Guitar Gear Gems: Alex Lifeson LERXST amp range
Two new tube amps and Kemper's Liquid Profiling is now out of Beta at last!
4,3 / 5,0 | 
On Guitar Gear Gems this week we check out the all-new Alex Lifeson LERXST amp range which he has worked on with Mojotone. Then we have a look at the new Bad Cat Amplifiers Jet Black amp models, which offer a range of great tube tones. Plus, we take a very quick peek at the new Kemper 10.2.1 which has just landed.
Alex Lifeson LERXST
The Alex Lifeson LERXST range of amplifiers is part of a new venture that will also see guitars, pedals, and pickups in the future. The amps are a collaboration with Mojotone so they should be pretty sweet. The partnership between Lifeson and Mojotone dates back to a custom-built head that they built for him, around Rush’s 2012 Clockwork Angels.
Omega
That collaboration ended up with a limited run of 100 LERXST Omega amps at the time. Now the Omega is back in production as a two-channel head with a three-band EQ, plus a 12AX7 preamp section and an EL34 power amp section.
This new version has a 50-watt output, which can switch down to 25 watts if needed, whereas the original run was all 100-watt models. It also features a serial effects loop.
The Omega amps will be available in a limited run hand-wired version for $3,495 or as a standard production version for $2,495. Plus, they will offer matching voidless Baltic birch speaker cabinets in 2×12 and 4×12 configurations.
Chi
There is also the smaller Chi which has the same character as the Omega but is a 30-watt design. It also has two foot-switchable channels, plus a shared three-band EQ, and a serial effects loop. This model uses three 12AX7 preamp tubes and a pair of 6L6 power tubes.
The Chi will be available as a 1×12 combo for $1,995 or $1,695 for the head.
It will be interesting to see what effects, guitars and pickups follow in the range, as they have stated that there will be more Alex Lifeson products coming.
Bad Cat Amplifiers Jet Black
More all-tube amps, but this time it is the new Bad Cat Amplifiers Jet Black range with a 38-watt output and powered by four EL84 power tubes. They are a two-channel design, with channel one being clean and channel two offering gain tones. The amp design features a 3-Band EQ and a transparent FX Loop.
Combo or Head
The Jet Black range is available as either a Combo or a Head. Both versions come with Reverb and Bias-Modulated Tremolo on board. They come with a two-button footswitch for Channel Select and Tremolo on/off.
They have some really good specifications and they also sound very tasty in all the video demos I have heard.
Kemper 10.2.1
Kemper is rounding off 2023 with another official free update to their Profiler range. After the beta test phase, firmware version 10.2.1 now includes the long-awaited liquid profiling as well as USB audio and USB MIDI.
Liquid Profiling
High and Low Pass Filters
In addition to the global low cut and high cut, there are now also extra high pass and low pass filters just for the cab output.
Kemper owners and users can download the update from here. As ever, follow their instructions carefully and back up all your work before attempting any firmware updates.
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- Alex Lifeson LERXST: LERXST Amps
- Omega: LERXST Amps
- Liquid Profiling : Kemper
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