Ep. 62: "Just Call Me Ike"

Once again, guitar amp tech Skip Simmons is fielding your questions on all things tube amp. This week's sponsors: iZotope (use the discount code FRET10 to save 10% off your order), Amplified Parts and Grez Guitars. Want to support the show? Be a part of our Patreon page. Some of the topics discussed on this week's episode: 1:00 California weather and old dogs 3:08 Sharpening knives, Carter Cutlery (link) 8:51 How not to ship amps and amp parts 13:09 SAMS Photofacts and obscure schematics 18:36 Making the reverb in a Fender-style amp less bright 23:05 Why are boutique amps so expensive; Benson Chimera (link); improving an amp’s tone by unplugging the reverb tank; a DYI Ice Cube; El Pato 30:58 The layout of Skip’s workspace 37:00 Building an amp out of a tape deck with 250k volume and tone pots, redux 43:21 An Ampeg M-15 with a thumping tremolo 46:36 A vintage Weller 8200 solder gun with a smelly tip 49:41 Adding speaker-driven reverb to a 5E3 clone without using a second amp 52:13 Converting a Kalart 7015 projector into a guitar amp, Filmosound conversions, Tex Amps 58:19 Recommended reading: All the Light We Cannot See, by Anthony Doerr (Amazon link, thanks Brian in Seattle) 59:40 Recommended watching: Derek DelGaudio’s In & of Itself (on Hulu) 1:02:14 British amp heads at 16 ohms, Rick Beato’s YouTube channel (link), leftover holiday spices 1:04:59 What to do with a Wurlitzer 920 combo amp? 1:09:22 Preserving a completely original 1953 Gibson GA-20 1:15:35 Sweet potato fries 1:16:05 A Masco MA-35 powered up with no speaker, dried white onions 1:23:46 The grounding switch on a Fender, spiking store-bought ranch dressing with Balsamic vinegar, death caps 1:31:44 Slowing down the vibrato of a vintage Magnatone 440 Have a topic for a future episode? Email or send us a voice memo to: [email protected] or leave us a voicemail or text at 509-557-0848. Be sure to check out the ever-growing Big Index of Truth About Vintage Amp topics to see if your amp questions have already been covered.