Some background about me/this opinion for those new to the channel: I’m 51. I’ve been doing this a while but I’m not exactly old. I was a technical escalations specialist for IBM, then a network contractor for the Navy, then did freelance IT/database/web development. Then I designed and built my own line of guitar pedals using cutting edge opamps running at 30V rail to rail from a 9V DC supply, with all switching done by optocouplers. All the while I worked on tube amps and eventually focused on amp design, restoration, and repair. I have played hundreds of restored vintage Deluxe Reverbs as well as many more reissues. I know how they are supposed to sound, and I know the difference between a Deluxe Reverb compressing and a Dyna-comp. I tried this Tone Master expecting to like it. I ran through the same tonal checks on this I do with all Deluxe Reverbs. Full chords, double stops, complex chords, open and fretted strings, and testing the attack. When I discovered both channels of the Tonemaster have a much more compressed attack than any healthy Deluxe Reverb, I pointed it out. I also mentioned that this could be due to a combination of the Rev 1 firmware and the N12K speaker, and the amps with the Rev 2 firmware and the Neo Creamback might not have this problem. I recorded this opinion in 4K at 24fps on an iPhone 13 Pro then AirDropped the files to an M1 MacBook Pro 16. Editing was done in Premiere Pro and in Logic Pro. The thumbnail was done in Photoshop and Illustrator. I uploaded it at a local coffee shop with 5G WiFi. And then I read I’m “just another old man who doesn’t understand technology .”

I've been gigging for 58 years using mostly Fender B.F. Fender ampd or Boutique, Marshall.... . I severely injured my back four years ago. I'm 70 years old, I've played all types of music but I mostly play blues. I can no longer do regular gigs but I show up at my jam jam night that I hosted for many years. A friend is hosting it for me now. I go once a week and I can only play for an hour, that's all my back can take. Anyhow (finally), I bought a Tonemaster DR right after my injury because of the weight. I started going back to my jam night about a year ago. I'd bring my 1965 Deluxe Reverb, 66Vibrolux or 66 Super. About 3 months ago I figured I'd try the Tonemaster. Well I'm thrilled with it. I run it at the second click, I believe 12 watts. It sounds just as good as my real DR. It really needs to be cranked to get a good sound. In the house it's kinda blah but playing at a volume of around 6-7 with a 335 it's a great little amp. It was going to change the Jensen to a Celestion but at louder volume I'm very satisfied with the amp and the speaker. It definitely has more headroom than the regular DR. Anyhow, playing with a 4-5 piece band is the only way to really test the amp out. Playing in a little practice room at a music store isn't fair to demo the amp. I am kind of embarrassed with the Tonemaster name plate on the front but it's not fair to remove it. I get many compliments on my tone with the amp. ......and I'm a Tube Snob!

"It gets small when it should get big" Thats what she said.

i own the TM deluxe blonde for over 6 months. and it can get loud as shit i gig 2 to 4 times a week and love it and I'm a tube snob. even outdoors i use the 12-watt setting.

Awesome, thank you for this. I am 48, have played (poorly) for 29 years, and never owned a tube amp (yet). I bought the Tone Master Deluxe Reverb blonde over a year ago and I love it. I didn't do a direct comparison with the tube version, as I wanted the attenuator on the back - I only play at home (with close neighbours). The TM works great for me in my home setting, takes my pedals well, but I can understand why others might prefer the tube version. Cheers!

Thank you for the review/demonstration, finaly someone who plays the same notes on the same strings to compare the channels. Love your playing and vids, keep up the good work.

I enjoy your videos. Great job as always!

Glad you've gotten to try out the TMDR v1...😎👍 Now for v2🤣😎👍 Hoping to see if you get these in the shop for repairs/upgrades and if/what can be done with them 😉😎👍 Thanks for your honest review... I for one appreciate your input very much😎👍

Great video, sir. I have a Tone Master Deluxe that I love. I heard about you on @The Guitar Amp Tech, another great channel where I have learned a lot. Thank you!

I love your channel and reviews, insight and opinion. Its important to listen to others. I come here for no bs anaylsis of shit im looking into !!!!

Love my Tonemaster Deluxe Reverb, had it for 2 years now and my Hot Rod Deluxe sits in the studio. No problems loading in and out because of the light weight. My sound guy loves the DI output, 1 less mic on stage. I added the tilt back legs so I can hear myself so no need to take my tilt amp stand. Overall a great amp.

