Mambo 8" wedge has arrived

**JazzNote** · 10-03-2016, 09:04 AM

After some waiting time the Mambo 8" wedge which i ordered a while ago has finally arrived.

It sounds clear and full, producing warmth without muddiness as one is used from high quality equipment. The build quality is superb. The size is unbelievably small considering the rich sound it produces.

So far i had time to play it a little with my L5, the Johnny Smith and the Lee Ritenour Signature. It can accommodate to all three guitars very well, settings which sound best with the L5 fit the Johnny Smith too, the LR Signature needs to be treated a little different, but with the right setting it sounds as great as the other two guitars. Looking forward to playing some gigs and get to know how i "feel it" in the real situation.

**Dennis D** · 10-03-2016, 10:39 AM

Originally Posted by JazzNote

After some waiting time the Mambo 8" wedge which i ordered a while ago has finally arrived.

It sounds clear and full, producing warmth without muddiness as one is used from high quality equipment. The build quality is superb. The size is unbelievably small considering the rich sound it produces.

So far i had time to play it a little with my L5, the Johnny Smith and the Lee Ritenour Signature. It can accommodate to all three guitars very well, settings which sound best with the L5 fit the Johnny Smith too, the LR Signature needs to be treated a little different, but with the right setting it sounds as great as the other two guitars. Looking forward to playing some gigs and get to know how i "feel it" in the real situation.

Thanks !

How was the order process ? And pls., how long was ' some time ' ?

Thanks again and enjoy your amp !

**JazzNote** · 10-03-2016, 05:24 PM

Originally Posted by Dennis D

Thanks !

How was the order process ? And pls., how long was ' some time ' ?

Thanks again and enjoy your amp !

I started inquiring about available demos, the possibility of custom color, available cover and shipping cost in August, mainly via mail but at one point i called Jon and discussed payment as well as some other aspects and ordered it on August 20 by email. He had to await a shipment of power amps before he could finish which delayed the process and it took approximately six weeks from the day of my order until it arrived here. I didn't mind waiting, think it was well worth as this amp delivers the authentic archtop sound which is exactly what i look for.

**jorgemg1984** · 10-03-2016, 07:25 PM

Best amp ever, really.

**Dennis D** · 10-03-2016, 07:38 PM

Originally Posted by JazzNote

I started inquiring about available demos, the possibility of custom color, available cover and shipping cost in August, mainly via mail but at one point i called Jon and discussed payment as well as some other aspects and ordered it on August 20 by email. He had to await a shipment of power amps before he could finish which delayed the process and it took approximately six weeks from the day of my order until it arrived here. I didn't mind waiting, think it was well worth as this amp delivers the authentic archtop sound which is exactly what i look for.

I have the same questions - so, I'm guessing no custom colors ? And how exactly do you pay -- with wire transfer ?

And what were shipping costs, pls. ??

Thanks again and enjoy it !!

**BigDaddyLoveHandles** · 10-03-2016, 07:44 PM

Custom colours? I'm a "tolex and corner guards" sort of guy.

**DerekD** · 10-04-2016, 03:59 AM

I purchased a Mambo 8 wedge in June of this year. The time from order to delivery was 3 weeks.

Originally Posted by Dennis D

Thanks !

How was the order process ? And pls., how long was ' some time ' ?

Thanks again and enjoy your amp !

**JazzNote** · 10-04-2016, 04:34 AM

Originally Posted by Dennis D

I have the same questions - so, I'm guessing no custom colors ? And how exactly do you pay -- with wire transfer ?

And what were shipping costs, pls. ??

Thanks again and enjoy it !!

It's natural birch plywood, no custom colors except for the possibility of a slightly darker varnish which is more like beech. Payment with wire transfer. For shipping & insurance from the UK to Switzerland the cost was £40. I had to pay CHF 95.- for the swiss custom fee & tax upon delivery directly to UPS.

**Dennis D** · 10-04-2016, 10:21 AM

Originally Posted by JazzNote

It's natural birch plywood, no custom colors except for the possibility of a slightly darker varnish which is more like beech. Payment with wire transfer. For shipping & insurance from the UK to Switzerland the cost was £40. I had to pay CHF 95.- for the swiss custom fee & tax upon delivery directly to UPS.

Thanks !

Not sure what color beech is, ( yet ) but I'm guessing it'd be darker than the standard, which I think is too light.

Thanks again.

**JazzNote** · 10-04-2016, 10:58 AM

Originally Posted by Dennis D

Thanks !

Not sure what color beech is, ( yet ) but I'm guessing it'd be darker than the standard, which I think is too light.

Thanks again.

Here's an example of beech which comes close to my amp's color. However this is viewed on the monitor of my MacBookPro, it is likely that your screen displays not exactly the same color. Actually it's still too light for my purposes too, but the amp is so great, i'll think of something to make it darker.

