Magnatone Starlite 5-watt 1 x 8-inch Tube Combo Amp Reviews

Buy it.

Get it.

Play it.

Turn it UP.

Jam with Yer Buddies.

Never Regret it.

Lifetime Keeper.

Well...

This is My first current Magnatone amp.

Saw a Superb Pitch by Magnatone CEO on Norman's Rare Guitars You Tube, and Thank the Laws He sold me 100% US made, down to the Amish homemade leather handle.

My only next step, for no other reason than I have a but a few days/years left, is to aquire a Maggie 2x10 ext. cab....

That's All

So my first Magnatone and I'm actually
more impressed then I expected. This little powerhouse has such great tones and going to be such a great amp to add to my lineup. Very cool vintage amp look.
I've just plugged in my Tele directly and man the amp really offers the full bag. I can't believe I didn't buy a Magnatone a long time ago. Came with nice cover. Very pleased with the Magnatone Starlite

Magnatone nailed it with this amp! Have been searching for "the" amp...well I found it! This thing is the perfect home amp. Compact, built like a tank all in a sweet looking package. Finally, the sound in my head comes out of my playing. I mostly play classic rock, blues rock and hard rock on a Les Paul. This amp can go from clean to dirty effortlessly!! I really appreciate the simple controls. The tone knob is unique but takes 2 seconds to figure out left for clean and right for some dirt! It can play loud but unlike every other amp I had, sounds great at home levels!! I've had 5 amps and none really sounded good at low levels. Took my tube screamer easily but honestly don't know if I really need it! If your a metal head, this may not be your go to but it does that fairly well too. Is it pricey, yes. Is worth it? Yes every penny!! I wish I purchased 3 amps ago! Would've saved me the money and frustration of trying to get the sound right. Looks great, sounds great at any volume, built solid, easy to dial in and takes pedals well, that ia a home run!! If you're thinking of purchasing, do it! You will not be disappointed! Did I mention it's awesome?

Well...Now...Lifetime Amp.

Tone Monster. Set volume&tone dials @ 5.

Huge, Mid, Articulate string clarity.

Dials @ 5 volume, tone @ 0 mid-cut.

Totally different output.

There are a Multitude of Tones, Sounds, Dynamics and Smiles waiting for You and Your Bandmates, neighbors, loved ones, strangers and freebies!!

This is a great little amp!! My amp history, if it helps make a decision, includes Fender Bassman, Champ, Ampeg, Marshall, Vox, Gascan Amp (yup - looked like a gas can) PigNose (which I still have), Egnater and a couple more that I can't recall - so, I've had a few amps in my 39 years of playing guitar. This is the best sounding amp I've owned. Also, the most expensive BUT it's worth it. There's so many sounds in this amp. It made my pedals sound incredible and I've removed my JHS Clover from my pedal line up as this amp simply doesn't need the boost or EQ - it actually takes away from the amp sound. There is an incredible clean tone from this amp and it sounds good on my Tele, Fernandes and Ibanez not too mention makes each guitar come alive. It does break up on it's own but you're going to require earplugs. It's insanely loud for 5 watts. This amp with some reverb - you'll be lost for hours. Cool thing is it sounds just as good at low volumes as it does at higher volumes. This amp is light but feels really solid. The quality of the build is very nice.
I've read comparisons of other amps (Tweed, Champ, etc) and sure, you can say that but I can say that about my Pignose too. The Magnatone has a sound of it's own and it sounds great! Hope that helps make your purchase!

After spending hours playing the amp, I can honestly say it's the best amp I've ever owned - tone wise. I've had old Bassmanns, Ampegs, Vox, Egnater, Marshall etc, this amp tops them all in terms of tone. The tone knob is such a cool "tone" knob! Totally changes the amp sound. There are so many great tones you can get from that knob, it's very cool. The amp is loud!! Don't let 5 watts fool ya. 12" can through an Eminence Cannabis Rex sounds great too, but the amp definitely is a match with the 8" speaker in the combo. It sounds so good, tone tone tone ... Takes pedals incredibly well. All my pedals sound better through this amp. I was pondering for a long time on this amp. Kicking myself for not getting it sooner . . . I can't stop playing it.

