Hello all, I'm brand new to the forum and I thought I'd share my latest fix. I bought the brand new Egnater Tourmaster 4100 from Guitar Center. When I took it home I was not happy with the tones I was getting with my Mesa Boogie 1x12 3/4 back cab. The cleans were good, but the over all gain sounds were lacking the punch and clarity that I desire. I decided to take the head over to my local Bogner dealer to try the amp out with a few Bogner cabs.... Wow! What a difference. With the Egnater through the Bogner 4x12 cab loaded with Vintage 30s, the sound was rich, woody, huge, cello like, with tons of sustain and plenty of low end punch. The amp stacked up to the Bogner XTC they had at the store. I used to think the Bogner XTC was my dream amp (and maybee it still is), but what I was really digging this entire time was the sound of that Bogner 4x12. So how did the Eggy and XTC compare? First and formost the Egnater did not have quite as much squish as the bogner. Second, the Bogner was a little easier to play (smoother?) However, these were very subtle differences. This Egnater definatly has the lower mid range voicing of the Bogner. Not to mention the Egnater can sound more agressive than the Bogner because of the countour knob that is on each channel. This knob basically cuts a bit of the mids out (kinda like the Mesa Mark IV eq when set in a V position). Now, I dont think the Egnater is going to give you the atuthentic plexi tones that the XTC delivers while in plexi mode. Then again, I havn't spent enough time with the Bogner 4x12. I can get some very nice mid-gain ...mid drenched AC/DC sound out of the Eggy. On the flip side, I thought the Egnater has supierior clean tones. Although not suprising since the Eggy has 5881 tubes in it and the Boggy has el34s. The Egnater also has more options with the channal assignable power scaling modes. The options are as follows...100 watts, 50 watts, 25 watts, 20 watts, and 10 watts. So, a 50 watt clean chanal and a 10 watt gain channal for power tube saturation it a nice feature. The series or parralell l effects loop feature is great, and sounds awesome too. For 1399, I'm very happy, and since I can't carry a 4x12, I'm getting a Bogner cube 1x12, which also sounds amazing with the Egnater. I wonder how it sounds with EL-34 tubes?? Chase
Buckeyedog, Excellent point! I remember reading about this a couple weeks back. What was the optimal Bias point you said again? Was it 135? Also, how exaclty does it change the tone of the amp? What tonal characteristics does it bring out? Chase
In my Mod 50 manual, it recommends 5881's from 28 to 35 each, so multiply by 4 (116 to 140). I'd start at like 32 each or 128 for your head. If it's too cold, it can sound kind of flat and lifeless and if it's too hot, it can sound good, but can maybe get a bit mushy by driving the power tubes too hard and they can wear out sooner. Sometimes guys like to run 'em hot, but will replace them more often. I'm usually a middle of the road guy where they sound good, yet last a long time. Check it out at different levels and you can get a good handle on what you like. Oh, and another guy on here tried the EL34's in his tourmaster and liked them a bit better than the 5881's. You just have to try them.
I came very close to buying the Egnater Tourmaster 4100, but ultimately settled on a used Bad Cat Tone Cat. That said, I was and still am very impressed with the Egnater. I was able to try it through the matching cab with V30's, which might explain why it sounded so good when you tried it through the Bogner cabs. If I wasn't so enamoured with the Tone Cat, the Egnater would be sitting here with me now. The thing I noticed most was how big the clean channel sounded. Very forward sounding with loads of presence. As far as the crunch and overdrive channels are concerned, I found them extremely usable. Lots of body. Nice low end and clear mids and highs. I'd be curious to see how it sounds with EL34's and compare it to my Tone Cat's overdrive channel. After I feed my Alessandro jones, I may pick one of these up. For studio work and small clubs, the "Power Scaling" options would be invaluable. People looking at Marshall JVM, EVH 5150III and Mesa amps should check this out too.
Here's a clip I found on youtube. I wish he would have switched channels, but this will give a bit of an idea as to how the amp sounds. http://youtube.com/watch?v=w5hvme7JsCI
Yea man, the Egnater head the I bought was at the same Rockville store that you had mentioned a while back. The one I have is probabaly the exact one that you played. I also played the Tone Cat that was there and I agree it sounded awesome. However, i was looking for a 6l6 styled amp, and the Bad Cat was a bit pricey for me. I tried the Tourmaster at the store with a Mesa 2x12 (which i think had v30s), and then I tried it with the 4x12 Egnater cab w/ vintage 30s. Through the Mesa cab i wasn't in love with it and was ready to pass it up. However through the egnater cab it was everything i hoped it could be. For 699, the cabs are a greal deal. The thing is, I felt the Bogner 4x12 sounded even better (I love love love bogner tones though). Yet, 4x12s are way to much cab for me, I have to have something more practical. Chase
Thank you soooo sooo soooo much for this info. Now I'm really curious to see if mine is biased a bit "cold". Is this something one could do on there own or should I just take it to a local tech? How much do you think a tech would charge for this service? Chase
Honestly, Bruce normally makes them very easy to bias. My guess is you just need a multi meter and a small screwdriver to adjust the bias pot. Check out the manual and see if it tells you how. If not, just call the Shop next week when they are back from NAMM. In my opinion, you should learn how to do it yourself as it normally takes a few minutes and will save you $$. My Mod 50 is so easy to bias it's rediculous. Takes all of about 1 or 2 minutes. Makes power tube swapping a breeze and tons of fun!! Dude, just found it. Go to page 17-18 in the manual and it tells you how. If you don't have it, just go to the Egnater website and you can check out the manul there. Good luck and let us know how it works out. It really is quite easy. If you need some specific help, feel free to pm me anytime.
The Egnater 4x12 cabinet with Celestion Vintage 30's from GC or MF, is now priced at $599. !!!!! Also, Musicians Friend has some blem Egnater heads for $1069....with free shipping. I ordered mine yesterday.
