3 Years in the making - Kuro Custom Audio incredibly manages to further improve its already Ultimate and Flagship T120 Matamp style Preamp
My first introduction to the original Kuro T120 V1 was back in 2019 when I did my ’Best Matamp Style Pedals’ rundown. I didn’t feature the T120 in the main rundown as I considered it a little too large to be fully pedalboard practical in its 1590DD enclosure (188mm x 120mm x 37mm). I did note though in the ’Final Thoughts’ section - that the Kuro T120 was by far and away my favourite sounding Matamp style Preamp - it was just too large for my setup though! The very first V1 T120 materialised in October of 2015 - so this is effectively its 7th Anniversary.
As a result of the original version being a touch large - I’ve been pestering Kuro’s Giulio ever since - to make me a more pedalboard-friendly version. But understandably it’s tough asking someone to mess around with perfection - so it took a considerable time to fully convince Giulio to make a go of the smaller BB enclosure size (94mm x 119mm x 42mm) that the V2 now inhabits - almost exactly half the size of the original - and finally perfect for my own needs :
Last yers's superb Exegol Model-T project was an essential stepping stone on the path to the V2 T120 - where Giulio was able to perfect that build size - and get full confidence that he could do justice to that much-loved massive wall-of-sound circuit.
The Exegol is a thing of wonder too - and exhibits a similar raw, deep and powerful distortion wall of sound. It will be impossible to decide between those two - while each really has its own special character - get both I say!
Controls - Master, Presence, Treble, Bass, Volume, 4-position Drive, 6-position Depth.
Everything from the original has been preserved - the same high quality THT components and all the same controls delivered in exactly the same manner - meaning that the Drive (x4) and Depth (x6) controls are notched - which is a really cool way to power through the gears!
The T120 V2 also benefits from the same specially crafted Power Amp output stage socket which has its own circuit fully optimised and honed for amp inserts - this time labelled 'Line'.
As Giulio states :
"T120 v.2 is finally here! A compact version of our beloved big box T120, same british sounds as before, same 'wall of sound' and while I was at it I added a bit more headroom and an additional line output to drive anything. It can be used by itself or as a platform, it takes other boost, fuzz and overdrive pedals really good!"
Kuro's T120 is very precisely and meticulously modelled on Giulio's own roadworn 1974 Matamp GT120 - as pictured below :
There is so much raw power here that at the extremes the output can sound a little choked and over-compressed - meaning that I don't raise the Volume above 4 o'c really - and I get a tighter and more articular output with Drive at 3rd notch, and Depth at its 5th notch - ramping everything up doesn't always produce better results!
As Giulio also attests - this Preamp takes other pedals really well too - boosts, overdrives and fuzzes all work wonderfully in combination with this. It's truly a magnificent achievement.
With the T120 V2 Giulio has once again proven he is the king of Raw 70's Amp Preamp Pedals - both the Exegol and T120 deliver the most amazing visceral experience - and the dials are perfectly calibrated for maximum impact.
Everyone should have at least one of these!
Preferred settings : Master + Presence + Treble All @ Max, Bass @ 2 o'c, Volume + Drive + Depth All @ 4 o'c.
The Kuro T120 V2 is available right now on the Kuro Custom Audio Webstore - for €240. Go get yours now - I know you'll love it as much as I do mine!
Demos
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