THD Hotplate Attenuator (16 Ohm)

It is possible to have a -12 dB reduction in volume with no noticeable loss in audio quality, but this is only going to happen with a high volume level going from your amp's speaker output into the Hot Plate. Generally, the lower the signal going into the Hot Plate, the more likely some loss in audio quality will occur. The Hot Plate does make it possible to have lots of output tube overdrive without bartenders reaching for their handguns or neighbors rising up in rebellion. Some guitar players might say, "why don't you just turn the amp down?". Sure you can turn it down, but there goes your output tube overdrive along with it.

The moral of the story: with a Hot Plate you can sound like you're driving a wall of Marshall stacks at the Hollywood Bowl, even though you're really just shredding at the local watering hole.

I used my 16 Ohms Hot Plate to connect not only to one 16 Ohms cabinet, but also to two 16 Ohms cabinets simultaneously, by using the 8 Ohms output of my amp. Technically, this is known as a "safe mismatch", as sending an 8 Ohms signal in to a 16 Ohms speaker will not damage the speaker. (In an ideal situation, you would use an 8 Ohms Hot Plate to drive two 16 Ohms speaker cabs). The resulting sound, even though it might have been a mismatch, was pretty good.

Attenuation: -4 dB, -8dB, -12dB, or -16dB. With the -16 setting you can manually adjust down from -16 dB to inaudible. Deep and Bright switches, noise reduction, line out. If using as a dummy load, you can record the output of your amp into a console, use headphones, and your spouse/neighbors won't have a clue that you're shredding. You can also switch attenuation off to compare the attenuated sound with non-attenuated sound.

Reliable so far.

Haven't contacted THD.

You'll get good results as long as the signal going into the Hot Plate is nice and strong. The Deep and Bright switches work well to further shape the sound. It's a standard part of my rig now. I'll probably get the 8 Ohms version too. Didn't compare it to the Dr Z Airbrake, that one might be worth considering too.

I play a range of styles from rock and blues to funk and soul.
I'm using a 2002 gibson les paul standard, 62 reissue fender strat and 52 reissue tele through a 50W Marshall Plexi 1987X head and 1982 JCM800 50W vertical input head. Both heads go into a 70's Marshall 4X12 cab fitted with original G12-30H celestions.
Both amps have Harma EL34's and RFT ECC83's fitted.
The amps are switched by an Axess electronics head switcher. Live, I set the plexi for clean and the JCM800 for crunch (this is the amp that I put through the hot plate)although both sound fantastic through it.

The JCM800 was far too loud to get a decent sound of on stage in the 6 piece band I am in. The amp really opens up with the preamp maxed and the master around 5 but that is way to loud for the rest of the band. We have a sound engineer and all the backline is miked anyway. I bought the hotplate based on the reviews below and I'm really pleased with it. What I used to find is that I couldn't get the amp passed 3 on the master in some situations and I really used to struggle, not with hearing the amp cos it was still loud but I guess it was more of a feel/tone sort of thing. With the hot plate on -8dB, I can crank both the pre and master both to around 7.5 and the amp really sings. The balls of the thing is truly amazing. I kick in a boost pedal for solo's and it is truly brutal. Try playing a JCM800 (even a 50W) at that sort of volumes live without an attenuator. In a small place you'd probably kill the first 3 rows of the audience!

With the plexi, it's just what you'd expect i.e trully stunning tone at a decent volume level. Pure vintage rock. The problem I've got now is that I like both amps so much through the hotplate, Im wondering which head to use for clean and which for dirty. I guess I could buy another hotplate or shove both amps through the hot plate via the speaker output of the head switcher but then I wouldn't have an amp set up for clean which I need for the band I'm in. Oh well, I guess I could always buy a fender but then again that would probably sound great when cranked though the hotplate as well!

