Egnater news

[MkIV]

Congratulations that all is going so well for Egnater, Bruce! I hope this move will give you more time to design new products and perhaps get the amp seminars up and running again. And for us that are not located in the US it's great news that the availability will be better for the MOD-stuff!

My comment on the USA/China debate: Don't you guys get it - the best amps are built in Sweden!

 

[Piero the Guitarero]

and will finally have the E2 preamp become a reality later this year. My hope is that the expanded production and worldwide distribution will bring the Modular amps and preamps into the hands of players who previously found Egnater Modular difficult or impossible to purchase or just too expensive. I sincerely thank all of you who have remained “Eggie” fans and supporters for all these years. The future looks bright for Egnater as we move into this new phase of “Global” domination.


Bruce Egnater

What about this:

IF Egnater Made a Power Amp...

Ok so here is the blueprint for right now!

Single rack spaced stereo and bridged mono. 30 watts a side 60 mono. Loaded with 2 pair of 5881's, presence, density, High low power switch and standy on each channel, so if one side goes down you can still use the other. Will accommodate 5881, 34's and 6v6. No 6550, or KT's. When in mono you can use dissimilar tubes so you can load the amp with a pair of 5881's and a pair of 34's like a tube mix knob, without the knob. Thats it. No room for anything else.

Proto typing beginning this month! As you all know delivery will depend on Bruce blessing it and that is a difficult task to do! I am really behind this for M4 and of course the long overdue E2. Sit tight and I will keep everyone informed when they will be in production and when we will be taking orders.

This will be a USA build and not available in GC only our independents. Price range who knows but I am shooting for no more than $1000 retail. The more simple it is the cheaper we can make it for on the retail side. The more stuff you guys want the higher the cost.

No it will not be midi as of right now we will see how it all works out finishing the proto type this week.

THIS would be "news"

 

[muudrock]

IF It sounds good, It sounds good. Regardless of who or where it was assembled.

Dude, you are so wrong! Don't you get it? Only amps manufactured in the USA sound good for real.

So what happens if you hear an amp, think it sounds good, and find out it was made overseas? Clearly, it didn't really sound good. You were just fooled by communist propaganda! Fluoride in the water! Secret agents snuck into your bedroom at night and put electrodes in your brain! Because it can't possibly be true! There is no possible way that anything that sounds good can ever come from a factory outside America!

Well, except maybe old Marshalls. Those sound good. But those were made in England, and England is part of America anyway. That's why in England, they all speak American like we do.

Do you get it now?

Orren
(totally supportive of Bruce's business decisions, and for anyone who took their sarcasm module out of their MOD50, I'm obviously being tongue-in-cheek ).

 

[guitarslinger]

hmm.

 

[sumis]

as a swede i feel very conflicted playing a mod50 and not an elmwood. but now i've heard a rumour: some of the parts of which the mod50 are assembled of are not made in the u.s.! ... wtf!? don't tell me that elmwood are using parts not made in sweden as well. this is so sad, how can i now "stay true"? ...

i guess the three people that used to build the modular stuff now will be unemplyed, and their wages will be sent to china. bruce must be a very evil man, i'm sure.

(do i really need scare quotes?)

.

 

[Bucksears]

I'll wait for more info before guessing too much (still hasn't said 'China' - could just be a USA-based mass producer). I've heard things about Fender Mexico's facility being every bit as state of the art as USA.
Hand-built stuff takes TIME. A small shop backs up quickly if things are too much in demand. Bruce obviously takes pride in his work and loves what he does - if playing catch-up forever gets in the way of further innovation, something's gotta give.
I'll be honest, I'm excited about the possibility of a more affordable (and available) modular setup. I think an M4 COULD be the end of the search for me; but spending $2k+ on the preamp plus another $1k on a poweramp just isn't an easy thing for everyone to cough up. Even the MOD50 is still over $2k.

I hope that Bruce continues to design new stuff and does do a USA line of products. It just looks like the modular is much more time-consuming to keep going the way it is.

 

[guitarslinger]

as a swede i feel very conflicted playing a mod50 and not an elmwood. but now i've heard a rumour: some of the parts of which the mod50 are assembled of are not made in the u.s.! ... wtf!? don't tell me that elmwood are using parts not made in sweden as well. this is so sad, how can i now "stay true"? ...

i guess the three people that used to build the modular stuff now will be unemplyed, and their wages will be sent to china. bruce must be a very evil man, i'm sure.

