Soldano SLO100

2005 model. Versatile, not really. More of a one trick pony. I play rock and metal in a cover band.
Effects Loop, well, I will get to that later.

The SLO is a very nice amp but its shortfalls were just too much for me. The problems I had were mainly with the loop.
When using the loop bad things happened.
First, the tone took a hit with touch sensitivity. I have heard all of the solutions and reasons for a poorly made loop (all loops color the tone, don't use the loop, you have to set it up right, etc...)
Second the levels were just too hot, I know, use an intellifex or G-Major. I tried the G-Major and it did not help any. It still killed a bit of touch sensitivity and tone.
Third, it had too little bottom end. I know, get the depth mod done and use a 4X12. Right?!? Buy expensive amps then pay for mods to cover up the shortcoming.
Fourth, there is a volume disparity when using the loop. The lead was much louder than the clean.
Fifth, when using the loop when you changed channels there was delay and volume swell when going from lead to clean. How can you play live with this???
Postive: It does cut the mix well, the cleans are usable, the lead tone is very nice.

Built awesomely clean. Perfect in build quality.

Great Customer Support. Helpful and friendly! They are very nice folks.

I have been playing for 16 years and I have had over 20 high end amps. This one is near the bottom of the pile.
After 15 years of history the SLO should be more refined. For the 3K price tag all of the mods should be standard. The cleans is just ok. Good enough for rock.
This could be a great amp, but it is really a one trick pony. The Peavey 5150 is just as good and $2300 less.
IMO!

I'll keep this simple , as you already know the details if you are reading this. Simply said, after 18+ years of playing and spending thousands of dollars searching for my tone, this $3000+ amp was worth every penny. My most recent amp was a triple channel Marshall JCM2000 TSL100. Yes, lots of features and magic buttons, but a distorted tone that sounded like a wet fart and a bees nest. This amp has two channels, ,,,and what more do you need than one awesome dirty channel and one awesome clean channel. Some bash the clean channel, but with all of the options on this amp, I find that the clean is just as good as my 2000 marshall was,,,,,and the distortion,,,,there is no better in the universe. I use this with a TC electronics G major, ,,which has a relay that switches between clean and dirty so seamlessly that it turns this head into a midi preamp.

Contrary to what I've read,,,I find that the clean channel is so immaculate and clean,,,,it is awesome. Add a little chorus and delay,,,,and it is acoustic heaven. I keep the bright and crunch switches off cuz I want a very clean sound for this channel. And the OD channel. Put it this way,,,nothing on this earth compares. I've had a lot of gear....ADA preamps, Carvin and Peavey power amps, Peavey 5150 amps, Marshall 900, 600, and 2000 series amps, ,,,,ART preamps, Sovtek amps, Crate amps, ........my last amp was a soldano hot rod 50+,,,and it made me regret ever using my Marshall TSL in the first place (all of my band members said it was soo fuzzy). Now, this SLO blows the hot rod away,,,and I can not even fathom a better overdrive sound.

Built like a tank,,,,it is very heavy,,,and compared to the cheap build materials of my Marshalls ( oh geez, glued on gold plating, cheap bubble gum wrapper knobs, jacks that would get loose after two weeks, transformers from a cereal box, tubes mounted to sockets connected to spider webs, etc). Oh it is very noticable. Oh yeah,,,,LIFETIME WARRANTY..

I talk to them A LOT. First about my hot rod 50, now about my SLO. They never rush me off the phone, and will chat for a long time about amps and tone. So cool . Bill and Mike,,,,,thank you, thank you, thank you......for being so cool and down to earth and for building the best amps on earth. I'm no Warren Demartini or EVH, ,,yet they give you as much attention as if you were a famous rock star.

Like I said,,,,,my last amp E V E R !!!! Listen to Van Halen's for unlawful carnal knowledge album,,, Ratt albums, Lynch albums, Scorpions albums, Bon Jovi, etc etc. Find the best sounding albums and see what amps they used to record them. 5150 my butt. Eddie never used that amp on for unlawful........ This amp is expensive, but is an end to a lifelong quest for tone. You can play this amp at bedroom volumes and still sound like a dream. Built with the finest components and then some. Mike Soldano.......what an unbelievable contribution you made to guitar music.

had for about 3 years...i play in a rock cover band...this thing is pretty loud for sure..has some great features for dialiojg in a tone you want..

i use a Custom 24 PRS...sounds great for rock...clean channel is lacking juts a bit...the distortion in one of the best for sure...top 5

no problems except the logo cracked in half for some reason...they said i had to buy a new one for $20...kind of crazy since i juts bought this thing for almost $3000

they have one crappy customer support...i have bee nreading allot of reviews and this is the only place where need help in ...it is kind of like they think their s*** doesnt stink or something...pretty lame...like i said i paid almost $3000 new for this thing and they wont replace a $20 SOLDANO logo for me...pretty sad

it is a cool amp for rock...clean is only o.k.... customer service sucks thats why the low score

Follow up review. I like it more as time goes on.