I agree with some of the comments below that the hotplate doesn't sound as good on the -16db setting and the volume kept low but I wouldn't really expect it to as the speakers aren't getting as much of a workout. The bright and deep switch do work well though and you can get a pretty decent sound down when close miking the cab and recording at home late into the night! This setting would be too low to play live with a drummer anyway.

All the features are listed below so won't go over them again but needless to say all the controls are useful.

Gigged around 30 times with it now and had no problems whatsoever. I don't expect to have any either. The thing is built like a tank and doesn't even get that hot with my 50 watters.

Hope i never have to find out for my amps sake!
The warranty is for 2 years.

Cannot rate it highly enough. If you value your tone, your hearing and your relationship with your fellow band members then get one.

It is very easy to use, but be sure to read the short instruction CAREFULLY. It'll tell you which Hot Plate to use with your speaker configuration, and of course exactly how to plug in. Note: If you are using a full 2x16ohm stack, buy an 8ohm HotPlate.

I'm using it through a Engl Powerball and a 5150II, basically I wanted to hear more warmth in the tone without killing my ears. It works like a dream! Of course, at super low volumes through a high powered 4x12 cab your amp isn't gonna sound too good, largely due to the fact that the speakers aren't being driven sufficiently. But, at moderate volumes this thing comes into it's own - I was able to get exactly the tone I was looking for to do a bit of recording.
Another usefull thing is this unit incorporates a noise gate too, to reduce his and hum from your amp. I haven't had this HotPlate long, but I am already extremely impressed.... should have bought it long ago.

No comment, too soon

No comment, too soon

Overall, I'd have to say this thing is fantastic. If you wan't to fully hear what your valve amp is capable of, but keeping the volume down very significantly overall, give one of these cookers a try - I love mine!

Sounds AMAZING!

I play a BC Rich KKV through a 1979 Marshall JMP (100w), using a new, 2004, Marshall 1960A cab. Everyone knows Marshall amps have balls, but turning that damn volume up to reach power tube saturation just kills your ears. That's where the Hot Plate comes in.

The first thing I did when using the Hot Plate was dime the master on my amp. I, obviously, reduced the volume with the Hot Plate. I set it to the -12dB setting. Can you say "Van Halen tone up the wazoo"? This thing is amazing.

I only notice some degradation of tone with I set it to -16dB. On all other settings it is heaven.

Wonderful features, every other review here says what it has, not going to waste my time.

Has worked perfectly so far, though I've only had it a week.

BITCHIN!

Very easy to hook up, plug the amp into it, plug it into your speaker cabinet. Can be used on a combo or stack without trouble. Straightforward one-sheet manual written in good English.

FRONT PANEL: (1) bright/deep switches for enchancing treble/bass respectively, (2) fixed pot for selecting between LOAD (acts as a dummy load cutting amps output so you can line out to a speaker simulator or similar), -16db (maximum attenuation), -12db, -8db, -4db (minimum attenuation) or 0db (no atten.). When at -16db, the control on the front right (3) can take you from -16ohms right down to no output at all. There is a noise gate (4) which uses an LCD with on/off switch.

On the back panel there are two speaker outputs, one input and one line out with adjustable level. A very simple to use piece with more than enough features. Just be sure you plug things in the right way round and NEVER run without a speaker cabinet unless you set the Hotplate to 'LOAD'.

Guitars: Gibson SG and Squier Strat. Amp: 1978 Marshall JMP 2204 (50 watt) with 1960A cab. Effects: Boss GT-5, Boss DD-6 and Catalinbread Super Chile Picoso (an excellent and little-known clean boost pedal). It's not noisy; in fact the in built noise gate helps clean up the amp hiss a lot.

Here is my opinion on the Hotplate since I've had it a few days now. Fristly, there is more compression in tone, this is because valves compress naturally as you crank up anyway. It just becomes more noticable when attenuating to lower volumes. I like this anyway; the amp is still very dynamic, and really growls and sustains when you dig in.

