Tubemeister - any love?

gearaddict

Not a lot of love for the tubemeister round here…seems like the general consensus is that they are a bit lifeless. But people are using them so they can’t be all bad.

I kind of fancied the 18w head for a backup and home use amp. I used to have a Trilogy and I kind of liked it but it had this kind of ‘clean even when dirty’ thing which I didn’t like. I think that’s what people refer to as the “H&K HiFi” sound so I guess the Tubemeister is probably very similar. Mind you, I think the thing that put me off the Trilogy was more that it sounded a little bit harsh on the highs. Plus it was incredibly heavy. I once had to carry it through a couple of fields to an outdoor gig and I thought I would lose the use of my arm!

57Deluxe

Guitarist Magazine seem smitten...

photek

I really like them but they do have a bit of the hifi thing going on. Nothing a TS pedal wont honk up a bit though.

Very light, really versatile, great emulated out, nice having the attenuator. Reverb would have been nice on the head version though. Second hand prices are getting pretty tempting actually.

gearaddict

57Deluxe said:

Guitarist Magazine seem smitten...

Oh Lord...kiss of death

ThePrettyDamned

One of the best looking amps released.

Sounds, not my cuppa. But then again, it's not more offensive than a Marshall plexi (sounds fine, but I'd have no use for it at all).

Deijavoo

I had the 18w head. Aye I liked it to begin with but just got very frustrated despite the lovely look. I just found the tone too clinical for me.

Deijavoo

In built red box was very handy though. No need for a cab, silent valve recording.

Monkeybone

I'm actually looking to change my gigging amp at the moment (Marshall Mode Four, nuff said), and I'm considering either the TubeMeister 36, a second hand Trilogy, or splurging on a GrandMeister 36, any opinions?

ThePrettyDamned

Monkeybone said:

I'm actually looking to change my gigging amp at the moment (Marshall Mode Four, nuff said), and I'm considering either the TubeMeister 36, a second hand Trilogy, or splurging on a GrandMeister 36, any opinions?

Jet City.

Nah, if you like H+K tones, they'll all be great.

Kebabkid

I've got the H&K Tubemeister 36 head and proprietary 1x12 bass reflex cab (sounds massive). Whilst I like it, I don't think it sounds as good as their Triamp or some of the Statesman range.
I do like the cleans though and mainly stay on that channel using decent pedals into it, and it takes them very well. The in-built Red Box, Power Scaling, giggable volume, light weight and portability made it a no-brainer for me.

You need to turn the treble down on the overdrive channels and whack the middle and bass up to get a good sound - the EQ works in an odd way and setting everything to 12 o'clock doesn't necessarily sound good.

gearaddict

Oh, I'd almost forgotten that I used to have a Statesman Quad combo. It was really nice. Why did I get rid of it? I literally can't remember. Numpty.

I also used to have a H&K 20th Anniversary combo. Also nice. Also can't remember why I got rid. Honestly, I need help.

I think those two have a thicker sounding, creamier overdrive than the blue range.

I'd love to try the Triamp one day to see just how different it is. 

monquixote

I've got a Puretone. 

It's bloody great, but it requires a certain stone age attitude to amplification.

57Deluxe

Those Statesman Combos are SICK!  Lovely aesthetic too...! Discontinued now though...

Kebabkid

57Deluxe said:

Those Statesman Combos are SICK!  Lovely aesthetic too...!

Great amps but that range seemed to depreciate so much in value, which is ok if it's a keeper or you're after a used bargain.

gearaddict

I had a black one which (I thought) looked even nicer. It was quite a slim combo which made it very portable but it still sounded huge.

It looks like H&K haven't really replaced them in the range - focusing more on the blue stuff.

ThePrettyDamned

Such a shame, I really liked the statesman I tried out.

I think people slated them because (gasp, horror!) they used some solid state clipping.

Sounded great, though.

gearaddict

Well, managed to try out the Tubemeister 18w head - I thought it sounded good. Very different from my TH-30 but in a good way. It has that same thing the trilogy had where I keep thinking there's not enough gain...but then I discovered you need to dig in with the pick to get those tones. It's incredibly dynamic that way. The boost mode was a bit muddy compared to the lead mode though...would need to fiddle with the eq to get the right balance.

I'm wondering if it would run out of puff in a band situation though. I had that problem with the rebel 20 - it held it's own ok until I needed a solo boost, then it just had nothing left.

Wonder if the 36 is worth the extra wonga.

ragingben

I have the 36, I do like it but it isn't the most exciting amp in the world. As kebabkid said the eq is weird, really ruins things for me. It's definitely an amp for louder playing no matter how's it's marketed, can be fizzy at low volumes. Looks nice and is feature packed though, I get on with all the channels but prefer eqing it with a pedal. Have found mine a bit unreliable too, not awful by any means but I don't have huge amounts of faith in it

gearaddict

ragingben said:

I have the 36, I do like it but it isn't the most exciting amp in the world. As kebabkid said the eq is weird, really ruins things for me. It's definitely an amp for louder playing no matter how's it's marketed, can be fizzy at low volumes. Looks nice and is feature packed though, I get on with all the channels but prefer eqing it with a pedal. Have found mine a bit unreliable too, not awful by any means but I don't have huge amounts of faith in it

Do you prefer the Stonehead?

All the demos of the Stonehead I have heard sound very 'hard' to me...not much warmth in there. But the good comments it gets make me think that might just be the quality of the demos.

ragingben

Haha i knew someone would ask that eventually if I harped on about them both enough. Hard to say, different animals. I'll put it this way, I recorded my parts on an EP today, I took both and the Tubemeister stayed in the bag. The Stonehead got the rougher end of the deal as it fell out out drummers galaxy and into a puddle when we opened the boot. I used it anyway (didn't get that wet as it was in a rucksack) and it was excellent. I'll post links to the recordings when they are finished. Used clean and lead 2 channels. I wouldn't describe either as cold. Used a G-lab BC1 compressor to a Malekko 616 into the Stonehead clean and in the mix it sounded really warm. The lead... Not so much maybe, I would have got warmer from the Tubemeister cranked up but I wanted the sound of the Stonehead, its just different. I think the hardest thing is fighting the inner voice that says tube is better! I don't disagree, but I think solidstate is fantastic too!