TopHat Club Royale 2x12 Combo

Evey thing I need...

Volume
Master
Cut
Bass
Treble
TONE!

The only am I have ever owned I will never sell... it only took 23 years and 30-40 amps

Hand made and cared for by BG

#2 guy in the biz for customer support, really, Brian is an awesome guy

... whose #1, well ask Ben Fargen :)

Perfect, I mean it, perfect. I have never bothered to write a word about gear on Harmony. I lurk here daily, EVERYDAY to be honest, and have owned nearly $100,000.00 worth of gear in the last 7 years alone and never bothered to write a word... But the Royale is inspiring that way. Those negative reviews are ticked off competitors, or folks with an axe to grind, don't believe them, those aren't reviews of the Royale, they are descriptions of the authors character.

2001 Class A 20W combo single channel. On the top: hi & lo inputs; Volume Treble Mid Bass Cut Master knobs; Bright Off Fat selector switch; Standby & Power switches. Underneath: Soft/Normal rectifier switch; polarity switch; external cabinet jack; 2 12" (Celestion?) matched speakers with Top Hat decal. This amp can do everything with anything

This is the second one I HAVE (as in two). Holy Mother of all rock sounds, you should hear them in stereo using a simple Boss CE3.

Why don't you already own this amp?

Gigged & recorded with the First one. I do not expect this one to be any different.

If you can't find one from brian, talk to Hoosierdad his own dang self!

"Fantastic value" does not do justice to this 10 rating. What is the best tone you've ever heard flying from your fingers into your ears translate to? "Fantastic value"? How about

EARVANA!

This one is a '98 CR212. It doesnt have a fat boost switch but does have the solid state rectifier with the soft normal switch. I talked to Brian about this as I wanted a tube rectifier. Hands down Brian knows his business and I was satisfied. Over the life of this model, Brian has evolved his design. I think this was a transition model. It has no features other than Vol, Master Vol, Treb, Mid, Bass, and Cut. You plug it in, it plays. I wish it had reverb, but it has sufficient power for what I do. I play mostly a Tele with Lindy Fralins Blues Specials through this amp. Its very articulate, can sing like Roy Buchanan. Chords can bloom with this amp. It does a class A straight unadulterated sound, REALLY well. I use a Fender 63 reissue reverb with it. It must be mic'ed to be used live.

This is a special amp. Ive often remarked how I wish Id had this thing 30 years ago. Its the best amp Ive ever owned. Flat out, hands down, this amp sounds georgeous. But note this well, its an 18 watt amp. It does not have the power for stage volume in a big or moderate venue. If you cant bring it back through the monitors you have two choices. Buy another one, or buy a King Royale. I now have two CR212s and am thinking of a Club Deluxe 212 as well. This amp is ambrosia for recording. I use it with a tele and its lovely, but it also has that Clapton, Blues Breakers sound nailed with a Les Paul or a 335. Frankly, if you are looking for produced, modeled sounds, get a modeling amp, this is a straight and simple amplifier. You will get no breaks from this peice. If you have the magic, this amp just makes it louder. It does not compress, distort, flange, chorus, or modifiy the envelope. If you want that sound, this is the wrong amp. If you play with effects to get your sound, this is probably not the right amp. But to me...this amp sounds awesome.

No problems. Its built like a tank. I dont expect anything but tubes later, and someday filter caps. Ill be dead by then.

I called for a question, and the president and owner of the company called me back. He answered questions directly. His passion for his amps is evident. I can only imagine what it will be like to deal with him if I ever have a problem. I carry a Vibrolux Custom with me just in case. It has never left its case. I tried it once at practice and it just wasnt close to the sound quality. I hope I never need it,. I think the Warranty was 1 year.

Ive been playing for 39 years. I play electric jazz, finger picked tele stuff, Old Axis Bold as Love era Hendrix copies and complex blues. The differences between this amp and Dr Zs, Matchless, Bogner, and Bad Cats are a matter of taste. Theyre all good. I happen to like this one. I used to like JMP 45s, But theyre too loud. I can get that glassy sound out of the top hat
If you're looking for a strong club amp, and want that Chimey Class A sound, and you need strong stage volume get the 30 watt model. But if you have a really good PA, try the CR212, you get the sound, and not the headache... and you can hear whats going on.

