A 70's ODS

[boldaslove6789]

I can't even imagine being a "small guy" buisiness owner/Builder in the 80's offering to make a product only on a face to face basis,you got to admit HAD was very bold to not give in.He stood his ground and more so now.
He definitely deserves alot of respect and credit for being an innovator at the time.The 80's were confusing for alot of people,whether is was Pop Culture,Fasion,Music,Art.No wonder they don't know what to call this decade we are in now,its massive culture shock.HAD had to cature to a lot of musician's needs in those days. I wonder who will be the next great innovative builder of the future.

Max and talbany you guys just put alot in perspective for me,Seriously Thank you

You can't search for tone....You must invent it.

[Max]

Max

As a manufacturer your always pull and tug with what it is you want to do.... and what you have to do to stay in business and sell amps..

I would have to think that Dumble had to contend with the ever changing times/ sound's put before him before he became known as the brand we relate to today.. In dealing or talking about most of the very early designs as it relates.. Most sucessfull builders start off with the vision of a completely new sound not really interested in copying or wanting to sound like say your Fender Marshall whatever.. They approach it from a totally different mind setl.. This is where I said the first 25 are literally prototypes..or as you state custom builds for these players.
However and this is a big however building customs for high profile players and the general public is 2 TOTALLY different animals.. Most of the pro's are more open to experimental designs and welcome the uniqueness.. However the general public is not so kind to radical departures from the norm.. If it doesnt feel like a fender or Marshall what ever they shy away never really interested in exploring the possibilities.. Play 3 chords Nah don't like it!!.. I am sure he heard quite a bit of that from even the pro players.. Take Lowell George saying it's a Fender built right or Stevie saying it's an overgrown Fender.. This has got to erk ya!!!LOL.
.This is most likely why at some point he started asking for auditions before he build one for you...Ridiculous as it sounds..It all makes sense to me..You have to figure over time all this really wears on you.... you begin to give in and start to make the full circle back to the comfort factor of the benchmark amps everyone grew up playing..All these builders today have the luxury of building off a brand name or sound whether that sound actually exists or is just a figment of someone wanting to sound like a Bla Bla, is really irrelevant sense we know only they can sound like that..All you have to say is the word Dumble and they can't wait to play it... I am not saying some here don't sound great playing through them I am talking about those that want to sound like tha.....t it's in the guitar players chip..If you don't believe me try marketing an amp advertised as a totally new design...Sorry for the rant here but my point is Dumble didn't have that luxury.. I'll bet he had to make compromises along the way..Whether it's going to the 34's HRM / Bulesmaster Marshall, as I think these were design changes to cut build times minimize the tweaking and wine factor as well as keep up with the sound of the times vs the earlier designs when all that other stuff didn't exist.. The natural evolution of a business..

Tony

I agree with most you say. In regard of his special way to build up a business it's interesting to study the different roads he and Randy Smith took from a similar starting point.

I doubt btw that he made many compromises. That's the reason for the "love and hate" relation with some of his customers. He insists to do the things precisely in the way he wants to do them. If you read his contracts you know that here you'll deal with a "just take it, or leave it" kind of guy.

From what I hear he still has fun building his special "prototype" amps. From what I've been told he restores and pimps Fender amps, building "special" amps like one, that to the ears of some I know, is the best "Marshall" sound ever, things like the "Angel's Breath", other small recording stuff etc..

No, I don't think things changed a lot in his shop since he started in the sixties. If he makes compromises, they will be mostly due to his health and age. But I think, you would still have a hard time to persuade him with whatever amounts of money to do things he does not like to do. To do things "the hard way" - for himself and for his customers - that is the way he had chosen for himself from the beginning, and, after all I know, never left until now.

Happy xmas Alexander, and a wonderful 2010 and many more years to come!

Max

[talbany]

I agree with most you say. In regard of his special way to build up a business it's interesting to study the different roads he and Randy Smith took from a similar starting point

.

Talk about the 2 extremes!!!


Tony

[Max]

I agree with most you say. In regard of his special way to build up a business it's interesting to study the different roads he and Randy Smith took from a similar starting point

.

Talk about the 2 extremes!!!


Tony

Yeah, that's right. Couldn't be more extreme.

Have a great time, Tony, always like to read your posts!

Max

[talbany]

Have a great time, Tony, always like to read your posts!

Same here Bro!!!... Merry Christmas


Tony

[butwhatif]

At that point he was more than likely still searching for trademark tone

Very important point.

