The Switchblade did everything good but nothing great. And it does it all very well. So I'm competing with acoustic drums, another guitar player, a 2x10 bass rig and two singers. Real tube twang too! Use my jcm800 live use the Tubemiester for recording and practicing an home. I run the FX out to a Boss tuner with no return. It is easy and only took me 5 minutes to figure it out. There is nothing it can't do and it's ALL readily available via a midi footswitch and program recall. The thing that really sold me and put it in the no-brainer category was the ability to import / export libraries of sound presets. They are available to offer you personalized product advice any time you need it. I can get the modern distortion sound too. 57 vintage twin amp and said something like it was amazing But, it can also do slight breakup, blues, rock, and country rock very very well too! Great flexibility and portability. You could almost set the eq at 12 and just use the presence and resonance. Not good. Music Background: Making joyful noise since I was 6 years old. When you look at this amp with 40 watt tube amp, my first This amp is a tweaker and has the tone ive been searching for.This amp has 4 channels of raw energy with Cleans that sound great,Crunch channel,Lead channel that is nice for metal/Rock or what ever you use it for,,and Ultra for even more distorted shreading.Hughes & Kettner added a boost button to turn it up to 11 and give each channel some extra power and adds a noticeably different tone to your sound,add in a Master,Presence,Resonance,Reverb,Treb,mid,bass,Volume,Gain and 4 different Mod pedal effects with the gain controlling the Intensity.Fx loop a Noise gate with programable switch on back of the amp,and save slots for your saves settings,the list goes on and on.Just take my word for it,this amp can do alot of cool things but the tone that comes out with a matching 2x12 Hughes & Kettner cab and a 2017 Gibson Flying V Hp is just incredible. But this misses the mark big time. USE THEM. from Washington, DC on March 7, 2018, By Chris Johnston It may not display this or other websites correctly. But on the clean channel, there isn't enough there. Sweetwater has had all my business for the last few years. You could run it to a center cab and take a line out, from either the Redbox or elsewhere, feed a Lexicon, Eventide, t.c. I picked this amp after a lot of research and demo viewing and it delivers. It really falls short. A thoroughly fantastically designed and built amp head. Pull down the treble and the presence and you have a great jazz tone. My only issue is that having owned the Triamp MKII and having played the new MKIII, I just can't downsize from there. Click here to login, The ability to reply to and create new discussions, Access to members-only giveaways & competitions, Interact with VIP industry experts in our guest Q&As, Access to members-only sub forum discussions, Get INSTANT ACCESS to the world's best private pro audio, Promote your eBay auctions and Reverb.com listings for free. There are so many presets that if you cant fit this into a rock band, there's something wrong. Plus the midi footswitch works without a hitch in storing any created presets and channel switching or boost and fx triggering. It had horrible channel switching delay and had to be cranked WAY too loud to sound good. The boost function literally adds 4 more channels to the amp. Wow! Playing a 2017 Gibson Les Paul Standard hp through it and I must say that this is a very good combination! on June 18, 2017, By Darren Amp is stupid easy to use and I had it figured out in about 2 minutesBUTI was less than thrilled with the tone of the amp when it first arrived. It sounds killer in the demo and Mitch and Don do a great job explaining the features and how they work to achieve these tones. Absolutely. The crunch channel on the H&K is also better than the blue channel on the EVH IMO. Solid build quality. on August 3, 2019, By BoJoe The other manufacturers will now have to scramble to copy this. I then read through all their warranty information. Clean channel. Hey guys! from Gettysburg,Pa on July 13, 2018, By David K. The features included with this amp are great. No more micing and it sounds great for FOH and for recording. Just today I put a cheap amazon clean boost on the ultra channel on 1 watt and was just amazed at how good it sounded. From the onboard Redbox to the built in effects to cab simulation, it has it all. from Missouri on July 21, 2019, By Dave Besides running distrorted, it has some great clean sounds with modern shimmer when dialed down. No problem. from Centereach NY on January 29, 2017, By SMS If you want a voice thats cleaner or more sustain just dial it in on the amp and program it to the pedal board. from Campbell, CA on March 20, 2017. Finally my 35 year wait is over. And the ability to control it all with MIDI and save your settings is just the cherry on top, plus the direct out option to go straight to a soundboard is really nice. Just watch and listen to the demo videoslet your ears, and not your eyes, convince you that this Lunchbox-sized head is serving up all kinds of good, hot cookin'and no matter what style you play, you're going to find what you want and need. I can't wait to get one. Great at home amp, but I sold it because it just was not that great. After firing this beauty up I switch it to the ultra channel and went to town. One amp to do it all? The effects are surprising and very usable. I have to wait for Fredo an external developer to have his new version working with this amp to use on a windows laptop. I have the full setup with the midi, app, everything, and it can be overwhelming at times, trying to set all the presets and get everything just right. 