Kalamazoo Model One

Dating the amp is difficult as has been mentioned. At the time of my purchase I had just been listening to live recordings of Chris and Rich Robinson of the Black Crowes playing solo on the Brothers of a Feather album. My goal was to get a SIMPLE straight forward amp that would force ME to play dynamically with my hands, not a lot of knobs.

Having been pretty much addicted to reverb or a little slap back delay, this was a great little amp to work at playing better.

I really think it sounds exactly the way it is supposed to. It's a bedroom/recording amp that is supposed to be great for harp too. There's no good clean Fender sound. It has a clean sound but it's different. It breaks up nicely for natural tube saturation though. I like it somewhere in between though. I'm playing a lot of southern/blues/slide/open tuning on my tele's. For my purposes it's perfect. I have since added a Danelectro French Toast fuzz box and the slightest bit of slapback delay via a Visual sounds H2O.

This combination is giving me that southern blues guy sitting on his porch on a lazy summer evening sound. Sounds and feels like home.

I bought from a great vintage shop. It works. Simple as that. As far as consumers and venders go, being a loyal consumer (no ebaying or musicians friend) to brick and mortar stores has its benefits, even if you do pay a little more. I get great products at a fair price and personalized service AFTER the sale, regardless of guarantees or warrantees. I'd rather know the guy and shake hands than roll the dice ordering over the internet and save $30. Come on, find an old dusty music store in your area and support actually people instead of the Walmarts of instruments.

Refer above

It does exactly what it is supposed to do. It amplifies you and your guitar. Great sounds aren't going to come out of it unless great sounds are going in. For versatility look elsewhere. For pure and honest tone, try a Kalamazoo.

not sure of the year...early to mid 60's I believe. As other reviewers have said, you don't buy this amp for features, you buy it for tone. The amp's got two inputs, a volume knob, and a tone knob that doubles as the on switch. I believe it's rated at 6 watts class A which drives a single 10" speaker.

ooh baby, tone is where it's at on this amp. 6 watts tube power is pretty loud for bedroom volume if you've got it cranked, but it's not going to get very far on stage unless you've got it mic'd. I use a Fender american vintage RI '62 stratocaster and a Gibson Les Paul classic through it and both sound great in their own way. The strat doesn't break up until about 5-6 on volume whereas the les paul breaks up at around 3. Keep in mind I had this amp pretty much completely refurbished upon buying it (new filter capacitors, new tubes, new speaker - fender blue eminence, and ground power cord) so I can't really rate the sound of a stock model, but this baby really screams. I find the best tone from this amplifier is when you get the guitar just on the brink of breakup, but that's my opinion. when playing live, I link the second input to input 1 of the vibrato channel on a '65 RI fender twin reverb. The twin's pristine clean, higher power rating, and pair of 12's beef up the kalamazoo and give it some tighter lower end which is nice. It takes pedals fairly well with a little bit of noise, but I can deal with that. I circulate different pedals, but I always tend to have a fulltone '69 in front of it, and while the '69 sounds thin and metallic through the twin alone, it sounds absolutuely astounding through the kalamazoo into the twin.

let's face it, the amp is ~40 years old and is framed in cheap particle board. It'll stand up to getting nicked and banged around a bit, but I wouldn't go throwing it around or abusing it. I treat it like I treat my best guitars.

what customer support? Gibson hasn't manufactured these things for 40 years!

I've been playing about five years now and I've about listed all the gear I own. Other pedals I circulate into my board include: vox v847 wah, digitech chorus, maxon od808, and electro-harmonix HOG. I'll probably be purchasing a Keeley modded AD9 in the very near future and hope to make that a major staple on my board, so hopefully the kalamazoo will take it nicely (I'll submit a review post-purchase if any trouble arises) and I've been seriously considering retiring the od808 and purchasing a fulltone OCD, but I don't know if I really need it given the beefy overdrive the kalamazoo provides. I play anything from dirty blues to electronic disco dance music and this amplifier + the twin delivers everything I need. I would not lose this amp, but were it stolen I would probably cry because I don't know if I could find another one.

