also some funk/blues. This does it all. The clean channel is satisfactory, but the distortion channel really sings. It delivers a beautiful warm creamy sound for leads and really nice tight low end. Definitely enough crunch and fat mid range for modern pop punk. Thrash/grind core guys should probably look elsewhere though. The amp is sensitive to how you play and it never drowns out the natural tone/vibe of the guitar, which is something you won't find for an amp of this price. I've been looking for a head/cab amp (for larger gigs) and the closest I've come is the bogner shiva at like 4x the price. I can't express how happy I am with this amp.

I've lugged this thing all over the place and it's built like a tank and weighs like it. Put some casters on if you'll be moving it a lot.

For the price, you can't beat this amp. It sounds fantastic, is sturdy, looks cool. I've been playing everything to try and find something larger and except for the bogner, I haven't come close. I want warm, creamy distortion, no fuzz or dirt. This amp delivers that. I've been playing for 15 years or so and have been thru marshall after marshall and got fed up. This replaced my last marshall. I'm gonna get the bogner but this will be a permanent part of my collection.