This piece of gear is so new, it’s not even in production yet, but I just had to share the news!
A few months ago, I was watching a video on YouTube about the Faustine Amps VT-58 amp, which is based on the 5E8A “Low Power Twin” circuit. Very nice, compact amp. But that’s not the story. Faustine is just about to debut a standalone version of their built-in attenuator.
One thing to note about Faustine amps is that all models have a built-in attenuator that gives you from -3dB down to -18dB attenuation. I played at VT-57 at Tone Merchants, which is a 35Watt, 3 X 10 amp – classic, sweet Tweed tone. But it was the built-in attenuator that really sold me on the amp, and actually one of the things that started me thinking about using an attenuator in the first place. As you know, I ended up going with a Dr. Z AirBrake, which has totally served me well, and will continue to do so in the future, but I remember the attenuator working so well on the Faustine, that I was wishing that Faustine had a standalone attenuator.
My wish has been granted.
If you watched the video (and I will present it in its full glory at the end of this entry), the reviewer mentions it being released in early 2009. That prompted me to contact Tim Gregoire, Faustine Amps designer and owner to see if and when it will be released. According to Tim, full production models will be available by the end of this quarter or early next quarter. He’s currently building a set of pre-production models for select clients in the SoCal area, and once he’s done with those, he’ll begin production of generally available models.
So what’s so special with this attenuator? From my personal experience with the built-in one, the attenuator circuit Tim has created is totally transparent – at any level. While I love my Dr. Z, at high attenuation levels, it starts sucking tone, and that’s not good. But with the Faustine, I didn’t detect any tone loss, even when I cranked up the attenuation to its highest setting!
According to Tim, the standalone model will have a wider attenuation range than the built-in attenuator. He shared that it will attenuate within the range of -2dB all the way down to -26dB – that’s conversation-level! Freakin’ awesome! No price yet, it probably won’t be cheap. But sometimes you have to pay for transparency. Once out, the unit will be sold exclusively for a time through Tone Merchants. Stay tuned, as I will hopefully be able to get a unit to review!
Here’s the video of the VT-58. This is a great little low-power amp, with wonderful, vintage Tweed goodness!
Guitar Gear 
Very interesting, I just bought a Weber but haven’t had a chance to test it yet, I’m waiting on some speaker cables!
Interesting indeed. Im surprised to hear your assessment of the Air Brake also (one of the legendary Ken Fisher’s designs). I was looking at purchasing one a few months back. I need to check this one out.
I should qualify that… That muddiness is with the AirBrake in “Bedroom” mode with the variable sweep close to max. It’s a level I almost never play at, unless it’s super-late at night, and I don’t want to wake up the next door neighbors (the garage’s walls are kinda thin). Besides, that muddiness is probably a function of the speaker just not moving that much air at that volume level. But other than that, the AirBrake has served me real well.
I’ve also learned that if I’m going to be working late at night on music, I just switch amps and play either my Fender Champ or my Roland Cube 60, which I can run direct into my computer, and still get a reasonable sound.
crapizer š