4 channels, w/boost. I was a little skeptical, as many are, about how well it will do metal, but it delivers. from Northeastern NJ on January 3, 2017, Music Background: Church worship leader, gigging lead guitarist, By Robert You need an account to post a reply. More to talk about but enough said. It takes pedals well, but I love just plugging straight into it. I love that it will auto bias when I do swap them tho. 1. It lacked the true kinda "farty" vintage sound that I love and in exchange offered a very modern tube sound. I always record an extra track with the direct out and it's great for late night playing and recording activities. It's has a super gnarly should when the mids are scooped. Clean to mean. It doesn't get easier. It is free. I can easily get shimmery cleans, British roar and modern high gain. What an amp. This amp will cover so many different genre's of music it is ridiculous. from New Orleans on November 23, 2020, By Chris If you want to program more buttons for midi you may want to consider a different midi controller. from Annapolis, Maryland on May 1, 2019, Music Background: Guitarist and Songwriter for 15 Years, By Dave Ended up being a fancy overpriced practice amp. Better than most of the pedals I own as well. Its a shame it didn't work out for me, as I fell in love with the dirty sound of this amp. I've struggled with EVERY amp I've had in one or more (mostly more) ways since way back when I began playing. Just program a louder channel and use the boost for both if that is the sound you are after. Call Roq, who is my sales dude. I made the Wifey mad for sure. Plug and play. Every now and then i'll step on the Tube Screamer for tighter crunch. Build quality is excellent. Lastly, don even waste your time with playing single coil pickups on this. Phone Hours | Why this company would sell this in the USA is a complete mystery. With the wattage control, your cleans can go from a nice breakup to shimmering clean. Store Hours, If you have any questions, please call us at I can get all the sounds I want out of this amp. So much so, that I had to return it and opt for a different amp. First impressions are great, but with that being said over the course of a year I gave it a big time run through. I sing and play, and I dont have time to mess with pedal boards. Do yourself a favor and spend the money. this amp is to guitar players, the device we didn't know we couldn't live without. It has a built in IR, you can pick speaker type ranging from Vintage to Modern as well as size. Didn't matter what I didn to eq it was mosquito like. I'm going to be getting the Grandmeister Deluxe 40 soon. electronic or Bricasti reverb / multi effects unit and create a sound so lush and gorgeous it would be to die for. 4) Effects To my ear the effects are great. On its own you can get a really good metal tone, but if you stick a boost in front of it you will get bone crushing metal tones, and the built in noise gate definitely comes in handy here. Sweetwater Sound Should have spent my money on something else. 2. On Saturday night, I'm rocking out in my classic rock band and then on Sunday morning, I dial in my worship tones. Just program 1 watt for the house and program the same tone with 40 watts for the stage. The big plusno more sizzle. 3 Sounds like a modern H&K ish distortion, and 4 is pure metal. Having owned many amps such as Messa Boogie, Marshall, Peavey, Fender and Blackstar, I must say that my expectations were blown away! After buying the GrandMeister Deluxe 40, I had trouble registering the warranty on their website. on March 8, 2020, By Michael O'Flaherty Im bust using the 4 channel settings, boost and effects loop and haven't even dug all the way in to the onboard effects. The combination of Tube tone with high quality digital effects make it one of the most versatile amps on the planet. I couldn't be more pleased with this monster. I've owned some pretty good amps before, but this one easily tops them all! Get Directions | on January 13, 2021, Music Background: Rock n roll - praise and worship- hair Metal I love it all, By Joel Weddington I thought it might look corny after a while, but it doesn"t. Every time I hit the power knob and it lights up, it"s a treat. I'll be honest, I don't have loads of experience with classic tube amps like Marshalls and Mesas, I've