I have read some folks that slam the effects loop. For me, it's just fine. I use a Lex MPX 1. I love how the PCM-60 patch sounds with this amp. Tight and not too watery. I'd really like to try an old design remote tube driven reverb for grins.

Solid as a rock! If your techo, take the chassis out and look at that craftmanship. BITCHIN!!........for today is doesn't get much better!

Bill Sundt is the MAN!! He always makes time to answer the most obscure product questions. He seems to really love what he does. It shows. No doubt.

I'm looking for a back up. Not because I'm afraid it will fail, but because I don't know what I what do I something did happen to number one. I really lean heavy on my number one. I could fix it myself. But, it's nice to have immediate redundancy. As far as tube options, I think the 5881's are just fine. Hey, they worked great in B-52 auto pilots. They are really tough units. I know some will disagree. But, that's cool. Everyone has a right to speak their mind. That makes things interesting. I hope Mike makes these things as long as possible. Sorry to gush. I've blown so much money over the years buying and selling. This amp is a keeper for me. Sure it's not a Dumble, or Two Rock..... or anything else. If it was, it wouldn't be what it is.It is what it is, and that's just fine for me. Kudos to Soldano. THEY DEFINITELY BUILD AMPS THAT ROCK!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is a follow up review after 14 years of use. I originally bought the SLO-100 new in the summer of 1991 at the Rock Block in Nashville, TN for $1960. It came equipped with 4 5881 power tubes, a Sovtek 12ax7LPS in V1, and Chinese 12ax7's in the other positions. I have used the amp extensively in 14 years, and would estimate that I have put over 3500 hours playing time on it. There has never been a malfunction, not even once.

Originally, the amp sounded bright on the overdrive channel. The clean/crunch channel has always had a wonderful bluesy tone when cranked up to about 6 or so, and works very well with a variety of overdrives, notably the Kendrick Buffalo Pfuz, and lately the Lovepedal Eternity.

I have had some work done to "tame the beast." I wanted to get a warmer, calmer overdrive sound suitable for classic rock and blues rock. The first step was to get the Warren Haynes "fat switch." The fat switch simply cuts highs, and therefore reveals the burning mids which distinguish the SLO-100's basic character. The fat switch is definitely worth getting.

Next, I swapped the 5881 power tubes for Groove Tube KT66HP power tubes. The KT66HP is fatter in the mids and lows, and takes some of the highs out as well. I am very happy with the tone. Its warm, fat and really greezy. I also put a Groove Tubes 12ax7M in V1. The Sovtek sounds pretty good, but it has a bright type of attack, and the GT is more focused and clear on the articulation. Putting 2 12ax7M's in V1 and V2 seemed a little too smooth, but it could be worth checking out again with some additional eq tweaking. Definitely worth checking into.

The speakers early on were Soldano X12000's in a Mesa Boogie 412 half back. Those were replaced with V30s, and the open half of the cabinet was closed to limit the bright radiance of the cabinet. Another worthwhile (and inexpensive) move.

The amp is really deep and the mids are absolutely burning. The tone is like black velvet: smooth and articulate, with a bit of a glow to the high end. Its not nearly as bright as before. The lows are very tight and clear.

With a Les Paul, I like to set the overdrive to 5, with the bass @ 7, mids @ 4, treble @ 7, and the presence off. I use treble bleed circuits on the guitar, and will turn the volume to 5 for rhythym, and wind up to 10 for leads. Its a wonderful sound.

With a Strat, I set the mids to 6 and the rest is the same. Sometimes I use the Pfuz on the clean/crunch channel for leads with the Strat. Lately, I have used the overdrive @ 3 to 4, and then used the Lovepedal Eternity for leads. Another nice way to get a great tone.

The clean channel can also be dialed back. With the gain set at about 4.5-5 I get a distinct Byrds-esque type of tone with the Strat. That was quite a surprise.

14 years.
3500+ hours.
No problems.
Its incredibly reliable, and very consistent.

Bill and Mike at Soldano in Seattle are great guys. Easy to talk with. They go out of their way to please the customer. I have nothing but good things to say about them.

