Worlds collide
Crossovers are tricky – not only logistically but theoretically. A lot of times, it all seems so simple. It's right there in front of you. The story writes itself (and the money inevitably follows). Freddy Krueger versus Jason Voorhees. What was once a cute teaser at the end of The Final Friday turned into a horror film buff's most anticipated I.P. crossover before that kinda stuff was, you know, everywhere. Freddy vs. Jason – what could go wrong?
Truly, some of the inherent obstacles facing any crossover episode only really materialize after the final product is revealed. In theory, a good crossover requires a huge amount of storytelling know-how even before pen is put to paper. What is the narrative reason for this crossover? Do we get enough of either character? Is each character represented authentically, or is it a case of a writer knowing one way better than the other?
While crossovers are still perilous projects to take on even after all the Freddy vs. Jasons, Alien vs. Predators, and Godzilla vs. Kongs, the formula is a proven method for strong box office returns and exorbitant fan service. Crossovers aren't always so hard to pull off. Sometimes they're easy as pie. Case in point, the device on the docket today. Let's talk about it.
This is the Milkman Sound x Benson Amps Benson The Amp.
Shop the Milkman Benson The Amp
The Butterfly Effect
Introducing the Milkman Sound x Benson Amps Benson The Amp
When it comes to boutique amplification, two of today's premier players are Milkman Sound and Benson Amps. These west coast wizards of tube amps are based in San Francisco and Portland, respectively, and are responsible for plenty of tube circuits the internet's been simply cuckoo about. If you've been around online in the past ten years or so, or maybe you've checked out some gear head's pedal demo in recent times, you've likely seen a Milkman or Benson creation like the Vinny, Monarch, Beekeeper, or Tweed. These guys have become favorites of the most famous guitar nerds for a reason!
Though Milkman and Benson specialize in custom tube amplifiers, they've also explored translating their amplified tube tones into different forms. If you look around, you'll see stuff like Benson Amps pedals like their Preamp Pedal, which effectively squishes the tone of the Benson Monarch into a compact, pedalboard-ready form, or the Milkman Sound The Amp. As you probably guessed, Milkman's The Amp series is why we're here today. The Milkman Sound The Amp series is a line of tube amplifiers compressed into more mobile, pedalboard-friendly packages. Where you might want an authentic tube tone with honest-to-goodness tube design but not a full-on amplifier head that only works with a speaker cabinet, you can turn to The Amp series.
Today, we're talking about a real meeting of the minds as Milkman Sound welcomes the tube tone of the Benson Monarch into their The Amp series of pedalboard amplifiers. Fans of either name, take notice. You're gonna want to check this out.
Monarch Multiverse
Milkman Sound x Benson Amps Benson The Amp Design and Tones
Like we said, the Benson The Amp is a Milkman Sound The Amp tube amplifier in the style of a Benson Amps Monarch. Where Milkman The Amp pedals usually employ the brand's own custom tube circuit and tone, the Benson The Amp seeks to capture Benson's classic Monarch preamp tone. Let's talk about what that all entails.
Milkman Sound x Benson Amps Benson The Amp Design
Milkman Sound The Amp series amplifiers utilize tube-driven preamps with Class D power amps to function as true-blue guitar amplifiers. While they can be routed to speaker cabinets as you would a normal amp head, The Amp amplifiers can also be routed in a traditional effect pedal signal chain before another amplifier. This dual functionality opens the doors for players who want to use The Amp more traditionally as they might any other amplifier head, but also for those who might be doing more desktop-based musicmaking where a full-on head and speaker combination could be impractical or for those who aren't playing traditional stringed instruments like an electric guitar but might want the lively tones tubes can deliver.
The Milkman Sound Benson The Amp follows in this tradition. At the heart of the Benson The Amp is a familiar tube preamp and Class D power amp setup. However, the Benson The Amp's preamp section is replicated from the Benson Monarch. Utilizing a single 12AX7 preamp tube, the Benson The Amp's preamp circuit delivers the authentic tube breakup and sound of Benson's Monarch preamp. This is likely the main attraction for most players – a Benson Monarch in the form-fitting shape of a Milkman The Amp. And really, what an attractive attraction it is.
Milkman Sound x Benson Amps Benson The Amp Tones
The Benson The Amp pairs its Monarch-style preamp tone with Milkman's classic Class D 100-watt power amp. Where this puts us is on a path with authentic tube breakup. The Benson Monarch, something of an offshoot from vintage Fender and Vox tube tones – if a bit more easily broken-up – plays with a bright, crispy, and chiming character to make your chunkiest humbuckers and snappiest single-coils swoon. Working through the Benson The Amp, we get a couple of amp-style tones to start shaping things up.
