Kendrick Twin Tweed 212 Combo

I believe this amp was made in '92. It is a faithful replication of a '57 Fender high powered Twin tweed with a couple of "modern" twists. Handwired and constructed of the finest quality parts like the original. Basically it's an 80 watt tube rectified amp with an effects loop and a transformer that can take different output tube types. The cabinet is solid pine like the original and the twill is faithfull in grain direction to the original. It has seriously upgraded Kendrick blackframe speakers that are very heavy and probably very high powered compared to the originals Jensens. There are four inputs which are high and low normal and bright. They sound great each on their own and even bigger and better jumpered. I use Rapco AB switches to access either or both or niether and a VHT Valvulator to buffer the line so I don't lose signal through the effects or AB boxes. I use two AB boxes. One for each amp. The Kendrick amp has treble, middle bass. presence and two volume controls for each input. There is also a volume control for the effects loop located under the chasis so as to keep the look true to the original. You can also use a footswitch with the effects loop for a variable boost from a 12AX7 tube. Real tube overdrive! Cool! I play in a very loud rock band in a tourist town so I cover a lot of tonal and dynamic ground. I use this amp in a two amp switching configuration with a few stompboxes and a Fender '63 reissue tube reverb unit. This essentially is a reproduction of what at the time was a top of the line amp. By todays standard it could be considered primitive. I happen to like primitive and find master volume amps to be somewhat generic sounding and a bit too polite for my taste. I would give the original a 7 for features and this gets an 8.

I LOVE this amp! This is a mans amp. I use it in a slightly different configuration than the original. This shipped with NOS 5881 power tubes and a Mullard rectifier tube. I've tried it as a 45 watt by pulling two output tubes which lowers the output a bit but still sounds very full and loud but now I use it with a solid state rectifier and 4 EL 34's. I replaced the first preamp stage 12 AY7 with a higher gain 12 AX7. The solid state rectifier tightens things up nicely. I didn't care for the tube rectifier in 80 watt mode too much. It seems to be over powered in that configuration causing more mushiness than I like. The Mullard GZ34 seems to handle 45 watts OK. I find these tweeds such as Bassmans, high powerds and even Marshall to be a little mushy if you push them too far. This seems a little tighter in the current configuration than many vintage pieces I play or own. I compare this to my other main amp which is a Hylite era Hiwatt DR-103 100 watt head that is the best sounding amp I've ever played. It's got a tightness and power and agression that is never mushy. The two amps compliment each other beautifully. I generally don't like high powered speakers in these types of amps as I feel that the lower powered speakers add to the tonality in a positive way. The Kendrick speaker sound really good though and they help keep the low end tight. They are supposed to be very efficient. I may experiment with Jensens or greenback Celestion 25 watters in the future though.The sound of this amp seems complex to me as if many things happen at once. The normal input is balanced sounding and full and can sound kind of dusky. The bright channel is glassy with a thinner bottom. When jumpered, it sound full and and very aggressive with a touch of glassiness on the top. Early Claptonesque. I run the volumes about halfway and with the SS rectifier and EL 34's it's closely related to a Marshall Plexi. I can use the guitars volume to do 90% of what I need an amp to do. When I use my Full drive or Blues driver, I can get into early Van Halen territory quite nicely. It's not as loud as my Hiwatt (a good thing). I occasionally use a custom built attenuator when necessary. I give the Hiwatt a 9.9 for sound quality. This gets a 9.

Built like a Brick s**thouse. Mighty Mighty.

I should mention that I bought this on Ebay used. It was in perfect condition. I've since put a couple of miles on it but I move it with a cover and try to take care of it. I'm not a tech but I can change tubes and bias. Someday it will need a cap job. I'll do it myself or have it done locally. These are easy amps to work on as they are handwired like the original. Not tweed look-alikes like THD or Peavey with printed circuit boards. Iv'e emailed Gerald Webber and he gets right back to you. He seems to be a very gracious man. So far though, I've not had reason to use customer support or his other services.

I own many amps. If this was lost I'd look for another although they don't seem that common and are a little pricey for my budget. I'm enjoying it very much now though. It's better suited for my gig than a bassman and seems to have better midrange response and plenty of lows and highs. I find myself using it more and more. It's often the right amp. There is much to like. It has that elusive cool factor. It sounds great consistently and makes you feel cool when you play it. It's a classic.