Hughes & Kettner Attax Tour Reverb

Paid EUR 425 (USD 510) and got it within a few days from Musikhaus Thomann (supposedly Germany's biggest Internet Gear shop). After a long-ish pause I was strating to gig again and I needed a nice but well-priced amp, a combo - by the way. Tube amps rule, but are heavy and expensive. The solution was to go for a robust solid-state amp.

It is a loud and clean 112 (Celestion speaker), 100-Watt combo. The crunch channel (soft overdrive) allows the player to control the amount of overdrive via the guitar's volume knob. The lead channel (serious overdrive) does what it's supposed to. On this channel there's also a nifty little knob called 'voicing' that gives brittle or swampy overdrive sounds - very nice stuff it does. The coil reverb is awesome. The price is a bargain.

It's not a tube amp - but that's not necessarily a disadvantage. And the foot-switches could've been included. The lead channel could use 10% more gain, but if you're not doing this kind of music (my case) then this is a negligible shortcomming. I don't think a 212 version exists, which is a pity, I would have bought a 212-er. For my taste the front panel is a bit ugly, but that's debatable.

It's armor-plated. Delivers 100W of clean sound.

In that price category you'll not find any better amp.

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

This a company who designs high quality guitar amps for touring musicians and the average consumer. They have amps for just about every player and just about every musical style that you can think of. They have even drwan some fan fair from some bigs names in the guitar world. A couple big names have picked up amps from Hughes and Kettner including Alex Lifeson from the band Rush and Tommy Thayer from the band Kiss. Those two gentlemen have their own signature models but they have used been great artist for this company. Their guitar amps that range from just a few hundred dollars to several thousand.

This is a solid state amp from the fellas over at Hughes and Kettner. This amp has three channels and 100 watts of power. Why on earth would you need 100 watts of solid state power is beyond me. Either way you get a a decent amp for practicing and playing at home.

UTILIZATION

Channels 3: Clean, Crunch, Lead
Power 100
Poweramp Current Feedback
Effects Loop parallel
Footswitch/Stageboard FS-2
Headphones Yes
Speakers 1x12" Celestion® Rockdriver Junior
Suggested Speaker Cabinet AX 412
Dimensions 560 x 480 x 280 mm
Weight 18 kg

SOUNDS

This amp has a nice clean channel. The channel has a good fat one to it that makes it probably the best channel on the amp. The next channel is the crunch channel. This is a channel for you to dial in some good old classic rock tone or some nice bubblegum pop stuff. This channel will also clean on the guitar's volume knob. The next and final channel is the lead channel. It does get some hair on it very easily. You can get this channel cooking to do some nu metal stuff and some over the top killer distortions sounds. I wouldn't call it tone because a solid state amp has no felling or dynamics in my opinion. So I wouldn't say this amp has any tone but just sounds. It is better than some of the Vox and Fender solid state but it still just doesn't have that girth and punch that an all tube valve amp would have.

OVERALL OPINION

These amps have long been discontinued and so the used market is the only route for these amps. I am not exactly sure what the going rate for these amps are on the used market. There are much better solid state amps out there but it is a decent one if you can get a good price or deal on one.

100w combo amp transistors.

Full connectivity, including two footswitch input, line and headphone outputs, effects loop.

Two channels, bright and saturated with tri-band equations and independent volume. The boosted channel also has a boost setting and a character.

UTILIZATION

Very simple config, this is an amp.

Getting a good sound is easy.

In his clear, it is stunning clarity and brilliance. HP Celestion is warm and clear. Pushing the volume you can get a nice crunch. It develops against a lot of bass. The equation is fortunately effective.

Saturated, it was fine in normal crunch and powerful distos in "more gain". Again, the sound is well defined, expressive, with lots of bass. The EQ does its job well, do not hesitate to mount media. Do not hesitate to turn up the volume to reap the trunk of the animal, even a large breath may occur.

The reverb is very vintage (hears the spring), effective in a retro style, but not very thorough.

The mix knob of the effects loop is pretty weird I think, you never know exactly where we are. The only big downside for me.

SOUNDS

I play post-rock and post-hardcore. I love the organic and warm sound. I played a lot of amps to transistors (Vox Peavie, Marshall, Line6, Yamaha, Fender ...) and some tube amps (Laney, Vox). I took a long time to find an amp that is in my budget and match my personality and my use. I found!

1 / It has lots of character, personality, what, without distorting the sound of guitars. The fact that many developing low troubled me at first. But I think it is compared to other transistor amps midrange, with more HP lazy maybe. Once you find the right settings (the mids at least halfway and lowest ever over a third in my opinion) the sound is huge.

2 / IL is versatile. You can spend a clear lens for expressive crunch, "beautifully dirty" to convaicantes distos. However, impossible to play modern metal with this amp. The equation makes its taf and you can have a relatively broad sound palette.

3 / For a "simple" amp, it still has two footswitch inputs, line out, headphone output, and an effects loop. This is a minimum it seems to me, but all the amps in this range do not offer!

OVERALL OPINION

I have since 2012, I have tried many before, which really horrible things, yet we find in many stores, musicians and studios. To my knowledge, this range of quality (super HP, no electronics) and prices (between 150 and 200 € in secondhand) it holds the upper basket. I find it a real pleasure to play on. We almost forget, closing his eyes, it is only transistors ...

I will divide them in that duress, or to pass on a really good tube amp (vox or orange). But it is not at all the same budgets ...

The +:
- Comprehensive connectivity
- Personality without overwriting
- HP Celestion very good bill for his always well defined
- Look nice, robustness and perfect craftsmanship
- The price occas'

The -:
- Its elephantine weight (twenty pounds)
- The mix knob loop effect is oddly thought
- The reverb too "vintage"
- From Puff to the high volume and high gain.

An amp that I highly recommend for the (post-) rock, blues, heavy metal sound unobtainable.

Sounds clean / crunch, distortion, reverb, effects loop management

I add the pedal that allows you to browse the different channels (channel 1: clean / crunch, channel 2: distortion, channel 3: effects loop)

18kg on the scales, it is 100 watts, I feel good at my frail arms.

UTILIZATION

Using very simple, versatile game, settings and there are simple hyper fast on his behalf.

manual very clear.

SOUNDS

Perfect for my style of play (I play with a standard tele us).
its clean: very good,
crunch: waw, excellent,
the disto: good enough, but it is preferable to add a distortion depending on the type of game

the reverb is nice as well

OVERALL OPINION

I have since 1997, he has to repeat with a crazy drummer, and I always susi out without having to push a lot.
I did some gigs with no problem.

I like its ease of adjustment, power.