- Volume and Output – In the style of Milkman's The Amps, the Benson The Amp features two level-based controls. The first, Volume, harnesses the output of the amplifier. The second, Output, sets the overall level of the unit. What this means is that the Benson The Amp can create authentic tube saturation and breakup at friendly volumes. Just crank up on Volume and roll back Output and – Bob's your uncle – you have a thoroughly broken-up 12AX7-driven tube tone on your hands. The inverse also holds true for this device. Reel in on Volume and push Output and you can deliver crystalline cleans to fill any room.
- Treble and Bass – When you're going about punching in your tube tone and volume, you're met with Treble and Bass controls. No real surprises, here. These two frequency-shaping controls are carried over from the Benson Monarch and behave as you'd expect for responsive amp-sculpting experiences.
When you play the Benson The Amp, you're definitively playing with all the design expertise and artistic ear that have made both Milkman and Benson household names*. The Amp plays with a responsive, malleable tube tone that gives back lovingly with great touch response as you would want out of any good amp. Essentially overflowing with inspiring tube tones to play with, the Benson The Amp performs wonderfully and is sure to keep all you guitar-to-amp purists busy.
In cool households, anyway
We Go Together Like
Milkman Sound x Benson Amps Benson The Amp Further Features
This Milkman x Benson collab is a great tube amp, sure, but there's plenty of other buttons and knobs going around here, sharp-eyed readers may have noticed. Let's get into a couple of these additional features.
- Reverb and Room – With this amp, we're treated to a couple of analog-style effect flourishes. For one, like other Milkman The Amp models, we have a DSP spring-style reverb effect. Accessible via the leftmost footswitch and its own dedicated dial, the Benson The Amp plays with a striking digital reverb in the style of the spring tank tube amp reverbs we all know and love. This guy is matched with The Amp's new Echo control.
Room With a ViewA new addition to The Amp models, the Room control harnesses a digital slapback-style delay meant to emulate the recorded tone of a tube amp played loudly in a very, very nice space. This digital echo gives a subtle yet impactful dose of authenticity to the overall sound and can be pushed for a bit of washiness or zeroed out entirely when you're focused on more direct amp sounds.
- Boost – Where would a Milkman be without a little bump? Onboard, the Benson The Amp's clean op-amp style boost circuit allows for that extra bit of oomph as it drives the preamp. Perfect for dropping in added tube saturation, we don't need to tell you what to do with Boost. You'll know for yourself.
Milkman Sound x Benson Amps Benson The Amp Connections
Finally, we've got a couple considerations for playability that make Milkman The Amps so player-friendly. The Benson The Amp features a number of routing options to translate it to a number of relevant performance scenarios. For one, the Benson The Amp can be routed out to a speaker cabinet for operation at fifty, one hundred, or two hundred watts at sixteen, eight, or four ohms, respectively. Compatible with a variety of speaker setups, the Benson The Amp has you covered.
For another, The Amp can be routed direct out via an XLR cable. A balanced output drops in with an onboard cabinet simulation for direct recording or silent performance. The cabinet simulation in question, designed by Benson themselves, is a digital recreation of an oversized twelve-inch cabinet loaded with a Benson Ceramic 30 speaker and an AEA N22 ribbon microphone. A no-latency analog circuit means the cab sim is incredibly responsive while retaining the ability to be bypassed via its rear-panel toggle switch.
Topping this all off, the Benson The Amp features its classic Milkman The Amp effect pedal functionality with ¼" input and outputs. The Amp is perfectly capable of being run into another amp in a traditional signal chain for its same marvelous, Monarch-style tones or even out to headphones with its front-facing ¼" headphone out. Essentially, don't sweat where this amp can or cannot go to perform. Call it the Milkman Sound x Benson Amps Shadow – it'll follow you anywhere.
Milkman Sound x Benson Amps Benson The Amp Final Thoughts
Alright, let's start wrapping this crossover episode up. What have we learned?
Maybe for one, we've learned about the inspiring know-how of two boutique amp artists in collaboration. The Milkman Sound x Benson Amps Benson The Amp is effortlessly expressive and endlessly authentic – write that down. Maybe we've learned about how comprehensive and adaptable tube amplification can get and perhaps things aren't as solved or as bound to a predetermined box as we might have imagined – jot that one down, too. Maybe we've learned that there's hope for crossovers yet, and that 2027's Gremlins New Batch versus Snakes on a Plane might actually be pretty good. Alright, that was a joke. But honestly, you never know.
It's always exciting to see two of your favorites meet. It's even better when they've got something great up their sleeve. A boutique tube amp cinematic multiverse? We can only hope.
