Harley Benton TUBE5 Celestion

246

Class A Combo for Electric Guitar

  • 1 Channel
  • Power: Switchable 5 W / 1 W
  • Preamp tubes: 1x ECC83 / 12AX7
  • Power amp tubes: 1x 6V6GT
  • Equipped with: 8" Celestion Super speaker
  • Controls: Volume, tone
  • Switch: Power - Attenuator 5 W / 1 W
  • Instrument input: 6.3 mm jack
  • 6.3 mm jack speaker output: 8 - 16 Ohms
  • Dimensions (W x H x D): 305 x 310 x 210 mm
  • Weight: 6 kg
Available since January 2020
Item number 469677
Sales Unit 1 piece(s)
Power 5 W
Speaker size 1x 8"
Power Amp Tubes 6V6GT
Channels 1
Reverb No
External FX Loop No
Recording Output No
MIDI Interface No
Connection for External Speaker Yes
Headphone connection No
Footswitch connection No
Incl. Footswitch No
Weight in kg 6,0 kg
499 AED 125,21 €
Plus 279 AED shipping
The price in AED is a guideline price only
Since we ship from Germany, additional costs through taxes and customs may be incurred
In stock
In stock

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Tiny amp, huge tone

Harley Benton's TUBE5 Celestion is a tube amp through and through. This open-backed, single-channel 8" combo packs five watts of all-tube power into a tiny package and comes at an attractive price. Anyone who has experienced an all-tube amplifier first hand will know that five watts are not to be underestimated - the resulting volume is definitely enough for home use and for those first band rehearsals. However, the TUBE5's strengths only truly come to the fore when it is used for recording. Whether it's as an affordable studio amp or as a first tube amplifier for beginners, the TUBE5 is always an excellent choice.

Straightforward controls and 100% tube tone

At the core of the Harley Benton TUBE5 Celestion are an ECC83 (also known as 12AX7) preamp tube and a 6V6GT power amp tube. The amp's power output can be reduced from five watts to one watt at the push of a button, which also makes the TUBE5 perfect for use at living room volume. The amp is loaded with an 8" Celestion Super speaker and, with just a volume and tone control, the front control panel has been reduced to the essentials. The volume control, in the truest tube-amp tradition, is also responsible for regulating how distorted the sound becomes. The amp's rear panel features an output jack for connecting an external speaker, in which case the built-in speaker is muted.

It can whisper - or it can roar

The Harley Benton TUBE5 Celestion is an all-tube amplifier in the entry-level price segment that offers unrivalled value for money and a set of features that one can normally only expect at much higher price points. The option of reducing the power output to one watt means that the amp can be pushed to its limits and its characteristic overdrive sound recorded without rattling the windows and waking the neighbours in the process. At the same time, the TUBE5 Celestion can be quickly and easily connected to an external speaker, turning the diminutive combo into a fully-fledged half stack.

About Harley Benton

Since 1998, the Harley Benton brand has been catering for the needs of numerous guitarists and bassists. In addition to an extensive range of stringed instruments, Thomann's house brand also offers a wide choice of amplifiers, speakers, effect pedals, and other accessories. In total, the range includes over 1,500 products. Built by established names in the industry, all Harley Benton products combine quality and reliability at attractive and affordable prices. The continuous expansion of the range ensures that Harley Benton always provides new, exciting, and innovative products that keep players perfectly in tune with the musical world, day after day.

A pint-sized beast

Tube amplifiers have a character all their own: They respond dynamically to the individual guitarist's playing style and deliver a crisp, precise sound. Above all, however, they produce a very specific style of overdrive. Pushing the Harley Benton TUBE5 Celestion to the limit by cranking the volume control to the maximum delivers the authentic, richly layered crunch that is synonymous with all-tube amplifiers. And switching the output power down to one watt lets you get this sound at manageable volume levels at home and keep the neighbours happy at the same time. The TUBE5 is therefore ideal for recording some great-sounding guitar tracks at home and for practising without having to compromise your tone - and it comes at an unrivalled price.

246 Customer ratings

4.7 / 5

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200 Reviews

SW
Bonkers cheap, amazing sounding, real valve amp.
S. Walker 30.03.2020
Yes, this is a real valve amp. Yes, that price is correct. Yes, it is as good as you could possibly hope, which is to say it holds its own against much more pricey amps. If you were to be a price or brand snob, you'd be overlooking something very special here.

This, and it's larger sibling, are rebadged versions of an amplifier already available and well liked in the US market (the Stage Right), but with a 220v/50Hz transformer for European use, and the Harley Benton badge on the front. Supposedly those, and by extension these, are closely related to the Laney Cub amplifiers, but are slightly lower priced than the equivalent Laney, and from someone who's owned both, I think slightly better built and laid out, too.

