WELCOME TO HENNING AMPLIFICATION
Congratulations and thank you for choosing the Henning Bottle Rocket Guitar Amplifier!
At Henning Amplification, our mission is to design and build the finest tube guitar amplifiers for discerning
tone freaks. Hand built in the USA using the highest quality components and materials, our amplifiers sound
killer, look cool and are as durable and road ready as anything currently on the market.
The Bottle Rocket is one of the most versatile single channel amplifier you can buy today. It is a 50 watt
tube amp featuring dual gain controls (each with a 3-way bright switch), dual foot switchable masters (each
with a 3-way saturation switch) and and an overall master to provide great tones from bedroom to concert
levels.
The Bottle Rocket’s preamp design is loosely based on the flagship Cherry Bomb’s ROD channel, however
we made significant changes to make it more versatile. It is capable of heavier/more saturated tones, as
well as giving you the ability to tighten the bass response considerably. The keys to the Bottle Rocket’s
versatility are the dual gain controls and their corresponding 3-way bright switches. The dual gain controls
provide you with the ability to control the amp’s gain in both the first and second preamp stages, allowing
you to shape the tone to your exact taste. The 3-way bright switches on each gain control not only affect
the high end response of the amp, but also tighten the response and add considerable perceived gain in the
left and right positions (center position is off). You can mix the bright switch settings and gain control
settings to get everything from classic rock tones to the heaviest modern metal tones. The amp also cleans
up incredibly well with your guitar’s volume, even with high output pickups, so you won’t be needing a
dedicated clean channel live.
The Bottle Rocket also allows you to change the gain response of the amp with the 3-way saturation
switches associated with the main channel master (labeled VOLUME) and foot switchable solo channel
master (labeled SOLO), allowing tremendous flexibility in sculpting YOUR ultimate tone. Singing lead tones
and massive power chords can be dialed in with ease. The Bottle Rocket’s foot switchable solo channel
master and associated 3-way saturation switch can be set to provide a gain and volume boost for live
soloing.
The Bottle Rocket also features global presence and resonance controls. The presence control provides high
frequency variable feedback in the power amp section, while the resonance control adds depth to the bass
response.
The Bottle Rocket also features the same foot switchable, tube-buffered effects loop as the Cherry Bomb so
you can add your time-based effects after the gain stages of the amp where they belong. You can choose
either series or parallel mode for the effects loop, affording you the ultimate flexibility in how you want to
use pedal or rack mount effects. This loop is extremely transparent and you won’t hear any change in your
tone when switching it in and out of the signal path.
Finally, the amp also features another, overall master volume. We’re going to get a little techie on you here,
but bear with us, because this is one of the coolest features of the Bottle Rocket. This master volume is
actually a post-phase inverter master volume (PPIMV) design. We feel that this design provides the best
tones you can get for lower volume playing. You’ll get great tones with this master all the way down to
bedroom volumes. Crank the channel or solo master up and turn the overall master down to the volume
level you’d like to play at and you’ll see that the overall master also adds some perceived gain and
compression to the tone. Experiment with balancing different settings of the channel masters and overall
master to get the tone you’d like at the right volume for the room you’re playing in. Of course, cranking the
overall master up full takes it completely out of the circuit and you can just adjust the channel master/solo
master to the appropriate volume.
While the amp has a lot of options and controls, getting familiar with the Bottle Rocket amplifier is easy, so
don’t be terribly surprised that you find yourself up and running in no time. It’s really easy to dial in great
tones in both channels and find your voice with it.