Found a Tophat Club Royale...

[AustinIsPresent]

Hey,

I was picking up earplugs at GC today and noticed something neglected off in a corner. Somebody had sold GC a Tophat, and it was sitting stacked under and behind lesser amps, not plugged in, and generally unloved. Absurd!

Here's my question: The pricetag on this little guy is $850. I played it and it sounds drop dead gorgeous, and looking at the list prices on the tophat website, it seems like it's a decent price to pay for it. Is it worth dropping the $850 for this amp? Who has one, has had one in the past, etc? Anybody want to give a quick review of the little guy and tell me where they stand? Thanks!

[ksuaggie]

I have a 2006. There's quite a bit of variance in this model as it's changed through the years. Tophat started with a tube rectifier, went to solid state and then back to tube. A master volume was added somewhere along the way, and the cab has changed. However, this does not matter, as these are great, great amps, and $850 is a steal, assuming it's in decent shape.

[DanR]

I have one. It's hard to give an appropriate tonal description, but I love mine. It's got a great chimey tone if you want that kinda thing and can be Voxey or Marshally depending on how the tone controls are set. The tone controls are effective and interactive. Mine is the older solid state rectified, shallower cabinet model.

It's my go to amp at home and I use it for gigs if the venue isn't too large. And $850 is definitely a good price.

[recordmusic]

Originally Posted by DanR

and can be Voxey or Marshally depending on how the tone controls are set.

I love my Top Hat but still don't understand this type of statement that everyone makes (not just this poster). Do you mean more mids is more Marshally and take out some mids is more Voxey? To me, both Marshall and Vox are mid voiced amps. What is your Marshall EQ settings and what are your Vox EQ settings?


Also - $850 is a very good price for 2X12. Just an average price for 1X12.

[eddie101]

rock on....

[aarondavis]

I'm not made of money and yet I can still afford everything I want/need. My 2001 Club Royale 2x12 (solid state rectifier model) is the best sounding amp at any price to me. They're very sweet sounding, tight, fat, smooth and crisp. A very nice musica compression is always involved.

As others have said: if its a 2x12 it's a great price. If it's a 1x12 that's probably fair, but you might be able to get it closer to $750.

[riffmeister]

Originally Posted by recordmusic

I love my Top Hat but still don't understand this type of statement that everyone makes (not just this poster). Do you mean more mids is more Marshally and take out some mids is more Voxey? To me, both Marshall and Vox are mid voiced amps. What is your Marshall EQ settings and what are your Vox EQ settings?

The key is in the treble control, and to a lesser extent the mid control. Past about 1 oclock, the treble control begins to reduce low mids and gain....that produces more of a "Vox" sound. Keep the treble control at lower settings and you can get more "Marshall" out of the amp. With the treble contol all the way off, the amp still has plenty of top end. With the treble at higher settings (1 oclock and beyond) a good way to control the top end is then by using the cut control. All of the action in the cut control is in the last 25-30% of its rotation. I often set the cut control by dialing it in "backwards", ie, turning it all the way up, play some notes & chords and then dialing it back to the point where the top end sounds good to me.

[AustinIsPresent]

It barely seems to have seen any use. It's got a tube rectifier and a master volume. I'll keep the good words in mind and see if I can pick it up!

[Garygtr]

I'm a big Top Hat fan and encourage you to buy that amp! That would be a good price on a 1x12, and a killer price on a 2x12. You can get a lot of info and opinions over at http://www.tophatamps.com/forum/

[welcometoashley]

Originally Posted by Garygtr

I'm a big Top Hat fan and encourage you to buy that amp! That would be a good price on a 1x12, and a killer price on a 2x12. You can get a lot of info and opinions over at http://www.tophatamps.com/forum/

+1. that's a killer price....

[I'm Incinerator]

That is a great price on the CR!

I've had my 04 tube rectified 2x12 CR for 3+ years and it always brings a smile to my face.

[jimmyj]

Yes, if it's tube rectified that's a very good price. Mine is about 3 years old and it's my "amp I'll never sell".
I think there is a tag inside the cabinet that will give the date it was made. If it has Tung Sol preamp tubes it might the latest model they've made for about 3 years. That has a different kind of rectifier tube and a heftier transformer. Mine is that model and I think it's the perfect size amp for gigs, large or small, miced of course.

[HHB]

Club Royale are the shit

[eddie101]

Originally Posted by AustinIsPresent

Hey,

I was picking up earplugs at GC today and noticed something neglected off in a corner. Somebody had sold GC a Tophat, and it was sitting stacked under and behind lesser amps, not plugged in, and generally unloved. Absurd!

Here's my question: The pricetag on this little guy is $850. I played it and it sounds drop dead gorgeous, and looking at the list prices on the tophat website, it seems like it's a decent price to pay for it. Is it worth dropping the $850 for this amp? Who has one, has had one in the past, etc? Anybody want to give a quick review of the little guy and tell me where they stand? Thanks!

Is it 1x12, 2x12 or just a head?

[zsno]

I wouldn't say it was a killer price, as I had one in the emporium for that price that didn't get a cash sale, and I've seen several others recently on here for that price. So not a steal per se, but the amp itself is well worth it for that price.