Top Hat Amplifiers

Top Hat Amplifiers ✓ Verified

Builds: Amps · Est. 1994

Website checked Oct 26, 2026

Jump to 17 products ↓

Based in Durham, NC

Durham, North Carolina amp builder founded in 1994 by Brian Gerhard. Top Hat builds point-to-point tube amps rooted in classic Vox and Marshall designs, led by the Club Royale, Emplexador and King Royale lines, and every amp is built to order.

Founder: Brian Gerhard

Notable players

Bonnie RaittWalter BeckerDon HenleySheryl CrowElliott SmithDavid HidalgoCesar RosasMichael LandauDean ParksGreg LeiszRusty AndersonCarl BroemelBrian BellArt AlexakisPete Thorn

Notable gear

SD Series 2x12 Open Back

An open-back 2x12 extension cabinet from TopHat's Special Design series, hand-built from 11-ply Baltic Birch and loaded with Celestion Heritage G12H speakers.

Custom Shop Vanderbilt 33

A 33-watt, 6L6-powered version of the Supreme 16 platform in the same portable head shell, tuned for more headroom and a fatter low end.

Super Deluxe 33

A 33-watt Class A cousin of the Club Royale, upsized to run 6L6, EL34, or 6V6 power tubes on a custom Heyboer transformer without rebiasing.

Custom 2x12 Cabinet - Open Back

An open-back 2x12 Custom Series cabinet, 15mm Baltic Birch construction with a choice of Celestion GH12, Alnico Blue, or mixed speaker loading.

Club Royal 20

TopHat's best-selling Club Series combo - a single-channel, cathode-biased 20-watt Class A amp built around EZ81 tube rectification and a pair of EL84 power tubes.

Custom Shop Supreme 16

TopHat's flagship Custom Shop head, an EZ81-rectified 2xEL84 amp built on an AC15-inspired platform with a welded, powder-coated aluminum chassis.

SD Series 2x12 Closed Back

The closed-back counterpart to TopHat's SD Series 2x12, same 11-ply Baltic Birch build and standard Celestion Heritage G12H loading.

Super 33

A gainier variant of the Super Deluxe that swaps the first preamp tube for an EF86, adding a Clean/Boost switch for a hotter second stage.

SD Series 1x12 Closed Back

The closed-back version of TopHat's SD Series 1x12, built from 11-ply Baltic Birch with Celestion Heritage G12H/Empire speaker loading.

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