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A few years ago, I decided to get a pedal amp. It seems like a good tool to have for a gig where carrying an amp is more hassle than it is worth. I do have a Henriksen Bud 6 which is small enough to carry in urban situations and has the added advantage of being a personal monitor, but I wanted the real thing. In addition, I still have one of my Raezer's Edge cabinets and the pedal amp could also be used with that cabinet (otherwise it is just an extension cabinet for my Henriksen or my Quilter Mach 3). I ended up buying a Milkman The amp 100 but recently decided to move that on and I have tried two others, the Universal Audio Dream 65 and the Quilter Superblock US. Here are my observations:
Milkman The Amp 100: This is a great boutique pedal amp that uses an actual tube in the preamp. With 100 watts of class D power, it is a hybrid amp that can act as a pedal amp or drive a speaker cabinet and will do the loudest gigs. It has a lush reverb and a boost effect. I did find that it was a bit dark sounding (particularly with my Raezer's Edge Stealth 12ER, which is a dark cabinet). I also found that the 2 band EQ was limiting for tone adjustment. And the boost function was not something that I ever used. Furthermore, with the 12AX7 tube buried in the pedal and not easily accessible, I had some tube anxiety as the pedal gets pretty hot on a three-hour gig. I eventually decided to sell it and look further. But make no mistake, it is a great amplifier and with the tube in the preamp, it delivers the glassiness of a tube amp but still doesn't get you to a 100 percent tube amp sound. If you want that, use a tube amp. I also like the fact that the Milkman has an AC power supply built in.
Universal Audio Dream 65: This little pedal is essentially a minicomputer in a pedal format. It takes a moment to boot up. It is a digital device, and it made my Henriksen Bud 6 sound like a Fender tube amp. It has the tube glassiness and the reverb is lush. It also has Tremelo. It has no power amp, so I was unable to use this with my RE cabinet. Like the milkman, it only has a 2 band EQ so the tone shaping possibilities are limited. It runs on a 9 volt power adapter. It has stereo capabilities, but it lacks an XLR direct out (A big knock for me). It has two channels and you need to download the UA app to your phone and use a blutooth connection to dial in the second channel. I found the UA app a bit wonky and overall found this pedal too high tech. While I am impressed with its tube-like tone, it still isn't 100 percent like playing a tube amp. This is a great pedal if you like it's sound and are Ok with its limitations (No power amp, no XLR etc.) I loved it at first, but the bloom wore off the rose for me. YMMV
Quilter Superblock US: I got this a few days ago from a fellow forum member. So far, I am liking this one the best. It sounds great with my RE Cabinet. Quilters run a bit bright which is a great match with the dark RE cabinet. It has an XLR out and a 3 band Eq plus three different voices. The 25 watts are enough for practice or a small to medium gig. It has a fairly large power supply, but if you do not need the power amp, you can use a 9 volt adaptor. The reverb is OK (The other two pedals had a way better Reverb) and will do for my purposes. It is not as glassy as the other two pedals, so while they will get you say 90 percent of the way to tube amp tone, the Quilter gets you about 80 percent of the way there. And honestly, I think I like it at where Quilter puts it. Consider me a Quilter fan. There have been quite a few threads about this pedal amp and most here like them. I can see why. It is still new to me and time will tell, but for now, this one looks like the winner of my own pedal amp wars.
Here is a picture of my new practice rig:
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05-21-2026 07:37 PM
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I have a Quilter 201 which I use with an unpowered cabinet. Quilter makes nice gear.
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I picked up a UA Enigmatic 82 overdrive special a few months ago and LOVE it. It's designed as a "dumble in a box" , what I've found is amazing clarity from my amps when used in front , and the ability to go direct to the board / recording console is a plus.
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I use Taurus-great small thing made in Poland.
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I was impressed with the sound quality of the UA pedal that I had. It simply didn't fit my needs perfectly. Before the pandemic, I used to play at the annual Christmas party for the folks at Universal Audio. They are located in Scotts Valley, California. The folks there are committed musicians, are very nice and they always paid us well. While I suspect most of them are rockers, they did respect and listen to our jazz.
Originally Posted by Greywolf
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Is this the one you use? It looks great. Originally Posted by kris
Taurus Stomp Head SH8 Clean Floor guitar amplifier, Taurus SH8Clean
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I used a SBUS for a few years as a small gig amp. It’s a wonderful little device - very versatile, well made, and sounds great in any genre. I only sold it because I somehow ended up with far too many amps. I use my BAM200 if I need a direct out, and it’s a fine backup head with enough power to handle pretty much any gig. It’s also a fine small PA system into my Toob Metro FRFR, and the SB just didn’t have enough power for that.