Howdy everyone. Just my thoughts on this amp. I've owned it and gigged with it for about a year. I have 40 + years stage experience and I think it's sounds pretty darn good. It has a great clean tone and the few pedals that I do use sound pretty good thru this amp. I have a boogie and peavey tube amps and the heat always 🔥 worries me. Plus the tone of your guitar changes throughout the night as those tube continue to get hot. I like my tone to stay steady and consistent. I like to end with sound I started with. I use single coil and humbucking guitars 🎸 and I think this amp delivers every time I use it. I knew I wasn't buying a tube amp when I bought it. I bought the amp for all the features that it has and my 57 year old back appreciates the weight of this amp. The compliments people give me on my playing, and I do get lot, focus on the music that I create with my instruments and not necessarily on the instruments themselves . I learned a long time ago that most of the time your individual performance and the people in front of you, are more important than equipment you have behind you. It really is important to remember all amplifiers are unique and special in there own way . Just respect the differences for what they are and make good music with what you have. Comparing and judging this and that all the time takes away from the magic of making music. Just my thoughts.....peace my brothers and sisters and rock on.

I like your new phone/laptop/camera set up! You know your stuff. I appreciate this demo and the store for the gear hookup. My first set up age 16 was a Kingston 2 pickup $29 (Eckerds drug store) and a Silvertone 1482 $80 ish ( Christmas gift from Dad). Today’s $ = $952 As a kid I would be over the moon with this gear.

Great review. And when I tried it out I thought it was my older than you lead guitar player damaged hearing. My old 1978 silverface DR sounds way better than the Tonemaster, cost me the same or less at the time, and only goes in to the amp tech every couple years. Has lasted me 20 years and still going strong. Keep up the excellent work sir!

Totally agree with your assessment of the stock Neo Jensen, even when it’s been broken in. The later firmware helps a bit, but clean and breakup tones improved drastically when I transferred the Weber Alinico P12Q copy from my 5E3 into the Tonemaster. It’s still more compressed than a good point-to-point DR, but not to a point that I would find annoying.

"And then I read I’m “just another old man who doesn’t understand technology .” " LOL!!! That is priceless. I'm 60 and have been involved with high tech and embedded systems technology since the mid 80's but guy like you and me no nothing. :D I appreciate your candidness here. I was curious about these Tone Masters but looks like I'll be moving on.

I thought your review and opinion of this amp was dead on. You played stuff that demonstrated the shortcomings of this amp, and also played stuff that showed that it could have a good sound depending on what was being played. The "it gets small when it should get big" comment was exactly what I thought the last time I tried out a solid state Fender amp. The "ugly guitar face" comment had me laughing so hard, I had to pause the video for a few seconds! So, in summary, another informative and good video from you Mr. Psionic! But then again, what do I know. Being a little older than you, and a semi-retired electronic engineering technician, (who also builds tube amps as a hobby), I may just be another "old man who doesn't understand technology"... ;-)

Thanks for your honest opinion Lyle. I have bought amps based on your experience and recommendations and have been totally satisfied. Tonemaster's do sound good for what they are, but not quite as good as the real thing. Currently they are pushing a grand so I would rather just pay the extra for the real thing.

I recently went to a shop and got put on a Tonemaster. I straight away could tell it wasn't tube. I also tried a Pro Jr and a 68 vibro champ and loved both. They just sounded real.

i had a neo creamback in my hot rod deluxe for 3 or 4 years. i'm liking it.

I play a Tonemaster Twin for three years now at many gigs. Never sounded better. The amp replaced a Silverface pro wich was always too loud and a Silverface Princeton which could not fill the room. I tried a player strat as well. That was a really lifeless instrument. For gigging musicians like me the Tonemaster is heaven sent.

Sounds like a 50w or 100w Katana is still ahead of these... As you say these could be something special... suspect over time they will get better and better... thanks for sharing Love your channel!

"It gets small when it should get big" - That sums up every solid state amplifier I have ever played. I have a Katana 2 100w and an old Yamaha g50 112ii that I still enjoy, but nothing feels or blooms like electrons in a vacuum.

