User Reviews

I've been fooling around with the FatBox today, and it's very agreeable, indeed. While doing service to an October 1971 Sparkletop PianoBass with neoprene hammers, the FatBox gave me so much more one to work with, that I almost started believing that it actually also worked as both an exciter and a compressor. The character of the increase in level that the FatBox delivers, actually adds to how you perceive the attack AND the sustain of an instrument. For Rhodes work and use, this means that poor amplification and/or monitoring becomes a much lesser problem. Comparing using a Roland JazzChorus solid state amp as I did today with a Rhodes Janus cabinet, the major difference is that on the Roland, you actually get a richer treble register, since the input seem to "open up" when you feed a FatBox signal into it. The FatBox will become a dear friend in my workshop. It'll help me hear subtle nuances better and I will definitely recommend it to my customers."

Also worth noting is, that it's now being used on all the Rhodes tracks on the new "Soundtrack of our Lives" album being recorded in Gothenburg. The band is famous for touring the States with Oasis, receiving nomination for a Grammy in 2002 as well as appearing on both "The Late Show" and Jay Leno in the spring of 2003.

Product: Clone Stereo Rack-Mount Preamp

Author: Ed Fliege

Date: April 2002

Rig: Korg CX-3 with built-in Leslie simulation

In the last decade we've seen many Clones come along with their own version of the Hammond/Leslie sound, and while some recent entries have gotten loser than ever, there is no one single unit that is yet a perfect Clone. It's a huge task, for there are so many characteristics unique to the Hammond/Leslie sound that it's difficult for any one Clone to nail them all own; in fact, it's nearly impossible. First off, given all the so-called flaws" in the original Hammond design and the way different units have aged over the years, there are scores of Hammond/Leslie combinations still in se, all with the trademark "sound", but all just different enough that here isn't one single example of what the "sound" is. The best Clone has a lot of ground to cover. Adding trademark Hammond characteristics percussion, C/V, EQ sliders [drawbars], and variable Leslie rotor ramping speeds) to tonewheel samples will start converting a standard synth "organ" patch into a more Hammondesque sound, but this often fails to address the changes that occur as these unique characteristics all start to interact with each other in real time. Modeling synthesis is a big step towards addressing this drawback, but it still fails to capture all the subtle intangible tonal qualities that accompany the sound you hear out of a real Hammond/Leslie. Just as hearing a very good Leslie emulator or a mic'd Leslie through a hi-fidelity amp & speaker is just not the same as sitting 0 feet away from a real Leslie cranking away, there is an ethereal quality of the overall tone of a real Hammond that even the best of the latest digital Clones aren't providing. I believe this missing link is in the preamp/amplifier stage; I have yet to hear a dead-on digital emulation modeling or otherwise) of the "warmth" (that magical word) you get from the preamps in a Hammond and Leslie. Unfortunately, due to the limitations of an all digital signal path the best you can do to correct this deficiency is to add some sort of tube preamp at the outputs of your digital Clone and hope that it imparts enough "tube warmth" and maybe enough grunge to get things sounding a little more authentic. The problem is compounded by the need to add this to both channels if you want to maintain a stereo signal; there is no cost efficient way in the all digital domain of a single unit lone to add a real "tube preamp" stage post-Hammond and pre-Leslie. On my X-3 I tried to remedy this with both an ART 'Dual MP' and TubeWorks 'Blue Tube II' (and then the two together), and while it helped the sound a little, the payoff wasn't great enough to warrant adding another piece of gear; part of the allure of the CX-3 (for me) was getting to lighten my live gig. At the same time I kept reading rave reviews of the Speakeasy preamp, but the cost of adding two of them to maintain my stereo signal seemed prohibitive, and I was somewhat skeptical of what the benefits might be given my experience with the previous preamps.

