Amp-in-Case Guitars - Bad or Brilliant? 

NOTE: After editing this video, I remembered an earlier amp-in-case combo, which predated the late 1940s Selmer, the late 1930s National Dobro Supro 60 amp-in-case. It was not a Spanish style guitar, but rather a Hawaiian style, but it probably takes the prize as the earliest guitar and amp in case combo: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-elLAbFvML0k.html Also, Selmer had its own Hawaiian style amp in case model in the late 40s also under the Truvoice brand. Click here for an overview of the Truvoice Selmer brand: www.vintagehofner.co.uk/selmer/early/sel7.html

Is it just me, or does that cheap hunk of plywood actually sound good?

I always carry my amp with me, JUST IN CASE lol. Brilliant, because why not!

You really made that set-up sound good,I think they would have sold a bunch of those at Christmas time having someone like you demonstrating them in store at Sears.

Opening or closing the lid of case is the EQ control.

That was my first guitar,mowed a lot of lawns to get one,never sounded that good. Thanks for the memories.

Thanks so much for another great video. I really find very video you release just as interesting or more than the last one. I'm still working on all the older ones and have enjoyed every one so far, you are a wealth of information as are a lot of your watchers and commenters. Thank you and so many on your channel. (Always wanted one of these and didn't know so much of the history, so cool!)

A buddy from High School in Aurora Colorado (around 69-72) with whom I'm still in contact with, had the two pickup version of that guitar. His was a reddish sunburst color as I recall.

So not only do you fix wonderful vintage gear but you play beautifully as well. Its allways satisfying to get to hear what you've repaired @ the end of each video. As well as get to learn about some great obscure equipment. TY & I look forward to more videos from you in the future.

The 1457 Guitars alone go for 1,000 I have a 1457 2 Pickup but we have to remember that was for young teens in the 60's, the parents could get a whole rig for the kid for less than 2 $200.00 mail ordered any where. There were no Sears Stores at the time. To move a little off topic. At age 12 the music was Radio tunes and I like the guitar sounds. So, I got the Big 1484, and a Hornet delivered. I saved for a year to buy my first electric. I worked 12 hours in a chicken house for $5.00 and when I got it I treated good!!!!! Started first Garage band age 14. I had to pick the notes and figure the chords out on 45 records by ear.

Been playing guitars since 12 and I'm 53 now and this my first time to learn of a hard case amp. So much so that it is tube and transformer less. To top them all up the sound is really from tube. Many thanks. I want one.

wow, that actually sounded pretty damn good. really didn't expect that from a silvertone.

Line 6's next amp model.

My dad used to play this guitar back in the 70’s and 80’s and that’s the reason I got interested in playing. Loved the sound of the amp when you turn the power.

29:15 to hear how it sounds

I live how the cleans break up in this thing. Nice.

I'd be willing to bet that this guitar/amp combo has never sounded this good before.......Well Done......Congrats on the guitar room food service too!!!! COOL Video........

Well holy crap, that little thing sounds pretty cool provided you want a bluesy/garage rock sort of tone.

What an incredibly adorable interruption :D

Excellent post,thank you. Some of the Harmony and Kay made examples look very familiar to us in the UK. The now defunct UK chain store sold a similar Kay, branded as Audition. I have one with a zero fret. They also had a matching bass. Loved the catalogue shots, golden days of my youth! Salute'.

Excellent video. You covered this completely and correctly. I ought to know...I started playing guitar with the 1448 setup waaaaay back in the summer of 1966.

Brilliant amp-guitar-case combo. I loved the sound of it! Really vintage.

I had one of these. Was my 1st electric, circa 1973. came with flat wounds.

