Old Roland Cubes (made in Japan) vs Polytone

[Pedrocouto]

Hey guys, first post here.

Recently I’ve been using a ZT lunchbox and ZT club as my main amps. I am a fully working musician so the lunchbox gets played a lot, in small to midsize venues, and the club when it’s needed.

It ends up that I think it’s time to move from the club to something better. But here in Brazil, let’s say options are limited.

So without further ado, my options now gravitate towards old Roland Cubes (the orange cube 60 and also the super cube 60), which are available for cheap, in near to mint condition, a Roland bass cube 60 (again, Orange, made in Japan). Have you guys had any experience? I’m very interested in the Roland bass cube, because it’s in a shop here in town so it can get tested. I know lots of folks use 80s bass amps (polytone for example) for jazz guitar. Anyway, these amps are worth it? Or it’s better to chill out the
GAS and ship a poly internationally? any advice?

Thanks in advance

[Cunamara]

In both cases you're talking about amplifiers that are 35-40 or more years old. The potential for reliability problems is fairly high, although solid state amplifiers are often quite durable. Both could be difficult to get repaired.

I would be looking for a more modern solution and something that might be repairable. The DV Mark 12 inch Jazz and Little Jazz get pretty good reviews for being in the Polytone type camp but are current, readily available and not particularly expensive.

DV MARK | COMBOS

Quilter makes some outstanding combo amps with a lot of tonal versatility. The Micro Pro series sounds great for jazz.

Quilter Labs


Also consider a micro-style amp (there are many to choose from) and one of the Toob cabs, made by forum member Gitterbug, for flexibility and portability.

TOOB

Or there is the Fender Tone Master series Twin Reverb and Deluxe Reverb. I have used the latter a number of times and it is a great sounding amp. There's a silver face Twin Reverb from the early 70s at the same location which admittedly sounds slightly better to me, but the DRTM is 22 lbs (10 kg) vs. 70 lbs (35kg). I think the main difference is that the Twin has two 12" speakers.

[guavajelly]

Are you sure that these Roland Cubes are an upgrade to your lunchbox and the club? I know they get a lot of praise in the internet, but when they were new in the 80s nobody I knew wanted one.
A Polytone on the other hand is a very special amp. It sure is good for a jazz tone. Anyway when I had my trio (with a brazilian drummer btw.) like 15 years ago I had one. We did a lot of recordings and our bass player had a humble Fender Blues jr. that I also used sometimes. We all agreed that the recordings using the Fender were better.

[gitman]

The Roland (the orange 12" model for guitar) is cool for small gigs without a drummer and at home - but I'd be wary to go to a gig without a backup. The tranny in these lightweight amps is quite small so there is not that much headroom and bass-strength as in amps with a beefier iron. Compared to modern amps it's really only the price that makes these vintage cubes somewhat attractive. The DV Mark 12" amp is not that expensive, cheaper than a Polytone/Henriksen and it should be available anywhere. Alternative : you go look for a slightly older Henriksen 12" model in the US and have it shipped.

[Alter]

If looking at a Roland i would choose the cube 40xl model over the older orange ones (or bigger, 60 if you don't mind the weight). I have one and have gigged it at several occasions. If you find one used, they are very cheap, and very giggable. Much more diverse compared to to ZTlunchboxes (which i also like). People really like the polytones also, but personally i wouldn't feel comfortable gigging with an amp 30-40 years old, unless it's a tube amp that has really simple components and their condition can be easily checked..

[Pedrocouto]

Thanks for the all the awesome answers guys.
The old Roland Cubes have a lot of praise here, so that’s why I mentioned these amps. Anyway it’s good the hear different opinions about them.
I did not mentioned the Henriksen in the thread because, yeah, they sound really really good (IMO) but they’re very difficult to find used, and fairly expensive. But as I can wait a little bit longer, maybe I’m lucky to find a good deal on eBay or whatever. And search a little bit about the other options mentioned here.

