Sovtek Mig 50

Easy to dial in.
I Y cord the 2 channels for some great tone.

First the bad. The pots suck & should all be replaced
on every Mig 50. Maybe the input jacks.
That's the only problem with these amps.
I've owned the Mig 50H & Mig 60.
I loved the Mig 50H & didn't like the Mig 60 as much.
The Mig 50 is a different animal. This Head is awesome
when you split the channels. Very much like a Plexi,
the Treble channel is too bright & the normal channel is too dark.
Together they rule!
There's also some killer harmonics that no other amp has.
I owned one of these a couple years ago & never split the channels.
My mistake!

My other Sovteks had some issues.
Like cutting out during shows & other fun
crap that used to happen.
I'd take them to my amp tech & they'd fire right
like nothing was wrong.
I'll deal with the problems because I dig the tone.

NONE!

I'm down to an SG Jr. & Les Paul Special w/P90's.
A Dr'Z 6545 & this Mig 50. My tone is second to none no matter
which amp I plug into. The Mig 50 isn't the clearest / transparent
amp on the planet, but it delivers a very unique killer tone.
I bought it to use as my backup amp. There's something about these
Sovtek heads that makes it happen for me. I recorded 2 CD's with my Mig 60 & Mig 50H (10 years ago). The tone wasn't "to die for", but it sat in the mix like no other. Sometimes I think it really doesn't matter what the hell I plug into as long as I believe in the Amp. These Russian Amps are great sounding.

Prices are going up!! They really do sound like a Plexi / Bassman.
There's a little Bandmaster in there also (a little).
They do have their own tone.

Buy a Y cable & let it happen

Mine is an early model with the misspelled "presense" control. You've already read multiple descriptions of the "features" of this amp. It has everything I could want...except reverb.

This amp sounds great at any volume but starts to be a lot more fun when you crank it up to anywhere past 1 o'clock. I've used it with all of my guitars and haven't had a bad experience. Finding the right speaker set-up (for me) was a bit of a challenge and after trying a few I settled on an open back 2x10 with Fender blue alnicos. I like it.

I don't use this amp as much anymore because of the Volume Police but I've been inside and even though its a combination of PC board and some wiring, the construction is good and repairs if necessary could be done by any good tech. I would and have taken it out many times without a backup.

I've had this amp for a long time. Some years back I had some problems with a couple of pots. At that time New Sensor was still servicing them. They went through the amp, fixed the problems and re-tubed it for $50.00 plus shipping. Too bad they're not still doing that.

I've been playing longer than I care to admit (I should be a lot better than I am). I own eight guitars and six amps. It is not likely that I will buy any more. The MIG50 is a great players amp. If you are a guitar, cord, amp, no pedals kinda person you can't go wrong with this amp and they can be had for a fraction of what you'll pay for a JTM or Bassman.

I bought the amp because I was looking for a new amp and saw this at a pretty good price. I had owned a Mig 60 before and it sounded great, just not my style, so I went with this. I like the sovteks because they're simple- volume treble mid bass and presence. The 4/8/16 ohm outputs were also a nice touch.

I play a telecaster through it and I use an open back Avatar cab with 1 vintage 30 and 1 g12h30. I used to have a 4x10 Marshall but being a fairly bassy amp, the cab farted out a lot. I play a lot of rock influenced music, like post rock, math rock, ect. It suits all my styles perectly. If I need more distortion, I just crank the amp. It is capable of clean sounds. It breaks up around 6 or 7 which is fairly loud. When the sound is down, it's just like a Bassman. People have said this is super loud, but I think it's about average for a 50 watt. It was definitly louder than my 50 watt Bassman though.
The first channel is darker and deep, with nice bass. The second channel is brighter, with much less bass.
I have not used any guitar besides my telecaster with van zandts. It get's pretty noisy with the bright channel, but I think that is more of a pickup thing.

I've owned it for about 6 months and haven't had a problem yet.

I mostly bought this because I was looking for a new amp and saw the sovtek at a great price. I am really impressed with it, it's a fantastic amp, and I'd have a hard time parting with it. If it were lost or stolen I might look into a bandmaster reverb or twin, I'd like the reverb and vibrato, but I am very content as it is.

