The Hughes & Kettner User Forum

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The Hughes & Kettner User Forum

The Unofficial guitar amp and cabinets forum for users of Hughes and Kettner products. We are not affiliated with Hughes and Kettner!!


2 posters

    NAD! Grandmeister 36

    Egads
    Egads


    Posts : 88
    Join date : 2014-05-26

    NAD! Grandmeister 36 Empty NAD! Grandmeister 36

    Post by Egads Tue May 27, 2014 10:03 am

    Hey Guys,

    Thanks for setting up this forum, and for the information. I'm excited to see the forum grow.

    I just got my GM a couple days ago...but I haven't received my FSM 432 Mk III, yet. I've used the amp for one rehearsal (rock/alternative) and a few hours of solo jamming. I've been running the head through a custom 1x12 with a WGS Reaper and the 1x12 cab of my Mesa Lonestar combo. I'm loving the amp, and it sounds great through both cabs. Both are open back, but the cab I built is convertible. I haven't closed it up with the GM, yet (I like the room bleed with the back open).

    I have a very split personality when it comes to amps. I go from easy gigging (some might read that as "lazy") channel changing, full featured amps for a few years, then I go back to single channel "pure" amps. So, I've been playing a THB BiValve and a Nace M1-18R for a while. For the GM, I traded in a Mesa TA-15 and a Carvin V3M. Both amps very gathering dust for a while. I'm really hoping the GM can replace a couple dirt pedals, a reverb, delay, boost, and maybe a volume pedal, if I can make the expression pedal work well.

    I'm looking forward to picking up some good info here and providing info on my experiences, too.
    yoMuzicMan
    yoMuzicMan


    Posts : 61
    Join date : 2014-05-11
    Location : Colorado

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    Post by yoMuzicMan Tue May 27, 2014 10:26 am

    I'm also coming from a Carvin V3M. I had it paired with a Carvin 2x12 cabinet. I used it with a Boss GT-10 for reverb, delay, and EQ. Also used Palmer PDI-09 to run direct to the FOH. I could never get the dirty channels on the V3M to my liking without a lot of external EQ, but I got it close.

    With the GM36, I have a much cleaner setup with just the head, TM112 cabinet, and the FSM (no more 4 cable method). And the sounds are much more to my liking than I got with the V3M.

    I've already had a practice and gig with my band using the new GM36 setup, and it's working just as I hoped. I'll probably put the V3M and other old gear on Craigslist soon once I get a little more confidence in the GM36 setup.
    Egads
    Egads


    Posts : 88
    Join date : 2014-05-26

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    Post by Egads Tue May 27, 2014 10:33 am

    I hear you on the V3M. I think it was a short-sighted move on Carvin's part to have the two drive channels be the same gain. I had to run one with almost no input gain to be able to create a crunch channel, and it just never responded well to that. There was no sensitivity. I ended up using for about four months before going back to a single channel amp (the Nace, which is an amazing amp, too).

    Glad to hear a gig went well with the GM. Are you using an iPad with it?
    yoMuzicMan
    yoMuzicMan


    Posts : 61
    Join date : 2014-05-11
    Location : Colorado

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    Post by yoMuzicMan Tue May 27, 2014 11:27 am

    Yeah, I think the V3M is a good metal amp, but that's not me.

    I don't use an iPad. I hope someday H&K will create a Windows app to talk to the head via MIDI and provide similar functionality to the iPad application.
    Egads
    Egads


    Posts : 88
    Join date : 2014-05-26

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    Post by Egads Thu May 29, 2014 11:16 pm

    Got the FS! in the mail today. I didn't have much time before rehearsal, so I didn't spend much time with the presets. I saved up a couple cleans, dirties, and a couple leads. It's going to take a little time to really dial in levels and depth, but I think it's going to really rock. The foot controller makes all the difference with the amp!

    A couple thoughts: I'm excited to try an expression pedal for volume and tone. I hope I can make it work for what I need.

    I think I will also add an single button pedal to toggle the boost on and off. I found myself wanting to kick the boost on quite often.

    I think I'm really going to love this amp.
    Egads
    Egads


    Posts : 88
    Join date : 2014-05-26

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    Post by Egads Sun Jun 01, 2014 1:30 am

    I also wanted to share my speaker cab experience so far. I've played it through a Mesa Lonestar 1x12 with the c-90 speaker and it was good. For so many other amps, I love this cab and speaker combo. It was good, but not amazing with the Grandmeister.

    On Thursday, I played it through my Nace cab, with a Jensen Blackbird, which is another amazing speaker. Again, it sounded good.

    Tonight, I played it through a Mesa 1x12 ported thiele cab with a vintage 30. It was glorious! I haven't loved this cab before this amp, but now, wow! I understand why H&K are stocking Vin 30s with the associated 2x12. They are a good match.

    I built a hardwood 1x12 based on the thiele cab, but with a WGS high power Reaper. I'll be hitting that up tomorrow. I'll let you know how it sounds.

    Of course, take everything above with the understanding that I am still learning the amp. That could have had an impact on how well the amp paired with any cab.
    yoMuzicMan
    yoMuzicMan


    Posts : 61
    Join date : 2014-05-11
    Location : Colorado

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    Post by yoMuzicMan Sun Jun 01, 2014 8:32 am

    I was on the fence about getting the H&K TM112 with the V30. I don't like brittle or harsh sounding distortion which I heard the V30 can produce. I prefer a warm tone, and honestly wanted to get a Mesa Lonestar from the reviews I had read. It was just too expensive for me. Anyhow, I think the GM36 and H&K V30 cab sound wonderful together. I can get the warm sound I'm looking for. It's warm but not muffled.

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