“These amps just breathe like a well-rounded tube amp, no matter what you throw at them”: Can solid-state amps compete with tubes? Laney thinks its Lionheart Foundry combos are up to the challenge

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(Image credit: Laney)

Laney has unveiled the Lionheart Foundry, a new range of 60-watt guitar amps that aims to distil the company’s tube amps into a lightweight solid-state format.

Rather than using digital modeling to replicate tubes, the British amp firm has turned to discrete analog components to match the dynamic response that keeps guitarists addicted to tubes – and they’ve kept the original valve Lionheart’s smart looks, too.

Three new combos are being launched, all of which feature dual clean and lead channels, with power switching for 60/1W. According to Laney, the tones span “pristine cleans, tubey drive tones and seriously hot lead tones”.

Further tone tweaking comes via a footswitchable boost circuit based on the company’s Steelpark boost pedal, as well as a digital spring reverb taken from its Secret Path reverb pedal.

The LF60-112 ($429/£279) is the most affordable of the trio, offering the core spec for minimum outlay. Next up is the LFSUPER60-112 ($539/£349), which adds tremolo and chorus effects, with controls for Rate and Depth. Most intriguing, however, is the LFSUPER60-212 ($699/£429) – a vertical 2×12 combo, which is a rare thing indeed.

The pricier Super amps add XLR outputs, which can output the amp’s in-built IRs of Laney’s own 1×12 and 4×12 cabinets – captured using Laney’s Advance Impulse Response technology, apparently – which will make recording or sending your amp to the front of house that bit easier.

Speakers are custom drivers courtesy of HH Audio, while the overall weight of the amps is impressively light, starting at 20.7lbs (9.4kg) for the basic 1×12 and ranging to 18.6kg for the 2×12 combo.

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“You can instantly hear it when a solid-state design has even the slightest bit of harshness or unnatural clipping when you really dig in,” says Laney product manager, Simon Fraser-Clark.

“These amps just breathe and comp like a well-rounded tube amp, no matter what you throw at them.”

Solid-state amps have seen something of a renaissance in recent years, with the likes of the Orange Crush, Blackstar Debut and, most prominently, the Boss Katana becoming go-to combos for a new generation of gigging guitarists.

We’re intrigued to see how Laney’s new offering stands up to the competition, but those impulse responses could give it the edge for recording-savvy players.

For more information on the Laney Lionheart Foundry series, head to Laney.co.uk.

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Mike is Editor-in-Chief of GuitarWorld.com, in addition to being an offset fiend and recovering pedal addict. He has a master’s degree in journalism from Cardiff University, and over a decade’s experience writing and editing for guitar publications including MusicRadar, Total Guitar and Guitarist, as well as 20 years of recording and live experience in original and function bands. During his career, he has interviewed the likes of John Frusciante, Chris Cornell, Tom Morello, Matt Bellamy, Kirk Hammett, Jerry Cantrell, Joe Satriani, Tom DeLonge, Ed O’Brien, Polyphia, Tosin Abasi, Yvette Young and many more. In his free time, you’ll find him making progressive instrumental rock under the nom de plume Maebe.

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