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Topic: Milkman The Amp |
Sonny Jenkins
From:
Texas Masonic Retirement Center,,,Arlington Tx
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Posted 16 Sep 2019 1:02 pm |
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| Seems like there was a lot of excitement about this amp for a while,,Haven't seen any post on it in a while? Any comments,,reviews,,opinions? I thought several members bought them,,just wondering if they are still happy with them? |
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Joseph Carlson
From:
Grass Valley, California, USA
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Posted 16 Sep 2019 1:10 pm
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I've got one on my pedalboard and I've been really happy with it. I run it into a 1x15 8 ohm Ceramic Jupiter speaker in a Justice cabinet.
It sounds great, just like my half and half pretty much.
I recently played with a really loud band and there wasn't quite as much headroom as with a 300 watt amp, but that's to be expected. I was still able to do the gig with no problems.
I think the trick is to play around with the master and volume knobs until you're happy with the tone.
I pretty much keep the master at 100% and the volume around 25%, treble at 40% and bass at 60%. |
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Joseph Carlson
From:
Grass Valley, California, USA
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Posted 16 Sep 2019 1:11 pm
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| I forgot to mention, I don't really use the built-in reverb at all, but the tremolo is AMAZING. |
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Sonny Jenkins
From:
Texas Masonic Retirement Center,,,Arlington Tx
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Posted 16 Sep 2019 1:58 pm
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| Thanks Joseph! I have been considering one,,,I was reading on a "guitar" player site and some of them seem to think the same,,or comparable sound can be had with Joyo American,,,,I don't even know what that is,,LOL!! One thing that has been holding me back is there is no CD player input. Most of my playing is to tracks,,,of course I could easily use another amp,,,would just be nice to have it. |
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Greg Lambert
From:
Illinois, USA
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Posted 16 Sep 2019 2:24 pm
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| Sonny Jenkins wrote: |
| Thanks Joseph! I have been considering one,,,I was reading on a "guitar" player site and some of them seem to think the same,,or comparable sound can be had with Joyo American,,,,I don't even know what that is,,LOL!! One thing that has been holding me back is there is no CD player input. Most of my playing is to tracks,,,of course I could easily use another amp,,,would just be nice to have it. |
Get a $49 behringer mixer and an Ipod and your set to go without dragging in a bunch of heavy equipment |
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Lee Baucum
From:
McAllen, Texas (Extreme South) The Final Frontier
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Posted 16 Sep 2019 2:46 pm
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| Sonny - I don't believe that Joyo pedal has a power amp. |
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Sonny Jenkins
From:
Texas Masonic Retirement Center,,,Arlington Tx
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Posted 16 Sep 2019 2:52 pm
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| Thanks!! Anyone else tried the "amp"??? |
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Steve Lipsey
From:
Portland, Oregon, USA
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Posted 16 Sep 2019 10:00 pm
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Look up the other threads here...I love mine. 50 watts into 8 ohms, and I now have a second cab to run 100 watts into in parallel, plus a nice full sound (I using a Jupiter 12" and a Jupiter 10"). I can choose either speaker or both...
I've owned pretty much every Milkman amp - he kept coming out with the "next better thing", and I kept buying them - and this one measures up just fine. It replaces my Half & Half, the last even-slightly-heavy amp I've owned.
And the flexibility of having the XLR out to go direct to a PA, either along with a speaker or instead of one, is a great thing to have...
Tim is a really good musician himself, with a great ear, and he just builds what he wants to play, and that has always been what I want to play also...
If you want to chat more, PM me and I'll give you a phone number ...
_________________
https://www.lostsailorspdx.com
Williams S10s, Milkman Pedal Steel Mini & "The Amp"
Ben Bonham Resos, 1954 Oahu Diana, 1936 Oahu Parlor |
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Marc Jenkins
From:
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
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Posted 16 Sep 2019 10:08 pm
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I’ve been using The Amp exclusively for steel since I bought it. Absolutely love it! I use a 12†Milkman or Furlong speaker (both are in vintage film projector cabs) for most situations. For loud rock gigs, I bring both cabs and it keeps up.
Tone is fantastic, portability is incredible (fits in my pack a seat!) and versatility is just awesome - I was touring in the summer, and the ability to practice on headphones in the hotel was so amazing.
