Let's Talk Soldano Hot Rod 50 Plus....

SFW

SFW

Well-known member
I am about to pick up a Soldano Hot Rod 50+. I have heard that the loop on the older Soldanos was not the best. Is that because they send line level and pedals just don't work well? So, does that mean they should be fine with rack gear? Or are they really that awful? lol. Keep in mind that I made a 2005 Splawn work well for years.... and we know what those loops were like. Is it worse than the loop in the original DSL?

All I really want to run in the loop are an Eventide H9 and an SDE-3000. Solo Dallas and a wah out front.

UPDATE: Clip!

 
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SFW said:
I am about to pick up a Soldano Hot Rod 50+. I have heard that the loop on the older Soldanos was not the best. Is that because they send line level and pedals just don't work well? So, does that mean they should be fine with rack gear? Or are they really that awful? lol. Keep in mind that I made a 2005 Splawn work well for years.... and we know what those loops were like. Is it worse than the loop in the original DSL?

All I really want to run in the loop are an Eventide H9 and an SDE-3000. Solo Dallas and a wah out front.
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Here's a guy running a HR50. He states in the comments that he needs to run the master higher like on 5 into an attenuator to get the sounds in the vid. I think those loops were designed for Rack gear.
 
I had one. Yes, the loop is for rack gear, and not pedal friendly at all.. Sounded damn good though. I had the regular HR50, not the +.
 
Both my H90 and SDE300EVH will run at line level. So I should be good. I’ve heard a SoloDallas in front of a hot rod 50 and that was mean as hell. And then only Kirk Hammett is a bigger wah freak than me….lol!
 
Had a HR 100+. Like they ^^ said, loop is for rack gear like all Soldano amps pre BAD. Cool amp, similar to an SLO but without the 3D thing the DeYoung transformers get.
 
First "dream amp" I bought when I could afford it was the HR50+.
Enjoyed it. Sold it to make a down payment on my house, back in 2009.
I've since had another HR50+, and 3 SLOs.
Like the BAD SLO the best of all them.

The effects loop in the HR50+ and og SLOs wasn't great, in circuit placement and levels. Worked fine with rack gear, but not near as good as the newer models. A cranked HR50/HR50+ is a fun amp, with plenty of great sounds.
 
I had a HR50+ and SLO100 at the same time, it was 85% there at less than half of the price.

Eventide stuff should be fine in old Soldano loops since they can take line level. However since the loop is pre-tonestack it can still be a bit dirty.
 
Was the Jet City 50 based on this Amp??
If so, I hated it and turned it into a Deliverance.. LOL

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midnightlaundry said:
Was the Jet City 50 based on this Amp??
If so, I hated it and turned it into a Deliverance.. LOL

View attachment 395389
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Yep, same circuit, I don’t know how close they sound though. I found mine very bland and uninspiring in its stock form but I also don’t play 80’s stuff so maybe a skill issue.

I’ve done a bunch of mods to my jca50. My favorite so far being a hard-delete of the FX loop and removing the FX loop tube. Made the amp a lot thicker sounding and punchier.

I never used it anyway, way too hot and pre-tonestack is a very odd design decision. If I wanted a loop I’d just add one of those LND150 zero loss loops.
 
mnemonic said:
Yep, same circuit, I don’t know how close they sound though. I found mine very bland and uninspiring in its stock form but I also don’t play 80’s stuff so maybe a skill issue.

I’ve done a bunch of mods to my jca50. My favorite so far being a hard-delete of the FX loop and removing the FX loop tube. Made the amp a lot thicker sounding and punchier.

I never used it anyway, way too hot and pre-tonestack is a very odd design decision. If I wanted a loop I’d just add one of those LND150 zero loss loops.
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Yeah, they shipped that amp with the cheapest tubes and it was super thin and bright. Noisy too.. Great deal tho.. I thin I paid $30 shipped. You couldn't buy the materials for that much..
I gave it a lot of time with modding and playing with it but I never really liked it. Way to compressed for what I was used to.. It was a good experience tho and now I have something I really like that you can't buy.
 
Well, if it gets bad enough, I’ll just use the loop in my PS100 when I use this amp. lol. Or it will just be “the dry amp.” lol.

I’ve wanted a SLO since 1992 when the F.U.C.K. album came out. lol. I know the HR50+ isn’t going to be exact, but it puts me in the ballpark. Should have bought a SLO when they were $2500 used. lol. Maybe after I get my daughter through college. I’m getting the HR50+ on a trade for a guitar I never play. So, it will be an interesting experiment. I’m interested to see how it sounds compared to my EVH Stealth.
 
It's a cool amp man. Doesn't have the bs prestige of a SLO, but a great rock amp. Have fun and congrats!
 
So here is the first play of the amp. Holy hell, Batman! Talk about zero room to hide mistakes. Overall, I like the tonal base. I'm fairly positive that the amp is in need of some new glass. It's got some of that telltale signs that the tubes are on their last leg. At least in the room you can really hear it.

Any tube recommendations would be appreciated!

 
Sovtek 5881 always just flat out worked well in Sodanos for me...around 30 to 32mA. Pre amps...roll to taste, but Chinese are good...eh12ax7 are nice in soldanos too. LPS for phase inverter. Just avoid JJ pre and you'll be good.
 
GreenRust said:
Sovtek 5881 always just flat out worked well in Sodanos for me...around 30 to 32mA. Pre amps...roll to taste, but Chinese are good...eh12ax7 are nice in soldanos too. LPS for phase inverter. Just avoid JJ pre and you'll be good.
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Yeah, thisone is full of JJs in the preamp. ugh... not a fan of JJ tubes. I think the Sovtek 5881s in the amp are original. They sound a bit tired.
 
SFW said:
Yeah, thisone is full of JJs in the preamp. ugh... not a fan of JJ tubes. I think the Sovtek 5881s in the amp are original. They sound a bit tired.
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Yeah man...clip sounds good...but with new tubes...and it should be ALIVE. I agree with JJ...only ones I've gotten along with are 6L6GC...but reliability has been a little spotty. The pres just sound like tubby undefined shit. Power tubes are likely tired like you said, I wouldn't try to chase the dragon there...5881 in soldanos just work well. Don't care for them in other amps, but just works there. Congrats again, really delighted for you...it's a kick ass amp.
 
Sounds pretty killer in your video there. Lots of cut, very dynamic. You get some great tones out of it.

I also have an older HR50+ like yours. Just a really fun amp to plug in and rock out, sounds good at a lot of different settings. I think mine might have original 5881's too, but I'm not that particular about tubes.

Someone mentioned the FX loop being pre-EQ, that's true and I agree very strange. FWIW, the Silver Jubilee is also like this, FX located in a weird spot. Main thing is anything you put in there will be affected by the EQ, and any signal you decrease or increase will also change how well the EQ works. So that's why it can be so finnicky, if you aren't at exactly perfect unity gain all the time etc it can be funny sounding.
 
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