So why aren't Voodoo amps selling?

It's hapenning for everything else....look around. Sales are really hard to come by. I think everyone is holding their money.

 

bad time of year...everyone's broke after christmas

 

It is a symptom of the masses not understanding what makes great instruments and equipment. I guy will pay 1200 for a new Marshall, and 2K for a Gibson Les Paul, and almost 1000 for a Fender Strat. Yet a Voodoo amp, which is a far superior amp to any Marshall is hard to sell, G&L's aren't selling either, and Heritage Guitars will sit in a store forever. The other brands are superior in every way, but he masses will buy based on the established name!

This is true in other industries as well. The masses are sheep! It's good for me, as I have gotten great deals on new used boutique instruments. My Egnater Mod 50 I bought new for 2K, and it is the best amp I have ever had! My Kurt Wilson was 1750 new, and my G&L was less than 800 used in mint condition. I would put any of those against any of their competitors, and each instrument would sound and play better than their Gibson, Fender and Marshal counterparts! If I had to, I would pay double what I paid for each of my instruments and amps and still be happy...my tone is just plain better, and my gear is more reliable and will last a lifetime!

 

There are a lot of quality builders in that market and if somehow you don't get onto the limelight list, which Voodoo hasn't, the amps are worth a few hundred less. That amp at $1,250 will sell eventually.

 

The Voodoo amps don't have enough exposure or market saturation yet. If a person can't hear/play one and doesn't know of anyone else that has, either, than he isn't going to take a chance on buying one on blind faith at the risk of having to take a big hit upon resale.

Sometimes a few key star endorsements can make a great difference for a small company. For example, Bogner made a name for himself in the 80's with his mods for the big guys before he launched his own line. Splawn got a few endorsements for his amps including the guitarist for Godsmack, which helped quite a bit.

Having a well-supported user forum can be very productive in promoting your amps, too. And if the owner stops supporting a forum, it can die on the vine. An example of this that comes to mind is Terry C. McInturff, a great boutique guitar builder. He used to be very active in communicating with his customers on the TCM forum. But after he dropped out for a prolonged period, the forum nearly died out and you don't hear much about TCM guitars anymore. That has had an affect on resale value of used McInturff guitars even though they are phenomenal.

 

This is very true. And the thing is, it's NOT like a few star players aren't using Voodoo amps in their live and recording rigs -- they are! But Voodoo, the company, never gets credit where due in magazine print interviews. Maybe the guitar mags have a policy not to mention company names that don't advertise with them? Donno. But I know of at least one player who mentioned Voodoo Amps by name in his {insert mag name here} interview, and that reference was edited out for print, so....

And then you get guys like Ken Susi from Unearth who's a Voodoo user, but due to his VHT amps endorsement, that's all you ever hear about is the VHTs. Even when they Guitar Geek'ed his rig, they had him using all D120 amps, which is not true. Ken uses (1) VHT D120 and (1) Voodoo CP-100.

The other thing is -- it's my perception (as a rather new TGP reader) that folks here think of Voodoo as "just another hain-gain metal company," which is a little unfair. I happen to own a 50wt V-Plex and a 50wt V-Reck (Trainwreck nod, not clone) and they're both amazing amps. Both are very versatile in tones.

Voodoo makes a damn nice 4x12 as well -- they have a killer, tight low end to them. Made me sell off all my Marshall cabs as they sounded wimpy in comparison.

I donno. Despite three glowing reviews for the V-Plex amp in Vintage Guitar, Guitar World and Guitar Player, they still seem to fly under the radar a bit of the common populus. Damn shame if you ask me. I used to own a Germino Lead55 and I thought the V-Plex was hands-down the better "plexi" amp.

 

Oh, and while traveling through the Ithaca area one day, I had the pleasure of playing on this amp, and wanted to mention it for kudos. DAMN FINE COMBO -- that went from sweet Fendery cleans to gnarly gains with a singing sustain. Very impressive. I'd own one to gig with if I had the available cash...

http://www.voodooamps.com/home/Prod.../VoodooWitchdoctorCombo/tabid/70/Default.aspx

:AOK

 

I've also noticed the VPlex's for sale recently also (cause I own one which I bought here on TGP last year - its not going anywhere). And I think to myself why aren't people snatching these up - they are GREAT plexi amps and people are giving them away. The build quality is top notch and Trace and Co. customer support is first class.

