A Japanese "Blackface" ELK Stage Man

[tribi9]

This is my Elk Stageman. Its a 15 watt amp, made in Japan around 65' or 66'. My favorite sounding amp ever.

Today was actually the first time I ever open up an amp. Fear of getting electrocuted has kept me away from poking around them. Lately I've been getting the urge to learn about electronics and older vintage amps.

The amp has the following controls, 3 inputs, Reverb, Volume, Bass, Treble, And Speed and intensity for the Vibrato channel. I believe  everything is stock in the amp save a few knobs, can't say for sure but I'm fairly certain that it is and the previous owner didn't seem like a liar...

I don't have the footswitch for it but I think a Fender RCA will do.

The tube configuration from left o right 12AX7, 12AX7, 6AQ8, 12AX7, EL84, EL84, EZ81 (Rectifier)

Here are some pics.

Enjoy,





Tube protector removed



The Guts

[Pacafeliz]

oh man i LOVE elks!!!
i used to have an old head, based on the dual showman or something. sure was nice...

Pat.

[tribi9]

Thx guys!!    Actually, it doesn't have a stand by switch, So I'll keep the suggestion in mind.About the speaker I was going to email Ted Weber to see what kind of speaker he thought might be a good match as I've wondered about it myself. I played a vintage Princeton Reverb and really liked the sound, I was hoping somewhere along those lines. Don't get me wrong the stock speaker does sound heavenly. I have a Strat with a Custom Shop 54' on the neck and it sounds through this amp Fender bell like clean but I also would like to take the sound to the next level.

Like I mentioned in the other thread I took the amp in for a cap job but the amp tech was a little rough on it and I ended up taking my amp back before he even opened it.

Once I get familiar with overhauling an amp I will put my skills to test with this baby.

I actually met (Through the internet) an American that worked at the Miyuki factory in Japan. He was stationed in Japan in the 60's and became friends with the owner and eventually started working for them.

The Elk factory eventually burned down. I have a bunch of pics of the factory, guitars they built, amp schematics, the fire, the aftermath, pretty much an ELK biography on a C.D. The owner has asked that I do not publish them, so I will respect that. However if anybody is interested feel free to PM me for this guy's contact info.

I used to own the head and cab below but I sold it. I will kick myself in the ass, for as long as I live for selling it.

They randomly pop up here on Kijiji and Craigslist. I've seen two in the last year. So yeah, they're rare but I know a few made it to Canada.

Thx for all the info Brad.

[tribi9]

oh man i LOVE elks!!!
i used to have an old head, based on the dual showman or something. sure was nice...

Pat.

Paca, do you remember the name?

Also here's a brochure for some of their models.

These can be found on the net.

[LHR]

Also, I don't see a standby switch

Tube rectifier.

[Maggieo]

It looks like a clone of the Princeton Reverb, and IIRC, they didn't have a standby switch, either.

Gorgeous amp!!!  Officially added to my GAS queue.

[tribi9]

It looks like a clone of the Princeton Reverb, and IIRC, they didn't have a standby switch, either.

Gorgeous amp!!!  Officially added to my GAS queue.

Thank you it looks nicer in person.    I'm always on the lookout for ELK gear.

[ohm-men]

I had a later Elk Viking Bass 50 Head + cab. Got it for €40 (no speakers included) But they came originally with a pair of low wattage Hi-Fi speakers I was told. Anyway, I played this amp with my Jazzmaster and some new Jensen Chicago 12"-35W  speakers as my main Surf rig for a while. The thing sounded awesome. Sold it only to fund my Showman. It had 2 El 84 power tubes and was also build to last....Wonderfull amp....It apeared to be early seventies.
I had it looked over by a tech friend and he said, there is nothing I can do as their is nothing faulty in there ....If I would'nt have had to sell it to fund the Showman (every instro Surf players wet dream), I would most defenitly kept it.

As long as you are careful with the amps PT and OT, they'll last a lifetime. However the older (BF copies) are very diffucult to repair when the tremolo or reverb is broken....

[rickenmetal]

Super weird, that one was actually designed for export to the US because it says 117 volts instead of 100 volts. I wonder if they made European voltage ones too. I like those heads (from the pictures anyways, I've never seen a real one).