Guitar modelers solved many problems, but they did not eliminate the need for a real amplification plan.
That is the lane Avantone Pro is stepping into with the GTR-100, a new two-channel Class A/B power amplifier made specifically for players using modern amp modelers, pedalboards, and effects processors. It is built to take the tone someone has already shaped in a modeler and translate it to the stage without adding the color, maintenance, or weight that come with a traditional tube rig.
That is the key point.
A lot of guitarists have already moved their tone decisions into boxes from companies like Line 6, Fractal, Neural DSP, Kemper, and Quad Cortex-style ecosystems. The amp block, cab behavior, gain stage, effects order, delay width, and overall response may already be dialed before the signal ever hits a speaker. At that point, the power amp does not need to impose a second personality. It needs to get loud, stay clean, and preserve the work already done.
Avantone Pro’s GTR-100 is designed around that exact handoff.
The Power Section Is Built for Headroom
The GTR-100 uses a solid-state Class A/B design and offers several output options depending on the cabinet and rig.
It delivers 100W per channel at 8 Ω, 140W per channel at 4 Ω, or 245W in bridged mono mode at 8 Ω. That gives players enough flexibility for stereo rigs, mono stage setups, rehearsal rooms, and louder live environments where a modeler still needs real speaker movement behind it.
That wattage is only part of the story, though.
The more important part is transparency. Avantone Pro is pitching the GTR-100 as a clean, high-headroom power platform for tones that already have their character baked in. For modeler users, that is exactly the right target. A great patch can fall apart quickly if the amplification stage adds extra coloration or responds in ways that change the feel too much.
This is a different kind of guitar amp relationship. The personality lives upstream. The GTR-100’s job is to make that personality loud.
The XLR THRU Outputs Handle the Front-of-House Problem
The GTR-100 also includes XLR THRU outputs with optional analog Cab Sim.
That gives players a direct path to front-of-house systems or recording devices without relying on microphone placement in front of a speaker cabinet. For gigging guitarists, that can be a major quality-of-life feature because mic placement is one of the easiest ways to lose consistency between rehearsal, soundcheck, and showtime.
If a player is already using a modeler and wants consistency, the stage amp should not force them back into the old guessing game every time they play a different room. The GTR-100 gives them a power amp for the cabinet and a cleaner way to feed the desk.
The 14-stage input/output metering system supports that same idea. Gain staging is easy to underestimate until something clips, drops, or starts feeling wrong in the middle of a set. Clear metering gives players a way to watch the signal path instead of trusting that every device in the chain is behaving.
For producers and guitarists who already think in studio terms, that kind of visual feedback is a natural fit. Our Arturia AudioFuse 16Rig review got into a similar point from the interface side: modern creative gear is at its best when routing, monitoring, and gain decisions are visible instead of buried.
Avantone Pro Is Chasing a Clear Player
The GTR-100 is aimed at players who have already embraced modelers and want stage amplification that respects the tone they built. That is a different buyer than the player shopping for a traditional amp head, and Avantone Pro appears to understand the difference.
The feature set is direct: two-channel operation, stereo I/O, Line and Inst input modes, 4-band EQ, XLR THRU with analog Cab Sim, detailed metering, and enough power for stage use.
For players using modelers in the studio, rehearsal space, and live environments, the GTR-100 is trying to close the gap between the patch and the room.
That is also why this release fits the larger moment in guitar and production gear. Guitarists are no longer divided cleanly between amp players and software players. Many are using modelers as the center of the rig, pedals around them, direct feeds to the desk, cabinet options on stage, and studio-style monitoring everywhere else.
The GTR-100 is built for that reality.
Pricing and Availability
Avantone Pro’s GTR-100 will be available for pre-order beginning September 1, 2026.
The amp is expected to ship through Avantone Pro’s global dealer and distributor network in late Q3 or early Q4 of 2026. Pricing is listed at $599 USD MAP, with EU SSP listed at €799 including 19% VAT.
For guitarists who already trust their modeler tones but need a dedicated way to make them stage-ready, the GTR-100 has a clean pitch: transparent power, stereo flexibility, direct output options, and a rack format built for modern rigs.
The GTR-100 exists because modeler users still need volume, control, and confidence once the signal leaves the screen. For a lot of working guitarists, that may be the missing piece between a great patch and a rig that feels finished.
About Avantone Pro (www.avantonepro.com)
Will Vance is a professional music producer who has been involved in the industry for the better part of a decade and has been the managing editor at Magnetic Magazine since mid-2022. In that time period, he has published thousands of articles on music production, industry think pieces and educational articles about the music industry. Over the last decade as a professional music producer, Will Vance has also ran multiple successful and highly respected record labels in the industry, including Where The Heart Is Records as well as having launched a new label with a focus on community through Magnetic Magazine. When not running these labels or producing his own music, Vance is likely writing for other top industry sites like Waves or the Hyperbits Masterclass or working on his upcoming book on mindfulness in music production. On the rare chance he's not thinking about music production, he's probably running a game of Dungeons and Dragons with his friends which he has been the dungeon master for for many years.