The THD is apprently made with frequency compensators to keep a well-rounded sound at almost any level; my ears and recorded examples certainly agree with this. No serious alteration is done to the sound at most settings. I don't even need the bright and deep switches to compensate as the bass increases as the volume goes up, plus my amp is super bright anyway.

The amp does start to get seriously squashed at -16db or below, however it does sound reasonably good, just rather quiet and compressed. The -4, -8 and -12 settings are excellent. They allow me to use the amp at around 6 or 7 on the master, 2 on the preamp, and still not shake the walls at home.

I haven't got to use the setup with a bassist and drummer yet, only jamming along to a few tracks in my record collection. So far I can say the sound blends better and sits better in the mix, more so because I have better control of the amp and can choose the preamp/poweramp saturation and overall volume.

It's handmade and I'm very impressed with the workmanship; I can certainly see why these are so expensive brand new. The THD uses the amp as it's power source, no external power neeeded (rightly so).

I can't see there being any problems with it at all.

I play rock, blues, funk and contemporary hiphop/Rnb when needed. This is a great match for all of these; you get the pleasing cranked sound of your tube amp without the side effects of a) angry soundmen b) irritated neighbours c) drowned out band members. I've been playing around six years, I'm not a great player but I do know good tone. If this were stolen I would not hesistate to replace it, money permitting.

What do I love about it? Everything. It even works great used as a load box and run into a speaker sim for those late night recordings or times when you can't afford to lug both your amp head and cab around (this happens to me a lot).

I compared this to the Marshall Powerbrake. What did I find? I found that the Powerbrake killed the tone and sucked a lot of the response away from the amp, each notch making things that much worse. The THD totally slaughters it, as well as being lighter, smaller and packed with features.

There's not really anything I'd add to this, but I have a suggestion. I'd like it if THD would make a stripped down version of this that was just the attenuator minus the nice frills (noise gate, lineout etc) so they could be sold cheaply for say half the price. Because more people would be getting awesome tone if they got one of these instead of wasting hideous amounts of money on boutique ODs to compensate for not being able to crank up.

This definately helps me make music; I play better when the amp has power tube saturation and great sustain that you can usually only obtain by cranking up to ear-bleed levels. I'm going to be recording and gigging frequently with this - it's already assured itself a place in my rig for years to come. I can honestly this is one of the best pieces of equipment I've ever had the fortune to own.

My advice is test one for yourself with your amp and spend at least an hour doing so before you come to a conclusion. Like any piece of equipment you have to work it into your rig; very few things give you tonal nirvana in seconds.

Unfortunately power attenuators are very misunderstood and people in the main are convinced that they are amp killers. This simply isn't true. Using one puts the exact same amount of strain on your amp that would occur without. Example: running your amp 'dimed' will wear out tubes much faster, and will blow the output transformer if it's not in good shape. Running your amp 'dimed' with a power attenuator will still wear tubes faster and blow the output transformer if it's not in good condition. What you have to keep in mind is an amp on 10 is still an amp on 10, it just sounds quieter with an attenuator but it's still working as hard.

I hope this review has been helpful.

If you want that classic power tube overdrive with out the hearing loss, an attenuator is essential. Amp speaker out to THD in to your speakers. How easy could it be? No power needed, the signal coming from the amp is enough to power this unit including the fan.

Three knobs. Line out level knob on the back, an attuntination knob for different attunation levels and load selection and then a knob for the lowest attenuation (not the load) for a fine tune of volume level. There is a natural noise gate that lights bulbs up as you play. There is a switch to turn them off. There are also two rocker switches for a high boost nd low boost.

Ease of use can cause one major problem! And this is not a THD unit design problem. This is with all attenuators. If a proper speaker is not used or you do not use the correct THD ohm rated unit, you could destroy your amps transformer! Also, these are for tube amps only! (I know most people checking these out already know that, but there is always one person who is clueless)

Be careful and check twice!

Only reason I give this an 8 is because it is not idiot proof which can be a very expensive "oops!" Like I said, this is a situation with all attenuators.