About four weeks ago I was approached by Steve Hayes to beta test a Stereo dual channel) rackmount version of his Speakeasy Vintage Tube Preamp (or SVTP) using my KORG CX-3. I feel that you lose a lot of the aural sense of movement when you condense a stereo Leslie signal to mono, so it was very important to me to maintain the stereo signal I feed to the mains. Plus, I like to keep as much gear racked as possible; the floor in front of me gets cluttered enough with the pedals that have to be there. So far as these conditions were concerned, this new Speakeasy fit the bill. Steve and I poke about what features were essential for my application (tone controls, jacks, etc.), and then shortly thereafter the unit arrived at my door. Luckily, it arrived the day before I had a weekend full of gigs and I had a chance to mess with it before a live situation. In order to properly A/B he unit, I split each of my L&R output signals and sent one stereo pair into the Speakeasy and then that output into channels 1 & 2 of a Mackie board, with the other stereo pair sent dry into channels 3 & 4 of the same board. I used an Alesis RA-500 amp to drive a pair of KRK K-RoK reference monitors. Playing through the SVTP at moderate sound levels in my house I immediately noticed a difference in the clarity of the sound. The best way I can describe it is that it seemed I had lifted a cloth off of my speakers. There re tones I'm now hearing that didn't seem to exist previously. It's almost as if I had added an Aphex 'Aural Exciter' or BBE 'Sonic Maximizer' into the chain, but these results were completely natural sounding. The SVTP was not only adding the warmth that I wanted, softening a little of the shrillness you tend to get at the upper end, but it also added more presence to the sound. I know this somewhat seems like a contradiction, but the unit somehow makes the sound clearer while toning down the overall harshness at he same time. Kicking up the SVTP's volume controls added plenty of grunge, but didn't degrade the clarity of the tone; in fact, the unit really shines the more you crank it up. Clean, dirty and everything in between ere all easy to attain. As I ran through all the CX-3's presets and several drawbar settings I noticed that the more drawbars you use, the more significant the improvement. 88 8888 888 never sounded better. For most drawbar settings I kept the SVTP's tone controls around 1 or 2 o'clock, but kicking up the bass control really gave a little more body to what I call wispy effect' settings like 00 0080 088. To help cut through a loud band ix, I like to set the virtual Leslie microphones real close and the SVTP enhanced this effect even more; you could almost feel the virtual wind of he horn on fast speed.

I should stop here to explain the layout of the SVTP. It's standard 19" rack width and 2 rack spaces tall to accommodate the two transformers inside. Also, given the two transformers inside, if you have the room it wouldn't be a bad idea to isolate it by one empty rack space from other gear in your rack. This unit is basically set up like two independent preamps in one box. On the front panel of the unit there are separate volume, treble, and bass controls and a 1/4" unbalanced input for each channel, a master power switch and indicator light. It is possible to get a unit with only one set of tone controls, but it made more sense to me to have the flexibility of two distinct channels; that way you could use one SVTP with two different Clones (two manuals, or one manual and one pedal board, etc.). You could stack the channels if you wanted by running the output of channel into the input of channel B, but each channel already provides plenty of grunge on it's own and I didn't see the need. The back panel simply has a /4" unbalanced output for each channel, a fuse holder and the AC cord. Couldn't be simpler. The power supply is internal, so no pesky wallwart ere. Since I use the internal Leslie on the CX-3 all I needed was the 1/4" outs, but for a small additional fee you can get a Leslie connecter for whichever Leslie setup you might have. I liked this idea; no sense in paying for Leslie connectors if you don't use a real Leslie. I didn't find having 'unbalanced' ins & outs to be a problem; the unit sits close enough to my mixer to keep that cable length short and I don't know of any Clones with balanced outputs anyway. There was initially a small grounding problem, but a jumper supplied by Steve quickly remedied that. Opening up he unit was a little intriguing; there are no circuit boards inside, only tubes, transformers, and wires running all over. You can immediately tell hat a real human put this all together; each unit is individually assembled to order. Much the same way that 25 years ago I could do all my own work on my old Chevy Impala whereas nowadays I don't even dare lift the hood on my Riviera, with the SVTP I felt that I would easily be able to maintain it myself if the need ever arose (however I doubt it ever will; this sucker is solid). This old fashioned assembly is more than just a nod to the latest retro trend, it's the heart of what makes the SVTP sound so good. Steve explained to me what's going on inside. There are basically two stages to he unit, with the front section designed around the early blackface Fender win amps, and the back end or driver section designed around a Hammond B3 AO-28 preamp with a true Class A output. The transformers he uses were specifically designed for this application and are manufactured exclusively or the Speakeasy preamps. Likewise, the tone controls are optimized for he frequency range of a Hammond. Once you know what's going on inside it makes sense why this unit works as well as it does. Instead of trying to digitally recreate older technology, Speakeasy recognizes there was nothing wrong with the original designs and it capitalizes on this premise. In order to scale down the weight, size and cost of a real Hammond B3 it makes sense to incorporate new technology to attain the original sound. But instead of a huge tonewheel organ, this is just a preamp where size and weight aren't really major factors and the benefit of scaling it down doesn't justify compromising the tone, especially given that nobody has figured out a way to digitally model what the SVTP provides. This is a good example where simple IS better.

