Schroeder DB7 (Nels Cline)

This amp has all of the features necessary for tonal shaping. Volume, treble, midrange, bass, presence, a 3-way switch with neutral, and two bright settings (bright and brighter), and a footswitch activated gain boost. In and of themselves, the tone controls sculpt the sound in a subtle, yet effective manner. My preference is running the DB7 with all tone controls around 12'clock. The amp's straight-ahead tone is so pleasing that only minor tweaks are needed to get a great sound. Kick in the bright switch if you want to add a bit more top-end shimmer to the sound. The mid boost is a very cool and useable feature. It adds a gain boost with a robust and musical midrange bump. Put simply, the amp sounds wonderful with little to no adjustment to its tone controls. The DB7 is what is: a marvelous tone machine that has a fantastic clean sound and loves effect pedals. The appearance of its timeless industrial design is one of simple understated elegance and cool.

I believe that "tone is in the ear of the beholder." I can't say I've ever played anything like this amp in the past. While it may not be an amp for every player, it is a tremendous tone tool for the player that likes a great clean foundation upon which to apply distortion and effect pedals, or outboard gear to its input. You can turn the amp up for power tube distortion and grind, however I do not prefer to use the amp this way. In my 40+ years of playing, gigging and recording, I've owned and played some of the most revered amps ever designed. I've owned my DB7 for over 4 months now and have since purchased another one for the full stereo onslaught. Having had time to seriously evaluate the sound quality and not post this review with the "latest and greatest' exuberance, I'll summarize the amp this way: The feel / response is somewhere between a small box Marshall and a Soldano SLO 100, in that is firm but offers a fairly quick response to picking. The tonal coloration is somewhere between a tweed and blackface Fender, leaning more to the neutral side than colored. The top end has some of the chime of a Hywatt or Vox. But what is really special to me about this amp is its warm, lush, and complex midrange. In my opinion, midrange is the key ingredient for great tone in any musical instrument. I've played the amp through a 1x12 open back Dr. Z cab with a Celestion G12h30, Celestion Alnico Gold, Weber 30w Bull Dog and EVM 12L. I've also played it through a Dr. Z 2x12 with Celestion Blue Bulldogs and an Orange 4x12 with ceramic Weber's. Although my personal taste is for the G12H30 1x12, all cabs and speakers offered excellent results.

Both of my amps have run perfectly. They are quiet and are consistent in tone.

I live in Chicago where Tim Shroeder makes this amp. Tim is a professional, dedicated to the art, science and craft of tone. His work is impeccable. I think some of the high sonic mojo imparted in the DB7 comes from Tim's years of being an avid high-end audiophile. Any questions I've had have been immediately and completely addressed. Tim's staff is friendly, helpful and possesses the same professional dedication.

The DB7 is a truly wonderful musical instrument. If you are a player that has been on a lifetime quest for an amp with a great response, a pristine clean foundation that brings out the best in your effect pedal arsenal, has a wonderful midrange, is quiet and extremely reliable, you owe it to yourself to check out the DB7. All this said, you really have to play the amp to appreciate its natural tonal majesty.

All tube w/ octal preamp, single channel, bright switch (cut, neutral, boost), footswitchable mid boost (very cool), and the standard volume, bass, mid, treble...
VERY solid construction. Tim pointed out the chassis is 1/8" folder aluminum! All hand wired. If you are looking for a second channel for more gain etc, this amp isn't your thing. Also there is no reverb, but i don't really use it often anyway.

This amp has outstanding harmonic content and great midrange. The sustain is unlike any other amp I have played in my many years. Extremely quiet, high headroom amp. The eq controls are responsive for some tonal variety and the mid boost really kicks the harmonic content up and makes this amp sing.
This is not a high gain screamer. It does break up when really pushed, but is mainly a very quiet, clear, full sounding head.

From my experience with Schroeder Guitar & Amp Repair they are true to there word and the quality is nothing but top notch. Tim has a personal guarantee with each amp sold.

After recieving the amp Tim insist I play it for a minimum of 100 hours and then bring it back for a free voicing. That is enough said for me.

I am beyond pleased with the Schroeder DB7. It is hand wired, the construction, tone and reliability are all of the highest degree I have experienced.
There is no reverb and some may want a gain channel, but this amp delivers on what it promises.

This is a custom head built for Nels Cline. The controls are:

Volume
Treble
Mid
Bass
Presence
Variable footswitch for mid boost
3 way bright switch
4, 8, 16 ohm outs

Mercury Magnetics transformers, 2 6L6???s, 1 6SC7, 2 12AX7's, 5U4 rectifier.

You can get it in red tolex, or a custom made red lacquered wood box.

This is a one channel amp. My only gripe would be the fact that it doesn't have reverb, which I use a lot.

I played this amp multiple times at Schroeder Guitar & Amp Repair in Chicago. It was the prototype and I have placed an order for my own. I played a strat, an Explorer, and a Les Paul through this at various volumes. Really great great cleans, a lot of headroom, great harmonics and chime and a lot of "bloom". Seriously one of the BEST clean headroom amps I have heard hands down.

When cranked it does start to break up and scream, but it seems to be mainly a clean headroom style amp. I think it is perfect if you use a lot of fx pedals, like myself. The amp is unbelieveably quiet at all volumes.

It is hand built with point to point wiring. Looks and feels extremely solid.

The guys I have spoken with a Tim Schroeder's shop have all been very pleasant and knowledgable.

A beautiful looking and great sounding one channel amp. No reverb, but that is easily remedied. Hand built with point to point wiring, really solid. I have been playing the guitar for about 20 years and have played a lot of different gear over the years. This is definately a boutique piece of gear that should be heard.