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this amp has a unique circuit i worked up that adds unbelievable flexibility to the amp. change the high gain channel to any one of 4 distinct voice characters to shape this amp into whatever you need for sonic delivery wagon services

HOVERCRAFT AMPS - CARIBOU 50 ALL TUBE 50 WATT GUITAR AMP



Stage IV Spec: 3x12AX7 preamp
2xEL34 power amp tubes 2 channel unit
1/2 power switch
switchable tone stack (TMB/BAX) CUSTOM DOUBLE FAC Preamp & High Gain channel controls
Double Depth Power amp Controls
both FAC controls are 4 position rotary with mini fluted knobs
Clean/Gain switch for Ch1

black marshall grillecloth pattern vinyl tolex, white faceplate with dark bronze handles. a nice mix of large and medium milled silver face round knobs finish this off. NOS hiwatt genuine feet and carry handle with chrome corners.
build notes: "black grillecloth tolex, chrome corners, genuine  feet and handle black/bronze faceplate handles, white/black mk2 faceplate mix of big n' medium silver faced knobs. the circuit is as follows: custom 4 position FAC I in the very front end of the amp that uses 2 of the hovercraft FAC settings, then bypassed for more mids/crunch, and a softer 'vintage' setting that rolls off a little bit of treble and gain to emulate 50's and 60's  and tube rectified golden era preamps. the FAC II shapes the entire personality of the high gain ch2 and voices the amp for a middle vintage gain sort of like an ampeg VT22, then goes to a gained hiwatt style response, then a classic british upper midrange crunch voice and finally a deeper american modern gain low/midrange crunch with additional bottom end on tap. this amp has been lurking in the back of my head for months and months, and i got the crowbar out and made it happen. and i'm really glad that i did."

this is a unique one off amp that would normally sell for close to $2300 if you custom ordered it.
i went a bit nuts on the bench, this amp was the result.. i hope you like lots of sonic options!

Why you want this amp:
-you play a wide variety of ROCK guitar and need something that covers the bases. patches and presets don't do it for you
-you are passionate about tone. we tune every amp we make, by hand, for maximum sonic improvements.
-because we are a small manufacturer, we put the cost of the amp directly into the parts that make great sound, not sponsoring race cars, sales "spiffs" or other frippery.
-I played guitar professionally for almost 2 decades, and built and played most every guitar or bass amp circuit out there. i've experienced first hand what sounds great and what doesn't. that knowledge and 'ears' go into the design and refinement of everything we make.

so, go with Omakase... or in other words "Trust the Chef"...

a little secret about pro musicians and engineers:
those amps you see on stage and in the studio with your fave band performing? they didn't just get that from their local guitar store. a tech "massaged" their amp. quite frequently, if you peeked under the hood whats printed on the front of the amp has nothing to do with whats going on inside!

we give you this "secret power" with all of our amps.

This amp features:
Midrange Contour - shift the eq response of the high gain from scooped to boxy
1/2 Power - takes the amp from full tilt power to a little more manageable for home or studio use
Switchable Tone stack - this covers all of the popular 2 and 3 knob tone control frequency response (over and over again i hear "the tone controls actually DO something!")
Double Depth controls - for infinite tweakage of power tube output section, 'vintage' gives you soft give & breakup, and 'modern' gives you tight percussive attack. our custom voiced depth control gives you the best of low, deep, chest thumping sub bass. turn it off and you have the sharp, percussive attack, ON and look out! BIG FAT ROOM FILLING low end.

• FAC I - this is a 4 position that contains 2 of our normal FAC preamp controls, and adds 2 other positions (full range / vintage voice) to change the entire character of the amp from fuzz/dirgy capable soft response or grit ala recto style gain, to bold crunch, to soft response that references vintage tweed/tube rectified era amplifiers renowned for their velvety frequency response..

