GEAR REVIEW
FEATURES
Built like a tank, the Dual Dark 50 is a 46-pound
beast capable of producing tones equally as heavy.
It’s outfitted with EL34 tubes and can run at half
power (25 watts) while maintaining plenty of valve
distortion at lower volume levels – great for those
occasions when you don’t want to punish your
audience’s eardrums! Channel A is a new design
featuring a three-band EQ (treble, middle, and
bass) that sounds bright and harmonically more
complex, while Channel B is a bit darker and basic
offering an ultra-cool, midrange sculpting Shape
knob, which I totally dig. Although both channels
are equally impressive and purposeful, B has more
hi-gain modeled after the Dark Terror series. Each
channel has a unique tonal flavor. The amp is
more versatile than its metal inclinations, which
is apparent when experimenting with the Volume
and Gain balance for both, revealing a wide range
of clean to heavily distorted tones.
JUNE/JULY
One of the coolest features is the attenuator
knob, which can push the amp to its limits
while simultaneously reducing volume down
to a whisper without compromising tone. The
attenuator sounded best with a clean tone or
lesser amounts of overdrive. Conversely, too much
attenuator combined with super hi-gain resulted
in a squashed tone that might sound impressive
while practicing in your bedroom, but would get
lost in the mix with a live band.
The back of the unit has three speaker outputs
(two 8 and one 16 ohm), footswitch inputs for
channel selection and attenuator (footswitches
sold separately), and an effects loop to colorize
your sound. The heavy-duty casing with the
control panel inset protects the knobs and
switches. Players familiar with Orange’s line will
recognize the unique, hieroglyphic style icons
DIGITAL EDITION
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