NAD... H&K Grandmeister... WOW!!!

[Red_Label]

So after swearing-off "small iron" (tube amps less than 50 watts), and circuit-laden channel switchers last year... I thought I'd likely be going with classic styled amps like Fenders and Plexis from here on out. Have owned lots of great boutique amps over the past couple of years (several of which were bought and sold here). Bogners, VHT, Engl, Lickliter, and more. All were great, but I felt like there was too much going-on in there and wanted to simplify by tone chain. Main two amps over the past year have been a Marshall 2203X and Straub Hurdy Gurdy (blackface, 2X6L6, P2P). Both simple, single-channel amps that sound great.

And then, I plugged into a Hughes & Kettner Grandmeister today. Holy crap this thing can cover a lot of ground! My local dealer (long-time lurker here) sent me home with the last one they'll have for at least a month and I proceeded to wring this thing out for at least three hours today. Used 4 different guitars (MM Morse Y2D, Dean Soltero USA, Sterling Luke, and Schecter Damien C7 Elite).

Started with some country stuff. As usual, the H&K amps always produce awesome, glassy cleans. )I used to gig a Triamp Mk I in a country rock band and it was awesome.) Push the boost on for some hair. Add some chorus, reverb and delay to taste. All very pristine. Favorite guitars in this mode were The MM Y2D and Sterling Luke (which my dealer ALSO sent me home with today). Plenty of spank, chime, and glass here. Played through a bunch of Kenny Chesney, Keith Urban, etc. Have been considering joining another country band lately and this amp would be perfect. Sure... it's overkill for that. But it's got the tone, and more features than you could ever fully use... so why not?

Then on to crunch rhythm and lead programming. This took me longer. At first I felt that the tones were too loose, spongey, and flubby. But [despite my disdain for the buzz-kill of spending time tweaking instead of playing] after some quality time tweaking I had tightened-up the rhythm crunch and leads and was really liking them. Did some dry patches, as well as ones with reverb and delay for leads. I like OD on an amp to have immediate response. So once I'd found those tones (found them in the Lead and Ultra modes with the gain rolled-back, and the volume punchy enough to be "spanky")... I went through the Dean Soltero USA (LP-style) and really loved the crunch and clarity, yet fluidity that I was hearing as I did lead work.

And lastly, I pulled-out the Schecter 7-string, dialed-up an awesome scoopy patch on the Ultra channel and channeled my inner teenager. The thing was tight and inspirational as I played numbers from Halestorm, Evenescence, Chevelle, Saliva, etc. I was VERY impressed with the HUGE tone this thing was delivering through my V30/H30 loaded 4X12.

I'm convinced that there's NO ground I couldn't cover with this thing. It's small, fits in a small carry bag, has all kinds of features like the Redbox DI, scalable wattage, etc.This thing is PERFECT for someone who has to cover a lot of ground, but needs to keep his rig compact and possibly quite (though it will get loud as hell!).

I HIGHLY recommend that you check them out if you are curious in the least. Makes sure you understand how to operate the FX and tone controls. I've got the FSM432Mk III footswitch that goes along with the amp and it's perfect.

Take it from a guy who has owned most of the great tube amps... this thing is legit!

 

[xXDaveyJonesXx]

Damn. Sweet, man! Thanks for the rundown.

 

[Avi8r2005]

I tried that exact combination 2 days ago with he Luke and Grandmeister. I really liked the Luke and strongly consider adding one to the fleet. Plus the black sparkle finish matches my truck. I wasn't completely sold on the amp though. I have a tubemeister 36 and a Mark V. The mark v is my holy grail amp but I actually play my HK more. Its simple to dial in and it sounds great. I didn't really see the grand meister being a huge step up other that the effects and noise gate. But it did sound killer. I'm beginning to wonder if you got yours at the same place I tried them at?

 

[Red_Label]

I tried that exact combination 2 days ago with he Luke and Grandmeister. I really liked the Luke and strongly consider adding one to the fleet. Plus the black sparkle finish matches my truck. I wasn't completely sold on the amp though. I have a tubemeister 36 and a Mark V. The mark v is my holy grail amp but I actually play my HK more. Its simple to dial in and it sounds great. I didn't really see the grand meister being a huge step up other that the effects and noise gate. But it did sound killer. I'm beginning to wonder if you got yours at the same place I tried them at?

