Kay Model 750 Combo

This is a Kay 750 amplifier made in 1967. It has typical features for a budget three-tube amp of this vintage. One volume control, one tone control, power switch on tone control, three instrument input jacks, eight-inch Oxford alnico-magnet speaker, ungrounded power cord, black pebbled paper finish over plywood cabinet, light gray speaker grill fabric with darker criss-cross lines throughout the fabric. Power output unspecified but probably 5 Watts or less. Modern amp features are totally absent (no effects loop, no headphone jack, etc). The three tubes used in this amp are a 60FX5 power amp, 18GD6A preamp and 36AM3 rectifier.

I probably paid too much for this amp but it was in exceptionally nice condition and sounded so good I just couldn't resist.

If you dig old-school rock 'n' roll or bluesey sounds then you'll probably like this amp. If you're into clean jazz or dirtorted metal you'll probably hate it. Has a slightly gritty "clean" sound at low to moderate volume levels. Has mild to moderate overdriven tube sound at higher volume levels. Doesn't have enough drive on its own for thick metal-type distortion but can be pushed there by using an overdrive pedal between the guitar and amp. I think the amp sounds better when fed by single-coil pickups than by humbuckers but that's probably just personal preference. With one tone and one volume control there's not a lot of variety in the sounds the amp can make, but every sound it does make is awesome if you like this kind of vintage sound as much as I do.

One the one hand, there are so few parts in the amp to break that not much can go wrong. On the other hand, it's almost 40 years old, so something probably will break sooner or later. As with most old tube amps, mine eventually needed to have the electrolytic capacitors replaced. Other than the cap replacement mine's never given me any trouble. It's still going strong with the original set of RCA black plate tubes.

Would I gig with it? Well, it probably wouldn't make sense to gig with something like this simply because of the limited power output. It's a small amp made for practice or recording so it isn't loud enough to be heard over a live drummer.

Kay went out of business in 1968. These amps are very simple so any reputable amp technician or radio/tv repair shop can take care of them.

If it were lost or stolen, I'd probably buy another one or something else a lot like it. Not necessarily the exact same make and model, but some kind of 1960's vintage little three-tube amp, because they can make sounds that modern amps and the big vintage amps just can't touch.

INTERESTING HISTORY/TRIVIA: The Kay 750 was the long awaited replacement for the aging 703 model that had been Kay's bestseller for almost a decade. The 750 model came onto the market around late 1966 or 1967 and not very many were built before Kay closed in 1968. The 750 has the dubious distinction of being the only Kay amp that was never outsourced to another amp manufacturer. While all other Kay amps were built by contract manufacturers like Valco, the 750 models were all built by Kay in Kay's Illinois plant. The 750 electrical chassis also saw use in some late production 703 amps (called the 703-C models) that were manufactured to use up the excess stock of 703 cabinets that were acquired when Kay bought out Valco. Valco was the contractor that had made all the older 703's for Kay in prior years. The circuit design of the 750 was nearly identical to the original 703 except it used a newer type of tubes that generated 33% less heat. The differences between the old 703 and new 750 were mostly cosmetic. Bsically the 703 looked like an old kitchen drawer with a speaker grill slapped on one side and the 750 looked like a hip modern amplifier in 1967. Unfortunately, the redesign came too late to save Kay from its mounting financial problems. Kay ceased doing business in 1968.