Silvertone 1474

Mine is a 1962 Silvertone Model 1474, Chassis 185.10411. I really need a schematic for this chassis. All those on the net seem to be chassis 10410. There is a difference. Any help will be appreciated.

There is ample power. The features rival any amp of its day.

This was my first real guitar amp. At $139 new how could you go wrong. Amps have come and gone but this one still works! It does everything the big boys do. The reverb is amazing. The tremelo is a little slow even at the fastest speed. If you want vintage vibe, this is it!

You can see a picture of it at www.dennischandler.com Cool Tools page.

My Strat and LP sound fat through the 1474. It doesn't have the high end of a Twin but for blues and 50's rock it's hard to beat. I put in CTS Lab L5 speakers. The original Jensens are super but the Lab speakers are thicker.

Overdrive is pure, no pedals needed!

It has had minimal work in the 40 + years of its life. No breakdowns just routine maintenance. It is built for professional use.

Danelectro made these for Sears. Support ended many years ago. Fortunately there are Silvertoners out there who have original parts and information. The circuits are easily accessed and repaired when needed. I can't remember the last time it needed any work other than pot cleaning.

Please help with a schematic. This is a sentimental amp used in the studio. It is more of a decoration than a road amp. But if I needed to take it on a job, it would do the job!

Thanks!

2x12 combo amp. Unique stereo output from the power amp ( 4 6L6 tubes, each 12" speaker is driven by 2 of the 6L6s through a seperate output transformer) Mono pre amp. 2 channels...each with vol, bass and treble controls. Tremolo speed and intensity controls that effects both channels. Reverb level control for channel 2 only. Pretty tough to apply a rating here. For 1963 (approx) this was pretty much it in the way of amp features so back then you could rate it a 10. nowadays with all the channel switching, effects loop, record/headphones out sort of stuff you see I guess that some (not me) would knock it down a few points for being too basic.

No problem putting a rating on this category, 10 ALL THE WAY! Crank it up and stand back! I plug a pretty rootsy selection of guitars through the amp. A Les Paul, a Telecaster, A Danelectro U2, and a DeArmond M77-T(Gretch sounding) The amp produces an extemely thick, musical overdrive. It breaks up very early compared to a Fender Twin (then again what doesn't?) I own a mid 60s blackface Twin, and for the same output tube, and speaker line up is not nearly as loud as the Twin (and that's a GOOD thing, I love the Twin for surf, early Beatles sort of stuff, but it's no good for raunch). It even breaks up earlier than my Supro 88T (2x12, 2 6L6 combo...also made by Valco like the Silvertone). The amp is darker sounding than the Supro so you have to dial in the bass fairly low, and the treble between 8, and 10 depending on the tone you're going for. I'm a big Jimmy Page, Neil Young fan when it comes to amp tones, and between my different axes I can come very close to most songs they have recorded tone wise. All I'm running through the amp pedal wise is a Fulltone Full Drive 2 (set for "non compression" using it mainly as a level boost to hit the pre amp harder for soloing), and a Boss Analog Echo pedal. One funny note...I have a copy of the original owners manual which advises that "unusually strong signals might overload the inputs" Uh oh we wouldn't want to do THAT!!! I think that Chuck a couple of reviews above me was a little harsh with a 6 rating here because it was too loud for some clubs and needed an overdrive pedal (even though he's right). But it's sort of like knocking points off of a Ferarri because you can't get it out of 1st gear on your way down to the corner store.

I have to give it a 10 so far. I've had it cranked full out for 3, or 4 hours at a time about 5 times, and so far so good. One design aspect that might lead to problems later on...no room in the cabinet for the 6L6s to breath. There's only about 1/4" between the tube tops, and the cabinet top (which is covered in sheet metal...maybe the first batch out of the factory caught on fire?!?!?) . I bought a small clip-on fan to get a bit more heat ventilation than this design feature offers.

Hello operator...get me the Silvertone factory STAT!!!!!

Been playing since I was 12...EEK thats 38 years in July! I have the similar(albeit less beefy) sounding Supro 88T to fall back on if I ever lost this, so I could survive UNTIL I found another one of these babies!!! I would definately search high and low first for THIS amp, and then for another one just like it.

My 1474 is probably from 1963 or so, it has the original Jensen alnico 12" speakers, 4 original 6L6's, and 1 of the 12AX7's. It has 2 channels, one of which has reverb, nonfunctional currently. Both channels work with the tremelo. It gets really loud if you want it to.

The tone if fabulous. Really nice rich sound, with lots of bass. It breaks up early, creamy thick distortion. So much sustain with my Les Paul Jr. You could go out for a bite, and come back and it would still be going "Aaaaaaaaahhh!" Very loud amp, definitely you can be heard over the din. It is the sound of my youth, my buddy had one during my early teen years and we jammed in my parents basement for hours, so I am so glad to have this back in my life. This is an amp you can fall in love with. Not quite as loud as a Fender Twin Reverb, but definitely a major player with its quad of 6L6 power tubes. I think it breaks up earlier, too, and the distortion is exactly what you want for blues and Rock and Roll. Its not noisy, when it gets a little noise, a smack on the top usually quiets it right up.

