Vintage guitars, tube amps, analog effects & gear! Plus all things early Rock 'n' Roll.
The Peavey Valverb is considered by some to be the best American made, non-Fender, all-tube reverb unit to be made. It was made in the 1990’s and no longer in production. Highly sought after on the used market. Here is one fine example:
eBay Link: Peavey Valverb – all tube reverb and tremolo in custom head cabinet
#Peavey #Valverb #AllTube #Spring #Reverb #Tremolo #Vibrato #Head #Unit
| NAME: | VOX Berkeley Super Reverb Twin (SRT) electric guitar amplifier |
| MODEL: | V8 |
| MFR: | VOX USA (Thomas Organ) |
| ORIGIN: | Sepulveda, California |
| DATE: | 1965 |
| POWER: | 17 Watts RMS, according to the Mfr. |
| REVERB: | Tube-driven 2-spring Gibbs (Hammond) Tank |
| TREMOLO: | VOX tremolo circuit |
| VALVES: | 12AX7 preamps; 12AU7 reverb; 12AX7 tremolo, two (2) EL84’s output |
| RECTIFIER: | EZ81 Valve |
| SPEAKERS: | Pair of Weber (USA) 10-inch Blue Alnicos replaced the worn out Bulldogs |
This 1965 model Berkeley is the original all-valve (tube) powered version that Thomas Organ produced in Sepulveda, California n small numbers from late 1965 through mid 1966. This one was partially restored by its owner “65mosrite,” giving it some fresh outer cosmetics (obtained from North Coast Music, of course), and some re-wiring and replacement of resistors and capacitors where needed.
I was fortunate enough to buy this amp from Richard H. (aka: 65mosrite), and couldn’t be happier.
North Coast Music, who runs The Vox Showroom, has some excellent data and stories related to the famous amplifier. I have provide some links to those pages below.
The Beatles on Stage – Image Courtesy of The Beatles Bible – www.beatlesbible.com
Here is a video by 65mosrite, who worked to restore this awesome amp!
Excellent page from The Vox Showroom: The Vox Berkeley Amp
And another: The Vox Berkeley Super Reverb Tube Amp Head – Model V-8
September 23, 2015 at 10:49 amI notice that the V8 head pictured has the original flat handle, but the cabinet has the later Vox logo styled handle. Did Thomas Organ sell them paired that way when they ran out of flat handled cabs but still had the older style heads? Or is this a (fairly insignificant) mix’n match.
I have the same head with flat handle, but my cab has no handle and no holes that I can find?!? Mysterious.
Thanks
Randy
Update: Just added some new shots of the chassis, tubes, board, Orange Drop caps, Fisher speaker, etc.
This page is dedicated to photos of our ’69 Silvertone 1422, also known as the Sears 40XL. We recently acquired this amp and found it to be one of the nicest 40XL’s we’ve seen in many a year. This Made-in-USA amp is totally original, right down to it’s late 60’s dark olive vinyl, green sparkle grille cloth, and a 12-inch Alnico magnet made by Fisher. The only cosmetic damage we could find is a bump (dimple) on the cabinet edge, right side of the control panel, and a chip off one control knob.
The 1422, or 40XL, was marketed by Sears as a 40-watt, 12-inch, combo tube amp for guitar. It features two separate input channels, and built-in reverb and tremolo. The reverb and trem are controlled by a dedicated foot switch. Sears advertised these as 40-watt combo amps. But in reality, the two 7189 power tubes put out around 20-watts or less. In fact, the features and chassis layout suggest that it could be an American copy of a the mid-60’s Marshall Model 1974, which was an 18-watt combo using two 6BQ5’s (EL84’s).
This amp was built, sold, and first played in the Summer of ’69. The code on the CTS potentiometers read “137-6919.” Decoded, that means “137” = Mfr’d. by CTS; “69” = Year Mfr’d. (1969). “19” = Week Mfr’d. (2nd Week of May).
Well, it’s a loud 18 to 22 watts, that’s for sure. HUGE in the mid range, solid in the bass range, but not too sparkly or chimey at the high end. Poor speaker sounds like it’s wearing a heavy wool sweater. And there is a noticeable 60-Hz hum. But we will dig into it and find out what’s wrong.
UPDATE:
Major improvements! We took the chassis out of the cabinet, cleaned and tightened all the loose connections, and relocated one unshielded cable sitting too close to the transformer (will completely remove that later). Now, the amp is almost silent when idling, the 60-Hz hum is completely gone, and frequency response at the high and low ends have improved!
These photos are little rough, and I hope to upload some better ones in the near future.