Just a correction to my post(the last one). Amp is NOT PTP wired...it does use a cuircut board design....good workmanship!

Others have covered features! I like the simple layout of non-master vol amps...they got it right way back then. I find that the amps with all the bells and whistles just complicate things and often muck the sound up!
Sooo...this amp has what it needs to deliver! Old school players should love it. I give it a 10 (minus the versatile part) based on the fact that it's plug in and go...instant tone that no one could bugger up!

I am a power amp distortion guy and play faily loud to get that...I found that both channels break up fairly fast(a bit past half way).Channel one is voiced darker and smooth, more fender like...it will break up nicely much like a BF Fender...I roll the mid and bass off and it becomes bright and punchy.Channel two is a lovely grinder with more of a Marshall voice and gain stucture. It really depends on what guitar I use when picking the channel.
One test for me on any amp..is...the plug in and go thing! When I plug in with guitar only ...it either has it or it does not! This one has it big time.
I coaxed some nice blues stuff with a (1969 and a 1961)stock strat and found great sounds for SRV, Chris Duarte or Jimi stuff. Les paul sounds on the second channel yielded good classic hard rock styles(black Crows,Ac/DC etc)Chords ring with chimmy high end and a tight focussed botton end.
Loud? Many reviewers say "very loud" Not really..it's a typical 50 watts...very usable volume...it's enough with out excess!
Some also have mentioned "headroom"...not a whole lot if you play at louder volumes...it stays together up to about 5 or 6 on channel one.

I do really like the touch sensitivity with this one...big factor for me!

As one guy(studio engineer) mentions...it is hard to make the amp sould bad. I agree...totally idiot proof regardless of the players level!This amp sings!

I am an Ampaholic....Thirty plus years of performing .... I own (and have owned)a bunch of nice 60's and 70's amps(fenders,hiwatt,sound city,vox,carlsbro...on and on...)this one is right up there with the best!

PTP wiring and an easy circuit to understand...always easy to fix if need! Build quality looks solid!

Gone...if you own older tube amps you need to learn to work on them!

Well...58 reviewers give it an overall high rating... and 9.6 on sound...it deserves it too!

I like the small box it is in...compact little tone machine...well suited for blues, modern country and classic rock.

Prices are climbing some on these amps...around $350.00 - $400.00. Still dirt cheep! Any kick ass tube head for under 5 frog skins is a deal!

This one is a keeper for sure and won't return to the sea of the bay(ebay).

No pre gain . Just simple volume, treble, mid, bass and presense.
wish it has a pre gain. but who cares. Just use some pedals.

Fender humbucker strat with Seymore duncan Invader Humbucker in the bridge > Boss MT-2 metal zone > DOD Death metal > Boss BF-2 Flanger(Japanese) > Boss PH-3 phase shifter > Danelectro Cool Cat chorus > BOSS DD-3 Digital Delay into the Sovtek mig 50

I used to use a Peavey Triple XXX Head. Now, im trying to get rid of the thing after I got the Mig 50.
To my ears, a Metal Zone with a Mig 50 beats the crap out of any tone the Triple XXX could make.
The triple XXX has cleaner highs , but its not worth the trade of the Brutallity and absolute versatility (especially if you like to use pedals) of the Mig-50...

And I CAN get a warm blusey tone out of the Metal zone. I just roll back on the volume knob, the tone knob and use the single-coil neck pickup.

Or I can just crank up the Volume to get that natural old fashined overdrive. For this purpose I wish it had a pre-gain. but it is a small imperfection.

Its old and russian, they don't build em like they used to

Does the soviet union even exist anymore??

I have been playing for 10 years , have tried all kinds of amps, all kinds of pedals ect....
the Sovtek is a SIMPLE and elegant design.
Get yourself one of these, a few pedals for drive.
OR, just crank up the volume knob (if your neghbors don't mind) and screw pedals.

the only reason im giving it a 9 is the lack of pre-gain

already covered. Straight forward with little to go wrong.

Had it for a year now. Just Awesome!

It will do old Fender (think bassman) and Marshall (think JTM) sounds, as you like them. T

his one is my favorites heads. It loves pedals and stays articulate at all levels. Cuts through ANY mix!

