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Hughes & Kettner Warp X Head |
Hughes & Kettner Warp X Head
You are about to enter the 'Dark Zone' here readers!
In the following review the new Hughes and Kettner Warp X Head was put under the microscope in order to see how it performed. Hughes and Kettner have long enjoyed a reputation for typically high standard German engineering when it comes to their products-so with that in mind, let's put it to the test and enter that 'Dark Zone'.
Overview
The Warp X amplifier is the latest offering from H&K as part of their Warp range of products. Regarded as the flagship of the range, it's easy to see why with its bold appearance and vibe. Aimed squarely at the heavy end of the guitar market, the WarpX is definitely built to rock! Hughes and Kettner have delivered a bold new addition to a market that already has its fair share of ‘heavy’ competitors.My initial impression of the amp was one of solid construction and striking asthetics, with the plexi-glass panel lighting up red, highlighting the large 'Warp' logo. For the hardcore out there, this will definitely get you noticed on stage.
All eight valves are visible with this back lighting and are mounted on a solid steel chasis. The amp definitely has a feel of quality when it comes to construction and is housed in an inch thick cabinet finished with heavy duty black vinyl-of course!
Features
The Warp X is equipped with four 6L6 power tubes and four 12 AX7/ECC83 preamp tubes. Controls for the two channels on the Warp X are fairly standard. On the clean channel you have your basic volume, bass, middle, treble and presence. With the dirty Warp channel, there is gain, loss, middle, treble and presence. Two additional buttons that appear on the Warp channel are the sub switch (which adds additional gain to low end frequencies for total 'bone shaking') and the Lube switch which increases dynamic response. Effects on/off switches also appear on each of the two channels. Effects can be run in either series/or parallel and there are master volume and master effects level controls used in the Warp X.There are also jacks to run various speaker configurations with the Warp X-these are 1x4 ohm, 1x8 ohm or 2 x 16ohm boxes , or 1x16ohm cabinet. One nice feature of this head is the midi channel switching which allows for automation via MIDI patch changing. Unfortunately this head didn't come fitted with he MIDI module. The module is an optional extra (@$360) and can be used not only with the Warp X, but also with many other H&K models.
In Operation
I tested the Warp X in conjunction with a Hughes and Kettner 100 watt Celestion Greenback loaded LC412 cabinet. For guitars, I used a Tokai with 3 single coil pickups and a Fernandes 335. Rated at 120 watts, the Warp X at first impression is an exceptionally loud amp. My other initial impression with this unit was how noisy the power transfer seemed to be with this particular unit-which may be an irrelevant point when fully cranked at a gig.The clean channel proved to have formidable headroom (like a few other contenders in the current modern head market ) and remained very tight at high levels with both single coils and humbucker pick ups. Given the 6L6 power stage, the clean channel displayed some elements of the Fender vibe but seemed not quite as rich, harmonically speaking. The sound seemed very serviceable with both guitars but not quite as complex as I might have hoped. When I introduced some effects to the clean channel, the Warp X performed flawlessly both in series and parallel modes. Purely out of versatility I tried a few pedals into the front of the Warp X and found the amp preferring to have the direct signal from the guitar as opposed to that of additional overdrive sources.
The Warp channel is really where the head says "That's what I'm talkin' about"! If you're a fan of the ubiquitous drop "D', you'll be extremely happy here. For those readers who follow bands such as System of a Down, Pantera, Disturbed or Korn, this channel should cover it.
Again the 6L6 power stage helps here keeping the sound very focussed even at ridiculous gain levels. There is definitely an American vibe here with the amp responding very powerfully with both the Tokai and the 335. Even at lower gain settings, the Warp channel responded very musically-with a very even , harmonically rich aspect. There it is– that big, slightly grainy US sound!
In spite of the Warp X reviewed not having the MIDI module fitted, I managed to control the channel switching, using MIDI, via a multi-effect unit and th Warp X delivered in all intended areas, and then some. Regardless of the Warp truly being a modern rock machine, I could envisage the amp covering a number of situations admirably. With its very useable clean channel, highly adaptable effects loop and seriously rockin' Warp channel, the Warp X covers a lot of ground.
The Warp X is a serious bit of gear that should sit well amongst many players who require some rockin' contemporary sounds in a bold package.