Recovering 60's AC30 Vs Resale value.

Dodge

I'm on the hunt for a JMI or VSL AC30 Top Boost, and some of the examples I've been offered are particularly shabby.  What's the current consensus on restoring the cabinet and grillcloth to an 'as new' state, with regard to resale?

Also, is it me or have the JMI originals gone bonkers on pricing?  Some I've been offered are £2.5-3K!  Late 60's VSL ones have crept up to around the £1000-1200 mark so they're probably a bit more likely as an option.

ESBlonde

One option is often to keep the cabinet original and have a repro cabinet made for taking out and about. That way you have the best of both, plus you could disguise you £2.5k beast as a copy in the local Coach n' Horses and feel less intimidated about using it.

jpfamps

Price is very much dependant on condition, and early models go for more money.

As with many vintage pieces a really clean example will command a premium.

Recovering will devalue the amp significantly.

I've worked on loads of JMI AC30s and they often need work to get them into gigging order; I've also seen plenty of AC30s from that era which have been hacked around.

I've seen original JMI black vinyl copper panel non top boost  AC30s go for between £1500 - £2500 depending on condition.

Bygone_Tones

All the value is in originality. So a shabby looking amp will bring a lot more than a mint refurbished one. Or should. Doesnt stop people asking high prices for refurbs.

Ive seen prices rocket on the old vox alnico speakers, especially the blues. This is probably one of the reasons why prices for amps are rising. Mint pairs of vox blues can bring upto £1000 without even considering the value of the amp itself.

Id be really careful buying an old vox combo like an ac30. Ive seen really cruddy looking ones on ebay bringing crazy prices. With open back gear that has been exposed to the elements and stored in a garage or something, they usually corrode and the glue fails on the speakers, or they get very damp etc. Speakers in crap condition are worth nowhere near £1000, but buyers seem to be very optimistic and/or naive about these things.

Basically give things a damn good checking over before paying out high prices. The photos people show on ebay dont usually tell the whole story.

impmann

Its just such a shame that Vox continue to refuse to build a proper AC30.

Plus:
Not *everybody* wants Top Boost.

Not *everybody* wants Master Volume.

Not *everybody* uses an AC30 for its crunch sound.

ICBM

It depends how bad it is. If it's just a little rough then recovering devalues it - but if it's really knackered, with torn cloth, missing logo, extra holes drilled for non-original handles and all the other stuff that's common on thrashed old AC30s - then it's a much closer call or maybe an improvement.

Personally I think the value of them is in the sound, and I prefer a nice old amp to look fairly nice too, but I'm illogical and irrational like that...

I've never seen an AC30 sell for more than £2.5K, and even that's top whack for an early black-panel AC30/4 in blonde/tan. More realistically £1K to £1.5K for a normal AC30/6 in less than perfect condition, down to maybe as little as £500 for a tatty later 60s one without the original speakers.

thermionic

I've probably said this before, but I bought a non Top Boost '62-ish AC30 for £110 in 1984 and sold it in 1992 for £80! It was pretty battered when I got it - non-original speakers, creaking cabinet, broken vib-trem switch, missing footswitch... My mate came to school the following week with a plastic bag full of valves he'd salvaged from old TVs and radiograms in a local tip! Pretty sure there were some Mullards in there. I was quite happy to poke around in it with no more knowledge than an O-level in physics. It wasn't really looked after in the 8 years I had it - left in the basement of student halls for weeks on end, left in pub back rooms overnight, lent to whichever bands turned up for the night, it fell flat on its back several times, did rehearsals with a bass player and keyboard player plugged into the two spare channels... Despite all this it never let me down, but it only really had one sound - loud and clean.

 I wish I'd kept it now of course - I'd get the chassis serviced by a pro and get Mark from AF Custom Cabs to build a repro cab.

Dodge

Cheers all, lots of food for thought. I'll be patient and see what comes up. Been offered a VSL for £800 which is pretty clean, serviced and looks all original bar filter caps and the cathode resistor, it's got the GZ34 and silvers, but holes drilled in the side and bottom of the cab and the serial number plate has had a hole drilled for an external speaker socket (removed) One to avoid perhaps.

ICBM

Dodge said:

Cheers all, lots of food for thought. I'll be patient and see what comes up. Been offered a VSL for £800 which is pretty clean, serviced and looks all original bar filter caps and the cathode resistor, it's got the GZ34 and silvers, but holes drilled in the side and bottom of the cab and the serial number plate has had a hole drilled for an external speaker socket (removed) One to avoid perhaps.

That's not too bad for one with original speakers in that condition. How bad are the holes in the sides - just screw holes, or handle cutouts? The bottom doesn't matter much.

impmann

Sounds like a bit of a bargain, if I'm honest, based on the ebay prices. Is its TB model?

Dodge

ICBM;1079629" said:

That's not too bad for one with original speakers in that condition. How bad are the holes in the sides - just screw holes, or handle cutouts? The bottom doesn't matter much.

Screw holes, looks like castors on the bottom, maybe tilt back legs or similar on the sides.

impmann;1079634" said:

Sounds like a bit of a bargain, if I'm honest, based on the ebay prices. Is its TB model?

Yes, although it's VSL, not JMI.

DannyP

ESBlonde;1078132" said:

One option is often to keep the cabinet originaly and have a repro cabinet made for taking out and about. That way you have the best of both, plus you could disguise you £2.5k beast as a copy in the local Coach n' Horses and feel less intimidated about using it.

Although, if anyone's going to run off with an AC30 under their arm, good luck to them!

Dodge

I've just had a few more pics and there appears to be metal film resistors on the input jacks as well as a few places on the board.

I'm guessing these are non original. Am I right @ICBM @jpfamps ? Cheers chaps.

ICBM

Yes, and don't worry about it. The original carbon-comps drift in value and go noisy, so it's not uncommon to need to replace them.

The only place where the resistor type makes an audible difference is the valve plate resistors, in my opinion. Even then it's probably not very noticeable overall.

koneguitarist

One thing with old AC30's is that the circuit was constantly being redone, so hardly two are the same, so if one seems different don't always think it's non original. They used to make changes on the fly due to feedback from bands like the shadows etc

Dodge

@ICBM - anything I should be worried about? Cheers mate.

ICBM

It's certainly had quite a lot of work, although it looks mostly like routine maintenance. What's the extra trimmer that appears to be connected to the Brilliant channel inputs? That's definitely not right.

Dodge

Ooh, good spot. Didn't see that.

I'll ask, but I'm already getting cold feet. I'm sure it can all be undone, but it's as much for the protecting the investment as it is enjoying the amp, so if rather it wasn't a hack job.

Cheers mate, appreciated as always.