Mike Soldano Interview. Why He Sold His Company
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- Опубликовано: 6 сен 2024
- I was so fortunate to meet such a iconic part of guitar history. Thank you Mike
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Talked with Mike one time on the phone to ask where I could get the knobs he uses on his SLO's for my own amp build. He was such a personable guy, really down to earth. Such a cool guy. He ended up telling me where he got them plus ended up shipping me the few he had in shop. For someone who builds such legendary amps I can attest to say he is really humble and a really cool guy.
Love how humble and personable Mike is, particularly considering he’s one of the fathers of modern amplifiers, with all the biggest rockstars using his stuff at one point or another.
I don’t think that a soldano was that groundbreaking from a design perspective . If you know anything about tube amp design you can see he just tried to mod a Marshall JMP circuit with an extra gain stage. The 39k cold clipper was a mistake and not even that important in the design . The real genius design originated from fender and especially in the shimmer that resulted from ghost delays in the tone stack. It was the origins for all amp builders after that
I own a Decatone and one of the greatest things about Soldano is when you'd called the support number, Michael would answer and walk you through your problem. Hopefully he still answers the phone every now and then.
he took my call back in 2016 on my Lucky 13, he troubleshot it over the phone..
I think the one thing the 30year fan base will miss about the new amps is that they are not being built by the man himself. When the guys at my local music store in Atlanta found out he was closing up shop they called Mike and asked for any amps he had left. Mike had enough parts to build an Avenger and a Hot Rod 50 Plus. I got the HR50+. He built it with the parts he had left. It even has a 100watt chassis and he signed the back of the amp. Besides it being the best amp Ive ever had I love knowing I have one of things he built with his hands at his shop. That being said I did get to play through the new 30watt and 100watt SLO and they still have every bit the magic as the original ones did.
[ believe thats valid i would not conider this a true soldano any more
Love the long interviews with lots of interesting info. Thanx Phil.
Great job. Good questions getting Mike to talk instead of just answer.
You're an amazing interviewer. I think it also helps Mike is an amazing guy too.
THX Phil! This was really cool!!!
I love the amp and cab on left. With the Matrix pattern on it. Looks siiiick.
I know a dude who is a Soldano SLO 100 FREAK! He owns 3 of the old old ones! He swears there is no way the tone of the new ones can compare to the old ones because the new ones use a different transformer because the old transformers are no longer available. I told him I think Mike figured all that out. He still insisted the tone is not as good. And guess what? He hasn’t even plugged into a new one. Now that’s just a pure Kool-aid drinker.
Mike is the coolest and most approachable amp guru guys ever!! I own one of his handwired Reverbosonics and toured with it for years...LOVE IT!! And then I was blessed to meet him and he shipped me a 120 watt 2x12 combo that is serial number 002. She’ll vibrate the fillings in your teeth lose at 4...lol! Long live Soldano!!
I'm so into this DC heaters how come they never thought of that before I'm trying to understand this throughout all the years yes it's a great interview and I love seeing Soldano he's very into what he loves and what we love
Phil i have 2 original circuit (v1) SLO's (1999 and 2001) which were built by Mike and Bill Sundt.
Bill tricked out my 5881 2001 with the efx loop switch, the haynes, SRV (slight mid scoop) mods, depth (non screened) and half power switch - so basically all the traditional SLO mods offered at the time. My 1999 has Haynes, depth (non-screened), SRV and GL KT66's.
...dont forget the DeYoung DMI transformers!!
... my 2001 SLO resides in rare Clapton tolex'd headshell and the 1999 in the famous black snake skin that Mike no longer offered due to sourcing and quantity levels req'd.
The DC heaters would be cool, but I'm playing the SLO in a metal context - so no problem/never noticed - in fact I have 12AX7 HG+'s in V1 and V2 for both SLO's!!🤯😆
Re: the effects loop, the placement pre tone stack ADDS to (vs diminishing from) the SLO "tone". Its also +4dB. And my 2001 sounds insane with the loop ON, even without anything in there. Its just a part of the overall SLO tone. The Clean/Crunch channel has a very subtle ghosting in the circuit that is also an integral part of the amp. Again just my opinion, but it was also MS's for the longest time....and i've spoken to Mike a lot over the years...
IMHO, the pre-B.A.D. circuit represents "THE" SLO tone, but YMMV.
Powder coating, dc heaters, and efx loop aside, LONG LIVE the traditional-OG-iconic SLO. (think: EVH For Unlawful Carnal, Mathias Jabs on Crazy Word, Demartini on Detonator, Lynch on Lynch Mob debut)
I love Mike and am super excited for his success - but I AM that "rabidly hardcore, loyal SLO diehard" you referenced 😝🤘 and dont want folks to think that there's anything "defective" in the traditional, OG-Seattle circuit.
