Goodsell Super 17 Head

Has Volume, Tone, and Gain. With these 3 knobs, you can do Country, classic rock, pop stuff, etc. To get other sounds you need some pedals. Single Channel, 8 ohm out. Would be cool to have a second identical channel for 2 different Goodsell sounds. 2 12ax7, 2 el84, tube rectifier. For a 17 watt amp, you can do a whole lot with just the 3 knobs.

Incredible. After a year and a half, still don't know what I would do with out it. I use a Suhr Classic, PRS CE 22, and Heritage LP copy. This thing really sings with single coils. You can get that really awesome sizzle out of it that really make it sound country. With humbuckers, you get more of that vintage marshall chime. The amp is STUPID LOUD for 17 watts. I have no problem with this at all. As for noise, there's not much.
The amp alone can't get too high gained. I use the Xotic BB preamp to get the amp pushed over a little. Most people will say this amp isn't for metal. I say if you have a box/pedal in front of it that can do metal, this amp will make it sound better.
The best way to describe the Super 17 is a 3D version of whatever you put in front of it. The sound is dry, yet versatile enough to do whatever you want. So for the most part, the amp alone is clean machine. Not the fender clean, but more the dry, spanky, sparkly clean you get from el84's.

After a year of steady use, still runs 100%. I feel like I could drop the thing and wouldn't feel too bad about it.

Richard Goodsell is awesome. I called him up, he answered the phone personally, and answered all of my questions. This is a guy who loves what he does, and genuinely wants to make his customers happy. This is not the same attitude you can hear of from other amp builders.

I hate rating things with a 10. But this amp is seriously worth it. This amp is not for the noobs out there, or the guys who need high gain amps with triple digit wattage. This is for those who want tone, simplicity, and versatility. No, it doesn't sound like a cranked marshall, that's why I have another amp that does that job. If this were stolen, you can believe I'd get another. I plan on getting another one in the future, maybe a 33, for a more clean sound.

This amp just plain kicks ass!!!! I use It for classic rock and blues thru a marshall vintage 30 4x12 cab with various les pauls / Strats and it just plain rocks!!!! Of course i employ a tube screamer or two as well as dls effects and the tones/feel is unreal. I have several marshall heads and can say that none of them can hold a candle to this little bastard!!!! Its only real downfall is a lack of volume, hey it's only 17 watts! The marshalls will definately get louder @ 50 / 100 watts but my x old lady was loud to but who really wanted to hear her??????? Get my point????? Get one!!!!

Once again, this amp is a joy to play thru!! It seems to be able to get that great old marshall plexi tone. It,s very clean but can get rude really quick just by employing pick attack skills. I dont play much country but feel that a country player may well dig this amp!!! For classic rock and blues I find it to be a little tone monster. True it lacks volume @ 17 watts, but when playing out just mike it!!!!Very simple hand wired 3 contoll knobs, presence, tone and volume...... thats it!!!! Distortion is sort of tame but you can hear every note, just boost it with a tube screamer and you will love it!!!

Dependability is yet to be seen.appears to be very well built. Have used it at practice so far and after 10 sessions have had no issues.

Have never had to deal with this. Have heard that support is very good, one year warranty i believe.

Been playing for 30 years, thru marshalls, kustoms and fenders oh yeah and one peavey!! Yes this Goodsell is better than any of these, unless you play thru a real old marshall plexi or a fender bassman!!!! Just my opinion but I would buy another beyond a doubt as it is prbably the single baddest piece of equipment i HAVE EVER OWNED!!! The only thing I would ask for is the same amp with more power say a 30 watt head!! Goodsell has a super 33 but I have been told it sounds a bit different, not bad just different. All I can say is buy one if you can. My Marshalls are parked, at least they look cool but thats all I can say for them. I am shure the marshall handwired amps sound the same and are good amps, never owned one but as for the jcm 800's and jcm 2000's they do not compare!!!! Once again just my opinion and yes I still have them all!!!

