Epiphone Electar Tube 10

First of all, let me state that this is only a preliminary review, since I've only had the amp about a week. I ordered this online for only $89 dollars. See the other reviews of this amp to get the distributor information. The main reason for my review is to let others know that this is not one of those too good to be true deals and that you are not getting a hunk-o-junk for the money. This is indeed a small all tube amp for under 90 bucks that probably most compares to the old Fender Champs.

Features are: 10 watts through an 8" speaker supplied by a Phillips 12AX7 preamp tube and a Sovtek 6L6GC power tube. Obviously the rectifier is solid state. I don't know if power is Class A or Class AB although I'm tempted to think the latter. If anyone knows this for sure then drop me a line, please. These are imported from Korea so I'm sure the electronics are PCB at this price. Cabinet is done up nicely in black tolex with chrome corner protectors on six of the corners. Don't know what the cabinet is actually made of but I'm not expecting anything better that particle board.
Controls are top mounted, one input jack (plastic), gain, master volume, bass, mid, treble are small chicken head style knobs. NO REVERB. Tube sockets are ceramic with spring cages for the tubes. A removeable metal grill around the tube area provides additional protection. Cabinet is closed back. There is an external speaker out (4 ohms), and a preamp line out for connecting to another amp, mixer, or P.A. systems. External fuse and voltage selector for use in other countries. Almost forgot, the power and standby switches are metal toggles that seem pretty robust and really add to the "cool" factor. Power indicator is a small red light. I'd rate this guy pretty high on features. For the price I wouldn't necessarily expect the speaker/line out and standby switch.

Using a semi-hollow with P90's to learn/play blues and other melodic stuff. I tend more toward a fat sassy clean to slighty distorted sound like early Johnny Winter, Albert King, the jazzier SVR, you get the picture. So far I'm pretty impressed, but not blown away. I set the gain fairly low (3-5) and the master volume high (at least 7, if not all the way to 10). With this I get a nice thick tone from the saturated power tube and output transformer, and can control the preamp distortion with varied picking attack and the guitar's volume knob. I'm not very experienced but the amp sounds slightly dark with decent bass from the sealed enclosure. You can't expect that much from an 8 inch speaker in a Champ sized enclosure. The amp is not as loud as expected, but this is actually a good thing since it can be turned up all the way without hearing damage or angry neighbors (I live in a house, but it's too loud for an apartment). I hate comparing it's tone to other, better known amps, so I'll say the clean seems pretty fat and sweet, but not sparkley. The preamp distortion ranges from smooth thickening (gain at 3-5), crunchy overdrive (5-7), and gets pretty raunchy past that (not really my thing, baby). Just for grins I switched the tubes with the ones out of a '63 Tremolux that is a project amp. These tubes are at least twenty years old if not thirty. The sound seemed a little smoother with less gain in the preamp, but a little more in the power section, although the difference was not dramatic. This amp sounds sweeter after about 15 to 30 minutes of playing. I am expecting much better sound after I build or buy a two ten alnico speakered open back cabinet. The power sometimes gets away from the stock 8" speaker. Preamp out works but is on the hot side. Tone controls work but are not that dramatic.

Can't really comment here as I've had for such a short time. Seems very solid and heavy. No cabinet rattles, everything is tight, everything works.

Ordered from YoMusic or MusicYo (can't remember which, obviously I don't work for them) and they delivered in 3 days UPS. Very prompt and I would do business with them again. Amp is supposedly warranted for 5 years through Epiphone which is through Gibson. I wouldn't expect great shakes, but another one would be cheap enough. Bad thing is, I believe these are being discontinued. Owner's manual is pathetic, no info, already in the trash. Good marks to the distributor, no opinion on actual product support.

This is a good cheap way for impoverished musicians like myself to get into the world of tubes. For the price you can't beat it. I took a chance and was very pleasantly surprised. This was my second amp, my first being a solid state Fender Bronco. The Fender cost twice as much and isn't nearly as smooth or fat sounding. This amp does not at all seem cheap or chintzy and would hang in a club scene if you miked it up. I use an Alesis Nanoverb to add a touch of ambiance. Hey, plug it in, turn it up to ten and let it wail, baby.

My amp was made in 98. I use it for playing harp, mostly at open mike nights. We mike it on stage with a Sure 57 into the P.A. I use a Danecho pedal for a little slap back and use a Green Bullet or Astatic J.T.30 bullet mike.All the Harp players love it. I didnt have to change out tubes, just right out of the box. Its a Good guitar amp and will drive a 4 10 cabinet, Ive done it, but I dont recommemd it.

I love the sound of this little amp.This is one of the best small harp amps Ive heard. I had a Blues Jr. and also have the Electar 30 Watt version of this amp.Its not as good as this amp trust me.

I can only say that for the last year its been rock solid.

Called them and I sort of got the brush off. I think they wanted Les Paul questions.