So everything say louder than you think. I have been playing for over 30 years no, and I don't need some press person telling me it's loud. Well, I had to eat all the crow. Darn thing really is loud. Outside of it being loud, it also sounds amazing. I have over 10 tube amps, and this have that little extra that makes them special. It's just two pickups and the truth with this kid. Reacts amazing to volume rolls, and has that bite on the switch.

It costs a lot, but it does really sound better than other "camp" style amps I have played. Very happy with it.

Five (5) watts is louder than you think. This amp has power, but it shines with a creamy sweet tone. It comes with a heavy duty amp cover and the amp is well built. Sounds great with a Strat, a Tele or a humbucker equipped guitar. This is a great little amp. I like so much that I purchase the Magnatone 12" extension cabinet. You could easily play a club gig with this tiny giant.

I don't quite understand why one reviewer trashed on this amp and only gave it one star? I can only presume he didn't understand it's intended purpose or that small 5watt amp is not going to sound like 50watt Marshall through a 4x12.

This amp absolutely rocks. It's beautifully built and looks stunning. It also feels it: I mean it just has this solid, dense feel like you just know it will be around and still working 50 years from now! It really is a quality piece of gear.
The tone is incredible! I'm not quite sure how they pack so much into a small package. It sounds WAY BIGGER than its size would lead you to believe. I played the reissue Fender Champ before buying this and it just can't compare. The Fender felt cheap and sounds thin, buzzy and boxy. If you're in the market for a small amp, then the Starlite is so worth the extra $300 over the Fender.
The amp stays pretty clean up to about the noon position. After that it doesn't get much louder, just different degrees of dirt and compression. The tone control doesn't really work like a tradition tone control; it's more of a 'flavor' control that has more effect on the mids and how the amp breaks up. Once you get your head around how it works, it becomes this really powerful little knob for controlling your tone. With just two knobs it's like using just the single volume and tone knobs on a Les Paul Junior with the single pickup. It's amazing the range of tones available just adjusting tone and volume.
I did plug it into a 1x12 extension cab to see what this would do. It gets a little louder for sure and maybe a little warmer sounding, but really, the combo itself sounds great. The 1x12 does help maintain some clarity with the amp past 2 o'clock on the dial but this is also really loud!
This amp is all about quality: the build and tones are top-shelf. It's not cheap, but compared to other small amps out there (sure I haven't tried them all) this one is a little gem.
Would I buy it as a primary amp or a gigging amp? Probably not. But as a studio amp, bedroom/living room amp or for small gigs then definitely a big yes!
I can't say enough good things about this amp. I've owned dozens of amps over the years and played dozens more. This one is a stand-out.
Do understand that it's not a 'do-everything' amp that's going to cover all your bases. It does have limitations, but what it was designed, it does extremely well!

I've been looking for "THE AMP" for sometime now. Spent thousands over the years. Until this little Starlite showed up, there was always something missing from all the other amps. Upon plugging in this little wonder, and some slight tweaking of the knobs, I now have "THE AMP" I've been searching for. Paired with my '59 Reissue 335, I have my desert island rig. If you like small amps with great sound, you owe it to yourself to play one of these beauties.

I have always wanted a Magnatone amp but most of the models are way too loud for home use. I decided to try the 5W Starlite amp and I am blown away. Incredible grit to super clean tones. It's a five star amp.

To be honest, when I opened the box and saw the actual size of the amp, I thought, "Save the packaging. It's going back." For the money, there's not a lot here. I have a bunch of low wattage, boutique tube amps - Tweed Deluxes, Tremolux, hand wired Princeton's, brown Princeton's, even the Magnatone Panoramic in stereo. I didn't think this Starlite would make the cut.

Then I plugged it in.

Holy cow! This thing is a blast. Absolutely killer tones. It rips. It cleans up well. It's inspiring. It handled my Strymon Flint (reverb / tremolo) in the front end beautifully. I doubt an overdrive pedal would improve the natural break up on this little dude. I didn't bother. I just used my volume knob on the guitar. If there a more dynamic, low wattage amp that won't rob you of your hearing, I don't know about it. I couldn't stop playing it.

