12" Alnico TT Field Reports 2003 - 2004

I bought a THD Univalve because I thought maybe this will give me what I am looking for. It did. And then I saw your speakers and thought I would give them a try. I am so glad I did. I have been playing this thing since it arrived yesterday afternoon. All I can say is I am glad the Univalve has a Hot Plate - I would probably be deaf by now.
Thanks for the speaker. I am having a great time!

Mark Keckeis/Arizona


Sweet, full tones from funky hemp cones

Vintage Guitar Magazine November 2003

 We recently glommed a semi-openback Tone Tubby 4x12" speaker cabinet with four TT12 Alnico 12" speakers with (of course) hempcone drivers. Aesthetically, the Tone Tubby looks much like most extension cabinets, measures a sporty 26"x26"x12" with a straight baffle and 7"x14" opening in the back, and is covered in black tolex, with black grillcloth, metal corners, and large, recessed bar handles. Tone Tubby will dress up any of it's cabs in red, green, brown, or blonde tolex and dress it up with gold, silver, oxblood, or wheat grillcloth. The 2x12 is available in either vertical or horizontal arrangement. And if your inclined, they'll make your cab (regardless of variety) look very Vox-like! How'd it Soun? We checked out the cab using a 100 watt Reeves head, all-tube Peavey, and a Marshall. Our test guitars were a Fender '62 reissue Strat and a Gibson Les Paul Classic. We kicked things off with the Peavey, and at our customary settings we noticed a drop-off in the upper end of the frequency response compared to what we typically run it through. But with a slight bump in the highs, we were able to get more of the tone we knew so well.
Thus was revealed one aspect of the Tone Tubby cab; in general its tone is a little darker than you might be accustomed to, smoothing the peaks and valleys in the frequency response that you find with with most closed 4x12s, while maintaining the solid, thumpy low end that made the configuration famous. And it proffered the midrange airiness that appeals to fans of the open back cab. In the "gravy" department, despite being pushed hard, these little hemp monsters didn't go into that beyond-the-limits farting out that tends to plague low-watt alnico speakers. Overall, our run with the Tone Tubby was very pleasing. Whether we plugged in the Strat or Les Paul and power courtesy of Peavey, Marshall, or Reeves, it highlighted the inherent tone of our guitars and amps. John Harrison's hemp cones may indeed be a daydream come true.
- Phil Feser / Bob Tekippe

Performing Songwriter Magazine
Tech Feature Sidebar
Issue Date: July-August, 2003
Issue #: 71 Product Area
Author: Fett

Manufacturer: A Brown Soun
Product Name: Tone Tubby
Description: Guitar Amp Speaker



What do guitar tone gods Eric Clapton, Carlos Santana, Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top and Sonny Landreth all have in common? They've all replaced their guitar amps' speakers with Tone Tubbies from A Brown Soun. We gave one a whirl to see what all the fuss is about... Our test setup was a '72 Fender Telecaster through a small practice amp in clean rhythm, overdriven rhythm, and lead settings, comparing three speakers: the amp's stock speaker, a Hempcone Tone Tubby, and an original 1960's Vox AC30 speaker that we had available. In all cases, the Tone Tubby shone--especially when compared to the stock amp speaker. Our listening crew used words like "bright, harsh, biting, irritating and gritty" to describe that speaker, while for the Tone Tubby, they used words like "beefy, warm, smooth, pleasant and musical." Interestingly, although the old Vox speaker had all the warmth and low end of the Tone Tubby, it was comparatively quite "muffled" and lacked definition across the frequency spectrum. The Tone Tubby was clearly the hands-down winner. Quite frankly, I was surprised that a speaker, with all other things being equal, could make such a dramatic improvement in the sound of a guitar amp. Clapton might still be god to some, but Tone Tubby now rules the amp speaker universe! For more info: www.tonetubby.com.

Excerpt from Guitar Player Magazine January 2003

GP: And you're also using a bigger cabinet.

Carlos: Yes, a 4x12. We found this gentleman who makes speakers with hemp cones (these are Tone Tubby alnico speakers made by A Brown Soun in San Rafael, California). When I told this to Dumble, he cracked up.
Oh I know who that is.

