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Topic: Hughes & Kettner Edition Tube 20th Anniversary amp |
Fred Kinbom
From:
Berlin, Germany, via Stockholm, Sweden.
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Posted 21 May 2007 7:23 am |
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This amp was recommended below in another thread by Roman Sonnleitner and Steve Miller, but I thought I'd start a new thread as the subject heading of the old thread isn't so on the spot.
After the praise of this 20W tube amp by Roman and Steve, I went down to the local guitar shop to check it out. A guy I know who works there demoed it playing bottleneck on his personal Telecaster. Man! That amp sounds better than anything I've ever heard! I'm looking for a warm, clean tone here, and this amp has such a huge tone! Warm, fat and juicy! I will return to the shop soon and try it myself with my National New Yorker, but I'm pretty much sold on it already.
For me to afford this amp, my Fender '52 re-issue Telecaster will have to go. I guess I'm truly bitten by the steel bug, selling my last remaining "normal" electric guitar for improved lap steel tone. 
Anyway - has anyone else got opinions on this amp? I'm especially curious about differences between this 24 kilo "Anniversary" model and its 16 kilo "Edition Tube" predecessor. Quite a weight increase! Any thoughts?
All the best,
Fred
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www.fredrikkinbom.com - New lap steel album out now - listen here: fredrikkinbom.bandcamp.com/album/songs-for-lap-steel-and-harmonium |
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Brad Bechtel
From:
San Francisco, CA
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Posted 21 May 2007 8:43 am
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Really this sort of discussion belongs in the Electronics section of the forum. I'm moving this over there from Steel Without Pedals.
_________________
Brad’s Page of Steel
A web site devoted to acoustic & electric lap steel guitars |
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Brad Bechtel
From:
San Francisco, CA
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Posted 21 May 2007 12:28 pm
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Fred, have you checked the reviews on Harmony Central? I don't know of any steel players who own a H&K amp, but I'm sure there must be someone out there.
In your previous discussion, you were looking for a good, cheap tube amplifier. This certainly doesn't seem to fit the bill, unless you find one used.
_________________
Brad’s Page of Steel
A web site devoted to acoustic & electric lap steel guitars |
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Roman Sonnleitner
From:
Vienna, Austria
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Posted 21 May 2007 2:35 pm
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Brad, you're probably looking at US prices?
Fred is in the UK, and in Europe, H&K amps (made in Germany, after all) are at the lower end of the tube amp price scale (only some Laneys and those small Epiphones are really much cheaper), that H&K Edition Tube costs only slightly more over here than a Fender Blues Jr. (and sounds much better, IMHO), and slightly less than a Peavey Classic 30. A Fender HotRod Deluxe would cost quite a bit more, for example...
Here are some prices from Thomann (German mail-order store, one of the largest in all of Europe, and said to have the cheapest prices of all music stores this side of the great pond):
Laney VC15-110 - 366 Euros
Peavey ValveKing112 - 444 Euros
Fender Blues Jr. - 477 Euros
H&K Edition Tube - 555 Euros
Vox AC15 - 575 Euros
Peavey Classic 30 - 599 Euros
Fender HotRod Deluxe - 685 Euros
So, you see, that H&K sits smack dab in the middle of mass-produced budget tube amps in the 15-30W range. |
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Keith Cordell
From:
San Diego
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Posted 22 May 2007 6:28 am
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I sold H&K amps for Guitar Center a few years ago; about 40% of them were returned, blown up within a week or 2. We blew 3 of their most powerful amps right there in the store. Needless to say, we sent the remaining units back to the distributor.
Not to say they could not have improved, but I was singularly unimpressed- especially for the amounts they were getting. |
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Brad Bechtel
From:
San Francisco, CA
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Posted 22 May 2007 8:34 am
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That's true, Roman. Thanks for pointing out the differences in pricing in Europe vs. the USA. The Fender Blues Junior certainly would be a strong competitor for the H&K. The Blues Juniors I've heard have sounded very good. There are a lot of ways to upgrade them if you want to, and a strong community of users out there.
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Brad’s Page of Steel
A web site devoted to acoustic & electric lap steel guitars |
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