I bought the Super 17 mk2 head at the Oct 07 LA Amp Show from Richard Goodsell himself. This amp with a good speaker covers all the tones I use, clean, dirty, chimey, fat, thin and at reasonable volumes. One channel but I use my Volume and Tone controls on my Strat with no fx. I use this amp at Clubs with the Psycho Surfers, Jam sessions and recording with various artists. Always sits in the mix and cuts through when you need it even at loud Jam Sessions. Very inspiring and fun to play.

This is not a high gain amp. Smooth overdrive touch sensitive and responsive to pickup,tone and volume controls. Crank the Gain and Tone controls then set the volume as needed. You are able to find a balance in the mix for just about any situation. Need more distortion at a lower volume back down the tone on your guitar then for a solo bring up the tone and volume at the guitar. Need more clean headroom turn up the tone on guitar and lighten up pick attack. Singing solo tone turn down tone on guitar and lay into the pick. If you need a amp to work for you this is not it but if you know how to work an amp this is the one for you.

Bought it from the builder you can contact Richard G through his Website.

Just give Richard a call!

I have been playing since 1964 ouch! you do the math!I have owned or own Fenders, Vox, Sunn, Carvin, Silvertone and this by far is the best amp I have found.

#378 Super17. In a word...wow. This thing is amazing. I own and have owned a ton of gear and until now had been playing a Marshall JVM. A great amp but the 17 is the tone that was in my head. It doesnt get any simpler than 3 knobs. After halfway, the tone adds more gain. I play everything from Chuck Berry to GNR, clean to mean and everything in between. This amp has it without channel switching. Want a cleaner tone-turn the knob on the guitar. Want a note to pop, hit it a little harder.

Not a high gain amp. I play a PRS sc245 and a few LPs mainly. I like the thick warm creamy distortion and this does it. I use wolfetone pickups in my guitars that range from vintage PAF to slightly hot PAF. Wonderful cleans, lovely clipping and then warm distortion.

Only had it a short time.

Nothing to report

Great amp. I'll sell my RoadKing, Classic 50 and Laney AOR. I'll keep the JVM as backup for now, but I prefer the workings of a little class A monster.

Late 2006 - Early 2007 Model

For what this amp offers, the features are perfect. Gain, Tone and Volume. Anything else can be achieved with pedals and other outboard equipment.

Again, if you don't need an amp for heavy distortion ( metal, grunge), this Goodsell Super 17 Head amp can do everything else
This amp does is phenomenal. Plugged in to a good speaker cab, crank it and blow.
Work the volume control on your guitar for additional flavoring, and add pedals for even more fun.
Fantastic Clean to Slight Overdrive Crunch
Used a Strat and a Hollowbody with single-coil and humbucker settings.
All were great!

I Have had no problems with my Goodsell Super 17 Head

I haven't had to deal with Richard, but I hear only great things about dealing with him.

Playing 40 years

This Goodsell Super 17 Head has it's on sound, yet satisfies a variety of familiar amp sounds.

This is an old-school bare bones amp, especially when it comes to features. The front panel has three knobs - Gain, Tone & Volume, a standby switch and one input jack. The rear panel has one speaker jack, on-off switch, fuse holder and a (long) detachable AC cord is provided. There is no effects loop and no reverb (reverb available in combos). It looks like a cool mini Marshall and is very light weight. It's a 17 watt (hence the name), Class A amp with a tube compliment of (2) EL-84 power tubes, (2) 12AX7 preamp tubes and (1) 5V4G rectifier tube. The output transformer is from a Hammond Organ because the builder (Richard Goodsell) is a B3 guy. The head version is available in black or green tolex (other colors available for an up charge).

Control Features: 0-12 on the tone control is the normal range. If you turn the tone past 12, you start to add more gain to the signal. the gain control seems to add stronger bass as you increase it and the volume is like a master volume, although to my ears it seems to open up fairly quickly. Even though there are only three controls, you can get a wide range of sounds easily and these controls are very interactive and useful.