Dating this amp is difficult beyond knowing its 1962-1966. It has two inputs that both feed into the same channel -- this is quite useful if you like to bi-amp as you can just plug a cable into the 2nd input and then plug that into the other amp and the signal will go to that one too. With these small amps, it helps to have a 2nd small amp & blend the signal to get the volume, but its plenty loud enough for in the house - and can gig with it if you mic it. Otherwise its an extremely basic amp - volume control, tone control, 2 inputs 1 channel.

When my brother first gave this to me (and asked for his Bronco I had borrowed back) I didn't like it, and didn't want to give up the Fender Bronco. I didn't like the way it would distort so early with my Ibanez Destroyer's humbuckers. I've never been able to get non-distorted tones out of this at volume. If you want a jazz practice amp - get a Bronco/Champ, they break up a lot later. However, if you play blues, or Booker-T & the MG's style stuff - once you open up the throttle this is one of the most killer sounding amps I have ever played. Matched with the destroyer, its beefy, 60's sounding & just enough snarl to say "Mesa" or early Marshall. Matched with my G&L S-500 Deluxe Strat -- a guitar with extreme hot duncan single coils & treble in spades - it has tones as lush & rich as SRV's bi-amp setup, breakup on command at the 6 and above setting its warm & rich (just change your attack and control the tone with your guitars pots), and 9 its Marshall stack territory. This combo has been the hands down most impressive class A amp practice class amp for blues/booker T style stuff I have ever used. I've used plenty (champs, super champs, selmers). If this had reverb I would just take two of them and gig with it mic'd, I don't *need* reverb with it, but I bi-amp on stage with it for that reason. If you have a G&L 500, or an ASAT tele - or other hot strat - this is your dang near ideal play in the house amp. That is why I give it a 10 - its a pint size marshall JCM800 that wont make you deaf to get the sweet breakup - for jazz, its more of a 3 though, not enough room to play completely clean.

I've had it for 6 years, and no work needed on it. Still has the original tubes & caps, so its definitely built to last. The case is pretty worn (and made of covered plywood), but its 40 years old, got to expect that. I do want to do some work to it - replace the "death cap" and ground it properly, after some reading I may want to replace one or two other things to get rid of the initial hum when I turn it on (goes away after its warmed up) to make it totally silent.

Support for this amp does not exist as the company who made it doesn't exist. Its a simple circuit, your tech should have no problem if you aren't inclined to work on it. I've been told that Gibson is nice enough to supply schematics upon request as an act of niceness - mine has the circuit diagram printed on the inside. Its got parts that are easy enough to find, and can always pick up another off of Ebay in the $100 range.

I've been playing for 23 years, have 2 primary guitars - the G&L Strat & the Ibanez Destroyer. Own a couple small tube amps, a couple small solid state amps, and one Marshall hybrid I bi-amp the Kalamazoo with for its reverb effect.

If this amp was stolen - I would forgive the person who stole it - and promptly hunt down another. I still want the bronco back - because I like jazz -- but for blues & booker t style stuff - its no contest. This is better than any champ or bronco I've played. If this sounds like your playing, or you have an extremely hot pickup guitar -- say with P90's or a G&L strat/tele - it doesn't get much better than this. You certainly wont do better for the price these typically go for.

Made in 1967 with Gibson's version of Fender's "Champ" circuit 5F1. Has two lines in, volume and tone control, that are located on the front of the amp in the traditional location. Using the controls of the amp, and controls of the guitar(s) I have been able to produce a very many tonal qualitiies. I found that my Gibson ES 345 sounded the best on the unit. Hard to classify tonal qualities for me, the seem very subjective. The sound to me is very different, however in many cases I like the feeling it gives me while playing.....
Had to have a back up amp and read the reviews here, will use in a bedroom.

