NAMM 2026: We are more than a quarter of the way through the 21st-century and while digital technology is taking us to the point of delirium with so many options, menus to dive through. It can be great. It can be exhausting.
But some brands are going in the opposite direction, such as Orange Amps, which has just launched a tube amp head that goes over-the-top with 60-watts of wall-shaking power and a super-simple single-channel layout.
The OR60 is the 21st-century amp with a design steeped in the 20th-century. Analogue all the way, a pair of 6L6 power tubes in the engine room. The design is classic Orange Tolex with the white panel and the slightly arcane glyphs under the controls. It’s old-school.
And yet Orange says it is the most versatile single-channel guitar amp it has ever built.
One channel to rule them all? Orange has received some celebrity kudos for the launch, with Pepper Keenan of Down and Corrosion of Conformity giving it two thumbs up.
“It bounces, chugs great and cuts really well. Love the Presence/Resonance knobs. Sorcery,” he says. “There’s a lot of intel in here. I can go in any direction. Orange kills, no doubt!”
And if ever there was a player to appreciate the caveman-friendly layout of such an amp, it is Keenan. No messing around. Plug it in and crank it. It’s like Orange says, the OR60 is “simple, solid, and seriously loud”.
There is a lot of headroom. This would make an ample pedalboard platform, and has a tube-buffered effects loop for that purpose. But even with a boost in front of it (or an overdrive pedal, why not) there’s a lot to dig into.
The OR60 might be a single-channel design but it does have a second volume control that is footswitchable, allowing you to set it differently and kick it in for leads, extra volume to cut through the mix.
There is also a half-power setting that lets you run it at circa 30-watts, giving you overdrive at lower volumes – emphasis on lower, not ‘low’ volumes. This going to be loud no matter what.
A single-channel amp needs some tricks up its sleeve to be versatile. Here, a three-position Bright switch will help you add some top-end sizzle, helpful if your electric guitar pickups are on the muddy side. Orange says it doesn’t affect the character of the gain.
“When engaged, it lifts the treble response giving extra clarity and presence, which is particularly useful with humbuckers or darker-voiced guitars,” says Orange. “When it is switched off (middle position) the tone is smoother, warmer and rounder. This small tweak has a big impact when players move between guitars or genres mid-set.”
You know the drill, clean chime, British crunch, Orange tone – and, as Keenan says, you can shape the low and top-end response easily enough via the Resonance and Presence controls.
The OR60 is made in the UK, available now and priced £2,099/$2499. Yes, it also comes in black. See Orange Amps for more details.
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