ARK Amps Model A-28: The Sound of a Deflowering Yes, I was indeed the first person to play through the A-28: a 2 6v6 monster of an amp with a refreshingly unique functionality. This amp is so new that its head box only exists on paper, though the sketches do look fantastic. For those of you who’ve never laid eyes on an Ark amp, they are works of art. Multiple exotic hardwoods in a variety of vibrant and subdued hues and grains. Patterns, shapes, inlays and cutouts, some soft and round, some hard and angular, others a remarkable blend of both. It’s a vibe that at once echos 30s art deco and 50s/60s sci fi atomic and presents an aesthetic all its own. And the workmanship is flawless—the artistry in the knobs alone will blow you away. So, with a naked chassis sitting before me, looking quite out of place among its stunning brothers, I went to work. Matt and Bill are two delightful individuals. The amp features some unique tone sculpting controls, and they were kind enough to work the knobs for me and walk me through what each did and how they interacted with one another. When I first plugged in, the amp was set for clean, and it was gorgeous. It’s an extremely warm and organic tone, with a full and buttery bottom end, ample mids, and super-smooth highs—made for a broad and even sound that filled the room beautifully. Much like the Red Iron Bronx, notes bloomed and decayed with spectral overtones and a natural reverb. When I had my fill of open chords and fluid melodies, Bill took the amp in a very interesting, and rather wicked, direction. I don’t quite understand how Bill has accomplished this, but there is a knob on the amp that purely overdrives the power tubes. From 1 to 10, it has zero effect on the preamp. Maybe this has been done before, maybe it hasn’t—it doesn’t matter. All I know is that hearing 2 6V6s grinding all on their own is a thing to behold. Gobs of fat, creamy goodness gushed from the speakers, with chunky lows, big broad growling mids, and high end so syrupy sweet it’ll give you a cavity. The clarity and punch were spectacular, and an appropriate measure of compression smoothed it all out without impacting definition and responsiveness. Bill then slowly dialed the preamp into the mix, and that’s where things really got crazy. Harmonic content and overtones swelled into action, bringing the upper mids to life. The top end started to sizzle and sing. More gain and girth and compression came into the mix, smoothing things out further, giving solos a wonderful vocal and violin-like quality with a bit of squishiness under the fingers—it did the sag and surge thing in spades. Even with the preamp and power section working hard, and delivering a sick amount of gain and grind, the amp held together extremely well, preserving dynamics and allowing the subtleties (though I’m hardly a subtle player) of my playing to come through. And at 28 watts, the volume was perfect. Matt and Bill, aside from being stellar guys, are a gifted couple of artisans for the eyes and ears, and this particular offering from them is a masterpiece in both sensory realms. In fact, the amps even feel great to the touch—their incredibly well-conceived side handles, while aesthetically attractive, are an ergonomic joy, allowing for easy transportation with one or both hands (trust me, your wrists will be very happy). I don’t know the exact price point (I’m not sure they do at this point either) but I remember their saying it will probably be in the low 2s. You’d be hard pressed to find another amp that does all this can do at any price. If only every first time were as rewarding…and humility-free. This amp is a Hefeweizen—lush, creamy, lively and distinct, misty in the glass, and sweet sweet sweet on the palate. Recommendation: Ayinger’s Brau Weisse.