I agree with you regarding the TM Deluxe Reverb. I played one in a GC with basically the same rig as you did and was like “meh”. That was a original FW with the Neo speaker, BTW. I honestly thought the Fender GTX50 sounded better. That really is a great little practice amp, BTW. Then I saw the Super Reverb TM in GC and gave it a try. I was much more impressed with the Super. It felt more like an honest to goodness tube amp, like my one Vibroverb hand wired ‘64 reissue. It had attack, sag and bloom like a real tube amp. I don’t know if it’s close to a real tube Super but it sounds great. I bought it and gig with it now and it’s been amazing. I absolutely love the power step down but I find the 0.5 W and 1 W setting fairly useless. I.e. lifeless. I like the 5 and 12 W settings while practicing at home. 12-45 for gigs. Anyway, my $0.02.

I was in Melbourne last November, and I went out one evening to a jazz cafe. They had a nice live performance, and the guitar player was using this amp. He sounded great! It was then that I decided I need to get one of these.

I’ve been using TM Deluxe about 2 years. Does it sound exactly a tube amp? No, but close enough for rock n roll. I absolutely LOVE that it only weighs 23 pounds 🔥😎‼️

Very insightful review. I have a very similar approach to testing gear. Play softly and listen. All said and done it will never perfectly replicate its big brother because it isn't swinging 450 Volts from preamp to final. The headroom doesn't compare, hence your perfectly phrased "Gets small when it should get big" statement. On the other hand it is by no means a bad amp and will do just fine in most settings outside the studio. Maybe even better than many other solid state amps.

I always learn something from each video

Finally. Someone who addresses the attack of these amps. I bought it, upgraded it, put the neo cream in it and it still didn’t feel right. Had to return.

Always enjoy your vids and thanks for sharing again. Wondering if you can try the blonde version and seeing if you like it any better. I hear that it's a large improvement. Curious. Thanks

You are 100% correct. It gets small when it should get big!! Glad I didn't run out to buy one:))

The title alone coming from this guy meant that I could not click fast enough

"That sting is not there, it gets small when it should get big" - Deal breaker for me :) Seriously, your channel is awesome. And after that review I know exactly how the amp will feel. There are a lot of demos that make it sound great. And maybe it sounds great recorded. I was looking for a real good critic of the amp, because I wanted to buy one of the Tone Master amps. I'll try to play one in a store. Thanks for this review!

My Blonde ToneMaster Deluxe Reverb is incredible. It sounds awesome, and the light weight makes it so easy to bring along on gigs or jam sessions. The reverb is perfect, too. I've seen no need for an effects loop, as I don't play highly distorted tones.

I was going to challenge you on the few thousand amps a year but based on your bio I dunno. No doubt you have a ton of technical as well as playing experience so i found your insights to be well, refreshing actually. So thank you for your honest review

Had a tonemaster and sold it. Now Ive got a Champion 40 and can get exactly the same tones at a far cheaper price.

Good review. I own a blonde one and use it as a living room noodling amp (attenuator on the lowest wattage setting) while watching tv. Works fine for that but I would never record with it. I could make it work live if I needed to.

It’s a trade off. Super light with modern features like attenuation and direct out for a compromised tone and feel.

Great video! Since some days I am addicted to this channel. Talking about cones, what's your opinion about the widely used Celestion seventy 80 for Marshalls? It would be creat to hear you talking about some improvements that can be made, even if this is very subjective... Thanks for the channel!

Thanks for another informative video! That amp and I would never get along. I think it's more than just the speaker that's causing it to clamp down and not respond properly when you push it by plucking the strings or strumming hard.

I have had a tonemaster deluxe rev for about 6 months, almost perfect amp for me. The big miss imho was not including an effects loop. Although I knew that when I bought it.

What are some of your favorite current made speakers for a vintage 65 super reverb? I got mine with 4 modern Jensen p12rs in it. I actually like Jensen, but wondering if I would be better off swapping out some or all of them for something else. I play mostly funk, r&b, blues and reggea

i really like the tremolo and reverb on these, but thats about it. I know theres a $500 difference but I shot the TMDR out with the 68 custom DR and its a world of difference. the 68 is just so full in the exact right way you'd expect from it. the TMDR sounds about 80% there to me, but it just isn't a DR, and it won't be without some sort of extra something added to it.

Curious to hear your thoughts on the Tone Master Super Reverb.

