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What is it?
Orange has long been known for its iconic brand of sonic savagery, and its punchy low-end served up with crispy treble has helped define the music of a great many artists.
While the primary drive of the valve-amplifier industry is towards refined vintage tone, Orange filled the niche for a more aggressive sound. Styles such as punk, doom-rock and indie-rock embrace the more cutting frequency range and punchy response these characterfully coloured cabinets exude.
However, with this new amp Orange offers its take on a more refined all-valve design, aiming to please a wider range of tastes while sticking with brand-building features such as pedal-friendliness and huge overdrive ability.
The all-valve refinements carry through to the ECC82-buffered effects loop to provide enhanced clarity and coherence when using modulation-based effect processors, always best placed in the effects loop.
We have two wattage options incorporated into the standby switch, selecting between the full 60-watts output or 30 watts to better match smaller environments.
Improved top-end tailoring comes in the form of a redesigned presence circuit that works more effectively across the amp’s entire volume range, and a three-position Bright switch allowing for neutral, narrow-band (think ‘sparkle’) and wide-band (including some upper mids) options.
Orange has also included a bass Resonance control – a feature becoming de rigueur for modern high-gain amps. This, along with the Presence control, functions within the negative feedback circuit to tighten or extend the range at both ends of the frequency spectrum. And, yes, we’re looking at you, detuned metal players!
A second footswitchable volume control (not master volume as, strictly speaking, this is not a master volume-equipped amp) allows solo boosting for stage use, an indication of the type of environment Orange foresees this amp being used in.
Built in England using the same familiar chunky cabinets that have become a visual trademark, the brand continues its reputation for hardy, giggable construction quality.
An assembly inspection shows care was taken to withstand the rigorous routines of the road. A heavy-duty PCB board lies at the heart of this cathode-following, self-biasing design using two 6L6 valves to produce 60 watts.
The amp can be biased to accept other common output valves such as the EL34, though the real-world wattage that will be achievable would be governed by the valves’ output rating. Worthy of mention is that the smaller OR30 30-watt version turns into Class A operation with the wattage switch at half power, imparting a highly musical touch-sensitivity.
Specs
- Price: $2,499 | £2,099 | €2,399
- ORIGIN: UK
- TYPE: All-valve, single-channel head with switchable output and valve-buffered FX loop
- VALVES: 3x ECC83, 1x ECC82, 2x 6L6 (EL34 possible with re-biasing)
- OUTPUT: 60W, switchable to 30W
- DIMENSIONS: 550 (w) x 245 (d) x 270mm (h)
- WEIGHT (kg/lb): 19.3/42
- CABINET: Baltic birch
- CHANNELS: 1 with an additional switchable volume
- CONTROLS: Resonance, Presence, FS Volume, Volume, Treble, Middle, Bass, Gain, Bright Switch
- FOOTSWITCH: Not included
- ADDITIONAL FEATURES: Valve‑buffered FX loop, footswitchable volume
- OPTIONS: No
- RANGE OPTIONS: OR30 (£1,799)
- CONTACT: Orange Amps
Build quality, usability and sounds
Plugging in our Les Paul, we spent a few bemused moments checking out the pictures that label the controls. We’re undecided if the quirky fun is worth the brain resources needed to convert these cryptograms back to knob names, but it’s something die-hard Orange aficionados might enjoy.
First, we were astonished by the range of gain available from the first control as the second and third gain stages are being controlled by this one knob. From spanky cleans to all-out Armageddon, whatever your particular gain needs are this amp has you covered.
If you are, however, the kind of player who simply has to put a boost before anything, the OR60 is more than ready to play ball. The Orange reputation for pedal-friendliness is fully in evidence. However, there isn’t a great necessity to add extra gain for most sounds.
That solid, almost compressed sound for which Orange amps are famed is still very much in evidence and, as expected, our Stratocaster’s single-coil pickups came punching through with impressive authority. A rich and full sustain renders lead licks with plenty of fluidity of the bravado-inspiring kind.
We found the Bright switch well tuned to best present a variety of guitars. The sparkle setting introduced the chimey top-end that flatters cleaner sounds wonderfully.
The neutral position is recommended to get the most flexibility from tone-shaping pedals and the full-bright position introduces a wider band of top-boost starting lower down the frequency spectrum where upper-mids reside.
This setting brings back some of the traditional treble aggression that metal and punk players will expect from Orange but with an altogether more refined air. The sandpapery grittiness, long described as an Orange hallmark, is less apparent and a smoother, more fluid voice takes its place.
As the gain level gets irresistibly nudged further clockwise, the Resonance and Presence controls help sculpt the response and we found it a doddle to dial up mosh-pit-approved tight low-end. With the Bright switch and the Presence control it was possible to get an appropriate, aggressive top-end from any of our guitars.
We found the frequency response of the mid-control well tuned to either get that US scoop or, at the other extent, the British mid-forward classic rock sound. Indeed, the range of sounds achievable from the OR60 is huge, not due to channels and switches but simply from the power of the gain and EQ controls.
Verdict
Verdict: ★★★★½
Like a fist in a velvet glove (granted, that’s quite a barbaric metaphor) the OR60 – and its smaller sibling, the OR30 – brings a newly refined clarity to the brand’s sonic palette.
Worth noting is that this is a weighty beast to lug around, and with the price coming to around £2k this amp will very much be a deliberate choice for purchasers. The same range of musical styles can be played through the OR60, of course, as with previous models due to the abundance of gain and the touch-sensitive response.
However, now they’ll be imparted with a smoother, posher high-end and improved touch-sensitivity. To reappropriate the words of another cultural classic, the OR60 is an ‘elegant weapon for a more civilised age’.
Guitar World verdict: If the abundant punch and gain of the Orange sound appeals but the trademark top-end sizzle doesn’t, the OR60 could be the solution for you.
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