184 PREMIER GUITAR NOVEMBER 2009 www.premierguitar.com
PRODUCT REVIEW
At winter NAMM this past January I had a
chance to stop by the 65Amps booth to get
a peak and a listen to the Lil’ Elvis, their new
1x12, 12-watt combo. As it happened, Peter
Stroud was in the booth demoing this little
gem and throwing down some ridiculously
tone-laden jams, and getting killer tone at
varying volumes courtesy of the “Master
Voltage” circuit. Of course we’ve all been
beguiled by amp demos in the past … a
great player can make you believe an old
transistor radio converted into a guitar amp
will sound fantastic with the right riffs and
attitude. Add to that the high noise floor and
ear fatigue of NAMM and it’s best to leave
detailed sonic judgments for a more familiar
setting—in this case my home studio.
According to 65Amps, the Lil’ Elvis was
inspired by some lost designs from one of
the best amp designers of the early ’60s.
The review unit is a 1x12 combo (also sold in
head/cab configuration) powered by a pair
of EL84s, three ECC83s and a 6CA4 rectifier. Controls are simple and to the point: a
Volume and a Tone, followed by a tremolo
circuit with knobs for Intensity and Speed (the
Intensity knob doubles as the on/off switch
when the footswitch isn’t plugged in) and
finishes with a “Master Voltage” knob. There
Lil’ Elvis
65AMPS
BY STEVE OUIMETTE
Pictured: head/cabinet configuration
