Amt Electronics S1 Soldano

I know these Legendary Series pedal are supposed to be preamps used in an effects loop. This review is based off of running in front of an amp like most pedals are intended.

I know these pedals are not to be used in front of an amp but that greatly limits the pedal. Most people are going to put in front of an amp like basically all distortion boxes and this will throw people for a loop. When running in front of the tone is horrible.

- The AMT Legend Amp Series guitar pedals provide excellent dynamics, nuances, and characteristics similar to that of tube driven amplifiers.
- Tube-like range of volume control provides great sound density, playability, and power when playing at full volume and also in conjunction with your guitars volume knob.
- TRUE BYPASS. The preamps of the Legend Amp Series pedals use passive true bypass circuitry, therefore no loss of guitar signal is noticed in your pedal chain. Similar to if no pedal was there at all when bypassed.
- Features high level of output signal (+10dB in extreme position of Level knob) corresponds to the output levels similar of tube preamps. Thus, you have adjustable signal level allowing to hook up your preamp AND direct input of a power amplifier.
- Controls include LEVEL, GAIN, LOW, MID, and HIGH.
- TWO signal outputs: DIRECT AMPLIFIER OUT for guitar amplifier use and CAB SIMULATION OUT for mixer, or studio use.
- Power saving mode. When the speaker simulation output jack is not in use, the pedal automatically switches to power saving mode. Current consumption (from 9V power unit) is less than 6mА (in power saving mode it drops to 4mА).

UTILIZATION

The pedal like all the AMT units are very easy to dial in. You will find this pedal to be laid out like most amps with the usual three EQ controls, volume, and gain. Not much to get confused on here. The setup will take you about five minutes to get set up.

SOUND QUALITY

The sound from this pedal is terrible at best. It is thin and tinty that makes playing very unusable. If you use this pedal I hope you have a humbucker style guitar. Otherwise it will sound shrill and metallic sounding.

I don't have a favorite sound other than OFF. In the OFF position it sounds its best. Try this setting to start with and finish with it staying right there.

OVERALL OPINION

My overall opinion on this pedal is do not buy it unless you use it in the effects loop. If you don't have an effects loop or your loop sounds bad then there really isn't a use for this pedal.

I wouldn't recommend this pedal to anyone since there is only one use for it. The pedal is very limited and if you don't have a quality effects loop than you have a bad sounding pedal out in front of your amp at best.

At new they come in at around $130 which is high for the AMT pedals. They have better sounding pedals than this and the Extreme ll and Metalizer are just a couple to name.

A type pedals in mtal mtal with his mtalique. From Russia with suitable manufacturing and everything that goes around dballage commercial (the pedals that can survive a nuclear war ...)

UTILIZATION

Super easy to use except that:
1 / The power supply is about 9-12V which is not clear (it is 9 or 12?)
2 / When the branch with a 12 V power supply it emits a weird noise trs, trs a kind of whistle agaant makes me think that there are no dogs that can capture the ultra sounds. With a 9 V power supply against, no worries at home but is not the case for everyone.
3 / It is a prampli and not at all a distortion pedals. Morali she did not see anything that I used an amp and even when I plugged into console, I have a dj amp emulator (type fender for clean sounds, a Yamaha Dg Stomp), which is against jobs.
4 / The output level is too powerful!
5 / The qualisation trs trs is sensitive, the kind of stuff that requires you redo your sound carefully before each concert as significant changes are a notch on the other.

SOUND QUALITY

Look carefully, you will find a well that will do heavy (or illusion, it depends) in many cases. BUT (there is a but) it is a mono-style pedals: mtal and nothing else. Not the kind of stuff that will make you write a pop ballad between two scales, or that will give you a superb crunch by turning down the knob of the guitar. Moreover, as the say at once, even a 1 distorts srieux. Another thing: the bass is humming or even in invasive rglant at least there is a halo rather Gnant. At the end, it was one sound to one style, and finally one wonders why they threw the old multi rotten 80s, has sounded the same. They say it's analog but it was here the default of digital (its too little ractif compress much less expressive). The only guitarist I know who joueait Soldano on it and as Garry Moore put it bluntly: we are far from the trs warm, bluesy thereof. There are too acute, too low and not enough mdium it is precisely in the mids that everything goes the guitar! Ask a ingnieur a sound of pedals ... a short kid with a lot of beginners shaggy cut.

