Rick Davis
1453 posts
Mar 13, 2013
4:15 PM
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This is the new small amp from Bruce at Mission Amps, sitting on the bench in his shop. The amp is now down in my amp room. Bruce asked me to thrash it out for a couple weeks.
A few design decisions have been made:
-It will come in a tweed Harvard cab, as you see in the picture.
-The speaker will be the 10-inch Eminence Lil Buddy.
-The preamp tube will be a 12AY7.
-It will have a line out.
-It will sell for under $900.
It makes an honest 15 watts from two 6V6 power tubes and sounds great. I'll put up some videos over the next few days to show how it sounds. I also plan to take it to Doc Brown's Jam at Ziggies in Denver on Sunday to let other players try it and get their opinions.
One thing the amp does not have is a name. Bruce wants to hear your suggestions. The amp is cathode biased for some mellow crunch and warm sag tone. You got a name for that? Let me know and I'll pass it along.
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-Rick Davis
The Blues Harp Amps Blog
The Mile High Blues Society
Tip Jar
Last Edited by Rick Davis on Mar 13, 2013 5:09 PM
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ReedSqueal
383 posts
Mar 13, 2013
4:20 PM
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"The Mojo Dojo"
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Go ahead and play the blues if it'll make you happy.
-Dan Castellaneta
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Rick Davis
1454 posts
Mar 13, 2013
4:23 PM
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BTW, The amp weighs 24 pounds.
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-Rick Davis
The Blues Harp Amps Blog
The Mile High Blues Society
Tip Jar
Last Edited by Rick Davis on Mar 13, 2013 4:24 PM
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MJ
602 posts
Mar 13, 2013
4:57 PM
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Nice amp. I might saving my pennies.
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HawkeyeKane
1541 posts
Mar 13, 2013
5:34 PM
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"Reed Rasper"
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Hawkeye Kane
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Rick Davis
1456 posts
Mar 13, 2013
5:38 PM
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My vote is "Memphis."
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-Rick Davis
The Blues Harp Amps Blog
The Mile High Blues Society
Tip Jar
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MJ
603 posts
Mar 13, 2013
5:43 PM
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9/15
Last Edited by MJ on Mar 13, 2013 5:44 PM
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MJ
604 posts
Mar 13, 2013
5:46 PM
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I would be interested in seeing a side view of that amp Rick.
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Rick Davis
1457 posts
Mar 13, 2013
5:59 PM
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At the Mission Amps shop today we tried a few speakers and the Lil Buddy was miles beyond the others. One cool thing... The Lil Buddy was brand new, right out of the box and into the amp, and as I played it we could hear the speaker loosening up and breaking in. It really started to breathe.
We tried three preamp tubes: 12AX7, 5751, and 12AY7. The AY7 was clearly the best in the amp and that surprised me. I am a big fan of the 5751.
It seems quite loud, but you never know until you gig it. I liked it best with the volume on about 8 1/2 (out of 12) and the single tone control set pretty high... about the same position as the volume. At that setting it had lots of cut and some grit. It is kind of like a Champ with a ton more low end and a lot louder.
The amp is not finished yet. These are just first impressions. It is a prototype with some funky switches. The chassis is a 5F1 because the Harvard cab on hand had the Champ cut-out, but production versions will have a 5F2A chassis in the same cab with a wider cut-out.
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-Rick Davis
The Blues Harp Amps Blog
The Mile High Blues Society
Tip Jar
Last Edited by Rick Davis on Mar 13, 2013 6:38 PM
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John95683
56 posts
Mar 13, 2013
6:20 PM
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Looks really nice, great specs! This could the one!!!!
I'm very curious to see how loud it is compared to other 15 watt amps, even 30 watt amps.
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JD Hoskins
606 posts
Mar 13, 2013
6:54 PM
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Mission "Accomplice"
Joking, sort of, as always, but whatever it's named it will end up with Mission in front of it at least sometimes, so it should roll off the tongue nicely.
Memorable is always good too.
Mission "Memphis Belle" has a nice rhythm and rolls.
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Unlike some here, I don't KNOW everything, just some things and mostly I just have opinions and beliefs, which many of us understand are just that.
