HotBox 130 Reactive

The HotBox 130 is our top-of-the-range power-attenuator and enables you to drive your valve amp as hard as you like into those sweet overload conditions yet output just the perfect volume. Simply connect the 130 between your amplifier’s output and the speaker itself then turn your amp up to overload levels and the excess volume is absorbed leaving you with the true sound of your amp overloading but at a manageable volume. No needless electronics, no fans, no complexity, just pure, sweet tone.

At the heart of the HB130 is our custom oversized reactive inductor core. This inductors is expertly wound to our precise specifications by a specialist manufacturer who works with some very serious high-end audio names. We specify hugely overrated copper wire and a unique iron core material to eliminate harsh distortion and undesirable non-linearities. Unlike other units that use a thimble sized coil just to tick that ‘reactive’ box in a mere technical sense our units, are fundamentally structured around that huge copper beating heart.

Our ground-breaking four mode system let you tune the damping of the inductor, or bypass it entirely, to create four tonal reactive interactions and find your preferred sensitivity sweet spot. Unlike other units where you get what you’re given without choice, we believe you should be able to find your own unique vibe: Blue, Green and Cream each create more intense and warmer inductive saturation as they push more and more of your signal through the inductor. Resistive mode gives you a bright, open sound that’s useful when you need to cut through a mix or capture the full chime and clarity of your amp as if connected to an impossible, perfect speaker with no high-end loss.

In an amplifier point-to-point is nice to have, but in a power attenuator it’s the gold standard. Even the thickest PCB traces have resistance that sucks tone when heavily loaded with massive wattage, but our point-to-point design uses heavyweight solid core wire and heat-resistant flex wires internally to ensure that loss is minimised below hearing.

Under the extreme heat any attenuator produces PCBs will eventually flex and crack, but point-to-point absorbs the expansion without stress. We also use Cobalt infused solder. This meets strict RoHS requirements to eliminate toxic lead from the environment whilst strengthening the solder joint so they can absorb shock, vibration and heat far more effectively without cracking like conventional lead-free solders would. Our units are built to last.

And, of course, premium parts throughout. Genuine Arcol, Lorlin, Neutrik and more. No corners cut.

Tuneable inductive attenuation

Choose between four settings: Bright and tight Resistive, the big and open Blue setting, the midrange focussed Green setting or the Warm and full Cream setting.

Specifications

• Suitable for any valve amplifier up to 130 watts.
• Attenuation in fine -4dB steps.
• Four reactive modes.
• True bypass to let your full volume through for A/B comparisons in the studio
• Works as a Dummy Load (Select Fine mode and you can disconnect your cab safely)
• Designed and built in Manchester, UK using premium components.
• Dual speaker outputs so you don’t have to daisy chain your speaker cabs.
• 5 Year Full warranty (Parts and Labour) and Limited Lifetime Warranty (Beyond 5 years costs-only repair).