OVERALL OPINION

I do not know what to make of this kind of stuff. Why make pedals and as few limits as expressive? I'll write something that is not good but I have the S1 branch simultanment (100 euros) and a Hyper Gain at Artec (35 Euros I think) and there is no photo, The Artec sounded much warmer and living the AMT and above, we get a nice crunch trs turning down the knob of his guitar (a Xavier Petit). In short, the price is not justified and done everything we can settle for a small boost to a true analog distortion if you want the super gain. In any Manir, this gain is a bit of a crap: when playing hard enough, any modern pedals sound pretty heavy, rglage question.
Is this what I Rasht pedals: yes if I had an obligation to spend my life in the shoes of a kid of 16 years ... You will think I'm a little cow and c is true that much of my pedals the construction is solid. It's solid stuff trs, trs fni well - the hand he seems - but all too typical to use a pro. All great quitar make their sound hand, even the guys who play metal. Van Halen put his gain 7, Steve Vai same, there's a reason this: Exceeds a certain level of gain, the sound becomes boiled and draft.

It is a sensible pedal reproduce the excellent saturation legendary Soldano amps.
It has inputs outputs:
A guitar input, a power plug (9-12V DC plug standard Boss style, with '-' center)
An output amplifier and an output Simu HP (to register directly on the soundcard for example).

The pedal has 5 knobs: a Level, a Gain, EQ and 3 low-mid-high


UTILIZATION

The case is metal, and feels good robustness (the pedal is made of Siberia, it must bear the cold with no problem) ...
However some glitches user to highlight the level of food:
-To use a 9V .. you need a screwdriver and open the pedal and loosen the 4 screws! And once the battery development .. the stack exceeds a lot (because of a thick foam underneath), and it's hard to close the case ... But at least .. AC want!
"I have tried to use a standard Boss PSU (9v) ... And the pedal generates a hum and hissing electronic (to R2-D2) as not possible! It is perhaps my alims (I tried 2 different, yet that does not pose any problems with my other pedals) or a lack of filtering to the DC input ... but hey .. for me, it will be: mandatory use on battery .. which is not convenient when you forget to unplug the pedal ... well well ...

In short .. for me is a BIG BIG black dot!

For these two faults, I put 5 / 10 in use

I will try to blow one of these 4 with a filtered power supply for the pro day I will decide to buy one.


SOUND QUALITY

And now .. sound! Does it deliver? The bet is not obvious at first sight! Emulate Soldano, just that!

Well it comes out really pretty!
Well, I did not Soldano at home (if not, I will not buy this pedal ) but for me, Soldano sound is a saturation-packed ultra rich harmonics, grain typed Marshall, and with a top-notch definition.
So when you plug this pedal first observation .. you have to go really easy on level knob 'level' ... The pedal has a level of output result, and generally, to find the same sound level when the pedal is off, you must set the 'Level' at 9am! Pushing a little more, you can easily saturate the input stage of the amp ...

Then come the EQ knobs .. Nothing to say, they are very effective and allow a good control!
But let us come to saturation: the knob gain is gradual, and can well up in gain .. but still retaining impressive dynamic! Both in volume and at the level timbral: Even with the gain in depth if you touches the strings, the sound is much smoother and less saturated .. on the contrary, nag in his right hand, it gives a sacred fishing sound! In short .. it's all good at this level.

Another detail is important: Escalation! Gain in depth, if we decrease significantly the volume of the guitar, you end up with a sound almost clear, though 'bluesy mushy' .. on a single coil neck pickup, the sound is huge! flute and singing style ... I love SRV!
One thing is sure: This pedal is a thousand miles from the amp simulations that compress the sound a lot and make all guitars sound the same ... No, here .. when changing guitar or microphone, you hear a difference .. What may be a negative for those who play with a mean guitar and had a great sound with a POD ... Here they will hear the limits of their stuff ... Such a level of play ... the lack of over-compression highlights defects quite easily ...

And the 'big sound' then? Well ... what to say except that the saturated fat is there ... well there, even! With a grain rich and creamy to perfection .. good harmonic ... really surprised by the quality of this pedal!
I even plugged in, just to see, on a micro-cell Fender amp (with saturation is a honeycomb abominable) .. and honestly, after some adjustments .. It sounded really hell!

I know if it would compare to facing a real Soldano, but in my case, its level: 10/10!

EDIT 06/01/2010: I recorded a little demo unpretentious (with cold toes, but hey ..): https://soundcloud.com/zeglobox/washburn-n6-leosounds-pickups-amt- s1 (j'vous should download the song to listen, quality is much better)

generally, I turn the volume pot to very very low level, not to saturate the amp ... and I put the gain around 11 / 12 max .. it gives an already saturated fat, while keeping the impressive resolution and this 'halo' around the notes ...



OVERALL OPINION

I use it for a week (I will publish regularly to update my opinion) .. I love the sound (and principal) .. but this story of power supply / access to the battery is really problematic.
I put only 8 / 10 because of it ..

This pedal costs around 100 euros ... which, after all, is a good value given the sound it gives ...

EDIT 06/01/2010: Clearly, I use it all the time .. I love the sounds it gives me .. Rhâââ the grain, this escalation!
ah .. and I still use it with batteries ... but hey, it's going, it consumes too much (not even changed the battery! while yet, I use it!)