Custom Shop: Wurlitzer 106P — Studious Amplifiers Collaboration *RE-Run*

Have a look–and listen–to the latest Wurlitzer 106P Restoration from our Custom Shop:

RE-Run Alert! We’re uploading a previous blog post published in March of 2016 that featured our collaboration with our dear friend Bryant at Studious Amplifiers. This piano was one of our favorite custom pianos that we ever built and now is home to Marco Benevento, where we hope that it continues to inspire! We are still settling into our new location on Cicero and will have new posts for you as soon as things are back to normal. Until then, enjoy another look–and listen–to this beautiful customization:

We are excited to announce that this is our first completed collaboration with Studious Amplifiers working on a custom design for an all-tube Wurlitzer amplifier. Our past amplifier designs were based loosely off of a Fender Princeton amplifier design with a push-pull 6V6 power amplifier. The latest design, designed from scratch by Bryant Howe of Studious Amplifiers, makes use of a single ended EL84 power amp and a design and is most closely derived from a more Hi-Fi tube amplifier setups.

Our goal for the amplifier was to make it more versatile than the stock Wurlitzer amplifiers by giving the player a greater range of vibrato and a larger range of tonal variations for the player. The outcome is an amplifier that has great warm and mellow tones, vibrato with variable speed and a deep range of dynamic intensity, and also to drive the amplifier with some wonderful tube grit when cranked up to its limit. It’s very warm and has great clean and gritty tones that we hope players will find inspirational.

We hope you will enjoy the sound samples below through your favorite set of headphones or monitors: 

1a) Clean & Warm DI:

1b) Clean & Warm Amplified:

 

2a) Clean with Light Vibrato DI:

2b) Clean with Light Vibrato Amplified:

 

3a) Clean with Heavy Vibrato DI:

3b) Clean with Heavy Vibrato Amplified:

 

4a) Heavy Overdrive DI:

4b) Heavy Overdrive Amplified: 

 

Signal “DI:” Wurlitzer 106P > Studious 200T Amp > DI Box > Zoom H6N

Signal “Amplified:” Wurlitzer 106P > Studious 200T Amp > DI Box > Fender Twin Reverb RI > Zoom H6N

Please share your feedback in the comment section below with feedback of these samples. 

…Looking for more Wurlitzer sound samples? You can compare this amplifier with our past push-pull 6V6 design on this previous Wurlitzer 106P restoration.

The 106 requires a level of customization that makes each one a near one-of-a-kind. The main reason for this is because the on board amplification of a stock 106 uses a power supply shared between eight units mounted together. Once they are removed they require a custom solution to bring the individual instruments back to life.

A stock 106 piano also lacks sustain pedal function, which we always insist on installing because it brings out even more of the resonance of the 106’s thin reed bar rail. This requires a deal of detailed work but is well worth all of the extra effort.

–In the end, each 106 comes out with it’s own unique setup and once again this one is currently a one-of-a-kind! 

For this restoration we used Ken Rich Sound Services reproduction chrome legs and sustain pedals. The pair have proven to be the most durable and best looking reproduction Wurlitzer legs and pedal currently available. These are one of the last of Ken’s set and we are anxiously awaiting his next production with a new manufacturer!

 

 

Thanks again to all of the extra design work by Bryant Howe with Studious Amplifiers. We hope that you’ll check out his hand wired guitar amplifiers!