I soon got to use the SVTP at a gig and it didn't take long for my band mates to notice the change in my sound. I finally can cut through with all he same presence that used to be exclusively the guitar player's. Frankly, I'm getting tired of being asked to turn down. It seems now that my sound is quite up front, the other guys don't like sharing the bandwidth. I fail to see what the problem is. Seriously, my organ has never sounded so good. Our band plays through a stereo Mackie P.A. (24x8Bus mixer, SR1530 3-way speakers and SRS1500 subs) and I pan my stereo signal at 10:00 and 2:00. I got a chance to stand out front while a buddy of mine sat in for a couple songs. The Mackie system has the fidelity of a really good (and really big) home stereo and it was thrilling to hear the entire range of the CX-3 coming through the mix in all it's swirling glory. Heavier low-end, grunge settings for songs like "Chest Fever" now dominate the midrange without muddying up the mix.

A note about Steve Hayes and Speakeasy: this is about the best gear manufacturer I've ever dealt with. Steve has been a Hammond player and a Hammond tech for several decades and he truly gets a lot of pleasure providing equipment that makes Hammond players smile. He couldn't be more ands-on if he came to your house and set everything up for you (or maybe he does this if you live in Pennsylvania). Speakeasy is small enough that all you need to do is ask and they should be able to provide it for you. I've really enjoyed all the interaction I've had with this company.

Conclusion: in a way, I'm now kind of sorry I ever played through the SVTP. With the CX-3 I've been able to eliminate pieces of my live rig and still maintain a sound quality I felt I could live with. IMO, the sonic improvement I get with the SVTP makes it indispensable and it will now permanently remain part of the rig. Oh well, I think I can handle it.

Product: Clone Mono Rack-Mount Preamp Review

Author: Eric Lawson

Date: March 2002

Rig: Korg CX-3 with Leslie 122 and/or Motion Sound Pro-3T and Low-Pro

What led me to this piece of gear?

I have been looking at the Speakeasy Tube Preamp pedals for a while and have been intrigued by the specs on these units. However, it was not a priority to purchase a Speakeasy until I recently retired my Hammond XK2 in favor of the new Korg CX3. I had been using the XK2 with an 1122 kit as the portal to my Leslie 122 via the XK2’s 11-pin output. The CX3 has no such multi-pin output (shame on you, Korg) and I had no other way to connect the CX3 into the 122.

This being the case, I was on the market for some type of preamp with ¼” input to drive the Leslie 122 and control the chorale and tremolo speed switching. There are no real “vintage” options for sending a ¼” output into a 122 since the popular Leslie combo preamp pedals are almost exclusively designed for the 147 series and will fry a 122 amp in a second. There are various new solutions available (Hampton, Trek II, CAE), but the Speakeasy preamp looked more promising based on its old school design and attention to detail provided by Steve Hayes, the brains behind the technology.

Dual functionality

My primary requirement is to be able to play my CX3 through my 122. Secondarily, it would be nice to have the preamp serve a dual function as additional tube warmth into my Motion Sound KBRm. The ability to have both in the same box makes for a great package. Try finding this feature on any of the other preamps out there (Trek, Hampton, CAE) and you'll be scratching your head wondering why they don't have a ¼” output. It is truly a great innovation to make a tube preamp with multi-pin Leslie and ¼” output in the same box. I like the fact that my investment yields such a versatile piece of gear. This certainly helps justify the expense, because I do not use my 122 on every gig and don't really want to drop a lot of money on a boutique device that sits at home most of the time. I select my equipment carefully and if it is not paying the bills, I put it on eBay pretty quickly.

But I don't want a pedal, I want a rack device!

