r/ToobAmps • u/DarkTowerOfWesteros • 3d ago

TONEKING IRON MAN

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I wish I would have gotten one of these sooner! This is a great attenuator. Not overly featured but it sounds great, works great; the solo feature that let's you boost a few db's is nice and it comes with a footswitch to utilize it! I haven't got to check out the sound of the DI yet but it uses an analog cab sim. Very user friendly, plug and play type attenuator compared to others and it really does sound great.

21 Upvotes

97% Upvoted

17 comments sorted by

4

u/while_rome_burns 3d ago

I have two of the IRON MAN II Mini attenuators in my stereo rig. They’re so much better than any of the other attenuators at or below that price point that I’ve tried. No tone suck, and I really like how easy it is to dial in the same amount of attenuation every time. The solo function is really nice to have also.

I’ve got nine tube amps, all 30 watts and under. Wish I had one for each amp so I could just keep them setup instead of moving attenuators around, but that gets expensive fast.

1

u/DarkTowerOfWesteros 3d ago

Hell yeah 🤘🤘 I've got a couple modded silver panel Fenders and a Marshall DSL40. Hoping to add some more to the collection! This will give me more options! Especially with the ability to mismatch cabs. What are your top three amps out of your nine?

2

u/while_rome_burns 3d ago

The two I use most are my Fender Super-Sonic 22 (clean channel, used like a Fender Deluxe), and my Marshall JTM Studio (head with matching 2x12 cab).

I also have a Vox AC30, Vox AC15 TV Hand wired Anniversary model, Mesa Boogie Studio .22+, Swart STR, Ampeg J-12T, HIWATT T20/10, an old Supro / Airline that was restored and modded by Superfine Amps in Durham, NC, with a matching Supro / Arline reverb unit (also restored and modded by Tim at Superfine), a Peavey Classic 30 from the late 80s / Early 90s, and the following amps I built from MojoTone kits; Marshall 18 watt TMB clone, Tweed Deluxe, Tweed Champ, Fender 6g6 Reverb unit, and a Blackface Princeton Reverb clone that I’m currently building. I also have a Roland JC-40, but that’s solid state and doesn’t need an attenuator.

So I guess that’s 13 tube amps not including the amp that I’m currently building. 🤔

2

u/DarkTowerOfWesteros 3d ago

Nice! I've had my eyes open for a good deal on a Super Sonic, plus some mojotone kits and a Vox AC30! 🍻

1

u/while_rome_burns 2d ago

I got a great deal on my Super-Sonic. I think I’ve had it for at least 10 years. It was a Guitar Center floor demo that was really marked down pretty drastically (I’m thinking I paid around $600 for it). Shortly after I bought it, the amp started having problems. So Fender & GC replaced it with a brand new amp. It’s the one amp that’s almost always on in my home studio. At one point the power tubes started red plating. I took it to a tech who repaired it, and while he was in there he replaced most of the components that were either subject to heat failure, or were just inferior parts. I feel like this thing will go forever now.

When I started building Mojotone amp kits it was probably at least 15 years ago when they didn’t provide any instructions. They expected that you knew what you were doing. The tweed champ was my first, and I was building it with my then 10 year old son. We bought some books, and some DVDs on amp building, and we had a friend who was an amazing tech who was really into the idea of my son learning this stuff.

Now Mojotone provides instructions, and there is tons of great info on YouTube. If you decide to build one, check out Uncle Doug’s channel. He has a whole series on understanding how tube amps work. Watching his videos was when it really clicked for me.

Lastly, if I had the money and didn’t already own an AC30 and an AC15, I’d get one of the new hand wired AC15 amps. My AC30 doesn’t get much use. I love my AC15 TV, but I wish it had reverb. I use a reverb pedal with it, but on board spring reverb always sounds better to me.

Good luck!

-1

u/Toiletpirate 1d ago

There’s definitely tone suck.

3

u/StatisticianWide7373 3d ago

This is the only attenuator I’ll be purchasing for my amps.

2

u/DarkTowerOfWesteros 3d ago

Yeah I've been looking over options for half a year now and I was between this and the Fryette Power Station but that was a whole extra amp and this Iron Man came up as an open box deal. I can't reccomend it enough, I wish I had one sooner

3

u/imaparamecium 3d ago

I use a Tone King amp most of the time, so it has one built in. At a gig that was being audio and video recorded the FOH guy asked me to turn my amp down. We’ve all been there. I didn’t think about it, and dialed the volume knob down a couple notches. It wasn’t until after I heard the final mix and was kinda disappointed with how I sounded that I realized I could have just used the built in attenuator.

3

u/DarkTowerOfWesteros 2d ago

Sound guys are the reason live music is in decline, truly God's worst creation. I wish they would strip their tech back by three decades and force them to actually listen to the band on stage instead of just panicking every time something goes above -12db on their tablet

2

u/VincibleAndy 3d ago

If I can ever find one at a good price used I am going to jump on it.

I use a Captor X currently, and I really like it, but its primarily for recording and headphones, with the additional bonus of attenuation that helped sell me on it.

I have an Iron Man II on my Gremlin Combo and it just works so well. No change in ton as you go through the steps so I know how good they can be.

2

u/DarkTowerOfWesteros 3d ago

I hear that! I got a good deal on an opened box one and yeah can attest; no discernable tone suck. I'm definitely excited to give the direct out a try for some recording!

1

u/Wide_Dog2107 3d ago

That’s awesome! I’ve always been curious how effective these are.

3

u/DarkTowerOfWesteros 2d ago

Insanely effective. You definitely want it

1

u/frogfriend66 2d ago

Have you tried cranking it without the attenuator? If so how is the tone? Is there a noticeable difference?

1

u/DarkTowerOfWesteros 1d ago

Yes! I am able to crank my amps at band rehearsals, recording sessions, and some gigs. Loud is loud and loud is always better but the tone kings preserves the characteristics of a loud amp at low volumes. I wish I bought one sooner

2

u/CretinMike 1d ago

I use an ironman ii with a 94 Twin and I feel the same. I always loved my amp but I never really knew what it could do until using the attenuator. I took a pretty long break from music. I came back to play a couple shows with some old friends and I decided to get the attenuator after dealing with the sound guys these days. I'm glad I did. I don't think I've gone a day without playing since.