Product: Retro-King Amps 45 Watt Combo "Bluesbreaker"
Price Paid: UNKNOWN
Submitted
01/02/2009
at
11:31am
by
Old School
Features
:
10
45 watt all tube combo. Handwired point to point (teflon wire). 2 Channel, 4 inputs (High/low output, Treble/normal). Each channel has volume, treble, bass and presence.
2 Matched KT66 power tubes (JJ)
3 12AX7 preamp tubes (JJ)
1 GZ34 rectifier tube
original radiosperes spec transformers
speakers 2x12 Mojo British Vintage Series BV-30H (can choose others)
Post PI Master volume control (an option)
Can also patch channels so you can blend high treble channel and normal channel.
Sound Quality
:
10
Sound is excellent! I wanted one amp that I could use for the style and sounds I like: Clapton (Beano), Page, Robin Trower, Hendrix, SRV. I looked at many custom amps (all excellent) but each was good at one sound. I finally choose the Retro-King 45 watt "Bluesbreaker". The KT66 tubes deliver clean sounds (like a vintage fender) as well as the classic Marshall grind. If I plug in my Gibson ES 335 (or any humbucker guitar) and roll off the tone the amp delivers spot on "Beano" tones easily! Even my Strat with rolled off tone gets the Clapton "woman" tone. I love Robin Trower and if I use my strat with Fulltone Deja Vibe the amp delivers Trowers classic tone perfectly. The great thing about this amp is I can play Hendrix "Little Wing" or "Wind Cries Mary" and get that clean "Fender" tone and then play "Purple Haze" or "Foxy Lady" with the "Marshall Plexi" tones just by using the volume on the guitar (or amp). For SRV stuff I use my Tube Screamer (TS-808) and have a more clean overdriven sound. Nice Page tones with my 1977 Ibanez "black beauty" Les Paul copy. Even heavier stuff like Black Sabbath "Paranoid" and AC/DC can be played on this amp. For more modern metal stuff wou need to use a pedal. If I use the low output high treble channel I can do Beatles "Day Tripper" and "I Feel Fine" like an old AC-15. Plugging in my Telecaster on low input high treble and cranking volume on amp you get nice Keith Richards classic crunch. I also have the Post PI Master Volume option on this amp which allows me to do all this in my living room. I am having so much fun with just the amp and a couple of stompboxes (tube screamer, Fulltone Deja Vibe, Fulltone Wah). This amp has a personality and soul.
Reliability
:
10
The amp is built like a tank and one thing is it is heavy (65 lbs)!
I haven't had any issues. Each amp is built by Chuck Dean the owner of the company. The amp has top notch materials and workmanship.
Customer Support
:
10
One of the great things about Retro-King Amps is you can e-mail and talk directly to Chuck Dean, the owner and builder. You can work with Chuck in choosing differnt speaker combinations or other custom options. He also does repairs and mods on other amps. Its nice to get personalized attention.
Overall Rating
:
10
I would highly recommend this amp for anyone who is looking for the vintage tones of the 60's and 70's. $1,895 for a custom hand built amp with quality materials and workmanship is a good value. For me (age 46 and playing since age 16) it saved me from having to buy 2 amps as I can get me "Fender" clean fix and my "Marshall Plexi" grind in one cool box. On a side note Chuck Dean built several amps for Billy Gibbons the "tone master". Check out the website retrokingamps.com
