Which Soldano amp is the best? (Astro 20 vs SLO-30 vs SLO-100R)

[@SonicDriveStudio]

Buy my IRs or captures: ko-fi.com/sonicdrivestudio Soldano Astro 20: thmn.to/thoprod/577343?offid=1&affid=3210 Soldano SLO-30: thmn.to/thoprod/485757?offid=1&affid=3210 Soldano SLO-100R: thmn.to/thoprod/601208?offid=1&affid=3210 Sweetwater Affiliate: sweetwater.sjv.io/k0mGvx My personal Thomann recommendations: thmn.to/thocf/cv37zixo68

[@danxrs05]

I went with the Astro 20 (combo) for it's versatility and also the price point. The Astro is considerably less expensive than the SLO for a similar tone with a lot of versatility. I love the greenback in the combo BUT, I paired it with an Orange PPC212 with V30's in it and the 3 speakers together are just insane! It SCREAMS! And yes, adjusting the treble, mids and also presence will IMO tighten it up a lot! Thanks for the amazing comparison!

[@Zwidawurzn]

Nice, a Soldano comparison! Exactly what i need once i sold my house, i'll probably go for the SLO-30.

[@LonelyRocker]

A mountain of thunderous tone and a killer T-Shirt all in one video! What else could you ask for?

[@Andy_Yates]

I have the Astro 20 head with their 1x12 V30 cabinet, and the SLO30 combo with the Redback. Through a load box and captured on my QC, they sound very similar using the same IR. In the room they are quite different. The 30 punches hard without a boost and sounds absolutely killer. At modest volume, the Astro is super tight, and seems to have quite the aggressive mids. Both have pretty good volume control for the house and sound good under 90 db. They are similar, and also different enough that I like them for different guitars. The combo also opened my eyes to the Redback. It's a glorious speaker that was never on my radar before. (I also understand the speaker and enclosure are contributing to their differences but I could not make my Astro sound like the combo using an open-back cab with a Redback)

[@johnfinlay4963]

Damn Jon, could have listened to that clean riff all morning , put me in a trance. Just got a Schecter E-1 Evil Twin w/ Fishman pickups for Christmas. Love it . Thanks for all your demos . Happy New Year🤘🏻🤘🏻

[@NasserSharaf]

Soldano amps sound killer and are an absolute joy to play - the feel is like nothing else I've tried. I'm finding that sonically the differences are not nearly as much as I would have thought (at least in a recording) so the clear winner for me is the Astro with all it's great modern features, very usable volume levels and decent price. Great video as always!

[@lukevontajikistan3929]

Happy birthday, Jon! Also, thanks for the Soldano-comparisson, great content as always!

[@frankenstein4106]

I'm glad I got the SLO-30. Plenty of volume and tone for my needs. I live mostly on the crunch channel using some pedals to boost it!

[@UseTheSupeRsonic]

SLO's crunch channel is so incredibly underrated. Boosted, it's S-tier. I like the boosted crunch more than the actual overdrive channel. It's why I never bought the regular SLO--they don't make the crunch channel foot-switchable so I can have all three channels on the floor. That crunch channel boosted would be my main rhythm, and the overdrive would be more of a lead sound.

[@MightyJoeInternetBeef1960]

I have an Astro head driving an old Marshall 2 x 12 cab from a LEAD Mosfet set. It has an Eminence Governor and Wizard, which I've read is their equivalent of a Celestion GB and V30. It sounds killer. I love the clean channel as a pedal platform. I have a Weber 50W attenuator set at half volume with the amps Master up at 90%. This is my only tube amp and I just love it. (AXE3 owner)

[@wtoddreynolds]

All three sound great! I think I’m partial to the Astro’s 6V6 grit and compression. The older I get the more I find myself gravitating to 6V6 flavors so the Astro love seems in line with that. I feel like if I had all three of these heads on hand I’d find myself spending the most time with the Astro. Maybe? But really nice job demoing the subtle (er…not so subtle) differences here. Those clean tracks were especially tasteful…

[@mcalo42]

All sounded great. I have an Astro 20, which I love. I think I preferred the tones of the 100, as presented and EQ’d here. However, if I could only have one I would prefer the Astro 20 for its versatility and features, especially for home and studio use.

[@CaevanOShite]

Between these three Soldanos, I suspect that a lot of the differences- fairly subtle though they be- are largely down to the beefier power-supplies, transformers, wattages and number of Output-Tubes from the SLO-100 (beefiest, biggest & most) through the SLO-30 (in-between) to the Astro 20 (lightest, more easily 'pushed'). That said, I also suspect that these differences could be made up for in EQ, drive and volume settings on each respective amp, and also by choice of speakers, cabs and/or IR's. THAT all said, I already knew that I RRREEEAALLLY wanted an Astro 20- and now want one even more!

