ZR4400
Member
Forgive me if this post is a little long, but I wanted to thank Dave in my own way for ending my tone quest. Although Dave probably doesn't remember me, my visit 3 years ago to Rack Systems/Tone Merchant in N. Hollywood was a memorable one for me.
My wife and a I, along with our two boys saved up and planned a trip to Calfornia /LA area to take in as many sites as possible in 7 days. We jammed as much as we could into the trip, which included a 49ers game for my oldest son, a visit to Beverly Hills / Rodeo Drive for my wife, and a drive to Dave's shop for me.
I remember my boys and wife being supportive of my desire to drive to Dave's shop, but I know they were not overly excited to be there. When we arrived, we all got out of the car, and went in. Dave welcomed us and we shook hands.
Dave asked what he could help with, and I explained that I was wondering if I could see some of his modified amps, as I had been a member of Rig-Talk and had heard some his BE and HBE audio clips.
At that point I wasn't expecting to play anything, I was just in awe that I was in his shop and seeing all of of his work.
Dave asked me to come back to his workbench area, and at that point I remember my boys asking their mother if they could go outside and wait.
They knew that it might take awhile, when I had the look of "a kid in a candy store" all over my face.
To make a long story a little shorter, Dave showed me what he was working on & allowed me to play any guitar & amp I wanted. My planned 1/2 hour visit to the shop, quickly went out the door, as I spent over an hour fiddling with amps I could only dream of. I remember telling my wife that this would be my dream job, to work at Dave's shop. I also remember telling her that I was playing $2-3K amps, with a "shit eating" grin on my face.
As my visit came to a close, I asked Dave for a quick picture with him and he obliged. Immediately, as I left the shop I remember feeling a huge desire to someday own a Friedman amp, and yet knowing with limited "fun money" while supporting my family, I may never experience this for many years. However, I was fine with knowing that I would have to wait.
Since that day, I have always been watching and hoping I would come across a "deal" on a Friedman amp that I could afford. I have seen Dave's amps come up for sale on Rig-talk before, but I never could justify the cost of being a "basement guitar player" and owning a real expensive amp.
Last weekend my dream came true. I have always known that Dave modified Jet City 20 amps, and just my luck, a forum member (rrtiludrop) had one for sale that I purchased.
Last night I inspected and fired up the amp. I could see that Dave had installed a choke and upgraded the power and first preamp tube with JJs. The two other tubes were stock. I did not pull the chassis out of the box to inspect, I just fired it up.
In about 10 min. of tweaking the tone knobs, I had the most RIPPING sound coming from my 4x12 cab. that I had not heard since my trip to N. Hollywood 3 years ago.
Before I heard the amp for the first time, I was thinking 20 watts might sound thin and weak. BOY WAS I WRONG.
The clarity and grind of this amp is AMAZING and surprisingly quite loud, but perfect for my basement.
My tone quest is over for now, and I just wanted to share and thank Dave!!
Kirk T.
My wife and a I, along with our two boys saved up and planned a trip to Calfornia /LA area to take in as many sites as possible in 7 days. We jammed as much as we could into the trip, which included a 49ers game for my oldest son, a visit to Beverly Hills / Rodeo Drive for my wife, and a drive to Dave's shop for me.
I remember my boys and wife being supportive of my desire to drive to Dave's shop, but I know they were not overly excited to be there. When we arrived, we all got out of the car, and went in. Dave welcomed us and we shook hands.
Dave asked what he could help with, and I explained that I was wondering if I could see some of his modified amps, as I had been a member of Rig-Talk and had heard some his BE and HBE audio clips.
At that point I wasn't expecting to play anything, I was just in awe that I was in his shop and seeing all of of his work.
Dave asked me to come back to his workbench area, and at that point I remember my boys asking their mother if they could go outside and wait.
They knew that it might take awhile, when I had the look of "a kid in a candy store" all over my face.To make a long story a little shorter, Dave showed me what he was working on & allowed me to play any guitar & amp I wanted. My planned 1/2 hour visit to the shop, quickly went out the door, as I spent over an hour fiddling with amps I could only dream of. I remember telling my wife that this would be my dream job, to work at Dave's shop. I also remember telling her that I was playing $2-3K amps, with a "shit eating" grin on my face.
As my visit came to a close, I asked Dave for a quick picture with him and he obliged. Immediately, as I left the shop I remember feeling a huge desire to someday own a Friedman amp, and yet knowing with limited "fun money" while supporting my family, I may never experience this for many years. However, I was fine with knowing that I would have to wait.
Since that day, I have always been watching and hoping I would come across a "deal" on a Friedman amp that I could afford. I have seen Dave's amps come up for sale on Rig-talk before, but I never could justify the cost of being a "basement guitar player" and owning a real expensive amp.
Last weekend my dream came true. I have always known that Dave modified Jet City 20 amps, and just my luck, a forum member (rrtiludrop) had one for sale that I purchased.
Last night I inspected and fired up the amp. I could see that Dave had installed a choke and upgraded the power and first preamp tube with JJs. The two other tubes were stock. I did not pull the chassis out of the box to inspect, I just fired it up.
In about 10 min. of tweaking the tone knobs, I had the most RIPPING sound coming from my 4x12 cab. that I had not heard since my trip to N. Hollywood 3 years ago.
Before I heard the amp for the first time, I was thinking 20 watts might sound thin and weak. BOY WAS I WRONG.
The clarity and grind of this amp is AMAZING and surprisingly quite loud, but perfect for my basement.
My tone quest is over for now, and I just wanted to share and thank Dave!!
Kirk T.