Mike Soldano Amps are the best in the world. I have many different brand amps, but none of them can give me the sounds i need and straight out of the box. The Super lead overdrive is my absolute favorite followed by my Hot Rod 100 plus. These 2 Amps always deliver the goods. Thank you Mike for making quality products... they are worth every penny!
Now have a SLO pedal, great pedal ,is transparent.
Such an incredible amp! Its definitely on my must have list...great interview!
Mike Soldano is such a cool guy.
What a great, informative interview!
Thank you for this video! I can't wait to get my hands on that SLO-30.
When I met Mike Soldano backstage at a Gov't Mule show in Memphis at Gibson Factory lounge probably 15+ yrs. ago he could have passed for Jeff G of Jurassic Park brother... his hair was black and dressed suave and carried himself that he totally reminded me of Jeff G.... his amps are the best even better than a 1979 Marshall JMP 2303.. my favorite amp... but I just own a 90's Marshall JCM 900 Dual Reverb 100w with Marshall 1960 ax and bx cabs with 25w greenbacks.... too busy to play nowadays with a 22, 12, 3 and 2 yr old twins...whew no time to play... my stack hasn't been turned on in over 2 yrs.... haven't even cracked open the case of 2008 Gibson Les Paul Custom Oxblood in probably 3 yrs.....
Family trumps music, God bless you
Great interview and Mike is a fantastic and very approachable guy. I've been playing for over fifty years, first amp an early sixties AC 30, Then moved to Fender, a blond tremolux then a silver face quad reverb. I couldn't use that for the small gigs I play now and it weighed a ton. So I bought an astroverb 16 combo and it is just a fantastic amp. If anyone wants to here what a SLO really sounds best at, check out Gary Moore on David Letterman playing Still got the blues for you.
It is great that Soldano is back on the map as it is a legend of rock amps. I play mostly metal but would love a SLO for rock, blues and other stuff. I have an ENGL and plan to get another harder hitting amp for downtuned stuff.
Don't sleep in the 88 pre for metal. I use one boosted with a ts9. Brutal af.
We were sick of our guitar player using a Crate amp so we forced him to buy a Soldano Hot Rod 100 Plus. Night and day difference.
Really enjoyed this video. What a nice watch. Looked like you enjoyed this one too. Thanks Phil
This is pretty educational.
Mike's such a great guy to listen to and so down to earth!.......... Then there's the sound..... Dream amp?........ SLO 30... full stop.
I'm new to the 2nd channel. I love the content.
I so have to get that mini! Such rich tone!
I got the mini slo and i love it. Mike is awesome
Great interview Phil!
It would be awesome to have a 1 x 12" cabinet in the line. I would complement the SLO 30 so well!
Dam shame I can't just go down to Seattle anymore and feel the authenticity of the amps.
This was Great! Thanks Mike!
Wow dude great job. Great interviews
the old ones had better transformers (not made anymore) which is really important to the overall tone of the amp
Oh Phil, I just got to this video, I would like you to ask what about the big volume jump when you engage the crunch in the normal channel! Best regards Phil!
Very cool interview
One major improvement they could make is to offer more tolex coverings, I'm in the processing of re-covering my JCA100 heads (3 of them)..I ordered the Python tolex in 3 colors, purple haze (very nice/great), burgundy (good/o.k) and the black and white (a classic Soldano look) which is the same they have offered for years. Of course there is blue Python, I'm just not a fan of it. Also, there is line of faux alligator skin coverings which would really suite some, (not from the same source as the other tolex choices)..I ordered Purple but in person I'm not so impressed, I've seen it on some other amps in other colors and it looks awesome. I know they don't want to look like a Marshall copy kinda company but the Bluesbreaker grill from Eric Collins is really nice stuff (but pricey)..as well as old faithful salt and pepper basketweave, or even cane. I'm just not a fan of black on ether the tolex or the grill, reminds me of when Marshall cheapened up everything, and it costs nothing more to change the tolex color or go python. Heck, that steel mesh as used on the Soldano heads would make a nice speaker cabinet grill, and it would match the heads, ain't no way to tear that stuff and you can't get more acoustically transparent, and it doesn't cost very much either.
Since were on the subject of appearance, RGB (red green blue) LED lighting strip kits, are a suggestion. I put them in all my JCA heads and enjoy them them tremendously. Strip LED lights placed thoughtfully not only look very cool, but they help to see the control panels in dim to no other light sources (see my vids for some suggestions).. Sure any Joe with moderate solder skills can install them easily with varied degrees of reliability and esthetics but it'd be nice to have your team give it their tweaks and maybe link them up to the amp's speaker output so they could optionally light up in sync with when and how loud it's played. I did not yet re-tolex my heads so you will have to wait to see any of them, I think the Purple haze will be a grand slam hit. If it was my decision, I'd offer only the various Python colors, based on the fact that 90% given the choice between a Python (in black and white) or black would choose the Python..which I don't see why it costs more when the material is about the same price per yard.