The Soldano SLO-100 is a great amp. There are myriad tones simply by adjusting the eq and gain. The amp is not tweaky, but it is interesting to explore the possibilities. Through the years that I've played this, I have noticed several other amps in the vicinity fall apart for various reasons. I tend to think myself that the extra money for the SLO-100 is more than justified when I consider the time and money and frustration that goes into unreliable gear. There are other good amps out there, and it all depends on what you're looking for. But, for me and some other players, this is an awesome amp.

Made in 2002. This is a no frills red head. No mods. Fx loop and slave out. I use this with either a Bogner straight 412 or Marshall 1960TV or sometimes both. Sometimes none of it.

All my guitars are Strats with different pickup configurations, and they all sound great thru this amp/cab(s) combination. I play indie rock and some covers. The clean channel is very sweet, particularly with some compression--I recommend a Barber Tone Press--for extra sustain. Very good for getting that Lowell George slide sound. Pretty good break-up on the clean channel, and I find I'm using it more often. However, the SLO gain channel is the reason otherwise rational people will part with large chunks of hard-earned dollars. There may be some debate out there about whether or not that particular tone is worth the money, and maybe for some people it is not. For a lot of highly talented and famous guitarists out there, the SLO is a great amp at any price. One can get thick crunchy tones, woman tones, brown sound, grunge, vintage, and the hi-gain SLO sound and all of it sounds great. Caveat 1: I haven't played this amp through a huge variety of cabs, and some of them may not match up all that well--The Bogner cab sounds amazingly good. Caveat 2: If you're like me, you've played a lot of tube amps, and you know the best of them have "off days" when you wonder why you bothered turning them on in the first place. Simply turn off your amp and pour yourself a tall glass of Wild Turkey on ice. Drink it and think happy thoughts--like sheep and fresh little candies. Now turn your amp on again. There, sounds a lot better doesn't it. Caveat 3: This works with a lot of amps, but not with the Peavey Transformer line. Draining the entire bottle and turning up to 11 may seem like a good idea, but it is not. I don't care if you do have shiny pants and a mullet.

Never any problems...I use a Hot Rod 50 as a back-up.

Lifetime transferrable warranty. Bill and Mike are great on the phone if you need to talk to them about your amp.

Picking since 1970. I currently use the Soldano amps only. Over the last 5 years I've owned lots of amps--I like my current rig very much, though schlepping them around is not the most pleasant thing in the world. No one holds a gun to my head and tells me I have to march all this stuff to a show, but maybe that would help. I'll have to look into that.

This is a 1992 model. Features 2 channels with 2 modes in the first channel(Clean and crunch). It does pristine clean, medium crunch and all out overdrive. It seems to have a bluesy feel to it. The crunch mode is like a CRANKED Hiwatt -Very glassy and dynamic in a good way. Mine had an effects loop and slave out. It has 4, 8 and 16 ohm selector. It is all tube. Four 5881 output tubes(Military version of the 6L6), and five 12AX7 preamp tubes. This amp served my use for about 7 years. I have never owned an amp for this long. I used it for rock, jazz, funk, fusion, and blues. This is an OUTSTANDING amplifier. I used it at home only. It was a very loud amp, but sounded fantastic at any volumes.

I used this amp with Les Pauls, Ernie Ball, Strats, PRS, and Teles. This amps only "Flawed" noise is the clean channel at low volume settings. I really don't know how to explain it other than it is a bleed over of the lead channel. It is no bother though. The cleans stay clean. The amp is a pure masterpiece. The overdrive will not do Korn or Limp Bizkit dead on. However, it will do MANY other tones that I like better. It is an astounding amp. I will say after owning a Mesa Boogie Dual Rec, Bogner Ecstasy, Diezel Herbert, Bruno Super100, Two-Rock Opal, Matchless DC30, Matchless Clubman, and too many others to list, NOTHING touches the Soldano SLO 100's defenition and clarity at ANY setting or volume. I miss that amp more than any other amp I have ever had for that reason alone. My only issue with the amp was the voicing of the overdrive channel. It was very aggressive and not smooth. EQ settings are able to make this better or worse.

NO PROBLEMS EVER with this amp. PERIOD. I would tour the world without a backup. This amp is truly a workhorse.

Soldano was ALWAYS helpful and polite. They always answered my questions. I sent it to them twice in the 7 years I owned it for a once over. It had a clean bill of health both times. The amp comes with a lifetime transferrable warranty. This is unheard of in other amps. This is a legendary company with outstanding products.

I no longer own the amp, but I will buy another one when I get the money. I loved the amp for it's clarity and that it worked with humbuckers and single coils. It had a large bottom and intense punch. I have never heard or felt this much punch in any other amp. If is a very true sound compared to Bogner, Boogie, Marshall, Diezel, etc.. Soldano has set a very high mark and I believe that no other amp even comes close.