My TH is serial #610, I received it in April of 2002. Very basic features, but I don't use reverb much and I have pedals for distortion. The only feature I wish it had is a headphone jack. I like to play in the morning before work or late at night when everyone is asleep, I do have a different amp to do this though. I do most of my playing at home, sometimes I jam with some friends, drummer and bass, in an 18X18 barn/shed.This amp more than holds its own. At home, I have 3 1/2 acres with nobody behind me. I will take it out on the deck and open it up, and even at half volume, the sound just echos back. I don't know for sure because I haven't done it yet, but I think this amp would hold up real well in a live situation.

I have a Les Paul Elegant(from the Gibson custom shop) and an Epiphone Dot in which I switched out the pickups with a DeArmond guitar I bought. The Tec then put in two switches to split the pickups, I get a lot of different tone combinations. I TRY to play mostly classic rock and some blues. The tone of this amp is what is so awesome. Even though it has no distortion channel, 'I' think there is some kind of "breaking up" that it does, depending on your volume and where you have the soft/normal switch set. I run the controls straight up and usually have it on the FAT side.

I have had NO problems with mine. It arrived very nicly packed. The way I will take care of it, it should last longer than me....

Brian not only answered all my questions, but gave more information than I'll ever need or use. Therefore, I'm sure he will handle ALL problems(if any) that come up. A very nice person to talk to, I will say, sometimes it's hard to get a word in!!

I have been playing on and off for about 35 years. I even started taking lessons again last year and I have to say, I think I have improved. Just goes to show you, you're never too old to learn. How did I end up buying a TopHat? Well, I have been a Beatles fan since they came here in 64 and I really started getting back into play in the past five years. I had my mind made up to buy a Vox. But, after reading all the reviews on HC, I didn't want to spend that kind of money on poor quality and service. TopHat was recommended by someone I didn't even know. I checked one out at a store that was an hour and a half away, and that's all it took. I ordered one. I also have a Marshall JTM30 with an extension cab. I ended up buying a Carvin Legacy 2X12 extension cab for the TopHat, a very nice addition at half the price of TopHats ext.cab. What is really cool is to get an ABY switch and run both of these amps together at the same time. Down right AWESOME!!!! All in all, I love this amp more and more, every time I use it. I wanted the Vox sound, and I think I found it, along with some quality and dependability which sounds like something Vox has lost. It was more money than I wanted to spend, but I look at it as an investment. This will give me something to do when I retire!! This amp is highly recommended from me. I have to finish by saying, Thank you Peter..... Thank you for turning me on to TopHat. It has been an complete joy.......

2001 Class A 20W combo single channel. On the top: hi & lo inputs; Volume Treble Mid Bass Cut Master knobs; Bright Off Fat selector switch; Standby & Power switches. Underneath: Soft/Normal rectifier switch; polarity switch; external cabinet jack; 2 12" (Celestion?) matched speakers with Top Hat decal. This amp can do everything with anything.

Why don't you own this amp yet?

I have not found a sound that this cannot make. You will smile in continuing amazement.

Sounds great with P90s, Trisonics, Virtual Vintage singles, MIJ Strat p/us (H/S/S), Parker Fly & NiteFly DiMarzios, lipstick p/us, DeArmond 2Ks, DiMarzio PAF Pro & Tone Zone, Duncans. A/B-ing with Marshall DSL 2000 100W .5stack and it even makes the Marshall sound better!

So far so good. Hoosierdad's the man!

Amazing, reasonably immediate replies to all e-mail inquiries. Check out the Forum page at tophatamps.com

I need more Club Royales in my life, keeping a couple for myself and giving away the rest to spread joy to a depressingly rectal-fied world of rock and roll. This amp is so not boring! (10 ratings are, but can they be helped?) How can one place a value to something invaluable?

