Was watching a doco on The Doors and saw some strange guitar amps I'd never seen before. They were tall and had a horn in the top section. But a nasty looking Atlas type announcement horn. Real "Public Address" kind of horn. Never seen that in a MI amp before!
I thought The Doors were using Ultravox amps, but none of the Ultravox 60s vintage stuff looks like this. They must have sued it a lot, there were several of these in studio and live footage. I can't find anything like it, but don't know my amps that well.
Anyone know what they were?
I thought The Doors were using Ultravox amps, but none of the Ultravox 60s vintage stuff looks like this. They must have sued it a lot, there were several of these in studio and live footage. I can't find anything like it, but don't know my amps that well.
Anyone know what they were?
Ah Ha! Thanks so much - that's it. Now I remember seeing the Acoustic name tag on the amp. Goofy looking thing.
Will do more research on it. Are they worth anything these days?
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
Will do more research on it. Are they worth anything these days?
Are you serious? Have you seen what vintage guitar amp prices are on eBay? Last year I LMAO watching an "as-is" transistor amp that was just a few years old sell for full retail because people just assumed it was a vintage tube amp.
LOL! Well I do know that vintage amps are sought after, just never seen these before. Was wondering if they had a special following.
Acoustic was known mostly for the people who used them for bass amps, like John Paul Jones, for example. But there were others too, like the Collectors and Chilliwack. (just check the back cover of the "Mask" album)
The 300 series is worth alot because they were powerful. Apparently very well built, too.
As for Robby Krieger, I saw him use a few Fender Dual Showmans, I think. But that was just in a couple of pictures.
The 300 series is worth alot because they were powerful. Apparently very well built, too.
As for Robby Krieger, I saw him use a few Fender Dual Showmans, I think. But that was just in a couple of pictures.
Acoustic Solid State Amplifiers
Blue stripes on the side , horn on top," BRAND ", is "ACOUSTIC". An american made solid state amp, late 60's +. Wow! I thought this was common knowledge. Been looking for one for years. Check out old Doors, Iron Butterfly, Steppenwolf, Vids. Either they didn't make very many or they are all trashed or someone is hording them. Great amps. Want one bad!!!!!!!!!!!
Was watching a doco on The Doors and saw some strange guitar amps I'd never seen before. They were tall and had a horn in the top section. But a nasty looking Atlas type announcement horn. Real "Public Address" kind of horn. Never seen that in a MI amp before!
I thought The Doors were using Ultravox amps, but none of the Ultravox 60s vintage stuff looks like this. They must have sued it a lot, there were several of these in studio and live footage. I can't find anything like it, but don't know my amps that well.
Anyone know what they were?
Blue stripes on the side , horn on top," BRAND ", is "ACOUSTIC". An american made solid state amp, late 60's +. Wow! I thought this was common knowledge. Been looking for one for years. Check out old Doors, Iron Butterfly, Steppenwolf, Vids. Either they didn't make very many or they are all trashed or someone is hording them. Great amps. Want one bad!!!!!!!!!!!
Acoustic 270 or its earlier incarnation (260?)
No real PA amps way back then, so you either built a wall of Marshalls (or a couple Dual Showmans in USA) or used a couple pof there.
Over 250W RMS into 4 Altec Lansing speakers (not your cheap Jensen/Oxford as most others) plus a couple mid horns for projection and you would pull dental fillings out of listeners 60 yards away.
Some friends of mine had that same full setup and sound was *unbearable* in a straight line in from of the cabinets.
No real PA amps way back then, so you either built a wall of Marshalls (or a couple Dual Showmans in USA) or used a couple pof there.
Over 250W RMS into 4 Altec Lansing speakers (not your cheap Jensen/Oxford as most others) plus a couple mid horns for projection and you would pull dental fillings out of listeners 60 yards away.
Some friends of mine had that same full setup and sound was *unbearable* in a straight line in from of the cabinets.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
I hated them. But Jaco Pastorius did manage to get good tone out of a pair of Acoustic amps for bass many years.
wow, how to revive an old thread.
