Sano 250R 212 Combo

1969 Sano 250R 2x12 30watt All tube combo. 100% handwired goodness. Made in Cranford New Jersey

I'm writing this more as a discovery, rather than a user review.

I inherited this amp @ 25 years ago from my Grandfather who was a professional musician who worked closely with the Sano Corporation and was a spokesperson for their accordians. The amp has 2 channels with 2 inputs each (4). I always though they were for high gain and low gain but the first bank of both channels is listed as "Stereo" and playing through them I cant really hear a difference. Channel one has the Reverb and Tremolo tanks on it. The amp has a standby switch and a selectable "Polarity" on/off switch. Both channels have Bass and Treble knobs. The reverb has one knob controlling depth and the tremolo has two, one for speed and one for depth. There is a red jewel on light. The original tube layout is as follows: 2 x 7159, 1 x ECC82(12au7), 1 x 6fq7 and 3 x ECC83 (12ax7). The speakers are the shiney hub capped dampner CTS loud-speakers. It should be noted that the reverb tank has a little tag on it that reads "Hand Crafted by the beautiful ladies of Kalamazoo Michigan".

I just completed a well needed restoration of this amp - I rescued it from storage in a friends musty basement, where it sat un-used for the past 10 years gathering rust and mildew. Quite a bit of bleach, wire brush and polishing later, shes almost good as new. I replaced all of the tubes: the 7159's with JJ's, the 6fq7 with an Electro Harmonix, the 12AX7's with Groove Tubes. It should be noted that I replaced the pre-amp/phase-splitter 12AU7 with a fourth 12AX7 to give the unit more gain. I also replaced the stock loud-speakers with a set of Eminence RedCoats. The amp really has come alive now - before, no matter how hard you pushed the amp, it was nearly impossible to get it to break up. It also sounded really mushy, no matter how you let off the Bass control. I used to use it under my old Crate GT212 to give the solid state Crate more depth. In that configuration, it had no problem filling an auditorium with sound (However the Crate was a 60 Watter) Now it has that great classic 2x12 combo tube amp golden sound. It will start to break up around 7 now, but I use it mostly much lower, with my Blues Driver fronting it. It sounds VERY 335 era Clapton when using either of my les pauls or SG. The reverb on these units is legendary and over the top (if you are into the Dicky Dale) but the tremmolo is bizarre putting it mildly.

It was still running (barely) on what I think were the original tubes 40 years after it was made - not bad.

The company went out of business in 1980 - you are on your own. If you have one, take it to your local amp guy - he'll LOVE seeing it and probably want to hotrod it.

I've been playing for the better part or 25 years or so. I play mostly Heavy Progressive Blues. My main rig is a Laney VC30-210/GS112VE. I'm just re-discovering this amp as we speak, but so far, it sounds like a winner.

I think it's a '67. Close to mint condition. Two channels. (Probably the same amp as reviewed here under "2x12 twin"). Sx7591 Tubes, not sure of bias arrangement. Probably 30 watts or so. Speakers are CTS alnicos, look from the front like maybe JBL with those shiny domes, but are not. One channel has reverb and trem, the other doesn't. Two inputs per channel. The amp is sort of a large box with a handle on top. Top mounted controls. Grill angles back from the bottom, swirly pattern. It's a fine looking piece, in a cluncky sort of way. Odd tube layout. The power tubes go sideways in the chassis, so the top gets hot. There is a vent on top for that reason.

It's reasonably feature rich.

As received, the amp was not that useful. Not much volume, though it had a clear, sweet tone. I picked it up for little bucks, mainly out of curiosity. Many of these were intended more for accordian players than anything else. I suspected it was voiced that way, might take some adjusting to be useful for guitar. That's how it turned out. Took it to my (gifted) amp tech. He discovered that the 16 ohm speakers had been incorrectly wired at the factory. Whoops! No wonder there wasn't much bass. Also, he rewired the "heater current" or whatever that is. Said it was a funky layout, too much DC hum. Retubed with JJs. He also discoonected the trem, saying it was somehow hooked up to the reverb, not only sounded lousy but was compromising the sound in general. Redid the trem as a bias vary type. Anyway, it's a different beast now. Somewhat Ampeg like. Muscular, thick clean sound, with a healthy bass presence even with my strat. Turn it up for smooth, warm drive. Excellent sustain at higher volumes. Jazzy, warm sound. A good, not great reverb. Quite useful, not boingy. The trem is brownface tasty, as intense as any I've ever played. Lots more volume. It's no twin, but now it's stage ready. The experimentation was so worth it. I am really liking the sound. Sort of like a ballsier Gemini I, with more volume and just perfect drive when dimed. I really appreciate Ampegs, so that is a high compliment.

Too soon to tell.

Not relevant.

I've got 6 or so fine amps now. One too many for my office, so I just took the Sano over to my buddy's house for long term loan. Jammed for hours on it. I had real trouble leaving it there. It just sounded so good. I play strat and tele, lots of blues, slide, some loud, jazzy stuff. This thing has a sound, and it works so well with the strat, which not every amp does. I've been playing for 40 years, loving the different personalities of these cool old tube amps. If I compare it to anything, it would be an Ampeg. But in truth, in volume and drive, general usability, it's in the tradition of so many 2x12, 30 to 35 watt amps I like, including gretsch and magnatone. It was a worthy experiment, considering how little sound it had stock. I'd do it again in a minute, and am really curious about other Sano amps. The one downside for me is the boxy shape. It's not that easy to muscle around. One point off for that. In terms of tone, it's a 10.