SWR Strawberry Blonde

Price Paid: US $320 used

Features: 8
This amp has a great set of features: headphone jack, effects loop, tweeter switch, speaker mute, aural exciter, spring reverb, etc...I wish it had more than one channel and XLR input but it does have a XLR out. Pretty good volume for the size and a clever kick back stand that doubles as a handle. Very, very ugly in sort of a charming way. My wife was afraid to tell me how ugly it was because she didn't want to hurt my feelings. Once I told her I also thought it was ugly she really cut loose about the cream/red color scheme and old school look. She changed her mind when she heard the taylor singing through it though! I would have liked a chorus on it but I have a yamaha magicStomp that takes care of all my preprocessing.

Sound Quality: 10
I wanted to like some of the better looking amps more (crate taos, fishman loudbox etc..) but after playing this one side-by-side with some more cosmetically attractive acoustic amps it came home with me. Great warmth and produces a fantastic acoustic tone from a variety of preamps and pickups. Sweet!

Reliability: 10
My last acoustic amp was a Roland Chorus which sounded decent but was weak and had numerous electrical problems. This amp is rock solid and built like a tank. Very solid (albeit ugly) build. Don't think I will need to replace it anytime soon.

Customer Support: N/A
Never needed any. Beauty in simplicity.

Overall Rating: 10
Been playing over 20 years and was looking for a more portable solution to my acoustic electric work. This amp really fits the bill. I love the size and the flexibility the effects loop, XLR out, speaker mute, tweeter mute and aural exciter give this. I just wish it wasn't so ugly! I get odd looks until people hear what comes out of it then all is forgiven. I could only see replacing it with a California blonde II if I ever needed more volume.

Submitted by Mark at 06/17/2006 21:42

Price Paid: US $499

Features: 9
As a worship leader in a fairly large (700) church, i use a '98 (first year of the cedar top) Taylor 710-ce, a Taylor 555-12 with a fishman natural undersaddle transducer and a special edition Larivee which is essentially a fancy L-10 with an engelman spruce top and a fishman natural undersaddle transducer. Since many other reviewers have done an excellent job of listing the Strawberry Blonde's features, i'll simply say that SWR put their r&d dollars to use in exactly the fashion i would have advised them: great preamp/poweramp sections, even at the expense of on-board chorus and a 2nd channel. Adding those features would add significantly to the cost of the amp.... Even with a drummer, bass player, 2 electric guitarists and a mic'd grand piano contributing to pretty high stage levels, i've never had the gain beyond 5 and the volume beyond 6. Our worship song selections are much "edgier" than most i've heard, and there is MORE than adequate power/volume even for large, loud stages. i use this amp as a personal stage monitor and run the signal via the onboard d/i to the FOH. I'm giving the amp a 9 here, b/c a good onboard chorus would be nice for a lot of players, though i don't particularly miss having it.

Sound Quality: 10
The Strawberry Blonde has no rival in its price range, and is FAR superior to several of its MUCH more expensive competitors. Before the Strawberry Blonde, I used a '96 Crate CA-60, which was a nice little amp, but the compromises Crate made were so obvious. They put their budget into effects (which did sound good), 2 additional channels and a master volume & effects feature. Though popular, those features made the amp way too noisy (talk about surf music!). On the other hand, the tweeter on the Strawberry Blonde is a bit hissy, but it's barely noticeable even when you're not playing.

For crisp, clean ACOUSTIC tone, SWR got this amp right -- VERY high-fidelity sound that makes an amplified acoustic guitar SOUND like one. BTW, for players who desire effects beyond the on-board reverb and the enhancer circuit, i strongly recommend using effects which feature "true bypass" switching in order to retain that pure acoustic sound (I use a Sennheiser EV-172 wireless system for the same reason). I like just a touch of reverb, and my pedal chain consists merely of a Boss TU-2 (which allows me to mute the signal before the amp, thereby muting the signal to the house mix too) and a Fulltone Supa-trem, which i use only on certain songs.

