Will Vintage Amps hit obscene prices someday?

Gearjoneser

Gearjoneser

Gear Ho
I was thinking about all the 68's to the Jubilee's that I see for sale nowadays, at quickly increasing prices. Also, all the blackface Fenders we can still buy for around $1000-$1500. It's still possible to find Vox AC-30's and heads for semi-reasonable prices.

Now, think about the crazy prices that vintage guitars are fetching nowadays.
In one decade, they went from $5000, all the way up to half a million, depending on age and model. Is it possible that we'll be kicking ourselves in 20 years, as we see vintage amps soar to $20,000 for simple things like '71 Superleads, '68 Super Reverbs, or even '95 Matchless? If plexi era cabs are now reaching $3000, it seems plausible that prime amps will be seen as relics of the rock'n'roll era, and shoot through the roof as high priced collectibles. What do you think?
 
Re: Will Vintage Amps hit obscene prices someday?

Is the world round? Yes they will.


Side note... the world is a sphere with a slight bludge in the middle due to the spinning motion. Yay Science!
 
Re: Will Vintage Amps hit obscene prices someday?

I'm not talking about 'player amps.' I'm talking about prime pieces that are prime years, which are still available for $1500. Just like old coin operated machines are sought out by collectors with deep pockets, I'm thinking that amps may catch up with guitars, once there's zero chance of finding 50's/60's guitars.

You have to remember that the rock'n'roll era is the most important thing from the last century, in terms of memorabilia. I may keep my eye on things like early Marshalls, Fenders, Voxes at giveaway prices. I'm already surprised how fast they're going up in value. In 5 years, they've doubled.
 
Re: Will Vintage Amps hit obscene prices someday?

I love amps in general, but I just don't think they'll ever have the same attraction as guitars. Players and collectors just tend to think of guitars in more personal terms.

that doesn't mean that some amps won't hit incredible prices (like some already have), just that it won't go to the same level, IMHO.
 
Re: Will Vintage Amps hit obscene prices someday?

as long as there is someone out there with the cash and willing to pay the insane prices the Vintage stuff will raise in price... take the buyers away and the prices will fall....

A guy i know in the used/vintage business told me that a large part of his sales are to middle aged men who are trying to buy the toys they had as teens.... and most of the buyers are holding down OK jobs or have money so they spend a fair bit.. Slowly the prices have kept climbing
 
Re: Will Vintage Amps hit obscene prices someday?

WhoFan said:
A guy i know in the used/vintage business told me that a large part of his sales are to middle aged men who are trying to buy the toys they had as teens....
Click to expand...

hey, I resemble that remark :)

yes, the Baby Boomers are to blame ... in the early 90's though, it was the foreign buyers --- European and Japanese -- who really upped the ante on vintage guitars and amps
 
Re: Will Vintage Amps hit obscene prices someday?

I'm no expert by any means, but I have been watching the JCM series, and I would venture that in the last year, they have averaged a jump of 1 to 200 bucks. The jubilee heads about a year ago were in the 1200 to 1500 range, and now they seem to be approaching 2000.

Better than 401k.
 
Re: Will Vintage Amps hit obscene prices someday?

Curly said:
I love amps in general, but I just don't think they'll ever have the same attraction as guitars. Players and collectors just tend to think of guitars in more personal terms.

that doesn't mean that some amps won't hit incredible prices (like some already have), just that it won't go to the same level, IMHO.
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That's kind of what I think. The guitars will always be the big money collectibles, but I think that amps will always be steadily behind, just because the sheer number of guitarists seem to be rising as well. With a big market of guitar players wanting the 'real deal,' the prices have to keep going up.

It might really be a good time to sink a certain amount of your investment dollars in certain year/models of gear. I see a lot of people getting screwed in the stock market. As a guitarist, you might be better off playing your investments. By the time you're sick of the amp, you can just cash out of it for 4 times the price you paid. Not even gold coins performs as well as a 69 Plexi. hehe
 
Re: Will Vintage Amps hit obscene prices someday?

Dr.Mavashi said:
What constitutes "vintage", what time period?
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Nowadays, I think there's a vintage market, but as of the 90's, there's also a collectible market, since you can factor in boutiques, anniversaries, limited runs, and Custom Shop/Historics. It's pretty obvious that the manufacturers played into it, by doing all that.

And as far as investments go, I realize that real estate is the real money maker.
I'm just talking about ways of doubling or tripling your money in a decade by buying the right things. It's better than having money sit in the bank.
 
