Hughes & Kettner's new Spirit Nano Heads: Pocket tonal nirvana?

01 Oct 2020 by Jef | Approximate reading time: 2 Minutes

Hughes & Kettner Spirit Nano heads · Source: Hughes & Kettner

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Hughes & Kettner has jumped head first into the micro amp head market! Each amp in the Nano Heads series has 50 Watts of output power, plus a handy built-in Red Box cabinet simulator and the H&K Sagging control. Could these new mini-marvels convince you to leave your large amp head behind?

Spirit Nano Head

Available in three flavours, these new 50-Watt Hughes & Kettner Spirit Nano Heads include features like cab simulation, in the form of the renowned H&K Red Box technology, as well as a Sagging control, allowing players to dial in the power amp saturation to taste at any volume.

The tube emulation tech used here is H&K’s Spirit Tone technology, also featured in its full-size Black Spirit 200 head. Although there are no real tubes, the sound is 100% analogue rather than DSP based. Other functions include a non-frequency compensated Line Out as well as a headphone output with the Red Box cab sim.

Hughes & Kettner Spirit Nano heads in Rock, Metal and Vintage flavours

Dinky Size, Massive Tones

Make no mistake: these things are tiny! All three Spirit Nano heads come in at only 9 x 9 x 19 cm and weigh only 1.1 kg each. I could fit them in my jacket pocket if need be. The external power supply is around 725 Grams, so you’d need another pocket for that. But boy are these amp heads small!

It looks like H&K has managed to squeeze an awful lot into a small space. But the German company has been at this game for many years. In the 1980s, I owned a Hughes & Kettner Cream Machine, which was a valve-driven pre and power amp that fitted into a half 19″ rack space. Back then, I thought that was tiny. So these new Spirit Nano Heads are almost a modern continuation of my old Cream Machine.

Hughes & Kettner Spirit Nano head Metal

Three Flavours

The three voicing flavours are Rock, Metal and Vintage, each one honed towards specific tonal flavours. All three have only four controls, Master, Sagging, Tone and Gain, making them simple to use.

Two features caught my attention. The Red Box cab sim and the Sagging control open up the possibilities here. I really want to try them out! The specs make an excellent impression, at least on paper. I have fond memories of my old H&K Cream Machine, which I never should have sold. You can follow the link below to read up on the full details on each Spirit Nano Head. Watch the demo video below to see and hear them in action.

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