Fender Strat, Fender Tele, Gibson SG, Gibson LP Custom, Gibson ES 345, PRS MacCarthy, Martain HD28KM with Sure 57. Using with Mac G5, M-Audio LT-110 card, into a Fender CyberTwin. Style, really depends on how I feel, and what the weather is like... I don't play for a living, just for the fun.
Very happy with the little amp, need a little work, but there is a wealth of resources for same
After replacing the old tubes with new, adding some Spague caps, and getting a bit of hum out it sounds..... really quite good for what one pays for this little amp.
I play it at 6 for volume, that is where break up starts. I tried differnt gain tubes, and found a sound that I liked... just happen to be a

The orginal tubes were in the unit when I got it and working. However, the tone was not to my taste along with the fact a couple were not up to snuff .. orginal 6X4 Raytheon retifier, 12AX7A RCA preamp, and 6BQ5 output

Really great, I did not have to talk to anyone in customer service.... you know the call we all fear

Yeah, I know... I see the prices that everyone else pays... but what can I say. Every time I buy, it's too much, or after I buy it the price goes down. But, that's not the reason I'm buying this stuff... it's for fun. Been playing since 1956, only wish I had kept more of my "stuff" including my 3D comic books from the 1950's. Have more stuff than I can play at one time, but I don't care... it's fun. For the cost of one of these amps, of course they are now going off on Ebay for well under my buying price... I should get another just for ..... no my wife will kill me, but she is going to visit her mom this weekend..... maybe just one
I really like the size and weight, I've been restricted to a hospital bed after a bad back surgery, and playing while laying flat has it's retrictions, but I get by and it is still fun playing for me......

One tone knob (sound analagous to a passive tone knob on an electric guitar) and one volume knob so this is nearly one trick pony but when you get it right who needs all the tweek knobs?

Unless you are into heavy metal or other massive distortion this is a 9/10 saving 10/10 for a MESA BOOGIE.

Blues, rock, alternative, country and clean pop can all make very good use of this.

Great clean to mild/moderate distortion.

Used with my 68 Tele and a few pedals.

Add a Keeley compressor and this thing screams and hits 9.9/10 in my book.

The original speaker breaks up with real heavy distortion that has any bass heavy content but I plan to add a beafier 12" cab for that option.

Just bought it off e-bay it works and is amazingly quiet for a 1960's tube amp.

N/A

This is a great home recording amp that you can crank and overdrive real tubes with out getting the attention of the ploice or making your ears bleed.

I also have a Roland cube 30 wich is a great modeling amp but the Kalamazoo Model 1 is the real tube amp sound.

It appears this amp is a mid to late sixties tube. Mine says "product of Chicago Musical Instrument co." on the front in small letters, and has a small sticker on the magnet of the speaker that says "Walker Music".
How I got this little giant is a blessing. A friend of mine owed me 15 bucks. He worked for a guy that got this amp for free and was trying to get rid of the ugly duckling. my friend gladly took it and knew I was into guitar and gave it to me as payment for the 15 bucks he owed me. What a lop-sided deal that was! This little guy is a Daimond in the ruff! I couldn't wait to try it! When I did, it crackled, was scratchy, and smelled funny when the tubes heated up. The thing even gave me a little electrical shock through the strings! But I LOVED the sound that I could hear coming through all the scrathing and cutting-out! So I cleaned the thing up a little bit and ran it down to my tech to be completelly restored! He had seen a couple of them in his day and had nothing but good things to say about them! When it was done, it quickly became a shop favorite there!
I play alot of different styles. Most describe me as a "dirty blues" style! But I wouldn't stop there. This thing has 2 knobs, and thats ALL it needs! I love the simplicity! It's priceless! A little red light, a fuse, and 2 imputs make up the rest of the front. I use this amp mainly to just mess around and write music. I would love to mic it for a gig sometime. For 5 watts (so I hear) it is plenty loud (considering its size) and I wouldn't expect any more power out of it.

