NAD: Soldano SLO-30

[Zilthy]

I know, I know.  What the hell. Yeah, I love the SYN-30, it sounded great.   The variety is killer.

But, it just did not scratch the itch for a *real* SLO.   I ended up getting a pretty good deal on a SLO-30 and it just arrived today.   And oh yeah, I am liking this a lot. :).  It has been a bucket list 'I would really like one of those' amps for a long time, and it does not disappoint.

[rnolan]

Hey Zilthy, LoL you can't help yourself...  way to go, looks like a nice amp.  So what's the story with the normal/overdrive master bit?  is this for poweramp distortion?  And the Boss thingy looks rather interesting, does allot more than just a reactive load.

[Zilthy]

The normal/overdrive pre-amp sets the gain, normal/overdrive master is just the volume for the normal and overdrive channels, not distortion.

And yeah, the Boss thingy is really neat. :D

The OD channel has a ridiculous amount of gain, I love it.   :D

[Harley Hexxe]

Hey Zilthy,

      Cool amp. Now you can do an A/B comparison between this and the Synergy module, and know just how close they are.

      Congrats :thumb-up:

Harley 8)

[MarshallJMP]

Hey Zilthy,

      Cool amp. Now you can do an A/B comparison between this and the Synergy module, and know just how close they are.

      Congrats :thumb-up:

Harley 8)

+1 :thumb-up:

[Zilthy]

I did a little of it, but it turned out to be kind of annoying.  It would be a lot easier/better if I had an amp switcher, but that is not something I am going to put money in to at this time.

Basically, by the time I get it switched, I've lost what the other was like exactly.   What I can do though, is go back and re-do some of the recordings I did with the Syn-30 and compare them that way.   I have notes on what my settings were, even though it's not necessarily an exact translation on settings.

What I can say so far is this:  The Syn-30 + SLO module *really* captures the vibe, and better so than any modelers I have used (Pod XT, Pod HD, Helix, and Axe FX III).

The SLO does have something going on that I don't know how to describe, but it is definitely different. Some have described it as '3d' and I have no idea what that means.  But there is a presence and clarity that the Synergy doesn't quite have.  It's not like having a blanket over the amp compared to the SLO, but maybe a sheet?

It also seems to stand out/sit  in a mix a bit better too.  I get what Mike Nielson meant when he said the Soldano has a "Hey, look at me!" tone.  The Synergy has the SLO tone, but it's missing that factor, whatever is giving it to the SLO.

I did do a little clip with much higher gain than I would normally ever use, and the SLO still manages to retain some clarity and definition.

[rnolan]

Hey Zilthy, correct me if I'm wrong but IIRC when I was looking at the Synergy modules (as I said you piqued my interest) they only have 1 tube and I assumed the other (as most input stages are 2 tubes) was in the docking/amp thingy.  This would make a difference.  Of course the other aspect is which tubes are used in either.  For me the 3D aspect I've found in long plates, in my case the new sensor Mullards.  It was one of the main differences that set them apart for me in my MP-2 compared to Boogie SPAX7s which were short plate, the other was the SPAX7s tended to breakup on the bottom E in a not great way  :facepalm:

[MarshallJMP]

That Loudness cover sounded great  :thumb-up:

[Zilthy]

@rnolan Yeah, the Synergy dock (and head) only have 1 input tube which is V1.   The modules have 2 12ax7s in for V2 (and whatever else).   And each module (most of them, not all) have a switch to select how V1 is set.  Basically, Fender type, Marshall type and SLO (I guess) type.   The Synergy head also has a phase inverter in.

I think it's more in the overall design of the amp.  Phil McKnight just did a comparison of the 5150 III and SLO-30 and came up with the same thing on that comparison.   The SLO has a punch on the attack that the 5150 III does not have, nor does the SYN SLO.  But he noticed the same, that 'something' does not necessarily fully come across in a recording.  Though I still think the SLO has an edge on clarity.

I did realize though, I think I might be able to slave my SYN-30 out to the SLO-30 and compare pre-amps.   The SYN-30 has an internal load, so I could put it in recording mode and use the FX Out on the 30 to the FX Return on the SLO and compare them that way, need to think about trying that too.  That would be a pretty direct comparison of pre-amp to pre-amp.

@MarshallJMP thanks!

[Zilthy]

And I was pretty bummed, I was going to try a little tube rolling, but apparently when I sold another amp I forgot to swap tubes out and sent away my Tung Sols, Sovteks and JJs and still have the no name Chinese glass that came with the amp.  *sigh*

[Harley Hexxe]

That was a very helpful review :thumb-up:

      It does confirm what I suspected. That while it comes very close to the real deal, it's not quite there. Maybe if you plug the SYN preamp into the power amp section of the SLO 30, that could change that view. The power amp does add to the overall character of any amplifier.
      I've heard comparisons of the SLO 30 to the SLO 100, and from what I've gathered, it like apples and oranges. Both are sweet in their own way, but not the same. Ah, the eternal quest for tone continues...

Harley 8)

[Zilthy]

Yup.   The Synergy is really close, and if I only wanted the tone available, it definitely hit the nail on the head.  But, I really, really wanted a 'real' SLO, as silly as it might seem.  But, it's like if you want a 'real' Les Paul, would an Epiphone cut it?  Or an ESP or a PRS single cut?  Probably not.  Those guitars are all great guitars, but...

And I did wonder about the SLO-100, wondering if I would feel like I was 'missing' out, but so far, I don't.  From the comparisons I've heard and people who have actually played both, the big differences aren't ones that matter to me.   Mainly the 100 has more headroom (I don't need) a bit bigger bottom end (Also not something I try to dial in) and not quite as focused in the mids.   But very close, although I might want to try some Tunsol 7581a power tubes sometime if I want more headroom and the extended bottom end.

[Zilthy]

      It does confirm what I suspected. That while it comes very close to the real deal, it's not quite there. Maybe if you plug the SYN preamp into the power amp section of the SLO 30, that could change that view. The power amp does add to the overall character of any amplifier.

And that much is true.  The Mesa Boogie Rectifier pre-amp was a direct copy of the SLO preamp, and they are very different amps.   (BTW, SLO is better). :D

[Zilthy]

So, I definitely got it for the Overdrive channel, but started playing around with the Clean/Crunch channel.   I wouldn't say the crunch is a plexi, but to me it definitely seems to have that sort of vibe.

[rnolan]

Sounds great  :thumb-up: I'm not familiar with what a Plexi sounds like but I can say it sounds better than my '73 Marshall 50.