Soldano SLO-100 (2002 model)

Features explained by all the other great reviews on this page. My intention is to try and explain what I can about the sonic differences between the SLO-100 and the Decatone. Some of you out there may be wondering of getting one of these monsters. Up until recently I have used the Decatone and were quite satisfied with it. However, when I came across the SLO-100 the hunt for the perfect tone ended.

I play mostly rock with a little mix of everything, blues, country, folk etc.

I use a Fender strat fitted with "Texas specials" pups.

The first thing you will notice with both the SLO and the Decatone, is their ability to play the real sound of your instrument. Every little grain in the woods can be heard, and the articulation and attack of every note are simply amazing.

Clean channel: The Decatone has a great clean with the midrange reduced and the lows and highs extended to make it more like a Fender type tone. The SLO clean channel has a more flat response.

Crunch/Overdrive channels: This is, in my opinion, where the SLO beats the Decatone. The sound of the SLO is much more defined and smoother. The Decatone is a lot brighter while the SLO has more midrange.

The two-channel SLO has a clean/crunch switch on the "Normal" channel. The Decatone has divided this "Normal" channel into seperate "Clean" and "Crunch" channels, making it a three channel amp.

I feel the SLO is much easier to control and use. It's not hard to dial the tones you desire. Especially getting that clean tone with just a tad of distortion and up to the dirty blues. Switching to overdrive, makes the tones get that keen edge to them with an amazing sustain. I can't say much about the very high gain settings since I never use them and are not really into that stuff.

I never had any problems with Soldano amps. I have owned three different models. Astroverb 16, Decatone and SLO-100. All have worked flawlessly and never failed in any way. I have never even blown a tube. I would easily go to a gig without a backup.

I have sent e-mails to the company many times. They ALWAYS answer within 48 hours, and always help you with the smallest problems and the most stupid questions.

I can without a doubt recommend both the Decatone and the SLO-100 to everybody. They will last longer than you live if you treat them normal. The Decatone is cheaper than the SLO and will work well enough for most rockers. I loved it while I had it.

The SLO-100 has a better sound, and the transferable lifetime guarantee makes it a winner.

This is a follow up review. Before I go on too much of a rant, I just want to say what a shame there has to be those sour reviews on this amp. What the hell, and what can I say? Free speech, and open opinions in all flavors concerning this unit. Everybody has a right to their opinion even if we don't all agree. After reading all the reviews on this unit, I just got to laugh at some of the things and wonder what on earth could some people be thinking? Like!!!!!!!@#?&*?:

A Tube Screamer in front of this thing? REALLY? Go get your hearing checked, go snag a Peavy Bandit, or Crate or some other cheap piece of crap and plug one in front of it and learn how to play in the first place. Spend the money that you would have spent on the SLO on a high tech hearing aid. Surely we are talking about some serious brain damage here!

Sounds like, er...no doesn't sound like a Fender, Marshall, or what the hell ever new or vintage piece of shit amp amp you want to compare it to. No vintage vibe whatsoever? OFCOURSE IT DOESN'T SOUND VINTAGE YOU BONE HEAD!!!!!! IT'S NOT VINTAGE!! VINTAGE IS VINTAGE AND NOT NEW. TALK ABOUT OVERATED. IV'E PLAYED THROUGH PLENTY OF THOSE WORN OUT AS PIECES OF SHIT WHEN I WAS A TEENAGER, AND SOLD ALL OF THEM. DO YOU THINK IF THEY WERE REALLY THAT GREAT TO BEGIN WITH THEY MIGHT STILL BE MAKING THEM? AND OF COURSE IT'S NOT WHATEVER THE HELL ELSE YOU WANT TO COMPARE IT TO. IF YOU ARE A COLLECTOR GREAT,BUT ALOT OF US LIKE TO PLAY WHAT WE BUY AND AREN'T INTERESTED IN SOME ANTIQUE PIECE OF SHIT THAT BELONGS IN THE SMITHSONIAN. TOO SIMPLE FOR YOU? NOT ENOUGH OPTIONS? GET A LIFE!!! ALOT OF US LIKE TO PLAY MUSIC NOT TWIDDLE KNOBS ALL DAY. MAYBE YOU SHOULD HAVE BEEN AN ASTRONAUT INSTEAD OF A GUITAR PLAYER. GO BUY YOURSELF A SPACE SHUTTLE. WEAK EFFECTS LOOP MY ASS!!!! INSTEAD OF PLUGGING YOUR PIECE OF SHIT STOMP BOX IN THE LOOP, PLUG IT UP YOUR ASS INSTEAD!! ANYONE THAT DOESN'T HAVE ENOUGH SENSE TO KNOW MOST CRAPPY FLOOR EFFECTS WON'T WORK VERY WELL IN A SERIES LOOP???? WHERE DID YOU GET THAT LOBOTOMY AT?

