Canadian Amp Builders

[Jeff Flowerday]

Let's list them. I'll start.


http://www.petersamplification.com/

[JamesPeters]

Hey, thanks. :)

Besides that...um...man it's hard to think of any more...

Oh wait, Mayfly amps. Oh man, I just went to check for the link and discovered he's not making amps anymore. That's sad. He made some cool stuff.

[Accept2]

Leyland is in Ottawa, and they build vintage style stuff..............

http://www.leylandsounddesign.com/

[RippingRudy]

Another builder I know of is Glenn Morris in Welland, Ontario. His amps are used by the Trews among others. He is also a wicked good tech who has fixed a number of my blown up amps. www.morrisamps.com

[drift_boat]

There is also Clara Amps in Calgary. Keith McNeil builds Marshall and Fender Tweed designs from scratch with high quality components.

The band Chixdiggit used his Marshall clones for their Euro/Asian tour and the feedback he got was that they loved them.

I have heard his tweed deluxe (and compared it to Victorias) and as a result he's building a tweed clone for me.

[Stratocaster]

Isn`t Traynor a canadian company also?

[I Huff Paint]

Another builder I know of is Glenn Morris in Welland, Ontario. His amps are used by the Trews among others. He is also a wicked good tech who has fixed a number of my blown up amps. www.morrisamps.com

Thanks for the heads up Rudy. I have a couple of heads I need some work done to, and I live in Welland.

Cheers:)

[I Huff Paint]

Hey Rudy, by the way, do you know Rocket from Welland?

[GuitarsCanada]

Here is a dude from Stoney Creek giving it a try.

http://www.edwardamp.com/

[whitegreyblack]

Oh my goodness, no one's bothered to mention one of the best known Canadian makes from the 70's???

Garnet; out of Winnipeg. The flippin Guess Who used his stuff!

www.garnetamps.com

I just wish I could get my Deputy Head & cab in to Gar himself to give it a once-over and perhaps sign the back for me.

[Robert1950]

Here you go:

Trinity Amps http://www.cohrs.ca/staged/Products_Main.htm

Stevenson Amps http://www.stephensonamps.com/home.htm

Teixeira Amps http://www.teixeiraamps.com/

All good shit apparently

[Lucius]

Don't forget Verlage out of Regina Sask.
http://www.tone-lizard.com/Verlage_Amplifiers.htm

I've got a VTR100 from this dude. It was in my dads closet like 20 years ago and I just recovered it last year sometime. It is stupid loud and looks cool too. Cheers Lucius

[Daz-o-matic]

I hope I'm not pushing the rule of 'blatant advertising' :o. In the spirit of the thread, I thought I'd throw my name into the fray.

http://www.avalancheamps.com

I get most of my parts from the Weber folks, then I upgrade and tweak to my taste (and/or the taste of the client). In fact, I found the link to this forum over on the Weber bulletin boards.

I don't anticipate making much (or any) profit - I just really enjoy building and playing great amps; selling them helps support my amp-geek habit. Customer satisfaction is more important to me than bottom line (i.e. the Ted Weber business philosophy).

This isn't my only line of work - my day job is as an avalanche tech at Panorama ski resort, and that allows me to pay the bills and spend the rest of my time building amps.

Cheers,
Darren Burt - Avalanche Amplification
Invermere BC

[Jeff Flowerday]

I hope I'm not pushing the rule of 'blatant advertising' :o. In the spirit of the thread, I thought I'd throw my name into the fray.

http://www.avalancheamps.com

I get most of my parts from the Weber folks, then I upgrade and tweak to my taste (and/or the taste of the client). In fact, I found the link to this forum over on the Weber bulletin boards.

I don't anticipate making much (or any) profit - I just really enjoy building and playing great amps; selling them helps support my amp-geek habit. Customer satisfaction is more important to me than bottom line (i.e. the Ted Weber business philosophy).

This isn't my only line of work - my day job is as an avalanche tech at Panorama ski resort, and that allows me to pay the bills and spend the rest of my time building amps.

Cheers,
Darren Burt - Avalanche Amplification
Invermere BC

Well we might have to let you get away with it this time. You didn't blatently start your own thread.

PS) Sign up for the Calgary Amp fest notification in the Events section. If you are free when the event actually happens try and come into town and have a bunch of gear heads try your stuff.


Jeff

[Daz-o-matic]

Well we might have to let you get away with it this time. You didn't blatently start your own thread.
Jeff

And I wouldn't, either. On some of the other forums I frequent, that kind of thing is tantamount to beating up kittens and kicking puppies.;)

Thanks for the heads up on the amp fest!

Cheers,
Daz

[Scottone]

I exchanged a couple of emails with Kevin O'connor the other day and it sounds like he's jumping back into the manufacturing fray soon.

I just sold my Studio amp and Sustainor pre-amp a few weeks ago, and I'm missing them already :( My only amp these days is a Stephenson LJ-15 and it's a great amp IMO.

I'm working through the Canadian amp builders, so I might have to try a Peters next :D

[ClamBoy]

...that kind of thing is tantamount to beating up kittens and kicking puppies.;)


I hate it when people dump on my hobbies.

