Antique Bell Amplifier

[Laker]

Anyone have any information about vintage PA gear? I picked up a (I believe) 1948 Model 623 Bell tube PA amp with a pair of Jensen speakers. When I first started playing bass back around 50 years ago I used one of these with a Hammond organ woofer in a homemade cabinet for my bass rig. I can't find very much info about Bell.

[gooman]

I remember Bell amps and also pathfinder and bogen,we used to run atlas sound horns on tripods(talk about the stone age sound).We got a Kustom 200 with 4 12 columns on each side thought we were in heaven,around the mid 70's a-7 cabs with a altec horns maybe some crown amps and oh my we biamped and had a tapco mixer nice vette my older bro has a silver one bout the same vintage

[Cygnus X1]

Very cool stuff!

I have in my possession a couple of 50's PA amps awaiting rebuilds. After cooking them in, they both sound pretty good as-is. I don't trust those old caps though. Will either let them go back to their "sponsor" as-is, or convert to some other classic circuits.

[ES350]

I have some Bell and Howell amps from 16mm projectors; 2x6V6, cathode bias, but they sound great. They came with two alnico 8", but I stuffed one in a old ported Kodak cab with a P12Q and it kicks. True PTP wiring and a rat's nest in there, though...

[Laker]

I'm not sure if Bell amplifiers are the same as the Bell in Bell and Howell.

This old PA amp has the screw on Amphenol mic connectors and would use the old "bullet" mics that are popular with blues harp players.

[Cygnus X1]

I've become convinced that there were almost 40 Ba-Zillion PA Amp manufacturers.

All using about four different circuits.
And most being worthy of resurrecting into worthy guitar amp projects.
Plenty of iron, and plenty of sockets.

Why so many octals though?

[yankeerob]

A lot of em used 6SN7 and 6SL7 dual triodes because they are pretty quiet and robust... I've got another design I'm busting to build with three 6SN7's and a 6SL7 for the PI - a real clean jazz machine - has about a ba-zillion tone caps in it at well