Roland Cube-80XL Guitar Combo Amplifier (80 Watts, 1x12")
The Roland Cube-80XL offers Roland quality at a great price. With COSM Modeling and 3-channel flexibility, the Roland Cube-80XL is a great amp.
Overall User Ratings (based on 19 ratings)
Submitted April 7, 2011 by a customer from aol.com
"AWESOME AMP FOR JAZZ!"
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zZounds has verified that this reviewer purchased this specific product from us.
I will keep this until I am in a position to afford one of the high end boutique amps like Jazzkap or Henriksen. But this amp still sounds great and could last someone a life time. Its built like a tank but its fairly light.
Sound
This is a great sounding solid state amp. It emulates the sound of the JC120 fairly well. I would say this sounds more like a poor mans Polytone. This thing is great for Jazz. Obviously it does other stuff with the other amp emulations. But this amp really excels in the jazz sound. You can dial great jazz tones going from warm dark and fat like Wes or Jim Hall or brighter more "modern" sounds like Pat Metheny and everything in between. Great jazz tones to be had from either the JC120 side or the fender black panel. Nice blues tone can be attained on the JC120 side or the Tweed emulator. Has an ok spring reverb and a nice plate reverb. 3 Band EQ and a presence control. I find the amp rather warm(when dialed in accordningly) for a solid state. Not tube warm but warmer than a lot of other SS amps out there. Sounds great with my Peerless Monarch with set humbucker and with my Gretsch G100CE with floating Benedetto S6 pickup.
Features
This amp honestly has way more stuff than I will ever use. But the price is right and can get even better if you search around for a lower price because these cats will not just matcht he price they will BEAT the price! Lots of emulators of various amps. The 80 second looper is a fun thing to play with but I would recomend getting the foot control if you want to do much more than just play with it. Does a lot of things and create a variety of sounds from metal to jazz and back. Really a nice jazz amp. Poor mans Polytone right here. So if you are on a budget or the payment plan ZZ offers appeals to you this amp is where its at for a reasonably priced solid state jazz amp.
Ease of Use
Great jazz amp!
Quality
Top notch construction all around. I would not expect less from Roland.
Value
Great jazz amp for a younger cat just getting their stuff together. Certainly loud enough to gig with and is very affordable and sounds great. Not tube warm...but warm when you dial it in. The 12" speaker helps with this as well. Great amp.
Manufacturer Support
Also Roland has great customer support. I only called to ask some questions PRIOR to purchasing and they were very helpful.
The Wow Factor
It looks like a standard issue amp. Its black its got a honeycomb type grille cover...Who cares it sounds good.
Musical Background:
Active gigging musican and educator
Musical Style:
Jazz, Fusion, Bop
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Submitted March 14, 2011 by a customer from yahoo.com
"Great Things Do Come In Small Packages"
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zZounds has verified that this reviewer purchased this specific product from us.
I have found this Amp to meet every need that I have for Practice, performing Live, and even Recording applications. I have been so impressed that I plan to purchase a second.
Sound
Great volume and tone qualities. Very expressive and complimentary to all style's of music. I am using a Fender Standard Telecaster playing Country Gospel and Southern Gospel and I wanted a clean sounding amp as I do not use Distortions and the Cube amps were highly recommended. The JC Clean channel is very clean and punchy and activating the Bright Switch produces clean and clear highs. The Lead channel is very versatile offering an array of amp models and effects. I really enjoy the Fender model Amps but am now finding useage for the Vox and the more Distorted Amps as well.
Features
Wonderful effects which are very simple to use. Effects may be activated by hand or an optional foot switch. The Delay can also be set by the Tap Switch. The Looper on the Cube 80 XL now has been increased to 80 seconds and allows for 2 passes of recording. The Solo Switch allows for saving set up selections for both the Clean & the Lead Channels making 4 variations of tones and effects possible. There are a variety of outs to cover both Live and Recording needs. I have used the Line Out to connect to the sound system and I found it to be very quiet. The AUX In is a very nice and convenient feature that allows you to connect an MP3, Ipod, CD Player, or Rhythm Machine for playback.
Ease of Use
The features on this amp are very easy to use and set up. I took it out of the box, plugged it up, plugged in the Guitar and started playing. Within minutes I had dialed in my settings of Effects and Tones. The Manual is very user friendly.
Quality
This amp is built very well. The corners are very well protected. The Speaker is very well protected by the front grille. Everything is laid out in an easy to use order and is easily accessible. The Amp is very compact and light but very powerful for its size.
Value
A professional quality product of high standards for an extremely reasonable price.
Manufacturer Support
I have not had a need for customer support.
The Wow Factor
A very simple design yet very appealing.