Hey! I just wanted to let you know that you earned my subscription with this video :) I've seen a few of your videos already, but the subject of this particular one really caught my attention. You delivered a lot of great insight on the amp-in-a-case movement, as well as on the Danelectro brand guitars. I always knew there's a lot of thought behind their quirky faces! The bit at the end where you played sounded really great. Your chops were excellent :) And the tone? Man, much more pleasing than the modern 5 watters I played! So impressive that it comes from a 6" speaker. Oh, and the bit where your girl came over to offer you a sandwich was absolutely adorable. I just couldn't help but smile :) See you in the next one! Tom

This is amazing, when you play a beautiful guitar through a beautiful amp and then your beautiful daughter arrives to dance for you and offer you a peanut butter sandwich. You're living a dream, man! My dauther is only one year and a month old and I already have a lot of fun and she loves playing with my guitars. :) By the way, today I recorded a rock (I'd say a stoner rock song) using only a neck pickup (only! first time ever only!). So I think this amazing guitar is the way to go anywhere! Nice guitar and amp, sir! And as always - nice playing :)

my dad had that same set. oh the memories of him rockin out the belvis ,when i was just a little kid. he was like the neighborhood rock star air force guy. it is amazing how well the sound is come through. it is giving me flashback. thanks so much.

I had a Peavey with the amp in the case and it was awesome, had a lot of fun with it.

Never heard about these kind of amp-cases, very cool! I'm so glad you make videos of rare old amps, I live in Sweden and we dont ever see any Valco, Silvertone or Magnatone amps here. Mostly Fenders and Marshalls and they dont go for peanuts, not even in bad condition.

Thanks for this! My 1448 guitar has the neck bent like yours, which ruins intonation and action. Will try a similar approach for straightening. One of the best things I have ever done is buying a 1448 amp in case plus guitar for cheap while I was in the U.S. Mine is quite worn out, or better :wrecked, but after fixing the worst still has a great feel and tone. Perfect for garage / LoFi sound. Also hard to get one on the other side of the big pond. I did get electrocuted when jamming with a buddy and touching his guitar's strings while showing chords ... and it was the worst electric shock I have ever felt (used to work as an electrician and had a few....). I fixed it with an isolation transformer and 3-prong cord. I would consider doing that if you own the amp. Cheers!

This was my first electric guitar and amp. In the mid early to mid 60's i played the Sunburst version of this guitar. I would turn the case on its end, (vertically) with the speaker up top and it sounded great and everyone thought i had a much bigger amp!! I loved these. I would go for it again with a bit more power in the amp/case!

Your recording skills and quality are improving drastically. I would totally rock this setup for work when I go out of town. I thought about building a 2 watt micro Bassman or Deluxe into a Fender Tweed case, then I realized there's not enough room for the transformers and speaker. Series filament is about the only way to get a tube amp into a case not designed for it. Great video!

I happen to like Danelectro guitars.. I've owned the 56 U2 and U3 models (3 pickups). Hard to beat for the money.. the guitars I bought were the late 90's models. solid guitars and played great actually... I recently had the Peavey T-15 guitar (no amp) and T-26... awesome guitars....

What an awesome setup, thanks for sharing! I have a pair of '60s lipsticks waiting for a guitar, you've just motivated me to make this project happen much sooner:)

My father had this exact guitar and case. Lord only knows where it is now. I recall learning how to play on this rig when I was young.

great choice on the 9's. wouldn't want any more tension on that old guitar. Sounds awesome Brad☺

I had a T-60. It was a P O S! It never stayed in tune! My brother had this exact guitar in a box. We changed the headstock to look like a Vox teardrop and took the strip of draw liner off and filled and sanded it and painted Blue sparkle with Testors model car paint. It was sharp! In the 60s I spend many a fun hour looking at Sears, Mont. Ward, JC Penny, Spiegel, and even Western Auto had for a few years a small line of guitars and stereos. There were some others but I cant remember all of them. Great video! Brought back some wonderful memories. You made her sound good! Course you could put strings on a baseball bat or a 2X4 and it would sound good! Thankz

You inspired me to take my 1449 of the wall and noddle with it a little for the first time in decades. It was my first electric. If I recall, it was $79 around 1964.