I'm running my 16ohm THD "Blue" between my Peavy Classic 50 2/12 all tube combos amp and speakers. My amp is a 2 channel but I always thought the gain channel was weak. I tried the clean channel with a overdrive box but no distortion box really helped. Finally I found the amps sweet spot by cranking the clean channel to max and cranking the master volume to 3/4. Beautiful tone. Ringing ears. Problem! These 50 watt Peavy's put out the volume!

The THD 16ohm helped tame the beast!

As for tones: 0db attenuation to -8db the tone stayed pretty true. I kept the high boost off but left low on. From -8db to -12db there is some tonal change due to how much volume is being taken away and not moving the speakers as much. Turning on the high boost helps in these ranges. At the -16db the adjustable volume on the right kicks in for more variance. I've noticed in this range tha my overdrive starts sounding not as pronunced. Not muddy just less overdriven. Of course the speakers are not kicking as much either and your ears hear different frequencies at these lower volumes. And there is just no way around this, it's the nature of power tubes, speakers, pushing air etc. The THD helps with the lowering attenuations by enhancing the frequencies our ears want to hear at these lower volumes.

There is a little noise coming from my amp but when driving a tube amp at these volumes, with some effects, is going to cause some noise but you can only hear and very lightly when you are not playing.

So at these lowest (bedroom, midnight etc.) volumes my amp does not have the same drive (even with the power tubes going at full power) as at full volume, but it still sounds better that a solid state amp at any volume.

Too expensive to have a back-up. But the THD seems to be built like a tank.

I actually contacted them before I purchased with some questions and they responded back within a few hours. But the HotPlate looks like it is built with quality in mind

I use to play live for ten years through an old tube Ampeg, and a Line 6. This little THD HotPlate makes playing in clubs a joy because the Club Owner, audience and bandmates are not screaming at me. That alone is worth it.

I've been playing for about 25 years and nowadays am playing originals in a ZZ Top, SRV, KWS Texas Swang style with a Strat Plus.

If this critter got stolen I would have to buy another one. I need to save my hearing but keep my tone and thankfully the THD HotPlate do the job. Just damn expensive!

EZ

LP Standard and a 1987X Plexi Reissue thru a 4x12 cab. This thing does the job. To rock and distort while maintaining tone...this is the only way to fly. My amp smokes at 2. The only way to play above that in a smaller venue is with THD. Beleive it.

Hello Seattle!

NA but they live down the street....

Good for the hot vintage tube amps that need to volume down. Super quality craftsmanship. A tight unit. Well worth the asking price. Clearly built by and for folks who want smoking tone at lower volumes...(when neccessary...)

Just got this from a local shop in the Seattle area. I am one happy dude!! The HOTPLATE is as easy as turning on the amp! Super easy to hook up, no power adapters or batteries to fool with. The owners manual is short and to the point.

I am using the Hotplate in between my BOGNER SHIVA EL34 head and BOGNER 4x12 Slant 16ohm cabinet. The HOTPLATE runs super quite and produces a great tone. The HOTPLATE has a noise reduction system built in that you can turn on if needed. It also has DEEP and BRIGHT switches to liven up the tone when your playing with max attenuation. This is a BIG plus!

Just got it today, unable to post a reliability statement, but I am hearing good things so far from others.

Called and talked directly with Andy Marshall, the owner of THD, prior to my purchase. Since he's here in Seattle, I was able to jet over and try this baby before I bought. Great guys and gals at THD!!

I play songs by AEROSMITH, ZZ TOP, BRYAN ADAMS, AC/DC, B.O.C., and other great 70's and 80's guitar slamming artists. I also enjoy blues! My opinion of the THD HOTPLATE??? I LOVE IT! I am so happy to be able to play the tones I want in a small practice space with the amp I love! If you want to chat before you buy, feel free to call, 425-785-0093. I am in the Seattle area. Good luck!

