Demeter TGA-3

2-10 Tweed Combo...+10 yrs.old...2 6L6s & Celestion 30 watters.

Boogie Clean + Soldano Crunch + Bogner Burn...

N/A...Demeter has a great reputation though...

see prvious comment...

+35 yr. GIT guitar & bass semi=pro (have day job) player...play most pop styles...This is the rig I use for shows & the like...Boogie Kasha pre-amp rack for other gigs...

The last review of this product should be ignored. How else do you compare an amp except to the classic sounds that made you want to play in the first place? Believe it or not, some of us are actually fluent on more than one type of guitar or style of music.
If you think one guitar through one amp is all you need, fine. Just don't preach that gospel to players who play with more than one voice.
Which is precisely why this amp is cool. It is VERSATILE.

It's very Demetery. that about covers it, eh?

It is solidly built. The toroidal transformer keeps extraneous noise to a minimum, and thanks to its more-or-less open architecture, you can change the voicing further by using different types of tubes (6550, EL34, 6L6, 6CA7), or by using tube convertors with power reduction(EL84s).

Good guys at Demeter customer service. They like Simpsons humor.

I have more than one guitar. I even have more than one amp(!).
James and Co. made 200 of these in different versions. I'm pretty sure he was trying to capture classic tweed, British, and modern high-gain sounds with this three-channel gem from the '80s. But hey, what the hell do I know? Maybe he was really trying to develop a prototype warp drive...

the same as everybody elses.

buy this amp. it is the greatest thing since....i don't even know. it does everything that every reviewer has mentioned. i like how everybody compares things as a "fender clean" and a "marshall distortion", when they should be comparing them to a demeter. WHY DOESN'T DEMETER MAKE ANY MORE OF THESE? Oh and who cares what kind of guitar you use through it. i like how these guys get on here and go on and on about how many damn guitars they have and that they're all tricked out and stuff, it's ridiculous! you need one guitar and one amp. pick your guitar and pick this amp.

i sold everything else and have this one amp and i play 5 nights a week. that says it.

n/a but will give them a 10 anyway. especially if they started making them again.

if you ever find one buy it! you will not be disappointed. Bogner, Top Hat, VHT, everything else can't keep up to this 20 year old amp.

This will be the last review I do of this amp. I have said alot about it before, and it all is the same.

I loved this amp when I first got it, and sold it 2 times and still got it back again. I went to a Koch twintone, a mojave plexi 45, and two SMF 15 watters in stereo before going right back to this amp..WHY?
I just love the Mojave for its cleans, and this can match it. I loved the Koch for the leads, and this can match it. It can't do the EL84 chime thing, but man I fell out of love with that sound very fast. I found out older 6CA7 tubes is what this baby loves, not modern EL34's..and It loves greenbacks..so I run it into a vintage Marshall 4-12 basketweave cab..it also sounds great with the reissue greenbacks as well..
This is by far better then any boutique amp I have played, just in the fact it is not a one trick pony..there are Bassman & plexi tones out the ying yang, but also Orange & Hiwatt tones to. I still run it more like a vintage Plexi or JMP 50, but I have no trouble getting the killer crunchy Bassman twang as well..The red or lead channel is still my least fave, I might send it back to Demeter to have an extended green channel put in. Man If you get your hands on one of these GRAP IT...I just dumped mega bucks playing the boutique amp game and I am right back to where I was 5 years ago...in a word. TONES.

The very best out there, this head has played over 500 4 set gigs, many out side concerts, and fell out of a truck 2 or 3 times. I spilled a pitcher of beer on it, and even left it on for a week one time....NO PROBLEMS AT ALL..........................its the Timex watch of the amp world..takes a lick'in and keeps on tick'in.

Awesome, helped me big time on finding out why the newer EL34's sounded bad, and it has a fixed bias for the older 6CA7 tubes...I also bought name plates for bogus cabs, and they sent them no problem. great kick ass compnay...

I have done MANY MANY reviews on amps & guitars on HC..allways honest & tried not to let the new factor sway my thoughts..I bought many new toys after reading HC..stopped me from buying a boogie Nomad last week because of the reviews on HC...so I am very honest, and a Pro player. What I like may be different then what you like, but I reccomend alot of products to players, with killer results..so on that note this is by far the best amp in the guitar kingdom, untill I play something all around better, not just one tone but all around better, thats what I think.IMO....AMEN..