Brian Wooten testimonial: "I've been using an Aviator prototype for a few months now. I'm on the road constantly with Trace Adkins. Although Trace is a country artist I am a rock player. When I heard a clip of the Aviator I contacted the company directly to get more info on it and as it turned out we were playing near them and they were nice enough to bring their prototype out for me to hear. I was blown away by it and eventually talked them into letting me take it out on the road to hear it in a real world application for awhile. I've been using an FTR37 for a few years and love that amp. It works perfectly for the Trace gig so so the standard was set very high from the outset. When I heard the Aviator I considered it a high gain amp and wasn't sure it would be able to clean up enough for the few tunes that required that. But after tweaking on it for awhile at the house I was pleasantly surprised at how well it cleaned up. With Trace I plug into the "low gain" input and use pedals with it just like I do when using the FTR37. While the FTR37 is more like a big, fat Fender Deluxe the Aviator is more Vox/Marshall/Trainwreck. More harmonically complex and notes go into feedback more easily. The controls are very interactive and the bright switch and bass boost are very useful. There's also a knob that lets you bypass the tonestack altogether or dial in just as much of it as you want. It's also quite useful. I think this amp is perfect for studio guitarists. I think one of the best sounds on tap is to plug into the "low gain" channel and crank the preamp about halfway and engage the bright switch. Very Bryan Adams/Keith Scott trainwreck tone. No pedals needed! There's plenty of gain in the "low gain" input but if you've got to have more you can plug into the high gain input and you'll have more than you'll ever need. And I play a Tele almost exclusively! I've got the amp at home right now so that I can use it for some recording and just to put it through it's paces since I'm not restricted by Trace's set list. I haven't had a chance to record with it yet because we've been so busy but I hope to have some clips by the end of the year. As far as "boutiques" go I've played Alessandros, Komets, Divided By 13's, Ceriatones, Carol Anns, Exxits, etc. and the Aviator is as good or better than any of them. I can't wait to hear the other models."

I've been using a demo Ark Amp for the last several weeks - it's an Aviator model. It's an amazing amp. Short signal path, presence, treble, mid, bass, master vol, gain. Two inputs. It has a mid boost (that's mostly a tonestack bypass) and a switch on the back that attenuates a small bit of bass signal. Two inputs - the 'normal' (lower) is the one you'd typically plug into. the higher, Matt and Bill have wired on my demo amp as kind of a tube buffered Tube Screamer making use of the normally unused other side of a 12AX7. 2 EL-34's for power tubes. It feels like one of the best Brit amps I've ever heard - has a nice jangly top end (think Vox) and wonderful girth (think Naylor and vintage Marshall). The interaction between the gain and volume is one of the most usable I've ever encountered. It seems to like every guitar I've thrown at it - Tele, Strat, PRS, ES-335, P-90 guitars - all sound great through it. It's not just Brit sounding - it sorta straddles the Brit/ Yank line. Really chewy, thick gain sounds, but you can hear individual strings extremely well - it doesn't 'wash out' or give up. Very responsive. I'd describe it as a medium gain platform. I'm playing it through a Naylor 4x10 cab - the amp loves the cab. The interaction between the master vol and gain on the Ark amp is really something. A great master vol doesn't just change the volume, it should let the player also achieve the same feel at different volumes. The Ark's master vol is one of the best I've ever tried for this - you can go to a lot of places by turning just those two knobs. The tone controls operate in a narrrow range than most, but it's never a problem to get a great tone. The amp sounds very open, and has wonderful dynamic response. Huge iron in this one - heavy, and it doesn't bat an eye no matter how hard you push it. Major kudos to Bill and Matt for designing a simple amp with HUGE tone. Oh, it cleans up great with the guitar's volume knob too. Ask me questions about it - I'll try to give smart answers (GRIN). Thanks, Dana O.

"Brian (Wooten) played this amp at my house a couple days ago. I must say, I'm really impressed. The amp does just about everything, killer lead tones to that spankin Tele thing. Cleans up nicely when rolling off the volume at the guitar like my wreck. Best Marshall/Fender spectrum tone wise amp I've played in a while. Reminds me of my favorite (popular amp) but with better lead tones/distortion. No pedal required. -Nashville guitarist