Though I have a host of amps I play this through a Prosonic, the others are in a room being renovated. I find the sound to be somewhat condensed, not as free or loose but this is minimal and it could be pickup specfic. When playing with P90s it was free as bird (sorry) yet with a 490 it sounded canned. The rest of my guitars are with my amps. I play mostly my own stuff, not really into learning songs, would you copy For Whom The Bell Tolls? Then why learn Smoke on the Water? Save Classical, I'm not smart enough to compose that stuff, and even as a hack it sounds beautiful.

Got this one for Christmas, used it yesterday for the first time. Go the THD web site for features, they do an excellant job. My hearing is very important to me for what I do for a living, anesthesia, hence until now I never really experienced the joy of play through an over driven amp. I mean even a 15 watt amp can generate a phenomenal amount of volume so I always looked for that gentle, warm break up with gain, not really the same. The hot plate is extermly easy to use. Connections are easily made, you'd have to be in the late stage of a bender to screw it up. The only thing I wish it had would be a headphone jack then it would be perfect.

No idea but this thing is very high quality.

THD is a fine company, Andy Marshall has my respect.

THD should be given the Nobel Prize for this. If you want to jam and open up your amps to a whole new pallet of tone, get it. I plan to get an 8 ohm as soon as my wife forgets how much this thing cost. I can't imagine imagine how this will sound when I play it through my Sound City head and my alnico blues but I suspect I will be blown away.

Bought this so my '64 Vox AC-30 was tolerable as a studio amp. For an attenuator, it's rather easy, even with the bass and treble switches, and funky "lights on" "lights off" settings (the noise reduction). Quick fiddling for the right tone is easy and self-explanatory. Although, since you can fry some pretty pricey amps by using this thing wrong, I'd read the directions carefully first, or else download them from THD.

For an AC-30, this is easily a 10. If you own an AC-30 YOU NEED THIS LITTLE BLUE BOX! I can't speak for a Marshall (don't have, nor LIKE them). I had no intention of owning a speaker attenuator, but found this 16-ohm Hot Plate for $49 at a Pawn Shop. I knew I could Ebay it for 4x's that price so I bought it and took it home. Luckily, I plugged into it before I listed it. NIRVANA! (The place, NOT the band...) For the record I've got a near mint, tonally AMAZING 1964 Vox AC-30 (along with a Twin Reverb, Hiwatt, and Gretsch Dual Twin) decked out with Mullards all around and original Silver AlNiCo's... The HOT PLATE somehow soaks even more tonal beauty out of the Vox then I already had, and surprisingly, the more you dampen the output, the MORE natural compression and "sag" you feel at the output end. I couldn't be happier with this thing. Even the line out is amazing, and with it's gain knob you can do everything from run this to a seperate power amp, or record direct. You can set the output to "Load" and not even bother with speakers at all. I do 90% of my overdubs now straight out of the Hot Plate, straight into the board. With headphones that means you can record your random inspirations at 3am, with that Vox at 10, in your kitchen, and your neighbors will never even have a clue. Also allows you to hit unity gain volumes in smaller clubs without the sound guy lobbing grenades at you! Plus, the crowd always thinks the little glowing lights are cool...

Haven't had it long, but it's built like you could drop it out of a plane and it would still work when it hit ground. Old school JMI Vox's are ALREADY about the worst offenders at eating transformers, so the real test is if it helps or hinders the longevity of my current Woden transformers. (I've found AC-30's run a lot cooler and happier if you buy a step-up transformer and juice the mains at 245v, like it was designed.)

Can't say, 'cause I've never had a problem yet. So I guess in that regards it could be listed an "11". The best customer service is to get your stuff built well enough that you never need support!

10! 10! 10! If you own a Vox, buy this! Now! Even if you have to dish out the near $300 these cost new (I would, without hesitation). The only other one I've heard that fares half as well on my Vox is the Weber MASS Attenuator (which uses an actual speaker core inside it). For the rest of folks, it doesn't warrant as high of a score evidently... If you own a Marshall, don't expect the same tonal bliss.