[@nobodyimportant76467]

I have an Astro 20 and really like it. Might have to get an SLO 30 at some point though

[@david_farmer]

Great video as always. My preference would be the 100R but they're all great! If you wanted to pick any one of them, use the DI and do another comparison to the Neural DSP SLO100 plugin, I'd for sure give it a watch and a like :). I know there are lots of those out there but I watch them all! I have the plugin and love it, but always like to hear where it succeeds and falls short.

[@AzaelVI]

I have the SLO 30, and the base tone is great. I run a mesa boogie 5 band eq pedal (with the classic V shape) in the effects loop and an 808 TS in front of the amp. For me, this setup really enhances the base tone.

[@KreativeDevices]

🔥 Another good one

[@SonicDriveStudio]

Cheers!

[@strangelet4588]

Excellent! I noticed your overdrive master was pretty low. Sounded massive still. I got my slo30 to really open up when I put it at at least 5, but preferably 6. I had to get a fryette power station for that though.😂

[@NA-ir5or]

I own a slo 30 and a 100. I like the 30 better.

[@Zwidawurzn]

Nice to know, i'm currently playing Engl amps and i also prefer the Fireball 25 over the 100w ones. The SLO 30 is totally on my wishlist.

[@DogAfraidOfUmbrellas]

The cool thing about the 30 is you can increase the master volume high enough to get power tube saturation. If you do this on the 100 you will blow your ears out. Also the 30 reaches its potential with the master on 4-6 and the 100 sounds maybe 80 percent as good as it should sound on 1-1.5. Both increasingly better with the master above 2, in any case. I think it's hilarious so many people buying the SLO 100 just to run it on 1. You need a dedicated amp room and a 4x12 for that amp to realize its potential.

[@robertdonosobuchner3129]

I think the Astro 20 will sound killer if you use the king in yellow in front. Great comparison! 🤘

[@BcBaxley]

This... is all a good problem to have 😎🍻🤘

[@LouCondon-j1v]

A friend of mine here in Alabama has a Ciaratone copy of the Solon head. Kicks ass.

[@benjaminebenezer7284]

Would love to hear it

[@paulbradshawguitar]

i'll have one of each please 😄 they all sounded great, but had a preference to the two SLO's , the 100 would be it for the added oomph, totally know what you mean

[@gioelevio1626]

Great video! Can we expect a SLO100R VS Helix comparison:)???

[@SonicDriveStudio]

I'd love to... just have to find time because I have so much stuff to do!

[@gioelevio1626]

@@SonicDriveStudio love your video comparisons, you have obviously incredible ears and Soldanos are probably my favorite amps🚀

[@Markusaldrich]

I like them all. I bought the Astro 20 because of the IR and the 3 Channels. It’s for the things I play in my Band the best choice. When I get rich, I buy them all 😂

[@megalodon2875]

Interestingly, the Astro 20 and the Friedman JEL-20 are both listed as “assembled in the USA” and have similar DI capabilities. I wonder if the guts of these 20-watt amps are being produced in the same factory.

[@gibsonorbust]

Are the brands owned by same company?

[@Dexter8393]

They are indeed

[@nevusofota]

Where is this listed as “assembled in the USA”?

[@megalodon2875]

On the Soldano website, whereas the SLO-30 is listed as “Hand-Wired in the USA”.

[@NeZversSounds]

You could expand shootout with Jet City ;)

[@SonicDriveStudio]

I don't have one...

[@Sven.Jeschke]

The 10k mountain of tone. ;-)

[@shredgd5]

I noticed you dialed the master volume on the SLO100R all the way up, but you kept/had to keep the individual channels volumes very very low. This leads me to think the master volume isn’t only an adjunctive passive control, but it is probably driven by a tube stage. So I believe the SLO100R could sound even better if you dial the master volume more sparingly, and use a little more of the individual channels volume. In my experience, when you have multiple volume pots, the best result is achieved when all of them are used in their “central” range of operation, rather than at their extremes, especially in modern circuits, where it’s very rare to find a volume control which is supposed to be dialed in all the way up to be “excluded” from the circuit (which I think it’s what you supposed to achieve when you did your choice). For example, the Mesa Mark V master volume control is placed after the fx loop, a “return level” sort of volume control, which allows you to dial the individual channels volumes at what would be a stage volume without the master control, making that amp sound extraordinarily good at bedroom levels. I believe Soldano did a similar thing in the SLO100R, so I’m convinced it would benefit from having the individual channels volumes high and the master volume lower, as well. Thanks for this comparison!

[@SonicDriveStudio]

I actually tried that but I could not hear a difference

[@petercarparelli]

I can barely pay my bills, and John's flexing with 3 different Soldanos...

