Fliptone v.25
Instrument amp with flat-panel speaker
Traveler Guitar FlipTone v.25 Battery Powered Combo Amp Features:
Built in rechargeable battery
Battery life 5 hours
25 Watts
8 built-in effects
3 Band EQ
2 - 1/4" / XLR Jacks
RCA inputs
External speaker out
Made in U.S.A.
The revolutionary flat-panel loudspeaker technology developed by British company NXT has taken a while to filter down into instrument amplifiers, but it's here now in the form of the Fliptone v.25 from Traveler Guitar. Looking like a chunky laptop computer, the Fliptone incorporates a two-channel preamp with mic and line connections, EQ and on-board effects, plus a power amplifier driving a 12.5 x 8.5-inch flat panel speaker that hinges up from the casing for operation. The system is powered by an integral 12V battery — effectively a lead-acid gel-based car battery — but can be run from its charger whenever mains power is available. Using a lead-acid battery, of course, means that the Fliptone has no issue with the number of recharge cycles and no 'memory effect' (there's no need to discharge it completely before recharging). The only thing you need to avoid is leaving it discharged for extended periods.
In theory, the flat-panel speaker offers a flat frequency response, albeit with limited low-frequency extension, and a bi-directional radiation pattern, characteristics that should make it well suited to amplifying acoustic instruments where a natural sound and good dispersion, rather than high levels and projection, are the goal.
The Fliptone is manufactered by the Traveler Guitar company, who make compact guitars that will fit in a suitcase or that can be easily transported as hand luggage. One of the applications for the Fliptone is clearly therefore that of 'hotel room amplifier'; a role it performs admirably when partnered with a Line 6 Pod or similar modelling processor with half-decent speaker modelling. A pair of RCA phonos (summed to mono, of course) make it easy to connect a portable CD player or iPod to play along with.
Out in the live performance world it fares a little less well, with its limited headroom and lack of bottom end restricting its practical applications. However, you could certainly use it for subtly amplifying a 'lead' acoustic instrument within an otherwise all-acoustic ensemble, and it seems eminently suited to, say, classical guitar in the corner of a restaurant, where you might want any amplification to be particularly discreet. To my ears, on all sources the Fliptone sounded much better with a little mid-frequency cut, so perhaps that could have been built into the response of the system. There is the option of connecting an extension speaker, for more level and bass, but surely that's rather defeating the object? Used within its limitations the Fliptone offers a uniquely effective solution to the challenge of providing amplification without bulk or weight. It costs £499 in the UK. Dave Lockwood
http://www.guitarcenter.com/Traveler-Guitar-FlipTone-v-25-Battery-Powered-Combo-Amp-480428-i1374321.gc
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