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Mahar's Vintage Guitars is a brick-and-mortar and web-based retailer. We are happy to talk with you before you make a purchase. Please reach out if you feel so inclined! We cross market our items here and on our own site, so items are subject to sale elsewhere at any time (however we will never cancel a sale if it happens here first). See our profile here, our Google reviews as well as our 100% positive Reverb feedback. Also, Reverb limits us to only 25 pictures of our items. There is a good chance we have more. Contact us if you’d like to see them.
I always endeavor to bring something different to the table. A twist of fate has allowed me to do it once again.
Announcing the arrival of Branzell hand-wired tube amps here at Mahar's Vintage Guitars, a line you won't see anywhere else.
Gary Branzell has a long history in luthiery in particular and the music business in general. Hailing from northern Nevada, Gary started out as a player and a 10 plus year veteran of retail at Bizarre Guitar, a prominent stop on the hunt for vintage guitar enthusiasts in Reno, NV. See his incredible guitar offering here.
I first found out about Branzell guitars about 20 years ago when I happened upon a gorgeous double-cutaway guitar that established a spot in the collection of a dear friend of mine. What we thought was a one-off turned out to be the early work of a master guitar builder.
We sold the Branzell guitar for my friend a while back. Tim, my faithful employee, connected with Gary as we researched the instrument. Gary mentioned his amps in the process and offered to bring them by. We were so pleased with his work that we jumped on board.
That brings us to this build - an 18 watt tonal beast of the highest build quality.
The cosmetics are first class, drawing you in to its black-and-tan dreaminess. Looks aren't everything, but they sure don't hurt! Everything jives - the tolex and cloth, plexi panel and gun-metal knobs - it is a beautiful piece.
The look is backed up by the sound. It is clear from moment one that the amp is something special. It goes from articulate to ballsy and everything in between. Cleans are chimey but full, and the overdrive is sublime. The tremolo is fabulous. I played a variety of guitars through it and couldn't stump it! Gary has done great justice in his work on what is one of the best and well-known amp circuits, something that is true for all his amps.
His circuit employs the same tube compliment as beloved 1960s Marshall 18 watt combos: 2x EL84 power tubes, 3x 12AX7 preamp tubes and an EZ-81 rectifier. The speaker is a Celestion G12 30.
Gary played down his work inside the chassis when we talked with him about the amps, explaining that his layout works to limit parasitic noise that can result if amps are wired for looks and not for performance. We found that he was being modest when we opened each amp to find a pleasantly clean layout that shows his attention to detail. As always, we've included pics inside the chassis for you to peruse.
This Creedmoore 84 is hand signed and numbered - #5. Knowing Gary, serial numbers 1 through 4 are in the hands of some killer players.
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