Sommatone Roaring 20 112 Combo

This is a 20 watt combo w/ a 12" Eminence Red Fang speaker. It has two EL84's, four 12AX7's, one 12AT7 and a solid state rectifier. The controls are: Normal Volume / Bright Volume / Master Volume / Treble / Mid / Bass / Presence. In the back are the controls for reverb (dwell & mix), boost switch and impedance selector. Also, the reverb and boost features are foot switchable. The website has more details and soundclips.

I am a "plug & play" person. I prefer a slightly overdriven sound and don't usually use effect pedals. My main guitar is a Fender MIJ '69 Thinline Tele Reissue w/ Duncan pickups. I also play a MIJ '50 Strat w/ Fralins and a Danelectro 56 U2 Reissue. My previous amps includes a 65 Fender Bassman head w/ 2x12 piggyback cabinet, a THD Univalve Head, a Budda Twinmaster 2x12 combo and a modified Fender Tweed Pro Junior (which I still own). I enjoy listening and playing (or at least try to play) blues. Some of my favorites are Freddie King, Johnny Winter and the Allman Brothers. I was looking for an amp to make me sound like.....me.

The Normal Volume is voiced for Fender type sounds while the Bright Volume is for Marshall / Vox type sounds. These two knobs are blendable to create unique sounds. If has a very functional / usable master volume as well. What I really enjoy is the Presence control. Depending on the setting and how hard I pick, I can get a smooth clean sound to an edgy overdriven sound. The boost is subtle but definitely noticeable. It's gives a nice increase in volume when I need it. I've been able to get a wide range of ones through this versatile amp.

The amp is only two weeks old. Jimmy stands behind his amp proudly. He showed me the inside of a chassis in progress. The wiring was impeccable. The cabinet is solid and the tolex finish is very neat. There are the usual concerns with any amp (tubes and fuses...very minor). There is a five year warranty.

Jimmy Somma was great to deal with. He's easy to reach whether by phone or email. He explained the amp thoroughly to make sure this was what I was looking for. During the ordering process, he also went through the different options: speaker type and size, cabinet covering, grill cloth...etc. He demoed the amp when I went to pick it up. Through his Strat, he went from smoky jazz tones to a mean crunch. Then he went through some sample settings with my Tele.

I've been playing guitar for over 20 years. I've owned a wide variety of junk to jewels. In my younger days, I would buy, sell (take a loss), buy, sell (take another loss)...etc. Now that I have wife, kids and a mortgage, the toys I buy needs to be something I know I'll keep "forever". This amp is the complete package for me...the right size, volume and features. Plus, the finish looks so nice, it's like a work of art.