Drawing inspiration from its basic Skylark amplifiers of the Nineteen Fifties and ’60s, Gibson is revisiting these beloved tones with the Falcon 5. Designed by Randall Smith and his Mesa/Boogie workforce (which grew to become a part of Gibson in 2021), the Falcon 5 pays homage to classic tube amp tones whereas bringing fashionable options and craftsmanship.

The Falcon 5 has a timeless look, with cream tolex and an oxblood grille. Polished-steel accents on the deal with and management panel add fashionable aptitude, whereas clean, spherical vintage-style knobs full the retro bundle. Operating on only one 6V6 energy tube, the single-channel amp has a Class An influence part with output selectable between three and 7 watts. With excessive/low inputs and controls for simply Quantity, Tone, Reverb, dialing-in a usable sound is simple and intuitive. Fashionable touches embrace an all-tube analog reverb and a Monitor out.

With a Les Paul and Telecaster going to Enter 1 and the Quantity and Tone knobs at midday, retro edge-of-breakup tones blared from the ten″ Jensen Blackbird 40 Alnico speaker. Add a contact of reverb and the tone turns into unmistakable, straight from the sock hop and jukebox period of rock and roll. Let the Chuck Berry licks start! With Quantity under midday, tone cleans up however stays vibrant and snappy. Quantity previous midday delivers gritty power-tube breakup. Enter 2 yields a smoother, hotter, lower-gain tone that stays cleaner. For a brighter, percussive assault, twist the Tone knob previous midday.

At seven watts, the Falcon delivers a stunning quantity, however due to the helpful Low/Full energy change, it may be turned as much as unleash power-amp overdrive at bedroom-friendly volumes.

The Falcon 5 is about pure, unadulterated tone. Its mix of classic character and fashionable options make it a robust contender within the low-watt enviornment

This text initially appeared in VG’s April 2024 situation. All copyrights are by the creator and Classic Guitar journal. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.