Soldano SLO Mini Head | The Tiny Amp With a PUNCH

[@bhefer]

For the price, and the general vicinity of tone, it rips. 16 year old me would have died for this 😄

[@minkorrh]

16 year old me would have been cutting lawns for 5 years to afford it. 50 year old me says 'buy a modeler and save the money''

[@minkorrh]

@fastguitar Wow. My first guitar was a Mann Les Paul copy that I paid $200 CDN for in 1980.

[@rangerdoc1029]

@@minkorrh Meh.... I'll take analog over digital any day.

[@DJ33]

Well said!!

[@minkorrh]

@@rangerdoc1029 Some of us have no choice. I want to turn up the volume, but my apartment neighbours have other ideas.

[@REDW1NG94]

With Soldano, H&K, Bogner, Diezel, Friedman, etc all making these cool tiny heads, I'm kinda getting an itch to start a micro head collection😂

[@edbauer8790]

Agreed.....need to get a stereo rig with this and the Friedman 🤘

[@ADR.Hi-Gain]

I have all 4 of them=w/EVH 5150-3 1 x12 cab

[@DJLimez]

@@ADR.Hi-Gainwhich do you like best? I’m in the market and having options paralysis! I play mostly metal

[@aliengrey6052]

Don’t bother. They are transistorised crap. Just get one and see.

[@Georgedepinedo]

I got me the Mesa Mini 25 and it rocks !!!

[@supersonicnomad8437]

Out of all the mini SLO Soldano vids that dropped, this is the only one I seen that boosted the front of it. Thanks Rabea, brilliant video.

[@metalliholic]

Same

[@seventhsealhere]

Best video demo yet on the SLO mini. The boost totally opens the mini up. Sounds great! 👍

[@Sixxiron]

I can't lie, this is a great demo of this head. Like George Lynch said in the Soldano launch video, "It gets you 75% of the tube SLO at 1/20th the cost." I'm also liking the idea of using two different mini heads (SLO and Friedman?) for an inexpensive stereo rig. Thanks for putting this vid together!

[@rickthemartian130]

This is the right idea. Im with you

[@Soldano999]

You had me at "George lynch"

[@gvibes69]

Yeah great buy !! its almost the price off the full tube head !!! looolz... You people ...

[@jesse7852]

I have never been more certain with a impulse buy. I've also wanted an SLO and just can't justify the cost and don't need a 100W head from my basement dad rocking.. Alas, this fits the bill. Thank you for the comparison. It helped me make a decision.

[@guitardave]

How are you finding it? Does it sound as good in the room as in this video? If I get one the first thing I’ll be trying are Bea’s settings from this video!

[@jesse7852]

@@guitardave I liked it well but I found it still sounded like a solid state amp. I ended up selling it. I can get close to the tone with a handful of pedals. It may have just been my setup. It may sound great through a DI unit with some IRS, but though my cab, I found I preferred a tube amp with pedals. I’m sad to say it. This is only my experience.

[@guitardave]

@@jesse7852 Sorry you didn’t get on with it in the end, but it’s good to read an honest review. I keep thinking about getting one with the intention of sending the fx send in to the return of my 5150 to see if going through a tube power section makes it sound better.

[@jesse7852]

@@guitardave Good luck my man!

[@stricknine8623]

"I've never been more "certain" with an "impulse" buy" -- Jesse

[@Haduj-the-Lion]

10:17 to 10:21 ... is one banger of a riff brother

[@haydenlee8332]

You went the extra step to set the EQ to sound as similarly as possible! GREAT WORK MAN!!!

[@cobratex7]

Have always wanted a Soldano amp so will definitely buying the mini. Absolutely rocks!

[@TheJeffcurran]

Good comparison. The real tube head has a more "air". It just sounds more open. But the Mini has an incredibly good sound considering what it is.

[@Floodedisposition]

You mean, head room.

[@Lieutenant_Dude]

That's most likely the difference in headroom. 30 watt versus 100 watt heads.

[@TheOffensiveSenses]

I was watching this while doing other things, and constantly found myself digging tones, and not knowing which amp it was, and paying attention to find out, and being surprised how often it was the mini head. They really do both sound equally great.

