Guitar Rack Preamp that rival's famous competitors

It's my opinion that this preamp is proof that some people can take "tube-snobbery" to an impractical end. If one can't erase preconceptions before digging into this preamp then they will hear want they want to hear (IT'S NOT ORGANIC - IT'S NOT TUBE).

The sound samples on the left side of this page are pretty good, but pale in comparison to the impact this beast makes in my rig. It can truly (no joke) achieve nearly every traditional guitar tone you lust for out of all the vintage and modern amps I've heard. I use this with an old ADA MT200 power amp and one or two 2x12 cabs with Celestion and Eminence speakers and the tone is just wonderful. My pedal board is a Line 6 M13 which serves as my MIDI controller, as well. It may sound great direct, but I don't know if I'll ever find out myself.

The MIDI control is simple and intuitive once you read the manual.

Over the last 25 years I've owned (in no particular order): Mesa Triple Rectifier, Marshall DSL, Marshall TSL, Marshall JVM410, Carvin Legacy, Carvin V3, Rocktron Prophecy, ADA MP-1, Marshall JMP-1, Mesa 2:90 and Two-Fifty, *every* Line 6 POD (not kidding), and way more than I can remember. The point? I've owned tens of thousands of dollars of gear experience playing hundreds of shows in every type of venue.

I'm not bragging, mind you... I'm embarrassed about the length and price of the list above. I just want to assure any reader that I'm not a kid and this preamp is amazing. Take it for a spin before you discount it for its price or brand name.

Great studio solution!

A lot of people use the PSA 1.1 with power amps and cabs with good to great results. I acquired as a bass DI for my project studio, knowing that I would get really good simulations of various rigs. I plug direct into my RME Fireface 800. I love its sound and ease of use. Surpisingly, I find a good number of the guitar presets very useable as well. Again, plugged straight into the FF800. While bass tracks are keepers, the guitar tracks are typically scratch, used for writing, then replaced by tracks done with my hot-rodded 50W Marshall JCM800 into Chandler Germanium mic pre. Not because the PSA 1.1 guitar sounds aren't good, rather that my JCM 800 through the Germanium produces outstanding results exactly to my taste. All in all, a great piece, even if only for bass.

Bad Investment

I purchased this a while back and it was a big mistake. For starters, the thing is noisy and I was not blown away with the sounds.

To add to the dissatisfaction, after only a few uses, the buttons to select the presets on the front panel stick because the openings on the aluminum face do not provide enough clearance. So it just continuously scrolls through the presets until you get the button back out. Ok, I figure, I'm kind of handy... I'll just take the faceplate off and open the holes a little... but guess what? The knobs aren't held on with set screws, they're press fit, so you have to pull them all off to get the stupid plate off.

I assure you that this has not been abused and has been in a rack the whole time.

Overall, I feel extremely ripped off by sansamp.