Abstract :
In an age when the majority of music released has been recorded, mixed, processed, distributed and consumed almost entirely in the digital domain, why is it that, when it comes to amplifiers, so many guitarists are obsessed with the primitive some engineers would say obsolete technology of the 1950s and 60s? Tag boards, point-to-point hand-wired circuits, valves of all shapes and sizes, mustard capacitors, retro cloth and tolex coverings: these are the key elements of design that quicken the pulse of the vintage-amp enthusiast. For the discerning guitarist, a hand-wired valve-powered low-wattage amp represents the pinnacle of sound, offering an almost zen-like simplicity and purity in its circuitry design and signal flow. Like retro-winged Q moths to a valve-powered flame, g guitarist of every stripe continue 3 to be drawn to the old ways. How is it that this desire persists today? Why, in the 21st century, are major manufacturers still laboriously handwiring valve amps, using 50-year-old circuit designs?
