Orange amps are very popular and are used by both professionals and beginner guitarists.
| Features: | Orange OR15H | Orange RT Rocker 15 Terror |
|---|---|---|
| Price: | £459 | £469 |
| Max Wattage: | 15W | 15W |
| Weight: | 8.06 KG (17.77 LB) | 6.4KG (14.10LBS) |
Orange OR15H
There’s no mistaking the unique look of an Orange amp and there’s definitely no mistaking the looks of this one! Innovative, right from when the brand came to life in the ‘70s, one of Orange’s design ‘quirks’ was the lack of words on them. Instead, you would just see pictures describing what the controls do. In 2008, Orange revived the style when it was reissued, although the 50 Watts of valve power was awfully loud. Since then, they have released the OR 15 version.
Design
Orange’s OR15H is a single channel, all valve, 15-Watt, class A micro amp. The ‘micro amp’ trend is sweeping through the industry and every company is putting out their own version of a low wattage small portable practice-studio amp, although the difference with Orange is that they were there right from the very start of the trend and clearly have had a lead over some of the competition.
If the layout is simple enough to just rely on images for guidance, so too is driving the OR 15. If you’re looking it clean, you turn down the gain and turn up the master volume. If you want to get filth, you turn up the gain volume and even the master volume yet again, depending on how loud you want it. Although 15 Watts is more than loud enough for home and studio use, it will struggle next to a drummer. If 15 Watts is too much for you, then you can use a switch on the front that cuts the power to 7 Watts.
The amp has 3x ECC83 pre amp valves and 2x EL84 output valves, which is a classic arrangement for achieving the ‘British’ sound, although in some ways its inaccurate in this case as what this amp is really good at is allowing you to get the sound you make with your guitar and playing style. There’s also a valve-driven series effects loop which is always good.
Sound Quality
The Orange OR 15 takes overdrive and boost pedals well, which is a good sign of a nicely voiced amp. As it has just one channel, it teaches you how to control the volume on your guitar to get clean, crunch, gain and then more gain for when you want to kick in your favourite pedal. This technique can often get missed and if it is, can lead to your touch, note production and tone being average rather than great.
The OR 15 is an amp that teaches you how to get a good sound.
Orange Rocker 15 Terror
Many can remember the Orange’s original Tiny Terror. Orange’s TT was the head that kicked off the whole ‘lunchbox amp’ craze back in the early 2000s and went on to create a host of variant models and imitators before finally being discontinued in 2016. The good news is that Orange has since brought it back from the grave.
Design
The basic principle of this Terror version remains true to the blueprint. It has 15 Watts from 2x EL84s, and is switchable down to 7 watts, in a compact white metal chassis. But it’s a couple of inches wider than its senior, and the main reason for that is that it’s a two-channel amp. As the original Tiny Terror stripped things right back with just master volume, preamp gain and a single tone control, this version offers a three-band EQ section on the dirty channel allowing for precise tailoring of your overdriven tones.
There’re a couple of newer features around the back in addition to the expected footswitch input for changing channels: a valve-buffered effects loop, along with a slider switch marked ‘headroom/bedroom’ lets you reduce the output level to just one watt, or half a watt if you’re already in half-power mode.
Sound Quality
Orange has opted for the term ‘natural’, and when plugging the Rocker 15 Terror through an oversized 1×12 cab, it doesn’t take long to find out why – it’s about as clean as a student’s bedroom. Although, there’s a small window of undistorted tone with the volume set just high enough to be properly on, when reaching 10 o’clock things are already crunching up with humbuckers.
By the way, it’s not a bad clean tone, and it’s a shame there are no EQ controls on this channel to make more of it. However, the name ‘Rocker’ is a fairly obvious indicator of what this amp is really about – and when the overdrive starts to kick, it’s classic Orange stuff. At full blast (still on the natural channel) you get enough gain for full-on hard rock riffing, while big chords ring out with nice natural compression.
While the dirty channel starts off rather tame, there’s plenty more to come. The vintage British drive will get richer and richer as you crank the preamp gain, and sounds even better if you’re free to turn the volume up to full for a bit of output valve distortion.
When bringing the mids down to zero and boosting the bass and treble, it will give you more of a modern metal voicing that doesn’t sound forced but sits up and begs to be noodled at.
Conclusion
So which Orange amp is better? While both amps are very good, although the Rocker 15 Terror is much more versatile and lighter. In terms of price, there isn’t a huge difference between the two.