Carr Amplifiers Hammerhead 112 Combo

This is a brand new Hammerhead from Carr Amps(2001)in custom purple colored tolex. Only one channel, no effects loop, no nothing except real 3-D all tube handwired rocking sound.

Mostly used with a PRS McCarty, and a Hamer Special with p-90's. The sounds are magical. Just the way a great amp should sound. Distorted sounds could wake up the dead, and although it doesn't have a lot of clean headroom, its clean sounds are great and organic. I've only used it at home with a Fulltone Fulldrive II, and an ocassional Boss DD-5 Delay. There is no way to make this amp sound bad. It is kind of noisy but remember, it is a class A amp(noisy by nature). This said, compared to other class A amps, there is not too much noise going on, even at full volume. I love the way you can control the amount of "dirt" with your volume control. Try it out, I guarantee you'll love this feature. It sometimes reminds me of a Fender or even Matchless amp, but at the same time it is something else. The bottomline is this amp kicks butt for just about any type of music, with the exception of ultra heavy metal, unless you use a pedal to "crap out the sound of this great amp.

I can't wait to take it on the road with me. The damn thing looks solid like a rock. I would definetely use it without a backup. Not without spare tubes of course.

Not yet!! And I hope I never have to!!

I have been playin for 10 years and I've had the opportunity to play tons of gear. I can say without a doubt, that this is a fine instrument, built to last, with great tone. It probably won't be the only one I own, but it's definetely a great addition to my arsenal. I went to the store to get a Bad Cat amp, but the salesman showed this amp to me (I wasn't so sure because at first, I didn't liked its looks.)and as soon as I started playing it, I forgot what I came looking for in the first place. Great recording amp! Oh, did I mentioned it is hand wired with George L's cable? Cool Huh!

My "HH" was fitted in the red elephant tolex($125-upgrade) with the brown and black basket weave grill that Steve Carr uses on all of the Carr amps.Made in 2000.The "HH" has unique tone controls a "Grip" and "Impact" that each have 4 seperate positions. These two controls are completely parallel of the pre-amp section so the fundamental tone of the "HH" stays intact which is rich warm tube tone!This is a single-ended cathode-biased CLass "A" amp with the above tone controls in addition to a gain and master volume control.The "Grip" and "Impact" controls give you 16 different settings that I have found to be extremely functional and useful!The only feature that I believe anyone would miss on this amp might be Reverb!I currently use this amp at home but have jammed along with a friend's Koch Twintone and the "HH" really had no problem hanging with the 50 watt Koch!No channel switching here just plug and play!

The "HH" uses 2-EL-34's for the output section and the pre-amp section
utilizes 2-12AX7's. It is conservatively rated at 25 watts!Steve Carr
uses his custom-made(Emminence)Kingpin 60 12" speaker in the "HH".I give the "HH" a 8 since reverb would be a nice addition to the stellar
tones of this amp.I believe that Steve wanted to leave the signal path
is pure and simple as possible.

I am currently playing a G&L Legacy(Strat-style)with stock G&L alnico
single-coil pickups.I also have a newly-refinished Dark-Cherry Sunburst 1993 Lefty PRS/EG-2 that has a Lindy Fralin/P-90 in the bridge and Lindy-Fralin single-coils (the one's that look like dominoes)in the middle and neck positions! The "HH" has a very warm articulate clean tone that projects well for an El-34 based amp with just the single 12" speaker. This amp has the least amount of 60 cycle hum and hiss that I've experienced in a small to medium sized combo's.The overdrive capabilities of this amp take it from clean all the way up to full-blown Marshall crunch!Their are many levels of overdrive to be found in this amp with the use of the "Grip" and "Impact" tone controls!I have chosen not to try and give a
detailed description of the different settings with the "Grip" & "Impact" controls.This amp has to be played to be appreciated and
merely describing in my words what change each setting does isn't in
my opinion why someone should go out and buy the "HH".This amp does
everything from a great clean tone to a powerful crunchy overdrive!

Single-coils sound very detailed and spanky through the "HH" but HB's
and P-90's are the icing on the cake for the "HH's" powerful but articulate overdriven tones! I have a Melancon P-90 Artist coming my way in about 2 weeks. I got a chance to play a friend's P-90 Artist
through my "HH" and realized that I had to have a P-90 based guitar
to play through the "HH".String-to-string definition is one of the high points of the "HH" even when overdriven!

Most all of the current boutique amps in the 18-30 watt power range are somewhat lacking in the clean headroom department!The "HH" has a
decent amount of clean headroom but could still use a little more!

Based on the build quality(Point-to-Point) and the choice of parts that Steve Carr uses for the "HH" and the rest of the Carr amplifier line, I would say that reliability should be top-notch.Any minor or
major repairs could easily be done by any competent amp-tech!I have
had my "HH" since Dec.2000 and it has performed flawlessly with the
exception of one tube failure(an El-34 with 3 months of playing time).

I haven't had any problems with the "HH" so I haven't had to deal
with customer support for repair.

Steve Carr is absolutely a pleasure to talk with over the phone! He is
totally committed and dedicated to building the very best amps possible and seeing that all owners of his amps are 100% satisfied!
I have spoken with Steve several times before and after I purchased
my "HH" and each time I am amazed at his eager reception and patience.
I bought my "HH" from WillCutt Guitars in Lexington,KY. Eric Cummins is another class-act guy to do business with.I highly recommend anyone
contacting Eric if you are interested in buying one of the Carr amps.

Each Carr amp has a lifetime warranty to the original owner.

Been playing off and on for about 19 years. If it were stolen or lost I would purchase another "HH" without hesitation.I believe a head
version of the "HH" would be a killer setup as you could mix and match
different cabinets.