Reliability: 10
I first noticed the SWR Blondes at an Eagles show a few years ago, and figured if they could withstand the rigors of an Eagles tour they'd have to be rock solid. I've used this amp for upwards of 40 Sundays a year for the past 2+ years and have never had a moment's trouble with it. I sold my Crate b/c i'm not worried about needing a backup.

Customer Support: 8
I haven't really dealt with them. I did purchase the slip cover for the amp, and it's disappointingly thin for the price (hence the 8 rating), though it does keep the dust off.

Overall Rating: N/A
I played my first gig for money in May of 1966, and i have several vintage guitars & amps. I chased and finally caught (!) "my" electric tone years ago, but chased the acoustic tone in utter futility until i sold the Crate and bought the Strawberry Blonde. It is an ESSENTIAL element in my acoustic sound, and i would buy another one in an instant if the need arose. I searched long and hard for an acoustic amp that would give me a strong, articulate signal; and like several other reviewers i tried them all. More than 2 years down the road, I'm as delighted with the high fidelity sound of the Strawberry Blonde as i was when i bought it. In fact, I like it better now b/c i've had 2+ years to tweak my settings. There is nothing i remotely dislike about this amp, much less hate!

Submitted by keith at 01/07/2005 13:09

Price Paid: US $400

Features: 5
See other reviews. It's a very basic small acoustic amp... so, I give it a five.

Sound Quality: 10
I'm using it with a Comins Chester Ave. archtop with a Benedetto pick up and a Ibanez George Benson 100 archtop for jazz. The sound is very good for the price paid. It tends to be a bit heavy on the bass. So, I've got it in an amp stand off the floor. This helps a great deal. The tone controls are very interactive and allow me to get a good sound with both instruments. Overall, I'm quite pleased with the quality of sound. Be advised however, that as others have said, this amp has limited power output.

Reliability: 10
It's sturdy with no tubes. So, I've had not problems with it, even after having it fall from the amp stand a few times.

Customer Support: N/A
Never had to deal with them.

Overall Rating: 9
I've been playing non-professionally for almost three decades. I've many other guitars, but only use the two archtops with this amp. I'm a real fan of the small size and light weight of this thing. It's got a sound that is more than adequate for my needs and is easy to move from place to place. I'd probably go with a Comins Amp (built by Alessandro) if I had to replace it. I've got one of the Alessandro Working Dog series amps that I love. To be honest, maybe I would stay with the SWR... it's almost as impressive at 1/3 the price. It's a nice small amp for clean sounds!

Submitted by Anonymous at 01/05/2005 12:55

Price Paid: US $350. used

Features: 9
This is a great no frills basic acoustic amp.....only wish it had an extra channel.....would give it a 10 if it had the 2nd channel

Sound Quality: 10
I play a Guild jf30 with a fishman matrix....I play in a Praise band in church and could not ask for anything better than this amp....I've even used it with my 64' Guild t100....this amp produces crystal clear clean acoustic sounds....I have received many compliments on the sound of the amp...

Reliability: 10
build like a tank and have never had a problem...I really dont forsee any in the future...

Customer Support: N/A
Never dealt with them

Overall Rating: 10
Started playing in the early 60's(bass) regular till 81'then stopped totally till 3 years ago...Pickup a cheapo acoustic and now Im hooked again....Play in a Praise team at church and love it more than ever before....Ive played alot of stuff over the years, both good and bad, I think that SWR has a real winner here....I would definitly get another if stolen or if I could afford it maybe try the California Blonde....But Im more than satisfied with the Strawberry...The combination of my big blonde Guild and the Stawberry blonde are perfect together

Submitted by Chuck at 01/09/2004 19:33

Price Paid: US $400

Features: 5
This amp features reverb, eq section, xlr outs, tuner out, mute switch, phones out and phase reverse to name a few.

Features it should have: Mute that also quiets xlr out and more effects options. EQ section is also in dire need of another mid channel control.

Sound Quality: 5
My primary gig is in a rock band situation, although I trubador on occasion.

I initially purchased this amp to monitor my sound with the rock band and use the outputs to project my tone through the p.a.