All of this said, I was still hesitant about another pedal cluttering up my pedal board. I currently use a volume pedal, Motion Sound speed switch, damper pedal, wah-wah and various FX pedals depending on the gig. Sticking a huge tube preamp pedal in there would make for a real congested world under my keyboard stand. Not to mention the fact that I cringe at the idea of carting a tube preamp to gigs and packing it in and out of a briefcase for every gig. I had sent Steve Hayes a couple of inquiries about a rack-mount device and he had advised that he was working on this, since his rack-mount Fender Rhodes preamp/tremolo was recently put into production. Steve really looks out for the musician’s needs in this respect.

Construction/look and feel

I was sold on the notion of the preamp in a rack version and have now been able to use one. I recently obtained one of the first prototypes Steve built and it is definitely in a class of its own. I like the rack design oh_so_much better than having a pedal. It is a 2-space unit, quite similar in appearance to the Speakeasy Rhodes preamp. It has the input and footswitch jacks on the front along with volume, bass and treble controls and pilot lights. The knobs are heavy-duty, old school knobs like the ones on a Leslie amp. Very durable and cool looking. On the rear is a ¼” output for running into a normal amp and the multipin connector for running into the Leslie 122. It is a very ruggedly built piece of gear all around. One bit of feedback I had was that the round-head Phillips screws on top and bottom preclude the rack from fitting into a typical 2-space Anvil rack or in between 2 other rack units. These screws should have been flat-headed and recessed into the steel. Steve promptly fixed this and the preamp now fits my rack perfectly. No longer an issue. The rack unit travels protected in a rack and can be placed out of harm’s way during the gig (rather than being the victim of countless stomps or beer spills like the pedal version).

The sound

Anyways, getting to the sound of this little rack-mounted device. I had some problems at first, but was able to master it and work out the issues with some help from Steve. My initial problem was a loud background hum when using the ¼” output. This was bypassed (somewhat) by keeping the 122 pigtail plugged in during operation. Steve was most helpful in helping to troubleshoot this issue. In fact, he quickly sent me a bypass jumper to plug in to the multi-pin and this was a good temporary solution. The permanent solution was a high/low switch next to the ¼” output which helps control extra noise. This enhancement was made to my preamp and will be a standard feature for the production model.

Once in action, the unit does its job of warming up the clone sound and meets my initial requirement of driving the Leslie 122 in a very nice fashion. This is the main reason I needed the unit and so my first test was to run the CX3 into the 122. This test was done at home and so I did not run the 122 really loud. At a low volume, I was able to dial in every variation of the tone and could get a completely ballsy overdriven sound, ala John Lord, if needed. I was a little challenged to get a clean sound through the preamp as it has a very sensitive gain structure and seems to really shine when the tube is driven. But with some tweaking and experimentation with the CX3 EQ and other parameters, a great sound can be achieved. The main thing is that it answers my need for a portal into the Leslie.

On the gig

After getting past requirement number one, I took the rack out to some gigs with my Motion Sound rig. Adding this into the chain was a bit confounding at first, probably because I was still getting used to the (still new to me) CX3. So here I had an organ with multiple parameters and gain settings going into a new tube preamp and then into the tube pre of the Motion Sound. There are lots of different places to introduce gain and overdrive. I am still perfecting the proper gain structure, but let me tell you…any questions I had about the somewhat lower gain I was getting from the CX3 by itself are OUT THE WINDOW. With the Speakeasy, the CX3 is totally wide open. All the gain I could ever want and then some. Dialing in the proper amount of overdrive was a little tricky and I am still working on it. I ended up turning the Motion Sound way back to where I was not really using much of its tube sound and instead relying on the Speakeasy rack. The Speakeasy’s tube sound is warmer and more pleasing than the Motion Sound tube (which is really good to its merit).

Once the “sound” is there with the multiple pieces of gear all in sync, the preamp provides a breath of fresh air into some of the more common drawbar settings such as 88-8000-000, 88-8800-000 and 88-8888-888. These are often a bit lame sounding on any clone and the Speakeasy really warmed it up and introduced a full body to the tone. It was definitely noticeable in the upper 2 octaves. When I edged back to a more mellow sound like 00-8000-004, the sound cut through better than before, although the level of crunch was a bit high. Like I said before, dialing the grunge in and out requires a lot of experimentation. It really comes down to having a fairly clean sound when the expression pedal is about 2/3 up and then bring in the drive by flooring the pedal.