This is an update on a review I submitted after owning the Club for about 3 weeks. I feel compelled to write this only because I'm still as enthused about the product as I was when I wrote the first review. It's stripped down and I like that, it's versatile in that it's EQ is offers a lot of usable sounds, and most importantly, it really shows me the difference between Class A and A/B. I don't play on stage so I can't vouch for it's ability to cut through, but for my use(basement recording) its ideal. My guess is that it might be a little under powered for the stage...my Deluxe Reverb blows it away as far as volume is concerned but most of my guitar playing friends say my Deluxe is the loudest they have heard so maybe something is delightfully wrong with it. Anyway, The Royale is a killer recording amp. That's what I use it for and it transfers to tape like no other in my arsenal. It does have the ability to "fool" the tape recorder into believing a much larger amp is in the room, or it can sound very chimey and Vox-like as well and thats what I would call versatility. As far as features I never use...yeah, I never use master volumes, especially with a 20 watt rig like this. Master volumes are a waste of time for me in that I can turn up as loud as I want when I record. Features I wish it had?...not since I bought reverb and trem pedals. The simpler the better as far as I'm concerned.

I like Telecasters the best and after figuring out the EQ on this thing, it is indeed a great Tele amp. The guy I bought it from was a David Grissom(spell check) fan and he said he bought this amp to cop Grissom's tones on the Storyville CD's which I also love. But this puzzled me since I thought Grissom was a Marshall guy, but sure enough, with just a simple tweak of the EQ, this thing delivers that smooth,rich Storyville sound in spades..When you turn down the treble on the Club, it boosts the midrange dramatically and at first this confused the Neanderthal in me. But after much grunting and chest banging I became calm and figured this out and it no longer frightens me. Yeah, this amp sounds good with single coil and humbuckers. The EQ can handle anything. Sometimes I go weeks without playing through this amp, using old Fenders just for the sake of variety. When I finally come back to the Club, I'm always excited because it sounds and feels is so radically different to my ear. I have not had the pleasure of using other Class A amps for any extended period of time so I can't really make a comparison beween Top Hat and say..Matchless, Kingsley, Vox,Dr. Z etc. but I really enjoy this Top Hat and for recording, it's an absolute blast.

Not one squeak,pop or fizzle....flawless so far and I do play it loud and hard.

I have not had a reason to call Top Hat, but I did email Brian when I bought the amp(used) and he replied promptly.

As mentioned, I like Teles and old Fender amps. I've been through alot of stuff new and old and now I like Top Hat too. I would defintly buy another one but I'd like to try out the other Class A amps as well.What do I love about it?... It's simple and it sounds good.Hate about it?...nothing but the EQ could be more straight forward I guess. It could also get rid of the master volume and lose the knob...the fewer the better. Otherwise, I really enjoy the heck out of it. I normally would prefer a little more power and headroom, but for recording...who cares? It can sound huge on tape.

I want to start this review by stating that I'm not one of those people giving a rave review of this amp to justify my purchase. I'm I working musician that uses different rigs at several gigs a week. Hopefully I qualify to give an opinion on the subject of gear. NOW, FEATURES. I rated this a little lower for those of you who like to be able to just set a couple of settings and switch between the two (or three). Can't here, but there are many usable tones from this one channel amp. Mine is brand new, made in January of 2002. It has interactive tone controls, Treble, Mid, Bass and Cut plus a pre-volume, and a master volume. It also has 2 inputs(low, high) a switch that has three settings, bright, off and a fat gain boost. One last switch, a soft/normal rectifier switch which allows, set soft, a lower output and spongier feeling output with quicker breakup. With tweeks on the eq and various switches you can get any tone you would need, in my opinion. This amp uses 3 12AX7 preamp tubes and 2 EL84s for power. It has a solid state rectifier, which sounds fine to me, the amp still sags enough with it anyway. It my bother the tweed neards out there though, but I've found that most of the tube amp neards really just sit around talking tone rather than giging (no offense intended). It also has no effects loop or reverb.

