Tone King Gremlin amp

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Anyone played this? Thoughts?
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  • 57Deluxe57Deluxe Frets: 7329
    not heard of this model - new??
    <Vintage BOSS Upgrades>
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  • SunburstSunburst Frets: 119
    There's a poor quality video from NAMM and not much else as far as online information I can find.  I see it's "assembled in USA" as opposed to "made".  
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  • rlwrlw Frets: 4670
    Sunburst said:
    I see it's "assembled in USA" as opposed to "made".  
    It will be shite then. :-(
    Save a cow.  Eat a vegetarian.
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  • SunburstSunburst Frets: 119
    Does anyone know if Tone King's change of ownership has effected build- and component-quality in general terms?  I have a real hankering for a Falcon Grande.  
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  • DougCodaDougCoda Frets: 642
    They're made by Boutique Amp Distribution(Friedman/Morgan/65 amps) and they sound great. As far as I'm aware they're building all of these amps to Mark Bartel's designs(the Gremlin was his last for PBG) 
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  • SunburstSunburst Frets: 119
    DougCoda said:
    They're made by Boutique Amp Distribution(Friedman/Morgan/65 amps) and they sound great. As far as I'm aware they're building all of these amps to Mark Bartel's designs(the Gremlin was his last for PBG) 
    Thanks.
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  • DougCodaDougCoda Frets: 642
    If I get any time tomorrow I'll try and get a quick you tube vid done, it won't be Wildwood quality I'm afraid..camera in front of amp style...It is Christmas so it may well be rushed!
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  • DougCodaDougCoda Frets: 642
    Done but rushed...hope you get the idea! 
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  • 57Deluxe57Deluxe Frets: 7329
    <Vintage BOSS Upgrades>
    __________________________________
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  • CabicularCabicular Frets: 2214
    DougCoda said:
    Done but rushed...hope you get the idea! 
    Sounds great
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  • kossofffankossofffan Frets: 540
    edited December 2022
    (holy thread resurrection)

    As always, very late to the party, but what a responsive, dynamic & amazing little charming thing this is.
     Had it a couple of days and am frankly stunned just how many different tones are inside with just the most basic controls.
     First amp I've ever had that I'm happy to play dry but of course better with a spring verb pedal in front.
    Tried an EL34 in it this morning which is good but the KT66 is way more exciting to listen to. 
    Bloody good attenuator is a great feature. 
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  • dindudedindude Frets: 8534
    edited July 2022
    Very nice! I’ve been eying these up for years, as a home only player they look like a great option, although I’m still into my ‘68 Vibrochamp reverb right now.

    What other amps have you had as pint of comparison btw, would be interesting to know some referral e points. 
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  • munckeemunckee Frets: 12253
    I’ve had a gremlin and a 68 Princeton and now a 65 Princeton. Have also had a silver face original champ. 

    The gremlin is great on both channels and I loved the attenuator. The reason I have the Princeton 65 now is that it has the nicest clean of all the amps I’ve had plus I like having amp reverb and tremolo.  

    A gremlin with reverb and tremolo would be pretty tough to beat. 
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  • TheBigDipperTheBigDipper Frets: 4722
    I was at Guitar Guitar in Camden a few weeks ago to try a Strandberg They plugged me into one of these. I thought the guitar and amp together sounded really responsive and lush. Far bigger sound than I expected. 
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  • kossofffankossofffan Frets: 540
    Only ever had Marshall’s dindude. 
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  • dindudedindude Frets: 8534
    Only ever had Marshall’s dindude. 
    No wonder you’re chuffed with it then! 
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  • (holy thread resurrection)

    As always, very late to the party, but what a responsive, dynamic & amazing little charming thing this is.
     Had it a couple of days and am frankly stunned just how many different tones are inside with just the most basic controls.
     First amp I've ever had that I'm happy to play dry but of course better with a spring verb pedal in front.
    Tried an EL34 in it this morning which is good but the KT66 is way more exciting to listen to. 
    Bloody good attenuator is a great feature. All in all, a very happy tax refund purchase :)



    I love that mystic seafoam colour! 
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  • I love some of the demos of this amp on YT and I am after a small high quality valve amp for home use. Only thing stopping me is lack of reverb. I like tube overdriven sounds with some reverb on top and whilst I could put a reverb pedal in front of the amp I suspect this might be muddy as the reverb will also get overdriven? Or is this not a concern in practice?
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  • hangar64 said:
    I love some of the demos of this amp on YT and I am after a small high quality valve amp for home use. Only thing stopping me is lack of reverb. I like tube overdriven sounds with some reverb on top and whilst I could put a reverb pedal in front of the amp I suspect this might be muddy as the reverb will also get overdriven? Or is this not a concern in practice?
    A Surfy Bear unit would take care of your reverb needs. I find it sounds most authentic straight in the front as opposed to in the loop
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  • LebarqueLebarque Frets: 3755
    edited December 2022
    hangar64 said:
    I love some of the demos of this amp on YT and I am after a small high quality valve amp for home use. Only thing stopping me is lack of reverb. I like tube overdriven sounds with some reverb on top and whilst I could put a reverb pedal in front of the amp I suspect this might be muddy as the reverb will also get overdriven? Or is this not a concern in practice?
    Yes, this is the problem with reverb in front of a driving amp. I've never been satisfied with it. My solution with a reverb-less amp has always been to set it clean, then run a drive pedal into a reverb pedal into the clean amp. Even then, I still prefer an on-board spring reverb tank. They just sound better than spring reverb pedals IMO.

     If it's on your mind, it will probably keep bugging you. Personally, if you want a low-wattage amp, I'd be snapping up the Lazy J5 @dangriffiths has for sale (no affiliation). Built-in reverb, VAC and I'd wager it will be much better than the Gremlin, given my experience with my J20. Albeit, it obviously won't do the black panel thing. Just my two-penneth. 

     https://www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/233450/fs-lazy-j5-with-reverb-and-vac/p1



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