Bogner vs RM100

[Smokey]

Hey guys,
I played a Bogner Shiva, Ecstasy and Uberschall yesterday and then my RM100 when I got home. Just thought I'd let everyone know what I heard from playing them. Bogner has only just been stocked in Mebourne Australia and the amps only arrived 2 weeks ago.

Shiva:
Absolutely incredible!!!!!!! Very nice clean channel , articulate, awesome clarity. The Dirty channel, think a cranking hotrodded Plexi - JCM 800 type crunch that is thick rich and articulate.... and then you have the option to activate a Boost on it, which is the best boost I have ever heard in an amp. The boost can also be used on the Clean channel, but I never got round to using it like that - as I found this out as I was leaving. Incredible sound, I now understand why everyone raves about Bogner.

Ecstasy:
I expected this amp to really impress me and blow me away. In my opinion, it fell short. The 3 channels were good and again articulate, but there was a little bit of buzz in the distortion (sort of around the edge of the notes). I think that this and the Uberschall have to be cranked to really get their true character. Still a great amp, and features galore (3 Channels and separate Boosts for channel 2 and 3, Plexi mode, 3 way excursion switches - change tight or loose feel for dirty channels). Personally, I could not justify the large price tag on the sounds I heard from it yesterday, but it is an amp that I may have to give another chance down the line, and fiddle with a bit more.

Uberschall:
I played this amp the least out of the three. Since it is Bogner's answer to Mesa type high gain heavy players, I expected it to be a bit tighter sounding. I found it very buzzy sounding, which was disapointing. It was able to produce extreme high gain, with Bogner's usual characteristics, but just a bit buzzy. A little loose sounding I thought for a "heavy" amp, but could probably add an overdrive pedal to take care of that. Clean channel was not as good as the other amps, but not the worst that I have heard. Least functions of the 3 amps, 2 channels. Much more articulate than a Mesa in my opinion. Still had the buzz, but full chords rang out with string definition.

I guess for many years, I have had the Bogner name on a pedistool as the ultimate amps. The Uberschall and Ecstasy fell well short of what I thought they would be. I expected both to make me want to sell my RM100, they didn't. At the same time, I would love to have them both cranking in an appropriate environment (Eg: In a studio with an amp room while I tweak the head in the control room), to hear how they respond there. They are both good amps, but not as jaw dropping as the Shiva.
Anyway onto my RM100 at home. I plugged in once I got home and could get similar Shiva type tones and articulation from my Egnater SL+, and more versatility from my module range of Brown, Blackface, XTC and Egnater Erect. The XTC module is more "woody" sounding than an actual XTC, stock it also lacks the definition of the real thing. The real XTC does not have any mud in it at all.

In conclusion, Shiva - An absolutely devastating amp, but my RM100 is staying put, much more versatile for recording, able to self bias, switch tubes, etc. Thought I would just share this experience, thanks for bearing with this essay.
Cheers
Damian

 

[okstrat]

I had a lot of the same feelings - a friend of mine has owned each of those model bogners. I actually prefer my RM100 with a modded XTC over the real deal

Pete

 

[tung]

thanks for the review. i've played through these models too, I really like the gain on the Shiva and the Ecstasy, and yes, you have to crank it to really feel its full tonal capabilities.
I've used Cornford amps and I actually think my XTC module gets me close to the sound of a Cornford rather than a Bogner. This is fine by me, since the Cornford is more than double the price of the RM100 rig.

 

[Ugg]

Thanks for the review, Smokey. I've never heard the Bogner amps first hand (probably ought to try them out one day). From clips I've heard of the Estacy, the XTC module gets close but doesn't quite nail it. No matter, the module has an excellent tone of it's own.

BTW, Pete does a great job of clearing the "mud" from the XTC module.

 

[3 Mile Stone]

I always hear good things about the Shiva. Gonna have to try one someday. Played the 101B quite a bit. It's a good amp.

 

[davesalad]

The xtc in the rm 100 is good - xtc mod
To me it sounds more compressed and lacks the dimension of the bogner xtc..

The build quality of the randall is ...
Tolex -was done by a high school kid
mine died after a week -
I do like the amp - like the plexi -


Each amp does it's own thing -

The funny part is I often gig out with line 6 vetta head -
Awesome - for the $$$$