Magnatone 130V

[substratus]

Can anyone tell me anything about this amp.  I've been looking around at places near me seeing what older solid state amps I can find.  While I found some on others (Gibson G-40 and Fender-M80) I've found very little on this particular amp.  Supposedly, from the little I have found out, it has true pitch shifting vibrato. I tried it in the store and though it sounded different but I just attributed it to a really big variation in volume.

[teemuk]

I believe - by the looks of it - that it's part of their "Pro-Line" series, which was Magna/Estey 's first take on solid-state amplifiers dating to circa 1967 - 1968. The 130V might actually be the only transistor model with a pitch-bending vibrato.

If you want to buy a Magnatone for the classic pitch-bending vibrato sound then you need to find one of the 1950's - 1960's tube amps. Those are the ones that generated the hype.

[substratus]

I wasn't sure what it was when I first saw it, but it sure stood out against all the other amps lined up there. Most were new and the next oldest used one was 90's at the most, and probably not even that.  It certainly looked different, wood looking side panels (never thought to check and see if they were real wood), the controls on a slant to the back, the multiple jacks on the back.  It was a unique little amp against all the rounded corners, black tolex, and front panels it was mixed in with.

I wasn't expecting a pitch shifting vibrato and didn't recognize it other than it sounded different, If I go back to try it again later I'll have to test that part out some more.  I really didn't test it all that much.  I mainly found out it could make some fairly nice cleans (I was just playing through it with a Yamaha pacific from the shop), and that the pots were super scratchy.  The other thing I noticed was it had a mellow-normal-bright switch which just seem to be some sort of passive filter that cuts the lows/highs.

The main reason I was even looking at it is there aren't many options around here that I've seen.   The choices here are basically to go with a  modeler (take your pick on brand). a Frontman, or a ToneblasterX (that the stores seem to be wanting to get rid of). Some of the shops have a decent selection of tubes, but not much in my price range besides the Champion 600 or an Epiphone Valve Jr, neither of which am I interested in at all.  My main concern with it is its age and reliability, though that will likely be an issue with any older amp.

[joecool85]

There's nothing wrong with the Fender Frontman amps other than kinda cheap speakers.  Throw in an Eminence Legend or a Weber and you got a rockin' little amp.  Some folks don't care for the Fender's overdrive circuit, but you can always put pedals in front of it to suite your taste.  The FM65R is the perfect little gig amp and if you need more oomph you could add a speaker out jack and plug into a 4x10 or 4x12 cab and you're good for most anything.