{ 37 comments… }
September 23, 2013 at 12:59 pmHi,
I have a 1422 from late 60’s early 70’s? It too is in very nice condition. All original tubes, but missing a knob. The volume on channel one is quite low but channel two roars. True, it does sound like its wearing a heavy wool sweater! I was wondering if I could change out tubes for a better high gain sound? Shoot me an email and I’ll send some pics, and any advice would be much appreciated!!
September 23, 2013 at 8:32 pmHi Ed,
Would love to see photos of your amp. This one has a lot of gain already. Not certain which tubes to try for even higher gain. I think the speaker might be the weakest part. Planning to try some different speakers to hear what happens…?
~Alex
March 31, 2014 at 12:02 pmI just picked up a solid state 40XL at the goodwill for $9. Sounds great with mu delta king semi-solid body and they look great together.
A bit of wear, but love the tremolo feature I also played a round with it and found with the 2 chanenels that I could actually use it as an amp and mini PA if I balance things right in a pinch. The tremolo works on your voice too, kind of like a 70’s ( I think that’s how old it is without the tubes) W.i.l.l.i.a.m effect.
Any chance of finding a manual on this baby on line anywhere? Is it repairable if it craps out, being it’s so old??? Any review info or thoughts would be appreciated.
Let me know
March 14, 2015 at 11:11 am@mike — It is most certainly fixable. I took mine into the local shop (Columbia, MO USA), and they fixed the reverb, changed the tubes, and installed a 12″ blue dog speaker that I brought in. I also had a proper 3 prong cord installed. The amp is now my mainstay, I use it always!
September 27, 2013 at 6:41 pmHi Alex,
I just got one of these and was wondering if you have a schematic. Mine is not in the great condition of yours, but seems to work fine. No pedal though. Please post your findings about the different speakers you try!
Thanks!
Tim
September 29, 2013 at 10:09 pmHi Tim. No schematic yet. Hopefully I can make one (with some help!).
I’m pretty sure that the original speaker can’t handle the power of this amp. I disconnected the original and patched this amp into another cab that I have. That made a big difference! I’m planning on ordering a G12-H-30 (Greenback) from Ted Weber.
September 30, 2013 at 7:32 amThanks Alex! I took the head apart this weekend and just wanted to let you know that there is an 8 ohm speaker tap on the board. It has a red wire going to it and it’s right next to the 4 ohm, where the speaker is connected. Also, I tried jumping the channels, and with both channels turned up there seemed to be more presence and touch sensitivity, seems like the clouds lifted some. I’m also going to try a Celestion, I have an old G12H25, but it’s 15 ohms. I’m going to try it on the 8 ohm tap and keep my fingers crossed!
October 2, 2013 at 7:03 pmI wasn’t able to use my old speaker, but I did put in a g12h30 anniversary and it was more clear and gave it more Marshall growl. My try a Jensen next.
November 18, 2013 at 11:02 amHas anyone discovered a schematic for the 1422 ? I have one and am trying to figure out if it’s 4 or 8 ohms ? I have a 4 ohm Fender speaker I would like to put in it.
November 18, 2013 at 9:33 pmJohn,
I’m *pretty sure* the the original wiring is for a 4 ohm speaker. But please see Tim’s comment above about both 4 ohm and 8 ohm taps from the output transformer. It’s nice to have options 
January 20, 2014 at 10:00 amStill searching for a scematic for the 1422. Having distortion problems in the tremelo circuit. My tech guy can’t find one either. The tremelo does not seem to kick in unless the Strength knob is at 12 noon or higher. When the speed knob is turned past noon, ugly distortion is present. Any ideas ?
January 20, 2014 at 9:41 pmSorry, John. Haven’t been able to track one a schematic for the tube version of the 1422. I recently ordered the repair sheet and schematic from Sams Photofact, but what they sent me is for the solid-state model.
Did you try replacing the 12AX7 tube that drives the tremolo circuit? If it’s not the tube, then the problem might be a capacitor in the circuit. I fixed the non-funtioning tremolo on my 1421 amp by replacing one of the caps. I think it was one of the caps that was soldered to either the Speed or Depth knob. Now it works great.
January 16, 2015 at 9:52 amI know this is an old post, but I’m wondering if by chance if you still have it, could post the SS schematic you were sent in error?
I just (mistakenly) bought the SS version, because I was over zealous in my blind compulsive buying mode and failed to examine the photos throughly enough; had I done so, I wouldn’t have overpaid for this tube-wannabe.
March 5, 2016 at 10:00 pmAny chance I could get the schematic for the solid state?
March 5, 2016 at 10:02 pmI’d love a schematic for the solid state if possible
January 20, 2014 at 10:49 amAlso, would the tremelo circuit be the same in the 1421, or 1423 ?
