Milkman Sound

Milkman Sound

Also known as: Milkman, Milkman Amps

Unclaimed

Milkman Sound is a boutique amplifier company based in San Francisco, California, founded by Tim Marcus, an accomplished pedal steel guitarist. Marcus began repairing and building amplifiers from his apartment in the city's Lower Haight neighborhood before launching the Milkman brand in 2011. His background in pedal steel — an instrument that demands exceptional headroom and bandwidth — directl...

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Milkman Sound is a boutique amplifier company based in San Francisco, California, founded by Tim Marcus, an accomplished pedal steel guitarist. Marcus began repairing and building amplifiers from his apartment in the city's Lower Haight neighborhood before launching the Milkman brand in 2011. His background in pedal steel — an instrument that demands exceptional headroom and bandwidth — directly informs every amplifier design. Each Milkman amp is hand-wired using premium components such as Jupiter capacitors and Mercury Magnetics transformers.

The product line spans from the diminutive One Watt Plus to the 700W Bass Half and Half, with standout models including the 5W Half Pint, 20W Creamer, 45W Tres Leches, and 50W Sideman. Milkman gained widespread attention with The Amp, a 50W hybrid tube/Class D amplifier built into a pedalboard-friendly enclosure featuring onboard reverb and tremolo. The Amp line has since expanded to include The Amp 100 and The Amp Stereo variants. Milkman also collaborates with other builders, notably Benson Amps on the Benson The Amp and JHS Pedals on The Milkman effects pedal. The company produces a dedicated 85W Pedal Steel amplifier and offers an extensive range of custom Tolex finishes.

The brand's name is a nod to Marcus's family heritage — his great-grandfather ran a small dairy farm in Connecticut, and the spirit of making and selling something by hand carries through to the amplifier business. John Mayer, Feist, Jeff Tweedy, and producer Joel Hamilton are among the artists and engineers who have used Milkman amps.

Milkman Sound has 35 products cataloged on Equipboard, including Combo Guitar Amplifiers, Guitar Amplifier Heads, and Guitar Preamp Pedals. Their gear is featured by 12 artists, with the strongest followings in Rock, Jazz, and Folk, World, & Country. Notable users include Josh Heath Scott, John Mayer, and Mateus Asato. Most Milkman Sound products sit firmly in the high-end, boutique range.

Artists Who Use Milkman Sound

Josh Heath Scott uses 2 Milkman Sound products

Josh Heath Scott

Guitarist, Podcasters & Streamers

John Mayer uses 1 Milkman Sound product

John Mayer

Guitarist · John Mayer Trio

Mateus Asato uses 1 Milkman Sound product

Mateus Asato

Guitarist · Silk Sonic

Nels Cline uses 1 Milkman Sound product

Nels Cline

Guitarist · Wilco

Ben McLeod uses 1 Milkman Sound product

Ben McLeod

Guitarist, Audio Engineer · All Them Witches

Charles Michael Parks, Jr. uses 1 Milkman Sound product

Charles Michael Parks, Jr.

Singer, Guitarist · All Them Witches

Tomo Fujita uses 1 Milkman Sound product

Tomo Fujita

Guitarist

Amelia Murray uses 1 Milkman Sound product

Amelia Murray

Singer, Guitarist · Fazerdaze

Thor Jensen uses 1 Milkman Sound product

Thor Jensen

Guitarist

AJ Ghent [ j-ent ] uses 1 Milkman Sound product

AJ Ghent [ j-ent ]

Guitarist

Alex Bulli uses 1 Milkman Sound product

Alex Bulli

Bassist · Frankie and The Witch Fingers

Todd Farrell uses 1 Milkman Sound product

Todd Farrell

Guitarist · Two Cow Garage

Community setups featuring Milkman Sound

Show yours
fulvio_di_marco

fulvio_di_marco

Gear IQ 178

toddfarrelljr

toddfarrelljr

Gear IQ 216

fulvio_di_marco

fulvio_di_marco

Gear IQ 178

timjuerk

timjuerk

Gear IQ 213

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