Hotone Audio Ampero One

While we haven’t ever ventured TOO far into the world of multi-effects processors, we did get a chance to check out the Ampero from Hotone Audio almost exactly a year ago today, and were extremely impressed by how well it performed. Cramming a ton of amps, cabinet and effects into one unit has got to be tricky for any company, and to do it as well and for such an affordable price point was a stroke of genius. Today, we’re back with the next evolutionary piece in this lineup, the little brother, Ampero One. Taking everything that we love about the original Ampero and downsizing it just a little, this guy is packed full once again, so we’ve got a lot to dig into….

Right away, we noticed two things: the three buttons are gone from directly below the touch screen, and only three footswitches exist, instead of four. Turns out, while they’re nice additions to the bigger Ampero unit, you can get by just fine without them. The 800 x 480 youch screen is still bright and bold, with dynamic color and optimized UI activity and measuring 4″ across without being overly busy or obnoxious. Ampero One is powered by the new-gen CDCM HD (Comprehensive Dynamic Circuit Modeling High Definition) and F.I.R.E. (Field Impulse Response Enhancement) systems, creating a high-shelf modeling circuit. This not only creates tones that are vivid, accurate and expressive, but also enhances the relationships between Ampero One and amps or PA systems.

Ampero One boasts 242 effects to choose from (!) along with 64 amp models and 60 cab models. The touch screen lets you set these up in any order/configuration you can come up with, letting you modify the effects chain instantly, rather than having to re-wire, test and troubleshoot an entire pedalboard. The effects range from compression and boost to drive and distortion to octaves, delays and reverbs, modulation, acoustic tones and many, many more. The real fun here is using that screen to create new and wonderful sounds that you might not have otherwise discovered. Let’s face it: buying 242 separate pedals is not only daunting, but super-expensive. Ampero One solves that problem in an instant.

Internally, Ampero One is driven by 18V DC, but uses a regular 9V power supply, for easier connectivity in any rig. The Input Selector switch has been replaced by a special input jack with high impedance (up to 4.7M Ohms), making it instantly compatible with guitars, basses, acoustic instruments and more. You can program your favorite sounds as “patches” to use live, or to directly record via USB or an audio interface using the analog outputs. This way, your tones remain exactly the same in both situations, providing an even-layered, tonally matched signal chain everywhere you have to perform. It also uses advanced acoustic simulation algorithms, along with built-in acoustic IRs and some crisp-sounding presets, it’s easy to turn your electric instrument into an acoustic one in seconds, without sounding cheesy or fake in any way.

Other usable features include Stereo Outputs, TRS expression pedal/external footswitch jack, a USB port for editing presets and performing updates and Aux In and Headphone Out jacks, to name a few. The built-in drum machine has 100 patterns to choose from, which you can alter in any way you need, and there’s even a Looper that gives you up to 100 seconds of record time (in mono, 50 seconds in stereo). There’s a lot going on here, and although it’s long, our demo video below goes through some of the many presets available, shows you how to edit, use the drum machine and looper and much more. It’s Saturday, and hopefully right now you’re safe and warm in your home, so toss a little whiskey in that coffee, sit back and enjoy. Although we can’t cram EVERYTHING that Ampero One can do into a 20 minute video, there’s a lot to learn, and to explore on your own as well. Cheers to all at Hotone Audio on a wonderful refiguring of an already powerful processor that looks and sounds fantastic – the Ampero One is a great option for any musician that needs everything in a compact, easy-to-transport package that’s loaded with any sound you can imagine.

Use this link to purchase this pedal on Amazon and support us: Hotone Ampero One MP-80 Guitar Bass Amp Modeling IR Cabinets Simulation Multi Language Multi-Effects with Expression Pedal Stereo OTG USB Audio Interface