February 4, 2014 at 11:18 amYes. Looks like a cap, so I told him to replace all of them.
February 6, 2014 at 8:55 amCaps replaced, tremelo circuit still distorting. Any other ideas ?
March 4, 2014 at 9:05 pmNice specimen!
I just received a 1422 off ebay today and noticed that instead of original tubes (which the seller stated they were) it has 2-EL84s replacing the 7189s and ECC 83S in place of the 12AX7s, all JJs. I read somewhere that the EL84s and the 7189s are used for different voltages in the circuit and shouldn’t even work when added. The seller is playing dumb and I can’t find out if something was modded, or everything is fine, or something seriously bad is going to happen if I don’t make sure the voltage was adjusted.
Any thoughts?
June 20, 2014 at 2:10 pmI just purchased a solid state 40XL. I haven’t received it yet. Are they compatible with modern 2-button footswitches? I have a 10XL with the original tremolo footswitch but I want to control reverb too.
June 21, 2014 at 7:16 amJosh, congrats on the new 40XL! The 40XL uses a two-button switch to control reverb and tremolo, and has a single 1/4-inch two-conductor plug. Like a 1/4″ stereo headphone plug. See it here: http://www.tonegems.com/silvertone-1422-footswitch/
~alex
December 6, 2014 at 8:16 pmHello,
I just rebuilt a Sears Silvertone XL40… cabinet mostly and professionally done on a CNC. Will post pictures. I, too, am getting a screeching trem and the reverb is’t working, although the verb does boing when moved… so some further scrutiny is necessary. The finish of the cabinet is wood, stained and toned. I made it a little larger than the original and also plan to make another the same size as the orignal with tolex covering. I also remade the control panel graphics. Looks real nice and a lot of tube power. Just have to get the trem and reverb right. I recall, trem and verb were working before I tok it apart. All for now.
December 12, 2014 at 6:20 pmCabinet is almost done… working out some bugs in the circuitry… probably needs newer tubes… all else seems to be clean and intact. Assemling this weekend and then will take pictures. Note that I enlarged the cabinet some; however, I have recently redigitized it to spec. I will make a second cabinet with a tolex wrap and make the electronics (or head) a separate entity. Thanks.
December 24, 2014 at 10:37 amEmails with pictures sent to your addy and a question. Let me know if you received them, Alex. Have a very Merry Christmas. BTW, I was with the owner of the Danolectric tradename last evening. What a great fella!
December 27, 2014 at 1:12 pmNote, photos coming from another addy and just sent 4:06 EST 12/27/14. Also, could you elborate on the wire near the transformer that was causing the 60 cycle hum and all you did to resolve that. I, too, have the hum. I do not plan to make my unit 3 wire because I like the flexibility of reversing the plug polarity with a 2 prong…. unless I add a switch for that, or go to 3 wire and use an adapter. You ground to chassis, right? Someone told me the problem with my trem could be caps and not the tubes. Any opinion on that? Still waiting to test the tubes. I have a vintage tube tester now, but I may have to change some resistors to get it working. properly… as it’s been sitting for a good many years.
December 31, 2014 at 4:59 amI have decided to take inventory on the PCB components and, also, draw up a new PCB and etch a new one for the beast I’m working on. When I’m further along, I will post or link the data and PCB drawing. For now, there are two blue-ish colored capacitors and on the south end appears to be some sort of (tan) washer that I thought might be the cap bleeding. There are no pictures above of the component side, but if anyone knows anything about these two caps, let me know if what I am seeing is a bad cap (I have not tested it). Alex, I sent you pictures of the solder and component sides. Caps I am referring to are labeled C2 and C17 respectively. Thanks.
January 16, 2015 at 9:39 amJust got a smack in the face; bought a 40xl from a charity auction, was all giddy because I (thought) got a great deal on a coll retro (I thought) tube amp.
Well, in my blinders-on compulsive buying madness, I failed to note the language on the warning lable (which was pictured in the listing) stating:
“…..does not contain any tubes or user serviceable parts…”
Yep; instead of a great deal on a great little tube amp, I overpaid for a Solid State door stop.
I guess that may be a bit harsh, as I’ve just umboxed it at work, and haven’t actually plugged in yet.
I did pop the back and examine the innards (through the nest of cobwebs) and it looks like a nice wiring job, and if nothing else, probably some good vintage parts to harvest for one of my upcoming pedal builds.
Anyone own the SS version? And if so, what are you’re thoughts on it?
I plan on giving it a good clean up, and see how it sounds.
