News
Steve Jobs passes away
The planet is short of one genius tonight. But it will forever be impacted by his visit. Good bye Steve Jobs. Rest in peace.
Amps
1960′s Silvertone 1481 Amp New in Box?!
Holy crap! What an incredible find. Someone is selling on eBay a mid-1960′s Silvertone 1481 tube amp, brand new in the original box. That’s crazy! Original Silvertone tubes inside. Complete with original papers and Owner’s Manual. Even has the original shipping Read more…
Amps
Gretsch 6170 Pro Bass Amp
Now on eBay I don’t know the seller or endorse the product, but here is a cool late 60′s bass amp built by Valco for Gretsch. Solid-state rectifier, 12AX7 preamp tubes (I believe?), 6L6 output tubes and a Jensen 15-inch Read more…
Amps
Silvertone 1420 (Sears 5XL)
At first glance the Sears 5XL guitar amp would be easy to disrespect, even considering it’s legacy in the line of original Danelectro/Silvertone guitars and amplifiers. And why not, it’s a Sears, right? Well, that’s where you’d be wrong.
Effects
DOD FX10 BiFET Preamp
[This is an update to an earlier post. Since then we have done some more testing of this unit with different instruments and amplifiers.] I was looking for a good analog pedal to overdrive my tube amp without loosing that Read more…
Artists
Clarence Clemens Passes at 69
Clarence Clemons, the great saxophone player synonymous with Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band passed away today at age 69. He had suffered a massive stroke on June 12. He played with Springsteen and the band for 40 years, Read more…
Artists
Sgt. Pepper is 44 Years Old Today
The Beatles album Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band was released on this day in 1967, forever changing rock and roll, and music as a whole. Tracks like A Little Help from My Friends, Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds, Lovely Rita, When I’m Read more…
Amps
1960′s Vintage Ads for Kay Electric Guitars & Amps
Kay Musical Instruments of Chicago was the first company in 1962 to manufacture guitar amps that were 100% solid-state electronics. Here are some vintage advertisements from that time period. The first ad, Transistorized Amplifiers, I found as a JPEG somewhere Read more…
Amps
Kay 704 Photos Posted
Finally had a chance to upload some photos of the 1965 Kay 704 Vanguard amp we acquired last month! The photos are posted here: Gallery Photos – Kay 704.
Amps
Photo Gallery: Kay 704 Vanguard Vibrato
Introduced in 1962, the Kay 700 Series of guitar amps were the world’s first mass-produced amplifiers with all solid-state electronics, using early technology Germanium transistors and diodes to replace traditional vacuum tubes.