For the bedroom / living room guitarist, it would be hard to do better. It doesn't need to be loud to do it's thing. But it does seem to be a robust five watts. For the gigging guitarist, I think if you're mic'ed up with a good mix in the monitor, you'd be more than happy. I'm going to mic it up for rehearsal this week. If that doesn't work, I'm going to try my Boss Tube Amp Expander in to a bigger speaker cab. I'm motivated to use this. But if I can't, this is definitely going to be my go-to recording amp. It's Tweed-y, it's Deluxe-y, it's even kind of Marshall-y in the Bluesbreaker sense. Most of all, it's just fun.

They dropped the price on these. Get one while you can!

I had ordered this a while back and it was due in February then it got pushed to end of May b/c of Magnatone. Not a big deal. I was super shocked to have Patrick O., my rep, call just over a week ago and said they had some in and it was ready to ship!

The amp came expertly packed and was a bit heavier then I was expecting. I hardly need an amp anymore b/c most of the venues and rehearsal spots usually have gear there. My thought was to get this for home use, recording and grab-n-go for a jam/idea session. I was thinking about selling off some other amps that had been gathering dust.

The AMP - Truly shocked at the volume, clarity and tone coming from this. Is it like a 4x12? Of course not, but it does NOT sound like an 8inch speaker. Much more like a good 1x10. The volume is deceptive and works in a linear matter. It is NOT like a cheap made amp that goes from off to full volume at 5 and then sounds like mush. Great clarity and it gets LOUD for a 5 watt amp. Just as loud as a Marshall Class 5 for comparison.

TONE Control - Lots of options here and it acts as a mid cut/boost. Really cool. Rather dynamic as well.

PEDALS - Im running my live rig, which is an Origin Compact drive, into a Catlinbread echo, then into a boost and a MXR 95 at the end. Super great with any/all combo's in use.

OVERALL - Was not planning on feeling this good about the amp. Its my first Magnatone and it plays great and is built like a tank. It looks killer and the attention to detail is top-rate. Is it worth $1299? Definitely as its US made and sounds dynamite.

Mic'd, this thing could do any gig except metal. I haven't tried it with a cab yet, but Im sure its only better.

Holy cow. This amp is incredible. I recently bought a Fender Champ, and then ordered one of these to compare.

There is just no comparison.

This amp has fantastic fidelity and full sound. Makes the Champ sound like a muffled tin can. I had to immediately add an overdrive pedal to the Champ so I could EQ it a bit and get a reasonable tone. It worked, it's reasonable. But without the pedal, it was just not good.

However, this Magnatone needs nothing like that. I played all night long with no need for overdrive pedal. It plays loud and slight break up at half way, and the tone knob really is something to behold. It is not merely a sweep from high to low. It really is more of a amp-sim or something, because it changes the tone in such awesome ways and you can feather it to taste. I also am surprised to really dig the feedback switch, which "softens" the attack and combined with the tone knob really gives an unbelievable rich, full, edge of break-up, or near crystal clean sound.

It plays sooo much bigger, better, and fuller than the Champ. You will be surprised how loud it gets as it retains its quality sound.
I can only imagine how it will get better as it gets played more.
I am really impressed with this amp. I figured it would be very similar to the Champ and was prepared to be underwhelmed.

But, no.

I have them both, and the test is over.

Magnatone wins, no doubt about it.
Night and day. Absolutely awesome.

Great sounding little amp. Never owned a 5 watt, 8" speaker amp until now. Takes pedals really well, better bass response than I expected, very satisfying tone. Love the versatile tone control.Great amp for home music room. It will get loud, too. Quality build, classy looks. Recommended.

I like vintage looks but this amps looks wore thin especially when compared to my Fender Princeton.
The 8" speaker combo cannot handle even medium volume. It kinda craps out so to speak..alot of money for no more tone than a common Solid State amplifier.
Turning it back in for a Fender Tone Master which has more power, sounds better and is lighter..probably.