The Cub has been the cornerstone of the Bad Cat lineup since the company's founding in 1999. Originally designed by Mark Sampson, it draws from the DNA of classic 15-watt British amps of the '60s -but with more muscle. This circuit became the hallmark of the “Bad Cat Sound” and remains John Thompson's personal favorite to this day. John has always wanted a true "grab and go" Bad Cat. The new Mod Shop Cub 15 answers that call with a smaller footprint, revoiced mids and a tighter bottom end; a design that honors the spirit of the original 1999 Cub while still delivering the modern features players have been asking for most.

The Mod Shop Cub 15 is a highly touch sensitive and harmonically rich single-channel amplifier. That means it lives and breathes with your playing dynamics: pick lightly and it whispers, dig in and it sings. There is plenty of headroom for the most demanding pedalboards and more than enough gain for the players who prefer a minimal rig. This amp responds remarkably well to all of the different types of pickups in your collection. Not only can you scrutinize the differences between a Strat and a Les Paul, but you’ll be able to hear every nuance that makes one Les Paul different from the next.

Plug a single-coil guitar into the clean channel in Lo mode and the amp delivers glassy, American-style cleans you’ve heard on records for decades. Switch to Hi mode and a Telecaster pushes it into Paisley-style country lead tones—bouncy, articulate, and full of bite. Swap the Tele for a Les Paul, leave the settings alone, and the sound shifts into mid-forward, percussive classic rock territory—the kind of punchy rhythm tone you’d expect from an AC/DC record.

The Mod Shop Cub 15 revisits and captures the spirit of the original Bad Cat Cub that started it all. Compact, inspiring and full of character. It's the kind of amplifier that reminds you why you started playing in the first place.