It's 40 years old and still going strong. I plan on having it serviced soon, to try and get the reverb working, and maybe see if any of the tubes are weak and do caps. I would say its very reliable. I would use it on a gig, sure.

I don't think its on warranty anymore, do you think that KMart will pick up the service contract now that Sears and KMart merged? But its pretty straight forward, any good tube amp service tech can figure this baby out. The schematic I downloaded seems different than my particular amp, tho.

This is the Holy Grail of Silvertone amps. I have a 1472, which I bought first, then found this one, which is what I was after in the first place. And the sound is just everything I had hoped it would be. I haven't been playing guitar long, I am a drummer. But this was the 1st amp I ever really had any experience with, back when I was in Junior High School. 35 years later, I find this one, and it sounds just like I remember it did. My friends who do play guitar come over and put it through its paces, and they all have big smiles and won't put the guitar down.

I first heard a Silvertone 1474 while friends of mine were in-house recording a new album. This particular 1474 was manufactured in the mid-sixties. I work in a small venue band, so it is plenty loud, even for outdoor gigs. I have read others who do not like the reverb and tremolo unit on this model, but I think they are great because they are subtle.

I started playing electric guitar in the '70's ..Fender Telecaster ..did an acoustic solo for years. I returned to using electric with the band and discovered i LOVE the sound of danelectro guitars (a nice cross between electric and acoustic sound) I am a rhythym player and the 1474 is very clean, and only distors when turned beyond an "8" setting ..which I would not use as a band member

I have only had it for a short time and I never go to a gig without a back up amp, both guitar and PA. I bought it through Boston Guitar Works (online) and they assured me it had been thoroughly "gone over" before shipping, but it arrived DOA .I spent $150 with my local tech, now it is running well and it has TONE, TONE, TONE! The chassis is not ruggedly built, so it needs to be packed and handled carefully on gigs and I am having a custom cover made for it

Boston Guitar Works is a store I will not deal with again. They used the "bait and switch" sell by pricing it at $399, then when I e mailed them about all the repairs, they blithely informed me that they could have easily sold it on e bay and that the $150 I had to put into it was what the amp was worth in working order.
The repair work Ihad done was at Speed of Sound, Eau Claire, WI, and they always do excellent work. They know their STUFF!

I have been performing full time for 29 years. I have a whole collection of Martin acoustics, a Danelectro DC-59 Repro, a Dano 56-U2, and a '61 Silvertone U1 (Dano made) The Danos were MADE to be played thru the 1474

If my 1474 was lost or stolen, I would be heart broken. Love the way it sounds and looks ..classic rock n roll!

Do not purchase from Boston Guitar Works unless you do it in person .. they are unscrupulous.

Late 50's 1474 Twin 12 tube amp from Silvertone. Its got two channels, with two jacks for each channel. This makes it ideal for "jumping" the channels, i.e. use both pre-amps for the one guitar in. It has two reverb pots, one on the front, and the other on the back. I've never figured out why, i only use the one on front. A good friend has the same amp with the next serial number (made next to each other), and his doesn't have the reverb pot in the back. It has a tremelo pot, which doesn't work very well. You can hardly hear the tremelo at the 10 point.

When I purchased it in 1999, it still had all original power tubes. I've since replaced. It also had a two-prong, electrocution-prone, electrical cord. I've since replaced it with a grounded three-way cord, but still get shocked occasionally on mics (go figure). Good thing i left the polarity switch intact.

I use two guitars with this amp...a PRS Custom 22 and a Gibson 335. It suits both guitars well, but probably the Gibson better. One problem with this amp is that it takes a high volume setting to get any distortion, and if you set the volume that high, you'll blow the sound on stage. So inevitably, i've used a distortion pedal to get any distortion out of the guitar. Its clean low sound has a lot of growl, while stll being clean. You get a better sound by jumping the two channels.

Never had an issue with it. It sure is heavy, though.

Its a trooper, loud and dependable. Good solid clean sounds, not much on the distortion end unless you turn it way up, which isn't a very nice thing to do to your fellow band mates.

I recently acquired a 1962 Silvertone model 1474 Twin Reverberation amplifier. I'm a Blues player. For most of my tone requirements, I will never need another amp. As much as I adore the old Fenders, THIS IS THE ONE! Great tone! I plan to rectify the crappy reverb with an Accutronics tank to replace the existing oversized cigar holder. The tremelo also sucks but can be remedied with new-valued pots.

I'm a Strat player (SRV((modified))) and find the 1474 a perfect fit. A humbucker might be a bit much for this amp as it wants to get dirty quick. Oh, but what beautiful dirt!