(do i really need scare quotes?)

.

1. EVERY amp, from EVERY manufacturer has a TON of parts made overseas.
2. Bruce's wife and son were building the modular stuff. Their jobs aren't going overseas.

However, FWIW, this development has zapped some away some charm, imo. I'm sure I sound sadly sentimental. But, it will never be the same.

 

[EWSEthan]

Has anyone considered that maybe Bruce just doesnt want to actually build amps anymore? The first line of his bio on egnateramps.com says 'Bruce’s grandfather, Ed Kreske, once told him “Don’t be the guy who digs the ditches, be the guy who makes the shovels.”' Maybe he gets much more satisfaction out of the creative process of designing rather than physically building amps. He has built his company up to a point where he has a production facility that can meet his standards so maybe he feels like he doesnt need to "dig the ditches" anymore. If you dont like it, then dont buy his amps. But if you love the tone and innovation that comes out of his design, buy his amps. No one criticizes Jonathan Ive because the iPods he designed are built in China. Instead his designs get praised as revolutionary. Bruce has a history of pushing the boundaries of tube amp design. I suspect thats where he gets his satisfaction and thats what he wants to focus on because its creatively satisfying and also lucrative with outsourced labor.

Either way its your choice as a consumer. Just like its his choice to run his company how he sees fit.

 

[Bucksears]

Has anyone considered that maybe Bruce just doesnt want to actually build amps anymore? The first line of his bio on egnateramps.com says 'Bruce’s grandfather, Ed Kreske, once told him “Don’t be the guy who digs the ditches, be the guy who makes the shovels.”' Maybe he gets much more satisfaction out of the creative process of designing rather than physically building amps. He has built his company up to a point where he has a production facility that can meet his standards so maybe he feels like he doesnt need to "dig the ditches" anymore. If you dont like it, then dont buy his amps. But if you love the tone and innovation that comes out of his design, buy his amps. No one criticizes Jonathan Ive because the iPods he designed are built in China. Instead his designs get praised as revolutionary. Bruce has a history of pushing the boundaries of tube amp design. I suspect thats where he gets his satisfaction and thats what he wants to focus on because its creatively satisfying and also lucrative with outsourced labor.

Either way its your choice as a consumer. Just like its his choice to run his company how he sees fit.

Excellent post - free Bruce and co. up to design more modules!!

 

[Guitarvc]

Bruce, first I am glad that business is doing well. You and your team are great people who desing and build great amps.

Will the manufacturer be domestic or offshore?

I ask because I am a proud owner of a Mod 50 and it is my main gigging amp. I have also built a seminar head and that is also a great amp, after you guys cleaned up my wiring.

Unlike many of the others here on this forum, I constantly compare the tone and dynamics of the Mod 50 to the Guitar center offshore line...and my ears make me grateful that I had the funds to get the Mod 50. I certainly hope that this move is not going to effect the overall sound of the amp. I trust your word, but sometimes it is hard to control another manufacturing facility.

The upside for me is that, although I have no plans of selling my Mod 50, my resale value will probably go up...just like the people who have the pre-Roctron TOL amps.

Thank you for providing me whith what you have and wish you all the best.

 

[sumis]

as a swede i feel very conflicted playing a mod50 and not an elmwood. but now i've heard a rumour: some of the parts of which the mod50 are assembled of are not made in the u.s.! ... wtf!? don't tell me that elmwood are using parts not made in sweden as well. this is so sad, how can i now "stay true"? ...

i guess the three people that used to build the modular stuff now will be unemplyed, and their wages will be sent to china. bruce must be a very evil man, i'm sure.

(do i really need scare quotes?)

.

1. EVERY amp, from EVERY manufacturer has a TON of parts made overseas.
2. Bruce's wife and son were building the modular stuff. Their jobs aren't going overseas.

However, FWIW, this development has zapped some away some charm, imo. I'm sure I sound sadly sentimental. But, it will never be the same.

sorry if i was a bit subtle, but i was being totally ironic, falling into the reasoning of some less profound posts above ... building amps is one thing, business sense is another thing. bruce seems to have some, and i believe everyone is a winner here.

i would be an idiot if i thought that everyone in sweden who played other amps than elmwood were harming the swedish economy. it's like believing that american jobs go away if people are buying chinese made apple products, when it's actually the opposite. since egnater amps started being assembled overseas, they have most surely hired MORE people in the u.s. go figure. go practice.

i mean ...

