WOW! 1952 Fender Pro-Amp

Steve Alonzo Walker · Post by **Steve Alonzo Walker** » 26 Nov 2004 12:04 pm

My Dad Who Passed Away In 1994 Was A Steel Picker And I Have All His Old Amps. Last Week I Took His 1952 Fender Pro-Amp To A Gig And Played My Emmons Push-Pull Through It And Man, What A Sound! It's Naturally A Tube Amp And I Can't Get Over The Warm Sound It Has. It's Probably About 45 Watts, But I Miked It Through The PA And I Love It!
Just Wanted To Pass This Along. Next, I'm Gonna Try His Gibson Rythmn King Amp. I'll Let You Know How It Does. Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Mike Simpson · Post by **Mike Simpson** » 26 Nov 2004 1:14 pm

Steve,
The pro is rated at 18 to 25 watts, I believe that 52 is still a transition year and could be a TV front or a wide panel. My 52 is a wide panel. What speaker is in your Pro?

You can check the FFG for more info at http://www.ampwares.com/ffg/index.html

------------------
Big Mike
http://www.blueswizards.net

Stephen Gambrell · Post by **Stephen Gambrell** » 26 Nov 2004 1:16 pm

Hey, Lonzo! Man, you and Bagwell and Boggs---got all those great amps, pretty guitars that you play so well, while I sit here, looking at E-BAY, HOPING to get a deal on a beat-up Session 400, playing MY Emmons acoustically, with a FUNNEL stuck in the jack, holding my head over so I can hear my cries of self-piy while I'm trying to tune the*$^%^%(!!!
Hope you had a large Thanksgiving, and I hope to see you soon!
Your pal,
Steve "E."<FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by Stephen Gambrell on 26 November 2004 at 01:17 PM.]</p></FONT>

Bill Ford · Post by **Bill Ford** » 26 Nov 2004 4:21 pm

Stephen,
Try putting a rubber hose in the jack, the other end in the funnel, use a large rubber band around your head to hold the funnel to your ear, that should work OK..

See you in Feb. in Saluda.

BF

David Doggett · Post by **David Doggett** » 26 Nov 2004 4:45 pm

I have a late '70s silver face Pro Reverb. It has the ultralinear transformer and is rated at around 70 watts. It is basically like a Twin, but has only two 6L6GC power tubes, and weighs about 10 lbs. less. It came with two 12s, but I put a 15" speaker in it. Any model Pro is pretty good for steel up to moderate volumes. Stevie Ray Vaughn's famous Vibroverb was basically a Pro-Reverb with a 15" JBL. The silver faces are not as warm as earlier models, but they have the most clean headroom.

John Billings · Post by **John Billings** » 27 Nov 2004 9:07 am

I also have a 52 Pro, wide-panel. It has a rare factory finish called somethin' like "Roctek". It's a thick, dark gray, flecked paint, similar to what you see on old heavy machinery. I've seen a 52 Twin, first year, with the same finish at Corner music. When my tech re-capped it, and biased it, he measured the watts at 17.5.
I also have a 56 Pro. It sounds better for steel than the 52. I have used my 64 Vibroverb, with the Jensen 15"speaker, for many gigs. But you still gotta mic it. Not that much headroom, but a very sweet, warm tone.

Tim Whitlock · Post by **Tim Whitlock** » 27 Nov 2004 10:52 am

I just absolutely love that old Class-A Fender sound. I'm happy that you found it. My tech modified my Twin's normal channel to some kind of tweed cicuit. I have no idea what he did but it sounds very close to his old tweed Deluxe, only with more headroom. So sweet, warm and clear. Hard to define, but it seems to respond so well to my picking technique. They say tone is in the hands, to which I agree, but having an amp you don't have to fight is a big plus. I'd give certain non-essential body parts to have my old brown Pro back.

Jim Peters · Post by **Jim Peters** » 27 Nov 2004 11:02 am

I used to own a brown Pro, no reverb, came with a 15inch Jensen. I finally put an Altec in it 'cause I kept blowing the Jensen. I didn't think the amp sounded that great for guitar, so I traded it for.... a Peavey Bandit! Now I wish I had kept it for steel. Oh well, we've all done that. JP

James Quackenbush · Post by **James Quackenbush** » 29 Nov 2004 12:35 pm

Jim,
I wonder how many guys on the forum had a 57-59 Les Paul that they sold years ago for next to nothing ?.....I'll bet they're feelin the pain since they don't have it any more !!....OUCH !!.....Jim

Lefty · Post by **Lefty** » 3 Dec 2004 3:08 pm

I have the narrow panel tweed Pro amp. I am not sure of the year since part of the label was torn off. When I bought it it had been recovered with a pleather material. I recovered it tweed, and restored the appearence. I bought it in a pawn shop ($90.00 years ago). When I tried it out the whole store vibrated. I new I had to get it.
I have an EV 15L and groove tubes in it, but the rest is all original.
With a RV-5 pedal, or Fender tube reverb it sounds plush on Steel. Good with my Gretsch Country Gent also.
Lefty
Dekley D-10
Sho-Bud LDG
Fender Tweed Pro

Lefty · Post by **Lefty** » 5 Dec 2004 4:27 am

I should add that is the only good deal I ever got from that particular pawn shop in the 24 years I have been frequenting his store. Ebay has put a stop to uninformed prices, unfortunantly.
Lefty
Dekley D-10
Sho-Bud LDG
Pawn Shop Browser

Donny Hinson · Post by **Donny Hinson** » 10 Dec 2004 8:12 am

Steve, the Fender Pro "TV-front" amps were made for only about 5 years. They do have a nice warm sound, but they only put out about 25 watts. They're bringing good money, too. Most examples in good shape sell for about $500-$750, while a real nice one will bring $1,000 or more!