After a couple of gigs, I was pleased with the preamp driving my Motion Sound rig. However, I will point out that the CX3 into the Motion Sound by itself is still pretty darn sweet. The Speakeasy is like icing on the cake but could be viewed as overkill by some (not me). If I were in a position of needing to set up and tear down quickly, I would likely leave the Speakeasy out of the chain. But for most gigs, it is a worthwhile addition. If you want to take your sound to the next level, you owe it to yourself to check out this unit.

Strong customer support

I must also give kudos to Steve Hayes at Speakeasy Vintage Music. He has been awesome in creating the rack version and helping me to get it up and running. This was a prototype version and we worked out all the issues together. Steve is a rare breed…he has a passion to build awesome gear and he backs up the hype with substance. It is not often that a musician gets to interact with an engineer such as this. We have been asking for a rack version and now it is being delivered. Good stuff!

Product: Rhodes Suitcase Preamp Review

Author: John Della Vecchia

Date: September 2001

Rig: Various Stage and Suitcase Rhodes (John is a Boston-area Rhodes tech)

DISCLAIMER: I am not affiliated at all with Speak Easy Vintage Music. Steve ayes, the owner and designer of the Suitcase Preamp, very nicely sent me is first production unit to test out as a courtesy to the Rhodes community and general advancement of Rhodes products. Steve, IMHO, is a veteran musician and technician who really has a penchant for great ideas.

THE INSIDES: Well this is one beast of rack unit. There are no circuit boards in sight, just heavy duty custom transformers, tubes, and mountains of point-to-point wiring. Classic stereo Class A configuration, with two sets of tubes and twin output transformers. The unit is a variation on the Leslie combo preamps Steve sells, but with special modifications to suit the Rhodes sound contours. Very solid and well built.

THE CONTROLS: All the controls found on the stock Suitcase Pre. Volume, Treble, Bass, Vibrato Speed and Intensity. Vibrato on/off switch and be bypassed with a foot switch input. Power on LED and Vibrato speed LED. The nit is stereo, and has stereo outputs - the vibrato pans back and forth between the outs as in the original Rhodes pre. I had mentioned to Steve hat I would love to see a pedal input to control the vibrato speed, and he aid it was no problem at all - in fact he is always open to have custom mods done to his equipment.

THE APPLICATION: Anyone who wants to add the "Suitcase" sound to their Stage Rhodes. What really struck me about this unit is that your really do not need an amp. You could just send the signal to a PA or mixer - even the house board at gigs. The Preamp itself is like having a fender Twin in a rack unit (as far as "Rhodes" sound goes). You get all the sweet tube sound and true Rhodes vibrato in one small unit.

THE SOUND: The first thing you notice when using the SEVM Preamp is the CLARITY. The Rhodes sound is present, alive, and fully driven. You get warmth and full harmonics. Upper registers are clean and bright without being piercing, and the low is full-bodied and bassy. There are a range of EQ settings that bring out the true suitcase sound, and you can easily overdrive the tubes for a gritty, growly sound. The vibrato section goes one step further than the original - you have more range on each end of the spectrum, i.e.. you can get the vibrato speed slower or faster than the ax/min settings on a stock suitcase. The depth control has the same advantages.

One caveat is that you really have to run this amp in stereo to get the vibrato to work properly. You can't just run one side of the output to your amp for true vibrato operation. But that is the reason this unit can replace our vintage tube amp - it really nails the classic Rhodes sound without having to use a twin, Ampeg twin 12, etc. You can just go directly to your and mixer/PA or the house system. Truly the gigging musicians tool, completely replaces the bottom speaker cab and weighs 100lbs less. My first concern when testing this unit was "why did Steve use tubes, when the original suitcase amp used sold state?" The reason is that the tubes add so much more clarity to the sound, and getting overdrive is much more easily accomplished. In addition, Steve adapted a product he already had to compliment the Rhodes sound characteristics.