I just recently purchased a fender champion 100 so I don’t have to use my Marshall DSL 40CR all the time but after buying the fender and liking it I noticed that it didn’t have the same sparkle on the high’s as the DSL, would you recommend new speakers and if so what kind. Mind you that I perfer the old high gain Metallica ride the lightning type sound and I understand that it’s not a tone that fender is known for. Just want to at least get closer.

I am waiting on the tone masters to flesh out and maybe include a few more models

so what are the best speakers to buy and try with fender style amps....and Marshall style amps? in your opinion

can you still jumper the channels nobody has talked about that. I mean putting the guitar into input 1 channel 1 then a 6 inch patch from preamp 1 into channel 2 the reverb side like we used to do to conture the gain.

great review. I had been put off by comments from others but I'm floater not a digger so it should be fine for me. Thanks.

You are clearly an expert with many years of experience working with this stuff. I trust your feedback. But what you said is true, some people might be perfectly happy with this amp. For their style of playing, it might be great. Not everyone needs a tube amp. I have a 50-watt 6V6 tube amp designed by Lee Jackson back in the 90's. I love it. But I spend more time playing my Boss Katana head, than anything else. It's just easier to operate, sounds great at lower volumes, and it doesn't get hot after playing it for 3 hours. Also, no tubes to wear out. I play metal, so I go back and forth between clean, and very high gain tones. I also use many different effects. A mix of a few pedals, and other stuff built-in to the Katana. Do I like the sound of the EVH 100-watt Stealth head? Absolutely. Do I want to spend $2,500 to own one? NOPE.

I liked the clean sound. Could not get it to break up or use a pedal to get a great sound ok-ish was easily obtained. Light gain or heavy just wasn’t right, Bobby. Clean was surprisingly good .

Would love to hear your thoughts on a Trainwreck circuit and build.

I have the blond TM Deluxe Reverb, and it sounds pretty much like the '71 DR which I gigged for a few years.

I have the twin,if what I'm hearing on here is sonically truthful there is a mile of difference between the deluxe tonemaster and twin. I've got plenty of amps to chose from and I'm sadly far from a snob. I'd love to own a vintage twin to compare to the supposed inferior tonemaster but it's a pipedream. Im not in a position to condemn as I do like both the weight and the sound. I recently got a Princeton 68 custom and a speaker swap improved it markedly ,the possibility of any of my amps will die a miserable death,especially if it proves impossible to repair , would play on my mind but that is a fact of life. Shiny new anything is great till it goes bad and yes old stuff behaves the same. In a perfect world we'd all be satisfied but that's not happening any time soon. Thankyou psionic for giving us your wisdom and insight,despite your thoughts Ive committed serious misjudgment in purchasing amps that I shouldn't,even though they make me happy ,short term maybe?

Thanks for your review, when I looked up the specs on the amp on Fender it actually is 100watts at 8 Ohms. I think the wattage listed on the attenuator is the tube wattage it is simulating and not the actual wattage it is running at.

Yeh. These amps sound pretty amazing. And son, having had five bad lower discs and two hip replacements ... I would really appreciate their light weight. I just wonder how long these things will take even weekend jobbing ...

I'd love to hear your take on a Jazz Chorus 40. Which is what I bought instead of a Tonemaster. I used to play a Mesa, but after the third time in the shop within a year, I thought I'd try a solid state. I've been very happy with the JC40.

Thanks for saying what my ears have been hearing. Any number of people talk about weight or convenience but I’m not buying for a second this sounds like the real thing but people buy gear whether it’s an Epiphone or a tonemaster and they’ll have plenty of things to say about why a Gibson Les Paul is a waste of money entirely there’s no difference at all. Only a cork sniffer can hear a tube vs a tone master the audience doesn’t know yada yada.

the firmware update (vintage spec) really makes the amp sound better

Where ya been, Lyle!? Nice having ya back! These amps seem like they were made for home recording through mediocre systems. The average player won’t have a problem with these. Amp and guitar snobs need not apply ;-) I DO like using the one in my local mom/pop music store to try out pedals at low volumes ,tho.

