Ep. 137: "Walk Around the Yard"
The Truth About Vintage Amps with Skip Simmons
Release Date: 08/20/2024
Ep. 153: "A C in Chemistry"
The Truth About Vintage Amps with Skip Simmons
It's the 153rd episode of the Truth About Vintage Amps and Skip is having a happy day fielding your amp questions. From cleaning tweed to Magnatone varistors and all points in between, it's 90 minutes of tube amp knowledge, laughs, and some serious California trivia. Some of the topics discussed this week: 1:27: The 2025 Fretboard Summit; the importance of repair tags 6:55: Thanks for the mangos, John! And a food preservation tip 8:30: Our sponsors: ; and ! 14:15 What's on Skip's bench? 60 amps in August; great Loma Rica deals; far out tubes 23:29 The big TV tubes in...
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Ep. 152: "Gridley Bias"
The Truth About Vintage Amps with Skip Simmons
It's the much-delayed 152nd episode of the Truth About Vintage Amps! Thanks, as always, for being a part of the world's finest call-in tube amp repair show. Want amp tech Skip Simmons' advice on your DIY guitar amp projects? Join us by sending your voice memo or written questions to ! Include a photo, too. Some of the topics discussed this week: 3:53 Real musicians ARE gearheads (redux) 5:47 Our sponsors: ; and ! 6:40 Tom Gunterman gets two Grez's 8:21 Yellow Jacket tube converters 10:27 Standel amps (redux); Todd Clinesmith; National Dobro amps; driver transformers...
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Ep. 151: "It Starts Out Cool"
The Truth About Vintage Amps with Skip Simmons
It's the 151st episode of the Truth About Vintage Amps! Thanks, as always, for being a part of the world's finest call-in tube amp repair show. Want amp tech Skip Simmons' advice on your DIY guitar amp projects? Join us by sending your voice memo or written questions to ! Include a photo, too. Some of the topics discussed this week: 1:03:05 What's on Skip's bench: A pile of Standel amps; Vacaville's Pacific Hardware (redux); a baffler of sorts 8:28 Tom Gunterman (); Kevin from Ohio; Joe Walsh 11:30 Our sponsors: ; and ! Marshall Capris; Christopher Guest 19:07 Julian...
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Ep. 150: "Throw It In the River"
The Truth About Vintage Amps with Skip Simmons
It's the 150th episode of the Truth About Vintage Amps! How did that happen? Thanks, as always, for being a part of the world's finest call-in tube amp repair show. Want amp tech Skip Simmons' advice on your DIY guitar amp projects? Join us by sending your voice memo or written questions to ! Include a photo, too. Some of the topics discussed this week: 1:26 The Esparto fireworks storage facility explosion (); salvaging organ pedals 6:22 Jason's life updates: Issue 57; Fretboard Summit (); trail running; watching the 2025 Western States Endurance Run 11:46 Standel...
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Ep. 149: "Have Fun" (Special Guest: Jim Campilongo!)
The Truth About Vintage Amps with Skip Simmons
Support our sponsors: ; ; , and ! Acclaimed guitarist Jim Campilongo joins Skip and Jason to talk about his music and gear journey, vinyl treasures, George Barnes playing "Little Rock Getaway" (), Vance Terry & Jimmy Rivers, Silverface Princeton Reverb love; Celestion G-10 speakers; Laika and the Cosmonauts; and so much more. Plus frozen meatballs! Follow Jim Campilongo: Jim's Lessons: Want amp tech Skip Simmons' advice on your DIY guitar amp projects? Join us by sending your voice memo or written questions to ! Include a photo, too. Hosted by amp tech...
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Ep. 148: "Lining Up"
The Truth About Vintage Amps with Skip Simmons
We're back with episode 148 of the Truth About Vintage Amps: Jason survives a month in Peru; the schematics of acupuncture; speaker break-in; and more! Our sponsors: ; ; , and Topics discussed: :00 Jason goes to Peru, Skip gets the new Fretboard Journal 11:20 What’s on Skip’s Bench: A roasted Tweed Harvard 13:18 Spotted on eBay: Packard Bell teaching tool / working schematic 16:13 A 1952 Champion 600 with a 1952 Telecaster 18:54 Skip doesn’t hang out with Jack White 24:22: Our sponsors: Check out at Emerald City Guitars! 31:33 Barry & The...
