Chris Fitzgerald
04-12-2001, 08:48 AM
Last week I got a Clarus amp on a trial basis from (All Hail) Bob Gollihur. He told me that there was no way to prepare for just how small and powerful this amp was, and he wasn't kidding! I used it on a couple of gigs last week, and a couple of sessions this week, and I have to say (to paraphrase a famous quote) that I regret that I have but two thumbs to raise in praise of this little box.
The tone is VERY clear, and it packs a huge punch. I've been trying it out with various speaker combinations, and it does well with all of them. I was first interested in the Contra, but the idea of the downward-firing speaker scared me off because of the idea that it would sound extremely different depending on the surface it was sitting on. Those worries may have been unfounded, but even so, I can't imagine being happier with my choice. I used it last week with a custom 1x10" cab (on Thursday) which weighs in at 14 lbs, and then next night I tried a 1x8" cab, which weighs a mere 11lbs. The Clarus drove both admirably, and allowed me to cut through a very excellent guitarist's blistering lines (if you guys have not yet heard of Craig Wagner, I bet you will before all is said and done) with power to spare. Depending on the EQ, it can produce a tone bright enough to get you in trouble and make everybody rush (by amplifying the attack transients too clearly...I experienced this on the first set before I had time to tweak my EQ), or it can get a tone rich and dark enough to satisfy those "vampires" like myself who like a more "nocturnal", natural sound.
With my old setup - SWR Baby Blue + folding amp stand +cart - I was lugging around about 65-70lbs of amplification in pursuit of "the sound". With the Clarus , the 1x8", and a lightweight telescoping stand that folds up (to get the speaker away from the boominess of the floor and closer to my ears), my total amplification weight is now (drum roll, please)....a mere 19 lbs! And the sound is as good as or better than before. I no longer need the cart, since the Clarus comes with a carrying case w/shoulder strap. Even the case is so small that when I first showed up at the gig last Thursday, the club owner thought it was a camera.
Many thumbs up, and All Hail Bob G for choosing such good products to promote.
The tone is VERY clear, and it packs a huge punch. I've been trying it out with various speaker combinations, and it does well with all of them. I was first interested in the Contra, but the idea of the downward-firing speaker scared me off because of the idea that it would sound extremely different depending on the surface it was sitting on. Those worries may have been unfounded, but even so, I can't imagine being happier with my choice. I used it last week with a custom 1x10" cab (on Thursday) which weighs in at 14 lbs, and then next night I tried a 1x8" cab, which weighs a mere 11lbs. The Clarus drove both admirably, and allowed me to cut through a very excellent guitarist's blistering lines (if you guys have not yet heard of Craig Wagner, I bet you will before all is said and done) with power to spare. Depending on the EQ, it can produce a tone bright enough to get you in trouble and make everybody rush (by amplifying the attack transients too clearly...I experienced this on the first set before I had time to tweak my EQ), or it can get a tone rich and dark enough to satisfy those "vampires" like myself who like a more "nocturnal", natural sound.
With my old setup - SWR Baby Blue + folding amp stand +cart - I was lugging around about 65-70lbs of amplification in pursuit of "the sound". With the Clarus , the 1x8", and a lightweight telescoping stand that folds up (to get the speaker away from the boominess of the floor and closer to my ears), my total amplification weight is now (drum roll, please)....a mere 19 lbs! And the sound is as good as or better than before. I no longer need the cart, since the Clarus comes with a carrying case w/shoulder strap. Even the case is so small that when I first showed up at the gig last Thursday, the club owner thought it was a camera.
Many thumbs up, and All Hail Bob G for choosing such good products to promote.