B
Brain Becker
Member
What's it like? Is the gain it provides like using a boost out front or is it better? I'm thinking about trying one on my 2203 and I'm needing some opinions.
Juggernaut
Well-known member
Man thats wierd, I was just about to post the same damned thread...... 
Dale B
Well-known member
It adds a pretty good bit of gain. It's basically like taking the existing circuit and giving it nearly the same amount of gain that a Mesa Recto has on tap, but it's all fairly usable.
JamesPeters
New member
Juggernaut":3bf37 said:Man thats wierd, I was just about to post the same damned thread......
That's why his name is "brain". He has teh_powurz.
B
Brain Becker
Member
W3rd.JamesPeters":62bfb said:Juggernaut":62bfb said:Man thats wierd, I was just about to post the same damned thread......
That's why his name is "brain". He has teh_powurz.
Juggernaut
Well-known member
Hey James, what the hell is that thing? looks like a tube, but....
Just wondering what the idea is behind it.
Just wondering what the idea is behind it.
Dale B
Well-known member
Juggernaut":bf8b2 said:
You talking about The Hot Mod?
Juggernaut
Well-known member
yes
Dale B
Well-known member
Juggernaut":6191c said:
It's a 6K11, which is a triple triode preamp tube. In other words, it has 3 gain stages. The tube fits on top of the adapter. The adapter is just a circuit that reconfigures that part of the circuit that it's plugged into.
Juggernaut
Well-known member
cool, Thanks. I saw one on ebay last night and kinda piqued my interest, was curious what the hell it was.
B
Brain Becker
Member
I bid on that just a bit ago. I don't know if I'll win it, but it has got me curious.Juggernaut":7caad said:
Juggernaut
Well-known member
wasnt it BIN for $150?
Dale B
Well-known member
They're a real good add-on modification. The tubes aren't that "high-dollar" either. Most of the 6K11's you see around today are just relabeled GE's, but there may be a few Sylvania's out there. The GE's have the side getter and the Sylvania's have the getter on top.
If I wasn't going to have my amp modded here pretty soon, I would pick up another Hot Mod.
PS - My finger has improved leaps and bounds here lately!
I'll be back!
If I wasn't going to have my amp modded here pretty soon, I would pick up another Hot Mod.
PS - My finger has improved leaps and bounds here lately!
I'll be back!
B
Brain Becker
Member
That's what the bidding started at.Juggernaut":2f7ed said:
Juggernaut
Well-known member
Found this Q&A with Mike Soldano about the HotMod interesting.... I'd still like to get one to play with though.
"Here's the story on the HotMod, starting with a little history. It was originally designed by my head technician, Bill Sundt, before Soldano Custom Amplification even existed. In the early to mid eighties we were both working at (now defunct) Stars Guitars in San Francisco. In addition to the guitar work, I was doing amp mods and repairs there, mostly on Marshalls. Bill worked in the machine shop, but was, and of course still is, an avid amp tinkerer. In the course of our numerous gab sessions, we'd talked about how cool it would be to have a high-gain amp mod that you could just toss in a Marshall with little or no effort. "Amp Mods While-U-Wait!" - we figured it could be a real moneymaker. Before we had time to give this idea much more thought, I'd decided to move back to Seattle to concentrate on an amp design that was kicking around in my head (the now legendary SOLDANO 100w Super Lead Overdrive). A while later Stars Guitars went out of business, and shortly after that, Bill mailed me a device that he'd been working on - a plug in mod for a Marshall! I stuck it in my '77 Marshall model 2203 100w master volume and it sounded great.
A year or so later I moved to LA and started Soldano Custom Amplification. When business got going, Bill came out to Hollywood to join the fun, and brought the HotMod with him. Actually, it wasn't yet called the HotMod, that name was provided by our friend Ed Simione (now of TC Electronics fame) who helped us get the HotMod in production.
The HotMod is no longer made. In it's final form, it was a plug module with a tube that replaced a specific 12AX7 preamp tube in certain Marshall and Fender amps, and a few others as well. The fact that you could hot rod your amp without having to physically modify the amp itself proved to be especially handy if you had a "collectable" vintage amp and didn't want to ruin its value. It worked by inserting an additional gain stage into the preamp circuit of the amp it was plugged into. Conceptually, it was a really great product and, when properly applied, worked quite well. Ultimately, however, there were a few problems that led to my decision to quit making it. The first one was that it only worked in specific amps. That, in itself, didn't really bother us since we only had Marshalls in mind when designing it. The problem was, some users either ignored or lost the instructions that came with the HotMod, and put it in amps it wasn't designed for. It never hurt their amps - but it didn't work either! Another problem was with non-master volume amps (like your '77 Super Lead, if it were stock). Since the HotMod boosted the gain after the volume controls, by the time it started working, the amp's volume was essentially wide open. Of course, adding a master volume to the amp would solve this problem, but that sort of defeated the whole "no tools required" aspect of the HotMod. The final problem was cost and parts availability. There were several different tubes that we used in the HotMod, but all of them had been out of production for quite a while, so we had to rely on surplus stocks for our supply. That always bothered me. Also, as simple as the HotMod was, it was tedious and costly to assemble, and when all was said and done, we couldn't make any money on it and still have it be affordable. Now you all know more about the HotMod than you probably ever wanted to!