I have to play several styles of music. Sheryl Crow, Sara McLachlan Brit-Pop stuff, sometimes I play Jazz at weddings, or just straight rock stuff. I also dig really creative jazz stuff by Bill Frisell and David Torn, using guitar loops, stuff like that. In my opinion this is the best sounding amp I've heard for any style I play. I use it with a PRS Custom 22. I've owned many different amps more notable, a 71 50 wt Marshall, a JCM900 Marshall, Both good for rock but not very versatile. Now I use for most gigs a Matchless Hurricane with several pedals (Menatone, Zvex, Line6, Fulltone, Prescription Elec.). The Club Royale is by far my favorite. I use it for some of my gigs, but I really like to keep it at home for jamming, or recording. The amp has so many usable tones and they all sound great. You just need to learn how the eq works. The treble really effects the midrange of the amp. Depending on how you have the treble, and mid controls set, you really can get a Fender type sparkly sound, then set them just right, you get a really great Vox tone. With a good overdrive and the pre volume set about three oclock turn the mid down a bit, you get a great vintage Marshall tone (my favorite). I know this sounds a little to good to be true, but it's the truth. By the way, my favorite overdrive with this amp is a Prescription Rx Overdriver. On the pedal put the treble @ ten oclock, bass @ 9 oclock, Drive @ 10-11 oclock and crank output. It is really just an extention on the amps gain, with this setting, It just makes the amp cook a little more. The dynamics of both the pedal and amp are so good you can get cleanish sounds with just backing your volume down to 3 or 4. I now It's not as popular to say but I actually like the smoothness of more preamp distortion than power amp. But for those of you that really like power amp distortion this amp is a low enough wattage (18-20) that it works great for power amp break up at reasonable volumes. It breaks up like I good EL84 vox class A distortion. Power amp distortion is Just a little loose for my taste. Basically I like the smooth distortion of a Marshall, but the tone of a Vox. I just love the sound of a good British circuit amp going through an open back cab with celestions. Mine has one G12H and one Greenback, they sound nice together. The amp has a very smooth, midrange complex sound.

The amp Is built completely by hand with high quality parts, It is not as clean as my Matchless (I havn't seen a circuit that clean) but it looks very tough. I would think this amp is very reliable, I've only had it for a couple of months, I havn't had any problems with it though.

I was thinking about getting several amps, and Brian at Top Hat wanted me to be completely satisfied with his amp. We emailed several times on options for his different amps, and it seemed he was basically willing to build me just about any thing, within reason, that I wanted. But in trying out this amp I felt it was perfect. I have not delt with a more friendly company than Top Hat, It is a pretty small company, and they really want their customers to be happy. I've spent 45 minutes on the phone with Brian, he is very nice, and very informative. There are not very many companies where you can speak with the quy who built your amp. Great touch Brian!

I've been playing 13 years, professionaly for about 10 and of all the amps I've owned and tried this is my favorite. I had 3 main amps I was considering, a Matchless DC30, a Dr. Z Maz 18 or 38, and the Top Hat. I felt the best for versatility and overall pleasing tone was the Club Royale. The others to me had a harder, stiffer sound. If I needed another amp to just run my pedals through, I would probably choose another Matchless, but I wanted an amp that I enjoyed just plugging straight into. The Top Hat is very versatile, and pleasing to the ear. I only wish that I didn't have to make eq changes to get good clean sounds, then make eq changes for good dirty tones. Whether we like it or not, an amp has to be made this simple to get this good a tone. Every guitarist that has heard my amp, is amazed with it. Especially the guys that really work. It has a very full, fat sooth sound. You actually have to keep the Bass control no higher than 12 oclock on dirty tones or you get too fat a sound. Another thing to watch is the higher the volume the more highs come out of the power section, so its great to have the cut control. I usually turn the cut down the higher I have the volume. Overall this amp makes me feel like I won't have to buy another amp for a long time. Thanks Top Hat! My wife thanks you too!!!!!

IMO, in the features category, less is more. I've come a long way with amps, moving from Crate, to Peavey - eventually to Marshall and Mesa before arriving at TopHat. The knobs on the amp (Volume, treb, mid, bass, cut, and master volume make it easy for the user to find a useable tone. The other reviews stating that the amp's volume will diminish when the treble is above 12 o'clock is absolutely true. If you want a more ballsy sound, it's best to turn the treble down, the bass just past 12, the mid up to your liking and turn the tone selector to "Fat." The amps's knobs are truly dependent of one another. The tone selector is a key piece for this amp, allowing you to play some serious treble rock when the amp is switched to "bright." Two inputs, Class A, Celestion G12H's in it that sound good and don't sound fizzy when distorted. A true tone monster at 20 watts. This amp was made in early 2001 and I've waited some time to see if my initial infatuation would fade with this beautiful green amp - it has not. I use this amp at home, and in recording and it is perfect. The EL-84 tubes provide the warmth I need and it doens't kill my ears to crank this baby all the way up. I have turned these knobs every which way and can honestly say that I could find a useable sound on this amp at any position. It goes from brown to bright with one scoop of the cut knob! Brian- you are a genius my friend!