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Ep. 147: "Kosher Sound"
The Truth About Vintage Amps with Skip Simmons
Episode 147 of the Truth About Vintage Amps: Jason is headed to Peru, hemp speakers, resistors, modding PAs for harps, Lilly vs Lily at the Fender factory, kosher sound, and more! Fluidics: Our sponsors: Save $20 off Amplified Parts' with the discount code TAVA20! (expires April 30, 2025); ; , and Recorded April 24, 2025. Want amp tech Skip Simmons' advice on your DIY guitar amp projects? Join us by sending your voice memo or written questions to ! Include a photo, too. Hosted by amp tech Skip Simmons and co-hosted/produced by Jason Verlinde of the Fretboard...
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Ep. 146: "Where the Spot Is"
The Truth About Vintage Amps with Skip Simmons
Episode 146 of the Truth About Vintage Amps: Troubled drummers, bulk Gatorade, more typewriter and Rockford Files talk, and a bunch of amp questions. Reminder: Amplified Parts now has ! Thanks, as always, for being a part of the world's finest call-in tube amp repair show. Want amp tech Skip Simmons' advice on your DIY guitar amp projects? Join us by sending your voice memo or written questions to ! Include a photo, too. Some of the topics discussed this week: :43 The Ampeg book (), George Barnes and 'Guitars Galore' 3:43 A 1982 black panel Fender Champ 4:43 A Super Reverb that...
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Ep. 145: "I Have a Swimming Pool"
The Truth About Vintage Amps with Skip Simmons
Episode 145 of the Truth About Vintage Amps: Kahlua brie, replicating Nirvana's In Utero sound, hissy reverb units and more! Thanks, as always, for being a part of the world's finest call-in tube amp repair show. Want amp tech Skip Simmons' advice on your DIY guitar amp projects? Join us by sending your voice memo or written questions to ! Include a photo, too. Some of the topics discussed this week: 1:17 Skip makes even more stuff for John Vanderslice & Tiny Telephone; Skip's take on the MTI Tubes pedal 8:18 Skip's Premier 90-inspired reverb unit 15:20 Our sponsors: ; ...
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Ep. 144: "You've Got to Feed Those Things"
The Truth About Vintage Amps with Skip Simmons
Episode 144 of the Truth About Vintage Amps: Flashing Flukes, reflections on NAMM, variable plate capacitors, hot buttered rum (and popcorn!), and more! Need some help with your tube amps? Be a part of our show by sending your voice memo or written questions to ! Some of the topics discussed this week: 1:13 Jason goes to the NAMM Show, the Dumble relaunch (watch our Instagram video ); Grit Laskin's 'The Stradivari Formula' (); Wood Wire & Volts () 11:49 What's on Skip's bench: A late 1940s Danelectro Vibrovox; Wandre Guitars 20:57 Our sponsors: ; and ! 25:14 A...
info_outlineIt's the 137th episode of the Truth About Vintage Amps podcast, where amp tech Skip Simmons fields your questions on all-things-tube amps! This week, we talk to special guest, Steve Carr of Carr Amplifiers!
Want to be a part of our show? Just email us a question or voice memo to [email protected].
Our sponsors: Emerald City Guitars, Amplified Parts, StewMac, and Grez Guitars.
Don't forget, we have a Patreon page. And come to the 2024 Fretboard Summit.
Some of the topics discussed this time around:
2:22 Steve Carr (Carr Amplifiers) joins us for an enlightening talk about prototyping, speaker cabs, Solen caps, tone controls, and so much more. He even fields a few of your questions!
1:14:17 Big M speaker cabinets
1:16:08 Red Norvo "In a Mist"
1:17:49 Did a rubber tube amp mount just fix my microphonic amp? Easy Brussels sprouts
1:21:45 On the bench: An Epiphone Electar Zephyr
1:23:16 Pre-amps in front of amps that already have pre-amps; the WEM amps used at Live at Pompeii (link); Selmer reverb tanks; was this Philco amp made by Bogen?; pizza stones
1:31:55 Out-of-range potentiometers
1:35:05 Ballast resistors in field coil amps
Plus Hurdy gurdys and more.