# Bad Cat Amps



## Jeff Flowerday (Jan 23, 2006)

I really love mine I thought we should start a thread with everyone's experiences.

I've got a Hot Cat 15 that is my funnest amp. It has gobs of good chewy gain and I can spend all night smiling playing it.

I've also got a Mini Cat II, that's my go to practice amp. Single Ended class A with the ability to get some good gain and give without tearing a guys head off.


Does anyone else have one or have played one? What did you think?


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## david henman (Feb 3, 2006)

...where did you find them in toronto? or did you buy by mail order?

how do they compare with your fuchs?


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## Jeff Flowerday (Jan 23, 2006)

david henman said:


> ...where did you find them in toronto? or did you buy by mail order?
> 
> how do they compare with your fuchs?


I'm in Calgary, the location of the only Canadian dealer for the longest time. But... Right now I don't think there is a Canadian dealer period, GuitarWorks isn't doing them anymore.

Absolutely nothing like the Fuchs. To best describe my Hot Cat would be to say it's an extremely pissed off Vox.

The other Bad Cat models have less gain than the Hot Cat. Some are similar to a Matchless. There are new completely different models that the word on the street indicates are pretty awesome.

I don't expect there to be alot experience with them, the cheapest model is the Mini Cat at about $900. Anything they make 15 watts or bigger is going to start at $2500+.


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## Jeff Flowerday (Jan 23, 2006)

There are some clips check them out.

http://www.badcatamps.com/sounds.asp


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## Robert1950 (Jan 21, 2006)

Jeff Flowerday said:


> To best describe my Hot Cat would be to say it's an extremely pissed off Vox.


LOL ! Now that I can understand.


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## wordsonyou (Apr 27, 2006)

nothing wrong with the tremcat either if you dig killer verb, trem and ef86 and 12ax7 Voxy style vibes (not a pissed off vox tone, more of a shiny happy Vox vibe)

The little Cub was also a killer small club amp for those wanting a deluxe meets ac15 vibe. And badcats are built very well as I am sure you are well aware.


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## Jeff Flowerday (Jan 23, 2006)

m4tt said:


> I really want to try out a bunch of their amps but I'm thinking that isn't possible in my lonely province Ontario
> 
> if I have to order, I'm just going to order a /13 FTR37


Go down and bug your local L&M manager, all they need is a little push. They've been talking to Bad Cat.

The local L&M in Calgary isn't that interested to stock any at this time just because Calgary/Alberta is quite saturated with them already. I see no reason why the Ontario stores wouldn't want them. They are killer amps.


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## faracaster (Mar 9, 2006)

I've had the Trem Cat and the Cub II. I REALLY liked them both. I thought of them as a Matchless with a bigger bottom and a little darker. I loved the Trem Cat and it's versitility (I love tremelo) . The Cub has lots of sparkle and clarity and is certainly loud enough to gig with. A friend of mine left me his Hot Cat for a few days and although it wasn't my cup of tea. It certainly had a great quality sound and was built like a brick sh*t house.
The 12th Fret has a Trem Cat for sale right now, just came in on Tues. Anyone interested in the TO area should check it out. It maybe a long time before another surfaces.

Cheers
Pete


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## faracaster (Mar 9, 2006)

m4tt said:


> if I have to order, I'm just going to order a /13 FTR37


Too bad. I just sold mine. All I can say is that it is one of the best five amps I've ever played. It's no wonder all the LA studio guys are heavy into /13's.
If you are interested in one, I know mine is going up for sale today at 
www.raysguitars.com And it's ......*PURPLE.*....amps are louder in purple you know.
You may ask why I sold it. Well lets just say a once in a lifetime chance came up to buy a Dumble. I had to go there. I will get another FTR 37 in the future you can be sure. But I just had to go and try the Holy Grail.
Anyway I highly, highly reccommend the /13 FTR 37, KILLER amp.

cheers
Pete


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## sysexguy (Mar 5, 2006)

Isn't "Purple" in the Guiness book of records for loudest band?

