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[Krustacean]

Say hello to the Laney M120 guitar head. This is a solidstate guitar amp without cabinet speakers (which you must purchase seperately). This is the crux of review but feel free to skip this explanation if you know the difference between solidstate and tube amplifiers;

Solidstate (SS) amps are built with semiconductor transistor based circuitry in contrast to vacuum tubes found in older and pricier tube amps. Generally SS are what the people at Guitar Center will try to send home with unsuspecting parents and it is usually at the expense of quality and power. It is widely known and accepted that tube amps offer a classic and generally preffered sound. Unfortantly they are expensive, susceptible to tube blowout, and not always suited for multiple applications. Still many tube enthusiasts won't even plug into a SS amp let alone have anything nice to say about its "built-in" FX processing. I am not an amp elitist and have played my share of brands ranging from Sears-era Silvertone, Peaveys, and Crates to top of the line Marshalls, Fenders, etc... This amp is worth it and I'll tell you why.
Features
* 120 Watts RMS
* Dual speaker outputs
* Twin-channel operation with separate Bass, Mid, Treble controls
* Clean volume, master volume, and 'Crunch Factor' controls
* "Max" button for maxed out drive
* CD/line input
* External footswitch for channel select and effect bypass
* Effects loop
* Extension speaker output
* X-Factor digital effects package

I purchased mine for $280 in a rush to upgrade to something more versatile, though I have seen them go as low as $180 online. I needed something that worked for practicing in the basement, recording in the studio, and using live on stage which is exactly what this is about. 120 watts is more than enough with this amp and I have only played it through a halfstack but it is meant to play through a fullstack. There is enough power and clarity in one to balance with everybody on stage, even when the drums are mic'd into the PA. This is quite a feat for a solidstate amp. There is little to no distortion or break up at loud volumes unless you have nuclear powered guitar pickups.

I have played a variety of guitars through it from acoustic-electrics to stratotones and with a variety of pickups from JB humbuckers and vintage P-90s to fender stock single coils. One great thing about this amp is that every guitar configuration retains its unique feel and sound. This is a significant trait of tube amps that most players do not see in the majority of solid state amps and like the FX loop it comes in handy for people that rely on specific instruments or layers of effects. I prefer to use pedals but the amp has some well rounded ones to choose from:

2 Reverbs, 4 Delays, 2 Chorus, Flanger, Rotary Speaker Simulator, Octaver, Chorus + Reverb, Chorus + Delay, Flange + Delay, & Octaver + Delay

The reverb is amazing compared to most SS amps and comes in really handy playing dead space like a basement. I tend to leave it on all the time. The other effects are satisfying but could benefeit from more paremeter control (all they have is a level knob). Again, thats what pedals and rack effects are for. You can switch the effects off with the footswitch which has survived some hard blows in the short time I've owned it. The amp itself is durable with a kick-proof metal grill and a strong balanced strap. At 30lbs and about the size of your home stereo center speaker it is more than portable.

More important than all is the sound itself. Being a twin channel amp, you have a clean channel and a distortion channel selectable with a push button or the footswitch. The clean channel is very smooth and bright at both lower and higher volumes. EQ is smooth and very responsive which means you will be likely to tweak for each instrument you use. The on board distortion channel is not my cup of tea however it is just what a lot of people are looking for. I find that at low distortion-high volume it makes a really crunchy clean which sounds very close to tube driven Laney's... talk about sweet. I don't so much like using distortion pedals on the distortion channel however and tend not to use that channel at all. The EQ is not quite as responsive but adequate. I would reccomend a seperate EQ pedal.

This is probably the best money I've ever spent and I reccomend it to anyone looking for the next best thing instead of the best or student grade equipment. These have already been replaced by a newer model which I haven't heard nor read about but that is another reason I am writing this. They have little to no advertising or licensing in the US and it is a shame as they are becoming more recognized in an oft scoffed market. I would call them the underdogs and abandonware of guitar gear here.

There used to be a flash demo at the Laney site to hear various settings but its unnavailable right now. I will add it should it come back. Perhaps I could post some clips of stuff I have recorded but it really wouldn't be accurate examples of the sound, you just have to hear it for yourself.

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Samples (home/studio demo clips)