I play many different guitars on this. tele, les paul, and old harmony neck-through. And it's got its own sweet sound for all of them! I have never played an amp that is so sensitive to your strumming, and feeling as this one! What you play is what comes out! Simple! It has a tone so warm it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside! At lower volumes it's as sweet as honey, and you turn it up a little and it keeps the warmth all the way through, with just a touch of snarl. I've even tried it with the "blues driver" pedal out of curiosity and then it really barked! But I mainly use it straight.

Like I said before, when I got it, it was rough. But I got it for free and was worth the money I spent to restore it. Needed tubes and pots ect. It has a little skematic diagram in the cabinet so one could easily fix it. I also had a 3 prong plug installed (recomended since I got shocked a few times)! So for reliability, I'd give an 8! I mean, the thing is one of the firsts, and it still melts me!

Hehehe, Don't think you'll find a Kalamazoo dealer around! But repairs are a snap, and the parts are available. I dealt with a very good tech that deals in vintage amps. But you wouldn't need one, the thing is pretty simple (another reason it's simplicity is priceless)!

Overall, I rate the Kalamazoo Model One a 10~! I have it sitting on top of my 72 Ampeg V-4 (talk about the odd couple) and sometimes I would just rather plug into my my little model one instead of the V-4 (the amp designed for the hard of hearing, hehe) It's antique patina, and unique personality draw me to it! And everytime I play it, I can't help but appreciate the simplisity, accuracy, personality, and history in this amp!

This is a mid-60's all-tube practice combo with a tube rectifier, 12AX7 preamp tube, EL84 power tube (all original tubes), two instrument inputs, 1 volume control and a single tone control that also doubles as the power switch. It also has a particle board cabinet covered with black paper thin fabric or something and a 10" speaker with a small magnet. Sources tell me this is about 5 watts.

This amp was orginally intended to be a practice amplifier over 30 years ago, so to "wish it had more features" would probably be unfair. However, little amps like this are becoming popular for use in recording situations and if I were to build or mod a similar amp, I'd probably like to add an effects loop to isolate either the pre or power amp stages or to add reverb, etc.

My unit had a loud hum that I fixed by replacing the filter caps. I also replaced the power cord with a 3-prong grounded cord. It is now dead silent even when turned up.

I use this amp with an Ibanez S540 and a Strat copy with noiseless pickups.

Like all tube amps, this thing is still pretty loud at 5 watts. I'm told that the basic circuit design is reminiscent of the old Tweed Champs. It doesn't sound too much like a Champ, but it has its own distinctive flavor and soul and sings beautifully. When cranked with a humbucker equipped guitar plugged in, it crunches up nicely and cleans up very smoothly and almost completely just by varying your picking attack. With single-coils, overdriving it is more difficult. You definitely might want a booster pedal in that case. In other words, there's not a lot of gain to be had here. The Model 1 is more suited to warm, bluesy playing whre you can dig in to get more edge or crunch. Because it's only 5 watts, I've found that I can use an L-Pad to control the volume of the speaker without losing too much of my tone. This is great for practicing at bedroom levels.

The more I play this amp, the more the tone appeals to me. It is pure, rich and warm all at once.

If 30+ years of God-knows-what hasn't killed this thing, nothing will!

Been playing for 25 years and have owned many guitars and amps, tube and non-tube. I keep coming back to this little guy; it's the most sincere sounding amp I've ever owned!

Everyone else has talked about this amp's lack of features -- volume and tone controls, that's it. Mine was recapped by the previous owner, who also installed a grounded plug. I may owe him my life someday. I've kept the original speaker. I put a little black goo (3M Stripcalk) behind the metal plate on the front to stop its rattling on low A. I still give it a 7 in features, because between the controls on the guitar and the tone control, plus variations in your touch, you *can* get a big variety of tones. No 'verb or trem, of course.

