The Truth About Vintage Amps, Ep. 135

It’s the 135th episode of the Truth About Vintage Amps podcast, where amp tech Skip Simmons fields your questions on all-things-tube amps.

Want to be a part of our show? Just email us a question or voice memo to podcast@fretboardjournal.com.

Some of the topics discussed this time around:

1:24 Another hopeful story; Winters, California

7:44 The fifth-ever Fretboard Summit: Blake Mills, Adam Levy, vintage amps, new amps, 80 luthiers, JHS and so much more. www.fretboardsummit.org

13:25 One of the greatest boxes of all time: thanks, Ben from Chattanooga!

15:01 Lynn Wheelwright reaches out to Skip

16:33 The very first Standel amp; Tacoma, Washington’s Guitar Maniacs

22:10 Thank you, John Ross

23:41 Gibson’s GA-45 “Velvet Touch”; Terry Dobbs (Mr. Valco) https://valcoamp.com

27:32 The answer to Ep. 134’s Baffler: A Tweed Vibrolux

31:44 A Body & Soul El Pato fuzz giveaway? https://www.instagram.com/bsinstruments/

34:00 The last remaining Big Boy locomotive is moving through California; Skip’s hobo days https://www.up.com/heritage/steam/schedule/index.htm

37:26 How to satisfy your customer when only one power tube needs to be replaced? CE Distribution; pimento cheese

47:04 A 5E3 build with too much Fender “bacon;” Ken Fischer

49:51 A Rickenbacker M11 with a 60 cycle hum out of V1

57:22 VHT Special Six, redux

1:03:51 A simple cocktail: A Boyhattan; bitters

1:05:15 The history of AIMS amps; 5 ohm amps; The Mosquito Supper Club’s boiled shrimp (link)

1:13:34 The pronunciation police; modding a Silver Panel Fender Champ with a Magnatone 213 tone control

1:17:11 Elemental knowledge; California-built Vox amps; Clarkson’s Farm

1:25:00 Is variable input impedance worth experimenting with? Bogen guitar amps

1:29:41 Is the two-prong hat offensive? Are fixed-bias amps more touch-sensitive? the phono input in old PAs; GM/IP on tubes

1:33:15 Recommended reading: The All-Music Guide

Recorded June 21, 2024. Pics: Listener Bernie’s Bogen.

Fretboard Journal