Alamo Challenger Model 2562

Mine is an early 60's (was told '62 but can't find anything on the unit to prove it) in the tall cab with a 10" inch speaker; 3 inputs; 6v6,5y3, 12ax7 tubes; on/off switch; single channel; volume and tone control. On the panel it says 50 watts but I've never understood how those numbers are determined but I can tell you that there is no way this is a 50 watt amp and thank god.

Picked it up off of craigslist for 1/3 of what I would've paid for it and 1/10 of what it ought to be worth. There is nothing superfluous about the amp and almost nothing lacking. If it had a direct out it would be absolutely perfect but that's not enough to cause me to complain.

I record with this amp, jam with my writing partner and use it live in clubs and moderately sized theaters. When mic'd there is no reason why this amp would not be suit my needs, but I would really like to have another for reasons aesthetic, not technical. This amp is perfect for recording and I will never sell it.

I've used it with a Gretsch Hollowbody, Fender Jazzmaster, Teisco Del Ray, Eastman Uptown and others. Most often with a Eastman through a Crowther Hotcake, Frantone Peachfuzz, Keeley Bd2, DD-20, Holier Grail.I play a raw, rootsy sort of rock and roll (think Wilco meets the 13th Floor Elevators) and the Challenger is well suited for my style; great for jangly blues and rootsy type vibes. The cleans are warm, clear and chimy while the natural drive is warm, raw and controlled.

There is not a ton of variety here but if that's what your looking for then head elsewhere. This amp suits only a particular kind of taste and those who seek it's tone understand how great this amp truly is in it's simplicity. I mean good god, the circuit is just beautiful.

It's well over 40 years old and still works perfectly. I've had it for 4 months so far and have ran into zero problems with it seeing a bout 10-15 hours of action a week.

I can tell that the previous owner put some no name speaker in it and replaced the power cable with a three pronged one. I will replace the speaker soon I think and maybe have my a good tech I know take a look to see if we can get even more out of it... but none of these things are really necessary.

I do gig with a back-up only because of it's age. You never know what can happen.

N/A

I've been playing for about 11 years and if it were lost or stolen I would absolutely buy another one. In fact I have a standing order to buy any reasonably priced Alamo product at any oppertunity I get. These things are just too cool and way too affordable... it can't last.

Everyone compares it to a champ and I think that is a fair comparison but I dig the overall vibe of this amp more.

9/10 for no direct out I guess.

There were two models of the Alamo Challenger amp made. The early ones had a tall cabinet, 10 inch speaker and 3 inputs. Later ones had a smaller cabinet, 8 inch speaker and slightly different circuit.
The one I am reviewing is the older tall cabinet one from 1967.
This was Alamos answer to the Fender Champ amp. They came close to it too. tubes are 12ax7, 5y3GT, 6v6gt. Output transformer has taps for 8 or 16 ohms.It comes with a CTS 16 ohm speaker which works fine, I had a reissue Jensen 8 ohm so I put that in it and it sounds great.

See reliability for what I did to the amp. Sounds just like a Fender champ amp for cleans up to about 7 then it gets a nice grind going and at 10 its like you switched in a tubescreamer. Very smooth distortion, plenty loud enough too. Built a lot like a Kalamazoo model one amp but more heavy duty. This sounds great with harp too.
Better than the Kalamazoos I have restored.

It was all original when I got it and it played but not as good as it could. I put a 3 wire cord on it, a fuse holder(it does not come with one)new filter caps, a couple resistors and another cap. I also dressed it up with some fender knobs. I also shielded the amp cab with aluminum to keep it quiet. Mine could pass for brand new now.
I only spent $30 on these parts to keep it going another 40 years.
I spent a couple hours just cleaning the cabinet to like new condition.

non existent.

Now that Blackface champs have gone up so much this is a good alternative. These can be had under $200 and have very simple circuits. BTW I found the schematic on Schematic Heaven under bargain bin amps..

I found this at a garage sale for $10!!! Not sure what I like better about it....the find--or playing a guitar through it.
No need to re-hash it all again.... 1965-Volume, Tone, multiple inputs, 6V6GTA, RCA 12AX7, and 5YG rectifier.
One additional (Unique) feature mine sports, is some kind of antenna jack rigged onto the front panel by the on/off switch. Seems as if someone was using this amp as a linear amplifier (probably for their c.b radio). Of course, I disconnected it....leaving a gaping hole.
(should've reported this to the FCC)
Great amp with exactly the features I like.

This amp has great clean, and growling single ended tube tone. In a pinch when having to use it to club gig, it's volume seems to diminish somewhat after awhile. (but that's while competing with gaggable combos, and the PA). I might try adding a cooling fan to help minimize this, for the next time used as such.
Otherwise, it's a toneful little number. Tone like a princeton for pennies. Rated base apon features, and price.

Its been around for awhile, that's for sure. And I'll bet it's got all original tubes, as well. Nothing more to prove here.

Some old couple keeps answering when i dial the ph.# found on a vintage advertisement. Evidently, the jokers running this company must be senile.....or smoking something profound. Why else would they threaten to report you to the police? I'm thinking that this is a way of avoiding those "lifetime" warranties.
Lousy Service

Best $10 ever spent. I hear these go for $150-$200, or more onn ebay. I would'nt sell it for anything like that amount.
But I'm gonna show up someday at the door of Alamo's customer service dept.....and straighten damn things out!

60's model alamo. 6v6,5y3, 12ax7. Single channel, 10' speaker w/teeny tiny magnet. Play harp & guitar through it. Rate the features high because volume & tone is all you need - especially if the tone knob is effective - which it is.