I can say first hand that the Purple ones are louder (it's a psychoacoustic thing)..... mine stays here 

Andy

ps hi Pete, hi m4tt, just booked a table at the VGS, I'm bringin' everything cool that I have (company that is) but no Badcats


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## sysexguy (Mar 5, 2006)

http://www.tundramusic.com/guitarshow/index.php

the only things vintage I'm bringing are dirty jokes but that's ok with the boss


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## pickslide (May 9, 2006)

I was going to ask about people's experiences with Bad Cats, but then saw this thread. I am very interested in these, but don't want to spend $2500. The smaller ones interest me, but do they have decent clean headroom?

I was just in Guitarworks last week and they still sell Bad Cat amps.....


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## Robert1950 (Jan 21, 2006)

I went through the Harmony Central reviews on the bad cat today. Some of models had poor reviews recently, like the Alley Cat - someone said something about a bad batch of caps.


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## dolphinstreet (Sep 11, 2006)

They sound really good but the prices are a bit beyond most people's budget I think.


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## evenon (Nov 13, 2006)

Currently own a Hot Cat Head from 2002 and matching 2x12 cabinet and a Custom Shop Hot Cat 15/30R that is going back to the dealer, has a few problems. Also owned a Trem Cat and one of the original Mini-Cats.

The Hot Cat is my favorite amp ever. Fills alot of space in a three piece band. Huge single notes. Yes they are a little tough to figure out at first, the controls are not that intuiative. Some people complain they are buzzy, and can be at lower volume, but that too can be dialed out. Great amps. 

Unfortunately, seems Bad Cat are having some QC problems these days. The older ones are absolutely rock solid, not so sure about the stuff made in the last year. Lots of bad stories going around the internet, and the dealer I bought my Custom Shop one from, had some interesting stories. Seems a few other dealers have dropped them.


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## satim (Mar 23, 2006)

I have a Bad Cat Mini Cat ll that I am selling as I found something else. Let me say that the mini is Awesome thru a 2x12 cabinet you can get some of the best tones cranked up or turned down. This thing is also built like a tank and looks ccool too. I am going to try to get another but a I am going to look for a Hot Cat


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## zurn (Oct 21, 2009)

You can get Badcats are Boutique Tone in Montreal, all available online too!

http://store.boutiquetone.com/index.php?c=1000117

And Matamp's are avaiable at Moog Audio also in Montreal.

http://www.moogaudio.com/advanced_search_result.php?keywords=matamp&x=0&y=0

Both ship !


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## SteveS (Apr 25, 2006)

I had a Hot Cat 30R head for a while, and while it certainly had good tone, it just wasn't for me.

The thick chewyness that was there just wasn't my sound. I prefer a more open Marshally kind of sound I guess.
The clean channel was very nice. One of the best I've heard so far.

The amp was not without its woes though. I just could not get the effects loop to work properly. That's a big item for me, and one of the reasons I sold it.

I've got a Matchless HC30 now that I really like.


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## Swervin55 (Oct 30, 2009)

I currently own a Cub IIR (15W). I was looking for a low wattage amp for use at home (townhouse). It is great for the purpose which it was purchased, but absolutely no head room in a rehearsal setting. This is contrary to many of the comments that I have read on various forums which claim that this amp is gigable without being mic'd. I've tried on more than one occasion and it simply will not keep up to a drummer and is not pedal friendly when pushed. I have re-tubed and no difference so it is what it is. Can't say enough about the sound or build quality. Very happy in both regards.

Swervin


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## guitarman2 (Aug 25, 2006)

Swervin55 said:


> I currently own a Cub IIR (15W). I was looking for a low wattage amp for use at home (townhouse). It is great for the purpose which it was purchased, but absolutely no head room in a rehearsal setting. This is contrary to many of the comments that I have read on various forums which claim that this amp is gigable without being mic'd. I've tried on more than one occasion and it simply will not keep up to a drummer and is not pedal friendly when pushed. I have re-tubed and no difference so it is what it is. Can't say enough about the sound or build quality. Very happy in both regards.
> 
> Swervin


I guess everyone has a different idea of "loud enough to gig". I once tried a Dr Z Carmen Ghia and although I loved the amp and it is fairly loud, it wouldn't come close to keeping up with the drummers I play with.


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## warplanegrey (Jan 3, 2007)

I used to have a Hot Cat 30R 1x12 combo that had one of the best clean channels I've ever heard. The dirt side, however, I hated. It sounded boxy, hollow, and above all, harsh. I quickly traded it for a Black Cat 30R head which was much MUCH better. I miss that amp, but hey, c'est le vie!


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