SG Systems amp with built in Maestro phaser

[Cliff Schecht]

I've made the fatal mistake of falling in love with a customers amp. This time it's a SG Systems/CMI guitar amp with a built in Maestro Phaser. TBH the amp itself is nothing special, just sort of a loud clean thing that sounds horrid when distorted. But if you plug into channel two and kick on that phaser...WHOOOAAA NELLLIIEE!!

You start with the slow phaser. You kick it on and a super lush, super cheesy but very lovable slow phaser kicks in. Great for rhythm stuff in many styles. I found myself playing Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson tunes with a big grin.

Then you kick on the medium speed and the unit slowly ramps up to its higher speed much akin to how a Leslie ramps up. You end up with a nice intermediate sound that is great for funk or sharper rhythm stuff ala The Talking Heads or The Hollies (Long Cool Woman In A Black Dress!). Again super cheesy but very fun and usable.

The high speed is a whole nother world. It nails that Leslie/Univibe sound almost too well and I found myself picking away at whatever Clapton/Winwood tunes I could remember (and of course SRV's Cold Shot).

All in all I am in love with the phaser in this amp. I would own one of these heavy as shit units just for *that* sound, at least long enough for me to reverse engineer the good bit!

Did I mention that these amps are lookers? If you are into ovens that is..
[IMG683]http://i255.photobucket.com/albums/hh12 ... G410_2.jpg[/img]

[myfoot]

To bad you're so far away. I have one with a 15 inch altec speaker that's just sitting here since my son moved to Chicago ( and I've been building amps for him )

Looks just like that except for the 1 speaker instead of 4. 2 8417 output tubes and 1 12AX7 for the reverb. This was his college amp and the outside looks like it. Mine has the footswitch as well.

Not sure what it weighs but it's HEAVY!

[billyz]

I always liked the look of those amps, guess it is the BIG knobs up front.

[Reeltarded]

Looks like it would fit right in at the Who's Next sessions next to the synth rig.

[crbowman]

Friend of mine had the 2X12 version.
We used to call it 'the stove'.
Sounded pretty good though.

[tictac]

That amp is the Doobie Bros. "China Grove" in a Box!

The first electric guitar I ever played was a Gibson "Trini Lopez" into one of those SG amps. That phase shifter was totally addictive! What a blaster we had...

The "Waveform" control won't give you the Mesa Boogie tone but it does have some usable rythm sounds in there. Also like the "Notch Filter" for dialing in a little raunchy treble....

Good memories....

[vibratoking]

Cliff - a phaser is a double edged sword isn't it? It can be an enjoyable sound...for a while. Many guys have drunk from the phaser well. EVH and Albert King come to mind. I drank from it and I am now a recovering phaser user. It's the kind of sound that is alluring and then all of the sudden it is passe and turns obnoxious. I wouldn't fall too hard for it...but you'll soon get over it either way. A guitarist in one of the bands I play in uses one. Man do I hate it when he kicks that thing on. And his overused delay, chorus, wah...Now that I think of it, maybe I should quit that band. Thanks for helping me out there.

Billy - if I were you, I would have said that my girlfriend likes my BIG knob.

[NickC]

^^^ I don't think it's possible to "overuse" delay. I nearly always use at least two on the pedal-board. I don't use a chorus pedal though. With enough delay pedals going, you don't need chorus.

The Keeley phaser is cool.

[dano-rator]

^^^ I don't think it's possible to "overuse" delay. I nearly always use at least two on the pedal-board. I don't use a chorus pedal though. With enough delay pedals going, you don't need chorus.

The Keeley phaser is cool.

If you stack enough time based effects, you barely have to play at all. That is my trick for when I have to drop a deuce in the middle of a set.

Dan

[myfoot]

I found the schem I had if anyone's interested here's the links:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v602/ ... 0G3of3.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v602/ ... 0g2of3.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v602/ ... 0G1of3.jpg