Very much in the "Champ" style with one 12AX7 preamp tube and one 6V6 power amp tube (the classic "Californian Tweed" valve of choice, as opposed to the more "British" sounding EL84 and EL34 more usually seen on modern valve amps), these small amplifiers might not be stadium loud, but they have their uses. For one thing, they make fantastic no-compromise practice amplifiers, meaning real valve amp tone, not just a valve pre-amp or valve emulation, in the bedroom, garage, hobby room, or even a small club or pub gig. Even more importantly, they're fantastic recording amplifiers. Countless classic rock staples used low wattage, small speakered amplifiers like this with a microphone shoved close up in front to get those lead tones, and five minutes with this amp will show you why!

It might be diminutive but I can get some great tones out of it. At low volumes, nothing spectacular seems to happen. It's warm, bright enough, and recognisably "valve", but plain. However, push the volume up past 8 and this thing sings. Add in an overdrive pedal and man, oh man. All those saturated rock tones, but without bothering people in the next street/town/country. Still not quiet, but not the deafening behemoth of a full-stack. The built-in attenuation switch lets you access this at an even more manageable volume.

I was pleasantly surprised by the build quality and attention to detail too - despite being a lunchbox sized budget option, this amp feels solid in the hand, and the cabinet is satisfyingly thick. The controls are smooth turning with quality chickenhead knobs, the power switch is firm and positive with a precise and pleasing clunk on actuation, and the input jack feels like it's going to last. Even the wattage button has a reliable, mechanical click when pressed, locking in and springing out cleanly and easily.

In terms of overall design, this is a good looking amplifier. It looks nicer in person than in the pictures, and the cream covering is a welcome departure from the ubiquitous and dreary black of most amps. The covering and speaker cloth are more than adequate in quality, much better than most amps at this price, and the handle is soft, pliable and comfortable. I couldn't promise that it's real leather but it's supple enough to be. Honestly, even though it's not a heavy amp a good handle makes carrying this a joy. It's actually amazing, given how much value for money this offers on components alone, that time and effort were put into designing an aesthetically pleasing amp, but there you have it.

In terms of electronic parts, the fact that the speaker is name brand is also remarkable at this price. It's a Celestion, and whilst it might be entry-level Celestion, it still holds its own and is much better than a no-name speaker. Could you replace it? Yes. Do you need to? No.

The tubes are unbranded, they look like standard China-made ones, but they sound fine and at this price, who is complaining?! I don't plan on replacing them now, they're plenty good enough. Will I change them in the future? Undoubtedly, because I'll still want to play this amp when they wear out!

The only downsides for me are the solid state rectifier and the finish on the front panel. Valve rectification is definitely possible at around this price point, but it's no deal breaker. I know of a similar amplifier with a slightly higher price that has a valve rectifier, but it's only available with a 110v transformer. Still, this performs well enough given that one missed opportunity. The front panel finish is a more personal gripe - it's very, very high shine and so shows up fingerprints very quickly, as well as bouncing a lot of light. For some people, the shiny panel will be a cool feature that adds to the charming looks of this amplifier, but I can't help feeling that something matte would have not looked out of place either.

In summary, quite frankly this is the bargain of the century. Once they're back in stock I think I'd have a strong temptation to buy the larger version of this too.

ONE WORD OF WARNING (for UK customers only): The amplifier has a non-removable power cable with a Schuko plug on it. This is the German plug that has a large cylindrical body with earth connections on the outside, it's not a standard Europlug. The complimentary UK power cable supplied by Thomann has nowhere to plug in!

Unless Thomann change what they ship, you will need to obtain the correct Schuko adaptor - a standard Europlug adaptor will NOT earth the amplifer and should not be used. Alternatively, you can change the plug on the existing cord to a UK one if you know how to do this safely.
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P
My first tube amp
PP141 30.05.2023
Sounds sweet, simple controls and a good enough speaker. If you're on a budget or/and can only play in your small apartment bedroom, this is the one to buy.
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H
It's cheap, it's ok - for the price, it's great!
Hefebaix 24.11.2021
Better than thought. Note that 1W mode is just "volume setting drop" or similar. But no complaints on that.
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G
It's ok for the price but not that impressive
GeorgeK2686 14.03.2023
As far as low wattage tube amps go, there are not many in the market. This is a very decent amp, but I found the 1-watt Marshall DSL1 to be a lot more impressive, with more features and the price is very close.
The lack of eq, means you need a drive or eq pedal in front to really shape the tone.
It is loud, even at 1-watt. There is little change in volume between 1 and 5 watts, but it feels that this amp delivers better at 1 watt. It would have been more useful as a bedroom amp if it was 1-watt with the option to reduce to 0.1 watts.
The overall tone is rather bright - this if you like it or not comes down to preference.
At 5 watts connecting it to an external cabinet makes a big difference!
I played it for two days straight - works well as a pedal platform and it starts getting a crunch with the volume turned to 7 and above.
I think for small live gigs this can be used either on its own or connected to another cabinet.
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