Review Demo - Carr Amps Lincoln

Read the review: http://bit.ly/CarrLincoln

Writing about Vox-style amps can be tough! So many of the words that describe their iconic tones can sound like putdowns: “The distortion crackles and fizzes, but in a good way.” “The cabinet and speaker have a boxy midrange resonance, but it’s a cool kind of boxy.” Guitar writers inevitably whip out the word “chime,” but, really, do AC30s and AC15s sound anything like a struck bell? Chimes aren’t known for slashing upper-midrange breakup—a signature quality of Vox distortion. But while adjectives and verbs often fail to capture the glory of those EL84 tones, amp builder Steve Carr’s latest release nails it.

Carr’s Lincoln combo doesn’t clone any particular Vox model—it’s more of a freewheeling fantasia on “Voxiness” in general, one that departs from tradition as often as it adheres to it. Both its channels employ a pair of EL84 power tubes à la Vox’s AC15 and, yes, the Lincoln does a fine AC15 impersonation. But that’s only one of the amp’s cast of characters. Many unconventional details expand the Lincoln’s range without relinquishing its mid-’60s vibe. It’s a savvy compromise between tradition and innovation.

The Lincoln is a looker. Our review model boasts showy two-tone Tolex, an asymmetric speaker cutout in the form of a sideways shield, and, in a nod to Vox styling, gold-thread piping. The solid-pine cabinetry is masterful.

The amp’s guts are equally striking, if less photogenic. There’s no turret board—this is mostly point-to-point wiring (though a few subsections are assembled on small circuit boards). Frankly, it looks like a rat’s nest decorated with glue-gun blobs. (Steve Carr says newer production versions are much tidier.) But a few pokes with a (nonconductive!) wooden chopstick confirm that the components are perfectly secure. This is a complex circuit with many parts—and a seriously labor-intensive build. Factor in the high-end parts (including Solens capacitors from the aerospace industry and custom-spec TMI transformers) and superior hardware, and it’s no shock that Lincoln costs close to three grand.

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