1959 Vox AC15 Two-Tone Advice

ICBM

DJH83004 said:

It is safe IC, not my work, passes all regulatory standards and I would never do it this way, but how far do you go back with vintage amps correcting all the past misdemeanors.    

For me personally, I insist on correcting them. If the owner doesn't want to pay for it I won't work on the amp.

I feel it's covering my own backside as well as the dealer's or owner's.

Bygone_Tones

Jmisound said:

Two tone AC15s faded out in early - mid 1960. Jennings went back to using Cream with diamonds and continued using that rexine right up to the end of 1960. Start of 61 introduced the thin lip split front cab 15s in fawn.

The period correct speaker for that amp would be a goodmans Audiom 60. 59-60

Ostyer coloured t530s (with the paper vox logo) were more commonly found in the end of 60 AC15s and the early ac30 twins 60-61 before then being replaced by the blue t530 (foil vox logo)

But where does a 1962 CT3757 speaker fit into that?

Could it be possible the amp left the factory a little bit later than usual? Or is it really that ridiculous to think they were indeed still making a few in 1962? Maybe it went back to Vox for a speaker change?

Im not a fan of sticking rigidly to what is "known". If you are holding something in your hands to the contrary, and it looks untampered with, then I usually go with that, rather than what the books are telling me. The truth is no-one is an expert. Books are very often wrong, and "the internet" is definitely very often wrong. A lot of self proclaimed experts on forums are charlatans and  talk nonsense too.

Not everything transitioned perfectly from the factories either. Oddities exist. As an example a 4x12 cab turned up on the marshall forum a few days ago with cosmetics and serial usually assocaited with April 71, yet with original speakers dated 17 months later.

ICBM

Bygone_Tones said:

Not everything transitioned perfectly from the factories either. Oddities exist. As an example a 4x12 cab turned up on the marshall forum a few days ago with cosmetics and serial usually assocaited with April 71, yet with original speakers dated 17 months later.

I think it's likely that the speakers were replaced - quite possibly by Marshall, if the wiring looked original. Speakers commonly got blown back then with cranked 100W amps being run through 100W cabs. There is no way you could tell the speakers are replacements if it was done at the factory.

I know sometimes things do get left over and then used later, but… a 4x12" from one of Marshall's busiest production periods? I doubt it.

Bygone_Tones

Exactly. So why could that not be a similar case with this speaker too?

But also consider that Celestion must have still been producing the CT3757 for something, and most likely a Vox something. As far as we know this was a speaker made only for Vox, and not a standard production model.

ICBM

Would Celestion have applied a new date code if they reconed the speaker? Given that it's on the gasket, unlike on later models.

I have no idea, just wondering. It seems unlikely to me that the amp was made as late as 1962, but I could be wrong.

@jkirk170493 - are there any date codes on the electrolytic caps? That could prove it one way or the other.

NPP

apart from all that, how does it sound?

jkirk170493

ICBM said:

Would Celestion have applied a new date code if they reconed the speaker? Given that it's on the gasket, unlike on later models.

I have no idea, just wondering. It seems unlikely to me that the amp was made as late as 1962, but I could be wrong.

@jkirk170493 - are there any date codes on the electrolytic caps? That could prove it one way or the other.

Unfortuantely not We had to date it using Jim's Vox book...

Jmisound

Yeah Bygone_Tones said:

Jmisound said:

Two tone AC15s faded out in early - mid 1960. Jennings went back to using Cream with diamonds and continued using that rexine right up to the end of 1960. Start of 61 introduced the thin lip split front cab 15s in fawn.

The period correct speaker for that amp would be a goodmans Audiom 60. 59-60

Ostyer coloured t530s (with the paper vox logo) were more commonly found in the end of 60 AC15s and the early ac30 twins 60-61 before then being replaced by the blue t530 (foil vox logo)

But where does a 1962 CT3757 speaker fit into that?

Could it be possible the amp left the factory a little bit later than usual? Or is it really that ridiculous to think they were indeed still making a few in 1962? Maybe it went back to Vox for a speaker change?

Im not a fan of sticking rigidly to what is "known". If you are holding something in your hands to the contrary, and it looks untampered with, then I usually go with that, rather than what the books are telling me. The truth is no-one is an expert. Books are very often wrong, and "the internet" is definitely very often wrong. A lot of self proclaimed experts on forums are charlatans and  talk nonsense too.

Not everything transitioned perfectly from the factories either. Oddities exist. As an example a 4x12 cab turned up on the marshall forum a few days ago with cosmetics and serial usually assocaited with April 71, yet with original speakers dated 17 months later.

My knowledge comes from owning a fair amount TV vox amplifiers. As well as currently owning a circuit three AC15 exactly like the one in discussion. Also being a close friend of late Dick Denney who shared his wealth of knowledge on the amplifiers.