Bad Cat Amplifiers have carved a unique space in the boutique amp market, moving beyond the classic tones of Marshall, Fender, Vox, and Mesa. Their rise to prominence was significantly influenced by Mark Sampson, formerly of Matchless, who brought his expertise in amplifier design to the company. Among their acclaimed models, the Hot Cat 30 stands out, particularly the original version, not to be confused with the later Hot Cat 30r with its modified controls. This 30-watt, cathode-biased head or combo, powered by EL34 tubes, earned high praise, including Guitar Player magazine’s accolade as “the second best combo of all time.”
The Hot Cat 30 is recognized for its versatility, capable of delivering tones ranging from pristine cleans to aggressive crunch and high-gain saturation. Bad Cat themselves describe the current Hot Cat 30r model as starting with “one of the nicest most touch-responsive clean channel ever designed,” further enhanced with a K Master volume to push it into overdrive. They highlight the “secret” crunch reminiscent of “vintage 70’s vinyl” from the clean channel. The second channel is described as “pure Class A EL34 high gain,” offering harmonically rich saturation and a mid-range control for tonal sculpting. This broad tonal palette allows the amp to cover genres from sparkling cleans to heavily saturated leads.
The Fractal Audio “Hot Kitty” model is specifically based on the Hot Cat 30’s second channel, the high-gain channel. The controls mirror those of the amp’s gain channel: Gain, Edge (modeled as Bright), Level, Bass, Mid, Treble, Brilliance (modeled as Hi-Cut), and Master. It’s worth noting, as Cliff from Fractal Audio mentions, that the tone controls on the physical amp are highly interactive and can drastically alter the sound, even to the point of muting the amp at extreme settings – a characteristic that is not directly replicated in the model for usability reasons. The Brilliance control on the Hot Cat amp functions as a Hi-Cut, and the Edge control, similar to a Bright knob, was carefully calibrated in the “Hot Kitty” model to capture its optimal setting.
While some players find the Bad Cat Hot Cat 30 and its digital counterparts to be exceptional, preferences in guitar tone are subjective. Some describe the amp’s tone as having a “hifi-ish” quality, potentially lacking in low-mid frequencies for some tastes, or even sounding somewhat “cardboard-like.” However, many users advocate for exploring the amp’s full potential by pushing the Master volume and adjusting the Hi-Cut (Brilliance) control to find its sweet spot. Bad Cat Amps are often paired with proprietary Celestion speakers, and Fractal Audio’s “Hot Kitty” model includes a stock cabinet IR (#85) reflecting this pairing. Further Hot Kitty Impulse Responses are also available in Cab Pack 1, offering users a range of sonic textures to explore.
Ultimately, the Bad Cat Hot Cat 30, and by extension the Fractal Audio “Hot Kitty” model, represents a distinctive voice in the amplifier landscape. Its versatility and unique tonal characteristics make it a compelling option for guitarists seeking a departure from more conventional amp sounds, offering a journey into both sparkling cleans and harmonically rich high-gain territories.
