The history of the OD-100?

J.B.

J.B.

Moderator
John or Ed. I was wondering, can we get the low down on the OD-100? How it started, then what kind of modifacations were done and how it has evolved to where it is today? I see a lot of different OD-100's (OD-100, OD-100 Classic, Classic plus, SE, SE+, etc, etc) and am really interested in the differences between all of these.

Thanks in advance!! :)
 
Well, it does have a long and a bit convoluted history. John can give you the details on the early history when it was developed in the early-90's. Basically, we at Suhr Guitars took over the manufacturing and distribution of the OD-100 in 2004 since John designed the OD-100 and the 3+SE preamp when he was working for CAE and Bob Bradshaw. Bob wasn't interested in building and selling amps, so the OD-100 sort of languished under the CAE umbrella when John left CAE to join the Fender Custom Shop in 1994.

When Suhr Guitars introduced the OD-100 in 2004, there was only one basic version that was initially called the OD-100SH (for Scott Henderson). It was basically like the original OD-100 with a different clean channel voiced for Scott. Since then, the OD-100 has evolved into various versions based on artist and customer tweaks we've been doing since 2005. Here's the lineup:

OD-100 Standard Plus (5881 power tubes - aggressive and open sounding)
OD-100 Classic (EL34's - CH2 OD channel based on Landau's early-70's Marshall head)
OD-100 Classic Plus (Like the Classic but with more gain on CH2)
OD-100 SE Plus (EL34's - based on CH3 of the 3+SE preamp - saturated gain with more compression) The new SEPlus with WhompII is very tight and fat.

OD-100 ML Plus (built for Landau - like Classic Plus but with 2 switchable gain controls on CH2)
PT-100 (EL34's - built for Pete Thorn - based on the Std Plus but with a brighter and more aggressive CH2)

An option we can add on all of the above models is two-gain and two-master controls for CH2, effectively making the amps a three-channel version although the EQ will be shared between the two.
 
I think the important thing to note is that the qualities of an amp can be as subjective and personal as the specs and qualities of a guitar. That's why we've ended up with so many different versions of the OD. In the same way some player prefers Alder over any other kind of wood while another prefers Ash or Mahogany (or Maple board or Rosewood board, etc.), players prefer the voicing and the tactile response of a certain amp over another. It isn't a whole lot of work to make the amp a little more cutting or a little tighter or a little looser or give it a little more or less gain, etc. Through these customized tweaks for artists and customers, we've come up with all these other models and we can further tweak existing models if you need a little more or less of something.
 
Ed Yoon":1ma40aby said:
I think the important thing to note is that the qualities of an amp can be as subjective and personal as the specs and qualities of a guitar. That's why we've ended up with so many different versions of the OD. In the same way some player prefers Alder over any other kind of wood while another prefers Ash or Mahogany (or Maple board or Rosewood board, etc.), players prefer the voicing and the tactile response of a certain amp over another. It isn't a whole lot of work to make the amp a little more cutting or a little tighter or a little looser or give it a little more or less gain, etc. Through these customized tweaks for artists and customers, we've come up with all these other models and we can further tweak existing models if you need a little more or less of something.
Click to expand...

That is really cool that you guys offer custom tweaks like that. :thumbsup:
 
Really wanting an OD 100 SE+ with the 2 gain/2 master on Channel 2. Chris said the boost could be assignable for both of those. I forgot to ask if the boost can be assignable to channel 1 as well. I need to get this ordered. :yes:
 
One of the coolest things about Suhr is the ability to tweak things just for you- It's amazing to find a company with so much talent and know-how on tap, with the resources to make things the way you want, and yet it's still small enough that they take care of you personally and efficiently. Basically, if I ask John for something, he usually comes back with an answer that is better than I could have hoped for- like when I took my main PT100 amp in right before tour to get 2 masters installed- they silkscreened a new faceplate, put a new footswitch jack in the back, installed the mod, and I walked out with my amp in no time.... granted, I was under the gun for time, so they really hooked me up, I'm sure there's a reasonable wait period usually, but it's that kind of customer service that is just SO AWESOME. :rock:

Also, John made me a custom mixer pc board for my w/d/w rig that rules- allows me to mix any amount of dry signal and wet signal from 2 different effects into my wet cabs. It's very cool. He's da man!
 
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