Considering a Polytone

[garybaldy]

Well I bought the MB IV today and it is glorious! EQs set all around noon and I’ve got the tone I wanted. Love that it can be nice and dark for single note playing without losing clarity on chords. Nice balance between the low and high strings, and definitely no plinky high E through this thing. It was pretty dusty but cleaned up great and seems to be working 100%. Made in 1995. Thanks for helping me make the decision everyone!

Glad you like it.
Is it the 4 knob version?
What position do you have the slider switch please?

[epistrophy.]

Those are both very sweet offers, but before you bite consider a few small things:

I've never owned one, but have played through them. They have dark sounds, which I like but w/o the right setting can possibly veer towards muddiness.

Also, the book on Polytones is that they're pretty fragile, therefore not all that road-worthy. Again, I've never owned one and cannot honestly verify that.

But they are good amps, and there are reasons why they're still around and their fans swear by them. And $200? $450? What are you waiting for? Grab both before someone else does!

I’ve heard very mixed things about their reliability, even just in this thread! But thankfully I just play at home so roadworthiness isn’t a major consideration.

And though I’d love to try a Baby Brute as well, I’m all set with the MB IV I grabbed! At least for now. I see most Polytones going for under $500 and a fair number even for under $300, so hopefully that won’t change anytime soon. Glad they are still affordable despite their age!

Glad you like it.
Is it the 4 knob version?
What position do you have the slider switch please?

Yes it’s the one in the photo posted earlier in this thread (except mine is black tolex). Bass, mid, treble, reverb, channel volume and master volume, and gain for the fx loop. Also overdrive channel volume and overdrive controls, but I just pretend those don’t exist. I’ve been enjoying the slider in the dark position the most for solo guitar, using the low input. Center position sounds good too, and I bet would help out in a group setting.

[GuyBoden]

I was astonished with the great sound I got the other day, when I played thru Trefor Owen's old Polytone amp with my 1959 Hofner Committee, which has a DeArmond Rhythm chief 1000 pickup (reissue).

I've played thru his old Polytone amp many times with other guitars, but my 1959 Hofner Committee with a reissue DeArmond Rhythm chief 1000 pickup sounded great.

So, maybe, it was probably, a combination of the guitar, the pickup and the Polytone amp.

I'm still very mystified by all of this, because I thought I didn't really like the tone of Polytone amps. You live and learn.

This type: Polytone Mini Brute 2

[garybaldy]

I was astonished with the great sound I got the other day, when I played thru Trefor Owen's old Polytone amp with my 1959 Hofner Committee, which has a DeArmond Rhythm chief 1000 pickup (reissue).

I've played thru his old Polytone amp many times with other guitars, but my 1959 Hofner Committee with a reissue DeArmond Rhythm chief 1000 pickup sounded great.

So, maybe, it was probably, a combination of the guitar, the pickup and the Polytone amp.

I'm still very mystified by all of this, because I thought I didn't really like the tone of Polytone amps. You live and learn.

This type: Polytone Mini Brute 2

Is the red knob a concentric pot? Thanks

[Danny W.]

Is the red knob a concentric pot? Thanks

Yes.

[GuyBoden]

Is the red knob a concentric pot? Thanks

The red knob is for "Danger" it adds horrible distortion.

[garybaldy]

The red knob is for "Danger" it adds horrible distortion.

Thanks. We don't want that do we! Do you pull it up for danger?!

[GuyBoden]

Thanks. We don't want that do we! Do you pull it up for danger?!

I've never touch the Red Knob.

[garybaldy]

I've never touch the Red Knob.

My two don't have a red knob or a reverb. One is a III and the other a Teeny. I could do with a II.

[Herbie]

The red knob is notorious but it has its advantages. I had once a Polytone 102 and when my band recorded this tune Sipatti, the Polytone distortion was just nail in the head. I was amazed how well it feedbacked with low volume. In the very end there is a bit of 102’s weird tremolo too.

But this was special case so I could say that the red knob distortion is once in a lifetime effect.