This is an amp built for Sears by Danelectro in 1962 and was obviuosly well kept. I received it with original tubes except for one "sweet" Mullard 12AX7 in the channel two preamp. This amp likes to get hot but has withstood outdoor Summer festivals and has convinced me that good old Sears used to sell nothing but American built quality merchandise. This amp is an example of what used to be considered "the norm" for reliable, quality merchandise.

Warranty? You gotta be kidding! This amp (if the particle board holds) will survive the original designer's great grand children.

I've been playing for almost 40 years. I love this amp more than any Mesa, Fender, Marshall, etc. that I've owned. If this amp were stolen, the thief would suffer a terrible fate. If the amp were destroyed, I'd search for another all of my days.

I believe this amp is a Silvertone 1474. Its contained in a single cabinet and has 4 6L6 power tubes, a 5U4 rectifier, and I believe 4 12AX7 tubes and a 6AU6 tube. It drives two 12inch speakers. I received the amp for Christmas about 1969. at that time it was bought used. My father helped my rewire it by replacing all the pots, the two small output transformers with two massive ones bought from Bell Labs. We replaced all the carbon resistors with wire wounds, and the capacitors with high efficiency ones. He also did some modifications to the tube bias to make it sound more like a MARSHALL. The stock speakers were later replaced with two 100 watt JBLs. The sound of this amp is great. I own a Digitech 2101 digital guitar processor. With all of its $900.00 worth of tube processing, The Silvertone amp still has a unique sound that I haven't been able to copy. I've had the amp for a little over 30 years and have never had any problems with it. Its a work horse with a great blues sound.

1 Guitar Guild M80,
2 Style Blues, Rock
3 For a tube amp is quiet due to modicicatons
4 Depending on the tube biasing it goes from clean to full MARSHALL
5 At high volumes its clean but it is somewhat colored with 2nd harmonic distortion
6 With the bias adjusted, it sounds like a MARSHALL

Amp has never broken down in 30 years. I have changed the tubes.

Never dealt with the company

As good as a MARSHALL. Maby even better.

This an old amp, late '50's early '60's. This is the only amp I want to play out of these days. It is a Sears Silvertone Reverberation Twin Twelve model 1474 combo. I've finally found "my tone". I play blues, mostly older Chicago Blues. This amp has only two features, tremolo and reverb. It is a two channel all tube combo. As a matter of fact I've never seen an amp with as many tubes. 10 in total as follows, as you are looking at the back of the amp from left to right; 6AU6, 4X 6L6's (power side, more on this later), 5U46B (rectifier), 6CG7 (trem) 12AX7 (pre) 6CG7 (rev) 12AX7 (pre). The cabinet is made of waffer board (pressed card board) and partical board. The controls are on the front the inputs are on the back panel as well as the power and stand by switches. The chassis is all point to point wiring. It's about 35-40 watts,into two Jensen "Blue Bell" speakers. Which is more than enough power. I've played an out door concert with it, and it sounded just fine. The 4 6L6'S break down into two per speaker, which is different than any thing I've seen before. Which explains the low power out put. It's covered in black tolex, with a silver/gold sparkle grill.

I use an ES135, an ES335, and an old Harmony Rocket. The 135 has P-100's and the 335 has PAF's, the Rocket has a single DeArmand. As I've said before I play Blues. The older Chicago style.(Willy Dixon, Sonny Boy, Elmore James, Jimmy Reed, T-Bone, The King's etc. etc) For this type of music I couldn't ask for a better amp for the tone it produces. There is a minor hiss when the amp is on, but no more than a Strat or Tele, when they are plugged into any amp. The amp has only two sounds. In channel one you get a very nice "Blues" crunch, and in the second channel you get a dirtier "Blues" crunch. And thats it. But "THE TONE THE TONE!!!" From looking at the schematic the reverb was an after thought. And it sucks the bag big time. Imagin sticking your amp in an old rain barrel, that should get the same effect. The tremolo blows too. Did I mention "THE TONE"!!!!!

I've had this amp since 1994, I traded an old mutt Strat for it. It sat collecting dust until May of this year. When I threw a couple hundred bucks into it. Basically new tubes, and some new caps, and a couple of minor mods. And I've used it for every gig my band has had since then. At first I always brought a back up amp. But I don't any more. I've not had any problems with it.

Sears......Call them and ask about their Silvertone line.

I've been playing for 38 years. And over the years I've owned alot of amps. Fenders, Marshalls, Ampegs, Kustoms. But this is "THE ONE". were it lost or stolen I'd be real pissed! Just try find one of these puppies. What I like most about this amp is the monster tone that it generates. I've never heard any thing like this before. IT IS ME! The only thing I don't like is the "Mother of Partical Board" cabinet (don't get it wet). If you play Blues and you can find one of these amps they are worth checking out. I've seen two of these models on e-bay one went for $350.00 and the other went for $400.00 which is a little steep because you'll probably have to spend at least $200.00 on it. This is only to replace the tubes and caps and the power cord which has to be changed to a 3 prong type. This is to aviod electrocution, which is a real possibility with out it.