I'm using a stock G&L ASAT Classic (Tele type) with it, and the combination is gorgeous; good twang, incredible sustain at higher volumes and even a good sustain at lower ones, and distortion that's more responsive to my touch than any amp I've tried. Ever. I play an eclectic mix of styles, from blues to international (think Boiled in Lead), and so far I haven't come close to running out of possibilities. Interestingly, this amp even worked wonders on a little pawnshop-special el-cheapo guitar I used to own -- made it sound almost respectable. The thing is dead quiet, too -- a studio buddy of mine used it for recordings for many years. I give it a ten, yes, really; as an indication, I haven't messed with my Fender Deluxe since the day I brought this amp home. (I should mention, by the way, that for gigs I normally mike the amp, rather than let it fill the house. Did that with the Fender, too.)

Well, it hasn't broken yet, and it's well-built inside. I lost a screw one time, and there was a rattle as a result, but I replaced it and all the rattles are gone. I use it on gigs without a backup amp, but then again I can switch to acoustic or National if I have to. Still, looking at the guts, I'd say it's probably about as reliable as an amp gets.

There's a schematic inside, so I give it a 2. That's it. Since the company's long gone, there won't be any support except from independent techs. By the way, folks seem to think this amp was made by Gibson; uh-uh. Mine, at least, was made by a little company in Chicago, subcontracting to Kalamazoo, which I think was founded by ex-Gibson people, and had an informal relationship with Gibson, but no more than that.

I've tried a lot of little and medium-sized amps in the 30 years I've been doing this, and I gotta say this one satisfies me in the way no other has. It's also light enough for me to carry easily, which in my tendinitis-ridden life is a good thing. There are other small, low-powered amps out there, but none in my experience holds a candle to it.

It was made in 1966. It is a one channel wonder! Two knobs... volume and tone. But it is loud for an amp sporting only one EL-84. I jush had it rebuilt by a local Amp Guru who cleaned the popts and replaced all the caps and resistors that were not working properly. He also added a ventage (reissue) 10" speaker from a Fender amp. He asked what type of tone I wanted....I told him a clean Fender tone so he apparently left of an extra cap off that would have added extra gane. It does not break up until 9 with a USA standard strat, but what a Micro-lite tone monster. It sounds like a matchless with only one EL-84.

After having the caps replaced it is very quiet.

This has been a very reliable amp. My mother bought it for me when I was too small to reach around the neck of a strat. I wish she would have bought the strat also...oh well!!

This was a Gibson amp I believe. Although as a kid I hooked this amp up to all kinds of speakers and even used it as an audio-amp when I hooked it up to an old 8-track tape player for years in the '70's. I have never had a problem out of it other than replacing the caps and speaker after 37 years of use.

If you can find one at a guitar show I would say buy it and replace any parts that need replacing. It is nice as a practice amp and it is very light weight! 5lbs? lighter than a les Paul.

Volume, Tone- If you can't sound good with volume and tone, then you most likely don't sound good with more. Simple is best, this amp proves it.

Its probably the 2nd best amp I have ever heard (2nd to an old PA head which I own). Its great for Blues harp, and pretty much ok (once you change the speaker out) for guitar. The amp has a sweet, smooth tone that tends to break up nice for amplified harp. If you want a good, cheap amp that will sound nice. This is the ticket right here! Possible Speaker replacement candidates - Jensen C10Q, P10S, P10R(Vintage, the reissues are useless, the Reissue C10Q is good, and for the money <$30>, its well worth the upgrade). I currently gig with this amp, and I say its one of the best for harmonica in my book.

Its a point to point wired tube amp. Its reliable just like any tube amp

No support for this one.......

Overall, This amp gets a 10 for value, durability, and tone. If you play harmonica and are looking to go amplified try this amp, you won't be sorry.