New Orange Rockers

ennspek

Announced at NAMM.
I always wanted a Rocker 30 (and still do). It'll be interesting to see how these compare.

ThePrettyDamned

Ooo! Hopefully they're basically identical, these were excellent amps! 

Almost a dream amp for me, and quite attainable but not on the cards right now. 

EricTheWeary

earwighoney

It's fine but it's no Marshall MG 20. 

Col_Decker

I don't regret selling my Rocker 30 head as it was far too big and loud for what I'm doing band-wise these days, but I do miss it, even though I'm really loving my 68 PRRI. But seeing a 15watt Rocker II combo that can go down from 15w to 7w, to 1w, to 0.5w ... well that's just crying out yo be bought. A Fender & Orange two amp set up. Oh yes.

TAKE MY MONEY!!!!



and please don't be too pricey.

ICBM

It's a shame there isn't a dead-on reissue of the old 2-EL34 Rocker 30 - the "32" is an interesting concept in being stereo, but it won't be the same. Although power valve type doesn't have a great influence, it does have *some*, and I think one of the main reasons the R30 sounds so good is the rather unusual power amp choice of cathode-biased 34s.

The only things it really needed were an FX loop and a half-power switch, and even those didn't matter to most people.

ThePrettyDamned

ICBM said:

It's a shame there isn't a dead-on reissue of the old 2-EL34 Rocker 30 - the "32" is an interesting concept in being stereo, but it won't be the same. Although power valve type doesn't have a great influence, it does have *some*, and I think one of the main reasons the R30 sounds so good is the rather unusual power amp choice of cathode-biased 34s.

The only things it really needed were an FX loop and a half-power switch, and even those didn't matter to most people.

Hmm - sounds interesting but I'm less enthused really. Now I'm worried it's a pair of modified dual terrors in a box going to 10 inch speakers... 

ICBM

ThePrettyDamned said:

Now I'm worried it's a pair of modified dual terrors in a box going to 10 inch speakers... 

I think it's actually going to be 15+15W with the same basic circuitry as the little one - which from the preamp layout is going to be at least reasonably close to the R30, but with half the power and EL84s. So not *all* bad…

I'm really puzzled as to why they don't reissue the proper R30 though - or why they discontinued it in the first place. It's a simple amp compared to the Rockerverb or even the AD series, and can't have been too expensive to build. I also think it was the best-sounding of all the modern Orange amps, and I know I'm not alone in that.

ennspek

No head either. Which is never good.

StefB

Hot on the heels of the similarly pedal platform intended Blackstar Artist 15 & 30 too...

TimmyO

The old Rocker 30 is the only amp that I have ever literally crossed the street to find out what it was when I heard someone rocking out on one in Denmark St (it turned out to be a LP Deluxe in to a R30 combo) 

ThePrettyDamned

TimmyO said:

The old Rocker 30 is the only amp that I have ever literally crossed the street to find out what it was when I heard someone rocking out on one in Denmark St (it turned out to be a LP Deluxe in to a R30 combo) 

Yeah, I was astonished when I first heard one. It sounds like an old amp - you know when you compare an old silverface fender to a modern boutique amp and the fender just has something about it? 

I heard a rocker 30 head going into a 2x12 with greenbacks and, although it didn't like the high gain so much, it was pure 70s rhythm tones. And it took pedals really well, including big arse fuzzes. 

I want one now. I think I might need to advertise a trade... 

jpfamps

ThePrettyDamned said:

ICBM said:

It's a shame there isn't a dead-on reissue of the old 2-EL34 Rocker 30 - the "32" is an interesting concept in being stereo, but it won't be the same. Although power valve type doesn't have a great influence, it does have *some*, and I think one of the main reasons the R30 sounds so good is the rather unusual power amp choice of cathode-biased 34s.

The only things it really needed were an FX loop and a half-power switch, and even those didn't matter to most people.

Hmm - sounds interesting but I'm less enthused really. Now I'm worried it's a pair of modified dual terrors in a box going to 10 inch speakers... 

It's pretty much the Rocker 30 pre-amp tweaked a little bit.

ThePrettyDamned

jpfamps said:

ThePrettyDamned said:

ICBM said:

It's a shame there isn't a dead-on reissue of the old 2-EL34 Rocker 30 - the "32" is an interesting concept in being stereo, but it won't be the same. Although power valve type doesn't have a great influence, it does have *some*, and I think one of the main reasons the R30 sounds so good is the rather unusual power amp choice of cathode-biased 34s.

The only things it really needed were an FX loop and a half-power switch, and even those didn't matter to most people.

Hmm - sounds interesting but I'm less enthused really. Now I'm worried it's a pair of modified dual terrors in a box going to 10 inch speakers... 

It's pretty much the Rocker 30 pre-amp tweaked a little bit.

Phew. That's good - didn't much like the tiny terror. 

Brilliant idea for a combo though - genuinely different. I wonder how well that stereo spread works in a live situation - no doubt its brilliant at home. 

DartmoorHedgehog

ThePrettyDamned said:

 I wonder how well that stereo spread works in a live situation - no doubt its brilliant at home. 

The stereo on my Blackstar ID Core 10 is amazingly good considering the speakers are right next to each other.  It doesn't seem to sound any less good if you're standing further away from it either - although I haven't been much more than 15 feet away probably.  It might be really good.

If it sounds like a Rocker 30 but has a loop then I reckon it'll be popular, although it's a shame there's no head version.  I don't really miss the loop on my Rocker (my previous amp had one and I used it for delay and solo boost but I'm quite happy with everything in front.  I don't use loads of gain anyway), but it would be a nice feature.

samzadgan

I got so excited for a minute and thought I would get one...but then I saw the specs...and they've manage to completely fuck it up...4xEL84's...what were they thinking...???

ICBM

samzadgan said:

I got so excited for a minute and thought I would get one...but then I saw the specs...and they've manage to completely fuck it up...4xEL84's...what were they thinking...???

To be fair, it's because it's actually two Rocker 15s in the same box. But otherwise I agree.

The good news is that real Rocker 30s aren't that rare, and they're so well-made that there's no real risk in buying a second hand one.