Up for sale, a 1951 National Valco Chicago Model 51 in excellent condition and in perfect working order. Fully serviced, this early National amp was manufactured in Chicago by parent company Valco, who made amps under the Supro and Gretsch banners among others, although the “National” name was their marquee brand. Powered by a pair of 6V6 tubes and voiced through a 10" Rola-made alnico magnet speaker, there's a midrange richness and detail to the breakup of these amps that is signature "Valco" tone. The bloom, light compression, and creamy nature of the sound reacts well with a variety of pickups and makes this amp a perfect secret weapon for studio sessions, and it really shines with a microphone in front of it.

The point-to-point circuit has been thoroughly serviced, with many new resistors, signal caps and electrolytics from the likes of F&T and Sprague. The original transformers are present, along with the stock Stackpole pots with date codes from ‘51. The tube complement includes a matched pair of brand new and freshly biased Electro-Harmonix 6V6EH power tubes, an RCA 5Y3GT rectifier, and two RCA valves in the preamp. The speaker is the original 10” Rola alnico magnet driver, with a date code on the clean silver frame translating to the 36th week of ‘51.

The original tweed and grillcloth are intact, with the original National badge present on the amp’s face. The faceplate has crisp graphics and original chickenhead knobs, and the leather handle is a modern replacement.