From tonysounds@yahoo.com Mon May 29 14:17:44 2006
Subject:Re: which preamp - speakeasy, hamptone, trek II

I've owned them all. The Trek is the worst of the lot. I bought a Hamptone, and I thought it was much better, but when A/B'd with a Speakeasy, the Hamptone went back. The Speakeasy not only sounded tons better, but was $100 cheaper!

I don't like the big pedal preamps either, so I went to a rack pre, then I could use a momentary switch, which I prefer anyway. The knobs on the Speakeasy are very simple: volume, treble and bass. Myself, I run everything full on because I like a little grit. The real secret to the pre is the treble knob. Your volume knob is self explanatory (I typically ran mine somewhere between 9:00 and 11:00); the bass knob is pretty much full on regardless of which clone I used (Vk7, Cx3 analog, CX3 digital, Hammond XK2, Xk3, and Nord Electro). The treble knob I would set at 3:00, and then if I needed a little more "sizzle" (not treble, but actually a little more "grind"), I would turn the treble knob up more.

The Speakeasy preamp (regardless of the model) is a wonderful beast, and will greatly enhance the tone of your clonewheel. I actually used to run my Hammond chopper through it too.

T

funkyhammond wrote:
I'm trying to figure out the best way to hook up my VK8M into a Leslie
45. I'd like to hear both pros and cons from people. Feel free to
email me directly if you prefer. I haven't heard any of these preamps
myself, except for some bands coming through town that I've seen with
a Trek II.

One of my concerns is foot pedal real-estate because of my expression
pedal and sustain pedal for piano. The Trek II is a big beast and I'm
sure will get in the way. My impression is that the Speakeasy pedal
preamp is not that much smaller. Unfortunately, the rack version is an
expensive unit and I'm hesitant to order it sight unseen.

Another practical concern of mine is that I'm ordering from Canada, so
if I try something and I don't like it and have to resell it, I'll not
only lose the difference in the used price, but also the shipping and
high taxes that I will have paid to bring it here in the first place.
So, understandably, I'm trying to be cautious.

Any feedback you guys can provide will be very much appreciated. I
know a lot of people on here like the SE, but please try to be
objective with both pros and cons.

Here are the points I'm currently considering:

Trek II
-------
Pros:
- less expensive
- several leslie connectors
- seems like an industry standard
Cons:
- very big
- solid state, not tube

Hamptone
--------
Pros:
- more reasonable size
- tube preamp
Cons:
- expensive

Speakeasy
---------
Pros:
- good reviews on this forum
- available as rack version
Cons:
- pedal preamp a bit big
- rack version is expensive
- finicky to find the sweet spot (one person reported needing a trim
pot, some people have reported having a hard time figuring out the
knobs, etc.)

If you have experience with any of this stuff, please add to the list
of points.

Thanks
Yiorgos

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