Blues Pearl Brittone AC15 Clone Head

Made in 2002. Made by Robert Hudson, the Blues Pearl man, who made this as a custom one off. I had a Texas Tornado of his, was quite impressed, wanted a Vox, but not the vintage sales tag, so I asked Robert about building one. Several long telephone calls, very friendly, extremely knowledgable, and we settled on the design. A Vox AC15 with a Marshall-like cabinet/head. Blonde tolex, gold piping, gold aluminum panels, marshall appointments. Looks like a circa 1965 marshall JTM45 head with the block logo. Two channels, four inputs (lo and hi), bridgable. Separate volumes, bass, mid, treble, presence. (Robert already made a Marshall clone, thus the controls.) No master volume, headphone jack, effects loop, or channel switching. On/off, and standby switches are on the face plate (pilot light in blue..............with the blonde tolex, gold piping, gold face plate and blue light, this is a stunning piece!) No bells, whistles, or gimmicks; just plug in and play. As for electronics, its an AC15. Two EL84's, tube rectifier and three preamp tubes (can't remember if they're 12ax7's or ef86's). All point to point hand wired.

Use a tele (Nocaster relic) and a 335, mostly. Occasionally a strat. The amp is supposed to be about 15(?) watts, but we all know that Voxes were very conservatively rated. And this amp is loud! I've played with people with amps 50-80 watts, and routinely never get beyond '4' on the volume knob. I play though a blonde open back 2x10 cab with celestions that Robert also provided. I play gospel, contemporary Christian, rock, pop (Beatles, etc), country, and occasionally dabble in jazz (but usually use my Texas Tornado for this). The amp is quite quiet for an amp of this type, much quieter than Marshalls or Voxes I've used in the past. The standby switch does occasionally make a pop when turning to 'standby', but this is due to lack of filtering circuit. Local amp whiz discussed adding a circuit, but not necessary IMO. The best Marshalls will make this noise. The sound of the amp is pure Brit/Vox. Gets creamy in OD, and quite aggressive. But not harsh. Not a metal amp. Cleans up beautifully with a turn of the guitar volume knob. Really does that clean swell blooming sound. Not the glassy Fender thing, but a beautiful clean sound that makes you happy to just strum chords, or doublestops. But not for long! The sound really drives you to "play take-off guitar" as they said in the '50's; the sound is so full and sweet you automatically start to stray up the neck and go for solos and the killer climactic bend or trill (just make sure you wait for the rest of the group!!!) Sorry I'm gloating, esp. as this is most likely a one-off and will never be repeated (see below)

Power switch needed repair, bad part. Fluke. Otherwise, no complaints so far. But I never consider having no backup amp; neither should you, unless you are too poor. Hey, get a second amp before that second guitar!!!! This thing is all point to point and beautifully done, it's done right. If there is a problem, should be able to fix, as long as parts for vintage amps are still available.

No support. Robert Hudson has disappeared as far as I know. I did some detective work and was unable to find him. I wanted to get another of these amps, or an AC30 clone, or even one of his plexi clones, but he's gone! To make a long story short, I contacted him through his website and discussed making a Vox clone. Robert lived about 100 miles south of me in Tennessee. Followed up with telephone calls...........wonderful talks, wished I'd taped them, he's a genius. Anyway we settled on the amp and cab, etc. and a price. I paid half down and was told it would be ready in several weeks, 6 weeks at the latest. After a couple weeks went by, I called to see how all was going. No answer, just his answering machine. Left messages here and there. Well, 6 weeks came and went. No replies. A few months went by, nothing. Began to check with Blues Pearl dealer Pickers Exchange in Chattanooga and got the story that Robert was returning no calls, had delivered no product to stores (inspite of being alledgedly paid in advance.) There was talk of legal proceedings. I spoke to a local attorney myself, but did nothing. Attorney fees would be more than I'd hope to get from Robert. So I sent him one last letter, just stated I was very disappointed, and quite hurt that someone of his ability could simply take my money. Anyway, one day I got a call from his wife.........your amp is ready! You could have knocked me over with a feather! Anyway, I drove down to his place near Chattanooga, in the mountains. I was met at his house by his wife and young child. HIs wife was very charming and appeared deeply concerned and caring. She said Robert was home, but not feeling well and was on medication from his doctor. I didn't butt in here; my gut feeling was there was more to the story, but this was not my place to intrude. My amp and cab were sitting there in the front room, pretty as can be. Ms. Hudson told me I could try it out if I liked; I was so excited, I could barely make a G chord. In a dream I put the amp/cab in by truck and gave her the balance for the amp, plus an extra $200. I don't know if the kid needed anything or if Robert has/had insurance, but I just felt I wanted or needed to do something.

Nope, no customer support here; you can't find Robert Hudson as far as I can tell. But this thing is made as well as can be expected from anyone. And because of its point-point construction and crystal clean layout, any two-bit solderjockey can repair it.

This amp was and is an absolute steal. The $1200 was for amp and cab. I'll probably add a 2x12 cab later. For double the price, I guess I could have gotten a vintage ragged beat-up AC15, but who knows what you're getting; and you've got yourself one old amp with quite possibly many visits to the amp doc in the future. Heck, this is about what an AC15 Reissue goes/went for!!! I love this amp and it's easy on the eyes as well...........would never sell, unless you're talking big big bucks. Would like to buy again, but Robert is nowhere I've found. If you ever see a Blues Pearl or Brittone amp, CHECK IT OUT!