... now because I use four 12s with the Dumble head, I get the Pavarotti and Placido Domingo belly tones.

The combination of the Dumble amp, the hemp speakers, and this new mic means I don't have to look for tone anymore, says Santana. You just plug in and go mamma mia-even if your not Italian.

Carlos Santana
More about Carlos at santana.com

"They have everything"Carlos Santana

Carlos's Brown cab with 4x12 Tone Tubby Hempcone™
Used on the new album and on tour. More Info Here

Eric Clapton Tubbs for the Queen

Eric's Cornell Twin with 2x12 Tone Tubby Hempcone™
More Info Here



ZZ Top- Billy Gibbons

More about the band at zztop.com

Excerpt from The Tone Quest Report Interview
October 2002

TQR: Tell us about your fascination with the old tweed Fender Dual Professionals.
Yes... by the way - the Hemp Tone Tubby speakers were sent over to the studio last week. We had a couple of Dual Showman cabs, and you know that amp went through an evolutionary renaissance, but fortunately, we had a couple of the old, smaller 2x12 cabinets with the maroon grill cloth. Now, I didn't realize that they make a "darker" and a "brighter" Hemp Tone Tubby, so we did a little experiment and loaded one cabinet with the two darker ones side by side and the other cabinet with the two brighter ones. Then we tried another cabinet with one of each in the same cabinet. Each one of them has merits, and they're all different, but we concluded that no matter how you stack it, that is one fine, fine piece of product. They look great, but most importantly, they sound great. They are really stunning, and they stand tall with anything - blue frame Jensens, 30 year old Celestion Greenbacks, the Vox Bulldog... you name it. All of the industry leaders are now standing beside another new individual, and it's really cool.
TQR: We couldn't agree more. It's not often that something truly new and cool comes along, just like those old Dual Professionals in their time...

Wednesday, April 16, 2003

Greetings...! The Tones are in service and performing beautifully. We have now installed all the stage cabinets with 'em and the iso-box set-up is runnin' 'em hard. Compliments on a fine speaker, amigo.

We are preparing to depart for an upcoming tour beginning in the USA April 25. Come on out. The California dates commence June 3rd. I'll attempt to forward a current schedule from the ZZ TOP website as the bookings continue. I look forward to checkin' in with you and your crewe...!

Kindest Regards,

Billy F Gibbons

Update: ZZ Top at Shoreline Amphitheatre June 8th, 2003

They do it for me!

Bob Weir/Grateful Dead

Good afternoon,
I've had my Tone Tubby 12" speaker for two months now and have received tons of compliments on my tone. I have a 64 Strat, PRS McCarty with S.D. antiquity pickups and a G&L ASAT Classic with a Lindy Fralin Vintage Bridge pickup. Amps include Mesa Single Rectifier, Mesa F-30 and the very first Fender Showman prototype with a 1-12" cabinet. All of my amps and guitars sound amazing with Tone Tubby.
In all styles of playing I am excited to say the Tone Tubby has brought shame to the original Celestion V-30 I pulled out of the Mesa Boogie products. (V-30's seam stiff and muddy) My leads are now silky and thick, my overdrive is fat and articulate without any harsh high end. Side by side with numerous other speakers, nothing compares. Thank you for developing such a beautiful and musical speaker!
I just love your speaker and will be purchasing more in the future.

Respectfully,

Todd D. Sims/Rancho Cucamongo, CA.

John, Thanks for letting me check out these speakers - they sound great in the Dumble Cab! Fact is, I find them to work really well in both open and closed back cabinets. Great work on your part in coming up with such a cool speaker. Take care and lets keep in touch.

Sonny Landreth/Breaux Bridge, LA

Dear John, I've just sent off my comments regarding your Hemp Cone speaker to David Wilson at The ToneQuest Report. I am on the ToneQuest advisory board and am a professional player here in the Nashville, TN area. David sent me one of your speakers for evaluation and I have to tell you I think it's wonderful. I believe David will print my views in the upcoming issue. I have it in a Princeton Reverb and it's been in there for about a month or so now. I've actually used it on a couple of record dates recently. One for Delbert McClinton (Delbert just won a Grammy award for Best Contemporary Blues Album) and also for country singer Pam Tillis. I even used it for pedal steel guitar on one cut! Those albums should come out by the years end. I'd like to send you copies when I get them. Anyway, I do a lot of session work as well as touring stuff out of Nashville. David Wilson is a great person and I think his publication is the best thing out there for us musicians, gear heads and tone freaks. Totally top notch! I only have one problem with your speaker. I don't want to give it back! Can we work out some kind of deal? I'll pay! Thanks,

James Pennebaker/Nashville, TN

Hey John, I really like that cab, it sounds wonderful.

