This was at Ziggies in Denver before their regular Sunday jam. I went in for the jam and after the host Band (John Weeks, going to Memphis IBC challenge), Ronnie got up to jam followed by some jammers with Nic Clark playing through the Memphis 20. I was called up for the next set and Rick (Davis) asked what amp I was using. I smiled and said "Harp Train 10". He said "Why don't you play through my Memphis 20. I'll leave it up there and take it down when you're finished"(I guess he didn't want to hear his competition's amp). So he adjusted the settings (Ronnie had the volume at 2!) for my Heumann 545 Ultimate mic which carried the jam at level 3. I don't think I got as much crunch as Ronnie, but then I'm not at his level of playing. I think I did ok but at the end of the set Rick came up, unplugged his amp and left without comment. Based on Ronnie and Nic's play, I'd say it's a pretty good amp.
Rick's amps sound good, and so do the other 100 harp amps on the market. They all sound fantastic when someone like Ronnie is playing through them, even a cheap piece of junk. Its very easy to get a crappy sounding amp sounding as good as this one. Practice, Practice, and then Practice some more!!!
So I went to a jam at Ziggies in Denver and Rick Davis was there, passing through on his drive from Wyoming to Memphis for the IBC where he'll display his products including the new memphis 20.
He rembered certain parts of my above posted comments and said, ""yeah, you were kind of an a---hole about that!". I explained that it bothered me that he left without comment. He explained why he had to leave in a hurry, etc..
Talking is always better than writing ( so why don't I learn!!) and we spent a couple hours sitting, talking and listening. Rick even helped me line out my amp to the PA.
After my set, he gave me honest feedback saying, "You sounded good in the last tune. The rest----ehh". Any questions my last post might have raised about the Memphis 20 amp were unintentional. The amp is good. It's my playing that's mediocre at best so of course I can't get the sound Ronnie or Nic get.
Anyway, I enjoyed the time with Rick. I like the man. And I hope he enjoys his time in Memphis.
Last Edited by ME.HarpDoc on Jan 30, 2017 8:53 PM
That amp is basically a 5e3 if I've pegged it right. From the same factory as the 'Memphis mini'. Of course they are probably doing some mods, maybe having the changes made at production in Shenzhen before shipping and maybe fitting speakers when they are landed in US.
No doubt bee. They are both cheaply made fender clone knockoffs. (Yes i do mean Clone Knockoffs. They are imitations of the imitation.) Very cheaply made and sold at a premium price.
I can show you the Chinese website where you can buy these hunks straight from China for a fraction of the price they ask.
I don't get it at all. I was refraining from knocking them, but since you brought it up .... lol. Spending more than $300 on a chinese amp is NUTS. For the $800 they are asking for this thing .. there are some really nice options out there. Why in the world would you buy a cardboard box full of cheap chinese BS?
Last Edited by Killa_Hertz on Feb 02, 2017 5:32 AM
Well I have looked inside one, my buddy had the mini, and yes it looks cheap, as does the tweed covering, it was all bubbled out. He couldn't get rid of it soon enough, he wasn't crazy about the tone of it, said it would crackle quite often, he tried changing the tubes, but it still crackled. He sold it for a lot less than he payed for it, couldn't give it away really, If my memory serves me correctly he sold it for $150 just to get rid of it. Yep very poorly built, like it or not.
Unless your are geting a custom made amp (and pay the price) you are stuck whit "china made" products. I am OK whit that. I can play harp whit many chinese amps, because I have to. I dot want to spend $1000 or more for getting the perfect tone (we all know that there is not a perfect tone machine in the world).
What is the problem whit the amp being made in china? I have not tried one, but if it sounds good (and one can argue a lot if a champ type of amp has any chance of sounding bad) and is cheaper than a custom made amp, that is a great thing for all of us.
---------- Sorry for any misspell, english is not my first language.
Last Edited by rogonzab on Feb 02, 2017 12:12 PM
There's nothing wrong with buying one, if that's what you want, heck buy two or three, I don't care. All I know is I would spend $200 on a VHT Special 6, before I would by one of these, if I wanted a chinese amp. Not only does VHT sound better, they at least look better made, whether or not they are, who knows.
EDIT: Besides why would I want to buy a amp from a guy, who refuses to talk on this forum, because someone didn't like his amp, and puts in 2 cents every so often under a false name, and most likely has people on here trying to put across that these are the best thing since sliced bread. I say if you don't have the balls to stick around and stand behind your product, and prove it is all he says, I would never, would never, buy anything from a person like that.
This is all I have to say about this. Also I will add that I am not about to delete my post, like others have on this thread, I stand by what I said. I am not worried about Rick reading this, I could really care less.
Last Edited by Bass410man on Feb 02, 2017 4:12 PM
For what it's worth, I have played 2 Memphis Mini amps - one owned by Nic Clark and one owned by Rodrigo Reis. They both sounded good, and better to my ears than a VHT Special 6, which I used to own one and made a couple of youtube videos with it. To my ears, the Mini is on par with pretty much any other 5-W class A amp in terms of tone and volume.
I get that someone might not like the amp. I have one and like it, think it looks pretty good and sounds pretty good, but then that's why there are a lot of different amps out there. What i don't get is the gratuitous personal attack. BTW, what's the false name? ---------- Phil Pennington
I'd be more incline to buy this amp than one of the "5 watt/lineout/easy on your back" amps. But then again, it's a medium size harp amp, not many of those available on the market. This fills a needed (?!!!) niche.
Then again, these days, I have been lean towards playing 15 watt amps for gigs. Reminds me of my 58 tweed deluxe....