I have the two-pickup version my grandpa bought me for $8 when I was a kid in the mid seventies. I've never heard how the amp case sounded before - sounds great here!

I have wanted to make an amp-in-case ever since I first saw them, but I actually want to make it so you could have your pedalboard in the case as well. And with SMPS boards today, that can give you B+ voltages even from batteries, I'd like to try making it a tube amp.

There is a product called CLP that works miracles freeing up seized screws. I recently used it on a Silvertone Strat copy . I was setting the intonation and the bridge saddle adjustment screws were seized. After a drop of CLP they were free in just a few seconds.It is actually a gun cleaning product and you can find it in the sporting goods section at Wal Mart and other department stores that sell firearm accessories. I don't know what it would do to the finish if it got on the guitar body, so be careful about that.

Thanks for this video. It brought me so much joy to reminisce about my first guitar. I got this on my 10th birthday in 1977. I had such a great time learning on this. Learning Barr chords on this guitar took so much effort as the string height was about a 1/4 inch. I never knew what that eyelet adjusted the neck, I might have gotten an easier playing guitar. Oh, I didn't understand why I got the living crud shocked when I got to sing thru a Pevey PA and Touched my mouth to the mic, But now I understand why. Thanks for that. Great video.

Buddy Whittington, formerly with John Mayall for 15 years & currently opening for him across the pond, can make these scream. He has a red, 2 pickup that he'll drag out at local gigs occasionally

I was going to say no way to the amp in the case till I heard it. That is an excellent idea for practice and or small get togethers. Sears and Roebuck so sad to see them die.

A great video Brad. Not seen or heard much about these case amps, so your potted history and informative incite into them was cool. And that deep mellow tone from a speaker mounted in a flimsy case lid was just fantastic. Nice playing too 👍

I remember 30 years ago when you could find these Silvertone amp in the case models at flea markets for a few hundred dollars. Now, they are worth almost the same as a vintage Les Paul.

This was my first. Wish I still had it..

Eric Johnson recently played a brief demo using this guitar and amp combo. Sounded great, proving a lot of tone comes from the player.

Outstanding production on this one Brad.

Whenever I see this guitar, I can't help but think of the late J Geils dunking it into a vat of blue paint in the Freeze Frame video.

Hey brad, this is a really great video! I would love to see more stuff like this, or more videos about taking inexpensive guitars and making them great. How about a video, where you make a homemade amp? I know that a lot people enjoyed your musical instrument hoarder videos, and we loved the field trip videos. Maybe consider doing some more videos with the type of content that I listed above will bring in lots a views.

My main guitar since 2010 and I love it

Danelectro... what's the cheapest way we can make it actually work OK??? That's their legacy. I've fixed a few of them. Better than early imports anyway. Early Peavey guitars kicked more butt than Chuck Norris. Get yourself a T-60 or T-40 Bass.

I had that exact Peavy guitar. The feel of he neck alone made it the guitar I sold that ended the sale of any further of my own guitars. The regret was massive.

when I was a teen, my stepdad had one of those guitars with amp in case but the amp didn't work when he got it. I played the guitar through a 1971 Kenwood 6420 amp receiver that was custom modded for use as the primary sound system in a club with a total output of just under 12,000 watts.. yes that much and those mods included usable mic and guitar input jacks. It really sounded good even with that Sears sold Silvertone with the lipstick pickups.. It had a pair of Sansui SP-X8900 speakers hooked up to it... and cranked up sounded a lot like a Marshall full stack...Fun times...

