5E3 attenuator recommendations

[burner]

Looking for opinions on an attenuator for a 5E3 Deluxe combo...

I dont have any experience attenuating smaller amps as I've never really used an attenuator for anything but big Brittish heads...and some i liked better than others.
(Hotplate, Powerbrake, Ultimate)

I do not currently own an attenuator of any type and I am NOT necessarily looking for re-amp capability, as this particular 5E3 will never need to be any louder than stock.

Possibly looking at the smaller attenuators which can be cabinet mounted.
That would be a nice option....if any of those actually sound decent, yanno.

Interested in hearing opinions from anyone who has experience w/ attenuating the 5E3 and which ones you've found most acceptable....obviously le$$ would be good, if there are any that sound acceptable, of course.
Thanx

 

[borducks]

I run my Pro Tube Super through a Weber Mass and think it sounds great. I don’t use the line out or reamp, but it works great for mic’ing it up for home recording. Switchable impedance too so it works with almost any amp.

 

[ablue]

Looking for opinions on an attenuator for a 5E3 Deluxe combo...

I dont have any experience attenuating smaller amps as I've never really used an attenuator for anything but big Brittish heads...and some i liked better than others.
(Hotplate, Powerbrake, Ultimate)

I do not currently own an attenuator of any type and I am NOT necessarily looking for re-amp capability, as this particular 5E3 will never need to be any louder than stock.

Possibly looking at the smaller attenuators which can be cabinet mounted.
That would be a nice option....if any of those actually sound decent, yanno.

Interested in hearing opinions from anyone who has experience w/ attenuating the 5E3 and which ones you've found most acceptable....obviously le$$ would be good, if there are any that sound acceptable, of course.
Thanx

I kind of depends how much you want to attenuate as to what to use. The tweed deluxe and open back are pretty loud when giving up the goods.The hot plate might even fit in the back. The Scumback limitER worked better at higher level of attenuation.
I rotated my tweed deluxe to storage in favor of the vox ac15hw . Less efficient speakers can help get you there too .

 

[vladimirwolfe]

Not sure if it's enough for a deluxe but I've used a Swart Nightlight on a Tweed Harvard and it worked fairly well but only on the least attenuated step. YMMV

 

[deech54]

A 5e3 has a built in attenuator, it's the volume knob on the unused channel.

 

[burner]

I kind of depends how much you want to attenuate as to what to use. The tweed deluxe and open back are pretty loud when giving up the goods.The hot plate might even fit in the back. The Scumback limitER worked better at higher level of attenuation.
I rotated my tweed deluxe to storage in favor of the vox ac15hw . Less efficient speakers can help get you there too .

I reckon I should've mentioned that...
I'm not looking for an attenuator to bring it down to whisper or so-called "bedroom" levels.
I'd like to estimate HALF volume, perhaps, but I honestly don't know if that's correct, lol.....probably not THAT much.

 

[Borealis]

The Tone King Iron Man II Mini works very well with amps up to 30W - 8 Ohm only. It also works as a footswitchable dB-boost.

 

[dukeh62]

The Tone King Iron Man II Mini works very well with amps up to 30W - 8 Ohm only. It also works as a footswitchable dB-boost.

Another vote for the Iron Man II Mini.

 

[Tone chader]

Iron man 2 again.

 

[ablue]

Not sure if it's enough for a deluxe but I've used a Swart Nightlight on a Tweed Harvard and it worked fairly well but only on the least attenuated step. YMMV

Not sure if it's enough for a deluxe but I've used a Swart Nightlight on a Tweed Harvard and it worked fairly well but only on the least attenuated step. YMMV

Looking for opinions on an attenuator for a 5E3 Deluxe combo...

I dont have any experience attenuating smaller amps as I've never really used an attenuator for anything but big Brittish heads...and some i liked better than others.
(Hotplate, Powerbrake, Ultimate)

I do not currently own an attenuator of any type and I am NOT necessarily looking for re-amp capability, as this particular 5E3 will never need to be any louder than stock.