[james on bass]

I hope I'm not pushing the rule of 'blatant advertising' :o. In the spirit of the thread, I thought I'd throw my name into the fray.

http://www.avalancheamps.com

I get most of my parts from the Weber folks, then I upgrade and tweak to my taste (and/or the taste of the client). In fact, I found the link to this forum over on the Weber bulletin boards.

I don't anticipate making much (or any) profit - I just really enjoy building and playing great amps; selling them helps support my amp-geek habit. Customer satisfaction is more important to me than bottom line (i.e. the Ted Weber business philosophy).

This isn't my only line of work - my day job is as an avalanche tech at Panorama ski resort, and that allows me to pay the bills and spend the rest of my time building amps.

Cheers,
Darren Burt - Avalanche Amplification
Invermere BC


Ever done any bass stuff? All tubes, or do you/can you make hybrids?

[JamesPeters]

I hate it when people dump on my hobbies.

I don't think he was. He was however making an equation. So don't take it too personally.

[Daz-o-matic]

Nope. Dumping on Clamboy's hobbies.:p





j/k, of course...

James on bass - PM'ed you.

[rippinglickfest]

Heres a couple in British Columbia
stephensonamps.com stephenso@telus.net
wizardamplification.com admin@wizardamplification.com

Ray

[CocoTone]

Isn`t Traynor a canadian company also?

:rolleyes:

[Lester B. Flat]

I had an amp back in the late '70's called a VT Phaser Twin. Solid state combo, two Celestion 12" speakers, front loaded with a sealed back. Made somewhere in Ontario I think by a company called Vibration Technology.

[LPBlue]

How can we forget the legendary "Kiel":bullbeg:


http://guitarscanada.com/Board/showthread.php?t=389

[JamesPeters]

Richtone Amps (http://www.richtoneamps.com/)

In Beaconsfield, near Montreal, QC. A friend of mine in Portland just told me about them. Small world, this Intarweb...

[Otis '71]

what about Traynor?...i just bought their new YCV 80Q...and i love it!!!!!!!

[JamesPeters]

what about Traynor?

Echo...echo... :p

[Spikezone]

I just wish I could get my Deputy Head & cab in to Gar himself to give it a once-over and perhaps sign the back for me.

I just wish I still had my Garnet Pro-I traded it in for a Marshall 50 half stack back in the 70's-have kicked myself ever since!
-Mikey

[oddio]

Here's an old timer: O.H.M. amplifiers. I suspect that they were Canadian, but I'm not 100% positive. I had a stack back in '68 and I've been looking for info on these for a long time. Any info truly appreciated.

[Adicted to Tubes]

I'm not sure this is the right place,but here goes.I build amps and cabinets in many sizes and custom build many different amps to suit the customer.
check out my website www.claramps.com
It is being updated to show some of the newer models I build.
Check Harmony Central for some user reviews.
What a great idea!A Canadian Forum! Finally!

[Jaggery]

Kingsley.

http://www.kingsleyamplifiers.com/

[lpstudio]

Gar is agreat guy I just had my traynor mark 3 head in for service and he didn't even charge me ( the reverb tank was pooched)

[prehistoricpain]

Another builder I know of is Glenn Morris in Welland, Ontario. His amps are used by the Trews among others. He is also a wicked good tech who has fixed a number of my blown up amps. www.morrisamps.com


i'll vouch for glens work, its amazing, im from welland and i've heard a few of his amps. really a nice guy to deal with too!

[chimo]

there's a couple old "Elk" amps that look disturbingly like blackface Bassmans and sound like garbage around here... they're vintage Canadian

The East Coast Guru is a guy named Brit Fader.. he has no website, but he's gooooooood and makes amps too.

[SQUAREHEAD]

[B]http://www.wizardamplification.com/overview.htm
Rick St Pierre
He's the president, I'm not certain he's still producing amps tho


keithl/B]

[Robert1950]

[B]http://www.wizardamplification.com/overview.htm
Rick St Pierre
He's the president, I'm not certain he's still producing amps tho


keithl/B]


I can't get into his website after entering. Pics of his stuff just keep changing with no entry point.

[µ¿ z3®ø™]

I exchanged a couple of emails with Kevin O'connor the other day and it sounds like he's jumping back into the manufacturing fray soon.

that would be very cool.
i'm not much interested in modding a vintage amp to do the power scaling thing.
could U expand on what his amps are like to use and how u think they sound?

[M_A_T_T]

I hope I'm not pushing the rule of 'blatant advertising' :o. In the spirit of the thread, I thought I'd throw my name into the fray.

http://www.avalancheamps.com

I get most of my parts from the Weber folks, then I upgrade and tweak to my taste (and/or the taste of the client). In fact, I found the link to this forum over on the Weber bulletin boards.

I don't anticipate making much (or any) profit - I just really enjoy building and playing great amps; selling them helps support my amp-geek habit. Customer satisfaction is more important to me than bottom line (i.e. the Ted Weber business philosophy).

This isn't my only line of work - my day job is as an avalanche tech at Panorama ski resort, and that allows me to pay the bills and spend the rest of my time building amps.

Cheers,
Darren Burt - Avalanche Amplification
Invermere BC

I'm seriously thinking about one of those verbolo units you make, in aged tweed, that thing looks sweet. :DevilGuitar:

Where exactly is Athalmer, btw?

