Mass produced amplifiers can get you part of the way, but a hand built heirloom quality amplifier will give you a signature tone that’s all your own. We use the highest quality and best sounding components to implement our meticulously designed circuits that offer unmatched clarity and harmonics when clean, and the smoothest transition into pushed amp sounds you are likely to hear. Our goal is to deliver the last amplifier you will ever want to buy.
Benson Amps grew primarily out of Christopher Benson’s obsession with sound. The products are deceptively simple…but every nudge of the controls of the simple tone controls of the Monarch or the Chimera does something musical…a feat most three band EQs aspire to. The Tall Bird tube reverb unit has the ability to be used completely wet, or conversely, to drive the front end of an amp with a large boost driven by a tube output buffer. Every detail has been scrutinized and obsessed over.
Benson Amps are UNIQUE DESIGNS, not mere clones or near-clones of vintage amps from the 50s and 60s. Armed with ears, knowledge, and taste only an experienced musician and builder can possess, Chris continues to make design choices that produce unmatched sound quality and tone.
Here is a portion of an article focusing on the Benson flagship amp, The Monarch, written by Premiere Guitar Senior Contributing Editor Joe Gore.
“They say the best things in life are simple. And according to some, that’s especially true of guitar amps. In fact …
Oh, screw it—the snappy intro can wait. Because no matter how many snappy adjectives I pile on, they won’t snap like this explosive little 1×12 combo. It sparkles like pixie dust. It thumps like a sock full of sand to the solar plexus. Builder Chris Benson’s Monarch is one of the most tactile, responsive, and just plain exciting combos I’ve ever had the pleasure of punishing.
Okay, now we can get back to that “simple things” business. There really is something to it. The less circuitry your signal runs through, the less compromised it is, and the louder and brighter that tone is conveyed from string to speaker. Monarch, with its ultra-minimal design, takes this notion to extremes.”
Well said Joe, here is the link to the full article by the way
Check out our interview below and visit Benson Amps to see the full range of his amazing amps.
LISTEN TO THE INTERVIEW