Kustom Unveils New Practice Amps Including Breakthrough 10W, 12" Model

Jan 20, 2006

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Kustom has unveiled six new guitar practice amplifiers, including an industry-first: a 10-watt model that sports a big 12-inch speaker and a breakthrough retail price of $149. The amp is called the 12 GAUGE and it delivers a huge, aggressive sound for its size and price. Features include 3-Band EQ, a plywood baffle board to enhance cabinet resonance, metal knobs and a built-in Reverb/Delay effect.

Also new, the DART 10 and DART 10FX offer an all-new look for Kustom guitar practice amps, featuring diecast logos, jet-black grill cloth, white piping and stylish control panel layouts. The DART 10FX combines a 10-watt power output with a two-channel (Clean/Lead) design; a 3-Band EQ and a digital effect that can toggle between Reverb and Delay selections. The DART 10 has the same new look, but with simplified features. Both DARTs feature a plywood baffle board for enhanced cabinet resonance.

Building on the success of Kustom's popular ARROW Series, Kustom now unveils the new generation of these models, all with a new look and sound. As with the DARTs, the new ARROW 16, ARROW 16R and ARROW 16DFX guitar combo amps have been fine-tuned by Kustom's chief designer James Brown to maximize the tonal qualities, resulting in some of the punchiest, richest sounding "little" amps you'll ever hear.

"An important tube quality is the fact that 12AX7s naturally create second-harmonic distortion, which is always harmonically pleasant, since it is an octave higher than the note played," said Brown. "Most solid-state designs use simple clipping methods that create both odd and even harmonics, which can yield harsh overtones. On the new DART, ARROW and 12 GAUGE models, we used carefully designed asymmetrical clipping circuit designs and the result is a much more tube-like distortion."

In addition, the ARROW 16DFX has received an all-new, 24-Bit digital Multi-Effects system with 16 hi-fidelity sounds. Selections include Rotary Speaker, Tremolo with Reverb, Octave, Auto-Wah, Phaser, Delay, Chorus and more. At a lesser price, the ARROW 16R provides a traditional Spring Reverb unit in place of the digital Multi-Effects system.

All ARROW models feature the new look, with diecast logos, jet-black grill cloth, white piping and stylish control panels.

"Kustom is committed to building practice amps that are the best in the industry," added Brown. "Just because an amp is little doesn't mean it shouldn't kick butt. Rather than skimp on things like baffle boards, we use plywood because it sounds better. That's the logic we've applied to all of these practice amps and we believe that guitarists will hear and appreciate the difference."

For more information, visit their web site at www.kustom.com.