Musical Background:
Active Musician,
Musical Style:
Country Gospel, Southern Gospel
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Submitted January 29, 2012 by a customer from verizon.net in Southern California, CA
"ANOTHER GREAT ROLAND PRODUCT"
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I did not expect to like a solid state amp. But the tube amps any more are just to heavy for my old body. i tried another small club amp and sent it back. Then tried the 80 XL. I got the best sound at a gig out of my archtop guitar with a single humbucker I've ever gotten. With my Telecaster there is a wall of sounds to experiment with. I won't go into all the effects and choices but Roland has some brilliant engineers designing their equipment. Myself I mostly use the clean channel. The EQ knobs are fully functional. I might use some of the amp simulations with my Telecaster depending on the venue. Rock, blues, country. I have no use what so ever for the distortion selections but the do rock. I have tons of Boss and Roland stuff. All I can say as from a tube snob this amp blew me away and it did not tweak my back doing it. Try one you will be pleasantly surprised.
Musical Background:
Active musician
Musical Style:
Country, blues, rock, jazz.
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Submitted February 5, 2012 by Tom G in Baltimore Area, MD
"You need this amp!"
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Roland Cube amps are the greatest sound, very light and has on board effects if you want or need them. The 80XL is the most versatile Cube ever - with a looper and an octave divider that is outstanding. I've played a lot of years and am thrilled with this amp and would highly recommend it! I'm a jazz - country - rockabilly and western swing player and it fits it all to a tee!
Musical Background:
Over 50 years - guitar - semi-pro
Musical Style:
Jazz - country - rockabilly - western swing
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Submitted March 20, 2011 by a customer from gmail.com
"A real, gigable, no BS amp, with everything you need(and nothing you don't ), that has nice tone, for a good price."
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I see nothing not to like(except for the lack of effects loop but nice
Pedals are just as good).
Sound
I have owned many expensive amps nd although this amp isn't those it has a nice tweekable tone that is surprisingly good for te price and size.
Features
I like the speaker out, it sounds HUGE with a decent 4x12. The lead function turns the amp into a 3-4 channel amp.
Ease of Use
The different fender models are really nice and I like the marshall setting. The other high gain tones are too buzzy for me.
Quality
I really can't imagine a more solid priced of equipment.
Value
For the money I can't ask for better. Some other companies have nice combos at the same price but a guy could gig with this without shame.
Manufacturer Support
Never had any problems with it but I have always had good experience getting Roland stuff fixed.
The Wow Factor
Look cool on an amp stand but not as cool as a stack. But the features and tone make this amp. I do like the industrial look of the amp, BS free.
Musical Background:
Hobbyist but had active band in the past
Musical Style:
Rock and blues
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Submitted August 3, 2013 by bob poole in myrtle beach, SC
"Roland Cube 80-XL Delivers !"
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After reading pages of nothing but praise on the Steel Guitar Forum for this amp,i decided to give it a try...a lot of veteran steel players are choosing this one as they look for lighter weight with enough clean power to do the job.this amp delivers all it's said to.I switch from steel to Telecaster numerous times during a gig.if I wanted to just take one amp to a gig,i can now take one amp and as the feeling hits me,jump from steel to guitar,hit one switch when I get up to grab my Tele & i'm ready to go.This is a great addition to my "tool kit".The weight will make life a lot easier.i'm 60 now & lifting heavy equipment just isn't as easy as it used to be.I plan on adding a second one when i'm able as I like running thru two amps for some gigs.i have an amp that is pretty well matched to this one in power,a little heavier but good solid tone & running thru it as well as the Roland is just incredible.I run from the two outputs on my volume pedal,spread the amps out a few feet and,wow!!! The XL is a keeper,Roland's support & warranty seems to be very good,add zZounds excellent customer service and you have a winning combination.
Musical Background:
playing 45 years,extensive "on the road"time,pedal steel,guitar...club gigs,church band
Musical Style:
rock n roll,r&b,blues,gospel,reggae,soca,calypso,honky-tonk,classic country,western swing,country-rock,etc.
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Submitted October 13, 2016 by Antonio Nunez in Boston, MA
"roland does it again great amp"
I have to be honest I have been a tube guitar Player for many years playing funk, jazz, blues, some rock, but as you get older those mesa boogie and fender amps become so darn heavy to carry around. Let me tell you this amp is pretty light the sound from this amp is unbelievable for the price built quite strong great effects i'm not to crazy for the looper but that's minor maybe another effect would be nice. I find myself using this amp more and more than my tube amps this amp really rocks great tone Roland you have some great engineers
Musical Background:
playing guitar fo about 38 yers
Musical Style:
funk, blues jazz, some rock
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Submitted December 30, 2010 by a customer from teleport.com
"Loud, compact, solid, good value."