(Living room test) - The first thing I noticed when I turned on the amp was that it was loud for 17 watts (it's been said that the Hammond transformer has a part in this). I also noticed that it had a good amount of bass, high mid tones and sparkling highs. I'm running this through an Avatar 2x12 closed back cabinet with a Celestion G12H30 and an original Greenback (bass speaker). I could get really nice clean tones out of my Hamer Artist and from my Strat with the volume turned down a little to cut some highs. It's bright and warm at the same time and with this speaker combination, very big sounding. There wasn't as much compression to the sound as I had heard on the video and demos from the Goodsell website and this scared me. The amp had a quick response and little sag to it. I replaced the output tubes with some used Mesa ones that I had and that made the amp sag just enough and it tapered the highs somewhat (I did replace these tubes with new ones of the same brand prior to the gig). I then got better clean tones and crunch sounds from the amp - plugged straight in. Each pickup position sounded great individually and in combination and it was very responsive to volume changes on the guitar. It's a very organic and touch sensitive amp, really perfect for clean playing (jazz/country), classic rock and blues. It doesn't get a lot of gain by today's standards, so for heavier type stuff you'll want a pedal in front of it.

Tubes are a very important part of the sound of this amp and can vary in tone/feel with different types/brands (Richard Goodsell can help with this).

(Initial gigs) - The first time I gigged with the amp I was blown away. I got that nice bluesy almost clean sound that's hard to get sometimes without using a pedal. The amp sagged/compressed just enough and the sound was very huge and punchy sounding. When I hit my overdrive pedal it knocked my socks off! I use three different pedals for different amounts/types of gain (Duncan Twin-Tube, Analog Man TS and Keeley Blues Driver) and I had to turn the volume down two notches on each one of them, as well as my Keeley comp. Anything I wanted to do, the amp responded well. It was the first time in a long time that I didn't have to work to get a great tone. It was no problem with the faster attack time and it actually made me play better. My chorus and delay also worked better through the Super 17 enhancing the whole frequency range and the clean tones were great too.

I work in a six piece band with a B3, two guitars, bass & drums and we're fairly loud on stage and this amp cut it big time! In fact, because of the tone and punch, it worked better than a lot of my previous set-ups that have included amps from Mesa, Fender, Marshall and Budda (30+ years worth of equipment). The Super 17 seems to have some of the great qualities of each one of these amps. I'm not saying that it's better than any other amp because I respect all of these manufactures and there are a lot of great sounding amps out there. For me, this really seems to fit with what I'm doing (roots rock/classic/blues) and it feels good. It's funny because I went from using a 100 watt amp at one time to a 17 watt amp, and the 17 watt amp sounds incredible. It really blends well with the rest of the band and without overpowering anyone but still sounds big.

I'm not sure yet because I've only owned it a couple of weeks, but there's not really not much inside to go wrong. Sometimes simple is better!

Top notch service. Richard Goodsell is a very personable guy and will talk to you as long as necessary to get all your questions answered and to make sure you get exactly what you need. His knowledge of amps, speakers and tubes is a great resource. He treats you with great respect and you can't beat that.

I'd rate this amp 9 out of 10 only because I've only played out with it three times and I want to update my review at a later date once the amp is really broken in. I'm told that it will only get better with time - I can't wait! I'm already thinking of buying a combo. For a point to point hand-wired boutique amp, it's a great value. Needless to say, "It's a keeper!"

Nothing new on this one, just the standard volume, tone and gain. It's not meant to be a typical fender or say an uberschall, but for what it is, I need no other amp. The versatility you find within those 3 controls gives you a ridiculously usable amp. If you want an amp with 'character' that is true to the input and of a purist design, you've found it.

Its not a vox, mesa, marshall, fender, or a bogner. But I have yet to find a single setting this is unusable. Not to say I've use them all, but it is pretty sensitive, so those 3 controls allow you to span the gamut. Now, this being a head, I could say anything about the head, but the cabinet facors in immensely right here. Seriously, a head looks pretty, but the cabinet does the real work. Now, I have found a sweet deal with this setup: I took a mesa/boogie recto series 2x12 closed back cab and replaced one vintage30 with a greenback. For the astetics, I also had the grillcloth changed to match the head. And for a crowning touch I added a 'Goodsell' logo. Th v30 and gB combination gives a huge sound. Depending on the volume and drive, the gB breaks up alot faster, and the v30 breathes easier. It's alot like an A/B clean and dirty setup. I do use a BadCat II Tone and the new Vox Big Ben OD to hit the amp abit harder, and the amp respnds beautifully to both of them. This trick with the speakers gives the ampa HUGE sound!

