I know a lot of people on here have been discussing these here recently and i just got mine in the mail the other day, Im pretty sure it may be the first one in Ireland. All i can say is my mind is blown by this amp. I bought the mini as i needed something more portable for those further away gigs to save me lugging the dual around and the mini seems every bit as good if not even MORE versatile.
I play a huge variety of music from glam to hardcore to death and black metal and the mini can pull off all these tones SEEMLESSLY. For those who wonder if this amp still sounds like a recto, believe me it does. It has all the character of its bigger brother and it seems even a bit warmer than my dual. The mids also seem alot more focussed and help keep the mini full sounding while not being too stiff. The vintage mode seems alot smoother too for solo work than the dual which i really like. The modern mode is every bit as agressive as the dual and to my ears has a touch more gain than the dual. Even though it may not have as much low end as the dual it still has PLENTY on tap...more than enough for my needs but most impressively the bass is incredibly tight even without a boost. The amp really sounds ten times bigger than it looks.
The biggest surprise for me was the clean channel. I dont use the clean channel too much but i brought it to a friends today and he plays more blues and funk and he gave it a run thru. Its really sparkely with the presence up above 12 but it never gets too dark! Arpreggiated chords sounded great with the gain just about 12. On the pushed mode though the amp really impresses me. WIth the gain about 12-1 and a fair bit of mids and treble it just has this really musical quaily with a nice purr on the notes that just sounds great for blues solos and some funky chords. Both me and my mate were blown away by how good this mode sounds. It was just so warm and musical to our ears.
Sorry for the lenght of the post but i wanted to give an honest and complete review. The last point id like to make is for people who wonder is the mini loud enough for drummers etc...I reckon its still loud enough to vapourise a drummer. Although i havent played it with a band yet i can barely get it to 8 oclock on the output in my bedroom on 25 watts without it being seriously loud. Even the ten watt setting would probably be loud enough to play most venues.
Anyway thanks for reading this and please let me know what you guys think of the mini and if you have any questions fire them at me!
Dave
I play a huge variety of music from glam to hardcore to death and black metal and the mini can pull off all these tones SEEMLESSLY. For those who wonder if this amp still sounds like a recto, believe me it does. It has all the character of its bigger brother and it seems even a bit warmer than my dual. The mids also seem alot more focussed and help keep the mini full sounding while not being too stiff. The vintage mode seems alot smoother too for solo work than the dual which i really like. The modern mode is every bit as agressive as the dual and to my ears has a touch more gain than the dual. Even though it may not have as much low end as the dual it still has PLENTY on tap...more than enough for my needs but most impressively the bass is incredibly tight even without a boost. The amp really sounds ten times bigger than it looks.
The biggest surprise for me was the clean channel. I dont use the clean channel too much but i brought it to a friends today and he plays more blues and funk and he gave it a run thru. Its really sparkely with the presence up above 12 but it never gets too dark! Arpreggiated chords sounded great with the gain just about 12. On the pushed mode though the amp really impresses me. WIth the gain about 12-1 and a fair bit of mids and treble it just has this really musical quaily with a nice purr on the notes that just sounds great for blues solos and some funky chords. Both me and my mate were blown away by how good this mode sounds. It was just so warm and musical to our ears.
Sorry for the lenght of the post but i wanted to give an honest and complete review. The last point id like to make is for people who wonder is the mini loud enough for drummers etc...I reckon its still loud enough to vapourise a drummer. Although i havent played it with a band yet i can barely get it to 8 oclock on the output in my bedroom on 25 watts without it being seriously loud. Even the ten watt setting would probably be loud enough to play most venues.
Anyway thanks for reading this and please let me know what you guys think of the mini and if you have any questions fire them at me!
Dave