I would buy this amp again in a minute. You can get them on the net for about $100 bucks now. I love the standby switch,and its built like a tank.Been playing guitar since the 60s, now mostly harp. I would not have bought this amp, but I had my bullet and some harps and when I heard it it was a done deal. Dollar for dollar, this is the best deal going.

Made in 98 or 99. The amp is very versatile, I go from U2 to Hendrix to AC/DC and back again. Amp has one channel, no effects loop but a standby switch. Wish it had a headphone output. The amp has plenty of power for my 12'x12' basement office (10 Watts). Purchased from MusicYo.Com

Using the amp with a Kramer Baretta (Gibson) with split humbuckers. The amp suits my style and can go from smooth U2 riff's to captain cruchy hard, before stompboxes even. Gain is very sensetive and gives many settings.

Haven't used it enought to give a good long term rating. Seems sturdy though.

5 Year Warranty

Hey! It was $89.00!! At 1/3 of a comprable small tube amp, how can you go wrong. And trust me these are just as good as the others.

The amp is a new one, probably made in '97 or '98. It is a single channel, one 12AX7, one 6L6, single 8" speaker 10 watt unit. The controls from L-R are gain, vol, bass, mid, treble. It has a standby and power switch. The box is enclosed (front-loading speaker)with the exposed rear valves covered by a formed steel mesh. The chassis is a C-section with the rear tolexed wood panel closing off the back. The pots are fixed to this panel and soldered to the small PC board, but the switches and valves are jumpered with wires. The valve sockets are ceramic. The entire cabinet visible to the eye - even inside is covered by tolex, and is very solid - no buzzes or rattles even dimed.
The detachable PC-type cord is good, but also a trap - don't lose it! There is a 4-ohm extension speaker plug which de-activates the internal speaker and a pre-amp line-out. General fit and finish is very good, and shows that Korea is the new Japan in terms of quality if they try.

I use 70's Ibanezes with Humbuckers and a Samick Valley Arts Pro Tele with single coils. The h-bs sounds more trebly due to the small speaker size. The Tele actually sounds bassy! The tone controls on this are quite effective, and the old Tele settings of 8 bass, 9 middle and 3 treble need to be re-evaluated! For mild AC-DC, wind up the gain past 7, and get a Marshally-sound. For overdriven blues, gain about mid and volume up to 8, and get a 6L6-type rumble. THis has to be put in context - the amp is not ear-bleeding loud, but gets the tone of a bigger amp at reasonable volumes. I used mine miked through the house PA to accompany a singer and was amazed at how it sounded on tape! I might get another to run in stereo. There is definitely different about small valve amps and natural sag and compression. This goes very creamy at high volume settings and harmonics start happening. Too loud for late night practice, but at lower settings a good clean sound. It's no Vox AC30, but for the price there's nothing else that comes close. No reverb, but I'm spoiled by my Pro Reverb - better no reverb than cheesy SS. Not a lot of clear headroom - still sounds good with my twelve string neck, but not Roger McGuinn or John Lennon Ricky-type. The fact the with high gain/low volume you get Marshall/Boogie, or vice versa for Fender, both at low volumes, must be a plus. This gives it an edge on the Pro, which does a very good Champ impersonation only. Both gain and vol at mid settings gives a nice valvey Fendery-clean, and both dimed gives dirty valve and speaker breakup and raunch. I'm sure a more efficient speaker like a Jensen or Weber ceramic would improve matters greatly.

Had it one month - seems very solid. Mover it around including when warm. Clamps on tubes (Fender-type alloy sleeve on 12AX7 and spring-loaded crown clamp on 6L6) seem to keep tubes seated. Solid construction and cage protection for tubes is a good feature. Speaker is probably best replaced. but I can live with it until it blows. Seems to be breaking in nicely and mellowing out. Standby, especially on an amp this size, is a good feature to help valves live.

Haven't done it yet.

Been playing for years. Had a variety of solid state amps, Roland 60w cube (good), Leem 6 watt ss (bad), Laney GC60A ss Acoustic/Electric (quite good for purpose). I also have a late 70's MV 70 watt Pro Reverb which I like a lot. I compared the Epiphone to Fender Pro and Blues Jnrs - two/three times as dear, cheaper-looking construction, cheesy reverb on the BJ. The Epiphone had a better vibe and sharper sound than both, but does break up almost as much higher up. I can live without reverb, unless it's a tube-driven one. An analog delay provides a close facsimile for me. I love it's size, portability and weight, yet solid construction and real valve tone including excellent string definition even when breaking up. I'd buy another in a flash - they don't seem to sell well, dearer than the similar-looking, cheaper ss Epiphones and too small for "serious" tube afficionados. I hope to pick up another cheap one for a spare. Not a real Fender or Marshal, but one tenth the price of either for half the tone of both - bargain! More people should buy one! I like it so much I put my Fender Sidekick Reverb up for sale - couldn't stomach it's sterile, inoffensive ss sound any more. The Epi is a real sleeper - some good valves, better speaker and maybe a bias mod and I reckon it's kick-ass for still less than half the price of a Pro or Blues Jnr. Even stock, it'll give you a strong taste of a real vintage valve amp - and it looks funky with the alloy thunderbolt to boot! All for about $US200!

