The Great Canadian Amp Wastelands...

DesolationAngel · #1 07-29-2014, 07:53 PM

Just under three years ago I moved to Canada from California. When I was living in California I wasn't playing a whole lot and my gear pile was 'moderate'. You know the phrase "you never know what you had until it's gone"? I feel like that about the opportunities I had to get good gear while I lived down south. Don't get me wrong, there are some great music shops and some fabulous acoustic guitars made and sold up here but if you're in the market for a 'boutique' amp then you are plain out of luck.

If you go visit the websites of amp makers like ÷13, 65Amps, Carr etc. they'll show you an extensive dealer network in the US and a handful (if that) of dealers in Canada. You then go visit the websites of those dealers and they either have no stock or they show links for those amps that link directly back to the manufacture (which has to be the weirdest internet closed loop ever). Or, worse, they show countless chain store 'dealers' none of which actually seem to carry the products. I've kind of resigned myself to the fact that I'm probably going to have to choose amps based on YouTube videos and word of mouth rather than proper auditioning but it's hard to even find them to buy online.

So, this is not meant to be a 'hey, give me some more easily accessible options' question more of a rant and, perhaps, a simple; is there a secret place up here that I just don't know about? Given that I live near a border it might just be that I have to order from US dealers to a US shipping receiver and drive over the border to get it... (and pay the relevant taxes/duties).

Petty1818 · #2 07-29-2014, 11:13 PM

I feel your pain. I live in ontario and absolutely hate that there's such a lack of quality music stores in the area that carry boutique gear. However, there are options out there that I have discovered through research. The downside is that many places will only carry one or two items from a specific boutique builder so there's a lot of waiting.

With that said, I have two stores that I absolutely love: mojo music in oakville ontario and moog audio in Montreal. Mojo carries Carr and swart amps and often have a few of each in stock. They are also great when it comes to trying the gear out. Moog also carries Carr as well as divided by 13. They tend to keep a fairly good share of amps in stock. There's also cosmo music in Richmond hill that carries two rock and suhr amps. Also, village guitar (might be wrong on the name), which is out west, carries divided by 13 and Morgan and I believe other boutique brands. They look to have a lot in stock but I haven't been impressed with their customer service.

DesolationAngel · #3 07-30-2014, 09:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Petty1818

mojo music in oakville ontario and moog audio in Montreal.

I'd already discovered some of these but revisited after your post... and realized that Moog in particular has a lot more 'in stock' than it would at first glance seem (terrible website design).

Thanks for the info

m

DesolationAngel · #4 07-30-2014, 09:21 AM

.. but of course the amps that are listed are not necessarily in stock...

Bob Womack · #5 07-30-2014, 12:51 PM

...but you do have Traynor...

Petty1818 · #6 07-30-2014, 02:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DesolationAngel

I'd already discovered some of these but revisited after your post... and realized that Moog in particular has a lot more 'in stock' than it would at first glance seem (terrible website design).

Thanks for the info

m

I actually don't mind the Moog website. The only downside is the lack of information on what's in stock. However, I went down to visit them last year and they had 4 Divided by 13 amps in stock. I know that doesn't seem like a lot but it was for me. Do not try the Toronto location though. It specializes more in keyboards and has a terrible collection of amps.

Your thread has given me the idea to ask this over at TGP though. I will write back with my findings!

DesolationAngel · #7 07-30-2014, 04:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Petty1818

I actually don't mind the Moog website.

I emailed them and asked what they had by Carr... answer? 1 Artemus combo and 1 Rambler cab. They didn't even give me prices or shipping costs or anything like that... it's like shopping in the 90s

Quote:

Your thread has given me the idea to ask this over at TGP though. I will write back with my findings!

Ooh, what's TGP?

The Growler · #8 07-30-2014, 05:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DesolationAngel

I emailed them and asked what they had by Carr... answer? 1 Artemus combo and 1 Rambler cab. They didn't even give me prices or shipping costs or anything like that... it's like shopping in the 90s

Ooh, what's TGP?