Jimmy Herring

All I can say for now is that both the H1E and ESPECIALLY the H1EDD completely blew me away -- I first installed the H1EDD in a Dr.Z 1*12 cab and put my dead mint 66 Deluxe with tuned NOS tubes thru and I have never heard any vintage amp -- including one Keef I used to own -- that sounded anywhere this GOOD. I was so blown away I played a dozen guitars through it in one straight 4 hour sitting. I have heard quite a few mint and reconed Jensen '50s & '60s and JBL Ds with the best restored vintage amps and NOTHING had this kind of fidelity, tone, balance, and ambience.

Kudos,,

Paul/ Tokyo, Japan

Update July 21, 2003.
Hi Guys, Just had time to really play your 4x12 today. Many Thanks! Extremely SOLID construction, best of both worlds open-closed back baffle system design. By far the most tonally open + complex cab of any type I have ever played: sustain + true harmonics everywhere. This baby is louder than I expected! I'll let you know more later. Update Aug 13th. The 4x12 is incredible, so much louder and more complex than anything I've ever played (Marshall, Bogner, Hughes & Kettner etc). I really have to use ear plugs on this baby, really blew my ears a few weeks ago.


Well , i think i hate you guys & i know my wife does . these things are great . i have now played on 2 seperate stages with them & my boogie triaxis has never sounded so good . the bad news is that i also have a 2-10" boogie cab that i will have to try the 10"s in , an old boogie mark4 that i think the tubby will not only sound better in but also lighten the weight of the damn thing , & i am also thinking of trying one in my old polytone mini brute jazzbo amp . looks like i had better go out & try to get some better gigs to pay for these things .
later

m. buford robey/ Las Vegas, NV

Hello John, I installed my Tubby in the little Mesa combo right away. Big difference in punch, clarity and dynamics. Every note in each chord has its own voice. Congratulations on a very musical speaker. The clean channel goes from glassy to grind and the gain channel takes over where that leaves off. My Studio .22 is changed from a one trick pony to a usable amp with a wide range of sounds. The PRS sounds great and my amp has turned Strat friendly. I can tell from the clarity of the highs that it will cut through the band at lower volumes than before.
I will send you whatever business as I can. Mike Barclay needs your speakers.

Stoked in Sebastopol,

Norm Perry

As a long time player and seeker of "The Tone", I want to thank you for bringing this quality product to the market. I have no doubt that your speakers will be a sought-after upgrade for classic tube junkies and modern
amp builders alike. Everyone who has heard my 12 inch "Hempcone" just can't believe its sweet presence and dynamic range. It has made everything I play through it sound better! Can't wait to get a 10 inch for my
Princeton. A Loyal Customer,

Peter Brooks/ Seattle, WA.

I just played my guitar for the first time in a really large church in Castro Valley. Afterwards I had the sound guy comming up to me and complimenting my big rich tone.... he loved it. They don't know about your the why's .... but they loved the sound. I was playing through a Fender Deluxe 66 Blackface and an original Paul Reed Smith Santana 1. Anyway I thought you'ld like to know even folks who aren't experienced with gear think your stuff sounds great..... it does!!!

Keven Ledbetter/Northern California

Hi guys. My Tone Tubby speaker arrived today and went into my MusicMan 112RD combo. Straight away it sounds great. The Celestion V30 I had in it previously was a good match in this amp and sounded great but the TT
is definitely tighter in the bottom end and also sweeter in the top end. As it breaks in with some use I am sure it will sound even better. I have several speaker brands, JBL, Celestion, Weber and a few others and I am immediately impressed with the TT tone. Nice work, now I will wait for your 15 incher for my PedalSteel..

