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When I decided to move to Mexico, to a place you can only get to by boat, I knew I would have to foresake my huge Fender Twin. But I didn't have much hope of finding a decent small amp that would make me happy. Most small amps sound like crap, the attitude being that you don't need decent tone for practice. But, I wanted a small amp that didn't make me cringe when I played it - and of course, I wanted clean Fender tone.

Fortunately, Fender just released the Champ 600, a 5-watt tube amp that is a tribute to the 50s-era Champ.

Did they get it right? Let's put it this way: when I put it next to my big blackface Twin, it actually added a sonic element to my sound that the big blackface beast was lacking. Of course, that was largely because the Champ 600 has a 6" speaker, meaning that its treble response is very good. But, surprisingly, it still gets a full, round sound that really works well for surf. The amp's power section comes through a single 6V6 tube, while a single 12AX7 completes the pre-amp section.

Controls include a single chicken-head style volume knob, which was the setup for the original Champ. You pretty much have to crank it all the way up to get decent volume, and even then, it is a little paltry. Still, plenty good for practice. There are two guitar cord inputs, one a clean channel and the other a mildly-distorted channel. Really, the distortion is almost non-existent, so I just plug into that channel and use the volume knob on my guitar to vary the drive. Naturally, there is no reverb, so you'll need either a pedal or a Fender reverb unit to get a decent surf sound. The amp also responds well to a drive pedals, but don't expect to get Marshall tone through your ProcoRat or other heavy-distortion pedal. A nice TS-9 tube screamer with mild overdrive is about all this amp can handle.

The two-tone cosmetics are a nice touch - very retro in appearance, with a nice Fender '50s vintage red-on-chrome badge that complements the overall look of the amp. A brown leather handle complements the vintage look.

For $200 bucks, this is a pricey addition to your collection, especially for a practice amp. But if good, clean Fender tone is important to you, this little amp does a good job for the money. I highly recommend this amp for newbies looking for a good surf practice amp and veterans looking for a nice apartment practice amp or even a recording amp.

Has anyone had any experience with the new Eminence Commonwealth 12's or 15's?

According to one source (supposedly an Eminence rep ) they are meant to sound like the JBL E120.

Although familiar with the D120F and D130F, I 'm not familiar with the "E" series.  What are the sound differences between "E" and "D" series?

How close do the Commonwealths come to the traditional sound of the D120F's and D130F's ? 

How do they compare to the Weber High Power California D120F and D130F  clones which I understand are very good.  It is worth noting that the Commonwealths' have the traditional JBL 4 inch voice coil, high power handling capability (225 watts), and are less expensive than the Webers ( $135 and $150 each).

As the mostly rhythm guitarist in Meshugga Beach Party, I find myself often switching from heavy muted drip on single notes to light reverb for standard rhthym guitar playing or heavy reverb on lead guitar. This led to the problem of how to switch between the 2 settings consistently and quickly. Here's the answer:

Pic 1 Pic 2

I custom designed this A/B box and had it built by Anthony Gelona, a specialist in A/B boxes located in Egg Harbor City, NJ.

This was designed with my BF Pro Reverb in mind though it works fine with my Showman too. The A/B switches between a line to my outboard and a line directly into the amp. Both lines are then put in jacks 1 and 2 on my normal channel because my other channel is hot-rodded, though it would work just as well (if not better) split between the 2 channels.

The trick is to shut off the onboard reverb when the outboard is switched on. I accomplished this by tying the amp's reverb on/off switch to the same footswitch that activates the A/B.

When using my Showman with no built in reverb, I switch between my outboard and a reverb pedal.

I added a 'true bypass' loop and a separate switch for the onboard vibrato so as to consolidate my footswitching needs. The LED's really help too.

This thing is built like a tank and does exactly what I wanted. I go from playing chords on Hava Nagila to single note drip on Baja or lead on Misirlou with one press of the foot.

Since most of us prefer Rosewood fingerboards, I wanted to give a review of this product I recently started using. It is called "Guitar Honey" by Gerlitz. I have to say this is the best fret board conditioner/cleaner I have ever used for Rosewood. It removes all grime and crud very easily, but also leaves the fret board feeling very smooth and conditioned.

If you want more thorough results, you can apply it with a very fine steal wool. I have not done this yet, but have read reviews praising this technique. I just apply it with a quality terry cloth and I am very happy with the results. Anyway, it’s about 8 bucks for a bottle. It should last a very long time as well. If you are looking for a fret board conditioner, I recommend trying Gerlitz Guitar Honey. You can do a Google search to easily find it.

PS I do not have any affiliation with this company.

I got a call from the local guitar store, they are always on the lookout for guitars I might like to own. The sold me on the new Fender Classic Player '60s Strat. It is a Mexican Strat designed by Fender Custom Shop builder Greg Fessler.

