Tone King Gremlin 5W 1x12 Combo Amp – Boutique Tweed/Blackface Tone Machine

Selling my Tone King Gremlin combo amp in like-new condition.

If you know Tone King amps, you already know how special these are — incredible touch sensitivity, gorgeous cleans, and rich edge-of-breakup tones at realistic volumes.

This amp is in mint condition. Never left the studio.

The Gremlin combines two distinct vintage-inspired voices:
• Rhythm channel delivers warm, clear tweed-style grit and sag
• Lead (overdrive) channel dials in distortion at low volumes and is not intended for clean playing.

The built-in Ironman II attenuator is the real magic here. You can get fully saturated tube tones at bedroom volume or open it up for rehearsal and small gigs without losing feel or dynamics.

Features:
• 5 watts all-tube
• 1x12 speaker configuration
• Built-in Ironman II attenuator
• Rhythm/Lead channels
• Incredible pedal platform
• Handcrafted boutique quality from Tone King

This amp has been extremely well cared for and sounds phenomenal. No functional issues.

Perfect for studio work, home playing, recording, blues, classic rock, Americana, indie, and anything where responsive vintage-style tone matters.

Includes:

• Nice cover.
• Power cable
• Manual and all original packaging.

From The Tone King Manual:

Rhythm and Lead Inputs

 Two input jacks are provided, each with a different tone and level of gain. The Rhythm input has a lower level of gain than the Lead input. This is where you determine the “channel” of the amplifier. You can plug the cable into either of the two inputs. Or, using an A/B or A/B/Y switch you can select between them, or jump them together for a sound that combines the two channels for additional character.

Volume & Tone Controls … of the Gremlin’s preamplifier is very similar to a vintage tweed deluxe amplifier. Because of this, the volume and tone controls are highly interactive. This means that changing the volume control will have some effect on the tone (balance of treble-to midrange-to-bass) and changing the tone control will have some effect on the volume of the amp. Although this seems like an inconvenient setup, it provides a much wider range of available tones. If you are not familiar with using interactive Volume and Tone controls, it may take some experimenting to become familiar with how best to use it.

Dialing In Your Sound

The Gremlin is capable of a surprisingly wide range of tones between the two inputs. Each channel is intended for a specific use, and it’s important to know the intention of each voicing to get the most out of the Gremlin.

“Rhythm” Voicing

The "rhythm" voicing is intended to give you a “blackface” Fender sound. Cleaner in lower volume settings, but still with good breakup when cranked, and full saturation when hit with an overdrive.

“Lead” Voicing

The "lead" voicing is intended exclusively for overdriven and distorted tones. It is not intended for clean tones. Therefore, it has more gain than the other setting, and why it begins to break up at low volume control settings. It may take some experimenting to find the sweet spots that give you the best tones with a particular guitar.

The Gremlin gets much of its overdrive and distortion from the output stage. When you are pushing it hard in the lead setting, it reaches maximum output early on, and simply becomes more saturated as you turn up the volume control. This is how any non-master design works - tweed amps, etc. The Gremlin is designed for rootsy, old-school vintage tone, and this kind of tone is all about power tubes being driven hard and generating their own kind of distortion and compression.

Notes From Mountain Air Music:

The Pinnacle of Tone

I bought this amp brand-new from a music store in December 2024. I would say it has less than 12 hours of run time on it. It will be packed carefully in the original box with original packing material. Shipped fully insured.

Feel free to message with any questions or requests for additional photos/videos.

This great amp is the cream color, arguably the most attractive look and harder to obtain. I am selling it because my gear needs to live on, to be handed down to other musicians. Keep it goin', guys.