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Post subject: New Cabinet vs Original
Posted: Fri Apr 16, 2010 2:43 pm
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Although I don't really need another amp, I've been considering buying a vintage brown era 1962 Concert amp. I used one in the late 60s and really loved it's tone. It would be strictly a collectors piece and not lugged around to gigs. I found one that looks nice but the seller was upfront about the fact that it had a new replacement cabinet. How much does this effect the collectability of a vintage amp and how accurate are the cabinets to original. I believe the cabinet is from MoJo musical supply. The only thing original to the amp is the chassis although it looks original. I can buy it for around $15-1600. Would this be a mistake or should I look for one that is more original? A friend told me that it cuts the value by about 50%. Is that accurate, if all else is equal.


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Posted: Fri Apr 16, 2010 3:58 pm
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It would no longer qualify as a collectible piece in my opinion. I'd find an unmolested example. Just my 2 cents....... 8) Mike

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Posted: Fri Apr 16, 2010 4:35 pm
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Cherokee is correct -- with a repro cab, such an amp would no longer qualify as a "collectible" piece. It would however be one swell gig-able amp. Mojotone's cabs are generally correct although I've never personally seen any of their blonde or brown Nubtex reproductions. And the brown Fender combos of that era used a peculiar lower rear panel that had a pair of oval-shaped ventilation holes in it that were covered by matching grill cloth a la the older tweed amps. I'm not sure that Mojo does that (although they may). IMO the asking price for the amp you're interested in is overvalued by four to five hundred dollars. I've seen beat-to-crap Concerts (in their original-but-eminently restorable original cabinets) go for $1100 to $1200 on Ebay. Unless the amp had its original quartet of Oxford 10J6 speakers I'd pass this one by.

HTH

Arjay


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Posted: Sun Apr 18, 2010 9:47 am
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+1 - great for a playing amp you want to gig with, but not having the original cab (and the original Tube label chart) would count against its investment level. Makes it still a perfectly playable amp, but not as a collector's piece.

Thought - if you do purchase a matching original amp and want to use it, a replacement cabinet does give you the option of gigging with a new cabinet, and leaving the valuable one at home to avoid being dinged. I saved the head cab from my Bandmaster, and if I wanted to, could pop it back in and it would be somewhat back to stock (besides all the work and replacement parts....)

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Posted: Sun Apr 18, 2010 11:37 am
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Thanks for all your responces. Most of my collecting has been in the antique car hobby but I've always wanted to add an old Fender amp to my newer amps. When it comes to vintage amps I'm not very enlightend on what is correct and what isn't. With the car hobby fake paperwork"aged buidsheets, window stickers), cowl tags etc. have become a problem because of the much higher prices paid for original cars. When it comes to amps are recabs and "aged" tube charts etc. a problem in spotting. The owner of the Concert I spoke of was honest about the cabinet although I doubt I would have known it.


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Posted: Wed Apr 21, 2010 6:48 pm
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Hi there I88, I was an amp tech for a collector of '64-'68 Fenders, for ten years or so. My job was to verify the vintage and general condition of the wiring and components in the chassis. After 25 yrs of working on the old Fenders, you kind of develope an eye and nose for the work done by the folks in Fullerton. The most common problem, I ran into, was modification or unskilled repairs. Only came across a cab problem once and it was so bogus, it was just rediculous. Any way, I guess you should find an experienced amp tech, to do the inspecton. But I don't see a great risk of fraud with the year and amp that you're considering. These amps are alot like cars, in as much as parts are subject to wear and tear. The choice of replacement parts is up to the owner. As far as shopping for a vintage amp goes, I'll leave this to other folks on the forum. Art

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Posted: Wed Apr 21, 2010 7:06 pm
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aclempoppi wrote:
The most common problem, I ran into, was modification or unskilled repairs.


Amen to that, Art.

Most often among the visible cabinet "sins" I see committed are those rocket scientists who cannot seem to get replacement grill cloth correctly oriented on the baffle.

:mrgreen:

Arjay


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