Rabs Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 https://www.musicradar.com/news/it-looks-like-gibson-amps-will-be-making-a-comeback-very-soon It looks like Gibson Amps will be making a comeback very soon NAMM 2024: The company's new reveal confirms the return of a cult classic model and some spec details NAMM 2024: Just as CEO Cesar Gueikian suggested to us back in 2021, Gibson Amps are coming back and we now have the confirmation with a model name and a sneak peak. Prepare to take flight - Gibson Amps 'Ready for flight?' asks Gibson's new landing page where you can sign up for a mailing list to find out more when the time comes – and we'd bet on it being in the next couple of weeks. An overhead view of a guitar amp is shown above with a Gibson Amplifiers tag attached to the handle. The amp is called the Falcon 20 with what looks to be a cream Tolex covering, attenuation controls (Full, Half and Low) and a Frequency dial. Frequency for what – tremolo? We think so. This is not the first flight of the Gibson Falcon – the original tube amp (full model name GA-19RVT) was a 14-watt combo launched back in 1961 – the only year it was produced. It had both reverb and tremolo and proved just how forward-thinking the company was at the time in terms of features. The first Falcon had a 12" Jensen speaker, 6V6 power tubes like Fender's Deluxe, a trio of 6EU7 tubes for the preamp, and a 7199 tube for its reverb circuit. Gibson first started producing amplifiers way back in 1935 but ceased production in 1967. Series like the GA and BR have become cult favourites but the announcement of Gibson's acquisition of Mesa/Boogie in early 2021 saw the idea of a return to US-made Gibson amps surface. Later that year Gueikian confirmed to MusicRadar that Mesa/Boogie founder Randall Smith was taking a lead role in the project. "Randy is working on the design of what are going to be the next evolution of Gibson amplifiers as well," the CEO revealed. "They are going to be made in Petaluma, California. So Randy's been leading that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
10PoundLester Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 Right, because our selection of available amps is so limited these days . . . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabs Posted January 9 Author Share Posted January 9 If they are good which I am sure they will be, I am up for a Gibson amp to go with all my Gibson guitars ... HOWEVER... Knowing Gibson which I do, they will probably be so eye wateringly expensive that it will turn me right off. Id like one but am only prepared to go so far with that. You listening Gibson? 😄 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparquelito Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 As long as they are relic'ed, scuffed, and impregnated with artificial beer rings and cigarette smoke aromas, they will be a smash hit. 🫠 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil OKeefe Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 45 minutes ago, Rabs said: You listening Gibson? 😄 I'm not speaking for the company. While I do work for it, the following is just my personal opinion. They won't be cheap. They won't be inexpensive, either. And IMHO, those are good things. Have you priced any competing all-tube, USA-crafted amps recently? As the article noted, they're designed by Randy Smith and the MESA design team, and handcrafted in Petaluma, CA. So again, they won't be cheap junk, and they won't be inexpensive, but they are very sweet, sound great (IMHO), and look fantastic. They really nail the vintage Gibson amp vibe. IMO, they even improve on the performance of their vintage inspirations, and for what they are, I personally think they're very fairly and competitively priced. YMMV. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabs Posted January 9 Author Share Posted January 9 5 minutes ago, Phil OKeefe said: I'm not speaking for the company. While I do work for it, the following is just my personal opinion. They won't be cheap. They won't be inexpensive, either. And IMHO, those are good things. Have you priced any competing all-tube, USA-crafted amps recently? As the article noted, they're designed by Randy Smith and the MESA design team, and handcrafted in Petaluma, CA. So again, they won't be cheap junk, and they won't be inexpensive, but they are very sweet, sound great (IMHO), and look fantastic. They really nail the vintage Gibson amp vibe. IMO, they even improve on the performance of their vintage inspirations, and for what they are, I personally think they're very fairly and competitively priced. YMMV. Well we dont have any further details yet.. But for instance I bought a Marshall DSL 1 not long ago which is a proper tube amp (combo), its only small but sounds like a mini JCM 800 and it goes from 1w to 0.1w so its good for room practice.. Really nice for what it is and it cost £220 brand new.. If Gibson have something like that or other smaller amp in the line up I will probably buy one instantly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dub-T-123 Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 I’m so picky with amps, especially combos. I hope this is great but I have low expectations to be honest. Very few new amps excite me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave F Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 I hope they make a lightweight version like the Fender Tone Master for us old farts that can't lug those heavy amps anymore. