What do you think of Budda Amps?

I never tried a budda but I heard they are like fender surf amps very clean with great reverb

The Stringmaster is surprisingly Dumble-like in smoothness and articulation. What a great amp. The Superdrive is awesome, too...Matchless meets Marshall with a twist, to me. I like Budda stuff a lot. Well made, too!

I have a Budda Superdrive 18 1x12 combo. It's a fantastic little amp with a big sound. It has a very Vox-like clean channel, and a well-balanced, thick lead channel. The channels share an EQ, but this hasn't been a problem as the channels are voiced well together.

I do wish it had a little more headroom with my Les Paul, but, then again, I bought the 18 watt version. If I wanted headroom, I could have gotten the Superdrive 30, 45, or 80. (and I might!)

The amp is built like a tank and performed very well on the one gig I've taken it on.

I have a Stringmaster 30 watt 4x10, and a Superdrive 30 2x12 and I love them both. So much so that these are the only two combos I own now. I'm probably a little more partial to the Stringmaster because of the sound of the 10s. Both amps are awesome though. I know a couple of amp gurus that own both Buddas and Dumbles and both say that they'd sell their Dumbles before they sold their Buddas if that says anything. And it may not...

Whats up Guy's, Can a Super Drive 18 be used at gigs, also how would you describe its distortion!
Thanks

Thanks, man i would love to check one out soon

Buddas are still kind of "sleepers." Most players I've talked to are surprizingly unfamiliar with them. I agree completely with some of the other posters on here that the Stringmaster is very "Dumble-ish"(think Robben Ford--Mystic Mile). In fact, I've talked to Scot at Budda on several occasions and he claims that the Stringmaster is very much inspired by the Dumble design/sound. Can't quite figure out why that model isn't more popular among players--dang thing is LOUD as all get out, but ULTRA responsive to your playing. I think the best "gigin'" amp I've ever had is the Twinmaster (head). Let's face it--most of us DON'T NEED a 100 watt Marshall blaring away in a club. I've used the Twinmaster on many a gig and it's always been more than enough, even with an 18 watt rating. Team that up with a Barber Burn unit or some Fulltone gear and you are ready to impress and rule the stage. If you got a question on either of these, drop me a line before you lay down your $$$---I'd be happy to answer any questions ya got...Later tater!

I'm not very good with amp descriptions, and I've never owned a Dumble, but my Stringmaster is a beautiful sounding amp. I wish it had a bit more gain available, but my FD2(comp-cut) takes care of that. It loves all the pedals I use it with, and the amp itself is dead quiet. I was looking for a Matchless DC-30 when I came across my Budda, and I'm not a bit sorry at my choice. Does anyone know why they aren't made anymore?

Hey Laroosco,
I asked Scot Sier and Jeff Bober the very same question--why WAS the Stringmaster line of Budda amps discontinued. He simply said that there wasn't enough demand (i.e. not enough sales I guess) to keep it on. So they have focused on the Twinmaster, Superdrive, etc. Given the great sound and the much coveted "dumble-like" qualities of the amps, I'm shocked that they didn't do better in the marketplace. My advice is if you can find one--keep it. You did good. The Matchless are wonderful amps--I've played some of them too--but I'm much more comfortable and happy with the Budda product.

Hey Laroo,
Yeah you did do good. I scored mine (head) for about 7 bills, but I was just VERY lucky. Landed the Twinmaster head for $50.00 and a used Peavey wolfgang that I had about $400.00 in. The Matchless stuff is just a VERY different animal than the Budda stuff. One is not necessarily "better" than the other, just a different take on tone. With all these "boutique" amps being made, there's just a lot of different flavors to try and have fun with. I've scored alot of decent deals on E-bay, but competition for such items is starting to get kinda hairy. If you feel the need to have a RIDICULOUSLY loud amp--look into the Alessandro stuff--it's insane. I'm on the prowl for a Hoffman head--he made some amps for the Allman Bros. (Warren Haynes) and I've got a live cd of Warren playing one and it is SICK!! Later mon!

This is cool. All these fellow Budda fans. It would seem that they are starting to gain a cult-like following. I thought about selling my Stringmaster 4x10 after I scored my Superdrive 30 2x12, but that thing just sounds too damn good with my NOS Strat and a good cable.

Hey Thingy!
I thought I saw your Stringmaster on eBay about 2 weeks back? Did you cancel the auction. If so I'm glad.
I've found a way to get the gain out of my Stringmaster. I discovered that if I crank the "clean" channel that it actually compresses and starts to crunch nicer than the gain channel to my ears, and at a lower volume. It also cleans up great by the guitar volume. I'm setting the clean channel volume at about 1:30. It gets a nice Top boostish sound.
It seems that at the same volume that the gain channel stays cleaner. I would love to be able to crank the gain channel to hear what it sounds like, but that would be too loud for our practice space, and my shitty 80's Ampeg 4x12 can't handle the amp at high volumes. I've bought enough pedals in the last 2 months to be able to buy a Budda 4x12, but I'm too impulsive for my own good I can't wait to hear what my new TBIAC sounds like through it.
I've owned this amp for close to a month and I'm loving it more everyday.
Long live the Budda!

Yeah, I cancelled the auction for the Stringmaster. There is another one on Ebay right now, though. I started thinking after I listed it and realized what I was doing. I still can't understand why there isn't a bigger buzz about these amps. On the up side, those of us who have heard them can actually afford them.

It's funny to me how people hear things different.
I was surfing around the HC review section and looked at the Stringmaster reviews, and I don't hear what these guys hear at all.
Both reviewers describe this amp as sounding very Fender like.
To me this amp is undeniably British. With a bridge humbucker I'm getting old Bad Company tones with the SM. Think "Movin On". IMO that's about as far from Fender as it gets.
I'm curious what the other SM owners think about this.

I definitely hear a British flavor with the Stringmaster! There is an American twist there though. Maybe it's because I have a 4x10 so it has a bassman vibe but that's about it. These amps are so darn versatile that I could see how others could hear different things and get close to some Deluxe tones depending on their settings. Personally I like British amps and EL84s in general so I set my Stringmaster accordingly.

Laroosco! - You gotta try this amp with a ZVEX Super Hard On or Super Duper 2in1! All I have to say is WOW!

Way ahead of ya Mr Thingy.
I used a Sho as boost for a while with the SM, but wound up leaving it on all the time. The presence from the SHO, plus the chime of the SM's clean channel with a strat is beautiful.