| Founded | 1968 |
|---|---|
| Founder(s) | Clifford Cooper |
| Products | Amplifiers, speaker cabinets |
| Website | www.orangeamps.com |
Orange Music Electronic Company is a British electric guitar and public address amplifier manufacturing company, famous for its distinctive sound and bright orange Tolex-like covering on amplifier heads and speaker cabinets. Orange also manufactures amplifiers for bass guitar, speaker cabinets for instrument amplifiers and combination (combo) amplifiers.
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Orange was founded in 1968 by Clifford Cooper of London, and started as a recording studio. The studio featured an IBC mixing console originally owned by Joe Meek of The Millionaires.
In autumn 1968, Cliff placed an order with the Huddersfield-based company Matamp (named after founder Mat Mathias) to make some 100-watt valve amps for Orange to Cooper's design. The manufacturing plant in the United States signifies that only the US-distributed Oranges cabinets are made in the States; currently, valve amps are manufactured in England and China.
Orange amplifiers are primarily mid to low-gain valve/vacuum tube amp heads, designed to be coupled with a matching speaker cabinet. Their most popular guitar amplifiers were the OR120, usually referred to as the "pics only" model for its use of pictures instead of text to indicate each knob's function, and the later OD120 overdrive model which was equipped with a master volume control. Most Orange guitar amps were based on output circuitry which used EL34 tubes (as did other popular British amp makers, and were available in the separate amp head and speaker cabinet format.
In the 1970s, Orange also made 'hybrid' PA amps that coupled a solid-state mixer stage with a tube (valve) power stage. In recent years, Orange has also produced guitar combo amps (speaker and amplifier in one assembly), as well as amplifiers for bass guitar and other audio products.
In the late 90's and early 00's, Orange also made a range of very successful all-tube combos, such as the AD 15/12 and the AD 30R. The AD 15/12, a Class A, single speaker 15 watt model, is now out of production and highly sought after.
Orange introduced the solid-state 'Crush' series in 2001, and in 2004 they introduced the new Rocker series. This series consists of five different amp models. These are the Rocker 30, which features a classic British rock sound, 2x EL34 power tubes working in Class A and today being the only amp available as a 1x12 combo. The Rockerverb uses similar circuitry, but has an extra gain stage and much more modern voicing. They also feature a reverb. The Rockerverb comes as a 50 watt head (featuring 4x 6V6 power tubes) and a 100 watt head (featuring 4x EL34 power tubes, but these can be switched to 6L6 or 6550 power tubes). In 2010, Orange updated the Rockerverb series to Rockerverb MkII's, which feature a new midrange control knob on the clean channel (previously a 2-band hi/lo only), a more transparent effects loop, and improved reverb. The Rockerverbs are now manufactured standard with EL34's and have more diverse tube-switching options, including the option to use 6V6's and KT88's.
In 2006 Orange introduced two new amps- the small and portable Tiny Terror, which has received big popularity for its ease of use, excellent tone and low price and the Thunderverb 200, which is a guitar/ bass amp with 200 watts of power (6 x 6550 power tubes) and an inbuilt attenuator, aimed more at modern sounds. Orange also revealed a smaller version, the Thunderverb 50, which has a 50 watt output. In 2008 Orange released a re-make of the 'Pics only' head. There were 40 of the custom shop OR50's to be released, each with a different circuit and girl's name instead of a serial number. There is also a non-custom shop version of the OR50, the OR50H, which was also a series limited to 2008, though produced in greater quantities than that of the custom OR50 series. The OR50H also featured an additional control knob (pre-amp volume).
In 2009, Orange unveiled the two channel Dual Terror at the NAMM Convention in Anaheim, Ca. The first "Tiny Terror" channel features the same circuitry as the Tiny Terror amp. The second "Fat" channel has a similar sound but with more gain and a more prominent low end. The Dual Terror features 30 watts of power delivered by four 12AX7 preamp tubes and four EL-84 power tubes. The amp is switchable down to 15 watts and 7 watts via a half/full power switch on the front of the amp and a 4 power tube/ 2 power tube switch on the back. The Dual Terror is also physically larger than the Tiny Terror.
Before Orange Amps, there was Orange Studios. Cliff Cooper built the studio with his friend Brian Hatt over the course of the summer, hand-cutting, stripping, and soldering every wire. "Our basement studio had a great vibe," Cooper recounts, "It was very large and, as nobody lived or worked on either side, volume wasn't an issue. Most bands preferred to come in for night sessions." Link to image/source
All Valve 30w EL84 based head and 1x12 combo, due for release September 2010, Chinese made to reduce costs, these now feature an effects loop and 7/15/30w power switching.
Orange's all-valve "flagship" amp heads, for use with electric guitar or electric bass, manufactured in Britain.
Orange's "Vintage-sounding" all-valve amp range, manufactured in Britain, introduced in 2004.
Incorrectly assumed to be similar to the Rocker series, the Rockerverb series is Orange's most modern sounding and highest gain offering, and features a tube driven effects loop and a spring reverb. MkII versions are now available, these add a middle control to the clean channel, and have a more transparent effects loop.
Orange's take on a more vintage sound. Incorrectly compared to the Vox AC30. All AD series amps are all-valve amps, and are manufactured in Britain.
Simple stripped-down all-valve amps switchable between operating in 7 Watts class A or 15 Watts class A. The Tiny Terror has considerably more gain available than the vintage Orange amplifiers, despite only being a four-valve (2 x ECC83, 2 x EL84) circuit.
Orange cabs for distribution in the USA are built in the USA, others are manufactured in Britain, except the 1 x 12 2x12ob and 4 X 10, which is manufactured in china.
Orange's range of solid-state "practice" combos. The Crush, Crush Bass, and Crush PiX series are manufactured in China.
Orange's newest range of solid-state "practice" combos.
solid-state "practice" combo amplifiers for bass guitar.
Orange's range of Bass Amplifiers and Speaker Cabinets.
Orange's remake of the 'pics only' amplifier
Orange custom shop design and build Point to Point Hand wired valve amplification.