I had a Tonemaster Super Reverb for a year. I did okay clean but when i would drive it it would get fizzy. These amps are great but there is no replacing the feel and sound of tubes. I find this guy opinion to be spot on. Tonemasters are too compressed and miss the vibe that tubes give you. A boss katana artist sounds more like a tube amp than these Tonemasters. I have had both. Experienced players will miss the feeling and nuance of tubes. This guy bringa up a good point. When you dig in you can hear that compression and fizzyness. You don't keep that warm clarity and response like a tube amp. The Tonemaster almost had me sold for over a year. There were times i could get it to soyld absolutely wonderful but even through those time i always battled with my sound. Something was always missing. Tubes man! I was a believer but after jamming one of these for a year Im wishing thay i had returned it right away. I traded it in for a made in USA blues deluxe that is currently on its way and i cant wait to have some real tube tone and the feel of tubes under my finger. If you are looking to go solid state a better choice would be the katana artist or and orange super crush. Great review. Keep on rocking.

I have a Fender 50 XL. Suppose 50 watts. OK reverb and a few amp styles. It has a Celestion of some kind in it. For my casual use it seems just fine. It cost tad over $200. Great review thanks.

I agree with your assessment

It probably should be noted that the blonde version of this is considered to be the better version. Some necessary tweaks were made.

It is all about saving money on iron I have been told, and I may way be wrong, but The Blues Deluxe, and the 60watt Blues series , have the same transformers. Is that correct?

The TMTR Blonde is the benchmark TM right now! Needs more publicity!

The old Jensen Neo12-100 was a pretty decent lightweight speaker (in my limited experience) but they seem to have deliberately made a new version to sound like the K which from my understanding has only been used in recent reissues: should have tried for a higher power handling emulation of the vintage correct model maybe...it looks like they may produce a whole range judging by Jensen's website but not yet.

through the headphone I actually like my solidstate better, PR 2x10 chorus, and Frontman FM 212 both do not have that comression that I hear in that amp and I hate compression. That just does not cut it. I guess that is why so many are on the resale market.

A modeler that I never see mentioned ever is the Vox Cambridge. I'd love to try one. I've only ever seen reviews on KZfaq but I'm an AC guy and the AC30 setting sounded damned convincing

Sold my 65 reissue deluxe for the same reasons you state here. Maybe it was the C12K, maybe it was the brightness of the vibrato channel or the mundane thing of the normal channel…. Still looking for a replacement without breaking the bank, since I don’t gig out regularly enough to justify the price. I’ll keep my tweed champ clone I guess 🤷‍♂️

I have one of these on the stock firmware. I really like it. I have a Princeton/ AC15/ Blues Deville /DS40/ Blues Jr and a few other tube amps. I love them. What I don’t have is a real Deluxe Reverb. I’ll admit my ear is nowhere near his. Anyway I really love it. I think I’ll buy a real one but a 68. Just so I won’t have a TM 65 and a real 65(Reissue) Should I get a 68 you think? Oh and I have the Tonemaster Twin also. Hardly turn it on. Anyway that’s my thoughts/question. I wish I had an ear like this dude… or do I? Maybe it’s a curse lol

May I ask you a question Mr psionic? Harmony has come out with 3 new tube amps , 5 watt, 20 watt, and 50 Watt. Do you have any opinion on what the company has produced so far in their history of amps? I’m definitely thinking on purchasing the 20 watt soon.

so essentially if you want soft lounge jazz or CCM rhythm with this works but if you want Hendrix, Dick Dale, or SRV, maybe go with the tube version? I wonder if you can use laptop or desktop PC parts to replace that CPU part . . . just have to match the random access memory, clock speeds, and power draw . . .

Is this worth picking up for $854 from an offer on Reverb? I play at home, don't gig but I was hoping to future-proof.

Recently I bought a Quilter Superblock UK as a backup for a tube amp at a gig. Is it as good? No! Can I use it to get through the gig, and not have to haul a second tube amp with me, just incase? Yes!

Isn’t the normal and vib channel the exact same just with verb and tremolo? Why is he having a problem with the dry channel?

Do you think your experience with hearing different amps and speakers relate to hearing them in a full band mix? This part of the conversation is often left out but is important to consider since maybe most of the guys using these amps are just using them at a gig at full band volume. Often times, the subtleties of speakers and such are barely noticeable. Not that they don't matter, but a sound engineer might even have a hard time picking out what is what

This has probably been said hundreds of times by now, but yes, the speaker is critical to the sound and response of this amp. I bought a TMDR when my back problems forced me to stop touring but still wanted to at least be able to do local shows. Luckily, I already had a Celestion Neo-Creamback and it went in almost immediately. Also, that firmware update is essential as well. It’s quite literally a different amp with those two upgrades, which come stock on the blonde version. I wouldn’t play it with that awful neo Jensen. And for the record I’ve owned an original Deluxe and played many reissues in backlines. Some were better, some were worse, occasionally one was magic.

