CLASSIC
It is rare an electronic music-related product can withstand the test of time. For over 30 years, the SansAmp Classic has been used for every kind of music style from death metal to commercial jingles, in countless pro studios, on tours around the globe, on a vast variety of major releases (including Grammy Award-winning records), and by hundreds of thousands of everyday players, producers, and engineers.
Put on a manufacturing hiatus in 2016, the SansAmp Classic was reissued in 2021 due to a surge in popular demand. Virtually unchanged and still made in the USA, the all-analog SansAmp Classic pedal design is B. Andrew Barta’s unique invention that was the catalyst for the whole “going direct” movement way back in 1989. Since then, SansAmp evolved into an extensive line of pedals and racks, as well as being the essential element of Tech 21’s Fly Rig series.
Of the pedal formats, SansAmp Classic is the most sophisticated. There is a bank of eight Character switches, which adjust the fine and subtle nuances of tonality, harmonics and dynamics. A three-position Input switch gives you a choice of pre-amp styles: Lead (Marshall®-style), Normal (Mesa Boogie®-style), and Bass (Fender®-style) which is excellent for rhythm as well as bass guitar.
While all SansAmps are flexible, user-friendly, robust devices that deliver the warm, rich, natural tones of the most desirable tube amplifiers on the planet, the SansAmp Classic is the original. Not just for guitar and bass, everything from industrial samples to maracas have been saved from atonal death by its analog magic. It has defied the odds and remains the standard of the industry.
BUILT-IN SPEAKER/CAB SIM
The 100% analog SansAmp Tube Amplifier Emulation technology encompasses the entire signal chain, from pre-amp to power amp to speaker simulation. An integral part of the circuitry, the SansAmp speaker simulation will complement any type of guitar or bass speaker cabinet system. You can also place an external IR after a SansAmp to give additional flavor if you so desire. The SansAmp speaker sim is designed and individually tailored for a smooth, even response as would be achieved by a multiply-miked cabinet –without peaks, valleys, and notches associated with single miking and many IRs.
The SansAmp Classic’s knob controls shape pre-amp contours, power amp contours, volume and final tone.
SansAmp Classic was specifically engineered with a flat output to provide maximum flexibility and control with external EQ.
With a bank of 8 Character switches, 3 input choices and 3 tone controls, there are countless (we know, we’ve tried) combinations and permutations for you to explore.
The 3-position input switch gives you a choice of pre-amp styles:
LEAD
For Marshall®-type pre-amps with mid-range and highs emphasized
NORMAL
For Mesa Boogie®-type pre-amps
BASS
For Fender®-type pre-amps (excellent for rhythm guitar as well as bass)
Sample style settings include: Vintage (AC/DC) and Hot-Wired (Van Halen) Marshall®; Mesa Boogie®; Hiwatt®; Fender® Lead (B.B. King), Rhythm and Bass; and Ampeg SVT®.
SOUND SAMPLES
Blues
Country
EJ Style
Hard Rock
Jazz
• Measures 3.75″ x 4.75″ x 2″
• Operable with 9V alkaline battery (not included).
• Optional DC power supply is available:
Tech 21 model #DC9. Click HERE.
(Also operable with former models #DC2 and #DC4).
Sound Sample Credits:
SansAmp Musical Snapshots were produced by Gnome Productions, Los Angeles, CA.
Synclavier programming and guitar performances are by Bruce Nazarian and John March.
Please Note: These sample sounds were created in our infancy back in late ’90/early ’91 and, unfortunately, no records were kept of the SansAmp settings. Nor do we know what kinds of guitars were used…We only know that the guitar tracks were recorded direct using only a SansAmp Classic and standard studio outboard EQ and reverb equipment.
®Registered trademarks of their respective companies. Names are intended for descriptive purposes only.