sundown amplification

Hello, Ask Amp Man fans. Well, I’ve decided once again to forgo a reader question and instead bring you the story of another cool amp that’s recently crossed my bench. This amp may not be well known, but it’s yet another offering from the amplifier hotbed known as North Jersey. The area was first put on the musical map in the ’60s by a little company called Ampeg, which became one of the largest, most respected amplifier brands of the day—and still commands respect. As in the modern tech industry, Ampeg employees spun off to start their own companies. One such “spinner” was Jess Oliver, Ampeg vice president and inventor of the Ampeg Portaflex B-15 amp, who left and formed Oliver Sound Company. (Maybe one day I’ll do a column on an Oliver amp.) Another Ampeg departee of note, who is well known in our boutique amplifier world, is Ken Fischer. In the mid ’80s, Ken began building his own amplifiers under the name Trainwreck. They have garnered iconic boutique-world cult status.

Yet another, unfortunately lesser-known, amp guru who worked at Ampeg in the early ’60s and eventually decided to strike out on his own was Dennis Kager. Having already established himself as a great repair tech, Kager, along with a partner named Dennis Bock, opened Dennis Electronics in 1967. Being a guitarist as well as an electronic technician (a vital combination for a guitar amp designer, IMHO), he also decided to design and manufacture his own line of amplifiers. In 1984, Kager began producing Sundown amplifiers. Amps with channel switching and master volume were becoming de rigueur for guitarists, and that’s what Dennis was offering. They became the amps of choice for many players, including John Scofield, Allan Holdsworth, and even James Burton, so let’s take a look at this fine example I recently encountered.