At very quiet levels, the sound is acceptable. But as soon as you push it, it becomes muddy, tinny and not up to standard for a professional. As a d.i., it also has problems. The eq isn't complete enough and the reverb can't compete with a decent p.a.

The strawberry is clean at low levels, but does not cut the mustard in a rock band. Especially if you're picky about your acoustic guitar sound.

Reliability: 10
I've travelled this amp extensively and it is reliable. You can trust its construction.

Customer Support: N/A
None

Overall Rating: N/A
I've played acoustic guitar professionally for about 8 years and am a producer as well. This amp is fine for the coffeehouse gigging crowd, but I would strongly recommend something else for the serious professional. Other products I would try, the Genz Benz Shenandoah 200 or the Rivera Sedona if you must use an amp. A high quality d.i. ( which I replaced my Blonde with) like the Pendulum and a decent reverb would make your sound engineers much happier.

This amp is a nice effort from SWR, but not for the touring pro or acoustic guitar purist.

Submitted by Anonymous at 07/06/2003 07:24

Price Paid: US $476

Features: 8
You know the features. Would be nice if it had another channel and a few more effects.

Sound Quality: 10
Using a Takamine EG561SC. I tried the Crate and Fender AcouJr. nothing came close to the full rich sound this amp produces. It even mad a cheap bottom of the line Yamaha sound fantastic. I could not be happier with the sound!

Reliability: 9
New, but based on it's reputation I have no concerns.

Customer Support: N/A
no need yet, can't answer.

Overall Rating: 9
Been playing for over 20 years. Bought it only because the GC salesman said let's see how your Tak sounds plugged in. WOW is all I can say. I had no desire to buy an amp, but knew I had to have it for that amazing sound.

Submitted by Anonymous at 04/13/2003 13:26

Price Paid: US $468

Features: 8
This amp seemed to have all the tone shaping controls that you would need. I really wanted it for the line out so that I could send it to the board. I play acoustic in a loud band(why?,..another story) and wanted this amp for my solo shows and as a monitor at band shows. The tuner out was nice. The one channel it offered was fine considering the price.

Sound Quality: 6
I used this amp with a Taylor 510 that has a fishman setup inside(matrix pickup with a natural 1 preamp). It had a nice crisp sound out of the box. There was a little hiss, but nothing too noticeable. Here's my beef. I was hoping this would be my band amp and it came up short. I think its a good amp for coffee shops,...maybe a small acoustic combo,..but don't be fooled by talk of its suprising power. 80 watts is 80 watts. Its a good amp, but musicians will read into reviews what they want to. I really wanted a powerful amp to hear myself over bass, guitar and drums,...so I made myself believe this was it. Sent it back a few days after I got it.

Reliability: N/A
I can't honestly say. It seemed rugged enough for gigging every weekend,..but who knows?

Customer Support: N/A

Overall Rating: 6
I am left with the feeling that this is a good amp bought by the wrong guy....or perhaps, a good guy(if I do say so myself) buying the wrong amp. I only write this review to warn others in a similar setup(electric bass, electric guitar, drum set,....rock, blues, country ,..bar music stuff) not to be fooled. This amp is not for you. The search continues.

Submitted by Tom Catmull at 04/10/2003 09:21

Price Paid: N/A

Features: 9
I've been using this amp for over a year and it has everything that everyone else mentioned. It has the basic features you need like an effects loop, headphone jack, tuner out (all of which I don't need, but it's nice that it's there just in case. The XLR out was the big bonus though for me.

Sound Quality: 10
A very crisp sound which is exactly what I wanted. Basically I'm using it with my Carvin TL60 with the Fishman acoustic pickup. Before getting this amp, I was going to the main board through a Countryman DI but it didn't sound very good at all. (Don't get me wrong, that Countryman DI sounds great on my acoustic, it just didn't work for the TL60). So that's why I went out and got this amp. I was so pleased in how it sounded the first day I got it, and I'm just as pleased with it today. I sometimes also use my Takamine EN-10C with the amp and it also sounds great. I also want to say that my friend has an Alvarez guitar that sounded about as horrible as my TL60 sounded through a DI. But when plugged into the SWR, it sounded like a new guitar.