The tube compliment here is very minimalist. The preamp is really only running half of a 12ax7! (2) 12ax7s, (2)el84s, and the 5au7 (pretty sure, its a new one to me) make a 5 tube amp that is extremely reliable. As always, keep backups, but this is your only liability. This is as solid as a tube amp can come.

Above and beyond all these issues, Goodsell is a very personable guy, I have met him and his family, and know that if anything happens with the amp or even if I want him to spec some new tubes for me, he can do that. Yeah, you're buying an amp, but his service is unbeatable. I have yet to see another boutique amp co. that can touch him.

Been playing for 6 years now seriously, but I'm an audio engineer by profession. I currently use a Fender California series Tele and a modded Epi Les Paul classic with P90s. I've had a Mesa Blue Angel before this amp and afew fenders, marshalls, and the Line6 Flextone. I'm having a hard time selling the Blue Angel, so I might keep it, but I'm done with amps. I've got what I want. As far as features, I'm not big on reverb, but now there's the mkII with some verb. The super17 may not be for everyone, but it is for me.

this is a follow up on the head i purchased last december. the amp deserves further acclaim. it is that good. i used a weberblue dog ceramic,a weber blue dog alnico (singly and together), also through a dr 4/10 cab and a z 2/12 cab with a celstion g12h 30 (not the heritage) and vintage 30. i also bought a scumbag g12h30, but for the kind of music i play ( a bit cleaner bluesy stuff with a slight edge) it just didnt get it for me. that is until i used an eminence private jack. very very satisying for the guitars i play. i looked at all the 1/12 cabs for this amp, but the amp in the original head cab was about 2 inches too wide for everything i looked at. i wanted a single spkr setup for weight etc. i am a 53 yr old guy and want the best tone i can get as simple as possible. did the right thing and got richard to sell me ( his idea) a new combo cab, blonde with wheat grill, with a private jack spkr. supremely glad i did

i was really surprised at the tone of this speaker with this amp/cab. the amp weighs in at 38 pounds and is just the right size. this amp just simply fits the way i play. a lot of bass/low end, and plenty of volume with this spkr. much more, it seems than the other single spkrs i used. i dont understand this, but the private jack is just more efficient for clean stuff. i have a nash tele i use, but on the bridge pup it sounded thin with the other spkrs,(not on the neck pup) but works great with this setup. i am sure there would be other spkrs that would work fine, but this spkr shines with this amp. really makes this amp sound big. cant tell you enough how much i love the tone of this amp. push the tone control up with the volume and turn the gain down, or switch it and use your volume control on the guitar to get a different sound. immensely satisfying.

i have no doubt at all that richard would fix anything about this. i say again he seems to really love what he is doing. very service oriented.

i am only reviewing this amp because i had many choices, have had some fine amps, but really only wanted a simple amp that used a small array of tubes, could be easily transported, sounds great with humbuckers and single coils, had a builder who would work on it for me with confidence, who i can buy matched tubes (for this amp) from and tells me to let him know how things go. glad i got in on the ground floor on this one. put #88 super 17 chassis in this new cabinet and it is a keeper all the way. the 2 tung sol 12ax7's in it went microphonic after a few months, and the power tubes wore a bit, but i put a mullard and a groove tube 12ax7m in it with a set of jj el84s and they are holding up very well. i also put in a philips 5y3gt rectifier tube in it for about 12 bucks, ( to save some wear on the tubes) the 5y3 adds just the right amount of sag for me.)

i have been playin since hendrix came out and copied that stuff note for note in high school. came up with my own style and still play, sometimes on local cable tv. my son has a green day cover band and is pretty good for his age. thinks he will be the next randy rhoads. at any rate, i havent just fallen off a turnip truck. if you have any doubts about this style of amp, get rid of them and get one of these amps. you cant go wrong. perfect blues style amp. even sounds great with an acoustic. the eminence private jack spkr really works well with it. not so much alnicos.. gets a 10. 11 if i could, best purchase in years.