Update to my comments of 10/5/98

Here's the trick: Put a Danelectro Daddy-O overdrive in front of this little thing. Plug in your Les Paul. This IS a 10 watt Marshall Plexi; detune and you can be Ace Frehley circa '75 with authority. The tone quality becomes tasty, with all the right responsive harmonics, etc. Your total cost is still about $300 and you can get terrific real valve distortion at apartment levels.
I've been playing through it with a Nashville Tele also, and the clean sounds are terrific as well (with or without chorus, with or without phasing, with or without flanging), ranging from acoustic clarity to a Rickenbacker-through-a-Twin jangle. Excellent, but still no reverb.

Several months in, all is well.

Major revision downward here. Apparently Gibson is interested in Gibson customers, not us lowly Epi clients. I asked several basic questions about the amp via email, and got exactly no response. I wondered about the specific tubes (12AX7 and 6L6, both Philips, I learned for myself). I asked about biasing; I asked about the warranty; I asked about suggestions for a 4 ohm extension cab. I didn't get a lame answer, I got no answer. "24 hour turnaround" is apparently on the Alaskan clock for Epiphone customers.

With the dual epiphany of putting the Dano drive in front of the thing -- thus unleasing Marshall-esque cascaded overdrive -- and playing with a Tele -- thus unleashing a ringing clean tone impossible with a Les Paul, even better. If you can find one, and need an apartment-sized real tube amp, buy it. Just don't expect a lot of help from Gibson if you have questions.

1998, Made in Korea. All tube, 10 watts, 1x8, black closed-back cabinet with tube (cage and spring socket) and fuse access, top-mounted chicken-head knobs: gain, volume, treble, middle, bass. On/off switch, standby switch, power light, detachable power cord, 4 ohm speaker out (in back) preamp out (also in back). Neo-retro style, Tolex cabinet with metal corners, black grille, and large silver lightning-E logo bolted on the face. Very cool looking. Since this is a practice/at-home/portable jamming amp, the absence of a headphone jack is the only questionable design choice, to me. Enough power for intended uses, gigging would probably require a PA or at least plugging in a 2x12 or 4x12 (which Epiphone claims this little unit can actually drive).

Playing mostly with a Les Paul. The overall tone quality is suprisingly good for such a small amp with such a small speaker and only one power amp tube. The knobs all have decent range, with the treble having the most pronounced impact (probably about 20db range). The gain dial is fairly sensitive above 3 and at 9-10 gives a nice classic rock crunch tone. For metal you'll need a stomp box though, since the natural distorion is more China Grove than Back in Black. I've been playing through it with my ($24) ProCo Brat, and the combination is extremely pleasing. Pantera it ain't -- but a very nice imitation of a Marshall it is. With the gain at 3-7 and the volume anywhere above 2 and below 8, you get a very warm clean tone. For what it is and what it cost, you couldn't ask for much more (except maybe reverb, but that would add fifty bucks and considerable size). With gain and volume around 8-10 a LOT louder than you'd expect.

Having had the thing a couple of days, can't say. It is however just about the sturdiest little tube amp I've ever seen. Between the closed back, very solid case design, protected knobs, and caged tubes, I wouldn't worry. You could easily stand on it, and could probably throw it through a sheetrock wall without hurting anything except possibly the tubes. The chicken-heads seem cheap, but that's no problem. The on/off and standby switches seem first-rate.

Epiphone are cool, though no experience relating to this unit. The amp comes with two documents -- a nice 5 year limited warranty brochure and a horrendous Chinese-menu style owner's guide replete with almost humorous typos and limited useful information. There is absolutely nothing about the tubes (how, when, why to change them) or why you would want to use the standby switch. This is all fine for someone who knows something about valve amps, or is willing to look elsewhere to find out, but is short-sighted given that the price/wattage/size of this thing means plenty of 11-year-olds might get this amp along with their Pacifica or Special II or whatever.

Designed (as the current ad campaign points out) to be better, more versatile and cheaper than the Fender and Crate 10w tube amps, the Electar succeeds. My other guitar amp right now is a Fender Princeton 112+ (see review) which has everything the Tube 10 doesn't, and vice versa. As an ONLY amp it would be lacking in terms of overall power, no reverb, and no headphone jack. As a secondary amp -- and the cheapest way to get into a new, warranteed, all-tube combo -- it's fantastic. The Epi branded solid-states don't thrill me, but with the Electar series they might just succeed in bringing first-quality valve amplification to people with ordinary budgets and volume requirements.