BluRay

I have the 500. It’s a huge sounding beast, really versatile EQ, and the compressor (sort-of-gain/fattener) is an absolute gem. Cuts though the mix like a knife through butter, and snarls without being fuzzy. If I was replacing it, I’d go for the 300 version as the 500 is silly loud - don’t think I’ve had it past the second notch on the dial! Studio recording using a four stroke here (was mic-ed up with about 20% blend from the DI in the mix, and nothing else added).

For those looking at both... the 4 Stroke has a really fab growl which increases with the compression, but it doesn't do full-on fuzzy. Sounds (to me) rather like a value amp with the gain set just as it starts to bite, plus a very strong eq. I like it a lot. Studio recording with mic-ed up 4 Stroke here.

Got a live-in case for mine too ...

Dunno if its a class A vs D thing but FWIW.....I spent a band rehearsal switching between a GK Fusion 800 and the Orange 4 Stroke 500 - I have two identical 210 cabs, so it was a straight test side by side. With a fair bit of EQ faffing, I could get the Fusion (either with or without the tube pre engaged) to sound almost identical to the Orange. But cranked up to full-on band levels (with the same EQ settings intact, vol to match the drums) the Orange walks it. Its really ballsy and assertive. That said, I won't have any qualms about using the Fusion when there's lots of stairs involved, it sounded good too. To be fair :-)

Ah yes that rings a bell. When I ordered mine Mark @ Ashdown told me that I'd just nipped in before the price of neodymium was expected to increase. I didn't realise they'd stop making them altogether tho. Shame as they're bloody good cabs.

I gig mine all the time (2 x 210) - they're fab. They're clearer, louder, punchier than my ABM 410 - and significantly easier to carry. Not sure why Ashdown stopped making them? I seem to remember someone getting a custom ABM Neo 410 a few years ago.

Ah, can’t have been the amp then. Maybe the plectrum? Normally I’d have have used an ABM, but mine was out for repair. In the studio I honestly couldn’t choose between the 4 stroke and a Ashdown CTM - they both had a very similar sound despite being utterly different amps. I went with the Orange because it was new!

Needn’t have been tentative; 9/10 album review in Vive La Rock. All down to the Orange no doubt lol

[quote name='Raggy' timestamp='1508146146' post='3389995'] I liked that, (the tone and playing/song, cheers). I've been torn between one of these and the GK Fusion 550. [/quote] thanks! Coincidentally I've just landed a GK Fusion 800 as a BC swap, so have both - but I've only used the GK in rehearsal once, and haven't quite got to grips with it enough to make a fair comparison. First impression: I think the Orange wins in terms of overall authority and brute force, but the Fusion is likeable also! I'll try to AB sometime over the next few weeks.

A fleeting resurrection of this thread to (tentatively!) post some studio recordings, for anyone who might be interested (Yamaha 2024 bass via mic-ed up Orange 4 Stroke). Don't judge my haphazard playing lol - its only so you can hear the amp in a recorded / band setting, as I don't think there are many examples around. [url="https://bonesparkrider.bandcamp.com/album/there-but-for-the-grace-of-god"]https://bonesparkrider.bandcamp.com/album/there-but-for-the-grace-of-god [/url] [attachment=255502:IMG_3811.jpg]

[quote name='2elliot' timestamp='1501174036' post='3343106'] That is interesting. I take it the 4 stroke is a lot more versatile when it comes to altering the tone. [/quote] Yes very much so. The 4 stroke doesn't do crazy overdrive like the CTM but sounds very similar at moderate volumes (and the EQ is much stronger). The CTM feels a little "wider" when cranked, but the Orange cuts through more (and has stupid amounts of volume) so horses for courses really.

Yeah the buttons are the best bit about the CTM EQ - the knobs do bugger all really....but the overdrive is amazing tho, if you like that sort of thing. I don't have a use for that in a band situation unfortunately (prefer a mostly clean sound with just a touch of drive), but its a lot of fun to crank the gain up when the guitars get too showy waahhahaha.