The majority of reviewers give it high marks. Ofcourse if you don't agree with the majority than they must be full of it and don't know what the hell they are talking about. To the minority of people that slammed this amp, I really hope that someday I can be as half as smart as you all. I guess I am just so hopeless to hype something up so much. I know how you hate hype.

If I hear anymore bullshit about tubes I'm going to barf. Somebody told me Eric Johnson can hear the difference in batteries in his VINTAGE (DID I SAY VINTAGE? DID I SAY VINTAGE? DID I SAY VINTAGE? DID I SAY VINTAGE? DID I SAY VINTAGE? DID I SAY VINTAGE? DID I SAY VINTAGE? DID I SAY VINTAGE? DID I SAY VINTAGE? DID I SAY VINTAGE? DID I SAY VINTAGE? DID I SAY VINTAGE? DID I SAY VINTAGE? DID I SAY VINTAGE?)EFFECTS? Forgive me my Echoplex that I just paid twice as much for as my SLO just screwed up. As soon as the audience that pays to hear my music tells me they are concerned about those kind of things, I'll start to be concerned with them as well.

Good enough. Read the other reviews.

S/N 001370. Bought it off Ebay. Play rock, blues, and country with an edge. Read the recent reviews for standard features. This one came with an effects loop and slave out. Looks like these options were put in when it was made. Glad to have em'. I had to put them in myself in the last one I had. This amp is just what I want as far as features. Much simpler, and much much better made than my Mesa MKIV. Ofcourse the SLO is a lot more money. I play out and at home with this amp. Has plenty of power for me. I had one of these before and sold it. Was the stupidest thing I ever did. I could never find another amp I liked as much as this one. I use all the features this amp has.

I only have one guitar right now which is an Anderson Classic, with Texas Specials. The sound of this amp suits me for anything I want to play. For as much gain as this thing has it's pretty quiet for me. For the sounds I have in my head, this amp gets them all. I really dig the mid range punch this thing has. Clean or overdriven, it will cut through anything for me. This amp probably won't give you that bright, thin glass shattering, clean that some some may like. If that's what you like, there's nothing wrong with that. You probably won't get it from this amp. I never tried to get that sound from this amp. I don't like that sound anyway (although my MKIV will blow you down with that tone if that's what you're into). The clean is clean enough for me, and breaks up nicely when pushed. The gain channel gives me all the rich singing tone I want without mush, or screetch. For me it's quite the smooth drive that's tasty, and easy on my ears. Not like an ice pick. As has been said before, tight articulate-hear-every-note clean, or overdriven. This thing has got soul. It's alive to my ears. The distortion is brutal enough for me. It's not the VHT, or Rectifier type brutal. But here again, that' not the sound I'm after. If that's what your after, than maybe this amp's not for you.

From owning one of these before, I can't see it breaking anytime soon. If you have ever had one of these things apart, and looked at the way it's built you know what I'm saying when I say this thing is built solid. Real pretty craftsmanship. Simple, and solid. Sealed pots, porcelin (sorry if I spelled that wrong) tube sockets, beefy circuit board with clean parts layout, super neat wiring, the best components. For me it doesn't get any better. And man I'm here to tell you, I have had a lot of amps apart in my time for repairs and mods. Tubes? What can I say there are good, and bad. I like the sound of this amp so much right now, I don't care what's in it right now. I kept Sovtec 5881's and 12ax7a's in the last one I had, and had pretty good luck with them. I know some people hate em'. They (pwr tubes)always lasted well for me, and managed to stay biased without much drift. Never had probs with the preamp tubes.

I have dealt them in the past. I always talked to Bill Sundt. Nice guy. Really sharp. I understand the SLO-100 has a lifetime xferable warranty. I don't think everything is covered. I need to check with them. As well made as these things are, I can't see it breaking anytime soon. But it it does, and it's something I can't handle, I'll send it to the factory.

Playing 25 years. Also own a Mesa MKIV (it's a good amp too well worth what I paid for it), and Lexicon MPX-1. I would eventually like to buy another just to have. Today, there's so many good amps out there. I believe there is no one best amp out there. I love my Mesa, and would not dream of selling it. But you know, I always ask myself "How many guitars, and amps do I need?" I have bought and sold so many. As old as I am, it would be stupid for me to have more than a couple. But man I sure missed my SLO-100. And I'm glad I finnaly got one again. We will be togather until death does us part. I know that sounds ridiculous.