The "HH" is a super little 33 lb. combo that delivers bigtime for the blues and rock player.I had another fine handmade boutique amplifer that I traded for the Carr "HH" but have chosen not to elaborate on it. Let's just say that it is considered by many professional players and weekend warriors to be one of the better sounding combo's on the market for Strat-Style guitars!

The "HH" just gave me a very simple to control but extremely high- quality built amp that has many variations of overdrive and as well as
a great clean tone!Many people will find that an overdrive pedal isn't
necessary with the "HH". I have run a Fulldrive Fat-Boost and most
recently a Voodoo Lab Sparkle-Drive through it. The Fat-Boost will give you a decent amount of clean-boost without overdriving the signal.The Sparkle-Drive gives you a great clean-boost and the
addition of a dedicated overdrive(TS-808)signal.I prefer the Sparkle-
drive because it is two pedals in one!

You can easily set the "HH" to go from clean to overdrive with the amp
dialed in properly and using the Volume control on your guitar!

Go to the Carr website at www.carramps.com and check out the host of informative information on the entire line of Carr amps.Steve has what
I believe to be some of the best Soundclips available of his amps that I have heard on the internet!

Brand new model from Steve Carr and his fine crew at Carr Amplifiers.The Hammerhead is a 25 watt class A cathode biased single channel amp that is roughly the size of a Deluxe.On/off and standby switches, single input jack, vol and master vol controls and two additional controls, "impact" and "grip" grace the top mounted control panel which is attractivly done in black with white lettering. The impact switch lets the player increase the brightness and punch of the amp as the setting are increased from position 1 thru 4. Setting 1 is flat, setting 2 adds brightness while settings 3 and 4 extend into the midrange giving more punch and dynamics to the overall sound.Two elements are happening in the "Grip"control feature: a preamp gain boost to increase presence and a output section cathode bypass capacitor to increase the edge or sharpness of the sound.Settings 1 and 3 give a smoother "tweed" type of sound while settings 2 and 4 activate the cathode bypass circuit for a harder edge. There are no effects loop on this model, however as I understand from Steve Carr and crew an effects loop can be installed as an option on all of their amps for a slight bit extra. This is a 1x12 combo with a specially voiced Kingpin 60 watt speaker made by Eminance. Solid state rectifier, two 12AX7's in the preamp and two El-34's in the output section. I use this amp primarily for smaller gigs and recording. The sound is amazing! The band plays mostly in the vein of the classic power trio's of the 70's and the sound of the Hammerhead falls into place perfectly with this type music. I have also sucessfully used the Hammerhead with a 4x12 cab and here is where it really shines in my opinion. Perfect for your smaller venues or a real "bouncy" room. The tone of the Hammerhead lends itself to being opened up and played at full throttle.

Using this amp with a Historic reissue Les Paul and a SG for slide work.We play a lot of ABB and power trio stuff along the lines of ZZ Top and Mountain. Both guitars are stock with 57 classic humbuckers.
My preference is with both Impact and Grip setting in the 3rd position. I'm an old fashioned player, no effects , turn the amp up and let your fingers do the work. Even with the volume controls all the way up on the amp,it responds nicely to the guitar as you roll back the volume. A very clean rythmn sound can be achieved this way. Roll the voulme up on the guitar and hang on! A fairly wide range of classic tones can be achieved. Just think early ZZ Top to older James Gang type of tones. A Fendery tweed type of thing is going on here, but with that british vibe of the El-34s. The stock speaker to my ears is voiced more American. I really enjoy the tone when paired with a Celestion equipped 4x12 cabinet.The overdriven tones are buttery and articulate. Infinate sustain is effortless. Front pickup tones are nice and fat but not too fuzzy. Lead pickup bites with a nice growl without being harsh. The Hammerhead is quiet on stage with minimal noise. This amp is a perfect compliment for slide playing. It has a nice natural compression to it and the punch and sustain of the amp make it great for those long sustained slide notes as they go into a very effortless harmonic feedback. Dryer sounding than a Marshall but the same amount of snarl.

Never a problem. All Carr amplifiers have a lifetime warranty. The tubes and speakers carry a 90 day warranty. Have used it on many occasions without backup and it has performed flawlessly. This amp just like all of the Carr models is 100% hand wired and not just built on a board like many other hand wired amps. The experts at Carr Amps hand wire these component to component. There is a minimal use of wire leads as all components are mounted on terminal strips and linked together. George's L cable is used along with polypropolyne capacitors! Take note here. These caps will not dry up after 15 to 20 years of use. You will never need a cap job done on a Carr amp. The transformers are custom made for this amp by the same manufactuer that made trannies for Matchless! The interior of the aluminum chassis reveals flawless workmanship! Great job!

As stated previously, Lifetime warranty! With any well made tube amp you can expect tubes to wear out. Steve Carr and staff are knowledgable and ready to help. You will talk to a person and not a machine when you call and get an immediant response to you trouble or question.

I have been playing seriously since 1972 and have played in a working band off and on since 1974. I am a Gibson guy and have always been highly influenced by others using the classic combination of Gibson and Marshall gear, Clapton, Allman, Betts, Page, Kossoff etc. My main rig is a Soldano SLO 100, 4x12 cab and a cord. I play some smaller gigs where I need that nice fat overdriven sound at a low volume and the Hammerhead works. I would buy another if stolen for this particular application. In some rooms it can sound a bit nasal however this may be due to my prefernce to Celestion speakers. I would really like to see this amp available in a 2x12 combo format with some British voiced speakers. Just my opinion. Apart fom that suggestion I have been happy and pleased with the perfomance of the Hammerhead in both live situations and a single trip to the studio. Hands above the rest in this power catagory. I would put it up against anything else in the 15 to 35 watt range. Very pleased.