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The Analog Brothers Interview

AccRock: How did you get started working with electronics?

analog: Well, I started with music first. As I got into electric guitar, I felt a need to come up with more tones. I also had an uncle that helped me build heath kits and we worked on old radios and tape recorders. I ended up modifying these to use for guitar playing. After some time, I ended up studying electronics in college

AccRock: For our younger readers, what was a heath kit?

analog: A heath kit was a set of parts with really good instructions that allowed you to build for example, a radio or tv.

AccRock: Cool! I haven't seen anything like that today

analog: No, they've been out of business for quite a while. It's a shame, because they made it easy to start understanding electronics.

AccRock: When did you begin building amps?

analog: The amps came a few years later; I had wanted to get some of the sounds from my Fender that a bandmate was getting with his Marshall. So I ended up taking it apart to try this.....

AccRock: And how did you do with your first try?

analog: Suffice to say, it never ended up sounding like his Marshall, but after quite some effort it was better.

AccRock: Why didn't you just buy a marshall - too expensive?

analog: That was part of it, the other part is I wanted to learn WHY they sounded different.

AccRock: In lamens terms, what makes them different?

analog: Well, the circuits are very different, they use different tubes and components. What is important to know is there are many things inside an amp that contribute to the sound.

AccRock: How do you think Jim Marshall hit it on the head - as far as a great rock sound?

analog: He started with a great amp to copy at first.....the old tweed bassman. He did things differently though, using parts that were common in the UK. His clients at the time also wanted more distortion than the American amps could get. So he and Ken Bran worked up the new circuits and the 4x12" speaker system

AccRock: Since your company - Analog Bros. - is also a repair facility, do you see a specific type of amp repair over and over again?

analog: There are two things. First, many amps need a good service; dirty connections, weak tubes, bad grounds. Next, the filter caps on older amps really need to be replaced. This is very common with amps that people find at garage sales, on the web and so on. They haven't been serviced in years.

AccRock: Do you see many modern amps in the shop?

analog: Yes, quite too many. There isn't as much quality work from the larger companies as they did in the past. Much of their gear isn't designed to hold up on the road.

AccRock: Are there any other maintenance tips you can give to guitar players?

analog: Sure, keep the amp clean and dry. Keep everything on it tight. If a fuse blows, only replace it with the exact same type. This is very important. If the new one blows as well, you have to take it to the shop.

AccRock: Let's talk about amplification in the studio.

analog: Ok, there are a few things players need to understand. First, they have to trust the engineer.


AccRock: why?

analog: They will be requested to do things quite differently than they do on stage and they need to understand that in the studio there is sometimes a better way. One of the main issues is volume. It usually ends up sounding better to use a smaller amp turned up than a bigger amp turned down. Also, the use of FX. The studio will have some really good fx units and will probably want to use them after the track is cut. You don't want to track with the fx because it limits the flexibility to get balance on the mixdown.

AccRock: What about replicating the bands live sound - any hints?

analog: Give the engineer some live tapes ahead of time, he will have some good ideas on that. Again, you have to trust that they will do the right thing, even though it may not seem right to you.

AccRock: What do you think created the magic of the great amps of the '60's?

analog: Three things. First, The circuits were very simple. They didn't use a lot of parts in the signal path. Next, they were built by hand with great care in the wiring, grounding and such. Finally, the components available were of very high quality, especially the tubes.

AccRock: Are there amps built like that today?

analog:Some are; usually from the smaller companies. There are small places doing even better work than back then.

AccRock: Any companies you know? hint hint.
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analog: Well, we make a very well built product, as to a few others. Can I name some for your readers to check out?

AccRock: Absolutely

analog: Alphabetically; Analog Bros. Bruno, and London Power

AccRock: What's your take on amp modeling technology?

analog: It's ok, but not there yet. It will really be improving in the future though. If you put a modeling amp next to the real thing, you will hear the difference. It's really cool though to have a little box that makes all those tones available though analog: They measure many aspects of an amp and try to use DSP chips to simulate it.

AccRock: Explain in lamens terms, what modeling is?

analog: Modeling is using digital signal analysis to simulate an analog sound.

AccRock: Tell our readers how Analog Bros. new line of custom amps came about?

analog: The latest amp in our line is the model 32. It's about 40 watts, very simple to operate and get a great tone from. Unlike a lot of newer amps with dozens of controls that are difficult to quickly dial in a tone.

AccRock: How can our readers check one out?

analog: They can go to www.analogbros.com. Anyone is welcome to ask us questions about any amp, not just ours. We will always try to help players out with whatever they have.

AccRock: What are your thoughts on effect pedals?

analog: Pedals are great, but have a few flaws. First, unless they are the "true bypass" type, they will load down the guitar signal even when you aren't using the effect. Next, they don't have the correct input impedance as a tube amp does to get the best tone from your guitar. You should see if it's possible to convert any of your pedals to "true bypass". This will cause them to act like they aren't there when your not using the effect. And will help maximize the tone from the pickups.

AccRock: Any particular distortion pedals you like?

analog: I was always partial to the old MXR distortion +

AccRock: Have you heard the Fulltone pedals?

analog: Yes, Mike Fuller builds GREAT stuff. very Hendrix-like stuff. He's a fantastic player as well.

analog: One of the new pedals I really like is the re-issue Electro Harmonix micro synth......have you played one yet?

AccRock: No - I've heard they are tres cool

analog: Really unique sounds you can get from them.

AccRock: What’s happening with your new line of amps?

analog: The prototype was just out at NAMM. We cut some killer tracks with it at Maggies' Farm for Jeremy Wallaces' new release.

AccRock: I urge our readers to check out the Model 32 amp specs below and to check out your web site at www.analogbros.com!