If it’s as underwhelming as I’m pessimistically assuming, it might actually be the perfect opportunity to take the next step in my DIY education and take a shot at gutting it and building the original tube version.
Now to poke around here, and everywhere, to try finding the schematic for it.
I’m guessing it can’t be too complex; but I’ve been wrong before… recently in fact
November 9, 2015 at 2:16 pmI realize this might bit too late, but Jim… don’t trash that SS 40XL. Sure it doesn’t have the same warmth as the tube version. But with the right guitar, and couple of well chosen pedals, you can get some very pleasing tones from it.
I’m playing an Eastwood P-90 Special through my SS 40XL. And with just a touch of distortion, from my Boss DS-1, it sound pretty damn good.
Welcome to our first review. Please consider Tone Gems a resource for vintage guitars, amps and gear of non-repute. We will strive to make each review rich with information and content, including inside gut shots, electrical schematics, audio, video, manufacturer specs and more. Since this is our very first review, please excuse any rough spots. We welcome your comments and feedback. Thanks ~alex.
Summary: Five watts of hand-wired boutique tube heaven for a fraction of the cost. Lots of midrange growl and creamy overdrive. Great for jazz, blues, classic and indie rock. Use as a practice amp or at small venues. Perfect for recording.
Likes: Cheap! Lots of tube overdrive. Awesome speaker. Cheap! Point-to-point hand soldered. Cheap!
Dislikes: Cheap cabinet materials and shoddy construction. Not loud enough. No safety fuse. Non-grounded power cord.
Surprises: 8-inch Alnico Speaker. Polypropylene caps (Orange Drops!).
Price: $90.00 from Trade Up Music, Portland Oregon.
Similar Amps: Silvertone 1420; Silvertone 1459.
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. We recently discovered this 5XL at Trade Up Music, a local music shop in Portland (see posting: How It All Began…). It was dirty, dusty inside, and a little beat-up. It appeared to be all original, except for two replaced vacuum tubes, and was fully functional. Later, we discovered that someone must have upgraded the capacitors with new Orange drops (more on that later).
My son Jon, who likes to play alternative and indie stuff, thought this amp would be a perfect match for his 1950′s Gretsch Electromatic or his newer custom modified Telecaster. I was not initially impressed. But boy was I wrong, and he was right!
The 5XL is an all-tube amplifier producing a modest 5-watts of peak power through a single 8-inch speaker. It has one channel, two instrument inputs, and separate volume and tone controls. The cabinet is built from cheap pressed board and the speaker baffle is 1/8-inch thick Masonite. It is clad in an equally cheap, thin green vinyl that stretches and tears easily.
At lower volume this amp has a clear, clean sound and decent frequency response. But with only three tubes pushing 5-watts it’s more fun to dial this puppy to 10! At that level it’s easy for the player to control the output and vary the tone from clean to full distortion.
This amp is also friendly to effects pedals. It sounds really good with a decent analog delay or analog reverb pedal.
How good does it sound? See and hear for yourself. Here is Jon playing his modified Squier thinline Tele through the 5XL. Hope you have a good set of speakers connected to your computer.
The tube version of the 5XL was sold by Sears in the United States from about 1969 through about 1972. It was Sears entry level into their line of guitar amps. But the original manufacturer of the Sears 5XL is hard to nail down. I have seen several different builds of the Sears 5XL amp on eBay and elsewhere on the web. Up until 1968 or so, the Silvertone line of electric guitar amps were built for Sears by the Danelectro company of Neptune, New Jersey. In fact, the 5XL is identical in electronics and appearance to the earlier Silvertone 1420 and 1459 amps that were built by Danelectro. But Danelectro was purchased by MCA in 1967 and was, unfortunately, out of business by 1969. This particular sample appears to have been built in December of 1968, so it’s possible that it could be a Danelectro original. But I suspect that even later models were built for Sears by others, maybe using leftover Danelectro parts?
UPDATE: I recently noticed that the schematic diagram for the Harmony H303A is nearly identical to the Silvertone 1420 and Sears 5XL. So it might be possible that these were built for Sears by Harmony. However, I thought Harmony was struggling to stay open around this time as well?
UPDATE 2: This basic amplifier design was used throughout the radio and musical instrument industries for decades. Which makes it even harder to pin point the factory of origin.
The amplifier is a hand-wired, point-to-point, single-ended Class A amp. The chassis layout and construction is standard to Danelectro/Silvertone design dating back to 1950’s. It is very similar to the Silvertone 1430 chassis, except that it has a separate tone control and a voltage isolation transformer which the 1430 lacks. Apart from some replaced tubes, this chassis has all its original parts including the big paper-oil-wax filter capacitor. Amazingly, this amp is still quiet while running. The three vacuum tubes (thermionic valves) used here are: one 12AU6 for pre-amp, 5OC5 output, and a 35W4 tube rectifier. Curiously, we believe someone replaced all the original capacitors with newer polypropylene film capacitors (Orange Drops!) which may have something to with the usually smooth tone of this sample.