Getting back to your question - even if you could find one, I would not recommend the HotMod, simply because there are better options available to you. My first recommendation is the SOLDANO Supercharger G.T.O. (shameless plug number one). If you're not familiar with it, it is an all tube line driver/overdrive pedal that really works. Plugging one of these into your Marshall will give you all the gain you could ever want, plus huge tone and switchability to boot! If you'd rather not use a pedal and want to have your amp hot rodded instead, I still offer a high-gain mod for your Marshall that sounds amazing (shameless plug number two - ha,ha,ha!). It's as close as you can get to the lead channel sound of my 100w Super Lead Overdrive without owning one. If this interests you, give me or Bill a call at (206) 781-4636 and we'll take care of you."
"Here's the story on the HotMod, starting with a little history. It was originally designed by my head technician, Bill Sundt, before Soldano Custom Amplification even existed. In the early to mid eighties we were both working at (now defunct) Stars Guitars in San Francisco. In addition to the guitar work, I was doing amp mods and repairs there, mostly on Marshalls. Bill worked in the machine shop, but was, and of course still is, an avid amp tinkerer. In the course of our numerous gab sessions, we'd talked about how cool it would be to have a high-gain amp mod that you could just toss in a Marshall with little or no effort. "Amp Mods While-U-Wait!" - we figured it could be a real moneymaker. Before we had time to give this idea much more thought, I'd decided to move back to Seattle to concentrate on an amp design that was kicking around in my head (the now legendary SOLDANO 100w Super Lead Overdrive). A while later Stars Guitars went out of business, and shortly after that, Bill mailed me a device that he'd been working on - a plug in mod for a Marshall! I stuck it in my '77 Marshall model 2203 100w master volume and it sounded great.
A year or so later I moved to LA and started Soldano Custom Amplification. When business got going, Bill came out to Hollywood to join the fun, and brought the HotMod with him. Actually, it wasn't yet called the HotMod, that name was provided by our friend Ed Simione (now of TC Electronics fame) who helped us get the HotMod in production.
The HotMod is no longer made. In it's final form, it was a plug module with a tube that replaced a specific 12AX7 preamp tube in certain Marshall and Fender amps, and a few others as well. The fact that you could hot rod your amp without having to physically modify the amp itself proved to be especially handy if you had a "collectable" vintage amp and didn't want to ruin its value. It worked by inserting an additional gain stage into the preamp circuit of the amp it was plugged into. Conceptually, it was a really great product and, when properly applied, worked quite well. Ultimately, however, there were a few problems that led to my decision to quit making it. The first one was that it only worked in specific amps. That, in itself, didn't really bother us since we only had Marshalls in mind when designing it. The problem was, some users either ignored or lost the instructions that came with the HotMod, and put it in amps it wasn't designed for. It never hurt their amps - but it didn't work either! Another problem was with non-master volume amps (like your '77 Super Lead, if it were stock). Since the HotMod boosted the gain after the volume controls, by the time it started working, the amp's volume was essentially wide open. Of course, adding a master volume to the amp would solve this problem, but that sort of defeated the whole "no tools required" aspect of the HotMod. The final problem was cost and parts availability. There were several different tubes that we used in the HotMod, but all of them had been out of production for quite a while, so we had to rely on surplus stocks for our supply. That always bothered me. Also, as simple as the HotMod was, it was tedious and costly to assemble, and when all was said and done, we couldn't make any money on it and still have it be affordable. Now you all know more about the HotMod than you probably ever wanted to!
Getting back to your question - even if you could find one, I would not recommend the HotMod, simply because there are better options available to you. My first recommendation is the SOLDANO Supercharger G.T.O. (shameless plug number one). If you're not familiar with it, it is an all tube line driver/overdrive pedal that really works. Plugging one of these into your Marshall will give you all the gain you could ever want, plus huge tone and switchability to boot! If you'd rather not use a pedal and want to have your amp hot rodded instead, I still offer a high-gain mod for your Marshall that sounds amazing (shameless plug number two - ha,ha,ha!). It's as close as you can get to the lead channel sound of my 100w Super Lead Overdrive without owning one. If this interests you, give me or Bill a call at (206) 781-4636 and we'll take care of you."
Scott Ians Beard
New member
I have one, its a cool little thing. It adds tons of gain, or at least in my amp. I ran/run it in a JCM800 2204, with it engaged anything above half on the gain control is unusable (or at least to me and my sloppy playing!). I am under the impression that it can take a few tubes, not just the 6k11, so there is some possibility for variety there too.
All in all, its a great thing, and I got mine for a steal!
All in all, its a great thing, and I got mine for a steal!