Matchless Amplifiers
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Matchless Amplifiers is a Los Angeles based company which designs and makes electric guitar amplifiers, specializing in class A tube circuitry.
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[edit] History
Named after a British motorcycle manufacturer, Matchless , the company was founded in 1989 by Mark Sampson and Rick Perrotta, with the idea of making the greatest sounding and most reliable (or least prone to malfunction) guitar amplifier possible. Steve Goodale joined them as the third co-founder in 1991, bringing financing for the company. Borrowing heavily from and perfecting designs of early Vox (a famous British amplifier company) amplifiers, the first Matchless amplifier model - the acclaimed DC-30 (the name bearing tribute to the legendary Vox model AC30), was the first model that saw regular production. Since its first appearance, the DC-30 has won much praise amongst guitar players and has earned several great reviews in guitar magazines like Guitar Player and Guitar World.
Matchless Amplifiers is generally thought of as being the company that kick-started the boutique amplifier craze in the mid- to late nineteen-nineties, paving the way for other smaller manufacturers like Dr. Z Amplification, Bad Cat and Victoria Amp Company, all specializing in making handmade, high end tube amplifiers.
[edit] Current state
Due to financial problems, Matchless Amplifiers closed down in 1998 but reopened in 2000 under new administration and is currently manufacturing several lines of amplifiers and speaker cabinet enclosures.
Mark Sampson went on to design amps for Bad Cat, some of them based on earlier Matchless designs. Sampson has since left the employ of Bad Cat and now produces his own amps under the name Star Amplifiers.
[edit] Current Models
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