Alessandro/Working Dog Working Dog 112, 108 Combo

Controls are simple but state of the art. One channel.No outputs.One volume that controls volume and distortion and one volume attenuator that controls volume and opens amp's headroom up.It took awhile for me to get tone with this amp ,as every control works interdependantly,giving multiples of sound's and response's.Thought with 50% to 100% volume output control the amp would be ideal for living room use ,but this 20 watt is LOUD!!! Size and weight are idea.Classic ,simple look,I love the amp.

Using PRS Santana III.Amp itself is dead quite.Puts out large degrees of open clean sounds up to a mellow grind.Super sensative to string finger touch.Put a QUALITY ONLY pedal in front of this amp and you have a TONE MONSTER on your hands.Think clean jazz hollowbody to Santana Dumblesque "Shaman" tone ,right to Jimi "Voodoo Chile" Unbeleavable!!

Have had 2 years,still original tubes.George Alessandro is only a phone call or Email away if needed.No company like it.Like having your own Amp. Tech.

See above.As good as anyone in the industry.

Self taught ,playing in living room over 30 years.Had Gibson SG & Mesa Boogie Studio 22 until last 2 years. Like going from Chevy Vega to Ferrari !!! Beyond compare.2 years and haven.t even scratched the surface of what this amp is capable of.Use high quality equipment ONLY with this amp.It will amplify every great or weak point of your gear.Amp is basically for experienced players only.

I think the features are exactly what George wanted for a working man boutique amp - one input 3 nice tone controls, short pan reverb a creamy/jangle switch and variable final power ouput. 2 EH 6V6 power tubes, JJ 12AX7's and Solid state rectified. Speakers are Jensen 1x12" and 1x8" R series and I think they sound great and are a perfect match for this 20 watts of Class A power. Usually I want to try different speakers in an amp but I don't intend to mess with this combo for now.

Way too many 10's are given on this website but this amp deserves it-
a Class A work of sonic art. I waited a few months till I had time to really get to know the amp and let it break in. TONE FOUND HERE!! Sometimes I sstay up late at night playing through this fine tone monster for hours. Wiht my EC Strat it sounds delicious, with my Mexico Tele it ROCKS and with my Cort Joe Beck (flat wounds) it intoxicates! ALL tones from Keith Richards to Wes Montgomery are fabulous. Plug in my Sparkle Drive and I could overdub a Steely Dan solo. Use my EH Stereo Memory Man and Metheny vibes are there in spades. The tone controls remind me of Neve or Trident EQ-just thick rich tone. The Jangly/ Creamy switch is awesome- I love both tones which are exactly as described. Creamy is great for Jazz and Blues/Rock and Jangly takes the 6V6 tubes into EL84 territory. The final output control is variable from 50% to full power and fun to tweek. On lower settings you can break up sooner or turn it up for more headroom. Break-up on this amp is real power tube distortion and speaker break-up not buzzy preamp gain. Best amp I have ever played. Side by side a Fender Deluxe 65 reissue sounds flat and dull. I protested the short pan reverb but as George said it's right for this amp. I'm a record producer with 25 years of experience and I've tried or recorded just about every amp you can think of-the Working Dog is on the short list of best ever. The quality of parts and construction are superb. I don't mind the vinyl Working DOG logo and it glows in the dark . .

Broken reverb tank spring on delivery- George Alessandro replaced within 48 hours.
Seems built like a tank.

See above- George is a prince and an artist.

You can pay less for less amp and you can pay more for less amp- I call that quality and value.

Serial #1, made in July 2001! On the dash--volume, reverb, treble, mid, bass, final output control (a master volume of sorts). Also has a "Creamy/Jangly" switch. One channel, one input, one speaker output. 6V6 tubes. 1X12, 1X8 config. You can pretty much use any guitar to play any style you want at any volume (except maybe metal)--it's that versatile. That said, any other features would just be unnecessary. As far as power, I'm sure it puts out a strong 30 watts max. Perfect for small to medium sized venues standalone. In a bigger venue your sound tech would be throwing a mic in front of any amp, so I'm sure it would work out great there too.

Tone is such an abused term these days, but this amp gives back its integrity. I purchased it at Action Music in Falls Church, VA, a one-stop shop for quality amps and guitars. (If you're in the market for a great amp, definitely give these guys a call or better yet pay them a visit. You'll be glad you did.) With my trustee Les Paul Custom in hand, I tried numerous amps in the shop over the course of a week. The finalists included my Marshall 4104 2X12, the new THD Univalve head, the Orange 15/12, and the Working Dog. This amp smoked them all in sound quality, versatility, construction, components, and noiselessness. The sounds are simply stunning on both the creamy and jangly settings. The former puts out the smoothest blues/rock tones ala Jimmy Page and at lower volumes it's a jazz player's dream. I find the latter is best suited for Britpop, country, and some funk. The reverb is very lush yet not overbearing even at 10. Any sound is a couple of knob turns away. It can get a bit mushy at very high volumes. Turn the bass down a tad and you should be alright.
On a more personal level, I play primarily rock/blues in small to medium sized venues. My most important requirement in any amp is its sound quality relative to controlling the gain with my guitar volume knob. And wow!--the Working Dog has made me quite a happy man in this respect. With the volume up around twelve to two o'clock the amp breaks up sooo nicely for leads and when I roll back the volume on my guitar it cleans up perfectly without losing any of its ball or punch. The 1X8 helps. Still, the amp is pretty loud at that point and I was worried that it wouldn't work out in smaller rooms. Merely adding an Ibanez TS10 pedal took care of that issue however.

Too soon in the game to say for sure, but based on its construction and parts, I'm sure a back-up amp is 99.99999999% unnecessary.

I've spoken to George Alessandro on two different occassions and his service is just as high-end as his products.

I've been playing for almost 15 years and have owned all kinds of amps--Marshall, Fender, Traynor, Mesa. Nothing comes close to the Working Dog and my first gig with it serves as the best confirmation of this fact--I fielded compliments all night about its sound. All day at work I look forward to going home so I can play the damn thing. Replace it? In a heartbeat.


Couple of other things I'd like to add...

The amp is light-weight. Very practical indeed for the Working Dog musician that doesn't want to break his/her ass lugging gear around.

Mine came with Electro-Harmonix 6V6EHs, and while it seems inconceivable to me right now, I'm sure a pair of JANs would sound even better.

The speakers are Jensen Rs. Ns might be considered an improvement but I wouldn't change em cause it might affect the break-up that I so love.

The amp comes with a Working Dog sticker on the grill cloth. Seems a little chinsy given the quality of the amp but George's rationale was that anything else, like a metal plate, might develop a rattle. I don't quite agree but that's knit-picking.

I don't anticipate ever having to buy another amp.