Aiken Amplification Tomcat Head

Aiken amplifier #18. 12 watt tube head that is perfect for blues, jazz to classic rock. Single channel. 4,8,16 ohms switch in back. Also 100, 120, 200, 220, 230, 240 volt selector also in back. Two speaker outputs in back that can run two cabs and a footswitch plug-in in back for gain in solos. Front panel: power switch, glory switch (standby), power jewel, attenuator, variable, cut, tone, volume, bright switch, gain switch and input. Powers off of two el84 tubes and solid state rectifier.

Mainly used with a Gibson Les Paul with orginal PAF humbuckers and a USA made Strat. Mainly used to play blues and rock&roll which seems to be along the same level as older Marshalls from the 60's or a VOX on steriods. Attenuator does exactly what it's supposed to. The variable knob when the attenuator is set on VAR will bring it to it's quietest overdrive to appartment bedroom volume. You can have it on it's loudest setting with the most overdrive and just turn down your volume knob on your guitar and it cleans up perfect. The cut knob will bring out deep tone for jazz and bright tone for rock. Can be used without foot pedal with the bright switch and gain switch.

Just got it so I'm not sure how reliable it is, but if you look at Aiken website you'll see he knows what he's doing.

Same as above.

For the price of a new Tomcat you can buy a 20 watt Marshall reissue, but without all the features that a Tomcat offers. If I had to do the trade again I'd do it in a heartbeat.

All tube signal path using a pair of EL84's and 12AT7 preamp, 12AX7 phase inverter. See www.aikenamps.com for more detail. The user features are very basic, but provide the tools for tone, tone and more tone. Both power and glory (standby) switches are mounted on the front panel. The variable high cut control works really well to balance an overly bright guitar pickup without killing the tone. A bright switch adds to the ability of cutting through the mix. The single tone control is a jewel. It gives you the ability to dial in the right amount of midrange and presence with a single knob. The gain switch adds the right amount of agressive overdrive that is controlled by where the volume is set at and also where the guitar volume is set at. The built in attenuator is the best I've heard. A great feature on this amp. You can't hear any change in tone with the attenuator activated.

This amp has an early Marshall vibe to it. With the volume set at 12:00, the amp has a tremendous amount of clean headroom without breaking up and yes it is a very loud 12 watt amp. I can't imagine needing it louder than it is. When playing at home or a small club the attenuator will allow you to get great tone at low volume levels.
With the gain switch activated, the lead tones available go from blues to rock to brown sound. I'm playing it through a Marshall vintage 4x12 stereo cab in the 8 ohm mode through two of the speakers with a Marshall head on the other two speakers. Tone heaven!
The first thing I noticed about the sound of this amp is how nice my stock neck pickup sounds in my Les Paul historic. Not muddy at all. very open and transparant and the stock tone controls work very well in the Les Paul. The amp has all-day sustain and a tremendous amount of rich harmonics and detail.

This amp is simple and built like a tank. Its capable of continuous attenuator operation at full output. Quality all the way.

I have heard they are great, but I bought this amp used and I have not dealt with them.

I have been on an amp search for a long time to find the one that does it for me. In the last year alone, I have bought and sold a half dozen heads and combos. This amp is staying.

This 12W amp has one channel that is powered by a pair of EL84s. It uses a 12AX7 at the phase inverter and a 12AT7 for the preamp. The front panel includes volume, tone, cut and click (0dB, -3dB, -6dB, -9dB, -12dB, VAR) and variable knobs for it's built-in power atenutator. There is also a bright switch and a gain switch. The gain switch works with a 1/4" jack on the back so it can be turned on/off from your footswitch (not included, but you can pick them up at Musician's Friend for 30.00 or less).

The back panel enables you to select operational voltage and either 4, 8 or 16 ohm impedence with two parallel output jacks.

Tonally, the Tomcat's basic personality is very Marshall-like. But it's hard for me to pin down which Marshall it reminds me of most. It has the warmth and voicing of a late 60s small-box plexi. It has the gain/overdrive structure that is more reminsscent of an early 70s aluminum panel. Perhaps a bit more gain. The sound will stay pretty clean up to 12:00 or so. After that, it gets very crunchy, very smoothly. It's quite aggressive by 2:00 or so and at 3:00-dimed, watch out, it's mean as a snake! It responds extremely well to guitar volume and pick attack. More on this below.

There is, IMHO, no shortage of clean headroom on this little amp. I have NO PROBLEM getting a beautiful, loud clean sound. When I need a loud clean sound, I just knock the attenuator off, set the volume at about noon and I'm there. I'll typically back the guitar vol down for rhythm and dime the guitar for a clean lead. The gain boost switch is also good for some solos in this context, but it may get you more gain than you need.

