B-Stock: Roland Blues Cube Artist 80-Watt 1x12" Guitar Combo Amplifier - Black

Having updated and redefined their proprietary Tube Logic modeling technology, Roland's Blues Cube Artist is a black, 80W combo amplifier intended for use with electric guitars. It aims to instill the familiar tone and feel of traditional tube amps, but without the weight or maintenance involved. Featuring two channels and a single 12" speaker, this amplifier is suitable for clubs and other smaller venues, and its comparatively light weight of 35 lb renders it eminently portable.

The top panel displays the amp's control section, on which you'll find parameters for both clean and crunch channels, as well as reverb, tremolo, master volume, presence, and equalization knobs. Next to the master rotary is the power control knob, which allows you to reduce the output of the amp without changing the timbre. Thus, whether playing clean or decisively dirty, you do not have to compromise on tonal versatility.

The combo's textured black covering offers a modern take on a vintage style, with its plywood cabinet and open-backed design revealing the custom-tuned 12" Blues Cube speaker housed within. In addition to a direct line output, other modern flourishes include a stereo headphone output, connection jacks for an integrated effects loop, and a USB recording output for direct-to-DAW situations.

Tube Logic

Tweaked heavily since its first iterations in the '90s, Roland's Tube Logic seeks to emulate the sound of tube amps as well as their inner workings to generate a more faithful tone.

Boost and Tone

For each channel, augmenting the volume controls are two switches labeled boost and tone. Boost adds some more tube crunch to your existing tone, whilst tone accentuates the treble frequencies for greater high-end delineation. Both of these switches can be operated hands-free with the separately available footswitch.

Variable Power Control

Most tube amplifiers are thought to have a volume "sweet spot"—a locale in which the power tubes are cranked just enough to provide pleasurable distortion. If that volume setting is deviated from, tone can be compromised. In many instances, that sweet spot is often too loud in volume for most live or recording situations. While Tube Logic does give you total dynamic control over your sound, once you find your sweet spot, you can use the variable power control knob to reduce the output to 45, 15, or even 0.5 watts, in order to take down the volume and match it to your current playing situation without affecting your chosen tone.