Notone Amplification recreates classic sounds
Jason McDaniel wants to clarify something about the name of his company, Notone Amplification. “It’s not N-O, as in, ‘We have no tone,’” said the Orlando resident. “It’s short for K-N-O-W, as in, ‘We know tone.’ ”
Listening to the Georgia native rattle off technical information about amplifiers, it’s easy to believe his claim that he does, in fact, know tone. McDaniel began selling his amplifiers this month. This week he will unveil his product line in Nashville at the National Association of Music Merchants trade show.
An Army veteran, McDaniel’s passion for amplifiers grew out of a hobby. “When you’re retired military, sometimes you just run out of stuff to do,” he said. “When I first got out of the army, one of my things for therapy was just playing guitar.”
As a fan of 1960s and ’70s rock bands such as AC/DC and Jimi Hendrix, McDaniel found that modern sound equipment had trouble replicating the dirty, responsive feel of vintage amplifiers, such as classic Marshall and Fender amps.
Tommy Lee, of Guitar Center in Winter Park, notes that musicians often come to his store looking for vintage equipment. “A lot of folks, especially musicians, hold to the opinion that they just don’t make them like they used to,” he said. “Whether that’s true or not is a matter of opinion. But they’re trying to emulate sound of some of their favorite bands from back in the day and, to a point, the vintage amplifiers might be better for them to do that.”
McDaniel, 40, discovered another hurdle in his quest to reproduce his favorite tones. “What I found out about expensive vintage amplifiers was that most of them need quite a bit of money in repairs even though you already spent a good deal of money to buy it,” he said.
So McDaniel began constructing his own, first for himself, then for friends and family. “I wanted something that was new but retained that vintage, old tone that everybody has to have,” he said.
Through Instagram and other social media, McDaniel began connecting with other enthusiasts and musicians. He wound up building and sending a couple amplifiers to country singer Justin Lee.
Guitar builder Nick Scout recorded several YouTube videos demonstrating the capabilities of McDaniel’s speakers. Founder of Orlando’s Scout Guitars, he says he likes working with McDaniel because they are both “small builders making things by hand.” “He wants to be part of the change in the market and he’s great at his craft,” said Scout of McDaniel.
McDaniel’s goal is to keep his amplifiers relatively affordable. While a quick search can find Marshall amplifiers from the 1960s going for more than $5,000, the most expensive stack in McDaniel’s product line is $2,400. “Anyone can buy one, anyone can hit any imaginable tone at an affordable price,” he said.