I retubed mine with EH in the pre section and Sovtek KT66's for power. What a difference. Tons of headroom, quiet, with a sound that is just overall pleasing (clean and when pushed to the max with a good all tube rack preamp & pedals).

It is the main amp for soft rock, hard rock, and metal . Versitle for most any type of sound (when using pedals) for playing and is great when the cab is miked for recording.

Still kicking butt. Some may worry about the switches, but heck their still working fine as well. Someday they will go, but not too worried.

If you have multiple amps, this is one that you will want to add. If you are looking for an amp that performs and will hold it's own against amp cost many times more, this is it!

my mig was made in the late 80s or early 90s it was made in an x-soviet military factory in St.petersberg ,russia

the plastic switches need to be replaced with steel ones
and i would also like to replace the knobs with steel telecaster type knobs

the sound i get out of this amp are really good

i use a boss ds-1 and a ibanez pt-9 phaser
i have a strat and a gregg bennet lp copy

this amp i can defintly rely on i have bought spare fuses (wich cost next to nothing) after i blew a fuse but apart from that nothing major has happend, original tubes still

new sensor handles sovteks tube distribution
but that is all, i have not found any site that has an official sovtek amp link or anything, perhaps it would be easier to find technical support for the sputnik.

i want a marshall 1960 lead 4x12 cab, i played the sovi with a freinds and it sounded incredible

4 eq knobs (including Presence), 3 speaker ouputs (4, 8, 16 ohms), 2 inputs, 1 great sounding amp

I usually use a Fender Jaguar, or a '72 Deluxe tele through this thing. I really love the tones I get from the jag when I'm just picking around. A very clean rock 'n' roll machine. I also use tons of pedals and the tone is still great. I'm usually running this through a Univox 6x10 cab which has an amazing clean sound, but sometimes I borrow my friends Marshall 1960 4x12 to get some real heavy tones. A great amp for just about any style music I play through it. I'm in a 90's alternative/noise band (pixies, sonic youth type stuff), a funk band, and a jazz/noise band (mars volta meets radiohead) and this amp is the only one I need.

Ever since my friend Mark fixed it up I have yet top have a problem in the past 8 months. At least 3 practices a week, and 4-5 shows a month and not one problem.

I've got the best amp guy there is. Who needs tech support when you can say that!!!

I've had my fair share of amps, but this is my favourite. I really like the simplicity of it, and the headroom is superb. I once recorded with my amp in the bathroom turned all the way up and had no distortion at all unless I hit an open E chord. I usually use this amp paired with a Fender Prosonic to make a nice stereo rig. Of course this thing is so loud that I usually get yelled at by sound guys at smaller clubs.

Very simple amp. 2 inputs, 2 volumes, treble, mid, bass, presence. 4, 8, 16 ohm speaker outs. Why would you need anything else?

I just had mine switched over to run on Electro Harmonix El34s so my review will be a little different from the previous ones. This amp is very responsive to your guitar. For straight ahead rock this thing rules. The El34s add a big meaty feel to the bass tones. The highs are shimering and clear. This amp does not get muddy at all. If you are looking to play heavy metal or anything with a very high gain the EL34s are not the way to go. For classic rock to chunky alternative, this is a great way to acheive those tones.

I bought this amp broken so I never got to test it with the usual 6L6s. The diode in the bias supply had blown out or was not functioning, so it would burn up any tube you put in it. I believe that they come with plastic inputs and switches but somewhere down the line mine were switched out to metal ones except for the standby switch. When I had it fixed I had it switched over to a metal one. If you would like to tour or take this amp anywhere I strongly suggest getting that done. Other than than those things this amp is a heavy beast. I doubt any natural thing could break it. Defenetly built like a tank.

Unless you speak Russian and get a hold of someone who used to work for New Sensor you are absolutly on your own.

I payed 150 for it. I payed 20 for the new tubes, and another 85 to get the work done. so in total I spent 255 dollars just getting it running and how I wanted it. Once you get this thing going I don't think you'll ever look towards any other amp for that price. If you have the chance to pick one of these up defenetly go for it.