Ivan Posa/ New Zealand

Hi There,

I originally planed to replace the ceramic speaker in my small Fender Custom Shop Woody Junior Ash Amplifier by the 12' alnico hemp Tubby. Unfortunately the motor is more pro eminent then the original Fenderceramic speaker so I could not replace the amp section back to the correct position. I decided to replace the 90 W Celestion of my Mesa Boogie Mark IV combo. Once the Tubby in place, the sound was so much better without any break-in time that I was immediately impressed. The alnico speaker is more open, fruity and pleasant at any volume. Without
overdriving any amp or preamp sections, the clear sound has some exciting harmonics that my amp never shown before. When delivering a saturated sound, the overdrive is velvety and pleasant, never aggressive to the ear. I changed it back again to the original speaker to be sure I was not dreaming but no: The original ceramic speaker sounded cold, narrow in spectrum without any personality, boring.

Best Regards,

Pierre Cordin/ Columbia, MD.

Received the speaker today. Been playing and comparing for a few hours, and it sounds great, very correct and inspiring. Make's you wanna play longer, and forget about time.
Thanks alot!.

Alf / Norway

I got my Tone Tubbies today! I installed my tone tubbies today! And I LOVED my Tone Tubbies today!
All I can say is:

WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks,

Bud Wood / The Woodlands, TX

Hello John, Sean with The Codetalkers w/ Col. Bruce here, just wanted to say thanks for the hospitality you showed us when we were out in Cali last month. Bruce's Tone Tubbys are a joy to listen to night after night. His 'vahmet' tone never sounded so sweet. Look forward to trying the bass speakers when I get a chance. Congratulations and good luck

Sean Peterson / USA

Gentlemen,
We tried the two new Hemps I just purchased and they were the winner of our shootout - hands down! The bottom was bigger and tighter, and the mids were full and not mushy, and most importantly, they were not shrill on the high end. A real winner. Count us in.

Frank C. Matunas / The Vintage Amp Shop/Union, NJ

I wanted to let you know that I'm very very pleased with my cabinet. It's a perfect match for my Two Rock Topaz head. Usually I have to use some reverb but I played all night without it and the resonance from the speakers was terrific. The response and tone are unbelievable.

Thanks again,

Michael /RedCrowStudios

Just wanted to let you know how great the 2x12 cab with hemps sound with my 100W Dumble Overdrive Special. Like everyone else, I became interested in your speakers after the ToneQuest article. I became especially interested after checking out Steve Kimock's site and hearing him say that the Tubbies and cab were an exceptional match for his Dumble rig. The speakers are not even broken in yet and the cab is everything I wanted to match up with this amp. By the way, the break in is very dramatic with the hemps - after a few hours the bottom and high end really open up. I only have about 4-5 playing time on them and they keep getting better. For years I was wanting something that was less strident to use with my Dumbles. The EV was always the best compromise because even though it was very "in your face" and somewhat sterile sounding, at least it could handle the increased bandwidth and dynamics of the amp. Plus, the rumor has always been that Dumble tunes the amps for EV speakers. I don't know how to describe the sound of the Brown cab with the amp other than to say it sounds more organic and tuned for guitar, as opposed to a "PA" type of sound. It feels good to play; almost like a chewy type of feel without losing any dynamics or sounding overly compressed. The bottom is extended but still tight and the upper harmonics are very sweet. The speakers can easily handle the amp turned up LOUD in the 100W setting with no cone cry or harsh "tizzy"sounding speaker breakup. Later this week I am going to try the cab with my Trainwreck Express and Liverpool amps. I will let you know what happens.

Kimo Leong /Coconut Grove Music/Kailua, HI

I thought I should take a moment to write and let you know just how pleased I am with my hempcome TT. I had a Fender 65 Deluxe Reissue that I knew had potential, but it sounded so boxy and shrill with original ceramic speaker. I had tried a jensen P-12R as a replacement and got very discouraged, it got even thinner sounding and the highs were unpalatable. I had resigned myself to the conclusion that this amp was destined to sound thin. I came across your ad in Vintage Guitar and thought maybe its worth investigating. My wife purchased my TT for a birthday gift and I have to say it is one of the best presents I have ever received. This thing is the BALLS! No more thin shrill high-end and boxy lows, just pure TONE! I would without a doubt recommend these speakers to anyone looking for a sonic upgrade, I now love my reissue Deluxe. I cant say enough positive things about your product 100% quality and 100% fat flavorful tones. Thanks again!!!

