Straub Amplifiers Cantus 212 Combo

This is basically a Cantus head built into a custom 2x12 combo with two Celestion G12 M speakers. The amp has the tube rectifier and the boost switch. Please check the Cantus reviews for details on the controls and layout. My amp was delivered 12/03. Since then a boost footswitch has become available. I feel this, along with the limitless options Harry generously offers, warrants a 10 for features. Harry didn't offer a footswitch until he was sure he could build it up to his standards and keep from messing up the tone and reliability of the amp.

I use mostly Hamer usa set-neck mahogany and mahogony/maple guitars with vintage gibson humbuckers (pat#. t-top, dirty fingers) and current gibson vintage-style pick-ups, along with p-90s. in the past i have owned and played an american strat, fender lead2, ibanez iceman, dan armstrongs (2 copies), an Ibanez rg 550 with an ah-10 pickup, a travis bean, and a les paul standard i let a friend rent to own . i've owned and played thru 2 orange 120 heads (the originals), a marshall 8x10 cabinet and a marshall JMP 50W master volume 2x12 combo. i've had some gear freak friends so i've heard and played many other guitars and amps.
since i play without pedals/effects as often as not it is really important that any amp i buy be able to overdrive more than a lot. i don't mean the standard "it has more distortion than you could want or need" quote. i don't trust standard phraseology like that. well, if you get the boost circuit you will sure have enough. enough is when you can turn the drive down and still be happy. you may reach for a pedal to change the quality of crunch, but you won't need one to get more quantity!

the sound is a classic.

i initially wanted another marshall JMP50w combo to replace the one i sold 10 years ago. when i found how much people were asking for beat up examples of same i went looking for other alternatives.
do you want a classic marshall sound, with more boost than the originals ever had, built better and with better parts, with beautiful wood, for very possibly less than an original (or new, for that matter) marshall? i did. if that's what you want look seriously at this amp.
Someone who was trying to decide whether to buy a Straub called me and told me he prefers power tube overdrive to pre-amp overdrive. this got me thinking so i did some testing.
i found that the tone of the Cantus is the same at a given distortion level whether the boost is coming from the volume or the master volume. It's just a whole lot louder with the master up!
i play thru it clean wayy less often, but i has a smooth rich warm tone with no distortion when you want it. The amp itself is far less noisy than any hotrodded amp i have heard and less noisy than most tube amps of any type.

A Straub amp is not built like a tank, tanks are less reliable. there isn't a way to make this amp more dependable, if there was-Harry would upgrade it. i write this as someone who has broken almost everything, including a marine plywood/point-to-point wired Orange head. I've broken almost everything i have owned. I dropped a hasselblad camera. I wore out a 70's Volvo. I blew out a muse 18 home audio subwoofer. i'm hard on stuff. My Cantus is still working the same perfectly. (Harry actually tested the speakers in it because he was afraid that they wouldn't hold up with the boost on and the volume all the way up-they did, so he okayed it for shipment).

I am a nightmare customer. i wasn't happy with just a head, i wanted a combo. Harry said okay. I told Harry i didn't like his logo and asked if i could supply my own. Harry said fine. My design person didn't come through so Harry came up with an alternative for me! (please don't ask him to do this for you. i'm sure i insulted him, this is just to show how flexible he is and how he goes waaayy out of his way to make you happy.) Harry is very patient and can give you expert guidance in selecting the options that are right for you. It is easy to contact him and he is always available when you need him.
Even though the amps are better than fine as they are Harry is always improving them. Since mine was built he has enlisted custom woodworkers to build the cabinets, making them even better, and has upgraded other bits and pieces as he's gone along. What other company has a product that gets better and better instead of junkier. Harry is always looking for a new angle, not a new corner to cut.
Harry is a great guy besides making a great amp. It is truly pleasant to talk to him, it kind of makes you wish the darn thing would break so you'd have an excuse to talk to him more.

i've been playing on and off since 1980. If my combo were stolen or lost i would get exactly the same thing if i could convince Harry to build another one (but this time with a footswitch).
This amp is way underpriced. It is one of those things you'll hear about in a few years and wish you had taken advantage of . ever wish you'd bought a les paul when they were 300 bucks?