Last Edited by JD Hoskins on Mar 13, 2013 6:58 PM
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Rick Davis
1458 posts
Mar 13, 2013
7:03 PM
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LOL, JD, great suggestions. I like "Accomplice" a lot.
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-Rick Davis
The Blues Harp Amps Blog
The Mile High Blues Society
Tip Jar
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kudzurunner
3974 posts
Mar 13, 2013
7:04 PM
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I like name challenges. Lemme see....
Important to remember that the brand is Mission. Could be some religious imagery here to play with.
Here are a few:
Holy S [or just Holy]
Little Mother
Little Big Amp
Terraplane
Maxwell [as in Maxwell Street]
Bad Dog
Stinger
Deliverance [as in "Scream!"]
Barn Burner
Barnstorm
Burner
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Rick Davis
1459 posts
Mar 13, 2013
7:10 PM
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Terraplane! That is way cool.
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-Rick Davis
The Blues Harp Amps Blog
The Mile High Blues Society
Tip Jar
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puri
45 posts
Mar 13, 2013
8:40 PM
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Gorgeous looking amp! I came back to your thread for the third time in 20 mins just to have a look at it! This just remind me how much I love lacquered tweed on a compact size amp. I've just covered my amp with red vinyl two months ago but damn it! I'm gonna put tweed on it next month!
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5F6H
1580 posts
Mar 14, 2013
3:44 AM
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@Rick - "LOL, JD, great suggestions. I like "Accomplice" a lot."
Yeah, it's a good name...Allen amps must also think so, as it's what they call one of theirs ;-)
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www.myspace.com/markburness
http://www.facebook.com/markburness
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The Iceman
797 posts
Mar 14, 2013
5:39 AM
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"Mission Possible"
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The Iceman
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HarpNinja
3250 posts
Mar 14, 2013
6:44 AM
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This thread is useless without audio, lol!
Boring, but since the other is the Mission Chicago 32-20, this could be the Mission Memphis 15, Mission Delta 15, or Mission Crossroads 15.
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Mantra Customized Harmonicas
My Website
Last Edited by HarpNinja on Mar 14, 2013 6:46 AM
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HawkeyeKane
1542 posts
Mar 14, 2013
6:53 AM
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Going along with Mike's suggestion of "Crossroads", I don't think there's an amp out there called the "Rosedale". And it would seem to me that an amp called "Memphis" would be a bigger one like the Chicago. So what about the smallest American Blues capital? "Clarksdale"
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Hawkeye Kane
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SuperBee
1007 posts
Mar 14, 2013
6:54 AM
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Statement
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HawkeyeKane
1543 posts
Mar 14, 2013
7:03 AM
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LOL...SuperBee!
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Hawkeye Kane
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Rick Davis
1460 posts
Mar 14, 2013
7:08 AM
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More photos; video later today.
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-Rick Davis
The Blues Harp Amps Blog
The Mile High Blues Society
Tip Jar
Last Edited by Rick Davis on Mar 14, 2013 7:26 AM
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Harphound
27 posts
Mar 14, 2013
7:42 AM
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The " Juke Box"
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HarpNinja
3251 posts
Mar 14, 2013
7:59 AM
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I once saw a cab that had a slightly wider bottom width. The speaker than point at a slight angle so it was aimed up at the player's ears rather than FOH.
I am not sure the tonal impact, but I like that idea.
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Mantra Customized Harmonicas
My Website
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Monk
9 posts
Mar 14, 2013
10:15 AM
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I say this in a 90% joking manner...
I really wish he'd finish up my amp before working on these new inventions. Haha.
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MJ
605 posts
Mar 14, 2013
10:18 AM
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Thanks for the additional pics Rick. I am awaiting a sound clip.
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Kingley
2400 posts
Mar 14, 2013
10:30 AM
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The amp looks good. It'll be interesting to hear some sound clips of it. As for the name, of all the suggestions so far "Memphis" is my favourite.
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HarpNinja
3252 posts
Mar 14, 2013
10:56 AM
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Monk,
Regarding the other 10%...Scheduling time for professional development and research and design is super important. This isn't only true in regards to running a good business, but helping the market grow.
Like Rick said, this is a loose prototype...probably something he has been cooking up for months...I know this from experience. When I post complete harps to sell, I've generally worked on them over many months...sometimes even a year. I get to them between other orders, or when the family is out of the house one afternoon, etc.