John A. Johnson/Westbrook, MN

Howdy boys,

My cabinet arrived right on time yesterday. My wife and I were impressed with the care you took in protecting it from any shipping damage. As for the cabinet, the workmanship is of the highest order, the ToneQuest article that inspired my purchase was right on the money about that. It looks great, very distinctive in an understated classy way. And the sound, oh the sound! Clear, smooth, well articulated and defined, and with a rock solid bottom end, more than I expected from a single 12". Yeah, I like it a lot. This is without a doubt the best guitar speaker/cabinet of this size that I have ever heard. It was well worth the wait. Please extend my compliments and appreciation to everyone who had a hand in producing this little gem. Gee, I wonder how my rig would sound with a 2x12?
Gotta start saving... I am one happy guitarist and a proud Tone Tubby owner.

Sincerely,

John Kearney/Ijamsville, MD

John I have been playing the Celestion Blues you overhauled for me with the Hemp cones for a couple of weeks now. I can tell you that after having vintage and modern Celestions, Fanes, Jensens, etc. (I have been playing for 31 years), these are THE BEST sounding speakers I have come across. I play thru a '73 Marshall Super Tremolo that has been converted to use KT66's and re-capped and re-filtered to JTM 45 100 specs. I WAS playing thru a '70 Marshall 4x12 with original Celestion 25 watt Greenbacks. The key word here is 'was'. Ever since I put the speakers you reworked back in their Marshall 4x12, they are the only speakers I use. (I played every amp I own thru the speakers and every one sounded better that ever) I have a '67 Traynor bottom with '67 20 watt Celestions that was/is my favorite speaker cabinet?.. But I do not like to push it hard or gig with it? I have had it since Highschool and to me it is irreplaceable?.. If I was to blow a cone it would really upset me. Your modded speakers sound nearly the same as those 20 watters? a bit tighter in the bottom end (A very Good thing!!)? and I know they can take a bit more punishment. Your speakers have so much upper end harmonics that I have been able to reduce the gain I play with, get better tone, and NOT have my ears hammered by the harsh top end Celestions have. Even though the hemp cones have Waaaaaay more upper end detail, they are very smooth and mellow. I love these speakers. Kind of a long winded way of saying Thank you?. But I wanted you to know just how pleased I am. There is one problem? I have all these other speakers that now sound so boring. Thank You.

Matthias A. Jans, Jr./Palatine, IL

Note: This report is about Celestion Blues that we reconed as Tone Tubbies.

I recently received one of your 12" speakers and installed it in a single twelve cab with a fender concert head. First of all I had tried every speaker imaginable in that combination and never liked any of them especially the Jensen alnico's because to me they sounded very harsh on the top end. So I was skeptical of your alnico speakers.
To my amazement when I first heard this speaker I couldn't believe the soft smoothness of the top end and started turning up the volume to see if they would get brittle as I got louder. Well, just the opposite happened. As I turned up the volume the sound became silkier and warmer. May I add that the low end is punchy and tight just the way I like to hear it. I plan to install your speakers in all of my amps, especially because I play all types of music for which I would need a great clean sound which they give me to a nasty dirty grind which they are incredible for.

You guy's have made magic!
A sound I've heard in my head for years and couldn't find it till now. Thanks

Tony Galla/LA,CA

Hello John & company, rarely does a product deliver what it promises, but in the case of the Tone Tubby such is not the case! I find your product to exceed expectations! After 30+ years of playing guitar, I'm not easily impressed. Tone Tubby takes me there. Keep it up!

Dan Quinnan/Grass Valley, CA

I just received a tone tubby yesterday and installed it into my 1980 mesa boogie mkII which came with an EV. I have been playing a Bogner Shiva combo for the last 2 years and could not stand the sound of the boogie so buying your speaker was a last ditch effort before selling the hardwood collectors item. Much to my surprise, the tubby makes this amp sound great - very warm and no more beaming highs and the speaker has yet to be broken in. Thanks again for a truly great product.

