The Royalist contains a built-in Ironman-II precision attenuator for each channel
designed specifically for this model. The attenuator allows you to reduce the volume
level of the amplifier while retaining the natural overdrive sound and feel of the
amplifier. The tone and feel that this amplifier is designed for are best achieved by a
certain proportion of preamp distortion to power tube distortion, so an attenuator is the
best way to control volume level while preserving that balance.
This attenuator uses a precision tuned reactive load and volume compensation circuitry
to best preserve the natural tone and feel of the amp, even at very low volume. This is
the same general approach used in the highly regarded Ironman-II Mini standalone
attenuator.
There are many different approaches that can be used to generate overdriven and
distorted tones as a low volume. For example, master volume circuits, or a power
reduction scheme such as London Power Scaling have both been used successfully on
various amp models of other brands. However, for the vintage British tones that the
Royalist MKIII is designed to achieve, a good quality attenuator such as the built-in
Ironman is the best way to preserve tone and feel at very low volume, because it allows
the output stage to participate in overdrive, lending an authentic vintage British quality
to the response of the amp.
The attenuation control determines the amount of power sent to the speaker, but does
not affect the operation of the output stage of the amplifier itself. The attenuator
absorbs and dissipates any excess power generated by the output tubes that is not sent
to the speaker.
The attenuator is internally connected between the amplifier output and the speaker
jack – the same way an external attenuator would be connected. However, the input of
the attenuator is not accessible, so you cannot use the built-in Ironman attenuator to
attenuate the output of some other amplifier.
The LED on the footswitch indicates the channel selected. When the LED is lit, channel
B is selected. When the LED is off, channel A is selected.
Previous Tone King models have been based more or less around the 1960s Fender
clean sound. The Royalist is a completely different amp. It is designed to capture the
tone and feel of the late 60’s / early 70s British amps. As such, the Royalist is a much
different amp than our other models, and has an entirely different voicing and tonal
palette.
The Royalist is quite simple to dial in. Let’s take a look at a few settings which display
some of the Royalist’s best characteristics.
The settings shown here are a great starting point, no matter what kind of guitar you
are using. In order to become familiar with the Royalist, It’s recommended to start with
these settings and try changing each control, in turn, to note its effect.
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