Soldano Astroverb 16 1x12 Combo

Number 57 of how many they made. I cant believe I never hear much about these amps .I got this from a store on the net in St Paul for 400$ and it was steal. the reverb is amazing and subtle and the overall sound is full and alive there are groove tubes in it. simple tone controls but very loud for 16 watts very very loud. every time you twist the preamp or the volume the amp sounds different, top me it is just amazing sounds you can get out of this little unit. I have an atomic 16 without reverb and this one is just out outstanding.

One great setting on this amp is using the clean side volume on 10 and preamp on about 3, then a danelectro pedal with the distorion off and the volume all the way up going through a mesa boogie 2 12 extension cabinet gives such a big full rich sound it just floors me and I have been playing hendrix style blues for thirty years and for overall value price and sound quality this is the absolute best deal I have ever come across. I have another 40 watt fender, a mesa boogie amp that is a treat but complicated at times for loose craniums like mine ,this amp is simple and very effective. I have a couple of pro juniors with modded tubes one a tweed that is a fabulos amp but for 400 bucks this amp is more than great

I think these things are indestructible I have always heard nothing but good things about Soldano and they answered email in two days

I got this from a bass player on the internet who just traded it in to a guitar store and he emailed me back so I could track it down, what a generous act of kindness, I mean it, I think these amps are the best and each one sounds a little different and I really got a good one tone wise

About as simple as an amp gets (see the other review for details on controls, tubes, specs). No effects loop, no preamp out, single channel only. Excellent reverb, however, and the simple set of controls covers a gamut of preamp output and tone adjustments with completely useful tone at every setting, 1 to 11. I bought it to use strictly as a recording amp and it works perfectly, miked with an Sm57. Excellent sound quality (roots rock, blues, a little Brit pop jangle) to tape AND to hard disk.

Impedance appears to mate perfectly, or close to it, with a standard U.S. Strat. Terrific responsiveness to volume and tone-pot adjustments on the guitar; excellent responsiveness to playing dynamics. At a preamp setting of about 4 you can work both sides of the blues line, clean to light-but-rich overdrive, with just your guitar pick. I'm not a user or major fan of deep distortion but this amp appears to do that pretty well too. Plenty of sustain as you dial toward 11. The reverb matches well with the amp. This is not a deep-dish surf vibe, but a very useable rounding and richening of tone along with the clean, open reverb sound. Why not a 10 for sound? The clean tone operates through a very narrow preamp range; there's not a lot to work with; sounds fine but probably not someone's first choice for major classic Fender vibe.

No problems at all in seven months of pretty steady use.

No idea. Havent needed it

The AV16 is pricey for what you get -- unless the sound outweighs all other considerations, as it did for me. I bought this after playing all the small Mesa Boogies, the Peavey Classic series, the Fender Hot Rod DeVille class of tube amps, and a couple of solid-state amps with tube emulation-- a Roland and the Tech 21 amp (forget the name). I'd buy it again. The compact size makes it easy to fit into a cramped home studio. The only thing I think it really could have, for gigging players, is an effects loop. For recording (for me anyway) that's not an issue.

The Astroverb 16 is similiar to the Atomic 16, with the addition of tube driven Accutronics spring reverb. This is a 16 watt RMS 1x12 combo, featuring three 12AX7 and two EL84. There are two additional 12AX7 tubes for the reverb circuit. The speaker is a 12" Soldano X-12000, 16 ohms, with provision at the rear for an extension speaker (8 ohm min). There is no effects loop, or standby switch. The front panel includes the input, preamp, reverb, bass, middle, treble, volume, and presence knobs (chicken head style), and power switch. This is a single channel amp, rated at 16 watts, which seems much more powerful. This amp looks righteous in purple tolex!

I am playing with an '84 Fender Strat, surf green/maple neck, w/ gold lace sensors, which happens to be an exceptionally lively guitar. My other axe is a PRS CE Bolt-on, alder w/flamed maple top, scarlet red with gold hardware and abalone dots, and a maple/rosewood neck. I am amazed at all the glorious sounds the Soldano can produce from these guitars. Since it is single channel, and I play mostly blues-rock, with a lot of ringing open alternate chords during rythym work, this amp SMOKES! With the strat, I set the preamp on about 6, volume on 8, and I get a very harmonic, rich, full tone, with just a bit of breakup. Just control it with your guitar volume knob to go from glassy rythym, to beefy crunch. Of course, my heavily strung strat (11-53 Thomastik), tuned to E flat, has a very thick and lucious tone. With the 'Smith, this is strung 10-52, and with the humbuckers, I set the preamp usually between 3-5, with the volume set from 6-8. Just turn up the preamp to 7 or more, and you are smokin it with hard rock music.This amp must be heard to be believed, the power and marvelous tone! Oh my! All this, and it is light enough to carry in one hand, your guitar in the other. The only thing missing, is a standby switch, and an effects loop. But word is that Mike wanted to keep the cost down, so he shined this on. I was almost ready to buy a Mesa Maverick 2x12, but the Soldano is much less coin, and this amp, like the Mav, is great for my style of playing.

I have only had the amp about 3 months, and so far no problem. Soldano of course has a pretty good reputation, so we'll see what happens, but right now, so far, so good.

No comment, as I have had no reason to seek company support.

I originally bought this as a bedroom amp, but I can and do use this with my band. It sounds great miked. The reverb is rich and luscious. It can go from clean to crunch, and beyond, just by adjusting the preamp and volume controls, and your guitar volume knob. My other amps are a 1969 Hiwatt Custom 100 half stack, and an '82 Fender Concert 1x12. I also play bass, I have an ash Fender P-Bass Plus,w/a 2-tek bridge and Duncan 1/4 pounders, and a Hamer Cruise 5, also 2-tek bridge, thru my Ampeg SVT 3-Pro, Ampeg 4x10 Pro, and 1x18 cabs... I gotta tell y'all, this Soldano is one smokin' amp! For it's size, you will not believe all the tone, volume, and punch. A standby switch and effects loop would be nice, but I think Soldano made a good choice to leave this stuff off, keep the price down, and give us a great product for the money.