The fact is there are so many really good amps out there these days its hard to filter through all the choices available (especially for those of us who live in a city that does not have many stores which carry good gear). The prices on these are so good I might just have to pick one up for a back up.

 

Well, this is just one man's opinion, but as someone who owns original plexi's ('66 shared cathode circuit and a '69 split cathode), as well as an early PTP metalface SLP, i'd say I'm fairly familiar with the authentic Marshall sound.

Like Jimo noted, there are indeed some great testaments to this design out on the market, and players have many options available to them. Myself, I've owned a lot of amps in this style, including: Blockhead, Roccaforte, Metropolous, Germino and Voodoo.

The one I kept was the Voodoo. Why? Well, based upon these reasons:
- "plexi" amp built to modern day specs (reliability)
- quiet operation
- flexible EQ controls that "work"
- wide range of gain (yes, seemingly more on tap than other amps?)
- NOT a treble monster!

There are some amps which I really loved, including the 25wt Germino Masonette. That amp really SANG when cranked. But for a "best of all worlds" type scenario, I kept the V-Plex. I'm not sure I'd agree with Pickslide that it's a more "modern" Plexi voicing? Maybe it's the EQ ctrls that really have an effect when you turn em? The V-Plex is unique - taht is, the amp is voiced very differently from the other amps I owned in this ilk. It seems very balanced to me, which I like, while remaining true to the originals from which it was born. And I also like the fact that if I want a thicker tone, that I can get that by cranking the levels and foregoing a boost box out front.

I donno - that's my take. FYi and fwiw...

 

Too many Plexi 50 and JTM 45 makers? Voodoos are great amps, and CS is great, I've owned a V-Plex. The $1200-$1400 price point seems very popular however with other Boutique Builders...most of them do not use MM Trannys, ect though or have the exposure Voodoo Does.

Look at all the 18 watters, home builders, etc, same thing is happening, brings down the price point on all of them.

 

I am probably the average person-

I have heard of Voodoo but know little about them. There are dozens of companies that make really good amps for me to choose from. The market is saturated with great amps. Voodoo isn't on my radar and probably won't be anytime soon.

 

+1

I think visible endorsements and amount spent on advertising are major factors.

From everything I've heard Voodoo Amps are the bees knees.

stratzrus

 

Ive had a JCM modded into a HEX. Its one of the most amazing amps ive ever played. Harmonics were easy and it was a very creamy high gain beast. Id love to own a voodoo again.

IMHO the only reason they arent that big is the lack of brand and lack of features. I think alot of people expect a bit more from botique amps like 2 channels, reverb etc etc or something that will make it more useable than just a vintage clone. The reason i sold my hex was it was a single channel amp that was fantastic at high gain... but there was so much gain that even if i rolled of the volume.. id still get too much grit. Anyway, if you are looking for a plexi clone, i really do think that trace and the guys at voodoo are great people to deal with. Very helpful and really nice guys with a quality product.

 

I can vouch for that. I picked up a great first year GL ASAT Thinline Claassic Deluxe with flame top and binding, in near mint condition with a nice 2 x 12 cab with celestions for $800.

The guy I got it from said it was a jazz guitar and he couldn't get any drive
out of it....had the seymor duncan pearly gate 59 humbuckers in it.

I bought it on the spot with out even plugging in....The Pick ups were
mounted flush with the body, and it had never been set up properly....
That was all it took to make this axe into a players dream, with gobs
of tone...either single coil or full bucker ; )

 

The field is thick with Marshall-type amps; period.

 

This is probably only gonna get worse...as the US economy slows (if it is indeed slowing) I think we might lose some boutique companies. There are SO many high end amp, pedal, and guitar builders right now. 10 years ago there were a handful, now there's a boutique guy on every corner.