Like Guitars, guitar amplifiers have their own flavor and sound. With tube amps, the vintage tone is often associated with Fender while more modern tones are connected to Marshall and Mesa Boogie. Likewise, the high-end boutique amps, such as the Talos Basic, also have their own flavor. In this case, the flavor is wonderfully sweet.
Features
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| The Talos Basic |
Priced at $3,000, the Talos Basic is produced by a team of designers who used to work for the Conrad-Johnson audiophile company. This high-end audio experience and philosophy show up in many ways in the Talos line.
The amp reviewed here is a single 12-inch combo rated at 50 watts in pentode mode, 35 watts in partial triode mode and 20 watts in triode mode; all of which are available from a single switch on the control panel. It utilizes a pair of Svetlana 6L6 or Ruby 6L6MSTR output tubes operated in Class A push pull. A 12AX7 is used as the first two gain stages and a 12AT7 is used as the phase inverter.
The rattle-free cabinet is built from high quality Baltic Birch (Pine is used on the signature Bill Kirchen model). Choice of speakers includes a Jensen C12N high output ceramic magnet 12" (my favorite) or the newer Jensen neodymium magnet 12". A head version with choice of cabinet and drivers also is an option.
Controls include Gain, Drive, a Fat/Bright switch, tube mode switch (pentode, partial triode and triode), a fan switch. Yup, this geetar amp has a fan. The Gain and Drive controls both pull up for additional voicing options. Jacks include high and low gain inputs and an effects loop. The loop is intended for use with an insert cable and is perfect for a '63 Fender Reverb unit. An external speaker jack - the "Smart Jack" circuit - automatically engages the 4-ohm tap on the output transformer jack when an extension speaker is plugged in.
Inside, the boys at Talos use premium parts liberally, including carbon composition and metal film resistors, film and metal film capacitors and nickel alloy transformers. Key to the design is the short signal path (no tone controls to muddy things) and the Class A push-pull tube design.
The Audition
I played through the Talos Basic with several guitars including a Fender American Series Telecaster (single coil pickups), an American Series Fender Fat Strat custom humbuckers with split coils), a Gibson Les Paul Standard (humbuckers) and a Gibson Custom Gibson L5CES hollowbody with dual humbuckers. I used a 12 ft. Mogami instrument cable and threw in a couple of pedals including an Electro-harmonix Holier Grail to get some reverb and a DOD FX 100 EHO distortion pedal.
With all the guitars, I was very impressed with the output from the amp. The short signal path and high-end design netted a very dynamic, warm, yet natural sound. The dynamics of single note bends on the Tele' were simply amazing! Like a great hi-fi amp, there is an accuracy to the Talos that is lacking in many amps. Yet it still has a warmness that makes it easy to listen to. Maybe this is the new vintage tone players are searching for.
Humbucker dynamics show up way better on the Talos than most any amp out there. None of that typical compressed, ultra-dark sound that I always blamed on the Les Paul humbuckers. With the Talos there was just way more dimension and nuance. The Talos sounded just as good with my L5. Those warm jazz tones were there, but with more richness and dimension than my '65 Twin Reverb reissue.
By the way. I tried the amp in all tube modes, and preferred the partial triode for the Tele's single coils and the Pentode mode for the humbucker guitars.
I had a couple of quibbles with the amp. The fan is too noisy for studio; thank goodness Talos added an on/off switch for it. I know increased cooling will increase component life (especially when operating the tubes in Class A), but with my audiophile ears, I have not yet met a fan that wasn't at least a bit noisy. My other complaint was the lack of spring reverb as an option. I know that spring reverb is considered passé in this age of digital, but I still believe it is the best for guitar if done correctly.
Conclusion
At $3,000, the Talos Basic is a made-in-U.S.A., premium guitar amp combo with a high-end, audiophile pedigree. To hear your guitar dynamics via the Talos' much more open soundscape should make this amp desirable for studio and live as well. If you can afford the $3,000 and you want to hear all the nuance out of your electric guitar, the Talos Basic probably is the guitar amp for you.
