Brunetti amps?

**asedas** · 03-31-2021, 10:25 AM

Hi,

anyone used Brunetti amps? I've found recently this nice combo: SingleMan Combo | Brunetti Tube Amplification which looks like "pimped" fender. I currently use Princeton '65 however I miss mid eq regulation and effect loop (more mid eq). Mostly using clean channel so with 30-35W version I should be OK with this Brunetti, quite similar construction. It does not look like widely used in jazz however...

Greetings

**vernon** · 03-31-2021, 10:52 AM

Looks really cool, but the time required to try to find an actual price exceeded my admittedly low tolerance threshold.

**cmajor9** · 03-31-2021, 12:59 PM

Brunetti is a fairly small company, and based in Europe. So not too many jazzers might have had experience with them. I’ve used the smaller (16 W) Singleman, and it was a credible Fender-style substitute.

**Gitterbug** · 03-31-2021, 02:16 PM

Ernst Weinbach from Liberty-Music in Germany speaks highly of these, with authority and a vested interest at the same time. He appears to have the 30W version in stock, with several speaker options. However, the website, liberty-music.de, is not necessarily up-to-date.

Small, boutique manufacturers of tube amps struggle for their existence in virtually every country. They all start from well-proven circuits, often Fender's. According to an industry veteran, their success is in the story - "mojo", "mystique", "vintage", famous users - rather than real differences in design or sound. The big difference is in the making: PCB or point-to-point. IMHO, both are OK. Just how much you can tweak the circuits is limited; the chosen speaker may actually matter more than tube x, capacitor y or feedback z. Only two tube manufacturers currently catering the entire world.

My reading of the situation is this: There's a lot more happening on the SS/Class D front than in the tube world. If you're into jazz, why not look forward instead of the rear mirror? Electric guitar sound is an acquired taste, and as far as distortion is concerned, tube amps may still have and edge. Whether the audience hears it, is debatable. Whether the next generation hears it, is even more debatable. Just consider how music is listened to today vs. yesterday: from computers and bee-sized headphones vs the stereo set that was Dad's pride and joy, and that Mom hated for the huge, unsightly speakers dominating the living-room.

**Litterick** · 03-31-2021, 04:38 PM

Long live valves.

**asedas** · 03-31-2021, 05:32 PM

Yep, I agree that most of the copies are... the copies

SS amps currently indeed are better and better but... still not the same as valves. I will take a look probably in this direction and experiment when I will have solid tube amp(s) :P

Thanks for the input, will take closer look!

**losaltosjoe** · 04-01-2021, 12:05 PM

For what it is worth, I really like my Brunetti Singleman 16w amp. Sounds really lush with both my Gibson L5 and Borys B120. Very straight forward amp. I'm a hobbyist and don't gig but I think it is worth a look.

**Gitterbug** · 04-01-2021, 12:51 PM

I of course have nothing against boutique amps, especially if they don't cost a multiple vs. industrially produced Big Names. I'm only trying to say that there can't be huge differences/improvements in tone coming from the circuitry - the speaker choice often makes a bigger difference. Finnish maker Bluetone, for example, knows the ins and outs of tube amps to the extent that you can (if you can, that is) specify your requirements precisely, and they'll deliver. But think of this: in his home studio, Tim Pierce, the world famous session guitarist, uses a tube amp retrieved from a movie projector. Perhaps the HiFi soundtracks of yore absorbed the best-testing components, with the rest going to guitar amps and such.

**christianm77** · 04-01-2021, 12:57 PM

The circuit being the same; mostly it’s about ease of maintenance. Amp repairers often won’t look at a PCB amp.

Everything else is hype.

**asedas** · 04-02-2021, 06:22 AM

Originally Posted by christianm77

The circuit being the same; mostly it’s about ease of maintenance. Amp repairers often won’t look at a PCB amp.

Everything else is hype.

Indeed PCB are worse for technicans. But you can find Fenders point-to-point (vintage).

