For Sale/Trade: Tone King Imperial MkII ... looking for a blackface Princeton Reverb

smogfalls

Preferably looking to trade this for either a blackface 60's Fender Deluxe Reverb or a 60's blackface Princeton Reverb...
or also possibly a Morgan PR12 or Louis Electric Columbia... nothing else whatsoever though!

This amp is in totally mint condition... I bought it brand new from Coda music in January this year! Also includes a gorgeous, high quality black cover courtesy of "hotcovers".  Comes with original footswitch and box too!
Gorgeous black and creme colour scheme.

Will sell for £1750


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Cheers,
Alex

Lebarque

Bump for an amazing amp. Best 'Blackface' tone I've ever played, that's for sure. Is it not floating your boat?

smogfalls

Thanks dude. Oh it really is very much floating my boat, and I wouldn't let it go for anything other than a vintage Deluxe Reverb. I'm only putting this out there as a feeler on the off chance that someone has a 60's DR they're willing to let go of... But those are so scare that in all likelihood this amp will probably stay put, and I'm fine with that.

Dominic

Out of interest I see you have it sat alongside the ubiquitous Lazy J

How does it compare soundwise when side by side ?

what comparison between the " dirty " side and the Lazy j with a hair on it ?

Interested to know how the Tweed sound from the Tone King compares

StuartMac290

Interested in a cash price?

smogfalls

@StuartMac290 ; afraid not matey, not selling this amp as I really do love it. Just seeing if there are any 60's Deluxe Reverbs out there really. If none come up in a trade, then I'm more than happy to stick with the tone king.

@Dominic  ; that's a tricky question really, as sound is so subjective. To be honest, I haven't really explored the lead channel of the Imperial very much, and I must've logged hundreds of gigs and sessions on the lazy j so I know that amp inside out. My gut instinct is that the Lazy J is better at the tweed sound, and has a much more direct and fast attack to it's feel. I feel like the mids on the lead channel of the imeprial are pushed a little too hard for playing solo or at home. But in a band mix, it would cut beautifully. Where-as the Lazy J sounds amazing in either scenario really, although sometimes lacks a bit of bass for my tastes.

But this is all so changeable. Currently I'm doing some americana/roots/country session work where the Lazy J sounds amazing with some hair on it... just perfect with the Tele bridge pickup. But the shimmer and fuller bass of the imperial's rhythm channel works nicer for the clean lead/rhythm playing.

The Lazy J is just awesome for my Jazz duet gigs, accompanying a female singer. Just the warmest, most dynamic tone I could imagine for that.

So, as you can see, I really love both amps and just happen to know the Lazy J more as I've used it for 2 years straight. The imperial is an amazing amp and will give you one thing that the Lazy cannot... that scooped, blackface tone with extra sparkle and a deeper bass. But the lead channel doesn't beat the Lazy J in my opinion.

Cheers,
Alex

JohnPerry

I can testify that a bearfoot syod3 into a vintage deluxe reverb can sound very very close to a J20

Dominic

Thanks Alex - answers a lot of questions for me

WillEdmunds

That does look very cool indeed!

ruoma

Thanks Alex, I'm looking for that exact slightly scooped clean sound to complement my j20 too! Gonna check out this one and the Rambler! Good luck with the trade!

StuartMac290

I used to use an Imperial and a Lazy J20 live for a clean / dirty set up. It's an amazing live rig.

ruoma

StuartMac290 said:

I used to use an Imperial and a Lazy J20 live for a clean / dirty set up. It's an amazing live rig.

What do you use now then?

StuartMac290

Just the Imperial if I can wind the clean channel up a bit to match the volume of the lead channel, or a Black Cat 30 for bigger halls, sometimes a Sportsman for smaller venues, and sometimes the Sportsman with the Imperial - which is a really lovely setup.

Pound for pound the Imperial is possibly my favourite amp

Gassage

I have 2 TKs.

I've owned a vintage 66 Deluxe reverb (with a JBL D120F!)

My advice- the TK blows the Deluxe into christendom.

StuartMac290

The Imperial really is a pretty incredible amp - especially when you factor in the bizarrely maligned lead channel.

smogfalls

Thanks for the advice, I really appreciate it and will almost for certain end up keeping the imperial.
I do really love the MkII but I played a studio's 66 deluxe on a session a couple of weeks ago and it's been haunting me ever since. I honestly can't get the sound out of my head. I made an iPhone recording of it and everytime I listen back, there's just something drawing me to that tone.
There was just something much more lively in the attack and bloom of the notes that it's extremely hard to put into language. To my ears it was some midrange content that just helped to push the deluxe that little bit further when you needed it. My drip edge Princeton Reverb also has it to some extent too and it's just a feel and response that I know and connect so well with. The tone King also has a really great feel, but it's certainly different.
But, unless a blackface deluxe reverb comes along, the Tone King isn't going anywhere.
Cheers,
Alex

Wazmeister

That 'bloom' you talk about is (I think) the one that haunts me too, and is the 'sound in my head'.

I realised it onyl twice; Carr Slant 6v, Redplate Blackverb.

Good luck with the search Alex !

glt56

I've got a J20 and an original '65 Deluxe Reverb and have gigged both.  For me, the Deluxe definitely has more of that classic glassy "bloom" you refer to, and certainly more headroom. However, I gig the J20 more as it has just has such amazing "growl and bite" (the musical equivalent of a Rotweiller!) when pushed, especially with the Frailin P90's on my Fano JM6... love it!  By the way, neither are going anywhere... oh, and please excuse the mess:

smogfalls

@wazmeister I'm glad you can sympathise!
The Carr Sportsman I bought from you and gigged with for 2 years actually had the same kinda feel, so I wouldn't be surprised to hear that the Slant does too. Only ever played red plates in the demo room at Coda, and they didn't really do anything for me. I thought they felt quite stiff and sounded a bit boxy. But I'm sure they could sound awesome in a different room!

@glt56 that's a beautiful amp combination right there my friend! For me too, the lazy J is my main gigging amp. Wish I had that 65 deluxe of yours though! Gorgeous!!

ruoma

glt56 said:

I've got a J20 and an original '65 Deluxe Reverb and have gigged both.  For me, the Deluxe definitely has more of that classic glassy "bloom" you refer to, and certainly more headroom. However, I gig the J20 more as it has just has such amazing "growl and bite" (the musical equivalent of a Rotweiller!) when pushed, especially with the Frailin P90's on my Fano JM6... love it!  By the way, neither are going anywhere... oh, and please excuse the mess:

I once played a jm6 with fralin p90's into my j20 and indeed, what a sound!!! With a cruiser, it gave me the most awesome sounding fuzz tone, so powerful! Do you think it's the p90's or the fano? I would assume the pickups?

glt56

Bit of both I think, the set neck and Korina helps too