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larsongs Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 Interesting.. Same place Mesa Boogie Amps are built.. Which is owned by Gibson.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murph Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 This is great. American built tube amps designed by Randall Smith. Heck yea. I still own my old Blue Angel and it wasn't cheap either. They won't be cheap and they won't be light. If I played electrics anymore, I'd be all over them, I still might buy a Rosette acoustic rig while they're available. Very cool news. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. Pepper Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 (edited) Gibson owns Mesa now which are killer amps. Owned a TA-15 head when I played those plug in guitars. If Gibson amps were that great the first time around, I would think they would still be making them. There’s all the regular amp makers out there that have been doing it forever, and all the boutique guys too, and now Gibson needs to get back into the amp game again for what . . . more profit? Edited January 10 by Sgt. Pepper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murph Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 9 minutes ago, Sgt. Pepper said: and now Gibson needs to get back into the amp game again for what . . . more profit? It's called capitalism. It's great. Perhaps you prefer the alternative, which is communism. Most Fender and Peavey and mainstream amps are now made in China or Mexico and they're cheap because of cheap labor. Kudos to Gibson and Mesa for building gear in the U.S.A. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil OKeefe Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 15 hours ago, Rabs said: Well we dont have any further details yet.. But for instance I bought a Marshall DSL 1 not long ago which is a proper tube amp (combo), its only small but sounds like a mini JCM 800 and it goes from 1w to 0.1w so its good for room practice.. Really nice for what it is and it cost £220 brand new.. If Gibson have something like that or other smaller amp in the line up I will probably buy one instantly. And unfortunately, I can't provide any further details yet. But they'll be released soon enough... Your Marshall seems to cost about $499 new - at least here in the USA. That's a very low price for a tube amp - even a 1W tube amp. If I'm not mistaken, it's made in Vietnam, so in that sense, it's not a fair comparison. That's about the same price my UK-built Class 5 cost me twelve years ago, and a UK-built amp is probably more directly and fairly comparable to a USA built one than either are to one made in. Vietnam; at least in terms of labor costs. Then there's quality craftsmanship and design and building experience, all of which are excellent from MESA, and as the article points out, they're the ones designing and building the new Gibson amps. Yes, I work for Gibson Brands, and MESA is a Gibson Brand, so yes, I'm biased, but MESA/Boogie has been considered one of the best amp builders on the planet by many guitarists for a long, long time. I bought my first one in the early 80s; long before I worked for Gibson. I'm sure your DSL 1 is a nice amp (I do like my Class 5), but I have not personally tried one, so I have no opinion to offer regarding its sound. It appears they use an 8" Celestion Eight 15 speaker, which I have used and didn't really care for - I replaced one in a 5F2A Princeton build I did a while back (which cost me more in parts than your Marshall cost you) with a Jupiter 8" Alnico that I like a lot better. It's not a horrible speaker, but it's probably the least expensive speaker that Celestion sells, which may tell you something about what kind of cost-cutting Marshall probably had to make to hit that price point. But if you like it and it works for your needs, that's all that really matters. Rock on! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larsongs Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 (edited) I’ve been looking at those Mesa California Tweeds for awhile.. But, haven’t pulled the trigger because I need another Amp like I need a hole in the head! Plus, I’m running out of room for Guitars, Amps, Recording Studio gear & all the stuff that goes with it. I’d still like to have one though! Maybe these new Gibson Amps may be great…. Edited January 10 by Larsongs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