[@IrLosin]

It's a great sounding amp, for 1/20th of the cost of the 100. If you just use it at home this is the way to go. edit: with the strat it sounded closer, with the humbucker I actually preferred the 100. It sounded less muddy, much more defined on the notes. The brightness really shines through with more push from the pickup..

[@crazeyjoe]

For the price to be had, one could buy 2, set one for clean, one for mean and use an A/B switcher!

[@jjmackey3101]

Can't go wrong with a Rabea review - top notch stuff man. This is the mini head I've been waiting for. Worth the price for the aesthetics alone.

[@beaumas]

Honestly for the price of the mini, to be so close to the full size tube version is just amazing.

[@TeslaOsiris]

An SLO for $250?!?! This is definitely “shut up and take my money” worthy.

[@Emi4Rock]

sounds 95% the same for me, absolute killer amp

[@gvibes69]

The micro dark is a hybrid and costs 200 !

[@necroticpoison]

Great tones. The 100 tones were insanely good, haven't heard anyone get tones that good from it. And the mini tones were great too, especially for the price

[@michaelberry530]

Most in-depth video I have seen regarding the Mini SLO, great job and tones Rebea.

[@JosePineda-jn8jk]

I recently picked up an orange micro dark and just love the small form factor and the options I have for amps now. This one will definitely be added to the collection.

[@thatguyreiji1045]

A great comparison would be to see how this fairs against the Neural DSP slo

[@RabeaMassaad]

Absolutely, that’ll come in due course :)

[@EamonBJWyse]

Definitely interested in that!

[@thatguyreiji1045]

@@RabeaMassaad Ahhhh Will be looking forward to this

[@Havanacuba1985]

The neural will easily beat it in the clean sounds I fear , beautiful little amp though,I’m a mega soldano fan but will find it hard to choose between the bogner ecstasy and this , I also love the friedman but ecstasy and SLO are my faves

[@stinger720]

the cortex sounds good. same fluff In the mids.at least the one that's on mine.

[@shauncarter924]

Bea makes any amp sound awesome. Top work, bro.

[@ThePuffGD]

As someone who wants to get into using real amps but doesn't have the budget to get the ones of my dreams, this seems PERFECT.

[@milkandmeat]

you can find a similar or better sounding amp for cheaper

[@ThePuffGD]

@@milkandmeat currently have a boss katana. Not sure if this would be much of an upgrade but I love the sound of the Slo so I feel like it's worth a shot

[@pietro6227]

If you're on a tight budget, I recommend getting the Kraken V4 Preamp paired with a Seymour Duncan Powerstage 200. You can start with the kraken and use your katana's as a poweramp at first and upgrade to the Seymour Duncan later (not that you'd even need to upgrade honestly). That'll get you full on tube amp distortion for a fraction of the price.

[@IrLosin]

If you can save up a little longer look at the Marshall DSL 20. It's 20w and costs around €450. great for crunch and heavy tones. . And it's full tube. (not that that really matters these days but, you know, nostalgia).

[@Souldoubtrocks]

I love the darkness of the mini

[@The_Audio_Phoenix]

I'd love to hear the SLO Mini blended with the Friedman BR-Mini in a doubletrack setup I think it will sound MONSTEROUS!

[@Shevchenko_DBR9]

I haven’t watched your channel in a while but I do Remember you working on your health. I know this video is already a year old but you look great man. Proud of you.

[@kylemcelroy7869]

I’ve wanted the SLO ever since I saw it on your channel, now I might actually be able to get one!

[@jaroslawlukaszewicz]

And that's what you call a comparison, thank you Rabea!

[@goonrick]

I think the biggest tonal difference between the two is that the mini is fed by the preamp only, while the SLO 100 has the power section (as mentioned) with the depth, harmonics, and response characteristics imparted on the overall sound. Great comparison, BTW! Kudos for demonstrating the range of gains and for boosting the front end.

[@francoislouw181]

Both sounded awesome! the mini really sounds great. but the SLO 100..Wow!

[@richard66754]

Strats sound absolutely fantastic with these gained out amps.

