GOLDENTONE: Vintage Goldentone Guitar Amplifier, Model 1774

Picked this up today - it’s a Goldentone guitar amp from the early sixties.  Goldentones were made in Melbourne, Australia when imported amps were a rare and expensive sight due to import tariffs.

Like a few early Goldentones, this amp does not have a name or model number marked on the amp itself.  It's a 1774 model ~1960/1961 from the 1770 - 1780 series.  I also have a post about a 1776 here.

Thanks to Peter Field from the Goldentone facebook group for most of the information in this post - basically anything related to dates, the model and confirming speaker details. 

GOLDENTONE 1774 AMPLIFIER SPECS

• Blue canvas covering

• Volume and tone controls

• 2 x inputs, single channel

• 1 x Mullard 6CA7 (EL34)

• 1 x Ten 12AX7

• Silicon rectifier

• A&R transformers

• M.S.P. 12PS speaker 12” 16 ohms

• 10 watts

• Serial number 1189

I've not completely opened it up to look at how it's constructed, but one odd thing to note is that the volume and tone control is at the front end of the amp, before the 12AX7, and they appear to be configured the same way as a guitar volume and tone pot.

To the right of the volume and tone pots, additional holes for pots can be seen.  Looks like this model shared the same base plate as the tremolo model.  

M.S.P. 12PS speaker is dated September 1958.  Goldentone did use M.S.P. in addition to Rola speakers.  The 12PS was discontinued in 1960, the 12PQ is more commonly found in Goldentones - at least when Rola's are not installed.

A&R Transformers were made in Melbourne at the time and were common across most Goldentone amplifiers.

It has a fairly early serial number, as I've read that they started at 1000

It has a Mullard 6CA7 that was made in Holland, dated December 1959, in the power section and a Ten 12AX7 for the preamp 

ROSE MORRIS 61 - 62 CATALOG

GOLDENTONE 1774 SCHEMATIC

I haven't had this amp for a while, so this trace is based on the previous photos and the 1776 that I currently have, which is the same amp with trem.  There are a couple of very minor differences, such as 2k2 cathode resistors on one and 3k3 on the other.  But fundamentally, this is the amp.