An update for you cliffhangers:
I have most of the quotes in and so far looking pretty good. Got the quote for PCBs yesterday and am still waiting for quotes on metalwork (delayed due to some changes, see Option 1 below). Once this comes in I'll be able to get the pricing worked out. I want to retire in Brazil....
We had long discussions with Bjorn and some friends "in the know" about how to present/market this as a product and what options to offer.
One interesting thing that came out was a strong request to do both a head and a combo, the rationale behind the request being that this amp will not attract first time buyers or metal kids but rather more experienced aficionados of top shelf gear. As such they will already have an assortment of gear including a number of speaker cabs and would therefore be more interested in a head only.
So, to quote a russian proverb "keep the wolf fed and the sheep alive" we came up with a number of options:
Option 1:
Head only.
At first I thought of offering a naked amplifier chassis but that would leave transformers and the tube exposed, unfortunately this infringes on electrical safety rules...
The solution is to provide a metal hood/cover, this will be in perforated steel, powder coated in black, sides in some exotic wood. Overall shape sort of a cross between american post/lunch box falling in love with a Minimoog.
Option 2:
Combo ala IKEA.
This will include complete, tested & burned in amplifier chassis and combo cab as D.I.Y. kit. You assemble it, chose your covering and grill cloth or invite spray can artists and have one of a kind graffiti design on the cab. Ok, I'll include assembly drawings and instructions at no extra charge
The amp is ready to play through your existing speaker cab during beer breaks while you're building the cab.
Option 3
Complete combo, finished and dressed up (yes, British Racing Green vinyl etc. etc.), less loudspeaker.
Why no loudspeaker? We think it's ridiculous to buy speakers from US and reexport them from Sweden.
The prototype amp was voiced with a custom prototype from Eminence which in essence is a slightly modified Red Fang, differences are too small to justify investing in custom version of which we would have to order a minimum of 50pcs.
Any 12" 8 Ohm speaker will make
sounds BUT we recommend standard Red Fang for
the tone.
Add on option X:
Active FX-loop. This will be a small PCB that will retro-fit into the amp. No soldering required. Will be available later on.
What do you guys think? Skip any of the options?
I am budgeting for a 25 pcs run.
There are 14 names on the list already.
3-4 amps will stay in Sweden as demo samples and loaners to magazines for test reviews.
This makes 7 unspoken for.
Everything working out we could be shipping these out by mid/end September.
The cliff hanger:
Who will miss the last one by a minute