What’s funny is Jim de cola worked for peavey and he designed the Wolfgang model with Eddie and peavey pioneered cnc machining in guitar manufacturing… now Gibson has a cnc wood mill and Jim is now head luthier there…. Ppl still hating on peavey while playing a new les paul

Had one of these as a teenager. Touched my lips to a mic while playing it. Felt like I'd been punched in the mouth, and my neighbors saw the flash that lit up my bedroom! To quote Miracle Max, thank you so much for brining up such a painful subject! ;)

This was my first guitar and amp, purchased new at the closest Sears store to my town. My dad had added a reverb unit and footswitch jack to the case-amp which I still have today, but stopped using when the guitar was stolen from my parent's car around 1967.

Thanks for providing a sample sound of the package at the end of the video. I was curious throughout as you were explaining the composition of both the amp and guitar of what can this thing possibly sound like? If we could plant ourselves back in the times when these were sold in the Sears catalogs, I think we would be impressed by its tone actually. Based on your demo, the package had a nice, warm tone with an equally warm OD when you attacked the strings. Thanks for sharing, and for educating us on these DanElectro innovations.

This one definitely brings back memories! In the late 60s, two grade school classmates started up a "garage band", and the "bass player" (we taught him to play) had one of these amp-in-case BASS guitars. Not much bass from that wimpy amp and speaker combo! Later, both the guitarist and bassist upgraded to Kustom 250s with 3 15" Jensens in the guitar cabinet and 3 15" JBLs in the bass cabinet. WHAT MONSTERS to haul around! But we were a pretty popular 3-piece hard-rock band!

That thing actually sounds way better than I expected, very cool.

Great job Brad.Very informative and I really enjoyed the sears and wards catalogue shots ,It brings alot of old memoried as I was always looking at guitars in my moms Sears and Wards ones in the 60s.

I had the same 20 years ago, I was a fan of The Flat Duo Jets and it took me almost a year to be able to ship it from Seattle to Paris. This is a killer Duo with the amp in case and a great guitar/cartboard with a lot of mojo like the Airlines, Silvertones. This amp cums when you broke into, this is a pure R'N'R animal it kills all the new amps, it rocks as a beast!

Those trim pieces kinda look like door thresholds for flooring. Very interesting video, thanks man..so cool .I remember seeing and desiring these guitars back in the 60s. We settled on a Supro guitar with a Supro amp..I think was a 12 or 15 watt. That was in 1967. Which at the time I think was a little better set up than the Danelectro stuff. I ended up trading the Supro in for a cream colored , used Telecaster..in 1969 or so..I was playing pretty well by then , and I needed an upgrade. This video made me go back and think of all the old guitars of the 60s we used to dream about. I started with a generic Spanish box guitar we got with S&H greenstamps.

Sticking with this to the end with your daughter was great, so cute.

I still have my Peavey T-15, which I got dirt cheap because the amp was missing from the case. It's my baby.

Brings back memories of my very first gig in the early 60’s. My only guitar was an arch top Harmony Broadway with a clip on pickup. I didn’t have an amp. I played it through my parents Magnavox hifi. So for the gig (a spaghetti feed at a high school cafeteria) I rented a Silvertone guitar and amp from Sears. All I remember is the guitar was black and white and the top was black Formica with gold specks all through it. Probably a single pickup. We were a hit and that started about 55 years of guitar playing. My next guitar was a brand new ‘65 Fender Mustang. Can’t remember what I did for an amp.

Doesn't look like anyone gave you info on the guitars. The body border material was vinyl wallcovering. The keys are thumb screws from a roller skate company. Skates were adjustable from pair of shoes to another. The thumb screws would loosen or tighten the skate. The body is made from masonite. Countertops and kitchen flooring were also made from masonite. The neck was made from pine 2X4s. Lipstick tubes courtesy of revlon. The sparkle finish is silver paint that was flipped from a brush onto the guitar. Last but not least the tailpiece was the pedal part of a trash can. Step on the pedal and the top would pop up. stuck a piece of wood on it, bolted in the place of the pedal connection to arm that lifts top of trash can. I have 1 that I have kept all these years. I love them. And buy and sell them.

