rockabilly69 Posted January 6, 2014 Share Posted January 6, 2014 Weight & space is another thing to consider, especially with the 4x10 Concert vs the 1x12 Top Hat. Rob, are you considering the EL34 version of the Top Hat SD or the standard 6L6 version? I have never played through a Top Hat, but I have owned two amps with EL34 tubes and those amps never could achieve the clean American tones of a good 6V6 or 6L6 tubed amp. AND, call me crazy, I even prefer the crunch tones of 6v6 & 6L6 (using an OD or Distortion pedal) over the crunch tones of EL34s. Kuz, Tophats are built BETTER than vintage Fenders! Brian Gerhard's circuit boards and custom transformers are works of art. I've owned three of them and I've never seen a better built amp. The particular amp that Rob is looking at can use EL34's, 6L6s, and 6V6s. The Top Club Royale I had was the best amp I've ever owned, but alas, it got stolen out of my car after a gig. The first time I ever plugged into it I knew I had found the amp I was looking for. But the Super Deluxe is not a reverb amp so it's not going to do the Fender amp 6L6 glass clean with reverb thing. It more straddles the line between Vox/Marshall, and is geared more to the "I get my crunch from the amp, not my pedalboard", although it will work fine with a pedal board. Listen to that clip, and soon as you hear the slide guitar tones, you will hear the signature tone, and why I like them so much. The TopHat Ambassador is the Fender clean sound that you would like. At about 2:47 he kicks in the reverb. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rockabilly69 Posted January 6, 2014 Share Posted January 6, 2014 continued... Actually the the amps are true PTPs check out them out... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H Posted January 6, 2014 Share Posted January 6, 2014 continued... Actually the the amps are true PTPs check out them out... That's a thing of beauty. Makes me catch my breath a little like a gut-shot of an old HiWatt does. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rockabilly69 Posted January 6, 2014 Share Posted January 6, 2014 That's a thing of beauty. Makes me catch my breath a little like a gut-shot of an old HiWatt does. The first time I opened one I thought Hiwatt! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
koula901 Posted January 6, 2014 Author Share Posted January 6, 2014 Kuz, Tophats are built BETTER than vintage Fenders! Brian Gerhard's circuit boards and custom transformers are works of art. I've owned three of them and I've never seen a better built amp. The particular amp that Rob is looking at can use EL34's, 6L6s, and 6V6s. The Top Club Royale I had was the best amp I've ever owned, but alas, it got stolen out of my car after a gig. The first time I ever plugged into it I knew I had found the amp I was looking for. But the Super Deluxe is not a reverb amp so it's not going to do the Fender amp 6L6 glass clean with reverb thing. It more straddles the line between Vox/Marshall, and is geared more to the "I get my crunch from the amp, not my pedalboard", although it will work fine with a pedal board. Listen to that clip, and soon as you hear the slide guitar tones, you will hear the signature tone, and why I like them so much. The TopHat Ambassador is the Fender clean sound that you would like. At about 2:47 he kicks in the reverb. some righteous tones out of that Top Hat! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gpuma Posted January 7, 2014 Share Posted January 7, 2014 I am gassing so bad for a Mark V or a Mark IIC+. Totally irrational but then again sin when GAS is based on any sense of rationality? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kuz Posted January 7, 2014 Share Posted January 7, 2014 A Mark IIC+ is the only higher gain amp I would like to own someday...... but HEAVY!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gpuma Posted January 7, 2014 Share Posted January 7, 2014 A Mark IIC+ is the only higher gain amp I would like to own someday...... but HEAVY!!!! Ended up getting a much more affordable and especially much more usable 5:25 express. Those Mark V supposedly feature the exact reproduction of the Mark IIC+. Some people say they don't sound the same. I don't have a back to back comparison to have an opinion on this. Regardless, the versatility of a Mark V cannot really be matched by any non-modeling amp that I know of. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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