Nolatone Ampworks

amps
bridge pickup is bright, clear and clean with none of the trashy
overtones that are often produced by overwound or ‘hot’ bridge
pickups. And again, adding the bridge tone control makes all
the difference in moving from a trebly ‘50s traditional, Eldon
Shamblin vibe to a heavier tone suitable for hard rockin.’
We have been playing the Roadworn Strat now for almost two
weeks, yet it feels as if we have been playing it for years – as
if it had been made for us, perfect in all the ways that so many
other Stratocasters had fallen short of what we had wished
for, and yes, we have been pondering why… Mostly, it’s the
neck, although the entire guitar seems to fit us like a custommade suit. For whatever reason, the vintage 7.5” fingerboard
radius on a Fender makes all the difference, where a 9.5”
radius feels awkward and wrong. The slight curve to the fretboard makes playing seem effortless and easy. The neck shape
on the Roadworn is equally righteous – an elegantly conceived moderate V that is neither too thick or thin at 13/16.”
Just perfect. No less important is the way the urethane lacquer
has been sanded to a smooth matte finish that allows your
hand and finger tips to glide along the
neck with no fight whatsoever. The
taller frets are essential, too. String
bends are easy with just a little added
tension from the curved fretboard,
chords seem easier to hold and sustain,
and playing this guitar really does
feel completely effortless, natural and
familiar. The tremolo is also uncannily
precise, yet forgiving. It seemed as if
we nailed the initial setup almost too
easily, setting the trem just right (with
a peek at our picture of Jeff Beck’s trem height), and we’ve
been using the tremolo as a beautiful effect now where in
the past we left the trem arm in a drawer. And the Roadworn
comes right back to pitch every time. Bizarre, almost. In every
respect, this Stratocaster simply feels and sounds right with
absolutely no ‘what ifs” or shortcomings. If not for the tiny
Made in Mexico decal on the back of the
Roadworn headstock,
you couldn’t tell the
difference between it
and a $3800 Custom
Shop relic. What? You
aren’t swallowing that? Consider this – all those classic ‘50s
Strats and Teles were largely made by Mexicans, too, like the
famous ‘TG’ neck carver Tadeo Gomez and ‘XA’, Xavier Armente… It’s about time we found a Stratocaster like this, and
our advice to you? Set your sights on a Roadworn Stratocaster
from 2013-14, and when you find it… Jump Sturdy.TQ
Nolatone Ampworks
We first featured Paul
Sander’s Nolatone Wicked
Garden in the November
2012 issue of TQR, and
when Paul told us about
his new line of Road
Hoggs, we were all in.
Inspired to some extent
by the classic tone of a
Marshall plexi, Sanders
has developed four new
variations of the Road
Hogg featured here. If a
new amplifier is in your future, we suggest you give Nolatone
a serious look. Like a lot of us, Paul struggled to find an amp
with adequate clean headroom that could still deliver overdriven tones without driving the patrons out of his pub. His
amps are entirely unique, supremely well-built, exceptionally
toneful and simply a blast to play. Our reviews follow Paul’s
interview. Enjoy…
TQR:
I started in electronics when I joined the US Navy Advance
Electronics Field back in 1983. That’s where I was trained in
wiring and soldering as well. I’ve owned and loved a whole
range of classic and boutique amps over the years and ultimately decided to design an amp that fit the specific needs of
the pub I owned and played music in at the time – Lefty’s Pub
in Buford, Georgia. I needed enough clean headroom to play
funk and Johnny Cash, but I also wanted to be able to push the
amp to get crunchy for more rocking tunes but without killing
the people with overwhelming volume levels. I tried literally
dozens of different amps in the 15-40 watt range trying to
find that balance and never could. They were either not clean
enough, or too loud when pushed. So, the first Nolatone was
born. I quit buying so many amps at that time as well, but I
never stopped wanting them, so when I get an idea, I have a
bad habit of creating a new design or a variation of an existing
one to fulfill that idea. So 6 years later, here I am with a whole
line of models which are the result of my perpetual GAS. I
think I spent less money on amps when I just bought them!
TQR:
www.fender.com
www.sliderspickups.com
Let’s start by reminding our readers of your background in electronics, and how, why, and when
you were inspired to begin designing and building
amplifiers.
Can you briefly describe the different models you
build and the major differences among them in
terms of design and sound?
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TONEQUEST REPORT V.15 N.7 May 2014
9
amps
I have a pretty
diverse range
of models these
days, in no particular order:
added versatility. What is it about the original plexi
design that made them sound so unique in your
opinion, and to what extent are those features in
terms of design and component choices evident in
your amps?