A huge red flat in any endeavor to me is when someone DOESN'T take time to experiment/branch out. Anyone who tries to sell you on the fact that they've reached the limit of their art/trade is dangerous.
For every hour I work on harps, I try to spend 15min of that on something "new"...which is generally experimenting on junk harps to refine a technique, try a new tool, or test a hypothesis.
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Mantra Customized Harmonicas
My Website
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Rick Davis
1462 posts
Mar 14, 2013
11:21 AM
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Monk, this amp has been in the works for a couple of years. I think Bruce got the inspiration for the final circuit design just a few weeks ago - he had it all charted out. He spent a few hours recently assembling it, and I went to test it yesterday. I'll have it for at least 3 weeks to work it out. I'm don't think your amp build will be slowed by this at all. At least I hope not.
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-Rick Davis
The Blues Harp Amps Blog
The Mile High Blues Society
Tip Jar
Last Edited by Rick Davis on Mar 14, 2013 11:26 AM
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Monk
10 posts
Mar 14, 2013
12:00 PM
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Haha. I'm all good and happy he's still creating stuff. My 10% is all based on being in a rut and really needing a new toy. I understand completely that he has other things going on and am glad for that. In a year or two I'm gonna need a new toy and this is something that might be the one.
Turns out it was a bad joke but fear not! I'm not goin on comedy tour anytime soon.
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stokeblues
16 posts
Mar 14, 2013
12:26 PM
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looks nice and the name mission is cool cuz were all on one!!!
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SuperBee
1008 posts
Mar 14, 2013
12:45 PM
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Belle
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HawkeyeKane
1544 posts
Mar 14, 2013
2:08 PM
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Just out of curiosity Rick, what are the controls on the panel? I see at least two knobs up there.
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Hawkeye Kane
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Greg Heumann
2062 posts
Mar 14, 2013
2:15 PM
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Looks nice and I'll bet it sounds great. If I were Bruce I think I would name all his amps after Missions - Mission Santa Fe, Mission San Francisco, etc.
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/Greg
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SuperBee
1009 posts
Mar 14, 2013
2:16 PM
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Who suggested "juke box"? I reckon the "juke" is a good name, dunno if someone has already used it, maybe its too obvious...
Must be a tricky thing to launch something like this, getting momentum...I know I'd like to hear it, hear some credible reports...but of course all the early reports will have a flavour of advertising... I guess that's what showcase events are good for...
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HawkeyeKane
1546 posts
Mar 14, 2013
2:25 PM
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"I reckon the "juke" is a good name, dunno if someone has already used it, maybe its too obvious..."
Chickenhead already has the "Little Juke".
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Hawkeye Kane
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rbeetsme
1135 posts
Mar 14, 2013
2:29 PM
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Beale Street
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ej
19 posts
Mar 14, 2013
2:36 PM
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Midnight
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Rick Davis
1463 posts
Mar 14, 2013
3:00 PM
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John - I don't know when Bruce will start taking orders. He still needs to get the chassis fabricated, although it is just an alteration of the chassis for another amp, not a whole new engineering spec. He may be taking orders in a month after it has been thoroughly wrung out by lots of harp players. But I'm guessing about that. Contact him and ask him.
Tim- The controls on the panel are not as they will appear on the production model. Remember, this is only a prototype using a smaller chassis. Right now there is a volume control that is also the on/off switch, a tone knob that is taking the place of one of the mic inputs, a pilot light, and a fuse block. That's it. The production model will have a proper on/off switch separate from the volume control, and the volume and tone knobs will match (they don't now). The line out jack will be on the top panel as well. I think that will be it.
The top panel and chassis may be powder coated instead of polished chrome.
BTW, in a few minutes I will be posting the tone demo video.
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-Rick Davis
The Blues Harp Amps Blog
The Mile High Blues Society
Tip Jar
Last Edited by Rick Davis on Mar 14, 2013 3:04 PM
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Rick Davis
1464 posts
Mar 14, 2013
3:16 PM
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-Rick Davis
The Blues Harp Amps Blog
The Mile High Blues Society
Tip Jar
Last Edited by Rick Davis on Mar 14, 2013 8:42 PM
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HawkeyeKane
1547 posts
Mar 14, 2013
3:38 PM
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Sounds like a bitchin' little concoction! Very nice! I agree with your surmisal of the tone & volume settings too Rick. Sounded best at 8 and 6 to my ears as well.