People are looking for something more than just only Fender. Boutique amps are mostly Fender copies but pimped up (not only by speaker). And they meet the expectation of individuals. I.e. I'm now looking for sth like Princeton because I like it's weight and versatility (and sound ofc). But it has disadvantages like: eq has no mids, there is no effect loop, would be nice to have attenuator also, treble/mid/bass boost, presence, etc... and probably more

so it's not only about the hype, it's about the finding some "holy grail" for common situations. Ofc for studio you can use some fine hi-fi amps but in reality with gig situation, different projects, moving from place to place we often need a very universal tools.

**PatrickWD** · 04-04-2021, 07:30 AM

I have owned a singleman 35 combo for a few years.

I really like this amp, but i haven't used it that much since i got a Morgan pr12 head and cab. Although it is quite lightweight ( somewhere around 20 kg), i prefer using a head and cab so the weight is divided in two units.

The sound is somewhere in between a tweed and a blackface amp. It's got way more mids than blackface amps and lots of headroom. I have thought about changing the speaker, since the Celestion v30 that's in it is a bit "hard" in the mids, but i haven't done it yet.

Here is a soundclip i recorded using this amp a few years back:

**jzucker** · 04-04-2021, 09:29 AM

if you're in the USA, I'd recommend an Allen. Not sure how much they are in europe though.

**asedas** · 04-05-2021, 03:19 PM

Originally Posted by PatrickWD

I have owned a singleman 35 combo for a few years.

I really like this amp, but i haven't used it that much since i got a Morgan pr12 head and cab. Although it is quite lightweight ( somewhere around 20 kg), i prefer using a head and cab so the weight is divided in two units.

The sound is somewhere in between a tweed and a blackface amp. It's got way more mids than blackface amps and lots of headroom. I have thought about changing the speaker, since the Celestion v30 that's in it is a bit "hard" in the mids, but i haven't done it yet.

Here is a soundclip i recorded using this amp a few years back:

nice sample! I will give it a try. I'm in Europe so Allen is hard to get here

**PatrickWD** · 04-06-2021, 06:15 AM

One thing i forgot to mention is that i was a bit surprised over how little effect the variable wattage switch has on the volume of the amp. There's maybe a 10 - 20% drop in volume from the full wattage setting to the lowest. The lower wattage causes earlier breakup, and the tone is a little less full, but it's not as much difference as i had expected. It does not work the same way as an attenuator.

**Oscar67** · 01-04-2023, 12:51 PM

I saw a SingleMan 16 combo in a store today and A/B’d it to some Fender tube- and ToneMaster amps. To my ears it was no contest: the Brunetti sounds very 3D, articulate, open and pleasing. Complex jazz chords are beautifully rendered. There are various options available to match almost any guitar: HI and LO inputs, a bright switch, a mid boost, a voicing option (smooth, fat or tweed) and three-step power scaling. All very usable and musical. There is a stringy, complex, 3D quality to the sound that’s hard to describe. This amp will do super-clean jazz to SRV blues. In comparison, the Fenders sounded rather flat and their tone shaping options were much less powerful. It really was no contest. I bought the Brunetti on the spot and have tried it at home with a PRS DGT, a Gibson Custom ES335 and an Eastman archtop, with spectacularly nice results.

Most YT vids of this amp seem to focus on Fendery single coil sounds, which is too bad. This amp loves humbuckers, semis and archtops. And it eats drive pedals for breakfast.

Brunetti Singleman Amp Review - Premier Guitar

**asedas** · 01-10-2023, 07:34 AM

I agree. Have Brunetti Singleman 35W for more than 1,5yr with changed speaker to Celestion Gold12" and...

1. it's very loud
2. the sound is super clean, with lot of head room
3. the number of options (3 variants of preamp, 3 variants of power tubes, 3x EQ, mid boost...) is super versatile
4. FX loop with true bypass via switch is super nice option!
5. it's very loud

So for me it's winner - Fender is nice but no so versatile. And Brunetti can sound like Fender, but can sound also differently depends on your needs. I couldn't break my amp because (especially with Gold 12") it's super loud, but I wanted it only for cleans. Highly recommend, for this price it's awesome amp.