[wordsonyou]

Kingsley.

http://www.kingsleyamplifiers.com/
+1, these are some of my fave amps period

[Daz-o-matic]

Where exactly is Athalmer, btw?

On the wrong side of the tracks.:tongue:

Athalmer's part of Invermere - if you know the town, we're down by the lake on the other side of the train tracks (behind the DQ and the gas stations).

If you don't know the town, it's right between the Rocky and the Purcell mountains in the southeast corner of BC - between Cranbrook and Golden. Nice spot full of Calgarian's holiday homes.

BTW, replied to your email!

-Darren

[Milkman]

I had an amp back in the late '70's called a VT Phaser Twin. Solid state combo, two Celestion 12" speakers, front loaded with a sealed back. Made somewhere in Ontario I think by a company called Vibration Technology.


I had the exact same amp. It was made in Uxbridge Ontario.


It was a very loud little amp with a built in phase shifter.

[Newton]

http://www.chucktronic.ca/ From Quebec and Greenwood amps from Montreal no website. Theese guys have their own circuit design.

[evenon]

Richtone Amps (http://www.richtoneamps.com/)

In Beaconsfield, near Montreal, QC. A friend of mine in Portland just told me about them. Small world, this Intarweb...

The guys from Priestess use Richtone amps. I am guessing 100 watters from how much my ears were ringing both times I saw them.

BTW... How is it going James ? How is Winterpeg ?

Jeff

[JamesPeters]

The guys from Priestess use Richtone amps. I am guessing 100 watters from how much my ears were ringing both times I saw them.

BTW... How is it going James ? How is Winterpeg ?

Jeff

Tis not bad, thanks. :smile: It's nice to be around my friends and family who I'd "left" when I moved to Calgary, although I do miss my friends in Calgary now though. And in a bout of irony, it snowed a lot more there than it did after I got here. :smile: I'm sure that bit of backwardness won't prevail though...I'm preparing for much worse weather to arrive soon.

[lenbone]

Any one ever hear of Briscoe Amps ??This is a head, ss made in Vancouver B.C. with the speakers built into the head,the speakers are Marsland, and the transformer was built by Leslie.I've never heard of them !--Lenbone.

[amphead]

www.mackamps.com

That's me.

[Thinline]

Anyone ever tried building an AX84 amps??

I've built a Hi-Octane, sounds awesome. Its amazing how loud 5 watts can be.
I've thought about building amps for some extra income, it'd be hard to part with them if they all sounded this good though.

[obstructionist]

In today's Globe and Mail, see http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20070123.OBGILLIES23/TPStory/Obituaries

[Michelle]

Here's one, never heard the amps but I like the site, lots of good tech articles though he is 'opinionated' just like everyone else. :) Check it out, good reading.

http://tone-lizard.com/

Mich

[NB_Terry]

i'll vouch for glens work, its amazing, im from welland and i've heard a few of his amps. really a nice guy to deal with too!

Yep, Glen is great. He's got a few new amps coming out, stay tuned.

[CocoTone]

I had the exact same amp. It was made in Uxbridge Ontario.


It was a very loud little amp with a built in phase shifter.


I had a head version of that amp. Surprsingly good sounding amps for the day, and for SS. Got stole on me tho...


CT.

[pickslide]

There is also Clara Amps in Calgary. Keith McNeil builds Marshall and Fender Tweed designs from scratch with high quality components.

The band Chixdiggit used his Marshall clones for their Euro/Asian tour and the feedback he got was that they loved them.

I have heard his tweed deluxe (and compared it to Victorias) and as a result he's building a tweed clone for me.


Anybody ever played a Clara? Sound clips?

[Adicted to Tubes]

There are sound clips on my website.

www.claramps.com

claraamps@shaw.ca

[pickslide]

I know, I just checked out your site and liked what I read, but was wondering if there were anymore clips out there. I just emailed you as well.

[thegame]

Another vote for Wizard amps. I've owned several over the years but just have 1 right now. They're truely amazing.

[Powdered Toast Man]

http://www.traynoramps.com/
http://www.yorkville.com/

I just got a YBA200 a couple months ago and I like it!

[bigredstrat]

Anyone heard of Supreme? I got a head and PA speakers at a yard sale last weekend for $20.00. It says made in canada, all tube and my strat sounds beautifully dirty through it. I can't find anything about it. Best 20 bucks I ever spent.

[Gear Pig]

Someone had given me a Berelson head and cabinet a few years back, held on to cabinet, gave a friend the head so he had a chassis for one he was building. Has anyone ever heard of them??? The head had 'Made In Quebec' on the back. From the info he gave me it is early-mid '50s but I haven't been able to find any info.

[zdogma]

I can't say enough about Simon Jarratt's Kingsley amps. He has built and refined this amp to my specs and I love it:

http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e186/zdogma/DSCN2103.jpg

It is a Deluxe model, a modified version of the deluxe 1. It has a Celestion blue speaker. It can use 1 6V6, two 6V6 (parallel single ended, like a double Champ) or it can use two El34, KT66 or 6L6 (or you can mix and match) for 15 watts (max for the blue, the design can produce 20 watts or more). It can produce more cool/unique tones than any amp I have heard, is very quiet and its built like a tank. Great amp from a great builder.