  • FAC II - this changes the entire personality of the CH2 High Gain portion of the amp, change it up from a medium/low gain response for a double dose of vintage cream, to a tighter chunk with a bigger bold low end, and both the british (upper mids) and american (lower/bolder mids&high bass) grind/crunch


Hovercraft Amps - as featured in Popular Mechanics magazine!
link:

the manual for this amp is available online here:
the manual goes much further into all the wonder that is our new caribou 2 channel head. this was designed by us here in portland from scratch to bring the best of the best all in one head!

this is a very loud amp, think 50 watt Hiwatt DR zone. thank goodness this has a 1/2 power switch!

the gain channel: throws out thick chunk right out of the gate, then dials fatter and fatter through american voiced high gain monsters all the way up to dial crushing fuzz that can run the spectrum from an orange OR lit up at full roar to "that" sunn T sound that everyone is after, but requires acres of boutique pedals to really wake them up (not here, just use this amp, chum..) then you can keep going til square wave zip code sits in your lap and invites you out to dinner..

start out with the contour knob at 12:00 and set your overall hi gain tone, then dial in lower mids or upper mids using the knob.. focus, eliminate, or push almost infinite variation of sound that give this amp its real power to step out in a mix, and give you a unique sound people will be scratching their heads trying to figure out what is in that amp you are using!


ch1: non master volume early marshall crunch, roll back to hiwatt/british style clean ch2: high gain with the ability to dial contour to full scoop, or strong mid present tone, roll the gain way back, run master volume full and you can get blackface style cleans with a bit more bluesy thick crunch!

we took the original circuits and adapted them to our tone response for these amps to maximise the influence on the sound of the amp in a simple to understand format.

a footswitch is available for this amplifier for additional cost.

DIVO tube matched power tubes for easy power tube replacement without requiring an expensive trip to the tech!
YouTube demos of the caribou series amps are available here:
Fettled (sm) over the course of several days. (from the old english word for 'gird for battle') our exclusive sonic tuning & improvement process that tunes each amp for maximum response and performance.

Triple Tested Tubes (sm) we only use tubes that have been tested by 3 different companies: the tube factory (which screens out up to 90% failure rate) a trusted USA tube vendor (which can screen out up to 90% of the tubes from the factory), and our own testing process that 'blueprints' the tubes used in your amp. yes, we hand match and select power and preamp tubes that I choose for their sonic qualities.

Custom midrange contour control for this amp opens up even more sonic possibilities for the high gain channel.

Room filling low end - MUCH more perceived wattage than a tube amp of the same wattage. a LOT more.

Outputs for 16 & 8 & 4 ohm cabinets
Versatile vintage classic gain structure that goes from the traditional clean/mild breakup of the earliest tube rectified dirty blues amp (cranked!) to a much more high gain sound with all the additional rich crunch you would probably need to add a distortion pedal to the real vintage examples. except this comes from 100% TUBE distortion, not diodes!
the power section design is hybrid of sunn t power with orange (WIDE) style frequency response. we dont baby-gate your guitars full sound. you get all the crayons.

squash it, bloom it, fill the room or cut thru a mix..
IMPORTANT NOTE: if you are overseas, please allow several days to rewire the input power for the amp to 240v and retest/rebias the amp for trouble-free operation.

your amp will come with a speaker cable and power cord for your country (if we have it in stock)

international shipping info: the shipping cost quoted is an estimate, if it is less we will cheerfully refund the extra.
Fulfillment/delivery information: as we are a very small ONE MAN shop, with high demand, please allow extra time for your custom amp to be packed and shipped to you. this timeframe allows us to provide you with a high quality custom amp you will be proud of. please be patient! 

ConditionBrand New (New)
Brand New items are sold by an authorized dealer or original builder and include all original packaging.Learn more
Brand
Model
  • Caribou
Finish
  • Black / White
Categories
Year
  • 2016
Made In
  • United States

Hovercraft Amps - art & sound since 2010

Christmas Valley, OR, United States
Sales:586
Joined Reverb:2014

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