Supro Corsica

I think this amp was made in about '63. I've been a loyal Mesa-Boogie player for 25yrs+ and stumbled across it at a garage sale for about a hundred bucks. I dusted it off, saw and old jensen, a 6v6, a rectifier tube and the funky lightning emblem on the face and thought to myself this might be a pretty cool old tone machine. Got home, plugged it in and between the snarky sounding reverb and the vibrato knob, I knew there was still a lot of soul left in this old thing. However, keep things in perspective - this isnt a gigging machine by any means

I have several guitars, but I like my tele and my less paul deluxe with this amp. The ceramic magnet lead pick-up in the les paul really picks up some good rock-a-billy vibe. (Think Southern Culture on the Skids). I love that cheesy reverb and vibrato.

I had my amp tech totally re-wire this thing, put in a grounded cord and replace the tubes. I also pulled the old low-wattage Jensen and replaced it with a Celestian Green-back. Reliability? Once it's gone through, there's really nothing that can break. Its very simple.

I dont think Valco even exists anymore.... Any amp tech can work on these. They're very simple.

Dont try to overthink this amp. Look at it for what it is. A novelty, a good recording amp for the right application. All in all, it is a funky little tone machine with a cool retro vibe. For a hundred bucks? I've payed three times that for a chorus pedal.

This amp was made in 1963. It has a chrome face with blue graphics, and a gold plated logo. It has 3 inputs(one of them I hotrodded for more growl), as well as inputs for tremolo and reverb footswitches. In the cabinet is the original 15" Jensen speaker, and all the original tubes. Other than the hotrodded input, the only other alteration to it I've made is putting a grounded plug on it, which also cancelled the hum. The only thing I wish it had was the original footswitches.

I use this amp with all my guitars--1965 Epiphone Wilshire, 1971 Kalamazoo, 1999 Epiphone Dot Deluxe, 1971 Fender Musicmaster. I love the way this amp sounds. When at low volume, the tone is thick and warm, and at high volume, it growls nicely. It doesn't get dull or thin, the tone is always warm and chimey. When pushed with an overdrive pedal(mine's a Danelectro Daddy-O), it gets a great, thick distortion that I've been complimented on countless times. The tremolo is razor sharp, and adds a bit of shine to the tone, and the reverb is the fattest I've ever heard, even at low levels--gets that Jack White sound to perfection.

It's almost 40 years old and still going strong! I use it mainly in the studio, but have played some smaller gigs with it miked.

Um....Supro hasn't been in business for 30 years.

I've been playing guitar for a couple years, and the only amp that sounds as warm and smooth as my Corsica is a 1968 Fender Champ that I traded for about a year ago. If it were stolen, I'd probably have a heart attack. I love this amp. Nothing else is going to replace it for its tone and versatility.

I think this amp was made in the mid-60's. I mostly play classic rock and this little amp screams perfectly when used with overdrive or distortion. The amp has (4)12ax7's, (1)5Y3 rectifier, one 6V6 power tube, and a 12-inch speaker. The tremolo is razor-sharp. If I was to play in a club, the amp would need to be miked as it only puts out 4-5 watts. The amp has one channel and three inputs with knobs for volume, tone(which sounds a little dull), tremolo, and reverb. I still need to wire the reverb pan together because it was disconnected when I purchased the amp. I mainly use the amp for band practice but when the opportunity strikes I will use it live miked through a PA.

I own a Gibson Nighthawk, a SG, and a G&L tele. With the Nighthawk and the SG the amp breaks up perfectly which brings up the early Led Zepplin sound, a high midrange which accents leads especially when used with a fuzz pedal. With the tele, I get a high skronk sound which is okay. I prefer the humbuckers with this amp for the nice breakup I get. I usually play with the amp turned up all the way! The amp is a little noisy but if I installed a ground plug I think that would help. The tone knob just muffles the volume when I turn it down and it does add some high end when it is cranked all the way. I usually leave it between 11 o'clock and one o'clock. Without a fuzz pedal the amp breaks up a little for a bluesy sound.

I've only had this amp for three months. I changed the rectifier tube and the power tube. I do need to get the reverb fixed eventually although I find on these little amps I get way more than I need. I will use this amp with the Ampeg Jet I have which seems to have the low end which would balance with this amps high end.

I assume Supro or Valco is out of business. So I would have to depend on old schematics for help.

I've been playing for 12 years. I own way too many amps already, but I knew that this amp's sound was unique from the rest. They don't reissue these amps anymore so they are a definite value if you see one in a flea market or second-hand store. I find the amp favors a high midrange which none of my other amps come close to(except the Hiwatt which would make me deaf if I tried to get the same kind of overdriven sound on a regular basis). The amp doesn't have a lot of power or stage presence for live situations but it is perfect for recording(I think I read somewhere that Jimmy Page recorded Led Zep albums using these little monsters). The amp lacks the modern features like most older amps, but you can crank it without going deaf or pissing off your neighbors(I've done both).