badbluesplayer Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 (edited) As an amp maker and fixer, I can report that Mesa Boogie amps have a well-earned reputation as the hardest amps to work on. That's my experience too. I will say this. Mesa Boogie is the only amp brand that I had to stop working on. Why? Because they are too complicated and Mesa Boogie never would give out the technical info necessary for independent amp guys to work on their amps. It's not like they're all that enjoyable to work on, lol. So there's an aspect of Mesa Boogie's way of doing business that Gibson would do well to abandon. You can't sell amps and not provide support for independent repair people. Otherwise, you're going to have lots of fancy amps on the junk heap. Absolutely the worst amps to try to fix. No support. I'm a really good amp guy and I won't touch them. The old Gibson amps - east to work on and the factory provided full support. Mesa? Nuh-uh! The worst. Maybe Gibson is going to support the Mesa Boogie amps now, but it's too late for me. God, I wouldn't touch one to save my life. So tell Randall to design the amps - I mean, what's there to design? - and then go home and let Gibson sell their amps with full support. Gibson always supported their amps, Mesa Boogie? No. Edited January 10 by badbluesplayer 1 1 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karloff Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 51 minutes ago, badbluesplayer said: As an amp maker and fixer, I can report that Mesa Boogie amps have a well-earned reputation as the hardest amps to work on. That's my experience too. I will say this. Mesa Boogie is the only amp brand that I had to stop working on. Why? Because they are too complicated and Mesa Boogie never would give out the technical info necessary for independent amp guys to work on their amps. It's not like they're all that enjoyable to work on, lol. So there's an aspect of Mesa Boogie's way of doing business that Gibson would do well to abandon. You can't sell amps and not provide support for independent repair people. Otherwise, you're going to have lots of fancy amps on the junk heap. Absolutely the worst amps to try to fix. No support. I'm a really good amp guy and I won't touch them. The old Gibson amps - east to work on and the factory provided full support. Mesa? Nuh-uh! The worst. Maybe Gibson is going to support the Mesa Boogie amps now, but it's too late for me. God, I wouldn't touch one to save my life. So tell Randall to design the amps - I mean, what's there to design? - and then go home and let Gibson sell their amps with full support. Gibson always supported their amps, Mesa Boogie? No. thats all I need to hear ... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabs Posted January 10 Author Share Posted January 10 (edited) 3 hours ago, Phil OKeefe said: And unfortunately, I can't provide any further details yet. But they'll be released soon enough... Your Marshall seems to cost about $499 new - at least here in the USA. That's a very low price for a tube amp - even a 1W tube amp. If I'm not mistaken, it's made in Vietnam, so in that sense, it's not a fair comparison. That's about the same price my UK-built Class 5 cost me twelve years ago, and a UK-built amp is probably more directly and fairly comparable to a USA built one than either are to one made in. Vietnam; at least in terms of labor costs. Then there's quality craftsmanship and design and building experience, all of which are excellent from MESA, and as the article points out, they're the ones designing and building the new Gibson amps. Yes, I work for Gibson Brands, and MESA is a Gibson Brand, so yes, I'm biased, but MESA/Boogie has been considered one of the best amp builders on the planet by many guitarists for a long, long time. I bought my first one in the early 80s; long before I worked for Gibson. I'm sure your DSL 1 is a nice amp (I do like my Class 5), but I have not personally tried one, so I have no opinion to offer regarding its sound. It appears they use an 8" Celestion Eight 15 speaker, which I have used and didn't really care for - I replaced one in a 5F2A Princeton build I did a while back (which cost me more in parts than your Marshall cost you) with a Jupiter 8" Alnico that I like a lot better. It's not a horrible speaker, but it's probably the least expensive speaker that Celestion sells, which may tell you something about what kind of cost-cutting Marshall probably had to make to hit that price point. But if you like it and it works for your needs, that's all that really matters. Rock on! Yeah this is the one I have.. Gone up a little since I bought it but still nowhere near $499 (about £390).. I got this specifically to demo guitars I built so I dont have to carry around a huge amp. It really is a nice little amp for the price. Im less bothered about where they are made than what they sound like. Marshall DSL1CR 1W 1x8 Valve Combo with Reverb | PMT Online Edited January 10 by Rabs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murph Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 Mesa will service their amps. They just don't want "Joes T.V. Repair" working on them. I've never had a problem with my Blue Angel gigging it for 3/4 nights a week for a decade, and it was used when I got it. They're pretty tough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidblast Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 (edited) I won't be buyin another Gibson amp. The goldtone I had was decent, but couldn't hold a candle to my marshalls there's a decent reason for that Gibson makes Guitars Marshall makes Amps Then of course there's Fender and well, never mind then.. Edited January 10 by kidblast 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost_of_fl Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 23 hours ago, Phil OKeefe said: Have you priced any competing all-tube, USA-crafted amps recently? Yes, Fender Pro Junior, $704.43 out the door from Sweetwater. Then I bought it. 