After talking about vintage amp schematics it made me think of the days where you could get a Music Man Vintage Amplifier and how they’re somewhat unusual and yet common at the same time to find today.

For those who may not have known about this guitar producer, Music-Man is a company that offers many guitars and other products including amps available for musicians to use and enjoy. They were founded in the 1970’s by Forrest White and Tom Walker, two disgruntled Fender employees, and later purchased by Ernie Ball in the 1980’s. Their logo is characterized by two people playing the guitar, usually found in the top left of the amp speaker cover.

Here are some recent finds for these amps on ebay:

They released amps with two different chassis numbers when owned by Ernie Ball, these being the HD-500 Edition 1 Edition and the HD-500 Edition 2.

Prior to being aquired by Ernie Ball, they designed and sold the following list of amps (listed by Chassis Number):

1600-B
1650-RD
2100-65
2100-75
2100-130
2100-150
2100-B
2165-RD
2100-RD
2165-RP
2100-RP

There are quite a few musicians who have used their guitars and amps (which I’m sure eventually we’ll get around to listing all of them someday sooner or later!)

Their value today can be characterized by a few things

The amps are known well for their reliability, it’s not uncommon to see them in excellent shape some 30 years later after being produced.  Some people choose to identify the amps by their model number, but many models share the same characteristics and features as the chassis. The amps range from their 65 watt series to their 100 watt bass amp series.

But like always, it’s always better to just listen to one to see what you can expect from one:

Have any thoughts on Music Man guitar and bass amps? Share your thoughts below.