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Here's another Grouse Guitars Goldentone
find! This is a Goldentone model 1742 40-watt "Lead" amplifier,
dating from the late '60s, which is quite different from the more common
Goldentone 40 and 60-watters. Note, for example, the vertically-stacked
input jacks, rather than the more usual horizontal orientation. This vintage valve (or tube) amp has just been serviced by a leading Melbourne amp tech, and he was quite enthusiastic about this amp, saying it's the only one he's come across in his years as an amp tech, and that it sounded distinctly better than the other Goldentones he'd worked on (in fact there were a couple in his workshop at the time!). Components are all original inside except a power resistor, a capacitor in the Tremolo oscillator, the addition of the standby switch and tremolo switch socket, and a new 12AX7 LPS valve. The amp is not mint, having been worked for much of its life. The cab tolex appears to be black painted, at least partially, and the original grille cloth (remnants of which can be seen in the speaker pics at the bottom of the 'more pictures' link) has been replaced with dark grille at some stage in its life. The amp comes with a glorious pair of 1966 Rola speakers fitted, which bring out the full vintage tone of this amp. The head is a beauty. The amp displays a lot more sparkle and grunt than other Goldentones I have tried (and I have tried many!). The left-hand knob, controlling the reverb, is non-original, but all other knobs are originals. If the buyer preferred, I could fit a full set of matching black chicken-head knobs in their place at no extra cost. If you are a reverb enthusiast, I would recommend the installation of a better reverb tank (a-la-Accutronics) in place of the somewhat cheesy original unit, which is mounted, in true Goldentone fashion, in the speaker box. Nevertheless, it's a very rare bit of Aussie valve amp history, and bound to be a great investment over time, even though it's a user more than a display piece. Sold to Tristan
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