I suspect that we did try them at the same place... did Jay give you a quick rundown on patch changes and storing? ;-)

I've been plugging into the Tubemeisters since they've had them (I actually think I created part of the buzz for them to try them, because I'd been seeing them in ads and asking about them for a while after they were introduced). But I guess that I'd never cared for the OD tones I was hearing at the store... until yesterday when I was able to get this Grandmeister home and spend some time tweaking. I actually like the the Ultra channel with the boost on and the gain rolled all the way back. It's got a thicker tone than the lead channel.

 

[Avi8r2005]

Lol that's hilarious. You are the person I was thinking posted this. Small world. My neighbor told me you picked those 2 items up yesterday. I really liked that Luke model. I think those sterling models really give the PRS S2 models a run for their money. I was cnsidering getting an S2 cu22 until I tried the L3. It had an awesome neck shape and a little more bang for the buck. Very impressed with it.

 

[bulletproof_funk]

HNAD. Sounds like the EQ's quite flexible with a good range, one of my issues with the TM18 I had briefly. Did you change settings from an iPad? I'm wondering how well that inteface works in general.

 

[Red_Label]

Lol that's hilarious. You are the person I was thinking posted this. Small world. My neighbor told me you picked those 2 items up yesterday. I really liked that Luke model. I think those sterling models really give the PRS S2 models a run for their money. I was cnsidering getting an S2 cu22 until I tried the L3. It had an awesome neck shape and a little more bang for the buck. Very impressed with it.

Yeah, I was texting Todd my favorable impressions right off the bat. I definitely dig the guitar and the amp. I bought three Sterling basses between Thanksgiving and New Year's. And I've been very tempted to pick up one of the JP100s, especially with that series wiring deal G&A has been doing to some of them. But the 5-way switch on the Luke I think is what did it for me.

Small world indeed!

 

[Red_Label]

HNAD. Sounds like the EQ's quite flexible with a good range, one of my issues with the TM18 I had briefly. Did you change settings from an iPad? I'm wondering how well that inteface works in general.

I haven't used that, as I only have Droid devices. But it's so quick and simple to change and store patches on this thing I haven't felt like I needed a GUI.

I was watching the movie, "I Love You Man" and hearing them play Rush's "Limelight" in the man cave scene made me run into my own man cave to see how quick I could dial-up and store Alex' four different tones on the recording. 5-10 minutes later I had all of them done and VERY convincingly and was playing along. Ended up playing along with all of Moving Pictures and loving it.

 

[Red_Label]

Today I programmed all of my patches on the Grandmeister in banks 1-10 to run at 18 watts, that way they're just running current through two of the power tubes. Banks 11-20 are running the full four power tubes for 36 watts. They are programmed identical to banks 1-10, aside from the power rating. This should extend my power tube life significantly if I just use the higher banks for gigging and do daily practice on the lower banks. Should also run cooler, which should extend both tube and component life. After a while, I can swap the inner two (inactive) tubes with the outer two.

This thing is just so amazingly versatile. If it can stay reliable in the long haul this could be the coolest amp I've ever owned (including all the high-end boutique stuff I've been through). Reliability is the only concern/question for me at this point. It's a winner!

 

[treewiz]

I too have bought a Grandmeister 36 and I am finding this little GEM amazing. I have had it all like alot of you have in the amp and gear dept; I also currently own an Axe-Fx II which is great for it's modeling capability and tone. I have this amp for my tube GAS which I get every once in a while and with all the features that it has which I have been looking for in amps. I am coming off owning Marshall JVM 410h and a Mesa Boogie Mark V and I like this little devil so much better for my uses. The only gripe I am having is with the 432 MKIII foot contoller and the midi communication with an expression pedal into the pedal input, it won't work with the roland ev-5 and any preset change won't respond to the pedal position of the expression pedal where it is setting in it's position, as soon as you move the pedal it reverts to the preset's set volume in the patch. Also I wish there was a CC# to turn on and off the stomp mode. Might be better to run a volume pedal in the effects loop. I am using it in tandem with a Roland Gr 55, the amp thru a H&K 112 and the Gr 55 thru a Mackie DLM12 Pa monitor, Excellent! Good Job Hughes and Kettner!

 

[ke2]

Had a couple of hours with the GM, the matching 1x12, and an Ibanez Fireman. It could cover just about everything Very cool amp.