Is this likely?

[speakerdave]

So anyway, is that a good amp?

[Old Guy]

1982 - Altec Lansing moves electronic assembly to Oklahoma City
1981 to 1989 - President Ronald Reagan

any point?

The situation that got Reagan elected was well underway by 78...he was elected in 80.

Altec was suffering terribly due to the bad economy. Seems like you are trying to prove something, but nothing useful in that info.

BTW plans to move to OKC were announced well ahead of Altec actually doing it. It was too little too late. Altec was bankrupt shortly after.

Or do you feel the bankruptcy just happened with nothing leading up to it? Most events aren't sudden...they take time to happen.

[Old Guy]

So anyway, is that a good amp?

At the risk of sacrilege it's in my top 10 tube amps but not my top 5. It's a good amp.

[bowtie427ss]

Soooooooooooo, how do i date my 1568's?

The 4th digit is an "8" on both amps, is that '58 or '68?

When did the 391XXX manufacturer and date code come into use?

Also, i cannot find anything i'd call a serial number on them, does this have any significance?

[Old Guy]

Most likely 58 I would think...but then...

Vintage guitar websites often contain data on dating pots.

Capacitors changed their looks between 58 and 68, flipping thru electronics parts books if you can find any from that era...vintage Lafayette and other catalogs are online...

It comes down to an educated guess. Those would be things I would use.


Also see if you can find any tech info on the amp, magazine articles, etc. Sometimes cosmetics change over the years...

[whitebroncoii]

any point?

The situation that got Reagan elected was well underway by 78...he was elected in 80.

Altec was suffering terribly due to the bad economy. Seems like you are trying to prove something, but nothing useful in that info.

BTW plans to move to OKC were announced well ahead of Altec actually doing it. It was too little too late. Altec was bankrupt shortly after.

Or do you feel the bankruptcy just happened with nothing leading up to it? Most events aren't sudden...they take time to happen.

Dear Old Guy,

The Reagan dates are from Wikipedia
List of Presidents of the United States - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I was hired by the Altec OKC plant when electronics were moving in. Most of the smaller speakers had been there for some time. I worked for Altec from 1983 to 1995 and experienced three corporate buy outs.

I offered corrected dates where you were slightly off. No more, no less.

You do not need to be a jerk.

[bowtie427ss]

It comes down to an educated guess. Those would be things I would use.

I can only applaud your wisdom. i had a memory failure in my earlier post, 4th digit is actually a "9", date codes on most of the caps and the pots are clearly 1969!

Definite surprise to me, glad you made me look and figure it out. Thankfully these are untouched so there's plenty of reliable evidence onboard.

EDIT: and yet another surprise, if the can caps on these bfish 1569's are original, and i suspect they are(don't worry folks, he bypassed them with new ones), they date these at 1972. I'm a bit surprised to find i have 4 Altec tube amplifiers that were all built after the alleged first moon landing, and Woodstock.

I'm not sure i'm ready to retract my sentiments regarding the original topic, but suddenly, having a new 1568 or 1569 assembled in the Anaheim plant in 1978 doesn't seem quite so absurd.

I wonder, just how long did they continue production of these amps?

[Old Guy]

You do not need to be a jerk.

sorry if I came across like a jerk...I'm very direct, it's easy to mistake the two...


Anyway, it seemed like you were nitpicking. the point was, it was a very sour economy, that sour economy was the last nail in Altec's coffin. They had been suffering thru the 70's.

I can remember offering tons of suggestions....the standard reply-"There's no money for that"

[Todd W. White]

I can remember hearing about people being told at Altec Quinquennial, which I think was in 1967, that,after introducing Altec's new "Solid State Sound" versions of the 1568, 1569, and 1570 (the 1593, 1594, and 1590, respectively), the contractors were told, regarding the tube series - "Buy them while you can, boys, because after they're gone, there won't be any more!"

The quote was attributed to Jim Noble.

My remembrance is they quit building them around then.

[bfish]

...I wonder, just how long did they continue production of these amps?

Probably till they ran out of xfmr stock. I've seen 69s and 70s (with part codes) as new as '72. Users being stubborn about switching from a proven workhorse to newer tech is nothing new. Heck, I still prefer them to the equivalent SS greenies, and it ain't because I like buying tubes...

When I was in electronics school in '77 & '78, the shops we "interned" for all had closets and stockrooms full of tubes & xfmrs they'd have loved to get a dime on the $ for.