Re: Will Vintage Amps hit obscene prices someday?

I think the market is going to correct itself, esp. if the economy wavers and instabilities mount.

HOWEVER, the highly lauded pieces that have either an underground reputation or are known for having appeared on major albums - classic Superleads, Matchless, Boogie Mark IIc+, etc will go thru the roof.

Some manufacturers will go out of business, making it harder than ever to touch the real thing. The interesting thing is that demand, as it translates into a market for reissues, shows that it keeps the name and desire for the originals alive only pushing the prices higher. The manufacturers are also setting a high bar with pricing, thus sustaining the perception of value for these items.

Also, as ebay, and communications tools on the internet make it easier to list, evaluate, and authenticate these items, I think specific models will continue to thrive in the collector's market, which has very much become an investor's market of sorts.
 
Re: Will Vintage Amps hit obscene prices someday?

Yeah, I think you're right about certain historical pieces. You just have to know which ones they are! LOL It'd be nice to have a much bigger expendable income, because I'd be more likely to fill a room with amps, than guitars. Guitars are cool, but amps are even more fun IMO. There's so many shades of tone out there, and amps shape it more than guitars.

Another nice thing about amps is that you aren't wearing them out by using them. With vintage guitars, you've got to worry about fret wear, dings, and tarnished hardware,
 
Re: Will Vintage Amps hit obscene prices someday?

Well I've got a late eighties Laney AOR 50 Pro-Tube, this thing was used by Warren DiMartini and Chris Oliva of Savatage, does that cound for a "vintage" status ???
 
Re: Will Vintage Amps hit obscene prices someday?

WhoFan said:
A guy i know in the used/vintage business told me that a large part of his sales are to middle aged men who are trying to buy the toys they had as teens....
Click to expand...
Or the toys they couldn't AFFORD as teens....that gear they always wanted.


Dr.Mavashi said:
Well I've got a late eighties Laney AOR 50 Pro-Tube, this thing was used by Warren DiMartini and Chris Oliva of Savatage, does that cound for a "vintage" status ???
Click to expand...
Probably only if you have PROOF that they were owned & used by them.


I also love amps more than guitars.

The only downside is they're not as easy to "hide" from the wife ! :laugh2:

I've got a '77 Marshall Super Lead that, granted, isn't as collectable as even a '76, but I'm gonna hang onto it just "BECAUSE" :bigthumb:
 
Re: Will Vintage Amps hit obscene prices someday?

Bear in mind that with guitars, you might never be able to recreate *exactly* a '59 Les Paul or a similar guitar, due to the difference in woods, changes in composition of chemicals used in the paint over the years etc - but with amps, it's not particuarly hard to absolutely nail the sound of the original classics like a '68 Marshall. You could A/B an original Marshall and a new Metroamp clone and not hear the difference at all, at least no more than there would be between a pair of '68 Marshalls made on the same day.
 
Re: Will Vintage Amps hit obscene prices someday?

I don't think so.

I base this on the simple reason that any non-playing collector instantly recognize his favorite player's axe, but would be hard pressed to tell the differences between a Marshall Plexi and a Randall stack.
 
Re: Will Vintage Amps hit obscene prices someday?

Curly said:
hey, I resemble that remark :)

yes, the Baby Boomers are to blame ... in the early 90's though, it was the foreign buyers --- European and Japanese -- who really upped the ante on vintage guitars and amps
Click to expand...


And what happens when the Baby Boomers start dying off? If I did my math correctly they're 60 this year. The life expectancy of a male in the US is mid 70's. You have 15-20 years to make your fortune. More if we're healthy or lucky.
 
Re: Will Vintage Amps hit obscene prices someday?

gripweed said:
And what happens when the Baby Boomers start dying off?
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maybe I should've said, "the Baby Boomers were to blame" ... they helped draw attention to the value of collecting guitars, but the market has grown into something much larger in the meantime. When Forbes magazine and Wall Street notice the value, that's pretty amazing.

the trend I've seen over the last 15 years is all the special editions we have now, plus the boutique market. Both Fender and Gibson, and Martin to some extent, have artist models, vintage models, limited runs, etc., etc. Same thing with amps with the PTP, hand wired, vintage repros, etc.

The irony is that the really valuable models -- 50s LPs, teles, tweed amps -- were standard models when they were made. Yes, they were trying to make the best product they could, but they weren't "special" editions. It's also ironic that LPs died for lack of interest and low sales, which made the vintage ones even more valuable due to their rarity.
 
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