The Chimey
Limey 15 and
30 are based on
Chimey Limey a 1960 AC15/
AC30. This is pre-top boost, which to me is the more pure and
simple Vox circuit which delivers wonderful sweetness, bloom,
and chime.
I always knew Plexis were wonderful, but I learned that lesson
in extra depth while developing
the Road Hogg. Initially the
Road Hogg was intended to
be based on the Rotten Johnny
preamp because the Rotten
Johnny has such great versatility
due to the way the tone shaping
is configured (it’s not a typical
tone stack like a Marshall or a
Fender uses). The initial goal
was for Nicky Moroch who
needed his Road Hogg 50 to be loud enough in a 1x12 combo
to be heard on stage without monitors or in-ears, and he plays
on some damned loud stages.
The Wicked Garden is our channel
switcher. The clean
channel uses the
same tone stack as
an AC30 top boost,
and the overdrive
channel is my
Wicked Garden
own design which
was tonally bench-marked to an amazing sounding vintage
Marshall Silver Jubilee Dave from SoundPure in Durham, NC
loaned me. The circuit is in no way a clone, totally different
approach to the circuitry, but the type of preamp distortion is
in the same ball park.
Rotten Johnny is a 28 lb. grab and go 15 watt amp with amazing versatility while staying very simple at the same time. It
has nice clean headroom for a smallish amp, too (and getting
cleaner in the next generation). Wicked Johnny is the same
package as Rotten Johnny, but uses the overdrive channel of
the Wicked Garden. For you guys who want rock & roll gain
from the preamp, bring out the 28 lb. Wicked Johnny, turn it
up and leave that 100 watt half stack that you can’t turn up
past 1 at home.
The Junebug 2 is a 5 watt (single ended) “Super Princeton”.
Tango Wreck is coming soon – the next generation of the
22 Tango (my first design). My current plan is to make a
Nolatone-ized Trainwreck Express type amp as a tribute to
the late Ken Fischer, but who knows, it could end up being a
Fender type amp with reverb. We’ll see where the winds take
me on that one.
Road Hogg/Road Hogg Lite are Plexi based with extra tricks.
TQR:
Reading the commentary on your web site, you do
not hesitate to point to the classic Marshall plexi
amps as having inspired some of the greatest rock
music in history as well as inspiring your work as
a designer, with a few twists and enhancements for
I was comparing the Road Hogg prototype to my 50 watt
Plexi clone which represents an example of an amp that indeed would deliver the required volume levels. I noticed that
the Road Hogg prototype just didn’t have that “smack you in
the forehead” punch the Plexi clone did. I tore what little hair
I have out for weeks trying to figure out where I was losing
that in the circuit that originated with the Rotten Johnny.
Finally I
decided to
wire up a
Plexi tone
stack in the
prototype,
and BAM,
there it was!
I started
looking at
the wave forms on my tone stack calculator tool and realized
the way the filter network used in the Plexi tone stack shapes
the frequencies, all the energy is right there where it’s needed
for that punch. Sure, the output section, power supply, etc. are
all part of it, but all things equal between the original Road
Hogg prototype and the Plexi clone, that tone stack was the
difference, so I proceeded with the design based on that at the
core, and then added my own tweaks to improve versatility.
TQR:
Focusing on the Road Hogg amps that you have
provided for review, please describe the specific
features and differences among the variations you
provided.
-continued-
10
TONEQUEST REPORT V.15 N.7 May 2014
amps
The amps provided are the Road Hogg 50, 37, 32, and Road
Hogg Lite. The idea is to provide an interesting review of how
differences in bias, filtering and voltage can effect the tone.
The Road Hogg 50 uses a traditional 50 watt Plexi configuration with fixed bias el34s, traditional filtering, etc. It is very
loud, punchy, and bold.
The
Road
Hogg 37
and 32
are an
interesting comparison.
They
both use
identical output transformer and power tubes: KT66’s into a Radio
Spares JTM45 style OT, which is not quite as large as the 50
watt Plexi style OT used in the Road Hogg 50. Both of these
also use the original filtering used in the early JTM45, which
is considerably smaller filter cap values than the RH50 uses.
These are key to extra juicy harmonics and cozy sag found in
the 37 and 32.
