pippy Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 I dropped a couple of guits off to have a bit of stuff done and the luthier is a small-production amp designer and builder. He had a couple in the workshop and they looked very interesting to say the least! I hope to try one out when I return to collect my R0. Here's a snap to give you an idea of the things. This one's a 2x12. 5mm aircraft-grade aluminium, in case you're wondering. 'Guitar and Bass' magazine awarded it top prize for 'Best Amp over £1000' ($1,500) in their Dec 2008 issue. The workshop is called Antenna Studios and is situated close to the old TV transmitter aerial in Crystal Palace, south London, hence (I'm guessing) the stylised 'A' motif. I like the way it looks! Bit different from all those '60s Marshall clones, methinks! P. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freak show Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 That's a beautiful amp, but aluminum is a strange choice for a "tone wood"... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Farnsbarns Wunterslausche Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 I have, but only as a result of chatting with the other Saouf Larndiner you go there with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dub-T-123 Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 Woah that looks cool. What do they sound like? Are they based on an existing design (circuit-wise)? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pippy Posted June 10, 2011 Author Share Posted June 10, 2011 I have, but only as a result of chatting with the other Saouf Larndiner you go there with. LOL! Talk about spooky... I've just this very minute had a call saying my LP is ready for collection so I might be able to have a bash within the hour! Here's Hoping! P. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Farnsbarns Wunterslausche Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 LOL! Talk about spooky... I've just this very minute had a call saying my LP is ready for collection so I might be able to have a bash within the hour! Here's Hoping! P. Grab a mobile phone vid if they don't mind. What are prices like? None on their website. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Versatile Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 Yes I saw these on the net a while back.... Interested to hear how a metal cab sounds Used by Muse and Chris Difford et al Perhaps 'Metallica' would be interested Huge potential market for 'Metal' players V Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pippy Posted June 10, 2011 Author Share Posted June 10, 2011 Grab a mobile phone vid if they don't mind. What are prices like? None on their website. Sorry, Farns. I was already out the door when you posted that. From what I could see on their website the 2x12 is about £3,500. Not cheap but a lot less than a Dumble.............................. ATTENTION ALL LONDONERS ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! (who don't mind going 'South of the River', that is...) I didn't get a blast on the 2x12. It wasn't in the workshop because they are preparing for an open day tomorrow ! ! ! ! ! They are going to have all their products out so folk can have a go. It will run from 14.00 to 20.00hrs. A nicer bunch of guys would be hard to find. I could happily have chatted with them for hours! I don't know if I can get away from 'Family Stuff' but I'll try damned hard. P. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pippy Posted June 10, 2011 Author Share Posted June 10, 2011 That's a beautiful amp, but aluminum is a strange choice for a "tone wood"... Interested to hear how a metal cab sounds I don't want it to seem like I'm on their payroll or anything but... There are two reviews of their 2x12 which can be found on their website. Simply Google 'Dickinson Amps'. If you click on the 2x12 there is a dialogue box which has 'reviews'. It's sound was praised very highly by the reviewer. P. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pippy Posted June 10, 2011 Author Share Posted June 10, 2011 Woah that looks cool. What do they sound like? Are they based on an existing design (circuit-wise)? To answer the questions in reverse order; I've just had a chat with the designer, John Dickinson. He's had no formal training in electronics. He's a guitar repairer/luthier who, about ten years ago, needed to fix an old Vox amp which had stopped working. It ended up sounding better than it ever did before. This stirred his interest and he's been designing amps pretty much ever since to his own ideas of how things should be. I'm sure a lot of it is fairly normal but other things are very different. Probably because of his lack of formal training in circuit design he seems to approach the project with a different mindset. Apparently he's just designed a totally different style of 'Volume' circuitry. He tried to explain it to me but it was WAY over my head. He showed me the inside of the (Steel-chassied) circuit unit. Everything is hand-wired point-to-point. It's all-valve and the neatest layout of goodies I've seen in an amp. It was a work of art! As posted above, I didn't try out the 2x12 but I DID have a play through a new design 20W head that he's still working on. It has a knob which steps the output down from 20W; to 10W; to 5W....etc...all the way down to 0.5W without loss of overall tone. I played my R0 through a PARK 4x12 cab. What can I say? It sounded fantastic! And he did an excellent job of fettling the Lester. P. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
damian Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 Interesting......I want one......Great amp for recording........His pedals look fantastic as well...... One thing about British engineering and manufacturing; It is always full of well deserved pride and ultra quality...... My British made pre-amp is a tank, and a great piece of gear.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shnate McDuanus Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 Well, this thread piqued my curiosity, so... It sounds very bizarre to me--not bad, but like nothing I've ever heard before, at the very least. It may be the sound compression in the video itself, but...I dunno? It's a strange sound for sure, but I'm impressed by the engineering nonetheless. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dub-T-123 Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 That guys face is insanely disgusting. Wow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silenced Fred Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 That guys face is insanely disgusting. Wow. He looks like a zombie from the demo, I wouldn't buy that amp for $100 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pippy Posted June 10, 2011 Author Share Posted June 10, 2011 ...from the demo, I wouldn't buy that amp for $100 I agree completely. They really need Phil X ! I am constantly amazed by amp manufacturers, guitar makers and CDs/DVDs from gear-orientated magazines who seem to think the best way to demonstrate how good their products are is by turning up the distortion to a point where the tones produced by the instrument are destroyed. Crying Shame. P. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mojorule Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 From what I could see on their website the 2x12 is about £3,500. Not cheap but a lot less than a Dumble.............................. P. When I read the name I had visions of something painted orange that would be 'cheap as chips': But actually it looks rather nice, if expensive. from the demo, I wouldn't buy that amp for $100 Now that is cheap as chips. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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