If you are looking for a new Strat for surf, this one is worth looking out for ... I could not be more pleased with my new Sonic Blue Strat!

Okay, I recently bought a Gomez "G" Reverb-Amp. Here is my review.

The semi-important stuff: The amp was completely immaculate & clean. The wiring was done with great craftsmanship. The amp is ascetically gorgeous. The vintage blonde is very pleasing to the eye, and it has the complete retro surf vibe. It is also very light weight, I think around 36 pounds.

Customer service was top notch: In all honestly, Dario seems like the kind of guy would wants his customers satisfied and nothing less. I recieved good communication on the phone and email from Dario. I thank him for that. Also, everything is covered for 5 years, something you can't say for an amp you bought of ebay.

The real important stuff: The "G" Reverb amp sounds awesome. The 15'' Weber alnico speaker is very crisp and clean. There are no harsh highs with this amp and the bass sound stays well defined and clear. You can have an extremely bright sound or a nice bassy sound which I prefer. It really nails the vintage surf sounds that groups like The Chantay's, The Bel-Airs, and The Pyramids have made so famous. One of my favorite bands of all time is the Ventures. I have never been able to match their tone, although I have not been able to do it with the "G" Reverb Amp, I have come closer than with other amps I've used in the past.. But they were not a surf band anyway so that is beside the point.

Reverb: Really good surf reverb without using an outboard! To me an outboard is unmatched, but this is pretty damn good. Now Dario told me he was including a 3 spring reverb pan, but it comes with a 2 in stock. I forgot to check it, so I will have to ask him which he included with mine. I will get back to this when I have more detail.

Tremolo: Sounds good to me, and I won't need a pedal. Good work here Mr. Gomez.

Okay let me wrap this up.

Sound / Features 9/10
Value 9/10
Customer Service/Support 10/10

Hi everyone, I was going through some of my saved files and came across this information from Dave Wronski concerning his gear. Seeing how the majority of us worship this guy, I thought you may find it interesting. This seems to be a response from someone asking him about his setup, probably a past/current SG101 member.

Most of the guitar slingers on SG101 are looking for one thing: blackface Fender sound. Some go the classic vintage route; others go the Fender reissue route. Still others buy silverface amps and have them wired back to blackface circuit specs. Some make do with whatever they can afford, hoping one day for enough dead presidents to buy the dream.

My quest has been to find a Fender amp that has classic blackface tone - without the reliability issues of a 40-year-old piece of electronics. Recently, I found a company called Vintage Sound Amps that does the unthinkable: they build a blackface-correct Fender amp for a reasonable price.

Fender Hayes Twin Reverb

Hello Folks!

As promised, here's my review of the Fender Super Sonic. I also checked out the new Kustom Coupe 72, as I was interested in that one also. Before I begin, here's the disclaimer:

Everybody's ears are different. (I have Spock-like ears, but I have long hair that covers them ) So what sounds good to me might not sound great to you. Just keep that in mind as you read on...

First up: The Super Sonic!

I went into the local music store with the direct intention of checking this amp out, and to probably buy it. I've been using a vintage Twin Reverb for years, but she's gettin old, and the repair costs are getting a little high. Plus she can't handle the rigors of the road like she used to. So, I had plenty of time, and didn't rush anything. I took 4 guitars: DiPinto Galaxie, '62 Strat, Reissue Jag and a Dano Hodad. And awaaaaay we go!

(This review submitted by Carol, aka mom_surfing. Big thanks to Carol for submitting the first review for this site!)

I have been playing guitar for 7 years and concentrating on surf instrumentals for almost the last 2. I am just someone who has a passion for playing and play at least 2 hours a day. I've been on a quest these last two years to find the 'perfect' surf guitar, asking a lot of questions and opinions of others and trying out different instruments. My first guitar was/is an American standard strat. I also have a PRS custom 22 (definitely not surf) and happily stumbled onto a ventures model MIJ jazzmaster. I have fairly small hands and long fingers and found the neck on the jazzmaster a little fat up past the 12th fret, but what a nice tone it has, especially for rhythm. My search for an in-stock jag, white with the red tortoise pick guard, or any jaguar for that matter, yielded none. I had to order one. Fender didn't have any in stock so I patiently waited four months for it's arrival. And, it was well worth the wait. Fender ships these from the factory with 10's, so I had the tech set it up with 11's before I took it home. He commented on what a nice instrument it was and said he did very little to it (one little shim) and a slight truss rod adjustment. To my eyes the workmanship is A+. My primary sound set up is a fender deluxe reverb and a RI outboard reverb (I also have a twin reverb but it's too heavy to drag around, so it's my back up). From the first few notes i played i knew it was the sound i've been looking for! With so many switch combinations it's easy to find the right 'voice' for leads and rhythm. The neck is comfortable in my hands. I know we all play differently and hear things differently, but for me I feel I've finally found the 'perfect' surf guitar. It was money well spent.