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Hughes & Kettner Owners???

19K views 24 replies 8 participants last post by  racerevlon 
#1 ·
Own an H&K? Which one(s)? Opinions? And if you don't own one, ever played one? What do you think?

Me: Tube 100 head(mid 90's model) thru Trace Elliot 4x12 w/Vintage 30's. Love it. Very versatile for different styles of music. Pristine cleans, some of the best I've heard, gain channels work for everything from classic rock to death metal.
 
#2 ·
I have three Hughes & Kettner Amps:

TriAmp MK II--one of the best-sounding and most-flexible amps I've ever played. Red Box D.I. on board--how much better can THAT get?
Trilogy--great alternative if you don't have the money for a TriAmp. You lose the Red Box, but still a great-sounding amp. Best of Marshall and Mesa put together.
Switchblade 100C--best grab 'n go 2 x 12 combo around--built-in FX and everything from crystal cleans to death metal gain.

I fly the Hughes & Kettner flag high and proud!!

Cheers,

Race
 
#4 ·
Tubemeister 18 is a great amp. You might want to save the extra $$$ and get the 36. Oh, and keep them away from Vintage 30's unless they're in a Hughes & Kettner cab. I've found with my Hughes & Kettner amps I like the Vintage 30 the least. Try greenbacks, GT-65s, or an Eminence flavor that suits you. Hughes & Kettner amps are extremely picky about the specific speaker pairings.
 
#8 ·
I don't really need the 36. I don't gig at all, or even play with a band, so I don't need any extra power. The independent EQ would be nice, but again, it's not absolutely needed in my case. Unless you just think it sounds better.

And for a cabinet, I was just going to use my Attax 200 initially. It has Celestion Rockdriver Vintage speakers in it, so I'll see how that sounds.
 
#5 ·
I have a Duotone head- probably the best sounding amp I have ever heard- sure my Laney gh100l had a little bit more gain but the Duotone just sounds better and is far more versatile. I also had the Tubemeister 18 but wasn't thrilled with it and got rid of it, but am still interested in the 36 because of the midi feature.
 
#7 ·
I have a Duotone head- probably the best sounding amp I have ever heard- sure my Laney gh100l had a little bit more gain but the Duotone just sounds better and is far more versatile. I also had the Tubemeister 18 but wasn't thrilled with it and got rid of it, but am still interested in the 36 because of the midi feature.
You're the first person I've encountered that's said that. What in particular didn't you like about it, if I may ask?
 
#10 ·
Idk it had sort of a fizzy thin sound. I had it hooked up with a mesa recto 2x12 cab, tried an Fulltone OCD, different guitars, THD hotplate, and still couldn't dig it. The cleans sound great but the distortion wasn't for me. I'm glad I spent the extra money on the Hughes & Kettner Duotone.
 
#15 ·
Idk it had sort of a fizzy thin sound. I had it hooked up with a mesa recto 2x12 cab, tried an Fulltone OCD, different guitars, THD hotplate, and still couldn't dig it. The cleans sound great but the distortion wasn't for me. I'm glad I spent the extra money on the Hughes & Kettner Duotone.
I tried one with a Lone Star 1x12, and it sounded simply incredible.
 
#6 ·
I had a Switchblade 50 for a while. Nice amp overall and the onboard effects were fairly good. It didn't seem to have the touch responsiveness that I wanted from a genuine tube amp and the distortion seemed a little too harsh for my taste. It did not take pedals very well either.
 
#9 ·
The Rockerdriver speakers are probably the same ones that come with the Switchblade 100C. Good speakers. If you couldn't get along with the Tubemeister 18, no offense, but it was probably due to impatience or poor speaker pairings. You need to invest the time to dial in a Hughes & Kettner amps. Small changes make large differences.

Surefire--you say the amp didn't take pedals very well. Do you mean in front or in the loop? I can see possibly pushing the clean or Crunch channel set to low gain with a TS, SD-1, or Blues Driver just to get some grit and grind, but really the Switchblade shouldn't (doesn't) need much when it comes to outboard effects. Spend the time dialing in the amp itself and working with speaker pairings rather than throwing pedals at it. I almost dumped my first Switchblade head because it sounded horrible through V30'S. At the last minute I plugged it into a completely different cab and the whole package came to life like a fire-breathing dragon. Patience, Grasshopper...
 