I use three guitars with this amp. A '95 Lone Star Strat, a PRS McCarty with dual humbuckers, and a G&L ASAT with MFD's. The PRS is good for metal-style rocks and the sustain with the Club and the PRS is phenomenal. I'll bet there are a few readers in agreement on that one! The Strat is my main axe and sounds great as it would through anything. I can play seering solos or let the tone just ring on in that classic Fender rhythm scenario. Let's get one thing straight - this amp is not a VOX AC30. Nor is it a 100 Watt Marshall used for scorching the first ten rows of your audience. Miked up, the amp can sound plenty loud for any club but it is not Pete Townsend's live rig. I guess the only reason I write this is because amidst the glowing reviews for this amp are some serious misunderstandings for what this amp can do. The guy with the Fender Deville - sorry dude, it's not the amp. If it's not powerful enough for you, you should have bought the Ambassador, or even the Emplexador, but I imagine at these prices the Club seemed optimal. They are spendy, I wouldn't kid about that! I paid $1400 for mine, which I thought was a little too much. But, it doesn't stink like an old closet classic and I don't have to go to the "What's Wrong with Your Amp Today" forum any more! I primarily play rock and blues, with influences ranging from Bob Mould, Frank Black, Billy Corgan to the classics such as Clapton, Gilmour, EVH, Jimi, May. Love 'em all. These speakers need to be broken in, especially for the Blues Thump. This amp does not sound the same as when I bought it. It's better. One minus: the amp sounds like crap with most distortion pedals in front of it. You need a true bypass pedal or forget about it. Best is to keep the amp a little on the cranker side and come down with your guitar volume. Isn't it better to have control at your fingertips anyway?

I do not shell out 10's like this. But I don't want to break the streak in this category. Brian and Joan are awesome and if you are in the know, then there you go!

You can ship it to Anaheim and Brian will take care of you. Good luck finding a worthy authorized repair man. I know there are none in Seattle.

I've been playing for 14 years now (Jesus time flies!) and have wanted this amp before I even knew it existed. I'm a gear slut and it almost breaks my heart because I'm not going to be able to justify buying another amp for a long, long time. The Club may not do it for everyone. I mean, don't take my word for it, go out and find the amp of your dreams. To me, all that Dual Rectified crap is garbage. If I wanted an amp that would damn near play itself, I'd be playing a Mesa. Instead, I chose the best hand-built, American Made, Point-to-point, hand wired, baddest little MOFO on the planet. Get it? I compared this amp to VOX's and Fender Twins mostly and decided this was a little more on the meatier side of things as far as Tone goes. I love Fender and Vox and think it is a huge testament that I wold choose the Club over the rock standards. This amp is more versatile believe it or not. I love the simplicity of the Club Royale and will continue exploring on it for a long time.

Mine is an early model, bought new in 9/98, early master volume style (control panel marked "cut", actually master volume) w/pull boost on pre-amp. High and low inputs, no voicing switch like those found on the current models, tube rectifier. 1 Celestion Greenback, 1 Weber.
Simple, straightforward-no reverb, effects loop, channel switching, etc. Some would give low marks in this category because of this, but someone who was looking for all those things probably wouldn't be looking at one of these amps anyway! I base my rating on the features of superior construction, point-to-point wiring,etc.-the things that matter to ME.

