[Harp-L] New 5-watt tube amps from Supro--Wicked cool, wicked pricey

Fri Jul 14 11:42:23 EDT 2017

The message below showed up in my inbox a few minutes ago.  New 5-watt amps
from Supro with plenty of pro features, undoubtedly very cool for harp.
Don't we all love the sound of an overdriven 5-watt tube amp?  I ain't
selling my Crate VC508 ever.  But $999 for a 5-watter with reverb (retail
list) and $699 for a 5-watter without is a lot for me.  (The Crate cost me
about $125 used, and another $150 or so for a thorough workover a few years
later by a highly qualified amp tech.)

Anyway, the harvest of traditional technology continues, even as we eagerly
explore new options.  Amp modeling is my path forward, but traditionalists
can enjoy themselves too.

Regards, Richard Hunter

*****
Supro reissues 5-Watt Reverb and Super combos

July 14, 2017 (Port Jefferson Station, NY) - Supro USA is now reissuing a
pair of ultra-compact, 5-Watt, 1x8 combo amplifiers, designed to provide
legendary Supro tone at lower volumes. The Supro Reverb is enhanced with
tube-driven spring reverb, while the Supro Super is a bare-bones, pure-tone
amp with only a volume control. In order to capture the sound of the
vintage Jensen speaker found in the original Supro amps of the early 1960s,
both of these small combos feature a custom-made 8" speaker that was
designed by Eminence and Supro. With help from Iowa State University, the
Jensen speaker cone from a "golden-sample" vintage Supro amplifier was
laser-scanned in order to achieve an accurate recreation.

The Supro 1605R Reverb amplifier is a 5-Watt, 1x8 combo amp with
tube-driven spring reverb. This extremely portable, gig-ready amplifier
provides independent gain and master volume controls, along with a two-band
EQ and three tube-driven line-outputs optimized for feeding another guitar
amplifier or recording console. The trio of line outputs is driven by the
preamp tubes-before the master volume---allowing the player to tame the
on-board speaker down from gig volume to be used as a bedroom rig, as well
as an all-tube outboard gain/reverb effect unit and direct recording preamp.

Supro 1605R Reverb

Top panel: Gain, treble, bass, reverb, reverb bypass switch, master,
standby, power

The WET output provides 100% wet reverb signal; the DRY output provides
100% dry signal from the preamp; and the MIX output carries a blend of dry
and reverb signals that can be attenuated by a variable level control on
the MIX output. When the WET output is used, the reverb signal is removed
from the onboard speaker output, allowing the player to pass the reverb
sound along to another amplifier while still hearing the gain from the
1605R's tube preamp in the onboard 8" speaker. When the DRY output is used,
the unaffected sound of the guitar is removed from the onboard speaker
output, allowing the player to pass the gained- up dry sound along to
another amplifier while still hearing the reverb effect through the onboard
8" speaker.

Features:

5 Watts, Class A
8" custom speaker
All-tube design
6-spring reverb
2-band EQ
Master volume for on-board speaker
WET line out
DRY line out
MIX line out w/ attenuator
2x JJ 12AX7 preamp tubes
1x JJ 12AT7 reverb driver tube
1x JJ 6V6 power tube

--------------------------------------------------------------------

The Supro 1606 Super is a reissue of the iconic 1x8 combo amp made by Supro
in the early 60s. With a single volume knob-and nothing else-the Supro
Super lets you hear the full tonal range of the tube preamp found in
vintage Supro amplifiers. The purposeful absence of EQ controls in this
amp's original design eliminates the passive components that inevitably
weigh down the raw power coming from the preamp when a tone knob is
included in the circuit. The no-frills, high-gain preamp found in the Supro
Super feeds directly into a Class A, 6V6-equipped, single-ended, 5-Watt
power amp that dates to the company's pre-war origins as one of the first
American tube amp manufacturers.

Supro 1606 Super

Top panel: Hi and Lo inputs, volume, standby and power

The pristine, high-gain audio path of the Supro Super has made it a
favorite of recording artists and guitar-lovers around the world, as well
as one of the most popular vintage Supro items on the used market. The
image of a mic'd up vintage Supro 1606 Super amp is featured prominently in
the liner notes of the 2016 Rolling Stones album, Blue and Lonesome,
revealed as the CD is lifted from the jewel case. The voicing of this
USA-assembled reissue of the Supro Super amplifier was meticulously derived
from a vintage example loaned to Supro USA by Aerosmith guitarist Joe
Perry.

Features:

5 Watts, Class A
8" custom speaker
1x JJ 12AX7 preamp tube
1x JJ 6V6 power tube
Vintage-correct cabinetry
Blue Rhino Hide tolex
Assembled in USA

The Supro Reverb is $999 USD, and the Supro Super is $699---available as of
August 15 at all Supro dealers.

Official Supro Reverb product page:
https://suprousa.com/amplifiers/1605r-reverb
Hi-res Supro Reverb images: http://bit.ly/2t6sHOh
Official Supro Super product page: https://suprousa.com/1606-super
Hi-res Supro Super images: http://bit.ly/2u0EGS0

--
Check out our 21st Century rock harmonica record "The Lucky One" at
https://www.cdbaby.com/cd/richardhunter

Author, "Jazz Harp" (Oak Publications, NYC)
Latest mp3s and harmonica blog at http://hunterharp.com
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