Selmer amps.... Why so pricey?

[Tomm Williams]

On occasion I'll spot a vintage Selmer amp for sale and they're usually pretty expensive. I don't see them being used by anyone of note or even talked about much so why the prices ?

[treedroppings]

The Beatles played them.

[WRGKMC]

Selmer mostly makes band instruments. They bought an amplifier company called RSA to add to their product lineup. They sold the amps mostly overseas for awhile but I'm not sure how good they actually were. Anything dating back to the 50's would have to be completely rebuilt just to make it safe and functional. Other then the age and rarity I don't see anything there making them any more valuable then any other tube amp, besides the refurbishment cost.

 

In the early 30's Selmer were actually the first UK musical company to sell amplification equipment - this being equipment made by the Operadio company, which was imported into England from the United States. However, in 1935 the company commenced producing amplifiers under the Selmer brand name, at Charing Cross Road. This facility was given a boost in December 1947, when Selmer purchased RSA; a company that had been producing a range of PA amplifiers since 1946 under the RSA and Truvoice names. It was therefore easy to expand the RSA production into guitar amplification in the mid 1950's with the introduction of models like the early RSA (non-Selmer) Truvoice Model TV15. The TV15 (Stadium) and TV6 (Popular) and similar model designations on early Selmer Truvoice amps was a throwback from that era. (This numbering system was used on the majority of Selmer amps until the mid-60's.) Selmer/RSA amplifier manufacture was carried out at a factory in Theobalds Road, Holborn, London by that time, releasing the Charing Cross Road building for retail purposes and offices. Warehousing facilities for the vast range of instruments which Selmer were now dealing, was a Clerkenwell.