Possibly looking at the smaller attenuators which can be cabinet mounted.
That would be a nice option....if any of those actually sound decent, yanno.

Interested in hearing opinions from anyone who has experience w/ attenuating the 5E3 and which ones you've found most acceptable....obviously le$$ would be good, if there are any that sound acceptable, of course.
Thanx

The Tweed Harvard vintage is what got me to order a deluxe. I probably should have went smaller. A compact attenuator would work well there . The vintage speaker on the Harvard I played contributed a lot to the sound. I have used the Celestion G12 L and it is fairly inefficient but still good and lively.

 

[vladimirwolfe]

The Tweed Harvard vintage is what got me to order a deluxe. I probably should have went smaller. A compact attenuator would work well there . The vintage speaker on the Harvard I played contributed a lot to the sound. I have used the Celestion G12 L and it is fairly inefficient but still good and lively.

Yeah, the Harvard really has it's own thing going on and you're spot on about the speaker. I had tried replacing the original P10R with a broken in Celestion Gold but it just wasn't anywhere near as good to my ear.

 

[thosk]

Best solution I've found for lowering the volume on my cranked tweeds without loss of tone or dynamics is, hands down, the Fryette Power station.

 

[bobcs71]

Not sure if it's enough for a deluxe but I've used a Swart Nightlight on a Tweed Harvard and it worked fairly well but only on the least attenuated step. YMMV

I've used that attenuator on a 15 watt Ampeg.

 

[gibson3798]

I have a Swart NiteLite installed in a Tungsten Cortez that I have for sale. It works well.

 

[abby_normal]

My Clark 5e3 Beaufort came with a Clark passive attenuator installed which lowers the output by 3, 6, or 9 dB. When I first got the amp I used it a lot, but not so much lately. Like said above use the other volume knob to adjust the output, it kind of works. Anyways, I can get the amp sounding good and not too loud without the attenuator. Don’t forget about using your guitar’s volume knob, too.

 

[monkmiles]

I have a Swart Night Light Jr on my Richter 5E3. I don't need it when playing with the band but I use it playing at home all the time. It's VERY small and easy to mount. Like most attenuators, I notice some treble loss.

 

[x24gtrman]

I put a Tone Tubby Key West Alnico in my Smith Custom 15 5E3 clone and it dropped the perceived volume immensely while also yielding a smooth, silky high end and creamy break up. If I weren't gigging the amp next week I'd keep it in there but I prefer the punch and top end crispness from the WGS 12q over it. An inefficient speaker works wonders for volume control. I'm not a fan of attenuators on tube amps. Don't use the one on my gremlin.

 

[ablue]

My Clark 5e3 Beaufort came with a Clark passive attenuator installed which lowers the output by 3, 6, or 9 dB. When I first got the amp I used it a lot, but not so much lately. Like said above use the other volume knob to adjust the output, it kind of works. Anyways, I can get the amp sounding good and not too loud without the attenuator. Don’t forget about using your guitar’s volume knob, too.

My Clark has that also , even so it’s pretty loud in my house . The clean sounds are fantastic with the built in reverb.

 

[LARRY GERSHON]

Looking for opinions on an attenuator for a 5E3 Deluxe combo...

I dont have any experience attenuating smaller amps as I've never really used an attenuator for anything but big Brittish heads...and some i liked better than others.
(Hotplate, Powerbrake, Ultimate)

I do not currently own an attenuator of any type and I am NOT necessarily looking for re-amp capability, as this particular 5E3 will never need to be any louder than stock.

Possibly looking at the smaller attenuators which can be cabinet mounted.
That would be a nice option....if any of those actually sound decent, yanno.

Interested in hearing opinions from anyone who has experience w/ attenuating the 5E3 and which ones you've found most acceptable....obviously le$$ would be good, if there are any that sound acceptable, of course.
Thanx

The Tone king Ironman II is the best attenuator out there.

 

[DewieCox]

Swart Night Light works very well in my Trem Deluxe. If you’re handy with a soldering iron you can add in a jumper that gives three very useable settings. I found that 2 of the stock settings are simply more quiet than I’d ever need.