I had a chance to try Bill and Matt's Ark amplifier during his visit to Nashville last Friday and it was fantastic!   It runs two EL34’s and while it runs Class AB, it has a harmonic richness that I’ve heard in many Class A amps. It features Bass, Mid, Treble, Presence, Volume, and Master controls as well as a blend pot which allows the tone stack to be dialed in or out of the circuit (a very cool feature similar to the “Raw” control on Allen amps). There were also two switches (Low Boost and Hi cut I believe) as well. I was curious if the master was defeatable, but it turned out to be a moot point as the Master is honestly one of the best I’ve ever heard! It sounded full-bodied at pretty much any setting.   Many amps claim to be able to do anything from clean to scream, but this one actually delivers. We were able to dial up tones reminiscent of Vox, Fender, Marshall, etc. with a few changes of the controls, and they all sounded good to my ears. It preformed great as a pedal base as well. A lot of amps I have tried will either sound great on their own, but the front end will compress when you put a pedal in front, or they will take pedals well but sound uninspiring on their own. I currently use a Groove Tubes Soul-O 45 as my pedal amp and I felt that this amp could hang with it.   Another surprise was the 2x12 cabinet. That is seriously one of the best cabs I have ever heard. It is front ported and provides tremendous thump and low end for a 2x12, yet didn’t get boomy. It felt like the push you get from a 4x12. Interestingly enough, we hooked up an expensive semi-open back 4x12 to the amp and there was no comparison. The 4x12 sounded anemic next to the Ark cab. Very impressive!   If I had to determine a downside, it would be the materials. Bill and Matt use amazing woods for their head and speaker cabinets and its some of the most beautiful work I’ve seen. Therein lies the problem…it’s a piece of art. I would be a little worried gigging with it regularly and I think I would be heartbroken to see the cabinets damaged. Maybe I would be more comfortable lugging a model similar to Gordon Kennedy's (The GK59).   Overall, I was extremely impressed with this amp. It was one of the best I have tried. Bill and Matt are two wonderful guys and made the experience very enjoyable. Thanks, guys. It was incredible talking and playing with Phil as well. He has been an inspiration for me for a long time. He is a true artist and a gentleman. I would say I enjoyed jamming with him, but I felt like a ham playing next to him. By the way, Bill is an excellent player. He was throwing down Phil’s songs and solos and Phil would double or harmonize them…I was impressed. It was a wonderful experience and I made three new friends in the process. Not bad for a Friday afternoon. Josh www.myspace.com/bobotwt

This TGP'er(The Gear Page)loved your amp too!!!! Sensational "violin" tone!! Way to go Bill! _________________ Scott Lerner

....I'd say the three top amps at the '07 NY Amp show were the ARK, the Fargen Jim Weider and the Two-Rock Jet with a lot of amps in the next seriously good category (Germino, 65 Amps, Rivera, Komet). There were about 55 vendors at this show. Mostly boutique stuff. It was a great show. I hope they do it again next year. Tone machines indeed. :)

-"Bill's amps REALLY impressed me. I had to keep returning to his room to play it!!!! I think there is a pic on his site of me glued to the chair..." -Scott Lerner

"This amp has all the favorable qualities of Fender, Marshall and Vox; I LOVE that!" -Gordon Kennedy Nashville session guitarist and producer

Originally Posted by skhan007 For those of you who want to hear a uniquely voiced amp (that's right guys- not a Marshall, not a Fender) check out this YouTube clip. For me, the last 60 seconds produce some raucous yet refined gain that I can't quite find the words to describe at this point... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6EZdXrVytwo Not to mention, the woodwork on these are insane!!! (Dana Olsen's response) I really dig that tone - plenty gain, but very string-y at the same time. Even playing major 7 chords sounds great at med-gain in the Ark Amps. No beating, no smearing, you can actually hear all the notes in the chord, even with humbuckers. I've been quite surprised at how the Ark demo amp I've been testing holds together under med-gain playing. Pretty dang cool amp - the way the tone stack works seems to bring out everything the guitar has to give, and some you never even knew was there too! Thanks, Dana O.

I just glanced around your site very briefly and was really impressed with with what you're doing! The craftsmanship is very clearly evident, but more than that I was intrigued by your designs. I like very much that there is obviously no trepidation to progress beyond the canonical designs of the past, yet at the same time these amps are not so far removed from their ancestry as to be unapproachable aliens. A cursory glance around is obviously not enough to come to any really solid opinion, and of course completely overlooks arguably the most important feature of you work, the sound, but your stuff hit me with a very strong first impression. Very nice! -Josh

I have drooled over photos of the Ark amps for years. At the last 2 N.Y. Amp Shows I had a chance to hear those amazing amps ~ They sound as incredible as they look ~ just outstanding on all counts! Bob (comment taken from GuitarNoize.com)