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Epiphone Triggerman 60 DSP

 

Review of the Epiphone Triggerman Guitar Amplifier by The Man in the Jar

The retro-styling of the Epiphone amplifier range really turns my crank. This is a gorgeous looking piece of kit. Mmmm... Burgundy... my old school colours...

The Triggerman is a solid state amp but has what Epiphone describe as "E-Valve Tube Tone Circuitry", an innovation from the Gibson Labs.

The Triggerman puts out 60 watts of giggable volume into a single 12 inch speaker. Extra candy-in-the-store comes by way of 16 individual onboard DSP settings (Digital Signal Processing, in simple terms - effects).

Let's take the front panel from left to right:

First up is the single input jack socket. Next to that we have Channel 1 which is the overdrive channel. This is controlled by Gain, Level, Treble, Middle and Bass, all with the distinctive vintage-style chicken-head knobs that characterise the Epiphone amplifier series.

Next is a channel select push-button. This illuminates a red light for Channel 1 and a green light for Channel 2. Directly after the selector comes Channel 2, the clean channel. This is controlled by Volume, Treble, Middle and Bass.

Then comes the DSP (effects) section which is activated by another push-button switch. There are four different effects. The Flanger, Chorus and Delay are all controlled by one multi-step click-stop knob. Sections of the circle around the knob are labelled for each effect. The Flanger has 4 click-stops, the Chorus has 4 click-stops and the Delay has 8 click-stops.
Each click-stop gives a different "degree" or setting for the effect in question. The Reverb has a normal control knob all to itself.

Lastly we find the Master Volume, a headphone socket and the illuminated on-off rocker switch. Right, let's nip round the back...

The back panel offers a great deal more than you might expect for this price. Next to the AC inlet there's an 8 ohm extension speaker outlet. This is followed by an XLR Direct Inject output with level control which means you don't need to mic the thing at gigs or in the studio. 

On top of that there's an Auxilary output and an Auxilary input (the input has a level control).

Next is the Footswitch input, and the really good news is that the footswitch is included, hidden away at the bottom of the packing box. Equipped with two switches, the chunky Epiphone footswitch uses one to change the Channel in use and the other to turn the currently selected DSP on and off.

As if this wasn't enough for your money the back panel is rounded off by an Effects Send and Return loop.

 

Sounds of the Epiphone Triggerman

The Overdrive Channel has bags of dirt and grit for heavy rock overdrive sounds. Although the sound does not quite reach the definitive warmth of valve-driven distortion, I was very impressed by how close the circuitry came (and I should mention that I'd spent the morning reviewing guitars through a valve-equipped Orange Amp, so my ears were well primed to make the judgement).

The "valve-like" quality of the Triggerman was particularly apparent when I allowed a power-chord to sustain and decay. The decay refused to break up in that nasty, clipped transistor way and the notes stayed clear and warm. Just when I thought the Triggerman was going to blink first I was amazed to hear a touch of harmonic feedback starting to develop. Very nice!

The Clean channel does exactly what it says on the tin and delivers the tone-voice of the pickup being played with great accuracy.

The preset DSP settings are all very useable and therefore very useful to the gigging musician. The reverb works whether or not the DSP channel is engaged so is very useful for fire-and-forget ambience adjustment. 

 

Overall impressions of the Epiphone Triggerman 

This is a super little gigging amp with a great deal of added back-panel flexibility. Between them the two Channels deliver a huge range of voices. The footswitch control allows easy switching between a lead and rhythm voicing.

I have only two small complaints: The DSP control needs some numbers added next to the click-stops so quick changes between songs are easier. And there's only one handle on the top which makes carrying the thing a trifle more difficult than needs be.

These two tiny gripes aside, I think the Epiphone Triggerman is an exceptional package for the money. It will fill many uses from stage to studio, practise room to bedroom.    Oh, and it looks Gorgeous! 

Buy the Epiphone Triggerman 60DSP

Note: As with all amps equipped with headphone sockets, turn the Master Volume to zero before plugging in the 'phones.

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