The new Orange Tiny Terror ventures into the review chamber this month. From the company that is synonymous with British voiced tube tone comes a new class “A” all-tube mini amp. Packing a lot of punch in a small pouch, the Tiny Terror is the latest brainchild of Orange Senior Designer, Adrian Emsley. The company claims that it has been able to squeeze every drop of that signature Orange tone into the Tiny Terror, providing guitarists with an affordable alternative to the company’s higherpriced models. Sounds like a great idea to me, so lets grab a six pack and start terrorizing, Orange style.
No Bigger Than A Lunchbox:
They say it’s not the size of the dog in the fight, but rather the size of the fight in the dog. Obviously this was the theory behind the design of the Tiny Terror. Literally no bigger than a lunch box, the Tiny Terror measures just 6” high, 5” deep and 1 foot long, and weighs in at just over 12 lbs. It features a cool, retro-looking white metal chassis with vented top plate, and the traditional orange logo and insignia.
There are front panel controls for volume, mini tone knob and gain, two rocker-style toggle switches for on-off-stand by and switching the output from 7 to 15 watts, and one 1/4” input, that’s all! Rear panel features are much the same, providing three 1/4” outputs, two rated for 8 ohms and one 16 ohm output. There’s also an 115v VAC power input and a 250mA recessed fuse housing, but that’s it. The Tiny Terror was designed to simply connect a speaker cab, allow you to plug your guitar in and start throwin’ down. No complicated programming or confusing menus to scroll through. Guitar to amp to speaker; you get the idea.
Inventing Terror:
The Tiny Terror utilizes class A valve technology with a 100% analog signal path that eliminates any and all digital clipping output characteristics. Driven by a pair of EL84 power valves and a front end that utilizes a duct of 12AX7 preamp valves. Switchable from 7 to 15 watts of output, Orange designers have designed the gain structure of the Tiny Terror to work in a very unique way; utilizing a dual gang gain pot, one side turns up the first gain stage to the point of very heavy compression, while the other side changes the impedance of the second gain stage so that it to compresses to the same degree.
It utilizes a five section fully filmed interleaved output transformer that is very closely balanced to primary. The EL84 output tubes are cathode biased to around 90% in the 15w position, and 96% in the 7w position. In short, the Tiny Terror is designed to produce as much gain as a four stage gain pot, but the output tubes are driven evenly all the way through. The tone control is also designed in a unique way, where the tone circuit is not on the preamp side, but actually part of the phase inverter (power amp) so the gain structure of the amp is unaffected by the tone control.
Raising the Terror Alert:
For testing purposes, I utilized two different cabs: an older Marshall (1966B) 2x12 cab with stock 75w Celestions, as well as a Marshall (1960B) 4x12 cab, loaded with Celestion Vintage 30s. From the guitar garage, a Les Paul Limited recently acquired at the Arlington Guitar Show and a mid ‘90s photo flame Telecaster were put into service.
The setup was literally the extent of plugging in three chords: power, speaker input, and instrument input. Before you know it, you’re ready to rock. After all, the tried and true technique of “straight into the amp” is the source of the purest tone.
My first test was with the Telecaster. Using the 15w output setting, volume on seven, tone on eight and gain on three, the Telecaster sounded like a telecaster should after consuming a six pack of Red Bull. It was big, fat and ballsy, while still retaining an articulate high-end sparkle, supplying enough of the “twang thang” that we all love. I really appreciated clean tones that produce a fair amount of tube compression saturation. Though the tone is still clean and distinguishable, it’s got some nuts to it.
In experimenting with increasing the gain characteristics, the Tele really started to roar with the gain on six and reducing the main output to four. Don’t be fooled, fellow tone chasers, this is a loud 15 watts, and more than enough for most clubs. By engaging the 7 watt switch (lowering the plate on the power transformer), it was way cool to run the master on ten, tone on ten and gain on two. This provides a very nice power valve compression that is silky and smooth and breathes, all at a very comfortable output level that would be very desirable for recording.
With a quick change over to the 4x12 Marshall cab, and the new love of my life, a Les Paul Limited with an insane flametop in Santa Fe Sunrise (I had to throw that in), I am ready to let the rubber hit the road. Try setting the gain on six and the tone and volume on ten in the 15w mode, and the Tiny Terror transforms into a giant beast. Angus Young lives in this tone. Don’t let the small size fool you; the Tiny Terror is capable of producing a huge overdriven tone with an incredible amount of gain. It was pleasantly surprising, as I did not expect this amount of gain. With sustain forever, the Les Paul sings in this mode.
The Tiny Terror still retains that trademarked vintage-voiced Orange tone, but adds enough gain to satisfy hard rockers. I really dig a tube amp when the tubes heat up to the point you can smell them. Oooh, oooh, that smell, the smell of tone surrounds you. You can tell the amp is biased a little hot, and that’s the smell of Tiny Terror.
The Final Mojo - Upside
The Tiny Terror is 100% indicative of what its name implies. It’s both tiny and a terror, class A style. Refreshingly simplistic and straight forward in finding a tone suitable for any style of playing, from highly compressed clean tones to an incredible vintage-voiced British overdrive, the Tiny Terror is a bad motor scooter. Great for recording and yes, more than enough for live gigs. Don’t let the size fool you, because in this case, size doesn’t matter. The Tiny Terror will kick your ass, but at a list price of $699 and a street price of $549, complete with custom form-fit padded case, the Tiny Terror will save your ears, your back and your wallet.
Downside
An effects loop would be a welcomed feature, but would understandably drive up the price.
Features
I purchased my Tiny Terror in December 2007.
