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timmysofttimmysoft Frets: 1962
After a week rehearsing with the Genz head, i decided that despite the fact its an incredible amp and sounds insanely good, the head and cab format, along with the weight and size just isn't going to be practical for my application. So it was back to the drawing board for a modern recording and gigging amp. I'd owned a H&K TM18 head a few years ago and loved the features and the modern tones so i started the hunt for the combo version with the 12 inch speaker. My luck was obviously in because one came up very local to me and at a killer price.

 Initial thoughts: Its so compact and lightweight, a very easy one handed lift! The cleans are great, you can get it super clean or you can dial in a little bit of breakup, either way it sounds pretty smart. The drive channel is excellent, its very modern with a wide sweep on the EQ, very easy to dial in good rock tones in seconds. The boosted drive channel is a superb tone, very defined and great for heavy palm mutes or single string riffs.  The output wattage selector works a treat, so you can mute the speaker for recording if you want or have a bit of amp for monitoring. Reverb is big sounding. 

 I think the speaker is holding the amp back a bit, i'm going to see if i can fit a neo cream back or V-Type into it and i think the cheap chinese valves aren't great either, but they're easy things to fix.


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Comments

  • Nice! Had the head version for a while but returned it in a week. Other people make them sound great, but i just couldn't get along with the EQ. Maybe I'll give it another go one day.
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  • Yeah, the speaker is definitely the weak link. I got one recently as a compact home & gigging solution and I really wanted to love it but I just couldn't live with the speaker. Through a 2x12 with V30s it sounded a million times better.
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  • normula1normula1 Frets: 639
    Just before I sold my GM36 I put the stock Chinese valves back in and I reckon they sounded better than the ones I'd replaced them with. 
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  • timmysofttimmysoft Frets: 1962
    I'm definitely changing the speaker and valves out this weekend, i don't think they are bad for budget units, but i know i have better stuff! Planning on dropping in TAD EL84(CZ) paired with Ruby Tubes Select 12AX7's and then whacking a Celestion V Type. 

     I really like the EQ, but i used the same EQ settings on clean, crunch & lead on any amp, so the shared EQ is just fine for me!

     
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  • JetfireJetfire Frets: 1687
    I have the grandmiester and its really, really good. Whenever I think about changing to a Helix system for whatever reason I think of this week I change my mind after a gig with it as decent stage volume. My only gripe it that it does glassy fender tones but not the deeper ones on a clean channel.

    One thing to say its really responsive to different pick ups and guitars, which could be a huge pain in the ass if you chop and change guitars alot.
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  • normula1normula1 Frets: 639
    I really wanted to like my GM36 but I just couldn't get on with the EQ and the loop is pre the built in fx so is useless for a looper.
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  • timmysofttimmysoft Frets: 1962
    Did my mods to the TM18 combo today:

    - new power valves, TAD CZ
    - new pre amp valves, Ruby Premium Selects
    - new speaker, Celestion V-type
    - foamed the bottom and back of the internal cab walls.

    Huge difference in tone! The cleans are now deeper and break up a little bit later. Crunch is now usable! It's made the crunch slightly thicker and less fizzy, a bit more vintage sounding! The lead channel is now sublime, very much like channel 3 of my old trilogy now.

    its hard to tell which elements had the biggest result, I'd guess it's the speaker and the foam, although  you can definitely hear there's more quality and balance to the tones now.
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  • JetfireJetfire Frets: 1687
    I for one would have been interested in an A/B with old valves and the new valves.. 

    Glad you're happy though. I find the crunch channel is only any cop with really hot humbuckers or my tele 
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  • darcymdarcym Frets: 1297
    so what will happen with the Genz head ?
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  • timmysofttimmysoft Frets: 1962
    darcym said:
    so what will happen with the Genz head ?
    I'm selling it off! @darcym . It's a great amp, but with a cab it's just too much for me to store and take to rehearsals.
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  • timmysofttimmysoft Frets: 1962
    Changed the Ruby’s out, they were slightly microphonic at high volume. Dropped in some EHX 12ax7s and I think it’s now complete! 

    The ultimate versatile, compact rig for both live and recording 

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