Original Hughes & Kettner Tubemeister 18 $350?

[Aceman]

Thoughts? Comments? Opinions?

[justFred]

https://reverb.com/price-guide/guide/3574

[allstarrme]

That’s not a bad price for one, my buddy has one he plays out on regularly and it sounds good. Used with the right speaker and some better tubes they sound really good. V30’s and stock tubes they can be very bright and beamy.

When they went to the TubeMeister 20 deluxe they added a cathode follower to the circuit to give it a more classic sound and voiced it closer to the TriAmp Mk3 2b channel for the lead. The difference is kind of subtle but the newer ones are a bit warmer.

Also the newer ones have an updated redbox di. It seems the 18’s and some of the 36’s even aren’t holding their price as well since the 20’s and 40 deluxe’s came out.

I have a whole bunch of them, mostly the newer versions but I have one 5 watt older one too still. I use the TubeMeister and grandmeister to play out with, since we mic up everything through the pa I usually get away with 20 watts for stage volume.

The 5 and 1 watt settings are great for practice at lower volume without waking the neighbors while still getting a decent sound. They are a bit more on the modern side, but still sound great and are super portable.

The new ones are still a bit bright, but they don’t get as lost in the mix as a Marshall dsl or my Carvin v3 would. Keeps up with a 6505 just fine. Cuts through great with a JB and has a very good clean channnel too.

[Aceman]

This has brand new JJ Tubes

I'll take less classic and more modern....Red box works - all I care about. I have a new one if I need "new"

[Diego]

That head is excellent IMO if you're into that kind of saturated, thick modern tone. It's damn good at that. It's got legit cleans, no idea how they hold up when cranked tho. No experience with the newer ones here. You can always flip it if it doesn't work for you, which would be odd.

I say go for it.

[SAguitar]

I have a friend who owns a Marshall and a Splawn, but shows up most of the time with that little H&K Tubemeister 18. He gets what he wants out of it, and it's so darn easy to take with ya.

[Little Pigbacon]

I have the anniversary edition, and it’s a solid little amp. It’s modern and kind of hi-fi. It doesn’t sound like a clone of anything I’m familiar with, which means I don’t compare it with other amps that way. The Tubemeister 18 is the best Tubemeister 18 out there.

[Empty Pockets]

They are way too 80s sounding for me so I imagine they're perfect for you.

[Aceman]

Deal has been made. Ability to play it, test it, and no shipping > small extra cost.

Stay tuned for the Blue Light Special!!!! Gonna be a week or so until I get to it.


I'm really feeling some of that Dot Studio or 339 through this....

[Demanic]

Deal has been made. Ability to play it, test it, and no shipping > small extra cost.

Stay tuned for the Blue Light Special!!!! Gonna be a week or so until I get to it.


I'm really feeling some of that Dot Studio or 339 through this....

Or bad Kitty.

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[Aceman]

Meister-Bad Kitty

[Demanic]

Meister-Bad Kitty

Eagerly awaiting a clip

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[Aceman]

Gonna be next week before I can get it. Hope it's still there....talked to the owner guy. But CL means who knows!

[Aceman]

So far have not heard back for Tubemeister guy....still hope.

[Aceman]

Just texted! Back in business....

[Diego]

I'll be very surprised if you don't like that amp, man.
It's a damn good piece of gear and I actually went back and forth about replacing my Tweaker with it a few years ago.

If you want a more "classic" driven tone out of it, you can always Marshall it up with your Joyo Us Dream or another pedal that has some of that going on.
But as you probably already know, that amp wants to go really heavy and saturated.

[Aceman]

And this just in!

[Aceman]

So, like between those two I have:

5 flavors of clean channel, at 1, 5, 18, 50, or 100 watts
5 flavors of dirt, at 1, 5, 18, 50, or 100 watts, plus bold/spongy and tube/silicon rectifiers on the 50/100 levels

If I can't find a happy tone for the occasion there, well, I just suck!


Early HK Impressions: Thick, clean, interesting controls. I like it! Plus, cool blue light!

* First trip out was using Duncan 103 neck and JB8 Bridge.

[Aceman]

FYI the JJ tubes in this thing apparently juice it quite a bit compared to the regular ones. No wonder I love it. Girlfriend also really loves the 1 watt option!!!

So much win in this thing! I'll see about a sound clip a little later today....