I think the amp is brilliant and so is your playing! You have a talent for playing, more please.

I think I can help you out with the term for that U-channel used for the tuners. ;) 35W4 + 50C5 + 12AU6 only adds up to 97V for the filaments; that Hugh Jazz wire wound ceramic resistor (I'm guessing about 120 ohms, since the filaments are 150mA) must be dropping the extra voltage in the filament string. Also, that little chunk of iron is probably a choke in the power supply; you don't typically see isolation transformers in series filament amplifiers. Considering the volume and tone quality manufacturers are getting out of rechargeable puck speakers, I think the amp-in-case paradigm is overdue for a comeback. Include a simple analog cab sim and somewhere to stash your favorite rodenty or screamy dirt box and you've got a decent busker kit; add a line out and the case could double as a foldback monitor.

I had a Silvertone amp case back in the 70s. Great idea

Have this. Dad bought it for me at sears 1964.. first guitar. still in case amp working. I"m 65 and still play in a hard rock cover band.

That neck adjustment screw is a top notch idea

Brilliant!! I really love the high end model with the 6v6

I think the big reason for not making amps in cases anymore is they now make amps that can fit in your case like the Vox MV50 and you have the option of putting it anywhere you want, not just fixed in the case. The Vox is 50 watts and has a little tube inside, loud enough for any gig. Great video though. Love the tone of that Silverstone!

Loved this video. I got this same model guitar/case for Christmas in 1964 when I was in the 4th grade. I dropped the violin lessons right after I saw the Beatles on Ed Sullivan. :) To the best of recollection, the case and guitar weighed 23 pounds. I hated lugging it to lessons.

I remember seeing these in sears when I was a kid.Something In my head said the amp in the case idea had some draw backs but it was novel to me.Also there was a electronic company Lafayette that sold the same line of guitars. In that store I seen mostly Kay and Harmony guitars. Back then tooling was not consistent so the playability of the guitars varied. Very Interesting video. I had no idea there were so many other guitar in case manufacturers. Thanks for sharing

My buddy bought one of these sitting in a local pawn shop. Nobody was really interested in it and the price was about $60. I had the chance to play it, and as flunky as it may appear, it was pretty cool sounding. It's funny how things like this from the past that were at the time bottom tier, are now elevated to collectible status. In some cases the craftsmanship of yesterdays entry level gear, exceeds that of modern high end.

My first electric. I wanted any Fender offered by my teacher/dealer, but Dad was only generous enough to take a trip to Sears and buy this combo. I always enjoyed it. A great memory is in 1966 taking it to a girl friend's house, and being the center of attention for several other girls. My coverage included Walk Don't Run, a a couple of Beatles songs. Good enough to make me a rock star for the hour!!

Them skate key tuners. I love Danos. There's just something about them. The cheap yet resonant formica. Those great lipstick pickups. That jangly sound. I love em.

My first guitar was a Sears Silvertone 1448 in case amp. Loved the sound of the amp but the guitar was really tough to play. The action was so high. Probably warped neck. Toughened my fingers up though. Then I played my Les Paul through it also. Still sounded great. Fun little item that amp. Warm and gritty is how I heard it.

So today I learned that in Kentucky, ratchet-straps are called "cumalongs."

Crazy. I had no clue those even existed (born late 70's) and I just saw this exact model in a Guitar Center in Beaverton Oregon like a week ago, and then I randomly stumble on this video. I don't recall exactly but I think they were asking in the neighborhood of $800-1000 for it. Looked about the same shape as this one. The tuners and pickguard shape caught my eye. Way out of my budget for right now but if anyone is looking for this machine that Guitar Center might still have it. I have no idea if they have the case as well.

Also the only way you can get the twist out is to strip the finish and steam the neck, then setup in fixture to dry ! Almost forgot..... After drying, you should finsh with a light oil, do not use unrefined Tung oil ! Some folks have had bad reactions like an allergy on contact . As for the adjustment screw, that chrome shoulder was glued to the screw ! It was cheaper than having a machined part !!