Traded a blackface Twin for this amp. Serial # 153 out of 185 made (supposedly) 3 channels, Point to point soldering. Clean, Plexi, over the top.

Corky's last three reviews says it. This amp does it all

Vintage Tweed, Blackface, Plexi, Beyond Plexi. God, what more do you want. I play with alot of top quality musicians and the tone from this amp NEVER ceases to impress those I play with. "AWESOME TONE BRO" is a very common phrase I hear almost nightly.

Except for the occasional noisy tube and tube swap, no problemo. Have owned it since 1995.

Am still talking with "the guys" since 1995 and they still seem to have a genuine intrest in keeping me up and going. Haven't missed a gig yet with it. Great tips for self service, ect...

Have been playing professionally since 1978. If it were lost, I would find another. I love it's versatility and fantastic tone. I wish I had a better road case for it. This amp was at the 1991 NAMM show on display w/Jim Demeter and a friend of mine bought it. I heard it , wanted it, and he sold it to someone else. A couple of years later, I traded for it. Absolutely awesome! My main axe is a 58 strat. I also, use a 59 Deluxe, 62 Falcon, 63 Deluxe and a 54 Tweed Pro for the lounge acts that require tasty tones at low volumes. When playing the clubs, outside or bigger shows, the Demeter has never failed to deliver exquisite vintage tones with fantastic harmonics and controlable feedback. I personally like a 4x12 basketweave Marshall cab with 25watt greenbacks or the Marshall JCM 800 2 X 12 cab with celestion Vintage 30s. If you've never played one, play one. If you find one for sale, buy it. Corky (previous three listings) has done his homework on this one (three years) and his review is pretty right on. Enjoy

I did reviews on this amp over the last 3 years. I sold it a year ago and bought a Koch twintone. The Demeter was starting to sound to texas for me and I wanted a bigger sound. As you can see in my older reviews I tried a bunch of cabs, but not the right one.

I just bought a Fender Vibro King 2-12 cab, loaded with vintage EV SRO speakers. I tried it on the Koch, and it sounded tubby & honky. But when I used my old Demeter TGA, that belongs to a friend that bought it from me, I heard tones from God himself. I guess the TGA needed EV speakers in a good cab to let out all these awesome tones. I get perfect vintage Plexi tones like my old 50 watt red plexi, and Tweed tones that are transparent & sing with sustain. But its the blackface tones that are rippin. The 3-D effect is stuff I have not heard in 30 years. needless to say I had to buy this beast back from my friend, at a very high price. I just played a THD Flexi & bivalve last weekend, and I really liked how close they got to some of the best tones from the past, but the Demeter nails em spot on. My lesson learned is keep trying speekers until you match the perfect combo up..its alot cheaper then replacing a great amp...

Never a one problem with this amp, it will outlive me...

not bad a little snobby...

this will be my last touring amp..I give up!!!..nothing will beat this thing for the classic tones. Its ugly, small, no new tones at all, but what it is, is a killer TWEED,BLACKFACE,PLEXI tone machine.

Now it has been over a year with this amp. Seems the best tubes are EH EL-34,s and JJ EC83 pre's. super versatile...

After looking for the best Cab, it turned out to be a small open back 2-12 Carvin Tweed cab, loaded with celestion vintage 30's. I have played on all the channels the green,or marshall seems to be where i live. The SRV tones on this channel are awesome, i use my volume knob for clean & crunch, and kick in a boss OD pedal for leads. I do use another amp for recording, and one I like for home practice, but for live shows, this amp kills...I am useing all P-90 pick up guitars now, and the tones are to die for, clean, crunchy, and singing leads.

