kingdanielm Posted March 24, 2018 Share Posted March 24, 2018 I posted in the vintage forum too, but figured it's worth posting here. Anyone familiar with the Gibson-made Epiphone amplifiers from 1959? Rare little buggers with a diamond fabric covering and the original bikini logo. Very tweed-like, just like their Gibson brothers during this time period. There are a few higher powered models supposedly out there, but I believe the production numbers for these were incredibly low. I own three of them, pictured here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kingdanielm Posted March 29, 2018 Author Share Posted March 29, 2018 Anyone? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crust Posted May 1, 2018 Share Posted May 1, 2018 (edited) Anyone? Apparently not :( I will say this, you can send them to me, and then, I will tell you something like "you don't really need those old things any more" or "these things are great", most likely. All kidding aside, they kind of remind me of old Supro amps, a little, maybe. Try Gruhn guitars or a similar appraiser, or "my rare guitar" site,or even Epiphone customer service :) and maybe someone there can give you an appropriate answer about those. I would also say this, about them. I kind of believe they are somewhat of historical relics :) But, I do also believe that you already knew that, about them, most likely. Lucky and fortunate, that is what I also believe about yourself, with those things, there :) . Edited May 1, 2018 by crust Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crust Posted May 1, 2018 Share Posted May 1, 2018 (edited) I also am kind of wondering if the person who started Danelectro, may have had something to do with those, there, maybe. I don't really know, but he did work for Epiphone, and their amps, when he was involved with them, there, then, with amps, before starting Danelectro, himself., I did read that, someplace, maybe. Good luck in your search, and, maybe someone can give you more insight into those, some day, soon, maybe. http://www.folkwaymusic.com/museum/amplifiers-/1959-epiphone-devon-0514/ Edited May 1, 2018 by crust Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red 333 Posted May 14, 2019 Share Posted May 14, 2019 (edited) The Pacemaker is Epiphone's version of the Gibson Skylark. Both amps have a circuit similar to the Fender Champ of that era, as you wrote. The Devon is an Epiphone-badged Gibson GA-9 in most respects. It's a 10 watt amp and I think was the first amp that Gibson badged as an Epipone after Gibson bought the company a couple years earlier. I'm not sure, but the Century seems like it could be the Epiphone badged version of the Gibson GT-46T. That was a 60 watt amp with two 12" speakers, two channels, two volume controls, and a tremolo. From the pictures, that *seems* to be what your amp has, but that's just a guess. Spectacular collection! Red 333 Edited May 14, 2019 by Red 333 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kingdanielm Posted January 3, 2020 Author Share Posted January 3, 2020 The Century is actually the equivalent of the GA-20T, known as the Ranger or Crest, depending on the exact year. I've owned a '57 GA-20T and '58 GA-20T - both two tone era Gibson combos - and they are 100% identical to the Epiphone Century. Great amps! Similar to a tweed Tremolux, but not as big sounding. I would love to speak with someone at Gibson about these, but I have no idea where to start. Here are some daylight photos of them. I currently own five 1959 Epiphone amplifiers so far... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zeuss Posted April 16, 2020 Share Posted April 16, 2020 hi all! there is another model in this series of GREAT old amps, called the Emperor it has a 15" with 4 inputs. i found it in pieces at a garage sale. cabinet was stripped of its fabric covering, and its chassis & speaker was in a cardboard box, ready to go to the trash curb, the upcoming friday! i cleaned things up, put it all back together, and found an old tablecloth that didnt appear to have ever been used. so the covering doesnt really match the OLD MOJO of the rest of the amp, BUT its covered. and these things sound so good! seldom seen, under the radar amps that were made in very low numbers. i just need an original bikini logo. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kingdanielm Posted May 2, 2020 Author Share Posted May 2, 2020 nice amp zeuss! i sent you a message. i'd love to talk to you more about your emperor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kingdanielm Posted July 17, 2020 Author Share Posted July 17, 2020 @zeuss I've been trying to reach out to you to discuss your amp. reply to my DM if you get a chance! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wammerjammer Posted January 7, 2022 Share Posted January 7, 2022 So is it the diamond fabric that makes these a rare or are all early Epiphone amps rare? I found one with the gray tolex. It's a pacemaker. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kingdanielm Posted January 18, 2022 Author Share Posted January 18, 2022 On 1/7/2022 at 11:11 AM, wammerjammer said: So is it the diamond fabric that makes these a rare or are all early Epiphone amps rare? I found one with the gray tolex. It's a pacemaker. The diamond fabric covered ones were the first Gibson-made Epiphone amps to be released, followed very shortly after by gray tolex versions. The diamond fabric ones are rarer because of how quickly they abandoned the aesthetic and moved to the gray tolex and chrome chassis. They're all essentially the same circuits, following schematics of Gibsons almost identically. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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