[davetcan]

Well I guess we should add Martin Newall. gtrchris and Mario have both had ones for sale the past couple of weeks. Hopefully he's good as I'm getting the 18 watter from Mario. He's from T.O. and I see his stuff at Capsule Music occasionally.

[I Huff Paint]

Check out Glen's site
http://www.morrisamps.com/

He has some new models available, and the prices are VERY reasonable.

[Budda]

morris amps, i keep forgetting the name! i'm also going ot have to look into wizard and kingsley

many thanks for the links guys :D

[torndownunit]

This is a guy I just finished building a site for, and who is currently building me an amp. He build some incredible stuff. He currently sells them out of Woodshed Music in Guelph.

http://www.gcamplifiers.com/

[butterknucket]

Wizard amps

[nitehawk55]

A fellow in London ON is building some interesting amps and has power scaling available . He has done repair work for me and is excellent . Builds both guitar and bass amps as well as does modifications of pretty much whatever you want done on any amp you currently own .

Dante is his name and he's only in his mid 20's but way beyond that in knowledge .

www.islandamps.com

Check him out and give him an email if you have any questions , he loves to talk amps :)

[1PUTTS]

This is a guy I just finished building a site for, and who is currently building me an amp. He build some incredible stuff. He currently sells them out of Woodshed Music in Guelph.

http://www.gcamplifiers.com/

I met that Grant dude at a gig this past summer. He's a friend of our Keyboard player. Seemed like a real cool guy and knew his stuff. Well, from what I could tell anyway. I'm just the drummer who is learning to play guitar. But he and our 2 guitarists had a lot to talk about - sounded like interesting stuff and both our guitar guys were very impressed.

[coco]

Here you go:
Trinity Amps http://www.cohrs.ca/staged/Products_Main.htm


The new web address is www.trinityamps.com. Lots of info & clips too.

Check out the clippage secion of the forum: http://www.trinityamps.com/phpbb/viewforum.php?f=10

[Wayward Son]

Don't know much about this builder. From Edmonton I think. He builds an interesting tubed pedal also.
http://glasstoneamps.com/

[WannabeGood]

Does anybody know anything about Brentwood amps? Maybe 60's vintage? Made in Canada but can't find any info on the net. Info or links would be helpful.

Regards,

[Curtis.Fagan]

Morris amps...isn't that what Dallas Green from Alexisonfire uses?? And James Peters still makes some amazing gear.

Glasstone apparently has some good stuff going. Band from Edmonton called Of Angels is endorsing his stuff.

There is also an honorable mention for SwampDonkey out of Cochrane Alberta. I'm trying one on Saturday, and I'll be sure to post somthing about it.

http://www.swampdonkeyamps.com

Love,
Curtis

[Scottone]

There is also an honorable mention for SwampDonkey out of Cochrane Alberta. I'm trying one on Saturday, and I'll be sure to post somthing about it.

http://www.swampdonkeyamps.com

Love,
Curtis


Certainly scores high points for cosmetics. Looking forward to a tone report.

[peacock159]

:rockon:You guys must check out Traynor. Such a beautiful clear sound, with both distortion, and clean. Best tone I've heard.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4DND1NBxIlA

[Curtis.Fagan]

Okay! Finally, Swamp Donkey!

Chris has created one really impressive sounding amplifier. It's as unique sounding as it looks. With the clasic Black Face styled tone stack, and some interesting and fresh ideas, this amp is a real treat. 50watts, Class A, running two 6L6's in the power section and three 12AX7's in the preamp.

Warning though! Gainiacs, stear clear! This amp is a classic sounding amplifier. This piece of equipment would sound amazing in a country band, or even a classic rock band. Definately suits the Fender tele sound, it is equally versatile with the humbuckers in my Hamer. Please read on for greater details.

Low down! This amp is a bouncy, soulful upgrade on the classic Fender sound, with a nice dash of Marshall Plexi and Vox and Hiwatt cleans. It is a gorgeous piece of equipment with a slick purple checkered tolex, double stitched leather handles, a laser cut Aluminum logo plate and industrial looking burgundy grill behind. You can see the tubes glowing away, not to mention the toddler head sized transformers! All of the electronics are point to point in a slick aluminum chassis. The wiring is bundled and grouped very neatly, and brought to mind the kind of attention to detail you see with another famous/infamous Canadian amp darlings work, James Peters.

I found the head to be a bit large for my liking, and I love long heads. This thing is massive, but it's a suitable housing for the character and substance being powered within.

The Features! Your average Bass, Mid and Treble, with a foot switchable Boost, Gain, Volume, Edge(think presence or damping) and a Master Volume.
My favourite feature was definately the variable "voicing" dial. Sort of like the Spongy/Vintage/Modern switches cluttering up every channel on the Mesa Road King, this simple, universal dial allows for Crisp, Bright, Natural, Warm, and Fat. All of which give greater voice to certain frequencies.

