Wanna see something Very Unusual? Very Scarce Old Amp

[Jerry2013]

I picked these two units off on Fleabay probably 5 years ago on a BIN of less than 2 hundred.
Now, modern Tube Power amps and Pre-amps abound, but this in one of the few ever VINTAGE tube power amp/Preamp combos I have seen.
Its the Teisco ( who made Teisco stuff?)Flagship amplifier tube Power/Pre amp set. I didn't get the cabinet, but have been looking. The tube amp weighs 30 pounds. The preamp weighs 20 pounds and is a massive 2 feet wide by about 10.5 inches deep.. Of course they both need restoration
I was fortunate to get Cliff Schecht to open the pre-amp up take a look inside of it, and he said IIRC that there were lots and lots of little caps to be replaced in the Pre-amp, although the set up is neat uncluttered true point to point inside, like the amp.
Well, here ya go;

[IMG768]http://i1343.photobucket.com/albums/o78 ... 000539.jpg[/img]

[IMG:768:1024]http://i1343.photobucket.com/albums/o78 ... 246260.jpg[/img]

[IMG768]http://i1343.photobucket.com/albums/o78 ... 3f702e.jpg[/img]

[IMG768]http://i1343.photobucket.com/albums/o78 ... 1992b8.jpg[/img]

[IMG768]http://i1343.photobucket.com/albums/o78 ... 25d6b3.jpg[/img]

[IMG768]http://i1343.photobucket.com/albums/o78 ... 9ca743.jpg[/img]

[IMG768]http://i1343.photobucket.com/albums/o78 ... 0ea1c7.jpg[/img]

[IMG768]http://i1343.photobucket.com/albums/o78 ... 9c800b.jpg[/img]

[IMG768]http://i1343.photobucket.com/albums/o78 ... 6d3056.jpg[/img]

[Cliff Schecht]

That PA is nowhere near as pretty inside as the preamp was! Still a cool deal and definitely not common AFAIK!

It was those old Japanese Paper in Oil caps that I was concerned about. I was warned here on TAG that these are known to be bad out of the gate and this has been my experience (although the unit I worked on was stored in an attic!). I've bought these NOS Japanese PIO caps (granted from a hamfest so storage conditions unknown) and they were all bad upon testing (leaking).

[Stevem]

Thats the same Jap builder/manufacture that supplyed tube type Univox and Lafayette electronics amps in the 60s and then slipped into SS types in late 1968.
Those oil caps sound great when they are good, but I have changed out more bad .01uf`s in those amps then I have changed socks in my life time, and I`am well over 50!
While we are on the subject of these amps 3 weeks ago I got in another Univox U45B to go thru and this amp was the 4th one out of all the ones I have rebuilt that had the ouput tube bypass cap installed wrong from the factory!
This is something to keep in mind to check even when these amps are working fine, but still stock.

[bruce egnater]

Teisco also produced numerous models of guitar and bass amplifiers which were often sold under the Checkmate brand name, but also named Teisco or Silvertone as well as Beltone and Melody. In the 1950s, early amplifier models were very basic 5-10 watt tube/valve designs. During the 1960s, more advanced and powerful models were offered, such as Checkmate 25, Checkmate 50,and Checkmate 100 featuring dual channels, reverb and tremolo effects. Teisco also made solid-state (transistor-based) models, some designed no less radically than their guitars of the time. The Sound Port 60 (60 watts/RMS) and Sound Port 120 (120 watts/RMS) amplifiers from the late 1960s were copies of Fender's silverfaced Vibro Champ and Twin Reverb.