[@imagesofstyle]

The mini is good, but that was the clearest demonstration for me of the weight, power and authority in the sound of the 100. In fact, this clip showed me what those terms really mean.

[@thierryvidal63]

A really good job you just did. This little thing is almost at the same level than the big guy. At that price that's just incredible. Thanks !

[@benzakonium]

Amazing engineering. In a full band mix it would be VERY hard to tell any difference. Considering making a super rig of all these mini heads hooked up to a power amp and into a 4x12.

[@Soldano999]

Ola mentioned that they kind sound similar so his advice was to get just one.

[@akatom2u]

I'm thinking of a Soldano and a Bogner using a 2X12 cab.

[@leonpostma6277]

Thanks for doing the legwork for us mortals - great comparison.

[@georgepaulsmith]

Excellent comparison. Thank you. Just bought one as a backup.

[@gregggiomi7122]

I bought this!! Freaking awesome!!! Thanks for the Awesome demo!! 🤙

[@b.scottfarthingsworth]

That was awesome - bro you know tone, and definitely dialed that in as close as anyone could. Impressed, might need to go put this in a cart tonight

[@BockwinkleB]

Good video. The others I saw on this didnt bother to A/B the amps even though they have the original (Fricker/Fluff).

[@Grizzlyঐু]

I'm not interested in the amp but I come for your playing, amazing as always! the A/B comparison is very helpful and that little $250 amp sounds fantastic.

[@Ktallica]

Dude has some mitts on him. Making that strat look like a toy. Great playing and review as usual.

[@MistyMusicStudio]

Oh man thank you so much for using the EQ to tone match. The difference is there on HS8's but it's about the same on my phone. The big boy has nice low resonance & great top end. Your playing really pairs well with its character 🤘

[@bobgracia3318]

brilliant demo keep the videos coming

[@jpanic666]

This video is the reason I ordered this amp last night

[@G40s_WW]

Finally something affordable by Soldano

[@flogginga_dead_horse4022]

I ordered one of these from Sweetwater after this review!! Should be here tomorrow!! Thanks.

[@martijn_yt]

These mini heads really look great and sound pretty decent too. And a very smart marketing idea too. Take a 50 euro barebone 1 channel 30 watt transistor amp. Buy a license for about 100 euro per item, so you can make it look like a brand name amp. Trust that most guitarist listen with their eyes, and sell them for 250. Genius ! (and its working, i do feel tempted to buy one, i guess i really am a guitarist ;))

[@JamesMcCutcheon]

I am amazed at the MINI, these amplifiers are cool for a 5 trick pony. It seems most of the Amp makers are shooting for an all in one guitar amplifier.

[@JohnSoldano]

Thanks for the "GREAT DEMO'! Taking into all the different things, size, solidstate, weight, and most of all price??? Playing on the Astro, and the Slo 100, I wasn't impressed by Soldano. Im glad I had a chance to view your demo. Many thanks. What can you say??? You said it all GREAT

[@timrussellguitar1516]

Amazing amp and very affordable too. Gotta get me one. Don’t tell my wife.

[@Nugmania1]

Anything Saldano does is very good, just before he started his own company he was the driving force behind the Super 60 while he was at Fender, basically a half twin, part of my bucket list for amps, like your vids keep them coming

[@juliodefreitas157]

Awesome little Amp..thank you for sharing your video 💙💙👍👍

[@danielsaturnino5715]

Man, that makes perfect sense. I'm working on a pedal with 3 gain stages and I believe I can hear what you are saying.

[@guitardave]

Tonally I think the Mini is spot on, it just lacks a bit of depth and girth which is understandable. I wonder if taking the fx send from the Mini and sending it to the fx return of a tube amp would give it that extra depth and warmth? Would be interesting to do that into the SLO-100. Great demo Bea!

[@Tony78432]

Y’know what else is lacking depth and girth? 🌝 lmao 🤣

[@mansonrustrelic]

I've got the Diezel VH mini and running it into the effects loop of a DSL 20 valve head and it sounds great

[@metalgear74]

@@Tony78432 TonyMarGuitar?