I'm 52 and there's nothing that will replace a tube amp for me. After 15 years of Peavey's solid state amps back in the late 1980s and 1990s, I bought a cheap Bugera 6262 head and 4x12 cab. Then a Peavey Valve King, then a Mesa DC5 , sold all the heads and cab and bought a Mesa Mark III combo. I won't sell this amp. I am looking at maybe buying a vintage Fender combo of some sort for blues but not sure which one I want to get.

I agree with you that when you start to "dig-in" a bit the amp loses its personality. Just does not seem to want to play nice compared to a well designed tube circuit. Also, Fender should take you up on adding more watts and power scaling. It would increase versatility and sales to those players needing higher headroom and/or a few more watts.

A question I've been asking and no-one seems to be able to answer (or maybe avoid answering...) can the ToneMaster series amps keep up with a drummer (for both rehearsal and live) without going into icepick territory?

I have the reissue princeton and I just bought the Fender super reverb. You need to plug in to the super reverb. It has all the snap you could ever want. I play country with telecasters. Have been playing for 58 years with countless amplifiers. This super reverb would tear a steel guitar amplifier up. I know, have a peavey session 400 as well.

Exactly what I thought after trying one.

Took me 25 years to figure out that Fender tube amps have amazing clean tones.

I think that digital amps are nearly there. The missing part now is punch and dynamic range.

I've heard that they are more power under the hood, so the '22 watts' is really a 100 watt class D power amp.

While is may not replicate the exact tonal/feel/response of a Deluxe Reverb, what about considering the amp for what it is? Long ago I realized that all instruments and amps have a "voice" of their own, and it's a lot easier to embrace what it has to offer than lust for something it does not. Sure, it is marketed as a Deluxe Reverb, but I think most will accept that it will deviate to some degree from the tube original. With that in mind, and the obvious advantages of the lower weight and cost, time will tell if it becomes a popular (and reliable/serviceable) amp.

its actually 100 watts, i keep the front volume less then 4 (much like a real DR) and boost the front end to get the attack and feel right. Even at outdoor venues i never use the full 22 watt setting

Only reason if get a tone master is for the attenuator, but if go for the super. That being said, I have a captor x and that does the attenuation I need just fine for a real super

Please talk about the AVIATOR QUILTER CUB Amp.

I commented on someone else’s channel that compared this amp to the tube version. And I wrote that it did sound like there was some form of compressor pedal in front of it.

I'll never give-up my tube amps simply because I love looking at glowing tubes.........................! (plus nobody makes anything that sounds as good to me as my '58 GA 40, JMI AC-10 clone head, or other golden era Gibson amps, or my Ampeg '61 Reverborocket with 6V6, or B12X fliptop portoflex for guitar but also gets that "James Jamerson" bass sound, and bass players say the 12" speaker records better, but they're not blowing the original C12N in mine!

Does it feel like a tube amp, at all, I'm a cathode biased 12 to 15 watt tube amp, but tubes are getting expensive. I'm interested in the Princeton tone master, but do they feel like a tube amp.

So which would it be, Tonemaster DR or 65 reissue DR?

The amazing thing about these is that the models are upgradeable when modelling tech and captures improve. It will likely be a free upgrade too. Seems like everything is going digital anyways.

Dang man if I knew you were here I’d take you out and get you a beer! Enjoy the mountains

One thing I hear while playing digital amps is that compression issue that you mentioned . It's hard for me to explain . It's like the dynamics are off . When you strum you don't get the separation like you do in a tube amp , like the amp is flat .

that C12K speaker does cut through a mix at high volumes when you need the DR to hang w loud bandmembers. Otherwise i agree w your assessment of the TM.

I didnt like my deluxe reverb tonemaster and sent it back. I bought a super reverb tonemaster and i love it.

I tried a tone master deluxe reverb in a shop. I quite liked it actually. Wouldn't buy one though lol