I don't even want a Bogner because even they have their Chinese line. Companies like Fryette, Wizard, Mojave....you won't see them doing imports. They stay true.

... what the hell is that?

.

 

[muudrock]

Has anyone considered that maybe Bruce just doesnt want to actually build amps anymore? The first line of his bio on egnateramps.com says 'Bruce’s grandfather, Ed Kreske, once told him “Don’t be the guy who digs the ditches, be the guy who makes the shovels.”' Maybe he gets much more satisfaction out of the creative process of designing rather than physically building amps. He has built his company up to a point where he has a production facility that can meet his standards so maybe he feels like he doesnt need to "dig the ditches" anymore. If you dont like it, then dont buy his amps. But if you love the tone and innovation that comes out of his design, buy his amps. No one criticizes Jonathan Ive because the iPods he designed are built in China. Instead his designs get praised as revolutionary. Bruce has a history of pushing the boundaries of tube amp design. I suspect thats where he gets his satisfaction and thats what he wants to focus on because its creatively satisfying and also lucrative with outsourced labor.

Either way its your choice as a consumer. Just like its his choice to run his company how he sees fit.

+1

FWIW, the Modular amp boards were assembled by a contractor that stuffed the boards with the parts. The modules were built by Bruce's wife Terri in their shop.
Bruce has a long history of designing amps for others. The B52 amp line @ GC is Bruce's creation, the Rocktron line of tube amps are Bruce's design. He's designed a ton of other stuff for other companies. I wouldn't be at all surprised if he wanted to go more into designing rather than building. Running a business is not easy, let alone, a botique amp business with limited customers. Designing amps and collecting a check is much easier and more profitable I'm sure.

 

[bj4rd]

As long as the quality is still there then I will be happy. I switched from randall to egnater mainly because I was always having problems with the poorly manufactured randall stuff. Also, this may give Bruce more time to work on the E2, poweramp, and more modules that we are always bugging him about.

 

[marvcus]

Bruce: How will all of this affect the repair and/or modification of the existing U.S.A. "hand built" Egnater modular stuff?

 

[richedie]

Either way, I love my Mod 50. Best channel switching amp I have owned next to my VHT.

 

[aeroic]

Personally, I'd rather have the modules and amps NOT built by hand, and built by a robotic line that is WAY more precise and WAY less prone to error vs a human hand, AND an automated QA section that can verify each board is ELECTRONICALLY sound, as well as a human play tester also.

It's more the quality of PARTS and the quality of the design that makes the biggest difference, and less of who is assembling it assuming the assembler is a pro that is.

 

[marvcus]

It's more the quality of PARTS and the quality of the design that makes the biggest difference, and less of who is assembling it assuming the assembler is a pro that is.

Ever heard of Abigail Ybarra?

 

[aeroic]

It's more the quality of PARTS and the quality of the design that makes the biggest difference, and less of who is assembling it assuming the assembler is a pro that is.

Ever heard of Abigail Ybarra?

Apples to oranges comparison man. Hand winding pickups is much different than hand soldering parts to a pre-defined PCB board.

 

[Flump]

Personally, I'd rather have the modules and amps NOT built by hand, and built by a robotic line that is WAY more precise and WAY less prone to error vs a human hand, AND an automated QA section that can verify each board is ELECTRONICALLY sound, as well as a human play tester also.

It's more the quality of PARTS and the quality of the design that makes the biggest difference, and less of who is assembling it assuming the assembler is a pro that is.

Thank god someone gets modern manufacturing. I still don't get why guitarists prefer handmade things. I made my last 2 guitar bodies with CNC machines at work. It took 2 to 3 hours for me to draw the body on cad and another hour to cut everything out except for strap holes and the input jack. It was also way more accurate than anyone could have done by hand. I can appreciate the work that goes into handmade items, but give me quality machine made items any day of the week.

 

[Doubleneck]

When I first got into Egnater I didn't even realize it was made in the USA. I bought it because of the modular concept. I think it's AWESOME that I have an amp with three great channels that I really like and don't have to settle for just a great clean sound and a lousy distortion channel or vice versa.
I just want it to hold it's value.