[quote name='Bigwan' timestamp='1501145191' post='3342763'] LB30/CTM30 are certainly not loud enough for an animal drummer unless you have a supremely efficient or VERY large cab (might work with an 8x10 or 2x15 i suppose)... But what a tone! The LB30/LB212 is probably the rig I've enjoyed the most out of everything I've owned in the past. I had an Orange Terror and Tech Soundsystems 4x12 as my gigging rig at the same time and it was vaguely similar tonally (not as flexible as the LB30), but painfully loud... [/quote] I definitely agree about the tonal similarities with Orange- I'm using an Orange 4 Stroke mostly at the moment, but took the CTM and the Orange to the studio for recording and really there wasn't much in it at all - couldn't tell them apart on the sample recordings - which I found really surprising considering they are utterly different amps.I find the CTM eq a bit limiting, but the core tone is lovely.

[quote name='EliasMooseblaster' timestamp='1501082633' post='3342353'] Don't rule it out for punk, either - back off the bass, turn on the mid-shift and push the treble, and unleash your inner JJ Burnel! Granted, it's probably not loud enough for a full-on punk gig, but it's an absolute delight to record with. [/quote] Plus one. For punk-type gigs, the CTM 100 is the way to go. I can't imagine that the LB / CTM30 would be sufficient (f you have heavy hitting drummer and a couple of noisy guitars), but the 100 has it covered. :-)

[quote name='OldB' timestamp='1496486803' post='3311817'] BLuRay, I read your post about the 4 Stroke and think it throw a lot of light to my searching, thanks for sharing!!- I had the chance to try the OB1-500 with the OBC210 mini and was amazed by it's tone and overall carachter , I digged blending the two channel with the drive full closed and even there the amps gains in presence, body and fulness, and I really didn't care dialing more drive cause things started to be to fizzy for my ears. It was my first contact with non class D amplification and I am a bit concenrned on the OB1 to be a 1-trick pony and get lost in the mix in some situations. In the opossite a fear the 4 Stroke not having the OB1's authoritive weight it's sound provides. The store doesn´t supplies the 4 stroke but I will test it in other store but paired with a 410 Hartke, so I will not be able to make a direct comparisson of both. I'm a bit surprised not to find direct comparisons between these two models since they are in parallel production. So I will have to fine tunning my ears and auditive memory to decide wich amp will replace my average class D amp. [/quote] Yeah I think the 4-Strokes are quite hard to find in the shops - I bought mine blind, but with a good returns policy. It has loads of clout - mega punchy - but whether its your thing or not, only you can say! I'll pm you some studio soundclips (they're pending release, otherwise I'd post them here).

[quote name='hamfist' timestamp='1496437341' post='3311517'] I've not played the OB1 but did have a 4-stroke for an extended test. I was disappointed with the 4-stroke because, although the EQ is fantastic, if you want to get a decent volume from the amp you can only get it by using the big knob controlling gain/compression to get enough preamp gain, which adds a LOT of colour (and obviously comrpession) to your tone. It will not do simply clean at anywhere near its full volume. For me that was a deal-breaker. [/quote] That's odd as it's not my experience at all. I have a 4-stroke 500 and it's massively loud (before any compression added). Full on gig volume (outdoor stage punk festival ) and I'm at less than 9 o'clock on the volume dial. The compressor bumps it up - adds girth and bit of bite but it's not really distortion unless you crank it right up (about halfway is nice imo). But its not needed for volume and there's loads of clean headroom. Haven't tried OB1, but it runs cleaner and less dark than the Terror.

[quote name='0175westwood29' timestamp='1492961487' post='3284401'] It's all split using my es8, output 1 goes to dirty ctm 100, the output 2 goes into a humdinger from gigrig so I have an isolated out with a phase switch and then out to the clean amp. Both run all the time each into a 410 [/quote] Out of interest does it work at all without the humdinger thing in the chain?