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Framptone Amp Switcher David Szabados Suggested Retail Price - $379.00 For years I’ve struggled with multi-channel amplifiers and it has always been a losing battle. Either I’d be able to dial in a good distortion tone, but then have horrible clean tone or vice versa. Much of this issue was related to the designs of the amplifiers that I’ve used, whether they had shared equalization, or even if they had independent e.q., there was still always something lacking with the tone somewhere. The classic example of what I was looking for would be a good Marshall/Fender combination – obviously in the most basic sense a Marshall is known for its distortion and Fender for its clean. Now this isn’t to say that Fender hasn’t produced some great distortion rigs as a ’59 Bassman is certainly known to be rich in distortion harmonics. But for what I was searching for, the sound of something like an old Fender twin mixed with a Marshall Super Lead would be the ultimate tone-full rig. With this in mind, I went out to purchase an A/B box so I could dial in the tones I wanted using two amps and ending up trying several including the common DOD and Morley boxes. The result of this experience made me realize that there were just too many issues with A/B boxes to use them affectively. First off, the boxes I used gave the effect of a very loaded signal as there was no buffer design to compensate for the output impedance of the guitar signal being divided into two amps. As a result, my hot high output Gibson 500T humbucker in the bridge now sounded like a muddied medium-gain pickup. Secondly, the A/B boxes added a nice humming noise through whichever amp was “bypassed” and this would then accompany the amp that was receiving the primary signal. Obviously after a while I gave up on this particular part of my tonequest and for my basic rock tone, went back to “old school” methods of relying on technique and my guitar’s volume knob to control both gain and overall level. Of course if I had my choice, I’d still rather prefer to be able to switch between two independent tube amplifiers for my tone. Late last year Framptone, headed up by Peter Frampton himself (for the younger audience who may not have heard of him, Frampton's the one who recorded the best-selling-of-all-time live LP, "Frampton Comes Alive" in the '70s), delivered the solution to this problem with its Framptone Amp Switcher box. The Amp Switcher is a rugged, high-end piece of gear designed to overcome all of the problems I related to previously. In addition, the Amp Switcher features a few pleasant surprises in its design and overcomes other issues that can occur when running two amplifiers together. Features Handmade and housed in a heavy-gauge metal enclosure, the Amp Switcher’s basic operational features are simple enough. It features two quiet click-free momentary footswitches; the first controls the A and B output channels (amps) and the second footswitch marked “Both” toggles between both amps together as well as reverting to whatever single amp was the “last one on”. As an extra intelligent feature, when playing with both amps on, you can then toggle between either the A or B amps using the A/B footswitch to then setup which amp you want to play from after you click the “Both” switch again. One of two LED indicators with protective plastic housing covers will blink to indicate which single amp channel you will switch back to. The side of the unit includes a ground switch to eliminate any ground loops caused with various amplifiers. This is simple enough to use. If you hear hum (or if you only hear a little bit of noise), select whichever setting reduces noise the most. The back of the unit houses quality input and two output jacks as well as a receptacle for a 9-volt AC power supply. Power can also be supplied via a 9-volt battery that is accessible by removing the four feet on the bottom of the unit. The inside of the Amp Switcher includes some nice additional features. When running certain combinations of amplifiers together, phasing can be a problem, resulting in a thinner sound. A phase switch for normal or reverse can be set to remedy any phase issues. Additionally, a dipswitch to turn the “Both” footswitch into a mute switch can be activated. This is helpful when wanting to tune on stage or if you’re like me and switch instruments and have to unplug and replug in the guitar cable and want to avoid any “buzzes” or “clicks”. The “last amp on” feature which would normally blink can also be turned off. The Framptone Amp Switcher includes a three-page document that covers the ailments that the Amp Switcher resolves, as well as operation instructions and warranty information. The Amp Switcher has a limited 5-year warranty. Construction The Amp Switcher was built for the serious pro musician in mind. That said, attention was made to quality construction. The circuit board is soldered by hand and the components are also assembled by hand. The 9-volt AC receptacle and input and output jacks are also attached to the board using wire while the footswitches, LEDs, and ground switch are directly mounted to the circuit board. Since it is common for input and output jacks to often become loose and sometimes need tightening, leaving these parts “off the board” was a smart choice especially since I’ve seen my fair share of broken solder connections caused by PCB-mounted jacks. An interesting design element is the location and mounting of the 9-volt battery housing which is actually bolted to the board to relieve stress. The board itself then has the positive and negative terminals soldered to wire and then run back into the board. This is a nice design and well thought out way of “mounting” a 9-volt battery which of course is typically is installed in a looser and cheaper fashion. Overall one needs to applaud Framptone for taking the time with producing such a well-made and well-thought out product. Sound This was an easy area to judge. The criteria was simple. Will my guitars sound the same running through the amp switcher as they do running straight into the amp? The answer is yes. There was no signal loss or noise. I tried various combinations of amplifiers including Marshall/Fender, Hiwatt/Marshall, Fender/Hiwatt and Marshall/Marshall. Great results were had with all variations. One of the keys to the Framptone Amp Switcher’s great performance is through its buffering and selection of its internal transformer. Framptone’s site proudly identifies the transformer as being of the highest quality for its use to curtail ground loops, while the buffer is a custom-design that properly converts the instrument signal to a low impedance signal to then be able to affectively be divided into multiple amplifiers. An interesting surprise was when combining amps together, some interesting tones resulted. By using a pumped up Marshall and a cleaned up Hiwatt together, a bit of clarity and bite resulted through the mix with a powerful tone I’ve never had the pleasure to experience in the past. The Amp Switcher allows much experimentation and you may find some surprises using it as well. I also spent some time using various effects boxes hooked up after the amp switcher. Using chorus and delay in my clean channel as well as some overdrive and e.q. in my gain channel, the pedals performed and sounded great. One area I was made aware of was the potential for some problems when using a Fuzzface or other types of vintage-type fuzzes that incorporate germanium transistors. Germanium transistors are apparently very fickle, and not just with the Amp Switcher. However, Victor Mason at Plexi Palace (www.plexipalace.com) has alterted me to a low-to-high impedance buffer that Framptone is currently working on that he will carry in stock to eliminate this issue. That issue aside, the key words to remember for the Framptone Amp Switcher are this: It works. In fact, I’m thrilled that it works as well as it does as I’ve waited for a solution like this for years. Conclusion and Overall Rating With the Amp Switcher, my tonal dream of running two amplifiers is now being realized. While some may still prefer the convenience of a multi-channel amplifier over having to use two separately dialed-in amps, serious tone-geeks will love the Framptone Amp Switcher. There is nothing like being able to dial in a perfectly sweet clean tone from one amp and then go for a thick distortion roar from the second amp or combining various sounds of amps together. While the Amp Switcher currently sells for about $279 and is by no means considered cheap, think of the options. For about $40-$60 you can buy an A/B box that will provide signal loss, weaken your tone, and possibly deliver phasing issues in addition to ground loop hum. Or you can continue to struggle with a multi-channel amp that perhaps sounds good in one channel and just “o.k.” or plain “bad” in the other. Or you can take the no-compromise approach, buy the Framptone Amp Switcher and have it all. It’s obviously no surprise at this point that I’m very impressed with the amp switcher. It should also be no surprise that I’m proud to give the Framptone Amp Switcher LegendaryTones’ second Editor's Choice award and a perfect 10 score. Visit www.frampton.com/framptone.html for additional product and dealer information about the Framptone Amp Switcher. Great job guys!