😁 That Fender logo on a tube driven tweed amp is just .... ICONIC. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabs Posted January 10 Author Share Posted January 10 9 minutes ago, ghost_of_fl said: Yes, Fender Pro Junior, $704.43 out the door from Sweetwater. Then I bought it. 😁 That Fender logo on a tube driven tweed amp is just .... ICONIC. As long as its also AUTHENTIC 😄 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
10PoundLester Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 (edited) 7 hours ago, badbluesplayer said: As an amp maker and fixer, I can report that Mesa Boogie amps have a well-earned reputation as the hardest amps to work on. That's my experience too. I will say this. Mesa Boogie is the only amp brand that I had to stop working on. Why? Because they are too complicated and Mesa Boogie never would give out the technical info necessary for independent amp guys to work on their amps. It's not like they're all that enjoyable to work on, lol. So there's an aspect of Mesa Boogie's way of doing business that Gibson would do well to abandon. You can't sell amps and not provide support for independent repair people. Otherwise, you're going to have lots of fancy amps on the junk heap. Absolutely the worst amps to try to fix. No support. I'm a really good amp guy and I won't touch them. The old Gibson amps - east to work on and the factory provided full support. Mesa? Nuh-uh! The worst. Maybe Gibson is going to support the Mesa Boogie amps now, but it's too late for me. God, I wouldn't touch one to save my life. So tell Randall to design the amps - I mean, what's there to design? - and then go home and let Gibson sell their amps with full support. Gibson always supported their amps, Mesa Boogie? No. I scratch-built an AC30 Top Boost with a half-power switch and low-voltage internal cooling fans. It was complicated as can be. It came out great and sold before it was done. The build process is here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/HDEbDru1RwFhNgSm9 I've also built 5F1's with 10" speakers - easy as pie. I would sell my soldering station before I attempted to do anything on a Mesa Boogie. Their designs are BS when it comes to that tube-matching scenario. That said, personally, I could not care any less about Gibson's newly announced amps. Edited January 10 by 10PoundLester Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveFord Posted January 11 Share Posted January 11 I'm looking forward to hearing one of these, I'll bet they're going to be pretty good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IanHenry Posted January 11 Share Posted January 11 19 hours ago, badbluesplayer said: As an amp maker and fixer, I can report that Mesa Boogie amps have a well-earned reputation as the hardest amps to work on. That's my experience too. I will say this. Mesa Boogie is the only amp brand that I had to stop working on. Why? Because they are too complicated and Mesa Boogie never would give out the technical info necessary for independent amp guys to work on their amps. It's not like they're all that enjoyable to work on, lol. So there's an aspect of Mesa Boogie's way of doing business that Gibson would do well to abandon. You can't sell amps and not provide support for independent repair people. Otherwise, you're going to have lots of fancy amps on the junk heap. Absolutely the worst amps to try to fix. No support. I'm a really good amp guy and I won't touch them. The old Gibson amps - east to work on and the factory provided full support. Mesa? Nuh-uh! The worst. Maybe Gibson is going to support the Mesa Boogie amps now, but it's too late for me. God, I wouldn't touch one to save my life. So tell Randall to design the amps - I mean, what's there to design? - and then go home and let Gibson sell their amps with full support. Gibson always supported their amps, Mesa Boogie? No. I always fancied a Messa Boogie amp, but it's difficult to find a shop here in the UK to try one, now I think I know all I need to know on the subject! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murph Posted January 11 Share Posted January 11 11 hours ago, SteveFord said: I'm looking forward to hearing one of these, I'll bet they're going to be pretty good. Indeed. My Blue Angel has no gain or master volume. Volume, bass, mid, treble and reverb. The harder you push it the sweeter it gets. Also it has 2:6V6's and 4 EL84's and you can use either and/or all 6 power tubes with a tube rectifier and a 12", V30 Celestion. High gain amps always sounded squishy to me. I'd be curious what Randall comes up with for the Gibson branded stuff. It sounds like they are still on good terms, which is a great thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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