Tone King Imperial Tri-Tube Preamp

Bought this a bit on impulse for trying out in my home studio. Regretted it at first as I should really use my money on other stuff. I have a Tone King Gremlin, which sounds great on my recordings, but I usually need to record DI and reamp afterwards, which is a tedious process.
I’ve tried a lot of software amp modellers and found noone that has impressed me. I’m mostly after a clean guitar sound.
The imperial preamp pedal sounds like an amp and the cleans are really great. I can actually record through this and it sounds just as good or even better than when I record through my Gremlin with a Royer mic.
Updated impression:
I was a bit disappointed with the tremolo at first, but now it's hard to not have it on in a rather subtle setting. The reverb is also really nice and is always on.
My only complaint is that a couple of the jack connections seems a bit loose, depending on which cable I use. I keep it connected in the studio all the time, so not a big issue, but if I were to use it live it could have been a problem. That's why I give it 4 stars on quality and handling.

The Imperial pre-amp really is superb! The rhythm channel is simply gorgeous, offering shimmering clean tones through to quite driven sounds - and it's wonderfully responsive to playing dynamics when in the "edge of breakup" zone. Add in the top quality reverb and tremolo and it's perfect for the bulk of my playing without the need for external pedals. That said, it handles an overdrive on the input beautifully, and something like a Cloudburst sounds superb through the send/return, making this a great pedal platform.

The lead channel is excellent too - quite a lot hotter, but easy to tame and balance against the rhythm channel for some extra kick when you need it. Tone King's editing software worked seamlessly and did an automatic update as soon as I connected the pedal - and it's definitely worth trying some of the options such as the HF Comp to maintain brightness as you use the attenuator.

I've been very happy using a Tonex pedal (also purchased from Thomann), but I've got to say the Imperial will oust it from my main rig. It just "feels" better somehow - I guess it's down to playing directly through valves/tubes, as against a capture of them and then relying on how the Tonex itself overdrives. True, an audience might not notice the difference, but you're definitely aware of it when playing and it feels really good.

After the glowing reviews I'd seen of the Imperial, it really had a lot to live up to, but it absolutely delivers. I was lucky with the timing and spotted it in Thomann's spring sale, but it would be totally worth it at full price. If you're after classic "Fender-ish" amp tones in a versatile pedal format, you won't be disappointed with the Imperial.

I own a Tone King Imperial Mk2 amplifier, which is by far my favorite piece of gear, but I often practice at night, with headphones on, and I love to sound good even when I'm really just practicing or fiddling around. I have ToneX, I have Quad Cortex, many plugins, but none could give me the feel I have when I practice on a real amp.
This preamp pedal simply mops the floor with the Quad Cortex, ToneX, and every other digital stuff you can buy. It sounds incredible through headphones. It feels great, the response is amazing, the tone is just beautiful. I can use my whole pedalboard with it, even at night, and since it has an FX loop (as opposed to the amp), I can actually shape my tone even further.
I have absolutely 0 regrets for buying this, this became my absolute favorite for low-volume and headphone practice sessions. It really can't get any better than this.

Habe das Pedal im Cyberdeal für 599€ geschossen – für den Preis musste ich es einfach testen. Ich nutze den Preamp fast ausschließlich fürs Recording, also direkt ins Interface.

Sound & Bedienung: Der Sound ist wirklich amtlich. Es liefert genau diesen typischen Tone King Vibe: sehr plastisch, reagiert super auf den Anschlag und die Röhrenwärme kommt im Mix gut durch. Was ich besonders mag: Die Bedienung ist absolut intuitiv. Man dreht ein bisschen und hat sofort einen brauchbaren Sound, ohne stundenlanges Tweaken.

Was fehlt: Eigentlich fast nichts, aber: Wäre hier noch eine kleine Endstufe verbaut, wäre das Ding die absolute "Eierlegende Wollmilchsau". So braucht man halt immer noch was dahinter, wenn man mal eine echte Box antreiben will. Für mein Recording-Setup stört das nicht groß, aber es wäre das I-Tüpfelchen gewesen.

Für den Deal-Preis aber absolut konkurrenzlos.