played them here and there at guitar shops but haven't owned them. You have to consider headroom. I own a Fender Fat Strat and a couple PRS guitars, and they all sing with the amp. from Brownsville, Tx on July 19, 2018, By Michael This is a great amp that sounds good and it's lightweight. Ultra is great for metal and chugging. You can. No USA warranty past the 3 months online after purchase. Incredible tone and responsiveness. You can either pipe the redbox out to a mixer, or just pick yourself up a Behringer P1. I don't know what I can say that hasn't already been said. Well this is my first review of anything. I can imagine how powerful and versatile this amp will be as a worship leader/guitarist, a gigging player, and at home for practice and recording. from USA, VA on January 31, 2018, Music Background: 30+ years music playing/recording experience, By Bill But where the rubber meets the road, as goes for any amplifier, the sounds that come out of it are simply awe inspiring. The Redbox.Wow. Great features as well as lush harmonics and sustain! I thought I would try one of these and purchased a year ago from Sweetwater. Obstacles at yorkville on warranty exchange,repair careful on what you purchase, Happy customers, one piece of gear at a time! This amp has some really great, modern sounds. from Gillette Wy on April 7, 2018, By Justin I would like to see a built in Tuner, Compressor, and WAH. First off, I absolutely love the tones, and program abilities of this amp BUT I just can't trust it in a live setting. it clearly says - North America is NOT covered under any warranty. It allows you to run an XLR from the head to your audio interface for recording. they are that good. I'm selling a few pedals off my board that I won't need any more I can't wait to start tweaking! Did I mention that the Grandemeister Deluxe 40 sounds HUGE through the 1x12 cabinet? I was somewhat skeptical of this amp when I first purchased it after much research and comparison to other amps out there. All in all this amp is perfect for me. These are the magic buttons on this amp. from NYC NY on May 20, 2021, Music Background: Not professional, but not bad, By Steve Johnson The attenuation is great, I can easily play this amp in my apartment through my 4x12 and not wake the neighbors. All the same tones, just much louder as I go up in banks without having to touch the master. Crunch channel again with very high gain and the boost turned on (think Green day sound). I did have some loud cracking and popping when I first got the amp, but that has diminished as the amp got broken in a bit. So if kept trying amp after amp. great effects DI I could go on for hrs about the numerous features check the specs It is my desert island amp one amp to rule them all. Just get it already! Feel like playing some Steve Vai? I'm very happy so far! There is no way this amp is putting anything out but a clean sound. Built in delay, direct to board, noise gate why not. I hate being negative but I think some should know about this amp. My stage rig is a Messa Boogie Road King, four camps in one and each one worth its weight in gold, downside heavy. I have not tried the direct box yet, but I hear it is great. Why??? The insane channel is great for metal and has serious thump to it. Sweetwater's Sales Engineers are regarded as the most experienced and knowledgeable professionals in the music industry, with extensive music backgrounds and intense training on the latest products and technologies. Also the light up front panel is eye catching and unique. Also the amp was very toppy with the stock tubes. from Petaluma, CA on March 28, 2019, By jeff By Lance It has just a few very effective controls. I'm not claiming this will be the case for everyone. After searching for months for a replacement tube amp for my beloved but extremely weighty Fender Concert Reverb II (80s era Rivera model), I discovered this lovely amp head. Oh, and the blue lights are exceptionally cool. Honest criticisms would be that wifi is not built into the product and requires another several hundred dollar purchase. After only a few minutes of playing, I"m amazed at how great it sounds. He will take care of you as he as always done me and I put that poor guy through the ringer. from Phoenix, AZ on September 20, 2017, Music Background: Worship and classic rock, By Robert Darnell Jr I got the whole rig, Amp head, midi pedal, and 2x12. from katy, TX on July 16, 2019, By Frank When i discovered this amp I was really intrigued. Running mine into an Orange 2x12 PPC212. With all the effects, there is no other amp that I know that compares. Then when I step on this switch the sound cuts up and I tune up. Noise gate is great. from Usa on June 17, 2019, By Stefan This amp is absolutely packed with everything you could possibly want in a lunchbox sized amplifier. The sounds that come from this thing are great. It's a great amp and it's very practical. This was the one and only thread that came up for me when I searched "Hughes and Kettner GrandMeister Deluxe 40" so I figure