BAEZ 4x15" Model 205 Valve PA Amplifier c1975
Folks, I'm pleased to present to you: the chungus among us, the frig of a big rig, the crushing weight of existence, the slickest and the thicc-est... it's the BAEZ. Baez amps were made in Newcastle, Australia in the 1970s by a talented amp repairer and builder named Michael Samson... appropriate, as you'd need Samson-level muscles to lift the thing. Baez offered guitar, bass and PA amps, drawing inspiration from primarily from Hiwatt style builds, although they're original circuit designs. The guitar amps turned up in the hands of a lot of prominent players in Sydney and Newcastle in the 70s/80s/90s apparently, always drawing admiration for a certain fullness and clarity across the frequency range. This model is a four channel amp, each with a separate two band EQ and volume control, powered by a quartet of KT120 power tubes... yep, like a KT88, but even bigger and with more voltage going through them. The speakers cabinets each house two 15" drivers, so there's plenty of capacity to move air. Our fav local tech Reuben Hopkins of Brookfield Tube Audio has done a full restoration on this, so it's got new tubes, pots, filter caps, jacks, switches... all the parts that wear out have been attended to, so it should be in great order for the next couple of decades. The sound: well, it's big. For a guitar, turn the bass control down to 0-2 approx, and you get chiming, Fender-Twin style cleans, with gorgeous clarity and body and tonnes of clean headroom. It's an awesome, if OTT, pedal platform, and I shudder to think how great it would be in a studio. It's juicy with a bass guitar: 60 inches of speakers get those low notes coming out with punch and accuracy, with a huge rounded fundamental note. It possibly does it's best work with synths and keyboards, as the full-range capacity and incredible balance really come into play in that setting. You could happily park this in your rehearsal space and let the whole dang band plug in, each with their own channel to level things right, and it would be unreal. Now friends: we can ship this, but it's going to cost you some cash, so how about you borrow a van and come get it? The best Daez are ahead of you.
Model: Baez Model 205 PA Amplifier
Made: Newcastle Australia, 1975 approx
Type: Tube
Serial: 1040
Output: 200w
Power: 240v (Australia/NZ)
Speakers: 2 cabs, each with 2x15" Australian made speakers
Tubes: 4xKT120 output tubes, 3x12AX7, 1 x 12AU7 and 1x 12AT7 preamp tubes
Mods: full restoration recently completed. All valves and filter caps replaced, all pots, jacks and switches replaced, some resistors replaced. All work by Brookfield Tube Audio
Channels: 4
Weight: total 120kg approx
Accessories: relevant cables
Condition notes: All tested and fully functional. Fully restored by Brookfield Tube Audio. Invoices for service work available upon request from serious buyers. Minor cosmetic wear on the tolex around the place only.
Overall: very good condition (8/10)