I play it alot, never had any thing happen yet. I think it is built like the old fenders, built to last a lifetime of playing.

don't need to......but when i did ask a year ago about some things, they were great.

overall, if you can find a better amp, I would like to hear it, because this kills any, and i mean anything i have heard doing the old plexi type tones. Even my old Marshall Plexi's did'nt sound this controlable and sweet. I have heard a few VHT's that come close, but no cigar..

ok its been over 6 months of heavy giging, and i would like to make a post,post review of this amp. Now that the newness has wore off and i have played about 8 cabinets with it, THIS IS THE HOLY GRAIL for a great rock tone. this TGA-3 head is a tone monster.

i tryed Fane 4-12 cabs, and Marshall 4-12 cabs, small 1-12 fender cabs, and even a 4-10 cab, everything sounded great, but a now run it through a 2-12 mesa closed cab with celestion vintage 30's, and man is it the best. the cleans are pure and open with alot of spring to the notes, the crunch is big & clear, and the lead tone has sustain and balls that lift and carry without ever getting muddy.I never would have played 24 fret hard rock guitars before, like a Ibanez RG J custom or a ESP horizon neck thru custom. because they would lose the openness & the tone would get blatty. but now i use these guitars and they sound incredible with the Demeter.

ROCK SOLID..............

THese people got their shit together. they truly love their products.

If you get a chance to score one of these amps...grab it. you will never let it go. I have heard that the newer TGA-2 is not as good of an amp?, i have never heard one. but i will hang on to this amp untill the day i die.....

Three channel tube amplifier, footswitchable, 75 watts (2X5881s), point-to-point wired, submasters for clean and boosted channels, stereo FX loop with slave out for external amplifier. This would rate a 10 except no series/parallel capability for FX loop (would have better unaffected dry tone).

I use this amp with a Guild Bluesbird AAA, Tom Anderson Hollow DropTop, and Parker Fly Hardtail. It sounds almost as good as my Bogner Ecstasy. ALMOST. This amp is very versatile. It retains its articulate voice thoughout its gain range in all channels. It has a breathy clean tone, a singing blues tone, and a hypersatuated distortion. It reminds me of the Hafler Triple Giant, but less harsh (not to knock the Hafler - sometimes harsh is cool). This amp is very quiet when not being played.

I have no choice but to ding this amp here. The control pots are garbage. They feel rough and uneven from pot to pot. The threaded shafts are barely long enough to go through the panel, and are easily stripped. The knobs are funky, and will not fit a better quality pot without modification. These problems definitely detract from what would otherwise be an exceptional amplifier.

I am lucky enough to have an excellent service tech. He can fix or modify just about anything. He was impressed with the design and construction of the amp (except for the aforementioned pot/knob fiasco). While I am sure that Demeter would be able to send the part necessary to repair the amp properly, it should be noted that some people can't spare the time, expense, or hassle for the exact parts, and the amp should have the capability to be repaired with like or better quality parts right there in the shop. I don't believe that any amp should need to go back to a manufacturer. Ever.

I have been playing over 20 years. I have a Bogner Ecstasy 101B, Mesa/Boogie Studio .22, Hafler T3, Hafler Triple Giant, Sholz Sustainor and Hughes and Kettner preamps, Mesa/Boogie fifty/fifty power amp, and H&K, Boogie, and Rivera cabinets. If my TGA-3 were lost or stolen, I would probably not make myself crazy trying to replace it.

This a update review.....I use this amp with two 1-12" cabs, loaded with green backs...plenty of power...all tube,,,3 channels of tone.

Now after a months worth of gigs,,small clubs,,large clubs,,halls,,and outside shows...this thing is awesome..the #2 channel being my favorite..the sound on this channel is about as good as it gets,,clean as hendrix in the west in little wing, dirty as stevie ray boogie's..and the lead tone is open & full of harmonics,,the other nice thing about this amp, you can play loud but it does not hurt, you or the people in the crowd..its very open & wide, full of tone,,as one would say...i don't think i will ever get rid of this head...i will try a 4-12 cab at the next show,,,my god can it get any better....

as chevy would say,,,LIKE A ROCK..........

Talked some more about biasing and settings, they were very helpful..

i think i found the holy grail....i really want to hear one of his newer models...i have had,,,soldano slo-100,,all types of marshall's,,Rivera's,,and hiwatts,,,but this thing is on its own planet,,,mucho tone,,a friend thats had a fender tonemaster played it last gig,,he sat in a number,,he was amazed..said it played itself...