Through the matching 212 loaded with Tone Tubbies, I found the cleans with this amp to be a sparkly, chimey, not overly compressed call back to the classics. On my passive neck bucker, a JB, it was creamy, smooth singing! Minus the Bear styled tapping and some jazz/math noddling was reproduced faithfully with a real suprising note seperation not usually seen with this kind of amp. I found even nerdy sweep picking on the clean channel was sustain rich and clear like a bell, and odd combination I welcomed whole heartedly. When it comes time to record cleans in the studio, Chris will be getting a phone call from me right away!

Now, with my Boss EQ and the EMG I have in my bridge, I was able to boost some interesting rock tones, bordering on classic metal sounds. Think an AD140 with a bouncy bottom end, but not loose and flubby. Sexy, curvy girl kind of bottom end, you know?? It was really cool. I was on a quest to irk out some shredder tones, but the compression was just not there. But when I backed off the EQ and hit the boost, I found myself in BB King/Steve Vai territory, wailing away on bends and pentatonic noodlings with abandon.

I switched over to my neck, and immediately found a big, rich sound, and jammed out some tappy, slinky sounding licks, and found the amp quite generous and responsive. The note seperation became a little fuzzy for my style, but it was perfect for funky sounds and jazzy leads.

Now, being a bit of a gain lover, and definately a fan of the shred, I found this amp to lack the overall gain'guts I need for the kind of music I play. But, I also found that when I switched to Chris' Telecaster, punched in a Crybaby, and wanked away, it was just a huge amount of fun. Very responsive and highly suited to the single coil Tele pickups!

I am a fan of all styles of music, and can play many different flavours, so I personally found this amplifier to be perfect for my second love after prog and thrash: Country and western. This is not to say it is limited by any means!

The sounds the Eagles have going for them, Jimi Hendrix, Pete Townsend, The Edge, any bouncy sounding modern country artist of the last 20 years or jazz player, this is the right kind of amplifier for you.

Chris has updated some classic, steady sounds, given it a really sweet spin, and made it his own. He is thorough, open and all around one of the nicest guys I have ever had the pleasure to meet. His home, tucked away in the beautiful back country foot hills of Alberta near Cochrane is warm and inviting as the sounds his amp makes.

All around an extremely cool amp. http://www.swampdonkeyamps.com If you get a chance or are local to Chris, try and get a chance to play his amps. They are really sweet! If you can't drive and are limited to the confines of public transit, stop by the Blind Beggar Pub on MacLeod in Calgary every Thursday. Chris and the SwampDonkey will be in attendance, and trust me, you will not be dissappointed!

Love,
Curtis

[ssdeluxe]

nice review : these amps look very cool ! anybody in gta heard/has one yet ?

always interested in cool new builders.........canada's seems to be quite the hotspot for this activity ! (in terms of quality product)

nice !:smilie_flagge17:

[david henman]

...wild bill, a member of this esteemed forum, is currently building an amp for me.

we'll try and keep all of you posted on the progress, perhaps with pics, if bill agrees.

-dh

[Wild Bill]

...wild bill, a member of this esteemed forum, is currently building an amp for me.

we'll try and keep all of you posted on the progress, perhaps with pics, if bill agrees.

-dh

No prob! I intended to post pix here myself.

Incidently, as far as the Swamp Donkey goes, while it may indeed be a great sounding amplifier the claim of 50 watts Class A from a pair of 6L6's is totally bogus, on a par with the 200 mpg carburetor.

It just ain't possible! Not unless you want to change the 6L6's after every gig! Class A means you have to run the tube at a lower power level than the usual Class AB1 you'd find in a Super Reverb or whatever else has a pair of 6L6's.

What is likely true is that the tubes are cathode biased. There is a popular misconception out there that cathode bias means Class A. Crap! Tubes don't care what kind of bias method you use. It's the bias voltage however you make it that determines what class the tube runs. Since most Class A circuits use cathode bias because it's easier some folks a bit challenged about their tube theory assume that all cathode bias is Class A.

Also, since Class A has such a reputation for a great tone guys who write ad copy instead of soldering will toot any cathode biased amp as Class A.

I hate to be nitpicking here but as a tech these claims seem a bit misleading. I'm never sure if they come from ignorance or sneakiness.:eek:

:food-smiley-004:

[Adicted to Tubes]

I agree with Bill.No way a class A amp with a pair of 6l6's is going to put out anywhere near 50 watts.More like 30 watts or less.Class A is a very misused term these days.It would take 4-6L6's to put out 40 watts in true class A.
If the amp sounds good and looks good there is no need to say it's something it isn't.
by the way,it states on his website it is class a/b anyway,so it's a moot point.Sure would like to see inside!


www.claramps.com

[Geek]

18.5W to 24W under ideal conditions:
http://tdsl.duncanamps.com/show.php?des=6L6GC

Unlike class AB, class A is more or less two SE tubes in parallel, so power just doubles. In AB, it squares minus the losses.

Depends on how hard you push them and how they're being rated. It could be rated full-grunge-crunch (which is AB for the last 1/2 of the power rating). But it'll do maybe 20W crystal clear.

I have a design on the bench that idles the tubes pure class-A, but she'll do 5W clean and to 11 in varying degrees of AB.

Cheers!