[@Tony78432]

@@metalgear74 😂😂😂

[@sniggity]

Dude, you knocked it out of the park ! One thing though, at times when you played the big one, I could hear more high end and the amp open up into a bigger sound. But then you farted around with the little one and got it sounding similar. You have a great ear. I’d love to have you as our engineer and sound technician.

[@Jamesembertonguitar1]

Great video as always Bea, Both amps sound great in my opinion love how companies are now making products a more compact size and more affordable! Keep up the good work!!

[@chrsrans1]

Great video, I would say that the SLO100 sound has an extra dimension to it, pure quality tone, but the mini head still sounds fantastic to my ears and for a fraction of the cost. Nice one 👍

[@MikeGreenMusic99]

I could watch and listen to this guy play all day long. What a beast...

[@mazklassa9338]

Rab, that is awesome of you to do a side by side comparison - 2:03

[@gregggiomi7122]

Awesome! Gonna watch your Bogner Mini again, Cuz You are freaking awesome on DEMO..🤙

[@kram21]

Excellent demo -the Mini is certainly a nice alternative ,especially for the $$

[@foggyblues13]

This is the best review of the mini!

[@rolandguilford8301]

Another great video dude. Stunning playing as always!

[@veganlion8662]

In the high gain comparison around 15:00, when switching from SLO 100 to mini head, it sounds like you're switching from bridge to neck pickup type signal. What I guess this means, is that the mini head has a tendency to more muddyness. All over sounds pretty nice though!

[@pauldncn1]

Thanks Rabbea the A/B showed me that I really want one What a little corker!

[@TheBEOTS]

Very good vid Rabea, going that extra mile running both units together really gave an honest comparison. I'm sure Solano were pleased. You have convinced me to buy one, Thanks brother

[@rottalmusik6563]

This is impressiv! Not only the amp, more so your playing 🤘🎸💜 thanks dude!

[@njmetfan]

Both sound great, but there's something a little bit more silky about the SLO100. For the money though, the SLO Mini seems a fantastic choice for us common folk.

[@TeslaOsiris]

The mini is definitely in uncanny valley territory…most people would never hear the difference in a whole mix.

[@NIn3TY0]

I agree. So I would say the 100 is more controlled in the top end. Especially high distorted.

[@njmetfan]

@@NIn3TY0 Right...controlled is probably the right word. Even as modern high gain solid states have gotten better and better (this case for example) I guess they still tend to run a bit dark and muddy compared to a tube. The modern scoop sound is something most high gain players are looking for. I reckon Soldano has it down to a science.

[@vinny943]

@@TeslaOsiris an eq pedal can probably open this thing up to

[@T3NN3SS3E]

This little guy inspired me to build a 2W Push-Pull version of the SLO circuit in a custom chassis designed from scratch 😎🤘 I need to make some videos!

[@slippy8813]

@THE AMAZING ZED I think at least the Friedman is actually made in the U.S.A

[@T3NN3SS3E]

@THE AMAZING ZED No actually... a man by the name of Rob Robinette had already done most of the work and published it on his site. I just added my modifications to the circuit and designed a chassis with a cover. 🤷‍♂️ Also this is very far from Chinese.

[@T3NN3SS3E]

@@slippy8813 Correct. Every Soldano amplifier is hand-built in the U.S.A.

[@jcugnoni]

@@T3NN3SS3E great idea. I built myself an low wattage SLO style amp last year with parts that I had laying around. It is based on left overs of a Lummerland Express Tube Town amp kit using an ECC99 in push-pull as power tube ( great low wattage kit by the way) and 2x 12ax7 (for gain stages 2,3,4 and cathodyne phase inverter). To save a tube and reduce size, gain stage 1 and the tone stack voltage follower are made using a LND150 high voltage fet. Really cool and powerfull micro amp overall !

[@bigwomp932]

Cannot believe these things go for under $200 used. Sounds fuckin' awesome to my ear. Yes the "real thing" sounds noticeably better but we're talking less than a tenth of the price here. Incredible what they've fit into this package.

[@thebasspedalshow]

Very nice little amp dude. Sounds awesome and so does the SLO. Also, those pants are fire!!

