Roland Mobile Cube

May 2009 Guitarist 119
ROLAND MOBILE CUBE AND MICRO CUBE RX
£139 & £209
GUITAR AMPS
The RX actually off ers more modelling
and amp features than its peers in the
Cube range
rhythms. Distortion lacks a
little definition, with
humbuckers especially, but
serves up a more than faithful
higher gain blues tone or even
heavy metal rhythms. On all
three amp simulations the
effects don’t seem to get
swamped, there’s a surprising
amount of definition.
The custom-designed
speakers cope well with other
instruments and auxiliary
inputs. There’s minimal
flapping and the small cab
maintains good projection,
making a very capable package.
Micro Cube RX
The Micro Cube RX mimics
classic Cube designs with a
sturdily built cabinet and strong
industrial-style corner
protectors. Despite a clunky
appearance the physical size
and layout is well conceived,
displaying Roland’s thought for
the end user.
Situated above the built-in
chromatic tuner and solo boost
button are three standard EQ
controls: bass, middle and
treble, as well as pre-amp gain
and volume control knobs. The
RX benefits from Roland’s
Composite Object Sound
Modelling (COSM) amp
technology, which digitally
reproduces sound
characteristics of both electric
and acoustic instruments. Two
digital power-amps offer
double the output (2.5-watts
per side) of a Micro Cube;
powering four custom-
designed four-inch (10cm)
speakers, which are housed
behind a stylish speaker grille.
The RX actually offers more
modelling and amp features
than its peers in the Cube
range, having eight amp modes,
six Roland-designed effects
(chorus, f langer, phaser and
tremolo) and there’s also a
separate microprocessor for
delay and reverb.
An eight-way selector knob
offers eight COSM amp presets
with familiar descriptions:
Acoustic Sim, JC Clean (Roland
Jazz Chorus), Black Panel
(Fender Twin Reverb), Brit
Combo (Vox AC30TB), Classic
Stack (Marshall JMP1987),
Metal, R-fier and Mic input.
The most defining feature of
this amp, however, is the
Rhythm Guide system. Like
having a portable drummer it
gives you the choice of 11
rhythms to practise with,
including: Metronome, Rock1,
Rock2, Blues, Country, R&B,
Ballad, Jazz, Funk, Latin and
Dance. In addition, you can
switch two variations on each
patch, equalling 33 beat
signatures. This can be
controlled with an onboard
button or via a footswitch; this
will control start/stop and tap
tempo options.
Sounds
As with the Mobile Cube, the
RX offers a surprising amount
of projection and volume. Its
classic Roland COSM amp
modes generally produce
vibrant and faithful tones.
There are, however, some
favourites here: the JC Chorus
with its thick clean tone, which
married well with reverb and
delay effects; Black Panel that
with single-coils delivered a
sparkly recreation of a classic
pre-CBS Fender amp; and
finally the Classic Stack and
Brit Combo impressed with its
grinding Brit-rock tonality and
controlability with the gain
control. We were able to gain a
faithful Hendrix tone dialling
in the right amount of gain and
phaser to produce a Marshall/
Uni-Vibe sound.
Adding reverb presents a lush
springy tone while chorus
keeps things nice and fluid. All
effects here have typical Roland
modulation design qualities –
thick, full and rich tonalities
that are ultimately easy to use.
Other amp modes fared well,
offering similar clarity and
tone, but are not nearly as
engaging or likeable as the
modes mentioned above.
Micro Cube
Bass RX £199
Also available in the RX range
is the Micro Cube Bass RX
(£199). It offers a similar
feature-set to the guitar
version, but with the obvious
changes in amplifier types
and effects. Its eight COSM
amp types again take on
familiar sounding
descriptions: Octave Bass,
Super Flat, Flip Top, B Man,
Bass 360, Session, Concert
810 and Mic type.
With effects we have just
Chorus, Flanger, T-Wah
(tracker wah) and the Boost
is swapped for a Compressor.
This model, with the Rhythm
Guide, impressed our
experienced bass specialist
Roger Newell a great deal.
The rivals
Micro Cube RX
True contenders seem hard
to come by, but the HiWatt
BSK 15/8 (£127 approx) is a
dedicated solid-state busking
amp, with 15-watts of power,
eight-hours battery or mains
power options. Fender’s
G-DEC Junior (£139.99) has
a multitude of effects, a built
in drum machine and even
bass lines to play along with.
GIT315.rev_boss 119 23/3/09 4:10:39 pm