CONCLUSION: I think Steve really know the Rhodes sound up and down. He came up with a fabulous product. The only real concern is the price. Some may say that $800 is way too much, and that was my original reaction. But I tried to put things into perspective. Steve is not a huge company. He hand builds these boxes. Parts alone probably eat up more than half of the units price. But the product has extremely high quality parts, attention to detail, and are in design. In addition, he built this unit to solve problems for Rhodes players - not to sell 1000's of them to anyone who wants one. It serves a specific function for the Rhodes player who wants the suitcase sound but does not have the resources to lug 200+ pounds around, in addition to all he added benefits.

Product: Clone Pedal Preamp

Author: Mark Longo

Date: August 2001

Rig: Korg CX-3 with Leslie 145 (also owns '59 C-3 and Leslie 147)

DISCLAIMERS

I should say first that I'm not affiliated with the maker of his pedal in any way and I don't get any money or discount in exchange for reviewing this product.

I have written several Internet reviews on organ related products over the years. As a gigging organ player I write reviews from the perspective of the working musician. Be advised: different layers have different opinions about the same gear. You should take he views I express in this review as my own personal opinions. You ay disagree...

SUMMARY

I usually try not to start equipment reviews with my subjective judgments, but this time I'm making an exception. This pedal pre-amp sounds fantastic. The tone is extremely clear and detailed, showing ff the subtlest aspects of my Korg CX-3. The CX-3's attack transients (percussion & key click) and also it's leakage and crosswalk sounds are VERY well amplified with this pedal, plainly ringing out the personality and character of the organ. Yet even though the tone is so clear and detailed, it is also punchy and meaty. The pedal has volume, treble, and bass controls and tons of output. Overall, this is the best sounding pedal pre-amp I've ever used.

This pedal is old school all the way, using a vintage style tube and transformer design that provides smooth clear tone with lots of warmth and punch. The pre-amp's electrical components are hand wired together, much the way your Leslie amp is, which should improve reliability and serviceability over time.

The pre-amp pedal comes in two versions, one to drive a Leslie 147 type amp, and one for a 122. The cost is $369.95 for the 147 version and $389.95 for the 122 in US dollars. This is more than you'd pay for a used Leslie Combo pedal but is in the same cost neighborhood as the popular Trek pedal. The Hampton pedal, a fine pre-amp that I've used for years, is in the $500 to $600 range. But frankly, I like the Speakeasy Vintage Tube best of all of them and my personal opinion is that cost-wise this pedal is a very good comparative value considering it's great sound.

SOUND

First a word about the rig I play this pedal through. I use a Korg X-3 played through a Leslie 145 (that model uses a stock 147 amp). Also, to show you the orientation of my ears, I've gigged with he Hampton tube based pre-amp through my Leslie 145 for about four ears. Before that, I played a through Hammond-Suzuki 1147 kit to the same Leslie. I also used a Leslie Combo Preamp for a short time. I've owned and gigged extensively with a Hammond-Suz XB-2, XK-2, and he new Korg CX-3. I also own a stock '59 Hammond C-3 which I play regularly through a Leslie 147 at home, though I don't gig with the -3.

Using the Vintage Tube pedal pre-amp, my CX-3 sounds very clear and detailed, yet very punchy. The CX-3 has a lot of subtlety in it's sound including generator leakage, both attack and release key clicks, all programmable through a wide range of levels. The C-1, C-2, and -3 choruses all have different qualities. The Vintage Tube pedal does a remarkably effective job of bringing all these details out through my Leslie. Even the Hampton pedal that I've been using for ears, a very nice sounding pedal, does not capture the detail that his pedal does. This is all very important because the Hammond clones normally fall down in their attempts to emulate some of the subtler aspects of the B3 personality, and this pedal does a good ob of showing what your clone can do. The CX-3 has more personality and character than any other clone I've played and the Vintage Tube re-amp showed off all aspects of that character very well.

The overall tone of the pedal is very good. I felt that the CX-3 tone sounded slightly more open and more airy through this pedal. Also, the pedal has good punch, most especially in the attack section of the notes and so I find that the notes punch through the band mix very ell.

I found that the Vintage Tube pedal made the CX-3 percussion, click, and leakage effects sound louder, so I turned them down. The turned down effects could still be clearly heard, yet because they were at a lower level relative to the drawbar tone, they seemed to blend better with the basic organ tone making the overall organ sound fuller and punchier; more like a real B3. Indeed, the Vintage Tube pedal made he CX-3 sound more like a "real" organ, and definitely made it more un to play.

