IT STARTED WITH A RARE '66 VOX AMP

The origin of Dr. Robert & The Mocker

Explore the Story

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THE BEATLES' SECRET WEAPON

The VOX UL730

In 1966, VOX released one of their strangest amplifiers. Used by The Beatles during Revolver & Sgt. Pepper's albums.

Fewer than 100 units were ever made. Most were returned and destroyed.

One survived. In France

We almost never got it ↓

REVERSE-ENGINEERING THE VOX UL730

What we found inside wasn’t expected

The original schematics didn’t match the actual circuit. Component values were different. Some parts had been modified over time.

Marc had to reverse-engineer the entire amplifier from scratch to get the real VOX UL730 tone.

Two pedals came out of it ↓

DR. ROBERT

The VOX UL730' Original Tone

Capturing the UL730 wasn’t just about recreating a sound. It was about bringing its response, dynamics and character into something you can actually play.

After months of prototyping, we recreated the normal channel of the amp. Staying true to its character while pushing it further. That became Dr. Robert.

How did the man behind Revolver designed our pedal?

Unlock unseen sketches by Klaus Voormann

THE MOCKER

The VOX UL730's Underbiased Fuzz

While comparing our UL730 fuzz with other units, we noticed something strange. Ours didn’t sound the same. It was gated and spluttery.

Marc traced it back to a component that had drifted out of spec over time, altering the fuzz circuit. That sound was special. We found some N.O.S. diodes. That became The Mocker