Fame Guitar amplification

(Originally written by SlapKid/translated from Audiofanzine FR) I owned this stack since 2004 and I sold it recently. Total weight: 79 lb. (head + speaker cabinet)! So it's light. Similar to the Hartke Piggyback 408 because it comes from the same Chinese factory (named Megatone... afterwards each brand adds its own sticker). Output power: 60 watts with this 4 ohm speaker. 40 watts with an 8 ohm speaker cabinet. Don't use a speaker with lower impedance than 4 ohms! Serial FX loop, reverb (always a bit audible even when the control is turned fully down), Electroharmonix 12AX7 preamp tube (also for the clean sound). Gain, volume, bass and treble controls in the clean channel. Same settings plus medium control in the lead channel. Low signal to noise ratio. UTILIZATION Extremely easy to use. The beautiful finish is surprising considering the price. BUT: I had to tune the speaker cabinet because it vibrated above a given SPL: I used a lot of wood glue to seal the joints. ALSO: I had to change the channel selector and the tube since they were both faulty and the amp didn't work well... SOUNDS This amp is nice because it combines two sound personalities: warm and present in clean mode, which is perfect for jazz musicians among others (the 8" speakers sound accurate). In distortion mode it produces a JCM800-like sound! With the gain setting at minimum you get a power blues sound. Set at 11 o'clock, you get a powerful sound for rhythm parts while at 3 o'clock the amp produces a versatile solo sound. The amp doesn't generate too much noise but I don't play a Fender guitar. The mid control is very useful and it doesn't alter the sound. The original reverb sounds awful so I installed a short Accutronics (235 mm) in the amp and now it's much better. Notice that this applies to another speaker cabinet because the original one didn't match the amp. It sounded too "disco" and it didn't produce enough mids. On the contrary, it sounds very good with a 100-watt Marshall head so I wouldn't say it's a bad speaker cabinet. I got the best results with a closed 212 cabinet (Celestion G12T and G12P speakers). OVERALL OPINION This stack is worth its price when you tune it. It has the right size and looks when you use it at home but the day will come when you will have to buy a better amp. For this last application I connected a multi-effects processor in the FX loop to play at a reasonable volume. The problems I had with my stack were surprising because it's not usual for an EH tube or a switch to get broken after only two months. As a summary, it's a good stack (with three years warranty).

This is a newer combo amp, part of Fame "TUBE" series. It's actually a solid-state amp, which I wasn't expecting. There are 100 watts of power. There are three inputs, two channels. There are the standard Fame controls. Volume and three way EQ plus presence for the normal channel, as well as a volume, gain, three way eq for the dirty. There's also reverb and master volume. UTILIZATION I was surprised that the sound was as good as it was, considering it's not a tube amp. The clean and dirty settings both produce some decent tones. It's easy enough to manipulate, there aren't any special effects on it really. The manual will explain the amp well, even though it's really not all that necessary. SOUNDS This sounds pretty good for a solid-state. The main draw that this has is a good clean sound, it was thick and full when I plugged in my Les Paul. It was still half-decent with a Strat. Getting a mildly overdriven sound out of the clean channel was impossible, though, considering that that's a tube-only phenomenon. I really don't know about the dirty channel, it really rocked when I used the Les Paul, but also sucked when I used the Strat. It also rocked in a very modern kind of way, actually more like a 90s or late 80s kind of way, which I wasn't wild about necessarily. This thing is probably the best solid-state amp I've tried, and if you are somebody who for whatever reason prefers that sound, this is probably going to be very welcome in your collection. OVERALL OPINION I eventually decided it wasn't worth replacing a tube amp with a solid state, so I exchanged this and got a valve Fame amp, sort of similar to the one I had before. I think that the price is good and for what it does, it's a pretty sick amp. I was pretty happy with the lead tones when I really needed to wail, and considering that's the name of the amp, I'd say they succeeded. However, it wasn't enough for me at the end of the day.

(Originally written by Sixseven/translated from Audiofanzine FR) 100-watt tube amp with high and low inputs, FX loop, relay, reverb, clean, boost, distortion gain 1, distortion gain 2, 4/8/16-ohm 1/4" speaker outputs and send and return connections. UTILIZATION Very easy to use. Great sound for rock and hard rock players. You won't need to play loud to have fun. SOUNDS Very versatile. I use it with an Epiphone Les Paul Ace Frehley, a Wildkat, an SG Korina, and a Jazz with Seymour Duncan 59 pickups. The sound ranges from low/mid to mid/high when the guitar is directly connected to the amp. If you insert a multi-effects processor (I have a Line 6 Pod XT Pro) you can also get a crystal-clear sound. I like the clarity of the clean channel and the typical rock sound of the lead channel. OVERALL OPINION I've been using it for nine months. The thing that first caught my eye was its price but when I tested it I immediately knew it was the amp I needed. I love its look and sound. It broke two months ago but it was still in warranty so I sent it in for repair, which took a long time. I got it back three weeks ago and it broke again after just three rehearsals. It's still covered by the warranty but I don't feel confident anymore. I fear that it might break during a live show. That's the reason why I'm thinking about buying another amp. Value for money... Considering the problems I've had, I'd say the quality matches the price perfectly... I don't think I'd buy it again. I'm still waiting to get it back (again), and when I do I'll take a decision.