The difference between the 37 and the 32 is, the 37 is fixed
bias with about 420vdc B+, and the 32 is cathode biased with
about 380vdc B+. Those two details alone make the 32 a completely different experience from the 37, with all other things
identical. The 32 with the lower B+ and cathode bias runs
much closer to Class A and sounds astonishingly Vox-like in
comparison to the juicy classic old-school harmonics dripping
from the 37. Both drip with harmonics, but I think of the 37 as
being more “crunchy” and the 32 as being more “chimey” if
that makes any sense.
The Road
Hogg Lite
uses a pair of
6V6’s cathode biased
for about 20
watts. I use
about 420v
B+ to give it
good clean
headroom. It’s a smaller transformer set on a smaller chassis
to save weight and cost. In the standard 1x12 combo you have
an amp that can hang with most drummers in a very portable
35lb package. GREAT for gigging small to medium sized
clubs. The preamp is identical to the other Hoggs, just the controls are set differently to fit on the smaller chassis. Note that
a new head box is coming soon for the small chassis amps – a
smaller version of the TV front head box used on the Road
Hogg amps.
TQR:
We always like to consider the true intention of
an amp’s design... What did the builder wish to
accomplish, and for what type of player and music?
Is this a performance amp built for big stages, or is
it intended to be used at home by players who typically want distortion at low volume levels? Is the
amp intended to produce usable clean headroom
at high volume levels, or is it designed for players
who rely primarily on overdriven tones and distortion? In other words, what did you want the Road
Hogg to be and how should it be perceived in practical terms?
The Road Hogg was designed with the touring musician in
mind. The idea was to offer enough clean headroom for most
needs, but that is also expressive, dynamic, and inspiring
to play. The Road Hoggs are also designed to be very pedal
friendly. It’s easy to dial in night after night, and great if you
mark your dial positions with tape. However it also allows
enough tonal flexibility to tweak for different rooms (or
moods) if needed.
All that said, any amp is capable of being a living room
amp...it just depends on the level of tolerance of family,
neighbors, and local law enforcement! You don’t have to be a
touring musician to enjoy these Hoggs at home.
TQR:
Please describe the various options that are available with the Road Hogg in regard to circuits,
tubes, head/cabinet and combo configurations.
The Road Hogg line
includes the Road Hogg
and Road Hogg Lite,
offering a range of combinations so most any
player will be able to get
something that will work
for their situation:
The Road Hogg is the
higher end of the line
built on the larger chassis
with higher end appointments. It comes in:
22 watt (fixed bias 6V6s)
32 watt (cathode biased KT66s)
37 watt (fixed bias KT66s)
50 watt (fixed bias EL34s) (6L6’s available on request)
100 watt (available on request)
-continued-
TONEQUEST REPORT V.15 N.7 May 2014
11
amps
Road Hogg Lite is 20 watts with a pair of cathode biased 6V6s
on our small chassis with a smaller output transformer for
lighter weight/lower cost.
Heads: Two styles, TV front or clear glaze panel. Also coming
soon, a new TV front head for the Road Hogg Lite (and other
small chassis models)
Extension cabinets: There are two
styles of cabinets:
Solid pine TV
Front and birch ply
split panel. The
Pine cabinets tend
to offer that more
“swirly” tone due
to the resonance of the pine. The birch ply cabs are a bit more
focused sounding. They all sound great. They are available in
1x12 and 2x12. I am also evaluating 4x12 cabinets and may
be offering those as well soon.
Combos: The same combinations in extension cabinets are
also available as combos. The Road Hogg lite uses a smaller
cabinet as standard but is also available in the larger TV front
cabinet for an upcharge.
Options: Series (unbuffered) FX loop ($50), custom color
($50 per cabinetry piece), premium oversized cabinet (Road
Hogg Lite only) ($100)
TQR:
What is the wait time for delivery once and amp
has been ordered?
Wait time depends on current backlog. Generally it is 4-6
weeks, but I always quote the current lead time when the order
is placed.
TQR: What’s ahead, Paul?
What do you want to accomplish long term?
I keep Nolatone small to assure
I can keep my finger on quality
and be responsive to customers. I was at a crossroads before
when I was deciding whether
to grow or not and I realized in
order to grow I would have to
do things I didn’t want to do.
I don’t want this to become a
“job”. Nolatone is fueled by
passion. I get great pleasure
from bringing my ideas to life
and knowing people make music with instruments I created.
For long term viability, I have set up Nolatone to be immune
to economic conditions. This assures I can keep doing this
without pressure of shipping any set number of amps to survive. Ultimately I will employ my kids to the extent they are
interested in being involved, and then down the road when
I have a 20 year track record, maybe they will take it to the
next level. But in the meantime I will solder every joint, tug
on every wire to assure it’s solid, and every amp I build will
be the best one yet, and I will stand behind them all.
