I know I'm not the only ancient-amp nerd around here, so I thought I'd start a thread to draw the others out....
National Concert 400. Bought it for $35 at a Kansas City thrift shop, "as is," around 1980. (I figured if it wasn't fixable, I could use it as an extension cab.) It's in the 1942 catalogue:
Supposedly puts out 16 watts through 6V6s and one 12-inch red-label Jensen. No tone knobs. There are "instrument" and "microphone" channels, and there's probably a 10-watt difference between the two.
The speaker has a transformer mounted to its frame, and that's why it was sold "as is." A brilliant tech at Mass Street Music in Lawrence, Kan., found a replacement tranny. Presently it needs new caps, but I'm afraid to have it worked on -- it's so rich with mojo, and even with noisy caps it's a tone monster. A one-trick pony, but oh, what a trick.
Bring out your old grey amps!
"You can't write a chord ugly enough to say what you want to say sometimes, so you have to rely on a giraffe filled with whipped cream." - Frank Zappa
Cool.
I work in Lawrence and was in Mass Street Monday. There are some really good music stores in Lawrence.
There is an amp tech that I have had work on some stuff that does a great job.
I have taken apart some old record players my father-in-law had out in the barn. A lot of 6V6's, mostly RCAs. I need to get busy and reassemble something out of them.
I have a schematic for a harp amp that uses the 6's.
If you need any weird tubes shoot me a PM. I have several that were collected over the years by the old man. Mostly related to old radio sets. Maybe I have something you can use.
I also have a Hammond L-100 organ all tube amps. All original Hammond tubes. Took a little cleaning and oiling to get it humming but the price was right.
Jack
I've got an old Hammond amps I'll get to one of these years. I play a late 50's Stromberg Carlson 20 watter very similar to the JMC45 in its current configuration. I also have a silver face champ and a 1484 twin. Not as cool or exotic as that old timer. I don't use anything but the stromberg nearly as much as I should.
Awesome amp and nice pics!
That's a cool looking amp, Crow. I was thinking about the cap situation you mentioned. Could you replace them and keep the old one just in case?
Or maybe bypass it without removing them and temporaily test out new caps?
Roy
"I wonder if a composer ever intentionally composed a piece that was physically impossible to play and stuck it away to be found years later after his death, knowing it would forever drive perfectionist musicians crazy." - George Carlin