it's as good a place as any to get some opinions. Pedal board it came with was just falling apart and I took good care of it. This little toaster cooks. The resonance control really helps fatten a gain sound, try 3 o'clock ish. Each patch holds any combo of amp settings and FX. Live Cover band/ Recording studio/ Compact rig/ practice amp I received this amp 5 days ago and have had a hard time not playing around with all of the features! It's amazing on almost every setting. I think it has to do with the rehearsal spaces I used to play in back in the day. I personally don't like to drive the gain much past 12:00 on any of the channels for my tones, but I've heard it used to great effect by other guitarists. There's no doubt that Hughes & Kettner has set a new standard for guitar amplifiers. Overall they're great amps. Each amp did one thing better then Switchblade but I kept missing it's versatility. on May 31, 2020, By Jeremiah Conner Would I purchase again For Sure! Id like to see a compressor in the effects group and a tuner. Pure tube lush amazing little head. from New Orleans on May 19, 2019, By Jonathan This was my second amp due to the first one making popping and whistling noises. The lead channel, lower the bass and push a little highs and mids and you can nail a lot of the 80's tones. Yes, I know the GM-40 has effects too, and they sound good. The problem for me is it started to sound real sterile - almost too good, very even tone balanced, too perfect. A great value for what you get. Out of the 8 songs I played 7 of them relied on my clean channel.that channel decided to do it's own thing in and out of the songs, sounded like somebody had a light switch on my power tubes.on, off, on, off, dimmerthen back on. You will not be disappointed, however, just order a set of tubes when you get it. I have been waiting to get this head for a while..I LOVE amps that have built in effectsgreat amplots of awesome tone and really awesome to be able to store so many different presetsthank you so much Lindsey Becker at Sweetwater for your constant support and help you provide.I am SO happy that I finally got this head and the 36 month NO INTEREST financing is a big helpSWEETWATER rules!!!!!!!!! I purchased the Grandmeister Deluxe 40 head, TM 60 watt 1x12 cabinet and the FSM 432 MKIII midi foot controller and they work and sound great together. Loved it but could not get one channel to do it all, because its not designed like that. The features contained in this marvel of technology are astounding. On the gain channels, it's no issue. Or did H&K perhaps get a lot better in recent years? And as good as one or the other option has been, tube or digital, there have always been limitations. from CT on May 2, 2018, By Michael Becker I"ve had this amp a few months now and I couldn"t be happier with it. If you"re like me and like playing all different styles of music, this is the amp for you, it does it all. Hughes and Kettner really did great on this amp. No more carrying around huge peddle boards which I spent thousands of dollars on. This is a very controllable 40W that sounds great at low volume. This thing can Crank if you want it too. You are getting your monies worth here. I welcome the factory reps who made this thing to tell me how to get it to deliver any kind of distortion. I have tons of amp sims for tracking di guitars, I have a kemper in my possession at the moment as well. Had it retubed with JJ's because it was just so shrill on the high end. 2) Controls Don't worry about this being difficult to operate. Mine blinked 3 times. It is surprising of the power in this head, Don't let the 40 watts fool you, It was shaking the dishes in the cabinet and vibrating the windows from across the house. If there's a bad tone in this amp, I haven't found it yet and neither has anyone else who's played through it. A Marshall 100 watt amp, there really is no comparison. The only thing I consider a slight con is that I need the boost pedal to achieve a similar tone to the EVH, but the EVH doesn"t have all the built in effects, and the option for the awesome midi pedal (a must buy). I've spent a lot of time with the Tubemeister 18, Grandmeister, and Deluxe. Each channel has its own distinct voicing and hitting the boost will boost certain frequency's and change the characteristics of that channel. I think that another reviewer hit the nail on the head with the comment that the overall amp tone is sort of like a VOX with an old-school Marshall vibe. from Idaho on March 17, 2019, By George Garcia A very versatile amp, able to deliver a wide range of clean to full on creamy distortion. Fire breather. I've detracted a half a star because of how complex the initial stages are. from Nashville on October 26, 2017, By Steve My cheap Katana cab sounds pretty good with most of it, it tends to "warble" on palm mutes when trying to get that tight crunch (not the fault of the amp i'm sure) but I'm really looking forward to trying this thing with a Mesa or Marshall 4x12 to see how tight it can get. Exclusive deals, delivered straight to your inbox. Not that there is anything wrong with it. I bought this a year ago to add to my growing collection of amps. You don't need the boost for soloing. Top notch guys. This is a real amp, not some modeling BS, this is what sound should be. Crunch channel will hit all your AC/DC tones and 70's tones. 