(surely almost all guitar amps are horrible straight on? when I mic amps on stage it's direct-offset (about 2/3 out from centre) in studio I use all types of crazy techniques, but none of them tend to be 'dead on'
(surely almost all guitar amps are horrible straight on? when I mic amps on stage it's direct-offset (about 2/3 out from centre) in studio I use all types of crazy techniques, but none of them tend to be 'dead on'
Kustom, Sunn and VOX also made "guitar" amps with horns. Most were disconnected by the people that used them. Sometimes keyboard players would use the horn if they wanted a clean high end. The big advantage those Acoustic amps had at the time was that you could have one preamp feeding many powered speaker cabinets.
Well, the transistorized US-made VOX amps we saw here had horns. They were nothing like the real British amps. Our Super Beatle, for instance, had 6 12'S and two horns.
A lot of bass speakers still come with horns, usually also with a long-time-constant compressor consisting of a light bulb in series, and a really crappy crossover consisting of a cap in series (or a piezo horn). Again, they are usually turned off.
In college I worked for a band that had a rhythm player who played a strat thru a clean twin with Jensens and 8 piezo tweeters. The crystal-clear highs were astounding. It actually sounded surprizingly good for that particular kind of chucka-chucka rhythm work country rock, definitely claiming its own sonic space against a les paul lead.
A lot of bass speakers still come with horns, usually also with a long-time-constant compressor consisting of a light bulb in series, and a really crappy crossover consisting of a cap in series (or a piezo horn). Again, they are usually turned off.
In college I worked for a band that had a rhythm player who played a strat thru a clean twin with Jensens and 8 piezo tweeters. The crystal-clear highs were astounding. It actually sounded surprizingly good for that particular kind of chucka-chucka rhythm work country rock, definitely claiming its own sonic space against a les paul lead.
Indeed!
Peavey brought out a (front-of house) speaker similar to this: -
It had 2x12" in a wave-guide, 2x P.A. Horns on top and 2 horn tweeters just below the mid-horns.
Now that I think about it I've seen a set of Yamaha's with the same configuration.
E.V. were, of course, very into their "All-Horn" designs at one stage - Such as the "Eliminator" and "Dominator" (Tremendous speakers for their time)
Aah! the memories!
Regards.
The Sound Man
Peavey brought out a (front-of house) speaker similar to this: -
It had 2x12" in a wave-guide, 2x P.A. Horns on top and 2 horn tweeters just below the mid-horns.
Now that I think about it I've seen a set of Yamaha's with the same configuration.
E.V. were, of course, very into their "All-Horn" designs at one stage - Such as the "Eliminator" and "Dominator" (Tremendous speakers for their time)
Aah! the memories!
Regards.
The Sound Man
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Acoustic amps
I saw(heard) Jaco play with a folded horn Acoustic cab ,and yes it sounded good, but it still had that lack of distinction that folded horn cabs have when used alone. He was somthing else!
I saw(heard) Jaco play with a folded horn Acoustic cab ,and yes it sounded good, but it still had that lack of distinction that folded horn cabs have when used alone. He was somthing else!
The 360 was even used at Woodstock by Santana's bass man. I think every bass player in the world wanted one after the movie came out. 🙂
The Acoustic 360 was the first really murderous bass amp, with Sixties transistors, 3-ohm speakers, and a horn bin that shot the bass forward like an 12-gauge.
The Santana guy must have really liked that amp, what with the Ampeg truck parked behind the stage the whole time. But for outdoors, yeah, I could see that.
The Santana guy must have really liked that amp, what with the Ampeg truck parked behind the stage the whole time. But for outdoors, yeah, I could see that.
The California bands of the late 60s--pro and aiming to be--were big Acoustic amp users. I lived in Socal then concerts were loud. Beamy too. Many of those Acoustic and Kustom heads still work. Both companies used good speakers too.
Yeah I don't know how Jaco sounded so good thru those Acoustic amps. Later I saw him thru dual 8X10 bottoms; much better. Shame he died so young.
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