The basic drawbar tone output from the CX-3 are very clearly amplified with this pedal. I found I was using less of the higher drawbars than with other pre-amps because with the Vintage Tube pedal the details are so apparent. As drawbars are pulled into a sustained chord they are clearly audible, which I feel helps the organ sound fuller and more interesting, and gives it more and wider penetration in the band mix. I liked this clarity very much because it allowed me to use subtle drawbar changes to better effect within the band mix.

A possible downside of all the clarity is that the CX-3 (and most other clones) tends to sound very bright in the top octave, even harsh, and the Vintage Tube pedal can very clearly amplify that brightness, which can be too much. The Vintage Tube pedal's excellent fidelity can reveal tonal inconsistencies across a clone's pitch range, exposing weaknesses as well as accenting the strengths of a particular clone. Yet in balance I find that the advantages gained in punch and clarity of attack clearly outweigh the disadvantage of exposing a clone's shortcomings. At least, that is the case with the CX-3. And fortunately, the treble knob on the Vintage Tube pedal has pretty usable range (as does the bass control), and you can dial out the more objectionably piercing high note frequencies put out by your clone without taking away much clarity.

This pedal has a very healthy output level, which I find to be quite useful in a gigging situation. Previously, registrations such as 80-0000-008 could sometimes get a bit lost in the band mix, because here just isn't much output from the organ on a sparse registration like that. But with the high output levels and excellent clarity of his pedal, that registration comes through in the mix pretty well. You can overdrive your Leslie to any degree, if that's what you like. And you have enough some headroom so that when you max out the organ volume during a solo this pedal will give you all the output your Leslie's capable of (now if only the Leslie itself were louder!).

THE MECHANICS

The pedal itself is a wedge shaped box. Lined up along the top front edge of the box (the edge away from the player) are an on/off switch, 1/4" input jack, a pilot lamp (not an LED), and large volume treble and bass control knobs. The ramp leading down toward the player's foot holds a classic heavy duty foot toggle switch and is covered with black sandpaper-like material. At the top of the ramp is another fast/slow lamp that illuminates when the Leslie is in fast (tremolo) mode.

The front edge facing away from the player has the power cord coming out of it. The power cord is about six or seven feet long and is connected inside the box (not removable). I would have liked the cord to be a foot or two longer, though the length is adequate for all the circumstances I've been in so far. Even better would be the use of a modern modular power cord receptacle such as that seen on modern synths, computers, etc. That would allow the player to choose the length cord most suitable and would make packing the pedal easier as well.

The Leslie connection method is very innovative and I feel that it's a great feature of this pedal. The pedal comes with a short "pigtail" cable. This cord is about eight inches long and has a normal 6 pin Leslie female cord on one end with a CPC type connector on the other end. The CPC connector is a durable military spec multi-pin connector with gold contacts that plugs into a socket on the side of the Vintage tube pedal. Once plugged into the pedal, you twist the connector sleeve a half turn or so and it locks into place. You plug your Leslie cable into the Leslie end of this short "pigtail" cable, and he CPC end of the pigtail into the pedal. There are several advantages to this method. First, if someone should kick your Leslie cable on the stage or trip over it or whatever, the Leslie connector cable will simply pull straight out of the pigtail cleanly without bending/breaking the Leslie connector pins. You simply leave the pigtail connected to your Leslie cable when you coil it up after the gig and it's ready for use on the next gig. Another advantage of this arrangement is that the CPC connector has a sleeve that protects the contact pins. With a Leslie cable, the connector long pins are openly exposed to wear and tear. By leaving the pigtail connected to your Leslie cable you are protecting Leslie connector pins. So the pigtail both protects your Leslie cable and provides a more secure connection to the pedal itself.

One note on the power and speed lamps. The lamps are bright enough that I could see their state in direct sunlight on an outdoor gig, (an advantage unfortunately not shared by my CX-3's LED's!).