I know that it is our tendency as guitarists and tone freaks to rave about our new high dollar purchases to make us feel justified for spending MORE money on gear, and I also tire of the constant "10"'s on this website, along with the "this kills everything else out there" type of remarks. But I have been playing for 25+ years and have owned the usual gamut of vintage and new Fenders, Marshalls, Boogies, some oddballs like Magnatones and Selmers; in short, just about every size, configuration and wattage out there, but I have stuck with this amp for over 3 years and have no plans to buy any others. For me, that is MAJOR.
I have used this amp in clubs, studio, church, indoors and outdoors, big stages and tiny ones-I can get great tone out of this amp in any situation. Soundmen no longer yell at me-they compliment me on my tone! I used my Top Hat on a recording session with a very well-known (sorry, no name dropping) engineer, and he was very impressed with the variety and quality of tones I got, and how well they sat in the mix.
My main guitars right now are a Am Std Strat and an Epi Riviera with Gibson electronics. I used to own a '60 LP Jr (P-90's sound great thru this amp) that I had to sell awhile back. (It is a testament to this amp that I elected to sell the Junior instead of it!)
But no matter what guitar I use, I always find a great sound with the Club Royale. I recently acquired my Strat without trying it thru my Top Hat, and I have to admit that I was afraid that it might not be a good match. I have always thought "Fender guitar, Fender amp" and recalled seeing Jimmy Vaughn a few years back, playing his Strats thru a Matchless Clubman and sounding HORRIBLE-to my ears, the class "A" distortion sounded gritchy and thin. But I immediately found the Club Royale a great match with the Strat, and that backing off on the midrange was the key.
I am a bit of a reverb junkie, and occasionally find myself wishing for built in 'verb, but I have found a Boss RV2 Digital Reverb (sorry-I can't afford a real spring tank right now) sounds great if I keep the preamp volume low.
My stage setup is as follows:
VHT Valveulator (get one!), Klon Centaur>RV2 reverb>Line 6 DL4>Boss PN 2 Tremolo/Pan>Top Hat. In a live setting, I prefer the control of using the Centaur for overdrive and keeping the amp relatively clean. In the studio, I like to "play the amp" more. However, I have been in live situations where a straight ahead amp sound was all I needed, and kept the amp dirty with great results using my guitar volume to clean it up a little. I prefer to keep my master volume high and my preamp at the same level or lower, as I do with all master volume amps. I'm not a big fan of the typical "preamp dimed, master on 2" setting, but on this amp that type of setting sounds a lot better than most. With my Strat, my settings are as follows:
Master: 5-7 Pre amp: 3-5 (boost on) Bass: 5 Mid: 3 1/2-4 Treble: 4 (typical settings-will of course vary a little)
Blah Blah Blah-what's my rating? 10! I love this amp, and my listeners do too!

I have had this amp over 3 years and have not had any problems-it still has the original tubes! (OK,OK-I probably need to change the EL84's)

Brian is a very knowledgeable and courteous professional-he will take the time to talk to you at LENGTH about any questions you may have. I feel confident that he would be very responsive to a problem.

My comments under "sound quality" pretty much tell the whole story...
I would replace with another Club Royale if stolen-it is the perfect amp for me in terms of tone and power (don't be frightened by the low wattage-this amp is plenty loud!)

I submitted a previous review but want to point out something to these people who have not been satisfied with this amp. I have read the review from the guy who said this amp does'nt cut it in a live situation. I can't imagine how this amp would not cut it in a live situation because I use mine only turned up 1/4 on the master and it is more than sufficient. I think the misunderstanding is in the tone controls. The tone controls are interactive on these amps meaning that tweaking the mid also effects the bass and treble settings. You must forget about anything you know about tone settings on any other amp and start from dead zero and work your settings from there. I found the treble tone control settings after 12:00 brighten the amp into an actual loss of volume so if you keep the treble in the reigon below 12:00 the volume should be more than sufficient. Some of my guitars actually sound great with the tone settings at zero. Another thing I see is on this amp review and also on the Dr. Z Maz 18 review is the complaint about strange overtones on certain notes. I also have experienced this and contacted the manufacturer as to it being a potential problem of which it is not. These amps are very basic Class A no frills all out crude rock n roll monsters. They are fashioned after the old vox AC30 top boost type amps of the early and mid 60's. False overtones on certain notes happened on old AC30's, to a greater extent than the Top Hat or Dr Z. It's just a quirk of these amps that one must learn to live with if you want to have that Class A amplifier tone. I've played through Marshalls and Fenders and many other amps but IMO nothing compares to the rich sound of a Class A amp and If you're in a smoke filled room blowing out Blues or dirty rock and roll nobody is going to notice a false overtone or two. I have my Top Hat for 2 years now and to me it is the best amp on the planet for what I do. One word to potential buyers is to understand what a Class A amp is before you purchase one avd are dissapointed.