Fender Rhodes Preamp Substitute

[JonnyM]

Our band got its hands on an old Fender Rhodes Suitcase model on the cheap. The amp is fine, the keyboard is missing the preamp. There is just a big hole on the left side where it once must have been. The previous owner wired a 1/4 inch cable out of the guts of the thing.

If you plug this cable into the amp direct you can hear it but just barely. On our first jam I used a Dano Daddy-O pedal as the middle man and the volume was there, but of course as I cranked up the volume on the pedal, so I cranked up the distortion. Interesting sound, but not for every day use.

What might I have lying around that could be used as a proper preamp to boost the signal going into the suitcase amp? Should I skip the suitcase amp altogether and plug the thing direct into an available guitar amp?

What does Yaz Think?

JonnyM

[Badger]

There are a few places on the net that have parts for old rhodes, try and get the correct pre for this thing. you can run it direct, but the classic rhodes sound is best acchieved using the stock pre and suitcase amp. Plus, you wont have the tremelo without it.