Orange Amps Forum

I've got an OR120M head, serial number 015347...now, I know it was made in May 1979 because it's still got the original date card tag attached to the board, but what is the difference between the OR120M and the OR120? I've 'heard' that the OR120M is the Master volume version of the OR120 and 'slightly' more desirable(?), but what period of Orange's history was this amp made? Pre-Marshall involvement or at the beginning of the new phase of Orange amps? Are they hard to come-by because I've only been able to track down an example of one for sale on the entire internet and not a huge amount of info!

Well, the main difference in the circuitry is simply the addition of the master volume circuit. Which by the way, was the first amp to feature that as a production model. Marshall has never had anything to do with Orange.

I'm guessing yours runs hot since someone replaced the back panel with the screening on there. As far as more desirable, it's a matter of preference. There are guys out there who think that the master negatively affects the tone, but I have two of the OR80M's and the way the master is wired, basically turn the master to 10 and the amp runs from the gain like a regular non-master OR120.

Cheers Billy. Yea, someone mentioned to me before about the 'custom' back plate, That'd be a pretty good reason why, it does get quite hot during long sessions. Still sounds awesome tho and never had any problems with it.

I was chatting to a guy at Orange HQ in the uk earlier and he said that at some point around the turn of the 80's Orange became 'affilliated' with something or other, thought he said Marshall but I could have mis-heard him to be fair, and so there was a time when the build of the Amps changed...kind of like 60's and 70's were the 100% original Orange amps, and anything later was like a second phase of Orange amps, produced on a more commercial scale. So, if that were the case, depending on the date that 'affiliation' happend, I'd have a better idea of which side of that event it was made.

You're gonna tell me I completely mis-heard whatever he said aren't you?!...haha

Thanks

Thanks that's nice how to hypnotize people

In 5 weeks time it's gonna be up for auction on ebay. Gonna be sad to see it go!!

1968-1979 was the "original era" for Orange Amps. The name was resurrected by Orange founder Cliff Cooper in the early 1990's when he licensed the brand to Gibson for the production of re-issue models. Trace Elliot was involved in building some of these amps. Later in the 1990's, Mr. Cooper reclaimed the Orange brand and re-started production of Orange Amps. The only correlation between Orange and M*rshall is that M*rshall refused to sell their amps to Cliff Cooper when he first opened his music store, so he had to build his own amps. Thus, we all have M*rshall to thank for the existence of Orange Amps!

Randy Bass wrote: 1968-1979 was the "original era" for Orange Amps. The name was resurrected by Orange founder Cliff Cooper in the early 1990's when he licensed the brand to Gibson for the production of re-issue models. Trace Elliot was involved in building some of these amps.

I've never seen any evidence of Trace Elliot involvement prior to late 1998 when production of the AD series began.

Er... am I thinking of Matamp? I thought Gibson had someone else actually make the 1990's reissues.

Anyhow - it definitely wasn't M*rshall.

Randy Bass wrote:Er... am I thinking of Matamp? I thought Gibson had someone else actually make the 1990's reissues.

Anyhow - it definitely wasn't M*rshall.

I think the forthcoming Orange book is going to set the record straight on a lot of these issues... Gibson was a distributor, nothing else.

Randy Bass wrote:Er... am I thinking of Matamp? I thought Gibson had someone else actually make the 1990's reissues.

Not sure who made the 90's reissues. I've never seen any hard evidence that they weren't made by Trace Elliot either....

Sooner wrote:

Randy Bass wrote:Er... am I thinking of Matamp? I thought Gibson had someone else actually make the 1990's reissues.

Not sure who made the 90's reissues. I've never seen any hard evidence that they weren't made by Trace Elliot either....

The proof is found on the circuit board.

Orphin wrote:

Sooner wrote:

Randy Bass wrote:Er... am I thinking of Matamp? I thought Gibson had someone else actually make the 1990's reissues.

Not sure who made the 90's reissues. I've never seen any hard evidence that they weren't made by Trace Elliot either....

The proof is found on the circuit board.

Proof that they were made by Trace? Where's a pic?

Don't ask me. I just know that the Trace built amps say "Trace Elliot" and the Matamp's has the "JL" logo.

Orphin wrote:Don't ask me. I just know that the Trace built amps say "Trace Elliot" and the Matamp's has the "JL" logo.

This 'JL" Logo?

http://users.telenet.be/orangefg/OFG_OT ... loseup.jpg" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

If so, then it looks like the mid 90's amps were made by Matamp.

Seems like it's about time Cliff got himself a user account on the Orange Forum .