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zZounds has verified that this reviewer purchased this specific product from us.
This should keep me happy for quite a while. If this one got clobbered, I'd probably get another, just because it's handy to have around and does things my other gear won't.
Sound
I bought this primarily for performance and rehearsal with a loud band, to replace a big Fender tube amp that suffers from consistency issues. The sound is exactly what I hoped for -- loud and clean on the "JC" model, and colored in useful ways in the other models, especially the "tweed" one. Combined with my pedalboard, this amp produces all the sounds I need, at useful volume, and does it consistently, night after night. The effects sound OK, although they are only somewhat tweakable -- no suprises to any BOSS or Roland user. The line-out is usable for recording, particularly for moderately overdriven sounds.
Features
Got what I expected. The Cube line does what it does very well. The new "Solo" feature on the XLs is nice -- it's a single programmable preset with an independent out level, nice for setting up a louder lead sound. The looper is the feature I'm least excited about -- not a long enough record time for the material I'd use it for, and some fiddling with footswitches required if you want to make it controllable in real time.
Ease of Use
This amp is easy to use, once you get the hang of the "solo" mode. I was able to dial in "my sound" within minutes of unpacking it. The best "ease of use" feature, though, is the size and weight. 14" on a side and 40 pounds? Beats struggling with a big tube amp, as far as I'm concerned.
Quality
Roland Cube amps are pretty robust, and this one is no exception. I can gig with it without worrying about special handling or transport. The closed back, recessed controls, and metal speaker grille keep the vital bits away from harm.
Value
I think it's a great value for the price. If you're into high-gain or tube amps, you might have a different perception.
Manufacturer Support
Never had to deal with support. Never had a Cube fail.
The Wow Factor
Not especially sexy or eye-catching...solid, functional, and sensibly designed. Which is fine by me. I just want to make interesting noises.
Musical Background:
Active musician
Musical Style:
Jazz, alt-rock
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Submitted April 8, 2012 by Morten B
"Always by my side"
This is my Cube no.4. ( I have the 20-30 & 60 Cube ) and a JC 120.
Why ? Roland has a great sound for my kind of music. 50-60 and 70`s.
I don`t have to carry around with different pedals. The Cube has it all.
Musical Background:
I`m playing everything with string since the 70`s
Musical Style:
Rock,Country and blues
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Submitted December 27, 2011 by a customer from gmail.com
"5 stars for the Roland 80XL Guitar Combo Amp."
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zZounds has verified that this reviewer purchased this specific product from us.
I expect to keep it forever. No plans to replace it with anything else.
Sound
Roland 80XL guitar amp is awesome ... from the clean sound of the JC (jazz) amp to the various modeling amps built-in, you can
get the right tone for any song. Effects are credible too ... expecially the octaver. Don't use the looper much as a I have a 1Gb JamMan
so can get hours of material on that. All in all, a great amp for a great price ... but a footswitch is essential for gigs so you will have
to shell out for something (I got the 6-switch swithdoctor).
Features
I personally don't use the looper ... might have preferred another effect or amp model. The octaver is great for songs where
I have to solo over just bass/drums.
Ease of Use
Since it's an amp, all the features are there on the top of the combo. I use an amp stand.
Quality
Roland always makes quality products. I've had my Roland EP-70 digitial piano for 10 years now with never an issue.
I also have the Roland CB100 bass amp with problems so I expect the 80XL guitar amp will be fine too.
Value
Yes, the price point is good. If it included a footswitch, that's be immense!
Manufacturer Support
Not needed it but I have other Roland products.
The Wow Factor
One of the best guitar amps out there.
Musical Background:
30 years. I play guitar, bass, drums and piano.
Musical Style:
Rock, originals.
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Submitted April 1, 2012 by Harvey M in Fort Lauderdale, FL
"Roland Cube-80XL"
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zZounds has verified that this reviewer purchased this specific product from us.
Unbelievable sound and loudness from such a small amp. Great for playing live. I was hesitant on purchasing this amp until I played one at a local music store. The looper function is great for practicing solos or doing a live one man band act. This amp offers a vast variety of sounds.
Musical Background:
Professional
Musical Style:
Rock,Prog Rock,Jazz,Blues
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Submitted November 28, 2012 by Jon I in Eau CLaire, WI
"Roland 80xl"
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Love the microcube sound so figured the 80xl would be as good.Wrong answer.Sound isn't real good,not to mention way too expensive for being MADE IN CHINA.
Musical Background:
8 years
Musical Style:
Worship/Church.Heavy metal,Classical,blues etc...
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