Greywolf, I’ve been eyeing the Enigmatic since it came out. The price has dropped, and I love the smooth sustain of a Dumble ODS (any ODS - I know they’re all different, but they seem to share an uncommonly glassy endless sustain). My Smokin Amp Company Zensation is good at this, but it’s nowhere near the real thing.
Since I don’t play many blues gigs any more, I’d need a more frequently used reason to buy one. What does the “room” effect do and is it usable as a delay or reverb effect for the BAM or other amp without reverb?
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I'll chime in. The room reverb simulates the sound of the speaker cabinet in a small room. It's a bit like a slap back delay. It does not give the sound of a spring/plate/hall/etc etc. Its intention is to create a more realistic "live" sound than the front of house or recording gets without it. It doesn't replace traditional verb on an amp without one. The enigmatic has a lot going on, maybe too much for the awful UAFX app to address. There's a guy who released a free app, Dream Chimp, iPhone only, which so far works with the UAFX Dream 65 and Lion. It's a game changer allowing precise control not available from UA and unlocking abilities UA doesn't address at all like getting a stereo mix using 2 different cab/mic set ups and more. He'll be doing this for the enigmatic pretty soon I think. I'd wait till he does. Originally Posted by nevershouldhavesoldit
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Yes...same series differen model...SH8Qlone. Originally Posted by Stringswinger
Best
Kris
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Milkman 100 still my top one I have to say. I’m always eager to hear new ones though. The benson 100 is also great but I really wish the EQ has more flexibility.
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I’ll said before and I’ll say it again… Originally Posted by Woodstove
OI! Give me a flipping proper reverb. I don’t need the sound of a room, because I am, in fact, playing in a room, you numpties.
And that’s all I have to say on the matter.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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And an XLR output while you are at it. This shouldn’t be rocket science.
Quilter have, indeed, managed both of these things.
I struggle to comprehend UA’s logic. If you are going to build a preamp that might plugin or front of house, wouldn’t you make it fit for that purpose? I’m sure someone will come along and try to gaslight me about it in a moment.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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Ahhh……the endless quest for the sound of a room - that existential blend of molecular motion and the rumbling of your stomach at 3 AM. It’s as elegant and elusive as the sound of one hand clapping. Originally Posted by Christian Miller
Meanwhile, the Enigmatic 82 manual says in its introductory “getting started” section that the “room” pot adds “studio ambience and air”. But in the “controls” section it’s described as adjusting “the amount of room ambiance mixed into the signal”. So it appears that even the creator of the device can’t find the words to describe its “room” effect.
Ironically, I don’t think Dumble put a “room” control on any of the ODS variations he made. So I wonder why UA added it.
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Milkman the Amp by Benson. Perfect.
UAD 65: a mess in terms of design, only a pre-amp, still need to connect it to both an amp and a cab. What’s the point?
Quilter: don’t like the sound as much, of the three.
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agree about the milk man but very much disagree about the UA dream. I’m using it through a DI into my mixing board for live shows. What the UA has that the milkman lacks is a wide assortment I think, six different cab-mic combinations.As I said about that new Dream Chimp App it changes the pedal so I can get very precise selection and mixing of these and other effects resulting in my Trenier arch top having great acoustic tone. It also has tremelo which the original Milkman had then traded it for a boost. For this purpose at least, live performance, it’s incredibly convenient, easy to set up and it sounds great. Originally Posted by Navdeep_Singh
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I can see why you and others would feel this way. The Milkman (whichever of their pedals we are looking at) has a lot going for it. As luck would have it, I like the Quilter sound the best. It isn't as glassy, and being a longtime Polytone guy, that drier solid-state sound is what I am used to and prefer. Quilters are a bit bright compared to many other amps (I found the UA a bit bright as well), but I find that A) the Quiter brightness is a living room thing, in the real world of a gig, the Quilter "cuts" much better than the Milkman; B) Combined with my Raezer's Edge Stealth 12ER, the Quilter is a great fit and C) with all the tone shaping tools of the Quilter, if you cannot dial in a sound you like, that is user error, not the fault of the Quilter. Originally Posted by Navdeep_Singh
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Guitar Amps built into case?
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