Customer Reviews

Pignose 7-200 HOG-20 Amplifier

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I'M A BLUESMAN WHO PERFORMS ON THE STREETS OF NEW ORLEANS, AND THE HOG 20 IS JUST GREAT FOR WHAT I DO. THE BATTERIES SEEM TO LAST FOREVER....I'VE PLAYED FOR DAYS AND NEVER REALLY SAW ANY INDICATION THAT THEY WERE RUNNING DOWN. TECH SUPPORT TOLD ME TO RUN THE HOG FOR 6 HOURS AND THEN CHARGE IT FOR 3...WHICH I DO, AND HAVE NEVER HAD ANY PROBLEMS. I PLAY BLUESHARP THROUGH A GREEN BULLET AND THE 3 CONTROL KNOBS GIVE ME JUST THE SOUND I WANT. THE HOG 20 DOSN'T LOSE THAT GRITTY, RUSTY SOUND I LIKE...EVEN ON LOW VOLUME. I NEVER PLAY ON MORE THAN 1/4 VOLUME IN THE STREET....AND IT'S...REAL...LOUD. I EVEN DID A FEW CLUB GIGS USING THE HOG 20 BY MIC'ING IT THROUGH THE P.A. IT HELD UP LIKE A CHAMP. THE TECH SUPPORT IS ALSO GREAT. I CALLED MORE THAN ONCE FOR ADVICE AND ALL MY CALLS WERE PROMPTLY AND COURTIOUSLY RETURNED. I USED TO OWN A "LIL' MOUSE"...SQUEEK, SQUEEK (IF YOU ARE A MUSICIAN, YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN)....NOW I GOT A "BIG HOG"...OINK! OINK! GET ONE TOO. THE HOG 20 "BRINGS HOME THE BACON!" I GA-RONE-TEE. JERSEY SLIM

The good: the amp is convenient, has a nice growling tone, a fairly nice clean tone, and is pretty loud. And, so far, holds it's charge to my satisfaction.

The bad: you can't simply run it off of A/C on a continuous basis or you will (according to the instructions) ruin the battery. Instead, you have to keep the battery charged and run it off the battery. But if you're not using it, you're supposed to drain the battery.

All of which makes this a high-maintenance amp for someone who only wants to use it occassionally. I can accept the inconvenience and planning-ahead of keeping a battery charged when your purpose is to use it as a portable. But for someone who wants to use it as a practice amp at home, this is onerous.

Seems the amp could easily have an A/C mode. Maybe the manufacturer has good reasons for not offering that. Anyway, I didn't see this mentioned anywhere before I bought it and wanted to alert other potential buyers whose intended use is like mine -- that is, who are not buying it primarily for portable use.

This amp has a sound that rivals larger wattage and far more expensive models, yet it is small enough to be truly portable, (and it does come with rechargable batteries). True, other models offer more distortion, but if that is what you are after, a little amp is not what you are want anyway. There are many practice amps put there, but I have never heard one with sound that comes close to this Both my Gisbon SG and Washburn J-6 sound great with this tiny amp. I tend to play blues and jazz, and after almost two years, this little amp still impresses me with the richness and fullness of it sound. If I did not know what it was, I would think I had plugged my guitars into a much larger and more powerful amp. I also like the simplicity of this unit. No long row of nobs to mess with means that you can plug in, adjust the volume, tone and squelch, and you are playing.

Love this amp!! I am in the middle of a recording project and have been playing around with this amp for the last three days. I can't wait to get it into the studio. Great tones and big sound. I have run my Gretsch Nashville and my Dean Bel Aire through it and they both sound great through it. The only thing that could be improved is the distortion. This was money well spent.

I bought this for one specific purpose as I have two other combo amps. I often play/practice on my back deck where I don't have an electrical outlet in close proximity and even if I did I wouldn't want to drag a 60# box back and forth. In that context I'm not concerned about ultimate volume or even perfect tone control. It's pretty much about convenience and based upon my criteria this little amp is a big time winner. The positives are pretty clear; a single charge lasts for about 6 hours of playing time (Pignose claims 6 - 8 and I've found that to be pretty accurate). The volume level is sufficient for practice or solo play, but isn't going to compete with a conventional amp regardless of power rating.

Unlike the original Pignose, the "20" has some rudimentary tone contouring controls that give you some options, but essentially it's a slightly warm clean amp that you can fuzz up a little. Buskers working inside will more than likely find it sufficient, but outdoors a noisy street corner might be a little more problematic. Regardless, the ability to pick up a little box and plug in wherever is a tremendously liberating and makes a Strat/LP as travel worthy as an acoustic guitar. I can move from blues to jazz without skipping a beat, but as a performance tool it's much more limited.