THE TECHNICAL SIDE

The pedal's designer, Steve Hayes of Speakeasy Vintage Music, set out to capture the awesome warmth and punch heard in certain vintage tube amp designs. I feel that he succeeded very well in that goal. Steve told me over the phone that he went back to a 1948 RCA handbook to see how the vintage amp designs originally worked. Starting with a basic class A tube amplifier design from that book and ideas from vintage guitar amplifier designs by Fender and others, Steve went to work refining those design ideas for use in amplifying the unique needs of organs. He's incorporated a 12AU7 tube (the same tube type used in the input stage of your Leslie 147 or 122) into the design. A key aspect of this design is that the output stage is transformer coupled as seen in vintage pre-amps, rather than the solid state designs used in more modern pre-amps. Steve found someone who would custom build new transformers to his vintage specs and he says that in large part it is the transformer coupled output that gives this truly vintage pre-amp it's excellent clarity of detail and punch.

When I opened up the pedal to look inside I was very surprised to find no circuit board. This pedal is hand wired/assembled using all discrete components wired point-to-point and secured in the box with lug screws. This is the way your Leslie or B3 is wired and it should make this pedal unusually durable. I feel that this is an important consideration for road musicians who routinely put their gear through ungodly extremes of temperature and rough handling. Also, the parts used in this pedal should be pretty easy to find and replace on the road if anything ever goes wrong.

The box itself is rather large, a little bigger than a Hampton or Leslie Combo pedal, though smaller than the bulky Trek. I wish it would have been a little smaller yet, but Speakeasy says that the pedal is being made in small quantities (so far) so they're using a standard off-the-shelf general purpose box, rather than a custom built box that could be tailored to save space. Also, the discrete components used in this box do seem to take up most of the space inside.

CONCLUSION

The "Vintage Tube" pedal is a great sounding pedal that delivers detail, clarity, punch, and warmth of tone that I have not heard in any other Leslie pedal pre-amp. The controls are large, heavy duty, and easy to use. Looking inside, it is very sturdily put together, and though it's a new model that has not yet stood the test of time, it looks as if it will hold up well. Priced competitively, this is truly a high end product in the sound it delivers.

Product: Road Box Speakers

Author: Multiple

Date: 2003

Just to let you know that the Road Box Speaker Cabinet arrived Friday with everything intact. I hooked it up and it works great. The power is very impressive and the workmanship is first rate. I expect to get many years of enjoyment out of this rig. It's been a pleasure doing business with you.

Thanks,

Robert Monahan

9/8/03

I had a great gig to try out my new stuff this past weekend. It's a club we've played for years, so I know how the stage sounds and what to expect. I knew it was going to be loud, and it was.

The Speakeasy Road Box Speaker and preamp performed marvelously. One word to describe the sound- majestic. It was just so full and fat. The guys in the band kept looking over at me and smiling cause they knew how good it sounded. Everyone in the crowd was awed by it's presence- nothing but compliments all night on how good I sounded. It's amazing how much easier it is to play your best when you are using gear that makes your instrument really sound great.

A word about this cabinet. It screams, no doubt. Even with the 12" woofer, it has plenty of bottom due to the bigger cabinet. The woofer is a 400w speaker so it can handle plenty of load, and the horn driver is the 80 watt hot rod model. The 147 amp is brand new and gets LOUD. The cabinet itself is nice, painted with a heavy duty black paint, recessed Peavey handles, and removable wheels. The low end baffle is made of wood, not foam, which is nice. I was able to pick it up myself pretty easily but going up stairs with it will be awkward. The cabinet is smaller than a 145 cabinet, but still decent sized, actually larger than I thought it would be. I was fortunate to get production model number 1 from Steve. I guess I'm a guinea pig in that respect, but by all accounts so far, it will perform as well as (and probably better since everything in it is new) any cabinet I've ever used in the past.

The preamp worked great on my E Piano sounds as well. When I hit it hard, it gave me just a touch of that nice distortion that sounds so good on a Rhodes.

I'm a Speakeasy convert now- I see what all you guys have been enjoying all this time. And talk about your customer service- Steve called me yesterday to see how everything worked and gave me some suggestions on where to place the speaker.

I suggest that if anyone is in the market for a Leslie, they give the Speakeasy Road Box Speaker a chance. It is an awesome piece of gear. I've used several Leslies and speaker cabinets in my career, and this is easily the best sounding one of all.

Dan Levush

6/23/03