Also, I had an outdoor gig situation where it was in ‘safe’ mode after I powered down on a hot day (which was the wrong thing to do) and I emailed Tim in a panic. He replied in 90 SECONDS! |
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Douglas Schuch
From:
Valencia, Philippines
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Posted 17 Sep 2019 12:29 am
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I have one and like it. My other amp is a stereo steel. I prefer the Stereo Steel when playing with my band for a couple of reasons - we play an open-air bar with lots of space to fill and few walls to help. I would probably be fine with The Amp with the band's current lineup, but previously, the rhythm guitar player played very loud, and "busy" in style. I was at times pretty close to maxed out on The Amp to keep up without having to floor my volume pedal. Also, the Stereo Steel has a very crisp, bright tone that I think just cuts through the mix better, but I tend to like a very bright tone.
The Amp has a bit more complex tone than the stereo steel - I don't know how else to describe it - seems to have more overtones and fullness. If you like the tone of classic Fender amps or The Milkman Half and Half, the you will like The Amp. If you prefer a brighter, crisper tone, like the Peavey Sessions 400 or Stereo Steel, then maybe it's not the best choice. I like having both, as then I have options for the tone I want.
You can use it as a pre-amp only if you want - either fed into another amp, or into the PA system. You can run a powered speaker off the line out and also the feed to your speaker as a monitor, or for just more coverage or power.
Basically, it's a great amp, with many uses. Between it and the Stereo Steel, I have everything I would want.
As noted on previous threads, when you start it up, it takes about a full minute to warm up. Until then, you will have no output. Don't panic - wait. Also, when it is warmed up, do NOT turn it off if you want it back on right away. It needs 15 minutes or so to cool before it will restart.
There is a 5-page thread on it here on the forum - lots of good info in that.
_________________
Bringing steel guitar to the bukid of Negros Oriental! |
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Steve Lipsey
From:
Portland, Oregon, USA
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Posted 17 Sep 2019 1:16 am
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MARC-
What was Tim's answer? Inquiring minds (of other The Amp owners) want to know...
Douglas-
My The Amp will come right back on after being turned off...just wait another minute for warm up if it has been off for a little bit.
_________________
https://www.lostsailorspdx.com
Williams S10s, Milkman Pedal Steel Mini & "The Amp"
Ben Bonham Resos, 1954 Oahu Diana, 1936 Oahu Parlor |
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Douglas Schuch
From:
Valencia, Philippines
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Posted 17 Sep 2019 1:25 am
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Steve - here's Tim's answer to me:
"You have found one of the quirks with The Amp. It does not like to power up hot. If you power it off and wait a few minutes, it will cool down and power up again no problem.
If you keep the rubber feet installed on the bottom it helps keep The Amp cool so that it does not go into protection (the flickering). I would recommend if you are powering down between sets to just leave it on and turn the volume down. That is “standby mode† "
_________________
Bringing steel guitar to the bukid of Negros Oriental! |
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Marc Jenkins
From:
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
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Posted 17 Sep 2019 7:47 am
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| Steve Lipsey wrote: |
MARC-
What was Tim's answer? Inquiring minds (of other The Amp owners) want to know...
Douglas-
My The Amp will come right back on after being turned off...just wait another minute for warm up if it has been off for a little bit. |
Exactly this! Waited two minutes, all good. |
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John Sluszny
From:
Brussels, Belgium
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Posted 17 Sep 2019 3:41 pm
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| Any sound clip ? Thanks. |
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Steve Lipsey
From:
Portland, Oregon, USA
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Douglas Schuch
From:
Valencia, Philippines
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Posted 17 Sep 2019 4:22 pm
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Here's a number I recorded a while back - no speaker - I'm going straight from my The Amp to the Zoom R-16 recorder. The speaker emulation switch was on, IIRC. Kindly ignore my many finger fumbles. As noted, I tend to like a bright tone, particularly when playing a classic country instrumental like this. But this amp will also provide a very warm, mellow tone as well - perfect for your small jazz ensemble when playing in those formerly smoky jazz clubs!
Buds Bounce: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1HpCnq8OHVBqLaCHUbfvn40YAnSNtr-3P
Also, in discussing the amp startup when warm, mine tends to need about 10 min. to cool before it will restart when warm (hence, I said 15). I am running it on 220V - I don't know if that makes any difference.
_________________
Bringing steel guitar to the bukid of Negros Oriental! |
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Tim Marcus
From:
San Francisco, CA
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Posted 17 Sep 2019 6:54 pm
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Regarding the heat related re-start:
we fixed that quirk by adding a very slow ramp to the heater power supply. So if you are planning on buying The Amp from a dealer, or in the future, you can ignore that particular part of this thread
We also changed the power up and got it down to about 12 seconds from the time you flip the switch to the time the tube is hot and ready to go.
I am glad steel players have embraced The Amp. I keep mine in my steel seat even if I end up using something else. For me its nice to know that a nice sounding amp is always an option, or that I can get a good DI output or bail out a friend if their amp goes down. Its a handy little box and we tried to make it versatile and sound as good as my other amplifier models.
