Hey all,
I'm currently doing a spring clean and purging a bunch of gear I no longer use. I've waded through the pedals, got rid of some synths and drum machines, and now I'm taking a cold hard look at what amps I'm running:
Mid-1960s Dynacord Twen (early version, 17watts, 12" speaker, super trebly and clean)
Selmer Treble n' Bass Mk. ii into a Burman 2x12
I love the Selmer. It's a great live amp for bigger venues and the louder and noisier projects I do. But these days I've been getting a lot of bookings for solo shows and I'm running into a problem: the Dynacord. The Twen is not only super ice-pick-y (I'm pretty sure it's a silverface Princeton Clone), but I can't ever seem to get it above 2 at shows. So I'm thinking of downsizing that and grabbing a smaller amp that has tremolo. Ideally, if I was back home in the States, I'd pick up one of the bazillion Vibro Champs or other off-brand vintage tube amps (or recreations) that fit that bill. But here in Central Europe, those amps are unobtainium and super insanely expensive when they pop up.
So, what are my options? Any forgotten brands I should look for? Anyone got a line on something? Should I keep my eyes peeled for UK Vibrochamps, or should I search out any other variations on that theme like Watkins or Selmer?
Comments
Fender Jaguar/Jazzmaster > TU2 > SmallsoundBigsound F*ck Overdrive > Midfi Demo Tape Fuzz > Stargazer Reverb > Moog Analog Delay
Ideally, I'd like to find something around 10-12 watts or smaller so I can crank it up live and rely more on boosts and the volume knob than overdrives or fuzzes.
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
Good idea, I'll keep my eyes peeled. Any other UK brands worth looking at? I know the major ones like WEM/Watkins and Selmer and Vox, but are there any other smaller amp brands to look for, like the US' Valco/Harmony/Kay/Alamo contingent?
Avoid the 'Leo' (or variations) amps, they're shit. I had one which I paid a fiver for - it hummed, overheated, was electrically unsafe from new, sounded crap, and it literally fell apart. I've since worked on a couple more for people and it's a major job to make them even safe and reliable enough to pass a PAT test.
The Marshall Mercury is likewise junk - they look (sort-of) cool, but are a very poor hybrid circuit and are weak-sounding and noisy. I also had one of those which after the PCB burned a hole in itself, I completely rebuilt into a sort of Tweed Princeton circuit… it was OK.
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
Check out the Fender Excelsior demos on YT & see what you think. Nice big tone through the 15" speaker. 13 watt. Simple to operate & the tremolo sounds nice to my ears anyway. Agreed not too many around but not silly money and also got a nice 'different' look to you everyday boxes.
Takes pedals decently too. At one point I had two of them. Also, some cheap mods you can do to make it more flexible
Doesn't break up as quick as a ramparte which is in a similar vein
Despite only being 6w, it has ample headroom for boosts/fuzz etc
Rift Amplification
Brackley, Northamptonshire
www.riftamps.co.uk
one of the best valve tremelos I've heard
A super little amp that I've seen used by pros that could afford much more expensive kit if they wished.