Love the guest appearance at the end :)

Great video! I have a 1448 myself. Those little amps sound great for what they are. I tried to mod the guitar with a Danelectro bridge with adjustable saddles, but the saddles are not in the correct position, relative to the old rosewood bridge, so it still won't intonate. Been thinking about getting a compensated wood bridge made that will fit the original plate.

I have a 1448 Guitar and Amp/case and it is the balls.

The guitar case amp. A concept so bad it's brilliant. Sounds pretty good, actually.

One of the brilliant amps that you can use would be the Pignose 7-100. I don't remember how loud it is, but you can get a number of sounds from it. A much more reasonable solution for gigging was made by ZT Amps with their 200W Lunchbox amp, which is no larger than a lunch pail and weights about the same as one as well.

My old band mate played one of these when we were in high-school in the early 2000's.

I have the 2 💄 p'ups with the 8" speaker in Case. It was my Daddy's so it's priceless to Me.. And man what a Dirty Blues Sound tone ..let me watch now.. New Sub ...thinks for this

Very nice. You make that rig sound fantastic.

The body is masonite and the edging material was used on 1960s dining room tables ase edging. Masonite was popular as dining table top material.

I have always LOVED the idea of the amp in case. cheesy and awesome. I will maybe buy one some day. luckily they aren't very rare and are easily found on ebay. I love your channel!

I had one. Still have a Silvertone Piggy back. I KNOW it was a great idea..still is!

I wonder if the field coil speaker was borne out of the concern that a permanent magnet might well affect the pickup when paired together in more extended storage?

Holy crap! It’s either the setup with the tubes or the player or both.

You know what's really interesting Brad, is that the Silvertone guitar company is still in business. Sold exclusively through a UK online dealer called Gear4music.com What's even more amazing, is that while Danelektro is still making their guitars the old way, using Masonite bodies and such, Silvertone is using real wood. Mahogany bodies and maple necks. Quality tuners and Duncan Designed pups which most likely means they are being made by Cort out of Indonesia. Cort makes some really great Squier models, like the Squier Strat Standard and the Strat Deluxe. I think they are also making the VM series, but I would have to check on that before I would swear to it. And so once again, like back in the 50's and 60's Danelectro and Silvertone are back in business. But!! Silvertone is about 1/3rd the cost of the Dans and are quality instruments. I keep kicking around the idea of getting one of the 1303 models, which is the single cut bodies with a pair of lipsticks in it. The 1449 is the same quirky style as this one, but it has a pair of lipsticks, instead of only one. Also, the bridge design is close to the same, still has the weird trapezoidal shape to it, but now has a Strat style independent saddles for intonation. They are about 245 euros for a much better design than the Dans have. The 1423 is also a single cut, but has a pair of TV Jones style humbuckers that are also Duncan designed for about 290 Euros The flagship model is the 1478. Kind of an offset body like a Jazzmaster. But it has a sort of Fender headstock, with a pair of P90's. Tune-O-Matic roller bridge and a real B50 Bigsby for 370 euros. All of them are quality built with some of the quirky design traits of the originals, but made to play well and last a long time. Just thought you might be interested in how the old seems to keep coming back around to the new again. I looked. No amp in a case yet though ;) Bob in Germany

There's actually a couple small companies building semi-hollow thinline style guitars with the amp and a small speaker built *right into the body of the guitar.*

hey Brad if you get that 3 in 1 on your PJ's your missus is gonna kick your arse mate. and thanks for another fantastic vlog

Funny thang, I just had a LANCE peanut butter crackers and coffee for breakfast, when she asked about PBJ sammich. Those Silvertone geetar amp in case still sell for rediculous prices on epay, well over 500$. I find the Brit/Ric more interesting. Kewl vid Brad, crazy man, crazy! Don-electro