Any SANO Amp love to be found?

[tjmangum]

A friend of ours, who sells some of the tube radios he restores at our auctions, brought by an interesting tube amp from the 1960's. It's a SANO 8 tube 160R which I understand was originally ment for accordians. A little research shows there is a cult following for these. I've only plugged in in once and it does have some nice tones, but not really being an electric guitar guy, who am I to say. Any thoughts or experiences with these? It has the tremelo pedal too. Pretty crisp condition.
Thanks for the info,
Terry

 

[Default]

Yup, a real hi-fi amp. Supposed to sound good for bass, but I haven't had the pleasure.

 

[Zelja]

Littlesongs had/has a couple if I recall.

A friend of mine has a 2 x 12, a 25WR model I believe, with the cool swirly pattern on the grille cloth. The Accordian input was great for clean sounds & really excellent with some guitars (P90s style single coils). Also you could get a decent amount of raunch after a few minor mods were done. Used 7591 output tubes which are a bit unusual. Really cool little amp.

The 160R above uses 6BQ5s which are pretty much the same as EL84s. I have a schematic of that if anyone wants it.

 

[southernGuild]

My ignorance in Amps disqualifies me from any real opinion. But It Sure looks good! ....and it's from 'Jersey!

 

[powerwagonjohn]

I have a SANO 250R from the 1970's. As stated earlier it uses 7591 output tubes and a pair of alnico 12" speakers for a clean and punchy sound. Very different from my 64 Fender Tremolux or my Mesa. It should be a fun experience for you to try it out.
Thanks John

 

[Bill Ashton]

Several years ago I took a tube amp class from a gent on the TDPRI that had quite a list of amp credentials. During his teens he worked for SANO. If I remember correctly, there was a loose association with Ampeg, mayhaps similar to the one Steve has uncovered with Guild...

 

[mad dog]

I had a 250R for years. Took some major tech investment to optimize the tone on that one, but worth it. The CTS alnico speakers (faux silver dome, look kinda JBL from the front) are excellent. The one guitar amp I've owned that did a credible job with bass. Always wanted to try that 160R.
MD