A close up view of chassis showing the Orange Drop caps and volume pot. The stamped 7-digit code on the pot indicates it was manufactured by CTS (code 137) on the 48th month of 1968.
Sears used a lot of cheap parts. No exception here. But for some reason this original 8-inch speaker made by Fisher with an Alnico magnet sounds great!
Even though this little amp is as basic as it gets, it simply excels at what it does. And that qualifies the 5XL as a Tone Gem. Perfect for recording jazz, blues or rock. And perfect for the player looking for that alternative indie sound. But fare warning: manufacturing quality of this amp was inconsistent and not all samples found today will be built like or sound like this one.
| SEARS 5XL | ||
| Model Number | 257-1420(1100?) | |
| Serial Number | ???? | |
| Manufacture Date | Dec. 1968 | |
| Type | Combo | |
| Output (Peak or RMS) | 5 Watts, Peak | |
| Pre-Amp Tubes | 1 x 12AU6 | |
| Power Amp Tubes | 1 x 50C5 | |
| Tube Rectifier | 35W4 | |
| Speaker | Fisher 8″ Alnico | |
| Speaker Code | 6392 (printed on cone) | |
| Speaker Configuration | 1 x 8″ | |
| Baffle Board | 1/8″ Masonite | |
| Impedance | 16 Ohm (?) | |
| On-Board Effects | None | |
| Footswitch | None | |
| Controls | Separate Volume & Tone | |
| Inputs | 2 | |
| Channels | 1 | |
| Cabinet Construction | 3/8″ Pressed Board | |
| Cabinet Covering/Color | Vinyl / Olive Green | |
| Dimensions (WxHxD) | 16″x16″x6″ | |
| Weight | 8 lbs. | |
| Power | 120V AC | |
I’m working on a new schematic diagram for this amp which I will add here later. In the meantime the schematic of the Silvertone 1430 (shown below) is somewhat similar to the 5XL, except that the 5XL adds a tone control and has no safety fuse! Diagram courtesy www.freeinfosociety.com.
Links to more info surrounding the 5XL…
{5 comments}
February 18, 2012 at 10:05 am
See also schematic for the Alamo Capri which is very similar. You might want to add that as an update. ( I can e-mail you one if you like).
I bought a “5 XL” on e-bay that needs to be repaired/restored. It does NOT say Sears on it anywhere (however, the back is missing…) but has a big Danelectro logo on the grille. It does say “5 XL” on the front panel but where you sometimes see a Sears logo on the front panel there is a logo that looks like an atom or something (???). Anyway, I was wondering if you ever found another schematic. Most of the wires in this one have been cut – I have no idea why as it appears that all the original components are still in place despite all the wires being cut (??!). Anyway, this one has TWO chassis mounted transformers (wires cut) which appear original which I do not see in your pics. It has the output transformer on the speaker like in your pics. Three trannys total. (??…)
Any help would be greatly appreciated!!
Love your site. Keep up the good work!
Thanks.
February 18, 2012 at 12:47 pm
Ty,
Thanks for stopping by and leaving your comments. What you are describing sounds odd to me. To the best of my knowledge, Danelectro did not market a 5 XL amp with a Danelectro badge on it (that would be news to me). The logo that looks like an atom is actually a Sears-Roebuck (SR) logo from that era. I have two amps with that logo. It sounds like you have a mixture of things going on there (a frankenamp?). Could it be possible that someone before you took it apart and added the Danelectro logo? The transformers you describe definitely sound to me like someone’s custom modification. Could you email to me some photos? That would be great. ~alex
February 18, 2012 at 12:59 pm
Also, thanks for the tip about the Alamo Capri. The schematic does look similar, and it uses the same tubes. I will research that further. Thanks!. ~alex
June 7, 2016 at 11:47 pm
I have been slowly hot rodding one of these little amps for a while now. I have recapped/potted, traded out the OT with a Hammond, and replaced the cheapy 8″ speaker with a Jensen p10r. I’ll tell you what, for blues harmonica it is a tone monster. To play with a band I just stick a microphone in front of my speaker and let the PA do all the heavy lifting. I have a few big tube heads and combos, but I still plug into the hot rod 5xl every time.
June 10, 2016 at 10:18 pm
That sounds awesome! Thanks Scott for sharing that info about your 5xl.
~alex
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