MusicRadar

The TH100 packs a roar fit for the largest stages.

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• Review

We first encountered the TH100 at NAMM back in January 2011 and although it's taken a while to get our hands on one, our ribs are still rattling from the outrageous punch that the 100-watt head packs up close. But more on that later…

On launch, 2010's TH30 was really quite something, and the model continues to be popular. A compact 30-watter capable of filling a club stage with sound, both head and combo versions can be switched down to 15 or seven watts to get that power tube mojo workin' at manageable volume levels.

Very cool, and very good news for the real world gigging guitarist. But what if volume is your thing?

What if you crave the glacial cleans and sheer physical force that only a 100-watt head and 4 x 12 cabinet can muster? Enter the amplifier that Orange considers to be both the cleanest and dirtiest that it has ever manufactured.

Unboxed, the TH100 weighs in at a beefy 33lbs - a reminder that although recent years have seen Orange at the forefront of the lunchbox amp phenomenon, there was a time when all gigging amps were awkward to carry over any kind of distance.

Haven't we guitarists become a pampered bunch? Indeed, for practical reasons, you'll be relieved to read that the mighty 100-watt power amp can be switched down to 70, 50 or 35 watts.

Orange's technical director, Adrian Emsley, explains: "The power transformer is tapped in a certain way so that when the amp is switched down to half power on the front, the plate voltage is lowered to around 330 VDC (470 VDC at full power).

"At the same time, the bias circuit is shunted down to make the output valves draw more current in the half-power position. This results in the valves running much closer to class A in this position."

There are no great surprises on the front panel, although the simple complement of just six control knobs makes the TH series some of the best-looking Oranges of recent years.

We've often read that Orange heads just don't look right atop anything other than one of the company's own PPC412s. But as we write this, we gaze over at the TH100 on a vintage-style Marshall 4 x 12 cabinet with a 'salt 'n' pepper' grille cloth, and confess we're of the mind that Orange heads look great paired with any cabinet as long as it has an appropriately retro look.

Despite the TH100's simple appearance, there's some clever stuff going on under the hood. "Each EL34 also has its own internal bias pot so the amp can be biased to run on other types if so desired," reveals Emsley. "This feature can also be used to dial in an unmatched set of valves.

"The front end is pretty close to the TH30 but is of course designed to drive an output stage of less sensitivity. The shape control has also been tweaked to suit the amp."