Wienbrock Amps?

Beexter

I see that there is one of these for sale in the classifieds at the moment so thought I'd do some reading up. The Wienbrock website still seems to exist but it looks like just a home page and I cannot find any details of the different amps they offer.

Are they still going? Is there a list of their amps/ prices anywhere?

jpfamps

They've not been trading for a while now.

Rob Wienbrock is still about and contactable though.

Beexter

Cheers jpfamps.  

ourmaninthenorth

I went over to visit Rob at his factory when he first got going, and have seen him at a few shows...I like his amps, and I like him too. If he's still about, I'm sure he'd look after the amp for you if you bought the one in the classifieds. It's a lot of amp for the money in my humble opinion. 

4114Effects

Stopped trading as Weinbrock a while back. Rob Weinbrock has recently moved back to the states as far as I know.

The amps themselves are great, fantastic build quality and attention to detail. I think the marketing was a little lacking though and the amps kind of faded from public view after a little while. Mind you, I guess that happens to a lot of boutique brands.

jpfamps

I really like/d Rob's amps; they were well built, sounded good and had their styling, ie they weren't in tweed covered boxes for example.

I think the failure of the operation was a combination of factors, not least due to the tough nature of the business, but also possibly because the style of amp Rob was making didn't have the width of appeal to players in the UK. Added to the fact they were sold via dealers, who also want a margin and they were quite expensive.

mgaw

I have had 2 and thought they were very good...the one in the classifieds is a bargain..

Beexter

I'm tempted by the one in the classifieds but haven't come across much on You Tube to give me an idea of the sounds. Although the advertised amp seems good value, I'm not sure I could bring myself to take a gamble on something I haven't heard unless it was being custom made based on what I wanted. 

They do seem to get uniform praise for build quality though which is positive.

joe2517

I'm also interested in these; it'd be great if someone had an old catalogue so we could compare the models that were available, etc.

tone1

My local guitar shop had 2 new Weinbrocks..They sold them both to....Bernie Marsden...so they must be pretty good

funkymook

I ordered an amp directly from Rob Wienbrock, we discussed it and he kept me updated with it’s build progress, he took a part payment of £475. I then found out he had relocated to the USA without telling me, so no amp and he has ignored my requests for a refund - I honestly didn’t expect that sort of behaviour from him, very disappointed.

TheMarlin

Got a link to the one in the classifieds? Can't see it. 

yankeerob

funkymook said:

I ordered an amp directly from Rob Wienbrock, we discussed it and he kept me updated with it’s build progress, he took a part payment of £475. I then found out he had relocated to the USA without telling me, so no amp and he has ignored my requests for a refund - I honestly didn’t expect that sort of behaviour from him, very disappointed.

yankeerob

Martin (funkymook) will willingly confirm that I have been in the process of both refunding his deposit over the past months as I have been putting my life back together since Jan 2016. There are still many of our amps out there (that we still support) and we hope to resume limited production from our workshop in North Carolina sometime in 2018.

Sometimes life takes a wrong turn so fierce you can only go with it...

Wishing you all the best,

Rob

ourmaninthenorth

yankeerob said:

Martin (funkymook) will willingly confirm that I have been in the process of both refunding his deposit over the past months as I have been putting my life back together since Jan 2016. There are still many of our amps out there (that we still support) and we hope to resume limited production from our workshop in North Carolina sometime in 2018.

Sometimes life takes a wrong turn so fierce you can only go with it...

Wishing you all the best,

Rob

Take care of yourself Rob...thanks for all the hospitality along the way.

All that's good. 

Paul. 

yankeerob

Our goal moving forward is to produce the Gringo model as last shipped to private individuals in Germany before I left for the sunny shores of North Carolina. These were the best amps we ever produced... and an accumulation of everything we had gleaned from making and selling amps; always with the end user in mind. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Stevie Williams for introducing me to Elliott Randall (unbeknown to him - a huge guitar hero of mine) who had invaluable input into what is now the single and most significant model we produce. Thank you Elliott... Thank you Stevie...

Sometimes things take a long time to come to be... the Gringo is one such beast. There were always little grumbles... It lacked top end... it lacked power... the standard wiring of a 5E3 passive tone stack was (unless that was exactly what you wanted) a pain to navigate/control etc.. etc. Well now it's everything that you wanted... if you wanted a single input straight down the line badass clean amp that you can put whatever you want in front of it... this is the amp for you.

Starting with the power supply... we now employ a NOS military grade soft-start valve/tube rectifier and a suitable power transformer to provide a significantly greater clean signal - at output - than most modern amps rated at 40W. That is just the start... The rest is to be heard...

It's a funny old world we live in... my amps now fetch more - in certain 2nd had markets - than I ever sold them for 'at retail'... privately or through the normal channels. I'm immensely proud - not bitter - because that was always my goal... To provide a real value product.

I certainly lost my way in trying to be a decent partner to my 'significant other half' and all that went with that - and trying to be an amp manufacturer... and I nearly lost my mind in that process...

but I'm also pleased to say that my wife - a long lost childhood sweetheart - is very much a productive part of the new process. Maryann is in charge of all finishing and aesthetics of the new product... and fortunately... is equally emphatic about our mission.

She believes... as I do... in myself. I love playing the guitar. I believe that when we get past all this 'plug it into a computer' BS that there will be a demand for real amplifiers... and it is my mission to be - at the very least - one of the last men standing. One with a great - simple - based on the original circuit - simplicity that will be passed on that says... hey, you know what? Rob was an OK dude... he kept it alive for us...

So thank you to everyone that I haven't mentioned... my invaluable and eternal friend Ralph Barenthien... a man who certainly knows just about anything that there is to know about the electrification of guitars... you have tried to guide me as best you know... biggest hugs for your eternal patience... Ron Sayer Jr... still rockin' his ME-5 bought from Matthew Morrison's Cooke's Music in Norfolk... to Hayden Minnett.. the man who wound the very best pickups I've ever used... I am so very pleased to find that you are still doing so... rock on bruv... To Kerry Hughes at GN Studios for his relentless promotion and use of our product... huge hugs... Daniel Shaw... I can't even say enough there... hope yer well Dan... get in touch!... Bernie Marsden... Tony Bellis... Mat Haigh... Des Horsfall... Jamie Fildes... Martin Gardiner (owner of the very first and very original ME-1 thanks to Guido Landry)... the list goes on and on.. it's like doing birthdays on FB... you will always forget someone and feel bad about it...

So - in the words of the Warner Brothers at the end of a Bugs Bunny cartoon... th-th-th-that's all folks... for now... much love and best wishes to you all... RW