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No, I didn't score a Bogner Esctasy. Nor did I "discover" the amp by accident. After seeing many Bell & Howell all-valve projector amps sell for beans (usually under $80AU) on Ebay I've become interested in these relics from the past and their extreme affordability:
I asked my Dad if he knew anything about the company. Low and behold my Dad said that we have a circa 1940's-50's Bell & Howell projector that contains a valve amp just collecting dust in the garage.
This Model 601 16mm Sound-on-Film Projector by Bell & Howell Gaumont originally belonging to my Grandfathers boss somehow ended up in our family garage along with dozens of 16mm film reels. :
Opening the door to take a look inside at the projector, you can see how beautifully these things were made. My Dad tells me that back in the day, this would of cost a fortune for my Grandfathers Boss to purchase:
Projector door neatly storing a film reel arm, spare light bulb and other accessories:
Hello Dave! Looking at projector lens from outside it's window:
Ventilation grill on the side of the projector chassis:
Speaker door swung out:
6" Goodwin speaker with 2-pin speaker cable wrapped around:
Back of projector amp still mounted into projector chassis:
And finally, the important pics. Projector amp taken out of chassis:
These amps supposedly pump out about 15 Watts and are pretty neat for plugging guitars into. Reports say that they can achieve a tone somewhere similar to a cross between a Fender and Vox. IIRC the tubes are 3 x 6v6, 6JGT, 5Y3, 6SL7GT, and a phillips photodector tube. Single speaker connection is 16 ohms and Dual is 8 ohms. Dunno if it's Class A or whatever that wiring stuff really is.
You cats are probably wondering what it sounds like. Well, I haven't tried it out yet since it runs on 110 Volts and my neck of the woods is on 240. The old transformer and it's connecting cables that came with it are looking very tired and dangerous. I have a fairly new step down transformer that I could use but I need a 4-pin Cinch Jones type plug to connect the amp to the transformer. I don't really know where to get one either. Also, I'm restricted to using the onboard 6" speaker at the this moment in time since the amps speaker out conncetions use a 2-pin plug.
Who knows? This thing may very well sound like ass with a guitar plugged in. The tubes are probably original but overall the whole unit seems very clean. Seems better to tinker with this thing than to fork out a few bills for something like a Chinese made Epiphone Valve Junior. I'd just thought I'd share this cool vintage piece of gear with you. It's not often where instances occur when you're interested in a piece of equipment only to already have it in lying around in your garage.
I asked my Dad if he knew anything about the company. Low and behold my Dad said that we have a circa 1940's-50's Bell & Howell projector that contains a valve amp just collecting dust in the garage.
This Model 601 16mm Sound-on-Film Projector by Bell & Howell Gaumont originally belonging to my Grandfathers boss somehow ended up in our family garage along with dozens of 16mm film reels. :
Opening the door to take a look inside at the projector, you can see how beautifully these things were made. My Dad tells me that back in the day, this would of cost a fortune for my Grandfathers Boss to purchase:
Projector door neatly storing a film reel arm, spare light bulb and other accessories:
Hello Dave! Looking at projector lens from outside it's window:
Ventilation grill on the side of the projector chassis:
Speaker door swung out:
6" Goodwin speaker with 2-pin speaker cable wrapped around:
Back of projector amp still mounted into projector chassis:
And finally, the important pics. Projector amp taken out of chassis:
These amps supposedly pump out about 15 Watts and are pretty neat for plugging guitars into. Reports say that they can achieve a tone somewhere similar to a cross between a Fender and Vox. IIRC the tubes are 3 x 6v6, 6JGT, 5Y3, 6SL7GT, and a phillips photodector tube. Single speaker connection is 16 ohms and Dual is 8 ohms. Dunno if it's Class A or whatever that wiring stuff really is.
You cats are probably wondering what it sounds like. Well, I haven't tried it out yet since it runs on 110 Volts and my neck of the woods is on 240. The old transformer and it's connecting cables that came with it are looking very tired and dangerous. I have a fairly new step down transformer that I could use but I need a 4-pin Cinch Jones type plug to connect the amp to the transformer. I don't really know where to get one either. Also, I'm restricted to using the onboard 6" speaker at the this moment in time since the amps speaker out conncetions use a 2-pin plug.
Who knows? This thing may very well sound like ass with a guitar plugged in. The tubes are probably original but overall the whole unit seems very clean. Seems better to tinker with this thing than to fork out a few bills for something like a Chinese made Epiphone Valve Junior. I'd just thought I'd share this cool vintage piece of gear with you. It's not often where instances occur when you're interested in a piece of equipment only to already have it in lying around in your garage.
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