5501 U.S. Hwy 30 W, Fort Wayne, IN 46818 The GM-40 right out of the box sounds great!!! Crunch channel (this is channel is marshal sounding which was a relief to me and sounds good at low volume) 3. All metal chassis, but yet its really small and easier to carry. This amp is made to be played with your axe on ten. I am to old to change my playing style so to ebay it went. I've owned a Grandmeister 36 for about 4 years now, and its my main gigging amp for covers gigs, due to its versatility and functionality. if you are looking for a head that gives nice distortion and is easy to use - avoid this one. from ENFIELD, CT on September 26, 2019, By Zack I had to buy pedals and all that mess on the floor. I've had mine for about a year and it makes everyone in the room happy when it's glowing blue. I had seen/heard many of the smaller 1w to 20w heads, but none of them offered more than two or three common features. With the added effects and noise gate, also a great all in one solution.
That it could not really do anything else well. But let me tell you, once you have all that you are golden. from Knoxville on March 25, 2017, By Antonio Cabrera Right now - there is no setting that delivers distortion. Those looking for the same feature set, with more clean headroom, should take a close look at the Hughes & Kettner Black Spirit 200. I have had a Evh el34 and stealth as well as a JSX and a JVM in the last few months. I have heard better and I have owned better, but they are 90% of my previous gear on sound and tone. To compare to a Fender 57 twin or The ability to save up to 128 presets is also amazing. I have been waiting for this combination of amp versatility, effects and cab emulation all in one box for a long time. It's only as sterile as you make it based on your EQ, Effects and levels. I do plan on upgrading the tubes, and I"m a little disappointed in the cheap tubes it comes with, but all in all it still sounds great. It's flawless. The Hughes & Kettner Grandmeister Deluxe 40 is incredible! What took me 40 minutes to haul in and set up now takes me about 20 minutes. I chose this amp for it's tone and versatility and it hasn't disappointed in the least. Letting my Puretone go was a heartache some time after when I realized how great that amp was. Let me tell you, completely woke this amp up. No matter how much gain you can still hear every single note. Built in effects, midi capable, cab emulation, programmable presets, DI for recording. I had a few H&Ks, including the Duotone combo and one they don't make anymore that was a 25w EL34 head called the Puretone. For anyone into more "modern" tube tones this is your amp. Nice simple channel that breaks up nicely. Really nice gradual master volume control. The direct out/cab sim is also fantastic. I"d like to thank sweetwater for the quick replacement. I was not up on current Hughes and Kettner amps and frankly the size of them looked toyish to me. I'm sure its hard to trust reviews on products like this from people that spent so much on the product. Eventide UltraChannel Native Channel Strip, Already have an account? Man, I'm old. I received it Thursday (thanks to Ben and team shipping it fast) and gigged with it Friday. And I'm done. from Ft Meyers on April 7, 2020, By Sweetwater Customer The grandmeister 40 is really something else. Good Luck! Everyone asks about it. When recording through the redbox I dont have a cabinet hooked up at all, I just leave the speaker off power soak selected. Noise gate couldn't get rid of this overbearing noise. You must log in or register to reply here. on January 13, 2022, By Douglas Elliott Had board failure almost to the 3 month warranty issue. Sorry H&K. Until a while ago I wasn't really aware of what Hughes & Kettner was doing. This thing is amazing, no two ways about it. After receiving this amp and not getting it to play any kind of distortion, I should have returned it - but i put it aside until this weekend when i read the manual and tried again. Moving a dial merely a hair is significant and makes tone shaping combinations nearly endless. The sound is cleaner, the overdrive and crunch is by far as good as it gets! Throw in the 2x12 cab and foot switch and you will be set! I read on forums that everyone almost immediately swaps tubes to fit their needs as some do like that fizzy sound. When I ordered this, I did so as I saw it had a three year warranty if registered within 30 days. Clean is good crunch really never goes anywherelead has huge mid punch but is tone deficient. Thanks to my sales rep, Aaron Cieslikowski, in making sure I recieved my order BEFORE Christmas and for following up afterwards too.
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