_________________
Milkmansound.com |
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Marc Jenkins
From:
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
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Posted 17 Sep 2019 10:25 pm
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I also always bring mine to gigs as backup if I’m playing through something else.
This thing is brilliant!! |
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Sonny Jenkins
From:
Texas Masonic Retirement Center,,,Arlington Tx
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Posted 23 Sep 2019 1:56 pm
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| Well,,after all the questions I've had, I finally fortunate enough to get one,,mint condition, as new,,from my friend Jon Jaffe,,(BTW,,I found out from Tim how to tell if it is the later model that was redesigned to prevent the over heat issue stated above,,,if the switch on the back says "sim off" it is later (as opposed to "cam off"). Anyway,,,playing with it all afternoon,,,you guys are right,,these things sound awesome,,,VERY tube like!!! That being said, it may or may not be a "keeper". My primary use for an amp is here at home or an occasional jam,,usually with tracks. I have a 50 watt Katana combo (20 lb range),,and a 100 watt Katana head (same range) with a TT speaker cabinet,,,both capable of mixing CD or computer (BIAB) tracks,,,and while they are not quite up to the Milkman,,,they do sound very good for my use,,,so,,,we'll see how it plays out. Thanks for all the input,,,the beauty of this little "The Amp" can't be overstated,,,it's awesome!!! |
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Dave Zirbel
From:
Sebastopol, CA USA
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Posted 23 Sep 2019 2:06 pm
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I used mine at an outdoor gig with no mic on the amp. I powered a 15" JBL. Is was plenty loud and sounded nice.
I usually bring it along to gigs even when I'm using another amp...
_________________
Dave Zirbel-
Sierra S-10 (Built by Ross Shafer),ZB, Fender 400 guitars, various tube and SS amps |
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Chris Marinelli
From:
Pittsburgh, USA
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Posted 26 Sep 2019 5:09 pm
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Anyone use these to double on steel and 6 string? Looking at getting one of these and pairing with a 2x12 cab. Can someone recommend a good speaker choice for this purpose? I want to make sure it's loud enough for clean steel at a loudish club gig in a rock band setting, but I don't want a super sterile guitar sound either.
Thinking about the celestion neo that comes in the new Milkman Amp combo, or one of the newer Jensen neo "stealth" line but I haven't seen much talk about these on the forum. Also considering the WGS 90 watt ET90. Can anyone point me towards which of these choices could split the difference between guitar and steel and give me the headroom and volume I need?
Thanks everyone! They seem like a very versatile amp, it's just hard to believe they'd be loud enough when they're so darn small! |
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Steve Lipsey
From:
Portland, Oregon, USA
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Posted 26 Sep 2019 7:57 pm
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Look no further...Tim Marcus (the Milk Man) likes the Neo for weight, but the Jupiter for tone. I've got a Jupiter 12" and 10" in separate Mojotone cabs...can run either (for 50 watts), or both together (for 100 watts) on The Amp. The Jupiters sound amazing, separately and together...I totally agree with Tim's call...Dr. Z and Bogner agree with him also...
https://jupitercondenser.com/product-category/speakers/
_________________
https://www.lostsailorspdx.com
Williams S10s, Milkman Pedal Steel Mini & "The Amp"
Ben Bonham Resos, 1954 Oahu Diana, 1936 Oahu Parlor |
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Chris Marinelli
From:
Pittsburgh, USA
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Posted 28 Sep 2019 4:21 am
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| Thanks Steve. That being said, how would those of you with experience compare the clean headroom and volume for steel coming from The Amp with a 2x12 to a typical fender? I know Tim mentioned it won't get Twin loud, but would anyone with experience be able to offer a good comparison to one of Fender's line? |
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Nathan Guilford
From:
Oklahoma City
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Posted 28 Sep 2019 7:07 am give me a little time
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Just got a Milkman "the amp" this weekend. I might be in a unique position to compare it with a '64 fender vibroverb. (wish it was mine, but I do get to use it from time to time) I'll get back on this thread after I've played a couple loud band rehearsals and gigs, but so far at bedroom use, the tone is very comparable with my JBL k130 vs the d130f in the vibroverb. I might miss a little sparkle from the fender compared to the tone of the milkman, but it is every bit as punchy. But we will see at loud volume on stage with a drummer. To be continued.......
_________________
'02 Carter S-12 uni
‘76 MSA D-12
www.toothbrushers.com |
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Chris Marinelli
From:
Pittsburgh, USA
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Posted 28 Sep 2019 8:08 pm
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| Looking forward to hearing about your experience, thanks! |
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