This amp is serial #16, and acording to richard goodsell, the 1st head version made. It is a single channel 18 watt amp. At 18 watts it is still plenty loud. 1 volume, 1 gain, 1 tone control. Thats it, clean and simple. If there was one area I was concerned about before buying it, it was lack of features. This turns out to be one of the amps strong points as I'll get to.

I play a couple of gretsches w/filtertrons, a les paul special w/p-90's, and a tele. Over the years I have owned super reverbs, ac30's and 15's, and my fav', an early SC30 matchless combo. This amp embodies a little of all of those amp, and does some special things for me that they don't. It is by far the most touch sensitive and responsive amp I have ever played. You can set the gain up very hot, yet lay back and it cleans right up. Lay into it hard and it gives you great gain ala the matchless click channel or a cranked AC30. Tone wise it falls between those 2 amps and a super reverb-- same british chimey vibe as voxes, with a little more pleasing mids, fatter lows and just a hair more shimmer on the top end, it just really is a beautiful sounding amp. Again I was concerned it would not be flexible enough with just a tone control, but I am covering the same sonic ground with this amp as I did with the 2 channels of my matchless.

I have only has this for a month now, with no problems. It is hand wired point to point, and soldering looks clean and well done. I must admit it did throw me at first,(as it is built from old hammond organ chasis and transformer- part of why it probably sounds so cool)
so it does look a bit project-ish inside. That said, it sounds so damn good I could care less what it looks like inside. Most of the other reviews this amp has gotten have been pleased as far as reliability.

I called richard goodsell after I bought this to inquire about an optional tone control mod, and endeed up talking with him about a half an hour. Very down to earth, approachable, and clearly passionate about what he's doing. Nice to know he is so accesible.

I have been playing 30 years, and honestly didn't think I would find an amp better suited to me than my matchless, but thankful I did. This is one of those pieces I plan to hold onto for a very long time. I understand richard is now making the combo's w/optional reverb, which I hope to hear one of these days. Feel free to contact me if you have more questions

Hello,
I have had this amp for a week, and am still just floored with it. I Took a leap of faith and bought it sight unseen or heard, based soley on testimonial, and feel like I won the lottery. My biggest concern was that it had just one tone control, (and that it probably had a sweet spot that was the only usable setting) but it sounds great all around the dial- not one non-musical spot. at "0" it is round and dark, sort of clean marshally with high's rolled back, at noon it is full on chimey and present. past 2 o'clock it actually starts adding a little gain. really usable. The amp is straight simple with just single tone, volume and gain knob-single input, single 8ohm out.

I play a gretsch hollowbody with filtertrons and a les paul special w/p-90s. I have owned ac30's, 15s, an early matchless sc30, and super reverb. This amp has the spirit of a little bit of all those amps. It excells past any of these in touch sensitivity. I simply have yet to play an amp that was this dynamic and yielded such a broad spectrum of sound simply by how I played. the best way I can think of to describe it with out sounding to kooky would be "connected". It has that high end chimey vox thing happening, but with a bit more presence with out getting brittle, and a little sweeter mid, and also has tha real warm fenderish low end at the same time. If you lay on it hard with your pick hand it is very reminiscent of a fired up left channel on a matchless 30, but still has a clarity to it when you play tight voicings, it just rings. It does not get quite as much gain as the matchless at full steam. With one channel, It sounds better and covers nearly as much sonic ground as both channels of the matchless. It is not a "high gain" amp.

Well, I haven't really had it long enough to rate it from personal experience, though I did a lot of research on this amp prior to purchase and and was impressed with other owners feedback, and the wiring and solder work look clean. Hand built point to point wiring.

I read about a tone pot option on the amp and called the # on the website to enquire, ended up speaking with richard goodsell for about 20 minutes about the amp. He offered install it free. He is obviously passionate about what he does, and was great to talk to. Class act. Nice to know the guy who built is is that accessible. 10 plus++

If it isn't obvious how much I love this amp, read again. I might just buy another "just in case" mine is stolen or hit by a truck. Something I did not ad was price. new they are $1,100 for a head, and 1,400 to 1,500 for a 1 12 combo. I did not mention it earlier because $ was not a motivating factor when I went looking. That said it easily out performed most everything else in its class-some costing 3 times as much. Please e-mail me if you have any questions I didn't cover.