Conference napalm::guitar

1037.0. "Sundown Amplification" by ROLL::BEFUMO (I chase the winds of a prism ship) Sat Dec 24 1988 17:14

Well, after 2+ months of screwing around trying to build my own amp. I finally
powered it up, and  . . . zippo!  Even a burst of flames would have been
preferable.  I know I'll eventually get it to work, but still, depression
was the order of the day.  Anyway, my wife, saintly soul that she is, coughed
up $500. that she'd been squireling away for just such an emergency, and
I set out in search of something that works.  So, Friday night, ice storm
& all, I drove up to the north country to check out Daddy's.  Over the phone
they had recommended the "all tube" Peavey triumph, which they had used
for $399.00, or new for a hundred more.  I guess I've heard worse amps in
my life, but I just can't remember when.  This beast had two power tubes
and a single preamp tube, and it was clear from the sound that all of it's
"overdrive" sound came from some sort of built in fuzz box.  I also tried
out a Mesa MK-III, which sounded VERY nice, but was about $1,200.00 more
than I had to spend.  Oh well!

	Anyway, based on an earlier note, I decided to check out Bedrock
amps at Hamel music in Chelmsford (I won't even go into the run around I
got from that dirt bag in Marlboro, whose name I won't mention).  So, Hamel
had a Bedrock 100W head for $425., which sounded pretty reasonable.  Sounded
pretty decent, too.  While I was at it I tried a Marshall 50W combo, but
that was making some scarey noises & just sounded too harsh for my ear.
I also sampled a crate (not bad for solid state), a Dean Markley (sounded
like a cheap fuzz box),  and a slew of others.  Then I tried this little
"Sundown" amp.  They had a new one, with 6L6's and a celeston 12", and a
used one with an EV 12" and 6550's.  Amazing!  I played it next to the only
Mesa they had in the store, a .50 head, and I think they blew it away. 
I would have liked to side-by-side them with the MK-III, which it very closely
resembles, but they didn't have any around.  They have dual effects loops,
switchable channels, an "RMS" control, a governor, reverb, etc.  I think
the clean sound was a bit more articulated than the mesa, and the overdrive
a little tighter, possibly due to the tubes, possibly due to the EV speaker.
(The one with the 6L6's was somwhat warmer).  All in all, for the price,
it was one of the best sounding amps I've tried.  So, merry Christmas to
me!  I took the one with the EV.  Has anyone else ever tried one of these
units?  Know anything about them?  The overall look/feel/sound of them strikes
me as a more realistically priced Mesa Boogie.   I have yet to try it out
with the band, but so far, it looks like a real nice little amp.   I'd be
interested in hearing from anyone who has tried them, and would recommend
giving them a listen, if you're in the market something in this class.

		  					joe

    I just noticed that these amps were reviewed in the 5/85 issue of
    "Guitar Player" magazine.  Unfortunately, that issue is out of print.
    If anyone has a copy I'd sure appreciate a copy of that article.
     My mail drop is HLO2-3/M9.  Thanks.
    

    Yes, I tried that very amp at Chelmsford (for 525 right?) and was
    pretty impressed for a little amp that packs a huge punch.  I did
    however hear a couple of cutouts when I was trying it. wasn't sure
    if it was the cord I was using or what.    The A-100 had a less
    brittle sound than some of the boogies I tried.  It is a nice little
    amp.  I thought the 100 watt sounded alot better than the new 36
    watter.  Better clean sound.   John Scofield has been endorsing
    these amps for at least four years, and I saw him using two of those
    wired in stereo at the Regatta Bar a couple weeks ago.  He gets
    a tremendous sound out of them.  From what I've heard they are a
    high quality amp, but have had problems marketing them (never see
    them advertised anywhere), and they have been owned by a few different
    companies (including Ibanez), but are now back in the hands of the
    original guy who started Sundown (who formerly worked for Mesa/Boogie,
    by the way).   Don't think you'll have any problem cutting thru
    most bands with that amp!
    
    /Paul
    

    Yup, that's the one.  I suspect (HOPE) it was the cord.  I've been
    messing with it all weekend with no such interference.  I, too,
    liked the clean sound.  That's usually what I look for first when
    listening to an amp.  So many of them (especially the solid state
    ones) can make a decent sounding overdrive sound, but tend to sound
    harsh when played clean.  So far, I've haven't been able to crank
    it past 3.5 (gain, master on 10).  At that level it sounded like
    it was going to peel the siding off my house.  Sound quality at
    that volume was reminescent of some of the old big ampegs.  With
    the governer backed off a bit, it really sings ever so sweetly.
    
    						joe

    I've never played one, but Allen Holdsworth endorsed them (still?)
    and when I saw him about four years ago he used them.  Sounded great!
    
    Greg