Use jt30 mic & Ibanez as73 guitar. I WAS thinking of selling the Ibanez but having this amp has made me rethink that. Play blues/classic rock. Quiet for a tube amp (not noisy). VERY loud 5 watts. Good tube crunch w/guitar at high volume, but the cab rattles a bit. Sounds FANTASTIC w/harp. Good grind & bark. Sounds like a "champ" on steroids. Crappy "pressboard" cab. Amp is voiced very well - not dark or bright but right down the middle. Single tone knob is very effective.

About 40 years old & still works well, so I would have to say it is reliable. I will retube & may upgrade the speaker but it sounds good as is.

Alamo no longer exists but any amp tech is familiar w/the "champ" type circuit.

Nice find for $105.00 - I will be keeping this one. Kinda big for a 5 watter (its about the size of a blues jr.). I believe the larger cab gives it a bigger sound. Just as good or better than my Kalamazoo mdl 1 for harp & WAY better for guitar. The kala is too dark for a guitar w/hbuckers. Wish it had a more efficient speaker, but the original still sounds good. One of the best amps I've ever had & cheap too! If I paid 200-300 I would rate it a 8-9, bot for 100 bucks I gotta give it a 10!

This amp I presume was made in the 60's and is a bit of a one trick pony.But if smooth/buttery blues overdrive for your harmonica is what you are looking for, this is the ticket.It has two channels,one 6V6 power tube,one 5Y3 and one 12AX7 tube.

I use a "Shaker" dynamic harmonica mic with this amp,volume at 10 and tone around 6.The sound from this amp rivals what you would get from a "Victoria" 518 champ copy and or the "Tophat" Prince Royal or Portly Cadet.Both channels give good overdrive and the notes are still very defined.This amp is a gift from the tone Gods.I usually use this amp with either a "Victoria" 518 or one of my "Tophat" 5 watters using a A/B/Y channel swither.

The only thing I have changed on this amp was to have a grounded power cord put on,the amp tech said everything else was fine.I usually put about 10 hours a week on this amp and it has never needed anything but one tube changeout.

The company is out of business.

This amp will have to be pulled from my arms when they lay me in my grave,if you play amplified harmonica and smooth overdrive is your thang,please give one of these a try.Take a look at mine at this link.
http://bluzharp.tripod.com/Alamo1.jpg

I got this amp when I was seven with my first electric guitar - I am now 31 and have played it my whole life- I last played it in college at some gigs with a single humbuckered Hamer. I ran turned it to ten and ran it thru the PA - it sounded like a biker in a bar fight - mean!

It is a clean amp - no gain no effects loop no nuthin but volume - treble and bass. see the top remarks about distortion. I now run a squier strat with a digitech r100 thru it and it gives me what I need a good little practice amp that is very portable and that I could take to gigs if needed.

well since I have done nothing with it in 24 years it gets a ten

duno never had to deal with them but the are hard to find on the web though

If anyone knows about these amps drop me a line I would be interested in knowing just exactly what it is I have hear (detailed specs etc.)

50's vintage (?) according to seller. I think it's 60's myself. If anyone knows how to tell by the serial number, it's 124806. It's a simple one channel, about 5 - 10 watt output, tone, volume, 8 inch speaker. All tube, 5Y3GT rectifier, 12AX7 preamp, 6V6 output. Wished it had a speaker out so I added one with a clip-on plate for a jack. Also wished it had reverb, but I've got two other amps with reverb, so I'll live without on this one. Plenty loud for a practice amp, and the band I play with finds it adequate for our band practice in a small 100 seat church sanctuary. It would be better to find an amp with a master volume if you want cranked tones in an apartment, but in my country home with distant neighbors it's perfect.

I play a Mosrite Blues Bender with the stock humbuckers. Our band plays mostly traditional country, country/blues, and some light rock. We (they, I just play) write much of the music. The tones of this amp range from smooth harmonic clean tube sound to moderate blues crunch when the volume control is set past 6 or 7. The tube rectifier helps the smooth sounds a lot compared to my Traynor Guitar Mate which has solid state rectifier and a sharper bite to the distorted sounds. This amp won't go perfectly clean or provide heavy metal distortion, but that's ok by me because I live for a smooth blues tone. It's not quite on the blues tone level with my Super Champ, but it's quite good, especially for the price, so I give it an 8 for the tones it does have.

I've played this amp with the tubes that came with it for hours on end for 5 months. I've checked out the insides and the build quality is very good; hard wired good solder joints, good components. Time will tell, but if this amp lasted 40 plus years already it qualifies as reliable. I give it a 9; I reserve the 10 for the real antiques that still work.

Alamo hasn't been around for some time, but this amp is simple enough any decent technician should be able the service what ever it needs. I'm even willing should the need arise. Anyone know of a source of schematics I'd like one. Or I may just trace wires and draw one up myself. I'll give it a 5 even though Alamo can't help, it should be easy to fix by any good technician.

Been playing over 30 years (yeah I'm nearly antique too), mostly acoustic guitar in the early years, but got back into the Blues Bender heavily in the past year since joining the band. Yeah, had the Mosrite over 25 years too; I'm the second owner. Other amps I have are a Fender Super Champ that I just got, and a Traynor Guitar Mate. The Alamo is as different as those two, and I like it that way. If lost or stolen? I'm not sure I'd go out of my way to find another just like it, but I'd have have another Alamo of some type because they have a tone that I find appealing.