Quilter MicroBlock 45 45W Guitar Amp Head

This was the first Quilter amp I bought because it is the smallest, cheapest and simplest of their designs. I now own four different Quilter amps.It has astonishing power and clarity; Easily the equal in output to many MUCH bigger brand name combo amps.I tested it by connecting it to 1x12" and 2x12' cabs, then A-B'd it with Fender, Marshall and HiWatt amps through 4x12" cabs.I have a variety of speaker cabs for various sessions or gigs. Some are loaded with greenback Celestions, others with super duty Electro-Voice 12" speakers. The lightweight Traynor cabs are loaded with Traynor or Celestion neodymium speakers. Since I have used these cabs with various amps for decades, I am very familiar with how they sound and react to my Marshall, HiWatt and Fender heads.This has a simple one-knob “Q” control for “EQ.” In the center (12 o-clock) position, it is FLAT. At 12 noon, it sounds like a boutique tube jazz amp with PLENTY of head room, provided you don’t go crazy with the gain.Turned left ( counter clockwise) it is a mid-scooped EQ. I think that position is intended for heavy distortion from pedals OR providing chime and clarity like a clean Twin. I used that only for clean jazz settings. Although I did have fun testing it with my Carl Martin Plexi-Drive.Turned right (clockwise) the Q knob cuts bass and leaves the highs, much like a “dimed” Marshall. With the gain, Q and master at MAX (right) this things sounds very much like my old unmodified plexis… and it is damn near as loud!The only nuisance with this is they had to cut costs to sell it so cheaply. One way they did that is with the external power supply. That way, only the power supply itself requires UL ratings, which are expensive and time-consuming to get. By using the external supply, they save those compliance costs and (wisely) pass the savings onto buyers.The external power supply reduces the size of the amp itself, but to make an amp with this much headroom, they had to use a robust power supply. So, the “little brick” adds some weight to the package.There also is no on/off switch. You just plug it in to turn it on. To some, that may be a disadvantage if you always connect it for use. However, I believe the intent was to use this on a pedal board. For that application, you would keep the power supply plugged in at all times, so when you plug in the pedal board, your mighty mini amp automatically comes alive.As I said, I bought this little Quilter first. There is no dealer in my area to try one out, so I figured this was the least risky option. There’s no way I’m sending it back. In fact, because tis sounds SO FRIGGIN AWESOME, I bought the 101R, the MACH2 head and an Aviator combo.Like all Quilter amps, these are designed to “play nice” with effects pedals. I have used Sans amp pedals, Boss DA2 distortion and my favorite Carl Martin Plexi drive.It is no exaggeration to say that in conjunction with the CM plexi drive, this can sound and feel EXACTLY like the best customized amps I own.Pat quilter is a mad genius, a friendly quirky fellow and absolutely one of the best audio engineers I have ever met. This little amp is one of the best marketing decisions any amp company has ever made. It has the essential “mojo” of the entire Quilter line, but with zero bells or whistles so you can get into the line with little money and zero risk.Be warned: Once you experience this entry level Quilter, you will be tempted to buy more!

Whether you're putting together a compact pedalboard for smaller gigs or touring arenas, want a good backup amp option, need something for rehearsal, or are just curious about the Quilter brand I HIGHLY recommend buying the MB45!!I was blown AWAY by the tonal characteristics and power that this little beast has! It's convincingly very tube-like in how it responds to pick attack, and cleans up unbelievably well just by rolling down the volume knob on your guitar!! It has 3 knobs on the unit, "Gain", "TriQ" (eq sweep), and "Master". While using my '91 Gibson LP Standard with SD JB in the bridge, I found I could get a pushed "Marshall" tone by running the Gain around 5 o'clock, with the TriQ set around 2 o'clock (Master at Noon). I rolled down the volume on the guitar to clean things up as needed and used my Boss SD-1 for solos. I ran into an open back 1x12 cab with a "Warehouse 30" (Celestion V30 clone) at 8ohm, I believe pushing 33 watts of class D chip power. At 4ohm you're driving 45 watts (MORE than loud enough for any stage or rehearsal), and slightly less wattage at 16ohm. I've tested it out through an open back 1x12 cab loaded with a Warehouse 30 (Celestion Vintage 30 clone), a Marshall 2x12, and a Mesa 4x12 Recto Cab, and it sounded monstrous through each of them.The first gig to break in the MB45 was a 10,000 seat venue (only after having it for 2 days)! At rehearsal the night before the show I couldn't believe my ears/eyes, it shouldn't sound that good/that loud...and at soundcheck I was completely sold on Quilter!!! This is coming from a tube purist...for 10+ years I toured with my early 90's Mesa Dual Rectifier and 2-4x12" cabs. I still have my tube amps, but they are now used sparingly for limited/special event shows and recording sessions. From now on I'll be gladly be gigging/touring the country with the MB45 and various pedals as my main rig!!!!In addition to all of this goodness it also has an 1/8" Aux Input and 1/8" headphone jack, so you can play along to tracks from your cellphone or laptop. Not only can you use the unit as a late night practicing tool (great for home or hotels while touring), but you can also use the headphone jack as a line out to your computer for DI recording. I'm planning on buying a second one to leave at home for recording purposes, and always having one with me at shows (whether as part of my main rig or as a live second rig). I've also just recently read a post from someone that ran a non-powered mixer into the MB45 to use as their PA system (with amazing results)!Kudos to Pat and everyone over at Quilter for making such AMAZING products!!!!!Cheers!!!

Excelente producto, Super tono y Super portabilidad