[@AndGuitar]

No, they are tiger 😉

[@ИванДмитриевич-с8ь]

Please, make a head to head comparison between Slo 100 and Slo 30. I really like your style of play and videos! You're great!

[@Eagle_eye__]

A proper review, thank you! You sold me!

[@santellavision]

Amazing. This made me just buy one!

[@renderps3399]

With this review i came to the conclusion that size doesn't matter ! Nice one Rabea thanks for the video !

[@darwinsaye]

Tone matching the Mini with the full size *on clean/crunch settings* is worth its weight in gold. Cleaner SLO sounds are SO under-represented on demos.

[@crazywisdom2]

Great Amp ! Fantastic Player. ... Love the soul coming out of your fingers my friend.

[@leekisu_blues]

Rabea, even your spoken words are so accurate, like your renditions haha. Don't get me wrong, English is not my first language thus sometimes it is very diffulicult for me to understand British accents in this US accent dominating world.

[@marks9197]

Excellent video, thank you! I'm glad you did the a/b comparisons.

[@jalmonsalmon]

Very close to the SLO! Not as clear sounding, as you say, darker. But I would use one of those mini heads for practice at reherasal for sure!

[@MJPGuitar]

Gonna pick one up when they’re available. My favorite band Four Year Strong uses Soldano.

[@Rico_B]

Excellent comparison and review. Your paying is great as well!

[@mazklassa9338]

10:15 - Haha that is smart editing tweaking the controls and time lapsing it. Totally original from what I've seen.😎

[@wrayven]

Informative demo. I do like the scooped midrange and clearer top end response better with the SLO-100. With that being said, the SLO Mini head is really well done though. Considering SLO Mini costs about 151-20 times less than an SLO 100, the Mini is pretty bada$$. A comparison between a SLO Mini vs a Marshall Lead 12 would be intriguing.

[@birgerhellefatland6265]

The clean tones are very nice with the strat. Sort of complex and very touch sensitive. I have got a hold of a used slo mini, and can not wait to pick it up at the post office next week.

[@_hide_-lb1gk]

Was just wondering how to hook it up to an interface 😅 thank you!

[@SteveJohnsen]

Came here for the mini. But now I want to buy an SLO-100. Pretty dope sounds though from the mini. Well done by Soldano and great comparison video!

[@jdubya4885]

superb review--best one out there. Nice work and thanks!

[@fergusuan7371]

Great stuff Bea, both sound fantastic, I'm well impressed by the Mini!........ But hearing your Sig through the 100 was something special. What an absolute UNIT, I've never wanted an SLO more 😉

[@CarloRegadasGuitar]

I keep fantasising about a Lee Jackson / Metaltronix mini head. One can but dream... Great video mate, ripping tones. Carlo 👍🏼🎸

[@Cougar139tweak]

Finally Orange has some solid state competition!

[@gvibes69]

Well the hybrids micro terror costs 150!! So no...

[@elsantoproductora]

Man, you sure know how to dial a good tone. Awesome playing as always!

[@tomkehoe6392]

Add an EP Boost for touch of 3D bright & push or a Sonic Maximizer for some low-end grunt (or add both!!).

[@Koffieleuter]

Sounds great! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Somehow these lyrics start to blend in... Captain America's been torn apart Now he's a court jester with a broken heart He said "turn me around and take me back to the start" I must be losing my mind "are you blind?" I've seen it all a million times

[@HollisAudioLabs]

Thanks Rabea for the great demo of the SLO Mini! Would be fun to try it for some High On Fire tunes.

[@philhood4604]

Sounds great

[@ollypowell]

With the line out you were using did you also attach a cab? Im hoping this is a perfect silent recording amp!

[@garywalker8067]

Great demo Bea sounding Phat

[@Soldano999]

Great demo. Althougg i would have loved to hear the crunch channel with a klon type pedal, a legendary combination.

[@fireloks6362]

The first few minutes you were playing sounded like GNR's version of knocking on heaven's door sound type of vibe + some nice blues tones.

[@despot3880]

They nailed it❤️

[@oyvi]

Great demo, really nice to see the comparison with bigger brother. I actually ordered the SLO mini, expected delivery from Thomann was early next year 😭😭