These are US designed but built and assembled in China. The overall construction quality looks robust, the controls don't feel cheap and it clearly looks like a product from the 60/70's; pretty cool with the brown grained vinyl covering. The only real downside to the amp is if you want to run it off AC (rather than the rechargeable batteries) you get some confusing instructions. Essentially you're only supposed to run the amp off the charged batteries (lots of multiple warnings about keeping the batteries charged up) and IF the batteries start to run down during a set you can plug in the charger and run the amp off the AC current, BUT WHEN FINISHED TURN OFF THE AMP AND LET IT RECHARGE. In other words, it's not ideal to use an a practice amp if you just want to spontaneously plug it in and play. The problem is apparently the charging circuit doesn't allow the batteries to reach full charge and then dissipate excess juice when the amp is turned on. Not a problem for me, but might be if you're trying to use this as a full time playing amp.

For me it's 5 stars and well worth the $116 I paid for it. If the AC operation or the sonic limitations are a problem for your use you may want to consider other options.

Wouldn't you know it. I bought one of these amps for the times I wanted to play in a jam when all the mics were in use, so I was looking for an amp I didn't have to plug into an electric outlet. So now, I put it in my car along with my harmonicas, microphone and cables when I go out to play and since then I haven't needed to use it. The construction quality is very good, all the switches and controls seem robust. Anyhow I have played it at home and it does what it is supposed to do. It works, sounds good and looks cool. Maybe this week I'll get a chance to test it in the real world. I've used it with a Shaker Madcat mic and Danelectro reverb and it sounds "BAD". Can't wait to wail on it at my weekly jam.

Update May 9,2011
I'm still using this amp lots and lots at weekly open mics and ocassionaly at small outdoor events. I have zero complaints and am happy with it.

This amp is perfect for situations where there is no power available, it's loud and sounds great for many styles of playing - both electric and acoustic/electric. I love the sound however I have never used it for a live show (I have my Marshall JCM800 for that) The point is that it's battery powered and for a practice amp this little HOG does the job. It has a great warm clean tone and a good OD when needed, sounds great at low volumes and if you prefer more distortion - I find that a distortion or compression stomp box will be just the boost you need. I love this little amp. I use this backstage, home, parties, camping and boating or anytime a crankin guitar seems appropriate ;-) I have let it sit in a closet for 8 months, pulled it out and played for an hour or more on battery. I have just recently had to replace my batteries which lasted 7+ years before they wouldn't hold a charge. They are expensive - but cheaper than buying a new amp and yes you can get them at Pignose-Gorilla website. For years I followed the rules for not overcharging and fully discharging the batteries except only once recently when I left it plugged in for two days - that's all it took, killed the batteries... (a good rule to follow is to NEVER plug in the power supply exept to charge) and always unplug after recommended time it's just a matter of diligence. Any device with a rechargable battery shouldn't be left plugged in once it's charged so its a matter of making it habit.

If your prone to forget the amp is plugged in, try a power outlet timer (like the ones that turn on Christmas lights) Set it to shut off after 8 hours (or 3 based on your useage) without turning back on - you'll be ready to go next time you need it.

I bought this from AMS, who had a better price on it at the time. I think they are comparable now though. Anyway, i love this little amp. The battery charge lasts me around ten to twelve hours, which i consider to be great. The fact that you can plug it in when you need to is an added bonus. It's also a pretty balsy little amp. I wouldn't go so far as to call the patented Pignose distortion amazing (it's really more like a light fuzz or compressor), but it does the job (plus, if you are like me, you've got some distortion pedals to use anyway). The volume levels are fairly beefy though when it needs to be. The primary advantage to this amp is obviously its portability or use at home when you really shouldn't be playing uber-loud, like at night when your downstairs neighbor or your wife is trying to sleep. It only weighs a few pounds (i cant remember the actual weight, although I'm sure the specs on the item page list it) and can pretty much be toted anywhere you need to go. Although i sometimes play my Les Paul through it, it is particularly well suited for my Ibanez Acoustic Electric.
All in all, a great amp at a great price.

Bought this for my son who has a much larger/better quality amp that isn't portable. He loves this and says the sound is great for the money.

Bought this on recommendation from other reviewers. Gives you that classic harp sound and mikes up nice.
Can't imagine paying any more $$$ to get that classic blues sound.