Alamo Amps

tubeenvy · Newbie Alert Joined: 08 Oct 2008 Posts: 4

Hello I have been hanging around here for awhile as I have been researching tube amps for myself. And since I recently landed an Alamo Embassy amp from the late 60's I thought I finally chime in with a question, do any of you have any input/info on this type of amp. I think that it is rated at around 10 watts. It has a 10" speaker and does not have a three prong plug. Any advice would be great.

Thanks, tubenvy.

owwdatune · Posted: Thu Oct 16, 2008 10:28 pm Post subject:

to the best of my recollection the Alamo Embassy is a single channel 5 or 6 watter with vibrato.....American made in San Antonio TX -----
6AV6 12AX7A 6V6 5Y3GT are the tubes that should be in it (should be a tube chart on the inside of the amp)
if you don't wanna get shocked by electricity, get that amp to a qualified amp tech & get a 3 prong plug/cord on it.....perhaps get a cap job & maybe some new tubes....
its a nifty amp & if taken care of will give you many smiles playing it Cool

_________________
~T~...Live a little >crank it up< ...

--> SAVE A LIFE - ADOPT A SHELTER/RESCUE PET <--

owwdatune · Posted: Thu Oct 16, 2008 10:30 pm Post subject:

ohhhh....by the way....welcome....keep us updated on your amp...maybe tell us a bit about yourself & stuff...hope to see more of ya.
_________________
~T~...Live a little >crank it up< ...

--> SAVE A LIFE - ADOPT A SHELTER/RESCUE PET <--

tubeenvy · Newbie Alert Joined: 08 Oct 2008 Posts: 4

babow2 · Posted: Mon Oct 20, 2008 11:06 am Post subject: more Alamo info

Hi,
There aren't many Alamo owners out there. I happen to have a mid 50's Alamo 6A, 25 watt, 15' Jensen, finished in birch wood. Very cool, art deco wood. Anyway, if you do a search on Amazon books for Alamo, you will find an out of print book on vintage amps with a whole chapter devoted to Alamo, and lots of good info. Also, Skip Simmons in Sacramento, CA is a reknowned vintage amp repair guy. He only works on the old stuff and is very good. He knows a lot about Alamo's as well. Don't trust any local repair guy with your vintage amp.

Good luck,
Brent Babow
_________________
Guitars: Tom Anderson Classic, Tom Anderson Hollow T, Washburn HB35 Zebrawood Ltd, Taylor T5-C2, Taylor K20-c, Wingert FV-C.
Amps: Mesa Heartbreaker, 1982 Fender Concert (Rivera era modded), Rivera Jake, Alamo 6A

firedude · Ferret Joined: 11 Oct 2006 Posts: 100 Location: texas

I saw an Alamo amp at GC here in San Antonio the other day. They only wanted about 200 for it. I don't know if they are investment type amps or not.

babow2 · Posted: Mon Oct 20, 2008 8:30 pm Post subject: Alamo at GC

In the 60's, Alamo switched to solid state (boy did they miss the boat on that call). From there it was a short ride to oblivion for them. Their tube amps from the 50's were very popular for the Tex Mex, country swing groups and harmonica players loved them.

You probably can find more of them in San Antonio, as that is where they were made originally. The sold a lot in the south and south of the border. If you can find an old tube model from the 50's, they are starting to go up in value. They are exact "copies" of the Fender design of the 50's, so you basically are getting a vintage era Fender type tube amp, without the name.[/img]
_________________
Guitars: Tom Anderson Classic, Tom Anderson Hollow T, Washburn HB35 Zebrawood Ltd, Taylor T5-C2, Taylor K20-c, Wingert FV-C.
Amps: Mesa Heartbreaker, 1982 Fender Concert (Rivera era modded), Rivera Jake, Alamo 6A

tubeenvy · Newbie Alert Joined: 08 Oct 2008 Posts: 4

I have heard that this model is a clone of Fender's Vibrochamp. Though it is a little dirtier sounding to my ears.

Hey firedude I have seen Alamo's go for cheaper on ebay, I got mine for $100, s/h included. $200 might be bit high, but a I have recently had an incident with another Alamo amp that I got from ebay, UPS wrecked it. Local is always a better bet for vintage amps in my book, tube or S.S..

That being said, I'm located here in Chicago far from Skip Simmons, so I don't want to ship this. I know of a guy here that has a good rep. But I would think changing the ground plug out won't affect the tone, or am I wrong here?

xStonr · Newbie Alert Joined: 15 Nov 2008 Posts: 1

Congrats on the Alamo Embassy. I picked one up for next to nothing missing a couple of tubes and a speaker. When I opened it up it was all p to p wiring. I think the one I have is one of the last tube units they made before switching to solid state. And yes, I find it like the Champ but dirtier too. I put in a Weber 10" Alnico speaker and it sounds great.

kiwi99 · Posted: Sat Nov 15, 2008 5:44 pm Post subject:

Some here may find this of interest.........

http://books.google.com/books?id=msEJ8cMqng4C&pg=PA1958&lpg=PA1958&dq=alamo+amplifiers&source=web&ots=z7zds4q-P8&sig=XIb4DnW4UWEYNHAeGJfyYY3Ah3M&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=10&ct=result#PPA1943,M1

gregor77 · Tadpole Joined: 28 Oct 2008 Posts: 18 Location: New York

When I first started playing, I had an Alamo amp. I used it as a preamp through an old blackface Twin Reverb - what a great sound! It did need a ground however - I got zapped on a few occasions.

I sold the Twin in college to survive (*Holy Censor, Batman*!!!!!!) and the Alamo went to the junk yard during a move (DOUBLE *Holy Censor, Batman*!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!).

But the real regret is the 1964 Fender Strat I traded in for a Les Paul in 1975. Oh well, it's only money. I have a Strat now that sounds much better, but it's 30 years newer than the first one. Am I rambling? Laughing