Rudi Kohnke/Elk Grove, IL

To David Wilson at ToneQuest
David, two more things, in your last issue before the two rock article, you ended it by saying dont buy another amp until you read about two rock amps. As much as i like this amp and agree with what you said, i would have to add whole heartedly, "Dont buy another amp till you get a Tone Tuby cab in hemp! I say this with my own tonehunt in mind and how it would have and is changed completly by these speakers! This rig is great with everything from my es175 to 335 to a parker to the stratt i got from you. Just a thought!

Rick Castleberry/Lilburn, GA
Hey John,
This is Mike Pogo from Burlington, VT. I'm sorry, I never came to thank you for the wonderful tone tubby speakers you sent me back in December. they are completely marvelous! my temp band Japanese Razor did a few shows around New Jersey in January, so it was a true test of power to rev up some of those Mahavishnu tunes to the fullest. They were a blast...
Well thanx again for the speakers and info, if I'm ever out there any time soon I'll be sure to stop by and would love to meet ya, peace -

M. Pogo/Burlington, VT


I received my Hempcone speakers yesterday and installed them in my Budda Superdrive 80 2x12 Combo. Yours are replacements for the Eminence speakers that come stock. I was not satisfied with the sound and they had a lot of annoying cone howl. Anyway, I wanted you guys to know that yours sound incredible. I have never heard a speaker that is this smooth in response. From very clean to all out(Duane Allman live at the Fillmore) tone to the wall sound,these speakers do it all without even a trace of cone cry. I am amazed at how my Budda sounds. These thing act as if they are alive. Very responsive with an increase in sustain and harmonic content that I was not getting earlier.

Thanks for making a remarkable product.

Jim Hough/Arvada, CO

Just wanted to let you know that my hemp cone tone tubbie arrived in good shape. I put it in an open back Mesa Boogie cab and hooked it up to my Fuchs ODS. Holy shit! This thing sounds great. I just love it. Every other speaker I tried with that amp sounded harsh in the high end except yours.

Dan Cunningham/Montgomery, AL
I have an Orange cabinet with 2 hemp tone tubbies in it. Before I had just one tubby and a V30 and it sounded great, unhooked the vintage 30 and it sounded better, took the V30 out and the increased air flow made it sound even better, so purchased another tubby and it did not sound as good , made a new back out of a piece of birch plywood and cut a whole in it and now I have my best tone ever. I am convinced that this is one of the best purchases in guitar gear that I have ever made. Thanks a bunch.

William McPeak/Newnan, GA


Just wanted to drop you a line to let you know that the Tone Tubby arrived safe and sound a couple weeks ago. I've been using it in a 20W Class A Vox type amp (TopHat Club Royale) and it sounds great!!!.

Peter Williams/Harleysville, PA

I just popped the Tubby into my Deluxe Reverb RI and it sounds great! It hasn't even had a chance to break in yet. It's just gonna get better and better. A drummer buddy of mine was over while I was testing it and he said out of the blue 'Wow that's some great vintage Fender tone you've got there'. I'm real happy with it.
When I can afford a 2x12 cabinet I'll give you a buzz. I want to try it with a THD Univalve and a little Victoria Champ. Thanks,

Greg Wilder/Red Bluff, CA

I just got back from my first rehearsal using the TT-loaded Twin and thought you should be the first to know: these Tubbies really cut through the mix! There's much more midrange body, (which is probably a good thing with the
Strat) and I now understand why you said the bass would be better. Not so much deeper, but a much clearer, more focused-type of sound which adds some nice detail which had been missing with the Jensen's! I'm very glad I got the new H-1E. I'm still drawn to the addtitional high-end detail. Maybe two H-1E's would have been better, but maybe it's the H-1 "Bomb" combination, that I appreciated with the band tonight?

Another Tone Tubby Lover,

Gregg March/Lake Villa, IL

Hi, I just wanted to let you know I received the 12" TT speaker I ordered a few weeks ago and put it in my Deluxe Reverb amp. It sounds great! This amp has never sounded so good. Thanks.

Jim Henn/Dayton, OH