[@alexdenton6586]

Not sure it can compare to the Mini Silver Jubilee 😊

[@steves12strings]

That 100R was AMAZING

[@SonicDriveStudio]

Yeah it's so good! More up front than the others

[@DogAfraidOfUmbrellas]

I think the Astro would have benefited from more mids in the crunch and high gain modes, and the 30 and 100R would have benefited from less mids in the clean comparison. The Soldano 30 and 100 sound better with the depth a little lower at higher gain and volumes, and a little higher with crunch gain and lower volumes. The traditional way to run the 100 is with master above 5 and the depth not above 2. Which is very loud. Nonetheless, I agree the Astro is the best clean amp, and I think the 30 has a little more squish, so sounds better as a crunch amp, whereas the 100 is the best high gain amp. That said on the Soldano 30, which is more like a 35 watt amp with proper power tubes, the gain is so clear and the eq so responsive at higher gain, that it beats pretty much any 50 watt amps for that application, especially with a boost. I'd be curious to hear the Astro fx send through the 100 power amp for big cleans.

[@nevusofota]

I think that all those things you mentioned could be matched by turning some of the knobs in person.

[@DogAfraidOfUmbrellas]

@@nevusofota Yes, turning up or down the mid knob and down the depth knob or control is exactly what I meant when I said more or less mids and lower depth. The inherent difference in power section headroom vs squish, no.

[@BlackReaperMetal]

Soooo hard. I mean, when solo'd the Astros red channel sounds rectifier-y while the SLOs sound like SLOs. I could hardly pick the difference between the SLOs except for may a more complex bottom end on the SLO30. I guess that is the sagginess you are referring to. In the mix, I couldn't really tell the difference between all three, unless I paid super close attention, then I can only differentiate the Astro. As for the cleans, I liked the Astro the least.

[@jochenkluetsch]

I own a SLO 30. Enough headroom for me.

[@nicholasguitars5527]

the Astro was never marketed as an "SLO", it's for those of us that don't particularity like the SLO overdrive tone, has soldano DNA, but a little different flavoring like the old Hot Rod amps.

[@veers0r]

I think the SLO-100R really lacks the woody amp tone wood tone. It sounds way to metallic without a wooden enclosure. I think you should get rid of it and get yourself a proper one with that true tone wood wood tone. I'd even help you by taking care of disposing of the SLO-100R. :))

[@SonicDriveStudio]

🤣

[@dennis_the_menace583]

I was like ‘what the heck’ now the amp enclosure has tone? until I saw the laughing and knew it was BS. Haha😂 I am newer to all this and Soldano are expensive but awesome. Now waiting for the Peavey 6505 1992 vs Peavey 6505 II.

[@UseTheSupeRsonic]

not a significant difference in tone, at least in high gain. I think the Astro has a SLIGHT midrange bump, but that it. The actual character and signature of each amp is the same.

[@suavonman9539]

For me, purple one wins

[@krailanuar]

That's Why Soldano Amp Always Legendary High Gain Amplifier Till Now And All Modeler I Think Sure Have Soldano Amp Sims... Soldano Amp High Gain Make Many Amp Manufacture Do High Gain Amp

[@CaevanOShite]

So, what ARE your "Top 5 Amplifiers EVER"?

[@SonicDriveStudio]

I did a video on that some months back but that list will need an update...

[@CaevanOShite]

@@SonicDriveStudio Which video? I'll search it up and give it a spin...

[@SonicDriveStudio]

@CaevanOShite my top 5 amps or something along those lines :)

[@necroticpoison]

Astro's mids are crazy punchy. Hate that term but it's true here.

[@watkinscharles829]

Im doing good to afford 1 meal a day and Sonic Drive is shooting out 3 amps totaling up to almost $10,000. This hate the times we live in.

[@LucasLeCompteMusic]

I legit want a SLO 30 now. I feel like i have too lol. EDIT: I bought a X88IR LOL

[@SonicDriveStudio]

I do agree.... totally worth it man!

[@mjlagerwerf]

I dunno if I ever told you this... But I am open for donations. 😜

[@ianlahaye9476]

Cool, but they're sooooo expens... JK. Rich tone! Superior build quality and lifetime warranty! You GET what you pay for. Astro held its own very well against these beasts! Great comparison!

[@alexdenton6586]

Please don’t say saggy in front of my wife

[@NasserSharaf]

HAHAHAHA - I nearly fell off my chair when I read that.

[@CROiga]

Just so you know, I blame you completely, for the 5k hole in my bank balance.....

[@TheOtherJohnBrowne]

BRUH!

[@BAND-MAID-USA]

Amps of this price should absolutely have separate EQ for each channel. Period. That’s jut unacceptable to me. Love all 3 but I could never get over a shared EQ. Would love to see this exact shootout but without a full mix, double tracking and hard panning. Just a mic on a cab and a room mic.

[@DarkStoneCastle]

So similar, not even worth talking about.

[@turkinator1014]

As someone who’s played through both the 20 and 30 back to back with Same cab, and the Astro 20 combo, It’s definitely different, in person especially. Worth talking about when spending this kind of change on amps!