If you’re going to release a line of signature artist amplifiers, who would you book first? I’d have gone for a rugged unbreakable Kurt Cobain amp that you can kick around to your heart’s content, but Fender tends to have better taste than me. As such, they went the Slow Hands route with the Fender Eric Clapton Signature Amplifiers series.
Built to the musician’s exacting specifications, the amps are modernized versions of three 50s-era tweed tube boxes (’57 Twin, ’57 Deluxe and ’57 Champ), which we’re assuming count among Clapton’s favorites from the period. Each unit comes bearing updates that deliver the kind of sound the artist himself goes for in both the studio and the stage.
The three Fender Eric Clapton Signature Amplifiers consist of the EC Twinolux, EC Tremolux and EC Vibro-Champ. All models feature ’50s-era output tube bias tremolo (for a harder throbbing pulse), a switchable power attenuator, hand-wired all-tube circuitry on eyelet board and custom transformers, all housed inside variable-sized solid pine cabinets with tweed covering and gold grille cloth.
Can you finally play like Eric Clapton with these amps? Eh, probably not. But you might be able to sound like him if you try really, really hard on your Famicom guitar. According to Fender, this isn’t just for Clapton fans — axe-wizards seeking the ultimate in tweed tube amp performance will likely find it an irresistible addition to their gear, as well.
You can check out the full specs for each of the amps in the Fender Eric Clapton Signature series directly from the company’s website. No pricing yet, but we doubt anything bearing a legend’s name will go cheaply.
[Fender]