Product: The Blues Box Silvertone 1481
Price Paid: UNKNOWN
Submitted
06/30/2008
at
08:14pm
by
Professor Fuzz
Features
:
10
This is a refurb of a Silvertone 1481 (mid-1960s) done by Blues Box Amps. The original Silvertone 1481 chassis was removed from the original fiberboard cabinet, overhauled, and installed in a new custom cabinet with a Weber 12" alnico speaker. It is a simple setup: One input. One volume. One tone. What more do you need?
Sound Quality
:
10
The Silvertone 1481 circuit has been called the best "Champ" out there. It was made as a low-wattage (6-8 watts) amp sold by Sears. It is the key to the lo-fi blues tone of folks like Hound Dog Taylor. It growls. It crunches. It has a wonderful reedy fuzz-like quality to it. Playing on the neck pickup it can get downright saxy in tone. It doesn't know the meaning of "clean." This amp is a dirty blues machine.
Reliability
:
10
The chassis is over 40 years old. Randy at Blues Box Amps has refurbished the chassis and components and installed it in a new cabinet with a new speaker. There is no warranty on the amp (clearly stated on the Blues Box Amps website). I've had it for a couple of months now and it has worked perfectly. The tune up on the amp resulted in a very quiet operation (i.e., no buzzing or humming) and tone to die for.
Customer Support
:
10
Randy was a pro to work with on this custom project. He was quick to respond to emails and together we worked out the details on my perfect amp. In-progress photos of the build were posted online and he consulted with me on various small details of the project. I got to pick the tolex, grill cloth, handle, and speaker. The packing job was to perfection. This was my first experience ordering a custom amp and it was a pleasure working with Randy. Now I own a reliable vintage amp circuit in a new cabinet that makes me smile every time I plug in.
Overall Rating
:
10
This is my dream amp. It is my low-down dirty blues machine.
Long may it run!
