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Compare the differences between the Mark Sampson Era Matchless Amps with the new (Jamison?) amps amp; the Bad Cat amps.

I've been d!ckin' around with amps for more than a year now buying this amp; that when I KNOW I want a Matchless. But I don't know which or what the difference is between the old vs the new amp; where does Bad Cat come into the mix.......

Anyone wanna clear that up for me????

Some of those amps really sound different from others.

i wish i could give you first hand (ear?) info on these ... sadly, the best i can do is point you at .. i bet a search of their archives will get you a good amount of solid info and then posting a Q will clear up any residual for ya

let us know what you find out

good luck
t4d

I got a Bad Cat Hot Cat that a friend of mine has been nice enough to let me borrow. Exellent tone! Very good clean and good crunch/drive. Not metal, though. I have also played a Matchless Dc-30 for a couple of weeks, and the same goes for that one. Great amp!

I read a test of Bad Cat vs. Matchless in a magazine last year. Dont remember which, but I'll try to find it later. All of the testers had their favorite, and spoke warmly of their choice. Then they changed the tubes around and did a blind test. And the same testers got different results! That says it all, I guess.

Either one is great on their own, but dont be afraid to try out different makes of tubes. Good luck with your choice

Ok. Mark Sampson started up Matchless and started a joint project with the head of Bad Cat amps (actually helped design them). When Mark Sampson and the guy from Bad Cat disagreed on how the distortion channel should be voiced, he split to start up his own clean/distortion line called Star amps.

Bad Cat is a mixed bag IMHO. I hated the voicing of the distortion channel and the cleans were too scooped for me on the Hot Cat. From what I've gathered, the Trem Cat is a really sweet Bad Cat that just does mostly great cleans.

The new Star Gainstar has been getting some notice and from what I've heard, they're much better than the Bad Cat Hot Cat. They certainly sound like they've covered the mistakes from the HC (cleans aren't scooped, volume levels are even and the distortion isn't harsh or raw).

A favorite of many Matchless fans is the DC-30.


Originally Posted by Jeff_HSome of those amps really sound different from others.WOW.....your eloquence is exceeded only by your acumen!!!

whoaaa, where was i when u got a hamer!


Originally Posted by the_ChrisA favorite of many Matchless fans is the DC-30.

I was hoping you'd speak up Chris...thanks!!!

You know Brian Blush (The Refreshments) played a DC-30, right???
ACTUALLY...it was an HC-30 thru a Fender cab.


Originally Posted by xerxeswhoaaa, where was i when u got a hamer!

HAHAHAHA.....YOU BLINKED!!!!

I got it last Friday.....absolutely beautiful guitar!

I'm a big fan of the Matchless Lightning 15, and I want one really bad, but it's going to be quite a while before I have that kind of cash

The web site below has audio clips of several Matchless amps and a Bad Cat Cub. I have only played the Cub, and I really like it -- might even make one mine one day.

from : localhost/www.proguitar.de/

In the early 90's, my girlfriend played in a band with one of the original owners of Matchless. This is when I got turned onto handwired Class A amps. I got to play on all the early ones, but could never afford one! I just borrowed them from Steve Goodale, an ex owner.

One mistake a lot of players make is thinking that because they're expensive, they're the best. These amps have a particular tone that you either love or hate. Most Matchless or Badcats for sale are by guys who quickly realized THAT tone was not for them. It's very tubby in the mids and the best tone they produce is a pushed clean.

I visited the new Matchless factory when I needed some vinyl and light bulbs.
I asked Phil Jamison what the difference was between the Sampson era ones and his current ones. He said ABSOLUTELY NO DIFFERENCE! We build them exactly the same with all the same parts. He said quot;if anything, the new ones should be better because we make less of them and spend more time pouring over details.quot;

As for Bad Cat, I think Sampson's produced a better gain circuit than Jamison has.
The amps are very similar, but I think Matchless' sound fatter, but Bad Cats sound tighter in the lows. Comparing the two companies is silly, but comparing their products isn't. I just wish I could get a Bad Cat Hot Cat and a Matchless Phoenix in the same room together to see which one I like more. The Hotcat 30 and 100 head is my favorite Bad Cat. The Chieftain 30 and DC-30 will always be Matchless' claim to fame. And for those HIGH prices, you'd BETTER play the model first, then scour the market for one to buy. They all sound about the same, but tubes REALLY dictate how they sound. They're very sensitive to different tube brands.

Thanks alot for the insight Joe!

On the site, there cabs say they have mismatched speakers. What exactly are they, do you know?


Originally Posted by GearjoneserIn the early 90's, my girlfriend played in a band with one of the original owners of Matchless. This is when I got turned onto handwired Class A amps. I got to play on all the early ones, but could never afford one! I just borrowed them from Steve Goodale, an ex owner.

One mistake a lot of players make is thinking that because they're expensive, they're the best. These amps have a particular tone that you either love or hate. Most Matchless or Badcats for sale are by guys who quickly realized THAT tone was not for them. It's very tubby in the mids and the best tone they produce is a pushed clean.

I visited the new Matchless factory when I needed some vinyl and light bulbs.
I asked Phil Jamison what the difference was between the Sampson era ones and his current ones. He said ABSOLUTELY NO DIFFERENCE! We build them exactly the same with all the same parts. He said quot;if anything, the new ones should be better because we make less of them and spend more time pouring over details.quot;

As for Bad Cat, I think Sampson's produced a better gain circuit than Jamison has.
The amps are very similar, but I think Matchless' sound fatter, but Bad Cats sound tighter in the lows. Comparing the two companies is silly, but comparing their products isn't. I just wish I could get a Bad Cat Hot Cat and a Matchless Phoenix in the same room together to see which one I like more. The Hotcat 30 and 100 head is my favorite Bad Cat. The Chieftain 30 and DC-30 will always be Matchless' claim to fame. And for those HIGH prices, you'd BETTER play the model first, then scour the market for one to buy. They all sound about the same, but tubes REALLY dictate how they sound. They're very sensitive to different tube brands.

The Hot Cat didn't work for me, because it just sounded quot;roughquot;. I like a smoother, fatter distortion and this one sounded like a cheaper amp to me. It was thin and lacked sustain. The lows were killer and for a lot of people that wins big points, but I've always felt that the low end is covered by a bass anyways, so I should be focusing on mids (which I love).

Glad you like your new Hamer Terry, I think they're great guitars and the Refreshments were on the back of my mind when I mentioned Matchless You have to try an HC-30 out just for the simple fact that The Refreshments use them!

I've often contemplated if I should go back to a simple clean amp like the Chieftain. Now that's an amp that can do great cleans


Originally Posted by PUCKBOY99Thanks alot for the insight Joe!

On the site, there cabs say they have mismatched speakers. What exactly are they, do you know?

Most use 2 Vintage 30's, where 1 was chemically treated around the cone to give it a distressed or aged tone. I think it's the same process that the Weber Hellatones utilize. I forgot which chemical they use? Anyone know?

Same thing as acetone doping???

Yeah, one speaker has the acetone to soften the speaker response, and one doesn't.

Honestly, I don't think my ears can tell the difference! Those guys are as anal about tone as it gets. They actually get insulted if you don't praise their stuff! hahahha

I will say they know their stuff. My strat through the Chieftain is utterly sick!
It's one of the very few EL-34 amps with reverb, so it's got it's own vibe.
I'm gonna go play it now, just thinking about it.