Though some great players are playing Nolatone amps, I
would get a real kick out of having still more musicians I
admire playing Nolatone. I realize that is tough when flying
under the radar like I do and I don’t give amps away. But
I would love to work with guys like Keith Urban (Keith,
I’ll also design a custom t-shirt for ya!) Joe Walsh, Dave,
Chris, and Pat from the Foo Fighters, Dean DeLeo from
STP, just to name a few who inspire me. I will be here
when they are ready!
Road Hoggs
We received
four variations of the
Road Hogg
for review,
each slightly
different,
but with
the same
basic features and controls. The Road Hogg platform consists
of a Master Volume control, Treble, Midrange and Bass, a
toggled Plexi Boost switch, Volume with pull boost, a Bright
Blend control and a toggled Bright/Normal switch. Dual
speaker jacks are located on the back panel with convenient
bias test points and a bias pot. We have seen a lot of booteek
amps inside and out, and the quality of Paul Sander’s work is
second to none. We can also tell you that he is very hands-on,
personally building every amp, and from what we have heard
from some of you, he genuinely values his clients and is a joy
to deal with.
All of the Road Hoggs are built with big Mercury Magnetics transformers to Sander’s specs. The Road Hogg 50 runs
on dual EL34s, the 37 and 32 use two big KT66s. The Road
Hogg Lite combo uses 6V6s (or EL34s) but trust us, it sounds
bigger…
Road Hogg 50
The 50 delivers those famously thick EL34 tones and plenty
of power and volume when you need it, but the Master
-continued-
12
TONEQUEST REPORT V.15 N.7 May 2014
amps
Volume also
does a nice
job of holding
the volume
down while
maintaining
the character
of the amp
opened up.
No fizzy,
weeny tones here… Paul provided a Road Hogg 2x12 open
back cabinet loaded with two excellent Warehouse 30 watt
Reaper speakers that we ran with all three heads. The Reaper
is described as a drop-in replacement for the Celestion
G12H30, and you can expect deep low end, full mids and
pleasing treble that is a bit rolled off. The Treble, Bass and
Mid Controls on the Road Hogg 50 display an even taper and
while you can use them effectively to tweak EQ with different
guitars, the essence of this amp is undeniably British. The
Plexi Boost toggle pushes mids slightly while adding smooth
sustain in the style of a cranked Plexi, but again, you don’t
have to crank your Road Hogg too loud to get those tones
unless you want to. The Volume with Pull Boost impressed us
as a Depth control,
adding low end and
a bigger overall
tone. Combined
with the Plexi Boost
you get a massive
tone with lots of
rich overdriven
sustain. The Bright
Blend is a very cool
tool that enables you to gradually increase brightness like a
bright switch, but with a knob on it, eh? The Bright/Normal
toggle acts like a normal bright switch – especially useful with
heavier humbuckers. Just consider the Road Hogg 50 to be
a solid EL34 rock amp with decent headroom and beautiful,
singing sustain with fat upper mid emphasis in the style of a
vintage Marshall – just more versatile.
Road Hogg 37
Equipped with KT66s, the Road Hogg 37 shares the same
features
and controls with
the other
amps, but
the fixed
bias KT66
configuration
provides
plenty of almost clean headroom with single coils. Compared
to the EL34 50 and cathode-biased 32, the 37 sounds and
responds dynamically more like a big 6L6 amp, with an imposing voice that is clear and singing. The clean tones aren’t
quite as pristine as a Fender, but our Strat and Telecaster
sounded really good with the amp set more or less clean,
lending just enough of a subtle edge for truly great rhythm
tones. Like the 50, this amp can growl, but none of the Road
Hoggs sound harsh and gritty. The distortion and sustain
are consistently smooth and rich. Our goldtop with vintage
Gibson humbuckers lights up all of these amps with much
more intense distortion than the single coils at comparable
settings. You probably won’t need an overdrive pedal with
humbuckers, but for gonzo Jimi tones with a Strat you might
need to add a boost or overdrive pedal to the mix. The Road
Hoggs aren’t extreme gain monsters, but neither were the
Marshall plexi amps. Among all the Road Hoggs we actually
liked the cleaner tones of the 37 with our Strat and Tele best.
Both sounded big, clean and Fendery, with the perfect hint of
loose breakup.
Road Hogg 32
Paul was correct when he
described this
amp as having
more chime
in the style of
a Vox AC30.