That said about the looks, what Mike said about the pre-amp tubes having almost no noise, due to using dc current for the heaters sounds really interesting, maybe will lead to me actually buying one of the new SLO heads, I don't know, maybe. I actually like the drop in volume I get when using a foot pedal in my JCAs, it makes them sound much more brown, I leave my MXR carbon copy pedals on all the time so there isn't actually a drop of any kind, just mellows out the whole eq spectrum. I never tried one out in person, maybe I did for a few minutes in the late 80's, kinda foggy, but at that time I'm sure there would have been no way I could have paid what it costed.
I think it is a great decision to do this insourceing made in USA, instead of going to some sweat shop in China or other 3rd world country, thanks for the patriotism!
I’m a fan/user of custom tolex jobs.I’m very interested in seeing your work.Do you have an Instagram? Thanks!
@@Soldano88 I did a few youtube vids showing them, I go by zzubuzz there.
Love the video! Hopefully one day you will review the Soldano Hot Rod 25? I still think the HR25 is better even though the SLO30 is really great!
No sign of that SLO-30 on their website yet - any idea when it’s coming to market Phil? I can’t wait to hear some full demo’s of it. Absolute dream amp right there!
It was supposed to be out now, but the have been shut down. They went back to factory a week or so ago. So hopefully soon
Know Your Gear Thanks Phil, looking forward to hearing some demo’s of it. Whilst no-one could ever say £2,500 is a bargain for an amp, for what it offers and when compared to the £4,000 price of its big brother the SLO 100, I’d say it’s certainly reasonably priced, comparatively speaking.
I bought a hot rod 100 around year 1999 with serial 000368
Nobody seems to mention the transformers. Ever since people have been building SLO clones that was always the catch. They don't have DeYoung iron and that was supposedly critical to the SLO tone. These new amps don't have DeYoung iron, either. Transformers (the OT, in particular) have a huge impact on an amp's tone and feel. The new BAD SLO is a great sounding amp from all of the clips I have heard but it is essentially a $4K clone without the DMI iron. I think it's a valid point that does not seem to garner much interest and that surprises me as much as guitar players agonize over other much more trivial points.
Soldano cloning itself? The DeYoung transformers are expensive. My New SLO 100 sounds 99% like my made in 1990 SLO 100. This video is a good representation to the fact the new ones run quieter than the old ones. So whatever the brand of transformers they use now (I've not opened mine up yet & still could be a DeYoung) it hasn't effected the tone at all.
Probably drives up vintage pricing even more
That Ironman II in the corner is a heck of a silent endorsement. If this is what BAD use to gauge their amps it must be an awesome attenuator.
are all the new SLO's hand wired? eyelet boards?
How loud can the 30 get? Is it loud enough for live gigs with a loud rock drummer and bass player?
Loud as hell
Did anyone bring up the workers he employed or their great pay and benefits? Do we know if the boutique amp version will have the crazy warranty.
How many of those shirts does Mike own? I've watched like 5 different interviews and im pretty sure he's in that shirt lol
Did the label on the Gibson SG guitar in the background say "Play Authentic" LOL?
The SLO 100 is THE AMP, period.
Last month,i bought a Soldano Astroverb 16 in purple tolex,mind condition, put a Jensen Blackbird Alnico speaker in it,but still,"the feel of the amp" isn't to my taste.Also quite noisy with full gain or/and master pulled full.
I'm more into Rivera Amps, their "amp feel" is much better to me.
Mill
Is the loop in SLO the same as Jetcity ?
Ya mon
The person who down voted this has a 15 watt gorilla amp.
Wow! Im' 'like' 666, good work Phil!
why aren't they making "relic" amps.
Play 50 gigs and its gonna be a real relic.
"Available to the Masses"? 3k?
why did he sell his company
Probably because hes in his 60s and wanted to retire like everyone else. They probably payed him a few million for his company and now he can live a good life. He designed the new soldanos anyways so the only difference is that hes not building them himself anymore.
Why are there so little views on this?
Soldano amps are so expensive it costs money to watch a discussion on them
I believe it's the price if I was a major touring rocker price would not be an issue
No for real though, why the fuck does this video have SO little views?
because in this economy who can afford one of these?
O.K. Leo Saldano atleast its not CBS.
There's only 1 reason to sell a company...... $$$$ Sit back and watch his 'baby' perish. Just like Mesa Boogie was taken over by Gibson, same same. Søldano amps RULE the world since 1986. The iconic sound of rock that made the 80s the 80s sound incomparable.
He never wanted to make the next step to take a risk and make the company larger and produce more amps at lower cost so now at his age he can’t go on that way. So this is a very logical step to have a decent pension plan
4 grand for an amp head❓ Chump change.
All about money.......
Soldano-out.
Love this Amp, but Damn this amp went up more than $600 in just two years…
"I did that!" -Biden