[Pedrocouto]

Well, finally I had the opportunity to test some amps and of course, what follows is just my opinion.
Just had the opportunity to play in a live band situation, using a Henriksen Bud (actually two different situations, playing different Buds from two different mates). The amp just didn’t resonate with me. I don’t mean it’s a bad amp. It isn’t. It’s very good actually. But it’s really transparent, and for me, a little sterile. I didn’t had the time to really dig the eq, so I can’t give a long term perspective.

Now after listening to a lot of videos of the quilter amps and the DV mark amps, I really don’t dig their sound. I mean, again, they are very good, that’s no doubt, but just didn’t click with me.
Then I had the opportunity either to get a mini brute II (no mid control, just treble and bass, the real deal) or a Roland cube 60 (the orange tolex one, from the late 70s or early 80s). The Roland cube was cheaper so I got it to test. It is fully functional and it was checked by a tech prior to my order, the only exception is the reverb tank which doesn’t work, but I’ll use my pedals anyway. Man this thing sounds good. It just clicked. It sounds really close to the early polytone vibe, which is the sound i dig the most. Clean, fat, dark, with a little grit but not in the distortion way and with some colorful mids.
So, just to give some final thoughts. I know that sound is a very personal matter. Maybe I just had some familiarity with this old solid state amp sound from the records I dig the most, so that’s why the old cube clicked but I don’t know. Just my 2 cents

[Cunamara]

Well, Ed Bickert gigged with an orange Cube 60 and his Tele for years and sounded great! Good luck with the new-to-you amp- "clicking" with your equipment is really important.

[Marcel_A]

I really can't imagine a big difference in sound between the old and the new cubes. It seems that the only reason you are going for the orange one is because 50 years ago it was considered a workable amp.

[pingu]

I really can't imagine a big difference in sound between the old and the new cubes. It seems that the only reason you are going for the orange one is because 50 years ago it was considered a workable amp.

i suspect the old Orange Cubes will
be be based on discrete circuitry
power transistors etc etc

the more modern cubes will be more IC based ....

from my experience the old orange
cubes do sound a bit weightier and ‘thicker’than the new ones

it’s just taste , they’re both very reliable
giggable options ....

[oldane]

I have an old Cube 40 which I bought around 1980. It's OK but my more recent Mambo and AI amps are better sounding to my ears. I found the sound of the 10" speaker in the Cube quite bright and harsh and eventually replaced it with an Eminence Lil' Buddy (hemp cone, direct swap) which mellowed the sound. I now keep it in my summer house for practice.

[floatingpickup]

I have two old orange Roland’s, a cube 60 and 40. I also have Similar Polytones from the same era, a Mini-Brute and Baby Brute. I have compared them many times and I like them all, but they are all a little different. The Polytones are warmer than the Rolands and have a unique sound that isn’t really found in other amps. The reverb tanks in the Polytones are not my favourite, not having much depth and sounding a little weak. The Cubes are brighter than the Polytones and have a much nicer sounding reverb. They provide a little more control over tone with Volume, Middle and Bass controls, but still can’t replicate the warmth of a Polytone and they sound a little “compressed” to me.

Comparing the Cube 40 to the Baby Brute, I find that the Cube 40 lacks bottom end. The Baby Brute has much more bottom end and warmth. The Cube 40 only beats the Baby Brute in the reverb dept.

Comparing the Cube 60 to the Mini Brute, I would say the Cube 60 has lots of bottom end and can keep up with the Mini-Brute as far as bass response goes. Once again, the Cube 60’s reverb beats the Baby Brute’s. As far as warmth goes, the Mini Brute wins.

Final thoughts are…the Polytones are really single purpose amps. They only do one thing, but they do it well. They have a warmth and thick mid-range that sounds wonderful for jazz. They don’t have great sounding reverbs though. The old Rolands are more versatile and have great reverbs but sound less warm compared to the Polytones. The Cube 60 has lots of power and a pretty big bottom end but the Cube 40 lacks bottom end and in my case, is just used as a practice amp at low volumes.

Keith

[whiskey02]

I wouldn't consider International shipping of any used amp, no matter how recent or vintage. It would have to be new from a major dealer and covered by their warranty.