NAMM 2016: Hot Additions to Blues Cube Series by Roland

Renowned instrument colossus Roland first introduced their Blues Cube amplifiers back in the 1990's. The idea was simply to program a transistor amp to sound like a tube amp. Now, more than twenty years down the line, they've perfected that idea. The result is the brand-new Blues Cube Hot: a portable 3-watt combo in Black and Vintage Blond.

Sweet tube sounds

The greatest advantage of a tube amp is its full, creamy sound. Its disadvantages, however, are that they tend to weigh a ton and require maintenance more often than not. With the Blues Cube Hot series, Roland provides the best of both worlds. This amp has a capacity of 30 watts with a 12-inch Custom Tuned speaker, weighs a little over 12 kilos and features the Tube Logic system, which is what brings the transistors to life. Roland offers a choice between two attractive finishes, Vintage Blond en Black, both reminiscent of something you may find in a smoky blues club.

Growling beast

The Blues Cube Hot offers plenty of tube sounds, and using the Volume knob, you can give those sounds a little extra crunch. As you turn it up, its growls get increasingly louder, as if the tubes have to work extra hard to keep up with your playing. When you push the Boost button, which is located next to the Volume knob, you get some extra overdrive to push your sound to the edge. If you want to add a little sparkle to all that rumble, push the Tone button. Naturally, Roland understands you can't turn this amp up all the way in your living room, so they've added a Power Control option which allows you to switch from full 30-watt capacity to 15, 5 or even half a watt! For guitarists who want to practice in peace, Roland has also added a headphone output.

Be sure to check out the relevant product pages for more information on delivery times and pricing. For more NAMM news, have a look at our NAMM 2016 feed.

Related brands

Related products