[Adicted to Tubes]

You are mistaken if you think class A is limited to single ended.It is achievable rather easily in push-pull designs.
Allessandro makes a 20 watt amp with 4 EL34's,push-pull.There are many other examples.Much of the wattage in a class A amp is wasted as heat.Single ended amps are not necessarily class A either.This is a much argued point and is best left to those who are not interested in tone,but more interested in winning an arguement.I for one build amps to sound good and don't worry too much if it's class A,AB or whatever.

www.claramps.com

[Geek]

Hi,

You are mistaken if you think class A is limited to single ended.[/url]

That's not what I said.... unless you were talking to someone else?

Cheers!

[Scottone]

Here is what the SwampDonkey site says...

"The M50 puts out between 50 to 60 watts (using 6L6GC / EL34 output tubes... using 6V6 tubes you get 22-25 watts) in push-pull Class "AB" (fixed bias). The "M" series preamp is a single channel Cascading Gain Stage design using 2 double triodes. There is no negative feedback loop in this design and as a result the output is huge and responsive. You may use un-matched pairs of output tubes in the M50; individual bias controls and accessible test points make it easy to setup."

The class-A claim is only in Curtis' post. Curtis, you may want to correct your post..

BTW, Wild Bill, looking forward to the pics of the amp that you are putting together.

[Swampdonkeyamps]

Hi All,

I'm Chris Czech, the designer and builder of Swampdonkey Guitar Amps. I'd like to point out that in Curtis' review of the M50, he incorrectly claimed that the M50 was biased Class 'A'. I'm sure it was an honest mistake, and as such, I left the review uncorrected when I first saw it.

I'm sorry to have left the review uncommented until now and apologise for any negative impression this may have led to. Please feel free to check the website out and if questions linger, I'm happy to reply!

While I'm here, I'd like to ask those of you who've experimented with it, what you think of the tone of a push-pull, Class 'A' bias vs. 'AB' ? I've always assumed that the push-pull transition ate or severly reduced the 2nd order harmonic in any push-pull design. That's essentially what makes the Single Ended amp sound so distinct, isn't it? I'd love to hear the straight dope on this.

Lastly, the M50 is only being shown in the Calgary area at present but we have plans to visit other cities throughout Canada as soon as possible and plan to attend events and shows as we are able. Right now all my time is spent building and demonstrating the M50, but hopefully we'll be able to get our products out to everyone who's interested.

All the best!

Chris

[Geek]

Hi Swampdonkey, welcome! :smile:

Thank you for the clarification.


While I'm here, I'd like to ask those of you who've experimented with it, what you think of the tone of a push-pull, Class 'A' bias vs. 'AB' ? I've always assumed that the push-pull transition ate or severly reduced the 2nd order harmonic in any push-pull design. That's essentially what makes the Single Ended amp sound so distinct, isn't it? I'd love to hear the straight dope on this.

Yeah... it's kind of complex. After building some guitar amps and many times more HiFi, the enhancement or supression can depend on a lot of things, including load impedance, tube balance, class of operation, bias point, OPT, etc.

The basic rule of thumb is PP cancels even harmonics. This holds true for a perfectly matched pair of tubes and perfectly balanced output transformer. The electronic world is far from perfect though, giving each amp its characteristic.

Cheers!

[pickslide]

Anybody ever hear of these?

www.glasstoneamps.com

Anybody have one? Somebody over at TGP said that this was one of the best amps he heard at NAMM along with the Suhr Badger new 30W head.

[Swampdonkeyamps]

We're hosting a Swampdonkey Sound Check at the Dartique Lodge, a local log cabin community hall, on March 1st. See the NEWS page on our website for details. Anyone who will be in the area is welcome to come by.

I'm getting some high quality sound clips made for the website... more on this as it unfolds.

There are a couple of videos on our MySpace page and more coming real soon.

Cheers all,

Chris

www.swampdonkeyamps.com
www.myspace.com/swampdonkeyamps

[Adicted to Tubes]

Check out some cool soundclips on my website of the V-Verb and my Overdrive Rocket.
These clips were done by Johhny V and Ralf Buschmeyer.Guess who did the V-Verb clips?sdsre

www.claramps.com

Maybe we can do an amp shootout one day with Chris.I personally am a fan of ingenuity like swampdonkey.

[4x12]

should mention this dude in here also...

JFL Amplification (http://www.myspace.com/thetubeampbuilderdude).

[axestronomer]

Check out some cool soundclips on my website of the V-Verb and my Overdrive Rocket.
These clips were done by Johhny V and Ralf Buschmeyer.Guess who did the V-Verb clips?sdsre

www.claramps.com

Maybe we can do an amp shootout one day with Chris.I personally am a fan of ingenuity like swampdonkey.

The V-Verb sounds just what I'm looking for.

:food-smiley-004:

[Swampdonkeyamps]

I've posted two high quality MP3 clips on our website for those who are interested. Please check 'em out and let me know what you think!

www.swampdonkeyamps.com

[croy78]

I know they've been mentioned already, but Glen builds probably the greatest amps i've heard. I do a lot of live production, so i've heard a bunch, most of the top stuff, and Glen's just smoke them. I have a 22 watt custom he built and it will never go anywhere... it's simply amazing.

[butterknucket]

Are those Filmosound amps Canadian?

Isn't one of the guys who used to work on the floor at Songbird building amps now?

[Wild Bill]

Are those Filmosound amps Canadian?