The Gear Page http://www.thegearpage.net/board/index.php?

Great Amp sub forum.

Petty1818 · #9 07-30-2014, 11:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DesolationAngel

I emailed them and asked what they had by Carr... answer? 1 Artemus combo and 1 Rambler cab. They didn't even give me prices or shipping costs or anything like that... it's like shopping in the 90s

Ooh, what's TGP?

That's really odd. Was it Andrew who emailed you back? He is extremely gracious with his time and I have called and talked to him for close to an hour before. The best thing about Moog is that they always tend to drop the price of what's listed on their website and they ship amps for free.

oatsoda · #10 08-03-2014, 06:58 AM

I moved from So. Cal. to Canada too, back in 2000. Rural Nova Scotia, and no where near the border. I understand what you are saying about less readily available choices as a consumer, and it's not just with amps either. You have to be really careful ordering in gear from outside the country too, as often the shipping is astronomical with hidden brokerage fees.

But then it is sweet to be in this beautiful place, with people who mostly choose to live a reasonably paced life, and breathing the fresh ocean air, and learning to understand and appreciate the passage of time by the turning seasons.

I'm not going back, and as Bob suggests, I am very happy with my Traynor.

Hope you can find tonal satisfaction with whatever amp presents itself.

lmacmil · #11 08-03-2014, 09:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bob Womack

...but you do have Traynor...

I had an old Traynor 40-50 watt head. What a beast. Great if you liked really clean tones. You'd go deaf before it would break up. Highest pounds/watt of anything I ever owned.

DesolationAngel · #12 08-03-2014, 10:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by oatsoda

I moved from So. Cal. to Canada too, back in 2000. Rural Nova Scotia, and no where near the border. I understand what you are saying about less readily available choices as a consumer, and it's not just with amps either. You have to be really careful ordering in gear from outside the country too, as often the shipping is astronomical with hidden brokerage fees.

Yeah, we live a mile from a border, just across it are lots of post receiving companies so if the worst comes to the worst we just have things sent there. My wife bought a power tool for her business recently. The cost was $75 but the shipping to Canada was also $75. The cost of shipping to another address in the US? It was about $15.

Quote:

But then it is sweet to be in this beautiful place, with people who mostly choose to live a reasonably paced life, and breathing the fresh ocean air, and learning to understand and appreciate the passage of time by the turning seasons.

Ain't that the truth. I've traveled far and wide and, after 45 years on this planet met the woman I wanted to marry, right here in Canada... I feel very fortunate to be here. It's a truly beautiful place. I was thinking that last night while standing knee deep in the warm waters of Boundary Bay looking towards White Rock and Mt Baker in the distance and taking an iPhone pano:

Dru Edwards · #13 08-03-2014, 10:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bob Womack

...but you do have Traynor...

+1. Bob, I know you have an old '70s Traynor that must be a sweet amp (I read your blog on it last year). I have a recent one, a YCV50 Blue.

TwinandTwang · #14 08-03-2014, 04:22 PM

A boutique amp in Canada? Texosound! I would love a Bernie.

DesolationAngel · #15 08-03-2014, 05:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TwinandTwang

A boutique amp in Canada? Texosound! I would love a Bernie.

See, this is kind of a case in point. Texosound. I haven't heard of them before. Google finds them quickly. The pictures look nice. The specs look interesting but... nothing on the website works. Most of the links to other pages on the website throw up 'page missing' errors and there is no indication of how much they cost or where I can listen to or buy them. Even the 'Contact' page throws up an error.

A bit more googling comes up with 'Shyboy and Tex'... again, no real information on that website although, to be fair, at least that one has contact details.

I'm not meaning to slam people directly but as a potential customer, with cash in hand and a desire to buy, I find it somewhat baffling that it's seemingly so hard.