Compared to
the other amps
the 32 definitely displays more complex harmonic textures in
the upper mid and treble frequencies with lots of chime and
treble shimmer. It’s a great amp for any guitar with single
coil pickups, but it also sounds just as good with our Les
Paul – rich, thick and perhaps more cutting and penetrating
depending on how you set the Bright Blend and tone controls.
The Road Hogg 32 just seems to have more sparkle in it, yet
you can still shape EQ, sustain and distortion using the tone
controls, Plexi boost and Volume pull/boost. If the 32 isn’t
quite as loud as the 37 we couldn’t tell, but it does seem to be
a little more finessed in the style of an AC30, without sounding as compressed, stiff and boxy.
Road Hogg Lite
Lite? Not really.
This is the 35 lb.
20 watt combo
amp that Marshall
shoulda woulda
coulda built…
Aside from power
and volume, the
little Road Hogg
has absolutely noth-continued-
TONEQUEST REPORT V.15 N.7 May 2014
13
effects
ing in common with a Deluxe Reverb or any other 20 watt
amp we can recall, because it is basically a smaller version
of the big Road Hoggs. For those of you who prefer small
combos that are easy to carry and don’t take up much space,
this is a true performance amp with a big, big voice disguised
as a small combo. How cool is that? No reverb, no tremolo,
just tone, and lots of it. Our review model came loaded with
a 25 watt Warehouse Green Beret, and of course you get the
meaning of the word play… The $69 Paducah, Kentucky
version of the vaunted
Celestion Greenback
is perfect for the little
Road Hogg, rich in
mid tones, dynamic,
loaded with character,
and it seems to enjoy
being abused. Despite
its size, you’ll find
that this version of the Road Hogg has plenty of headroom
in reserve, and if you want more power it can be ordered
with EL34s. Paul Sanders wisely chose a pine cabinet for his
combo – lighter in weight and less stiff sounding than birchply, and you can hear the difference. This is without a doubt
the best pure 1x12 rock combo we have ever heard short of a
Dumble we cranked at the Dallas Guitar Show years ago, and
all the Road Hogg standard enhancements make it even more
versatile and desirable.
We like all four Road Hoggs provided for review a lot, and
choosing a favorite really comes down to your personal needs
and taste. If you have always craved a big 50 watt Marshall
rig the EL34 Road Hogg 50 embodies all of that and more.
The 37 has more of a Marshall tone equipped with 6550
tubes – not as
middy as the
50, although
you can make
it so with the
tone controls
and Plexi boost
switch. Let’s
just say that the soundstage of the 37 is a little wider… The
Road Hogg 32 beautifully captures the enhanced harmonic
detail and chimey sustain of a Vox design without the inherent
limitations, and this is an amp that will leave the field wide
open for possible speaker combinations, perhaps mixing a
bright Alnico with a heavier ceramic magnet speaker. The
Road Hogg Lite, or little Road Hogg as we like to call it is, as
we said, the ultimate 1x12 rock combo. Short of death metal,
there isn’t much you can’t do with it. Nolatone is right here in
Atlanta, so hit the web site, check out all the available options
and Quest forth, ya’ll…TQ
www.nolatone.com, 404-290-9140
14
Distortion & Overdrive
SRV’s Fuzzface
How many ways
can you create an
overdriven or distorted guitar signal? A candid interview with Brian
Wampler, founder
of Wampler Pedals
sheds some light
on what is really
going on inside
overdrive and distortion effects.
There is no doubt that distortion and overdrive pedals are the
most popular of all guitar effects ever created. The number
of pedals produced since the ‘70s is mind numbing, and more
new distortion and overdrive effects are introduced each year
than any other
product related to
the electric guitar.
No matter how
many new pedals
may be launched
this year, you can
be sure that more
will follow, and
guitarists will continue to chase the next “best” overdrive,
distortion or clean boost pedal. In this regard, competition to
identify and acquire the latest and “best” new effect creates
a constantly moving target in which last year’s phenomenal
new pedal is quickly eclipsed by another, and the quest to
keep pace in the race to the top can become time consuming
and expensive.
While we can’t realistically point to a single pedal with an
ironclad guarantee that it will rock your world, we do know
that none of us can ever hope to experience every distortion
or overdrive effect that has or will be built. You can never
hear them all, so how
can you possibly
know when you may
have finally acquired
“the best?” Does the
search ever end, or is
the quest for the holy
grail among overdrive
and distortion effects
an adventure in myth and fantasy driven by hype, the flavor
of the month on your favorite forum, and a catchy name? In
the interest of truth and in an effort to gently blow some fresh
-continued-
TONEQUEST REPORT V.15 N.7 May 2014