Isn't one of the guys who used to work on the floor at Songbird building amps now?

Filmosound was a trade name for little 12 watt amps that fit inside old 16mm movie projectors, to provide the sound.

Because you can scrounge those old projectors real cheap lots of guys have taken the amp out and used it for guitar.

As you might expect, the term "reworked for guitar" can mean a lot of different things, especially on Ebay! It might mean the guy simply stuck a jack on the input to fit a guitar cable, which works about as well as plugging in to a hifi system.

I've done at least half a dozen projects with these amps. I gut out everything but the sockets and transformers, drill some extra control holes and wire them up like single channel BF Fenders, like a Deluxe Reverb with only one channel and no reverb. They sound kinda good! Not being too powerful you can crank 'em up for good power amp distortion without getting into trouble over the volume, although if you use a 4-12 cab they can be surprisingly loud.

If you can get one cheap enough you've got a chassis, power and output transformer. That's about $150 worth of iron, at Hammond prices.

:food-smiley-004:

[butterknucket]

Filmosound was a trade name for little 12 watt amps that fit inside old 16mm movie projectors, to provide the sound.

Because you can scrounge those old projectors real cheap lots of guys have taken the amp out and used it for guitar.

As you might expect, the term "reworked for guitar" can mean a lot of different things, especially on Ebay! It might mean the guy simply stuck a jack on the input to fit a guitar cable, which works about as well as plugging in to a hifi system.

I've done at least half a dozen projects with these amps. I gut out everything but the sockets and transformers, drill some extra control holes and wire them up like single channel BF Fenders, like a Deluxe Reverb with only one channel and no reverb. They sound kinda good! Not being too powerful you can crank 'em up for good power amp distortion without getting into trouble over the volume, although if you use a 4-12 cab they can be surprisingly loud.

If you can get one cheap enough you've got a chassis, power and output transformer. That's about $150 worth of iron, at Hammond prices.

:food-smiley-004:


I've seen a lof of them in shops in Toronto. I've never bothered trying one though so I can't comment if they sounded good or bad.

[Buzz]

Any one ever hear of Briscoe Amps ??This is a head, ss made in Vancouver B.C. with the speakers built into the head,the speakers are Marsland, and the transformer was built by Leslie.I've never heard of them !--Lenbone.


Ya, I have one of those too! Nice little unit. Louder than you think. I took out one of the speakers and use it in my Silvertone amp in case amp. I saw an old Briscoe organ in Vancouver when I was down there.

My Canadian favorite is an amp made by Lifco. Its an old vintage amp that uses 2... el84's and 4.. 6av6s', plus 5y3 rectifier.

[Buzz]

Heres a pic of my Canadian amps.
http://img208.imageshack.us/img208/8797/img2028pi7.th.jpg (http://img208.imageshack.us/my.php?image=img2028pi7.jpg)

From top left, Symphonic, Traynor Ygm-4, Garnet Sound Console, Thorcraft Cobra, Regal(Lifco), Briscoe, Arc

[Swampdonkeyamps]

Hello!

We are hosting a Swampdonkey Sound Check on Sunday, June 15 at the Mt. Pleasant Community Hall in Calgary, Alberta.

This is a perfect opportunity for you to play a Swampdonkey M50 or just drop by to see & hear a fantastic hand-made boutique amp. We will have a number of M50 heads on hand and two 2x12 cabinets. One is loaded with a pair of Jensen C12Q drivers and the other with Tone Tubby ceramic drivers.

The public are welcome from NOON until 5:00 PM. Please bring your guitar(s), stompbox effects and any speaker cabinets you'd care to hear the M50 through. Light refreshments will be served.

For those of you who would like a private session, we are taking reservations for 1/2 hour sessions between 5:00 PM and 7:00 PM. These times will fill up fast, so if you're thinking about it, just do it! Reply to this e-mail with your contact info and preferred time, or pick up the phone and call us at (403) 932-4153 or try my cell phone at (403) 540-4311.

Admission is FREE ! The hall is located 1 block West of the McDonald's on 4th Street and 23rd Avenue N.W. (602 - 22 Ave. N.W.)

FYI: We will not be bringing the M50 Deluxe to this event. Check the website out for details on this one-of-a-kind amplifier. If you'd like a private session with this amp, please contact us.

Hope to meet you at the Sound Check!

P.S. >> Feel free to forward this to anyone you feel may be interested.

Chris Czech
Designer / Builder of Swampdonkey Guitar Amplifiers (www.swampdonkeyamps.com)

Moose Meadow Enterprises Ltd. www.moose-meadow.com
e-mail: chris@moose-meadow.com

Mailing Address:
R.R. # 1, Site 16, Box 2
Cochrane, Alberta
Canada T4C 1A1

cell: 403-540-4311 / office: 403-932-4153 / fax: 403-851-0521

[KHINGPYNN]

Not sure if this was mentioned yet of not.

In Calgary there is what was Duotone Amps... now Rogers Amps.

Anyone else hear of them.

[Adicted to Tubes]

He is no longer around.He had a bad breakup and I think he moved back east somewhere.He used to do great cabinets.


www.claramps.com

[Swampdonkeyamps]

Yup, Swampdonkey is coming to Toronto !