#12 ·
The Rockerdriver speakers are probably the same ones that come with the Switchblade 100C. Good speakers. If you couldn't get along with the Tubemeister 18, no offense, but it was probably due to impatience or poor speaker pairings. You need to invest the time to dial in a Hughes & Kettner amps. Small changes make large differences.

Surefire--you say the amp didn't take pedals very well. Do you mean in front or in the loop? I can see possibly pushing the clean or Crunch channel set to low gain with a TS, SD-1, or Blues Driver just to get some grit and grind, but really the Switchblade shouldn't (doesn't) need much when it comes to outboard effects. Spend the time dialing in the amp itself and working with speaker pairings rather than throwing pedals at it. I almost dumped my first Switchblade head because it sounded horrible through V30'S. At the last minute I plugged it into a completely different cab and the whole package came to life like a fire-breathing dragon. Patience, Grasshopper...
What speakers did you pair with your Switchblade? I have V30's with my Tube 100 and love em but would like to hear it with something different speakers like some 100w Celestions just to compare. I'm serious thinking of picking up a new(er) H&K, but I can't justify the $2500+ for a MKII or a Coreblade, and I'm thinking a Switchblade might be a good compromise for around $1000 used or a little more new. And a new head of course means....new 4x12.
 
#18 ·
I think this is why I stuck with Hughes & Kettner. I loved the lead channel sound on my Attax 200. And from what I've listened to over the net, it's even better with the TM 18. Of course it showed up 20 minutes after I left for work today. I'll have to bust it down to 1 Watt tonight when I get home. lol! Tomorrow, I crank it!
 
#20 ·
I'm going to go out on a limb here and predict that you find the amp too bright, somewhat sterile-sounding, and not what you "thought" you were looking for. That's the time to stop, take a breath, and start making SMALL changes to get to your desired sound. Also, dial the amp in with your ears, not your eyes. Don't go in with a pre-conceived notion of where you think the knobs SHOULD point. If it just so happens that the amp sounds awesome with the treble on zero and the bass dimed, so be it. Don't discount it if it gets to sounding great but the knobs aren't pointing where you THINK they should. And remember, little changes go a long way. Don't take the mids from 10 o'clock to 2 o'clock in one adjustment.

Can't wait to hear the clips!!

Cheers,

Race
 
#21 ·
My first impression is that this is a pretty nice amp. The clean channel is great, from sparkling clean to a nice, slightly overdriven tone, depending on the gain setting. The lead channel picks up from there and goes to a great heavy rock tone. Adding the boost to the lead channel pushes you more towards a metal tone and for me, has more than enough gain. In fact, I haven't had the gain past 10 o'clock yet for what I do.

And yes, EQ settings make a big difference depending not only on the channel that is selected, but also how the gain is set and which pickups are being used. This may be a point of concern for a gigging musician, as I imagine one would not want to be running back to the amp all of the time during a show.

I post more about it after I've had more time with it.
 
#25 ·
My first impression is that this is a pretty nice amp. The clean channel is great, from sparkling clean to a nice, slightly overdriven tone, depending on the gain setting. The lead channel picks up from there and goes to a great heavy rock tone. Adding the boost to the lead channel pushes you more towards a metal tone and for me, has more than enough gain. In fact, I haven't had the gain past 10 o'clock yet for what I do.

And yes, EQ settings make a big difference depending not only on the channel that is selected, but also how the gain is set and which pickups are being used. This may be a point of concern for a gigging musician, as I imagine one would not want to be running back to the amp all of the time during a show.

I post more about it after I've had more time with it.
This is why you should have got the 36. :)
 
#24 ·
I'm a TM18 owner as well. Love the small footprint, clean channel that gets a bit gritty on the 1 & 5w settings, etc...And the Redbox out allows me to play it through an 11r and use all the different cabs and effects. With that said, I added a Legacy3 today and I'm really liking it. I haven't a/b'd them as the Legacy is a different animal. Need to get past the honeymoon phase to see if I still like the TM18.
 
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