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Why is the Soldano SLO100 so expensive?


danbronson

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I liked my JCM800 more (mostly due to it's clarity even with the gain maxed and overdriven), though the 800 wasn't as big/deep sounding.



Too bad you changed your mind about my modifying it while I lived in Calgary and you were at my place...and I could've done it on the spot... :D

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I guess there's just something about "hacking up" (even if you can make it reversible) an amp like that that doesn't sit well with me. I liked that it was as old as it was and stock/mint.

 

 

But you brought it to me to get it modified in the first place, I said I'd change one capacitor--and that it would be easily reversible later to make it look stock again--but then you changed your mind at that point. I don't understand how I could've given you any better option in terms of a mod. Changing one small component is hardly considered hacking the amp up.

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But you brought it to me to get it modified in the first place, I said I'd change one capacitor--and that it would be easily reversible later to make it look stock again--but then you changed your mind at that point. I don't understand how I could've given you any better option in terms of a mod. Changing one small component is hardly considered hacking the amp up.



James Peters does mods?

:wave:

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^ Not so. Here's a tour video of their factory:




Looks like a comfy place to work, but it doesn't seem like anything super high tech or whatever.

 

 

that's actually the old shop. They recently moved to a new place. It's much cleaner and more organized looking than their old shop in the video. And plus, the floor is purple! That adds mega mojo!

 

Mike is a great guy who builds a great amp. If people are willing to pay the price he asks, then why is that wrong?

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James Peters does mods?


:wave:



Sometimes, but not often. What I prefer to do, if I do a mod, is to focus on one or two aspects of the sound a person isn't happy with. It involves a discussion, my trying the amp, retubing it and biasing it (usually first), getting the owner to consider different guitars/pickups/speakers if it makes sense, then in the end I may change a few components in the amp to make it closer to what the person wants. I have no blanket mods for all amps, and I won't usually even try to make other amps sound like my designs (since they might as well be made with turret boards, because there'd be a lot to modify and I'm not going to hack a PCB amp to do it).

If you are looking for something that's representative of what I design, consider my amps. If you have an amp that's not quite where it should be in terms of sound or feel, maybe I'd modify it. But I'm not even advertising that and for what it's worth I don't even care to be doing mods. :) There isn't enough money to be made from it for the time spent.

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The SLO is a great amp, but it is also way overpriced. It costs retail to buy all the parts less than 1000.00. Now Soldano, gets those parts much cheaper because he buys in quantity. By going PCB, this actually cuts labor costs and parts costs because large quantity's of PCB's are cheap compared to PTP wiring. The SLO has less parts and is more simple than the Rectifiers and 5150 amps. It is a very basic 2 channel amp that also has bleed issues with the clean channel. (Clean channel bleeds into the high gain channel.) Not a huge deal but many guys mod them to stop that.

The SLO is a 1500.00 dollar amp tops. But it got a great reputation in the late 80's and some famous people starting playing them, Clapton, Warren Haynes, every 80's metal player, etc. So the amps name is what you are really paying the extra money for. It is a great amp, but really not worth more than 1500.00.

The SLO is the most commonly "cloned" DIY amp because it is so easy to do.

The SLO Clone forums, are a group of guys who dead on clone the SLO's for under 1000.00 and that is including either PTP or a heavy plated PCB.

So yes the SLO is way overpriced. But as someone stated, people fell they are getting something when buying one, so the will pay the prices. Mike will charge what ever he can get away with. Most companies do.

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That's the problem. If no one would willingly pay more than 2k for the SLO. Mike won't be able to charge so much

 

 

If Mike couldnt "charge so much", I doubt he could keep enough profit margin to stay afloat, or at least to make owning the business even worthwhile. Its not like hes a huge company swimming in money where hes just charging more to be greedy....

 

Besides, the target audience who is requesting lower prices would most likely just buy used anyway, even if the prices sunk to around 2K...

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For the love of god, can people stop saying the 5150 and the dual recs have the same circuit as the SLO? Even if they do share 90% of it, there are plenty of tweaks and differences in both that make them sound completely different.

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If he charged too much for the SLO, then he'd be out of business. High gain amps, even clones, aren't that easy to build - most built by people trying to save a buck are plagued with noise and oscillations. I owned a VERY well built SLO clone, and it was 90% of the tone of a real one to my ear. But there are some people that are going to pay more for that last 10%, and it's worth it to them.

I hate these threads, they tend to be full of idiots complaining about the high cost of things that they only see the price of parts on. Take into account that he has to pay people to build them, has to pay insurance, has to pay for office space, etc. If you look at the Soldano office, it's not like he has gold plated walls or anything. The guy ain't a gazillionaire! Plus shouldn't he be able to make a few bucks on something that HE DESIGNED? How many hours did Mike spend refining that amp?

Pete

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If he charged too much for the SLO, then he'd be out of business. High gain amps, even clones, aren't that easy to build - most built by people trying to save a buck are plagued with noise and oscillations. I owned a VERY well built SLO clone, and it was 90% of the tone of a real one to my ear. But there are some people that are going to pay more for that last 10%, and it's worth it to them.


I hate these threads, they tend to be full of idiots complaining about the high cost of things that they only see the price of parts on. Take into account that he has to pay people to build them, has to pay insurance, has to pay for office space, etc. If you look at the Soldano office, it's not like he has gold plated walls or anything. The guy ain't a gazillionaire! Plus shouldn't he be able to make a few bucks on something that HE DESIGNED? How many hours did Mike spend refining that amp?


Pete

 

 

Best post. One I am in COMPLETE agreement with.

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Because the sound of sizzling bacon is very sexy.

 

 

 

 

Now thats the EXACT thought that comes to mind everytime I hear a new

JVM clip posted.

 

 

So, Which amp wins the "Fizzy Sizzler" Award

 

a JVM or a SLO ???

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i think they're too expensive

 

 

 

So what? I think the Bogner XTC is too expensive.

I think the Cornford models are too expensive.

I KNOW the 5150 is too expensive.

I think EVERY AMP above $1000 is too expensive.

 

 

But since when does what you or I think make any

difference. I have owned the SLO, there is no other

amp that does what it does. NONE. So it brings

what it brings.

 

Also, your opinion is yours and you are entitled to it,

but that doesn't make it an informed opinion or a

correct one.

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So what? I think the Bogner XTC is too expensive.

I think the Cornford models are too expensive.

I KNOW the 5150 is too expensive.

I think EVERY AMP above $1000 is too expensive.



But since when does what you or I think make any

difference. I have owned the SLO, there is no other

amp that does what it does. NONE. So it brings

what it brings.


Also, your opinion is yours and you are entitled to it,

but that doesn't make it an informed opinion or a

correct one.




:freak:

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Used SLO's in mint condition for less than $2,000 are a thing of the past. Mike sort of "started it all" for that type of tone. He has a rep and his amp delivers the goods.

You get what you pay for. If you don't want to pay Mike's price for a new one, I highly doubt he would care. Good luck, these days, finding a mint used one cheap.

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Soldanos are built to 'military specifications'. Which means extremely high-grade parts and extremely meticulous craftsmanship. They don't let so much as a spec of dust in the room that their built in...these guys are probably wearing spacesuits. No joke!

You mean not like the thugs working at Krank??:lol: :lol: :D

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