We are hosting a Swampdonkey Sound Check on Tuesday, July 15 at Pro Rehearsal Studios at 154 Islington Ave. in Toronto. ( www.prbcanada.com )

This is a perfect opportunity for you to play a Swampdonkey M50 or just drop by to see & hear a fantastic hand-made boutique amp. We're flying in to Toronto with a single M50 head and the fine folks at Pro Rehearsal and Backline will be providing a 4x12 cab for us to play through.

Guitar Players are welcome from NOON until 6:00 PM. Please bring your guitar(s), stompbox effects and any speaker cabinets you'd care to hear the M50 through.

This is your chance, so mark it on your calendar and don't miss out !

Hope to meet you at the Sound Check!

Chris
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chris Czech
Designer / Builder of Swampdonkey Guitar Amplifiers (www.swampdonkeyamps.com)

Moose Meadow Enterprises Ltd. www.moose-meadow.com
e-mail: chris@moose-meadow.com

Mailing Address:
R.R. # 1, Site 16, Box 2
Cochrane, Alberta
Canada T4C 1A1

cell: 403-540-4311 / office: 403-932-4153 / fax: 403-851-0521

[mrmuzikhead]

Here in Southwestern Ontario are a couple fine builders. Rick Steeves of HomeWrecker Amps in Sarnia and the very distinct looking and sounding Ark Amps of Windsor.

http://video.aol.com/video-detail/rick-steeves-and-the-homewrecker-amp/2715270335

http://www.arkamps.com/

[coco]

Newall Amps/ AKA TotalTone in Markham makes a rockin' JTM and just about any vintage Marshall or Fender you want. You may find more about TotalTone here: http://www.wayneeagles.com/totaltone.html

stephen - http://www.trinityamps.com

[Vintage_Groove]

Is it possible to divide the Canadian amp builders between those that build only guitar amps to those that can also build bass guitar amps/cabinets? Or for keyboards?

[ark amps]

Is it possible to divide the Canadian amp builders between those that build only guitar amps to those that can also build bass guitar amps/cabinets? Or for keyboards?

Just recently thought about getting into Bass amps too;)

Bill

[coco]

Here is an opportunity you don't get very often. Independent clips of an 18 watt with 9 different Speaker Cabs for comparison and selection purposes. If you are looking for a speaker for your 18 watt, this is a tool you'll want to check out. You can check out the 18 watt amp too!

Three 18 watt amps were recorded professionally in a recording studio (http://www.bgroupmusic.com/) to get the details and check it out.


18 Watt EL84 Clean
18 Watt EL84 Dirty
18 Watt 6V6 Dirty

The speaker cabinets tested were:
Tone Tubby Alnico
Tone Tubby Ceramic
Orange V30
Mesa V30
Marshall Greenbacks
Marshall G12T-75
Marshall G10
Hiwatt Fanes
Fender Oxford
Classic Lead 80

Go to 18 Watt Speaker Shoot-Out (http://www.trinityamps.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=1273) to get the details and check it out.

[also JTM45 & TC-15 clip in case anyone's interested].

Enjoy & have fun.

PS. If you sign up you can vote for your favorite cab! Even more fun!!

[overdriver]

John Templeton, has made amps , I do not know if he still does. He is one of the fellows that did tube reviews for the tubestore. I have seen one of his 5E3 tweed deluxe and it was perfect 1100$ . he called his amps AVA, stood for affordable vintage amps. Do not know if he got the AVA thing off the ground or not shame if not.He is in Ancaster Ontario I belive.

[djdeacon]

I can't believe that through this whole thread, nobody mentioned GBX! When I was in high school, I used to have a poster of Lighthouse in my bedroom, showcasing all their GBX gear. They were manufactured by Ahed Corporation (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahed), and designed by another of those semi-legendary Canadian amp geeks, Guy Beresford.

They were solid-state, separate pre-amp with powered cabinet, kinda like an Acoustic 360. The standard cabinet for bass or guitar was 4x10 with an 80-watt amp in the back, but there was also a 4x12 one that was for guitar only. Because you could get the little preamp to drive up to six cabinets at a time (480 watts!!) a lot of heavy bassists liked them - it seems to me the guy in Steel River ("Mexican Lady") used just such a setup. Ahed also used chrome dustcaps on the speakers, most likely to fake you into thinking you were getting JBL's. They were HUGELY popular here in Southern Ontario, largely 'cos they weren't Traynor - by the mid 70's Yorkville had pretty much saturated the market here.

I believe that GBX actually morphed into VT, who are mentioned elsewhere in this thread.

[Sparrow]

Don't know if it has been mentioned, but Kingsley amps in BC are beyond awesome.

[FooHead]

Anyone ever heard of Prestige out of Vancouver?

http://www.prestigeguitars.com/prestigeamps.html

[Geek]

Anyone ever heard of Prestige out of Vancouver?

http://www.prestigeguitars.com/prestigeamps.html

For those prices, they are having their name slapped on overseas made amps and aren't likely builders themselves.

Cheers!

[KHINGPYNN]

I agree... it might as well be Marmalade Amps... there is so much of this stuff going on these days that it boggles the mind.

[Geek]

... it might as well be Marmalade Amps...

That's so cool, I think I'll register that :smilie_flagge17: