Slant 6V 2x12

2x12" Kingpin speakers, 4 6V6s, 4 12AX7s, 2 12AT7s, reverb on clean channel, 2 channels(switching a la AB box), 5AR4 tube rectifier, 40 watts(2 6V6s in cathode-bias, 2 in fixed bias), heavy leather handle, cowboy-tooled tolex covering. The wattage is switchable down to 22 watts in fixed bias(like a 2x12 Deluxe Reverb) or 18 watts in cathode bias(think AC15/Matchless Lightning in 2x12 format). It's not some gimmick, either...it really works effectively, and you can hear the changes in response and tone accordingly.

The clean channel is easily the best I've heard. Great clean tones I've experienced are: Dumble(smooth and airy), Matchless DC-30(nice compression and sag with chime, but a touch harsh), Matchless Lightning(think improved AC15 with better bass and treble response), Deluxe Reverb(great clean tone, but flabby in the lows when pushed and a little icepick-ish if not modded), Dr. Z Maz Jr. 2x10(great cross of Fender and Vox, but a bit too spitty and harsh), Matchless Chieftain(great mid focus and smooth tone), etc.

On with the REVIEW... The clean is extremely smooth with a good amount of chime AND sparkle. It has a solid low end that never gets flabby for me. It sounds great even without a compressor or OD, which is hard to do, I think. The top end is very airy, but it's always articulated...it doesn't just disappear or turn into a wash. Not a hrash amp in the slightest, and you can scoop the mids or crank 'em up...doesn't matter. It's still smooth. It responds extremely well to pedals, which is a huge factor. It loves clean boosts, if you decide to go that route, but never exhibits the flabbyness of a DR when doing so. The transition into natural overdrive is smooth and never brittle. Works great for blues.

The reverb isn't the best...I won't lie. It's sufficient for live use, but that's it. (to me) It's about like an average Fender combo. Not like a great Fender tube reverb outboard unit, though. I set it barely on for just a hint of ambience that nobody else notices, and I use mainly delays.

The overdrive channel is a great one, to me, and has qualities of Dumble(smoothness), Marshall(great mid thickness), and Mesa(big bottom). I usually hate Mesas, by the way, but they do have a big bottom end. Anyway, it's very smooth like everything else in the amp. It has a gain switch, and I use it mainly on the low gain side. I then goose it with an OD box, compressor, or clean boost. The high gain sounds great, but I'm more a fan of power amp distortion and OD boxes. The sound is really thick, smooth and articulated. Basically, it's like the clean channel except has the drive and even more punch.

The possibilities and combinations are many, and I can't list them all. It makes a superb session amp. Even for live stuff you can implement the power/biasing switch very easily. This amp isn't cheap, but is compared to some of the current manufacturers. (2 rock, Bruno, Matchless, etc.) It will run you about $1800-2000 for the same amp I got. The difference is, now, that they come with a footswitching function whereas mine is a 2 input/AB switch scheme. Try one out!!

Gear I use with it: Teles w/ Fralins and SD Nashville Studios, Alamo Strat, EB/MM EVH, PRS, McInturff Taurus, Blackbox Oxygen comp., Menatone pedals, MJM BLues Devil, Rat, Line 6 DL-4, Analogman Clone chorus, George Dennis phaser, Fulltone pedals, etc.

Slant 6 in the head and cab configuration. The cab is a Carr 1x12 with a 12" Kingpin speaker.

I primarily play a '74 Strat or Hamer FM Special, with various pedals for tricks and special effects.

Previous reviewer covered the features. When I was amp shopping I was looking for the classic Fender sound, and had about narrowed the search down to a Fender Deluxe Reverb RI, planning to change the speaker and tubes. As I was playing the DR one last time, a salesman walked into the sound room and said "If you like the DR sound, you should try the Carr Slant 6 next to you". Since I was there and it was there, I did. I was completely blown away, by how terrific it sounded; it produced a far better DR tone than the Fender DR. That alone was enough to sell me, but as explored the second channel and the added gain switch, I found many more very useful tones. I'm not personally familar with many of the touchstone amps (I've never seen a Matchless, let alone played one), but the Slant 6 produced 3 or 4 great tones in addition to the classic DR. It does a great '70's era Santana-like singing tone, it does great '70's crunch, it does a wonderful intermediate gain Marshall-like tone, and it has a nice AC-30 type chime. And of course, for me the most important of all, the Fender DR with all its clean and dirty variations.

My head has footswitchable channel switching, so it's very useful for gigging. The previous reviewer didn't like the reverb, but I love it. It deep, rich and covers everything from a light tough all the way to full-scale surf.

It's so versatile that I seldom use any OD or distortion. I have a Bansai Cold Fusion as a clean boost for solos, and a Frantone Sweet for Big Muff Pi fuzz. Everything else I need for 50's, 60's and 70's classic rock covers comes from the amp and it's various channel and gain stage options.

Everyone has their own idea of the perfect amp. Because it nails perfectly my favourite tones (Fender DR), and offers several other great tones as well, it's my perfect amp.

Oh man I envy you guys.
Great reviews from you both.

Craig

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HammerHead 1x12 is AWESOME!!!!