The clean sound itself is of the best Marshall variety. It's warm, sparkly and bright. Not in the least bit grating or razorish. It's one of the best clean sounds I've heard from an amp that overdrives so nicely, actually.

The overdriven sounds are just killer. It is not a high gain amp. It's best suited for classic rock, IMO. Think of guitar sounds from the likes of Cream, Hendrix, early Zeppelin, Aerosmith, ZZ Top, Journey, Boston...you get the idea. The overdrive, is smooth. It has a very aggressive quality, but it doesn't have sharp jaggedy edges. There are some edges to be sure...but they've been smoothed out a bit, if you know what I mean. Not as smooth as the Aiken Invader though and many other amps. If you're looking for that ultra-smooth, refined overdrive like a Dumble...look elsewhere; the Tomcat is definitely more aggressive sounding and MUCH more in the Marshall camp.

As for the complexity/richness, if you have something like a Matchless C30 on one end and a Marshall Super Lead on the other, this is probably near the middle. It's top-end is more like the Matchless...but it's bottom is much more like the Super Lead. The top end is sparkley and complex. The bottom is tight and focused...but not at the expense of overall responsiveness. It's an amazingly good combination of the best qualities of each.

The gain boost is a GREAT feature and extremely useful; it pushes the volume up a notch or two, and produces a fuller, more robust sound. While there's lots of gain in this amp, it is hardly a high-gain monster like an Ubershall. Will its gain-boost always be enough for every solo? Probably not. At least not for me. I still like to use a couple of pedals on *some* solos, depending on which guitar I'm using and what else is going on in the song. The two pedals that I like most with this amp are my Blackbox Oxygen compressor and a V-Stack classic. The amp takes pedals extremely well.

So how well does the attenuator work? Exteremly well, but like every other attenuator I've used--I'd rather not have to use it. As that is not often an option for me, I am COMPLETELY HAPPY using it. I still get a very, very satisfying sound even with the attenuator knocked way down. My biggest complaint is that I want more low end when I've got the attenuator way down on the VAR position. It is not an issue AT ALL when rehearsing or playing in the band. BTW, I normally keep the attenuator at -6 or -9 dB on the gig. I'll open it up for loud clean solos (think of the Eagles' Take It Easy).

This amp is very responsive to pick attack and guitar volume changes. I'm pretty fussy about this "amp behavior"; it's one of my most valued traits. It is not THE MOST responsive amp I've played, but it is excellent in this regard and way more than just "satisfactory".

I've had no issues getting the tones I'm looking for with the simple Tone and Cut knobs. None. Maybe I'm not fussy. Or maybe Randall Aiken has just done a superb job of v

I've had no problems with this amp. I've been rehearsing and gigging with it for about two months.

The chassis is in a small, seemingly sturdy plywood head cab, vaguely reminiscent of a smaller Marshall. I've seen some better tolexing and grill-cloth applications but there is nothing wrong that merrits a complaint.

I'm no expert, but I have surmised from his website and contributions to several online discussion pages, that Randall Aiken *truly* knows his sh*t when it comes to building amps. Another insight--I asked him if he could mod my amp by putting in a push/pull knob that would act as an additional bass-boost for ultra-low volume playing. He said he hasn't found a push/pull pot that he thought was of the same quality of his other pots and would prefer to use a toggle switch.

I've been lucky to meet several small builders who pay a great deal of attention to customer service. Like Fred Taccone (Divided by 13), Doug Roccaforte, James Peters and a number of others, Randall's attitude, integrity and service-orientation are top notch. I have complete trust and confidence in Aiken Amplification. I've seen him bend over backwards for customers on several occasions at this point.

Because of its overall sonic-orientation, gain structure, excellent cleans and responsiveness, and because of its low-volume capabilities, it has quickly become my #1 amp for gigging with my band. I am sick and tired of being told to turn down my 20-30W, attenuated amp. I guess 10W is the magic number because I can keep things under control with the Tomcat and have had more than enough clean headroom (and I mean a flat-out killer clean sound) and near perfect overdrive to cover all the classic rock stuff we do in my band. I have seen the Tomcat eaten alive at "guitar jam fests" when put up against bigger amps. But for my band, the Tomcat is just about perfect.

One last point...it ain't cheap but it is priced WAY lower than so many other Marshall-like amps that don't sound half as good or not half as usable, IMO. I have not yet found a production amp in this price range that is as valuabe to me. I think the Tomcat is an incredible value and I'd replace it instantly if it was stolen or damaged.