Mambo 8" wedge has arrived-04-w-beech-48-big-jpg

Mambo 8" wedge has arrived-04-w-beech-48-big-jpg

**Dennis D** · 10-04-2016, 11:04 AM

Originally Posted by JazzNote

Here's an example of beech which comes close to my amp's color. However this is viewed on the monitor of my MacBookPro, it is likely that your screen displays not exactly the same color. Actually it's still too light for my purposes too, but the amp is so great, i'll think of something to make it darker.

Mambo 8" wedge has arrived-04-w-beech-48-big-jpg

...as opposed to that ' chalk white ', I think it's a lot better !

I agree w/your choice !

Thanks again.

**mispeltyoof** · 10-04-2016, 11:54 AM

Had my Mambo three years now. Fantastic tone and build..

Couldn't have bought better.

**Leif_Olstrup** · 10-04-2016, 02:11 PM

Originally Posted by JazzNote

Actually it's still too light for my purposes too, but the amp is so great, i'll think of something to make it darker.

Paint?

**BigDaddyLoveHandles** · 10-04-2016, 02:28 PM

Tolex?

Am I the only one here who isn't crazy about blonde wood and thinks tolex (with corner guards!) is more practical?

**JazzNote** · 10-04-2016, 02:48 PM

Originally Posted by Leif_Olstrup

Paint?

Most probably not paint, but i will check all possibilities before i decide. That will take me a while ....

**Franz 1997** · 10-04-2016, 02:56 PM

How about this?
Mambo 8" wedge has arrived-mambo-b-jpg

**JazzNote** · 10-04-2016, 02:57 PM

Originally Posted by BigDaddyLoveHandles

Tolex?

Am I the only one here who isn't crazy about blonde wood and thinks tolex (with corner guards!) is more practical?

I love blonde guitars, but all my other stage equipment is black or at least dark (amps, speakers, cables, stands) except for a stool which is black leather & chrome hardware. For amps i certainly prefer black. Tolex or anything which is durable and looks okay.

I gave it a thought to cover the Mambo with Tolex, but to find someone here who could do a professional job with this is probably very hard, if not impossible at all.

**pingu** · 10-04-2016, 02:58 PM

Is that colour called 'Beech' Chris ?

**JazzNote** · 10-04-2016, 02:59 PM

Originally Posted by Franz 1997

How about this?
Mambo 8" wedge has arrived-mambo-b-jpg

That looks quite good but still on the bright side for me. Did you do it yourself?

**Franz 1997** · 10-04-2016, 03:01 PM

Ha!

It's solid mahogany Jem. Jon made a couple this year; he's got one, I have the other one

**Franz 1997** · 10-04-2016, 03:03 PM

No, this one is solid wood....but I think stain could work. I have never tried it though.

Personally I don't think the tolex/ metal corners look would work for this amp

**pingu** · 10-04-2016, 03:38 PM

Oh yeah I can see its mahogany now
Silly moi

Really nice ...

**BigDaddyLoveHandles** · 10-04-2016, 04:03 PM

Originally Posted by Franz 1997

Personally I don't think the tolex/ metal corners look would work for this amp

Less so the wedge than the cube, anyhowdy.

**jonmambo** · 10-05-2016, 08:21 AM

we have experimented with various stains and paint finishes, none really work well with this wood, and we don't get asked often enough to make it a big priority (less than 5 % of customers have asked about it )

by the way, we use this wood in the first place ( slow grown birch ply ) because it is about the best engineering material for this application, it just happens to have a light colour naturally, we mellow the blonde look these days using a slightly stained , ( beech and oak combination ) varnish which brings out the natural wood grains without looking artificial

incidentally shipping to most of Europe is less than the £40 plus import duty for Switzerland, e.g. Netherlands, Germany, France, Italy, etc is £25, Switzerland is more expensive to ship to and also has local import duty added as it is not EU

**Dennis D** · 10-05-2016, 09:35 AM

Originally Posted by jonmambo

we have experimented with various stains and paint finishes, none really work well with this wood, and we don't get asked often enough to make it a big priority (less than 5 % of customers have asked about it )

by the way, we use this wood in the first place ( slow grown birch ply ) because it is about the best engineering material for this application, it just happens to have a light colour naturally, we mellow the blonde look these days using a slightly stained , ( beech and oak combination ) varnish which brings out the natural wood grains without looking artificial

incidentally shipping to most of Europe is less than the £40 plus import duty for Switzerland, e.g. Netherlands, Germany, France, Italy, etc is £25, Switzerland is more expensive to ship to and also has local import duty added as it is not EU

Thanks Jon for participating here !

Are you any closer to having US representation ?

Thanks again.