It is my strong believe that Alexander did never have in mind to create something like a "Dumble" tone. What he had in mind is to create a "David Lindley tone", a "Larry Carlton tone", a "Steve Farris tone", a "SRV-tone", a "Robben Ford tone" and so on and on.

It is u s who took the Larry Carlton or Robben Ford sound and declared this to be "the Dumble tone". Complete nonsense btw, if you consider, that Larry Carlton mostly does not even play with "Overdrive" engaged.

I spoke about this at length with Jimmy D'Aquisto, who was always called a "Jazz-Guitar builder". He did not think this about himself but thought of himself just as a "guitar-builder" that, as being in the same shop for the first time as his teacher, got mostly Jazz-guitarists as clients, something he was not that happy about btw.

Cheers

Max

Jimmy was a great guy, very humble man. I still have a guitar he built for me, and will never forget the welcome he gave us when visiting his shop.

[Max]

Jimmy was a great guy, very humble man. I still have a guitar he built for me, and will never forget the welcome he gave us when visiting his shop.

If you find the time, please post a pic of your guitar. Would be great fun for me.

Cheers

Max

[67plexi]

Thank you Tony, I had the parts in stock. I will give this a try.
excellent job on the layout. AAA+++.

Steve.

[talbany]

Steve

Thanks..Glad it helped.. Keep me posted on the build!!

I also did one more revision now Ver 3.6.. Corrected the 33K OD entrance resistor...

Gathering info on D-Lator my next layout...

Tony

[67plexi]

Tony. Got it on the 33k. MY 68 super lead 100 marshall has the 33k with a 540pf. Just finished the fet board, I have to put end caps on the chassis
now.

Best regards, Steve.

[Structo]

Steve, not sure if you are making an exact layout to the #40 but you can easily add the preamp out and power amp in jacks, instead of only the preamp out.
Then you could either build a Dumbleator or build it internally in your amp.
Just takes one more tube if you have the room.
Then you just take power from the screen node to power it.

[67plexi]

Tom, Nice job on your build of a Dumbleator.
Great way to start out the new year !!!.
I still need a 100 watt chassis for the #124 build.
I think I will keep it simple on the #40 not to much room to play with.

Take care, Steve.

[heisthl]

At that point he was more than likely still searching for trademark tone

Very important point.

It is my strong believe that Alexander did never have in mind to create something like a "Dumble" tone. What he had in mind is to create a "David Lindley tone", a "Larry Carlton tone", a "Steve Farris tone", a "SRV-tone", a "Robben Ford tone" and so on and on.
Max

I know it's all speculation but the rich solo tone had to be in his head first and as near as he could get to it in a build. Once he achieved it (or got close anyway) it attracted the attention of like minded guitarists for whom he could tweak that tone for the individual players. IMHO it is unrealistic to think a builder creates a tone for a player, instead a player influences tweaks to the builders tone. The chicken did come before the egg.

[Max]

At that point he was more than likely still searching for trademark tone

Very important point.

It is my strong believe that Alexander did never have in mind to create something like a "Dumble" tone. What he had in mind is to create a "David Lindley tone", a "Larry Carlton tone", a "Steve Farris tone", a "SRV-tone", a "Robben Ford tone" and so on and on.
Max

I know it's all speculation but the rich solo tone had to be in his head first and as near as he could get to it in a build. Once he achieved it (or got close anyway) it attracted the attention of like minded guitarists for whom he could tweak that tone for the individual players. IMHO it is unrealistic to think a builder creates a tone for a player, instead a player influences tweaks to the builders tone. The chicken did come before the egg.

In all published interviews he always said, that what he started with to create something to his own liking have been the Winterlands and the Dumblelands for guitar.

But because many guitar players thought of the Dumblelands as being "too silky clean", he came up with the ODS concept (and the SSS as being more "glassy" and aggressive in a way then "silky"). As far as I remember now, he once told in regard of the ODS, that Lindley asked him to built an amp that had the "mean" tone of a Tweed Deluxe on full throttle but with more control and stability.

And if you listen to one of these first OD prototypes and the first generation ODS (smaller, strave switch etc.), I think you can indeed hear a likeness to a Tweed Deluxe driven hard. And these very early 50 Watt amps into a Dumble 2x12 JBL, Altec or EV cabinet really blow a 50W and even an early seventies 100W Marshall stack out of every window if they are set up right.

A wonderful year 2010 to all here

Max

[butwhatif]

I've owned a 57 tw dlx for years, and it is the benchmark that i compare all my builds to, at least in the studio. My dlx has cut more trax than all the others together. The ods is sorta in the same ballpark though, soundwise and might someday catch up--