You know....Steve Cropper oughta get a look at this thing. Bet he wouldn't mind having a tweaked-for-guitar one since he's the most reknowned Harvard user around.
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Hawkeye Kane
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John95683
58 posts
Mar 14, 2013
3:44 PM
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Rick:
how does the volume compare to other 15 watt amps?
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Rick Davis
1465 posts
Mar 14, 2013
3:58 PM
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John, I haven't done a head-to-head comparison but I plan to. As you would expect, it is way louder than my Marvel, Champ, and Premier Twin 8 amps, and not as loud as the Mission 32-20. I tried using the SPL meter app on my phone but it seems to max out at 94db and I think both the new amp and the 32-20 exceeded that.
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-Rick Davis
The Blues Harp Amps Blog
The Mile High Blues Society
Tip Jar
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kudzurunner
3975 posts
Mar 14, 2013
7:22 PM
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Rick, we need to hear Nick on that amp. To my ears, even at 8 it doesn't sound as though it's pushing a lot of even harmonics. It sounds far too tame. I suspect that's as much about your technique as it is about the amp, but I can't be sure. I think you need Nick to stomp down on it.
I want to hear it scream. I don't hear anything that begins to approach wild & crazy. I'm sure we'll hear that in the coming week or two--but I'm also sure that if I failed to offer my honest reaction, we'd be less likely to hear that. This isn't about YouTube compressing the signal. I'm listening with good headphones on. I'm not hearing enough sag or enough harmonics.
I remain excited by the project! If you want Modern Blues Harmonica to test a prototype, I hereby volunteer. I'm not asking for a freebie. Just pay shipping both ways. I promise not to beat it up too badly.
Last Edited by kudzurunner on Mar 14, 2013 7:24 PM
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Rick Davis
1467 posts
Mar 14, 2013
8:29 PM
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Adam, I agree it may be my technique. Nic is excellent and I'm sure he will play it soon. Nic makes all amps sound pretty much the same: fantastic. His cheek blocking technique makes massive deep tone, just overwhelming the amp. Nic is a phenom.
Yep, the amp needs a bit more zonk. We'll get there.
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-Rick Davis
The Blues Harp Amps Blog
The Mile High Blues Society
Tip Jar
Last Edited by Rick Davis on Mar 14, 2013 8:44 PM
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John95683
60 posts
Mar 14, 2013
9:18 PM
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I would love to hear Adam's review.
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garry
372 posts
Mar 15, 2013
5:53 AM
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i think it's awesome that the volume goes to 12., not a mere 11. is that his sense of humor?
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HawkeyeKane
1548 posts
Mar 15, 2013
6:43 AM
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He's the Nigel Tufnel of the harmonica realm, Garry. ;-)
EDIT: There we go! The Mission "Tufnel +1"!
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Hawkeye Kane
Last Edited by HawkeyeKane on Mar 15, 2013 6:51 AM
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Willspear
321 posts
Mar 15, 2013
6:48 AM
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Tons of knobs have 12 position markers
Many fenders with top hats or chicken head knobs.
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cliffy
36 posts
Mar 15, 2013
7:02 AM
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I agree that most YouTube amp videos simply don't do justice to what you hear live in the room. I've thought that about lots of different clips, not just this one. My bet is that this amp sounds amazing in person and the video just doesn't convey it enough.
Rick, I would suggest that in future amp tests you put one of those "Ulitmate Jam Tracks" (I know you have 'em since I learned about 'em from your blog) and play over it. Let'er rip that way and I think we would hear the amp sing more.
Lots of harp guys play these noodly type "test-the-amp" licks and don't get into playing the way they would if they were playing over a song. I't not musical, it's too sterile. Don't worry about playing the exact same thing, just get close to the same types of thing. That way the player loosens up and gets groovy. I think that opens up the player's tone, and in turn lets the amp have more to work with.
One good example is the microphone guy "Johnny Ace". He plays using the mics he is selling over some jam tracks and he's a pretty good player. Granted, he's playing through a 50 watt Meteor, but he's a good example of YouTube test clips done right.
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