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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.
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Reno's own Mighty Surf Lords are back, with Billy Woods on guitar, Mike Warner on bass, and Jeff Campaigne on drums.
Check out our webpages and links www.angelfire.com/ms3/themightysurflords
Will get more pictures up this week. We will be available for shows in August 2007.
"Praise The Lords"
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The Pyronauts “Surf and Destroy” California Tour:
The Pyronauts are hitting the road and coming to a town near you in California this summer! Along the way they will be performing with many of their friends in the surf community like Pollo Del Mar, The Detonators, The Longboards, The Sand Devils, and Slacktone! Will will be within a couple hours of virtually everywhere in CA! We will also be releasing a new CD entitled: The Pyronauts Live at the Mystic Theatre featuring Dusty Watson. More info on that soon. Here is the schedule:
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AFTER COMING OFF A STELLAR SPRING SEASON WHICH INCLUDED PLAYING WITH DEADBOLT, HANGING WITH DUSTY WATSON, AND AN AWESOME CD RELEASE PARTY FOR THEIR SELF TITLED RELEASE, GET THREE COFFINS READY IS ALL BOOKED UP FOR THE SUMMER! HERE IS A LIST OF SHOWS YOU CAN CATCH IF YOU LIVE IN COLORADO:
JUNE 9TH: FLYING DOG BREWERY. "THE ART OF DRINKING ART SHOW: FEATURING OVER 40 ARTISTS NATIONAL AND LOCAL! MOST NOTEABLY MARK MOTHERSBAUGH OF DEVO FAME. THIS SHOW WILL BE THE FIRST TIME BANDS AHVE PLAYED AT THE FLYING DOG IF IT GOES WELL AMYBE WE WILL HAVE A NEW VENUE HERE IN DENVER THAT IS SURF FRIENDLY!
JUNE 23RD: THE ROCKET ROOM IN COLORADO SPRINGS W/ THE MANSFIELDS.
JULY 14TH: 15TH ST. TAVERN, DENVER CO. I FORGOT WHO ELSE IS PLAYING BUT IT SURE WILL BE ROCKIN
JULY 15TH: THE LARIMER LOUNGE. PLAYING THE FRONTSIDE FIVE / FIVECORE RECORDS BBQ W/ FRONTSIDE FIVE, LBRO, THE CHEAP SKATES, VALIOMIERDA, TARD, AND MANY OTHERS! BUT GET THREE COFFINS PLAYS THE 8:30 SLOT WHICH IS (STRANGELY) HEADLINING..
JULY 28: (TENTATIVE) THE CRICKET ON THE HILL, DENVER CO. W/?????
AUGUST 11TH: ??? IN GRAND JUNCTION, CO. W/ RENO DIVORCE.
AUGUST 25TH: RETURN TO THE 3 KINGS TAVERN END OF SUMMER SHOW!
ALSO THE COFFINS HAVE PLANS FOR AN E.P. SLATED FOR A 4TH QUARTER RELEASE! AS WELL AS THE VENTURE BOTHERS FULL LENGTH FEATURING MEMBERS OF GET THREE COFFINS READY, THE ROYAL ACES, DENVER CITY SALTLICKS, AND OTHERS.
Nokie Edwards gave the punchy sound of the Precision Bass a big boost on the immortal instrumental "Walk Don't Run," a hit for The Ventures in 1960. (Edwards, originally the group's bassist, later switched to lead guitar). The tune was highly influential, especially among 1960s California surf bands–many of which were equipped top to bottom with matching Fender instruments.
In a 1997 article in Vintage Guitar Magazine, Peter Stuart Kohman wrote: "The surf/instrumental rock genres of the early 1960s were crucial proving grounds for the still-newfangled electric bass, and many of the seminal records in these two interrelated styles are also showcases for the Fender bass sound. You can't really imagine surf music without a Fender bass–this is not true of any earlier rock & roll style. During this era, the bass guitar went from optional to essential equipment and set up the electric bass for its dominant role in the British Invasion, folk rock, and all that followed."
Kohman goes on to pointo out that bassists in budding surf bands played different types of electric basses, including Harmony and Danelectro instruments, but it was a sign of success to have a shiny new Fender bass, usually in a custom color like Candy Apple Red or Lake Placid Blue. The musicians who played these flashy Fenders approached them like guitars rather than uprights, playing downstrokes with a flatpick and going for a tighter, more focused sound than the thud of an acoustic bass. The instrument's potential was just beginning to be tapped.
pgs. 56-57, by Jim Roberts. Contributed by Gavin "Windansea Beachboy" Ehringer, June, 2007.