It is made in Korea (I thought Orange were going to switch production to China?)
- Output Power: 15 Watts 'Class A' / 7 Watts 'Class A' Channel
- Controls: Gain / Tone / Volume
- Valves: Preamp Valves = 2 x 12AX7 (ECC83), Power Valves 2 x EL84
- Speaker Out: 1x 16 ohms, 2 x 8 ohms
- Case: 1.5 mm Zintec Chassis w/ Steel Vented Top
- Dimensions: 305 x 155 x 135 mm (W x H x D)
- Weight: 6Kg /13.2 lbs
- Accessories: Padded Gig Bag Included
I play in a rock band and the amp is setup well for rock sounds. It's a single channel amp. No channel switching, effects loops or headphone jack. The TT doesn't have many features: Off/on, 7/Standby/15 watt setting, volume, tone and gain. It is "bare-bones" amp, which means less things can go wrong.
However, the TT is not a one trick pony. It can go from Clean / Crunch / Heavy Overdrive depending on how much gain you dial in. Clean (i.e. Gain set low) sounds great but it's only an option for home or studio work. Gain needs to be set at least to around half way for gigging where you can control the amount of crunch by guitar volume settings. By itself the TT, with a single PPC112 is just loud enough to be heard over drummer, which is fine for practice or small venues. However, I will need to mike the setup TT for outdoors or larger venues or use my Fender Bassman.
Sound Quality
Great A-class valve sound. I bought spare pair of JJ EL-84's and replaced the standard Orange EL-84s for testing purposes. Not sure what the Orange EL-84's are but they sound and look very similar to the JJs. You will need to use a fair bit of gain in a live setting, it gets a bit dark. Humbuckers start to can sound muddy I use all treble tone and pickup settings.
What guitar and pickup styles are you using it with? I play rock-blues on Gibsons, Fenders and a PRS. It works well with both humbuckers and single coils
How does it suit your music style (and what is that style)?- It is ideal for the style of music I play.
Is it noisy? On what settings, and in what environments? -It is noisy on high gain settings with single coil pickups or with compression/distortion pedals switched on.
What kind of sounds can the amp make? How much variety? - Clean through to heavy distortion.
Is the clean channel distorted at high volumes? In what settings? -Clean is not distorted but doesn't really have much volume or head room
How brutal is the distortion? - A bit raggered towards the top end of the gain setting.
Can you depend on it? - Yes
Would you use it on a gig without a backup? - Yes
Has the amp ever broken down? - No
Because of neglect of regular servicing (as in tubes), or just plain neglect? - No
If you've dealt with the company, how helpful/friendly were they? - Don't know
Ever try and get it repaired? Was the repair done under warranty? - No problems so far.
Were you able to find an authorised service center easily? - Haven't tried.
How long is the warranty? - I guess it has a one year warranty. The amp comes with no documentation. Nothing
I used to think the Fender Bassman was a feature-less amp. The TT has re-calibrated my thinking on just how few features an amp can have. What you get is:
- delicious sounds at a very usable volume for band practice, home use and small venues
- light weight portable amp
- The small amp doesn't generate that much heat. A bonus in an Australian summer.
How long have you been playing? - I have been playing off and on (mostly off) since 1969, but with renewed interest since 2003.
What other gear do you own? - A own a bevy of guitars, amps and effects.
- Gibson: SG '61 (with Vibrola), SG '61 Re-issue, SG Classic, Les Paul Standard, Flying V, Hummingbird
- Fender: Stratocaster '74, Stratocaster 1997 Collectors, Telecaster American Standard, XII, Active Precision Bass Special; Bassman Reissue
- PRS: Custom 24
- Orange: Rockerverb 50, PPC112
If it were stolen or lost, would you buy it again or get something else? - Don't know. It meets my requirements perfectly but there are other similar light weight options like the VOX 15 watt combo that might be worth investigating.What do you love about it? What do you hate? - I love the light weight, sound and looks.
Did you compare it to other products? Which ones? Why did you choose this one? - Reasonable cheap and the sound.
Anything you wish it had? - Any additional features would increase weight, cost and complexity. Although a channel switch between Clean and Gain would be nice. It's a bit of a pain removing ten screw to get at the tubes. Hopefully this won't happen to often.
Anything else you'd like to share? - The only major gripe is the lack of a manual / wiring diagram. In fact, no documentation.
I get a kick of turning up for a gig and getting the little TT out and seeing the look of surprise at how much sound this little bugger can produce. It has a great sound for home or studio but it has to be driven hard in live situation and that means distorition. So for home or studio, where you can vary the setup as required fine but a bit limited in a live setting and doesn't really have the "touch" dynamics or compression of a bigger amp. So in summary, great amp and the right price to get many more people in the Orange club.
Did you compare it to other products? Which ones? Why did you choose this one? - Reasonable cheap and the sound.
Anything you wish it had? - Any additional features would increase weight, cost and complexity. Although a channel switch between Clean and Gain would be nice. It's a bit of a pain removing ten screw to get at the tubes. Hopefully this won't happen to often.
Anything else you'd like to share? - The only major gripe is the lack of a manual / wiring diagram. In fact, no documentation.
I get a kick of turning up for a gig and getting the little TT out and seeing the look of surprise at how much sound this little bugger can produce. It has a great sound for home or studio but it has to be driven hard in live situation and that means distorition. So for home or studio, where you can vary the setup as required fine but a bit limited in a live setting and doesn't really have the "touch" dynamics or compression of a bigger amp. So in summary, great amp and the right price to get many more people in the Orange club.