Reliability: 10
Over a year now and no problems whatsoever.

Customer Support: 8
Only called them to get the cover, which was pretty pricy in my opinion. But they seemed pretty nice and all.

Overall Rating: 9
If it were stolen or lost, I would definitely put an order in for another one. One minor gripe however. I do wish the speaker mute switch on the front panel would also mute the XLR out. There have been so many times that I muted the amp, unplugged my guitar, and a huge pop comes out of the house speakers because the sound guy didn't mute my channel. I tried the other acoustic amps made by Fender, Marshall, Crate, and Carvin...but chose this one because of the reputation of the company and how great it sounds. I know others have wished there was a chorus onboard, and, yes, maybe that would have been another nice feature, but you know, it still sounds pretty darn great.

Submitted by Eug at 02/19/2003 21:19

Price Paid: US $350

Features: 10
possibly 2001 model, bought new. Very versatile, i have used it worh several guild acoustic guitars, a miked stand-up acoustic bass, and electric bass and six string guitars and it has been distint and strong in each application. the music styles have been from finger style acoustic to folksy bluegrass and a very classic sounding progressive folk-rock style. All the features work well for reasons stated in many other reviews here at harmony central. sounds amazing, looks hot, straight ahead, easy to use, easy to carry, easy to listen to...don't set your beer or coffee on it.

Sound Quality: 9
distint sound. i have used it most in its probably least amenable application...with an american made fende bullet guitar in progressive jam band...and it is so cool sounding...all musician friends have been impressed in all applications.

Reliability: 10
solid! reliable. only positives in the year and a half of regular (although somewhat limited use)

Customer Support: 10
good service as far as i have had to utilize

Overall Rating: 9
i listened to several other acoustic amps that didn;t blow me away...this does...and it is kinda unique, although familiar. i am looking for the ideal extension cabinet for it. i read about someone who praises carvin in a HC review...so i may pursue that route. i bought the amp from a company with a return policay...so i was able to give the amp a trial run...and i never even remotely thought of returning it...i hope to have it for a long time...

Submitted by scott burns at 01/19/2003 21:11

Price Paid: US $500.00

Features: 9
The features are the same as described in reviews below. I bought this from Musicians Friend in Sept. 2001, $499.99. The feature I like most is the headphone jack. Any time of day, I can jam with this and not disturb anyone in the house. A good example is before I go to work in the morning, everyone is asleep and they don't hear a thing!! I do wish it had chorus built in, that would be a big plus. I will give it a 9 because of NO CHORUS!!

Sound Quality: 10
I use a Carvin AC275 with a L R Baggs pickup. I also have played my Les Paul Elegant thru it. I play a lot of Beatles stuff and whatever else I know how, that sounds good acousticly. With the Carvin, this amp sounds beautiful! I bought the Carvin in August, 2001 and thought my Marshall or Vox regular amps would be good enough. Boy was I wrong. After playing on this, what a difference in sound and quality. Crate, Fender or Marshall acoustic amps didn't have the high reviews as this does and thats why I bought it. And I'm very happy with my purchase.

Reliability: 10
I haven't had any problems yet and it has been used a lot. It does seem to be built quite well.

Customer Support: 10
I called SWR before buying and they were very nice on the phone. I had a lot of questions and we even go off on other things and he didn't seem to mind at all. I ended up buying a cover for it at that time. Very nice cover too.

Overall Rating: 10
I've been playing for 35 years and between me and my two boy, we have too much stuff to mention. I did buy a Carvin external speaker for it, only because SWR dosen't make one for the Strawberry, they do for the California. It was a very nice addition and was only $200. I have a 25 foot cable and I spread them out and it sound great!! If it were stolen, I would replace it that day! For the price, you can't beat it. The bass response in unreal, out on the deck it was rattling the slider, I had to cut back on the bass. Again, chorus would have been a nice feature, I don't understand why it was left out. I didn't compare it to other amps, but going by the reviews, this one is on the nose. Excellent choice!!!!

Submitted by Rick at 10/13/2001 19:13