Vox AC30 website updates

February 2023

28th February

Entries have now been added for four more amps with : - 13354B, 13554T, 13702B and 13872TB.

Entries are also in progress (no pictures yet) for seven amps with , all given as Treble models on their respective serial number plates: - 14312T, 14331T, 14359T, 14676T, 14711TB, 14842T and 14911TB. Two, however, are (grey panel) Top Boosts.

1964 was JMI's busiest year in terms of AC30 production. More to come soon.

27th February

Picking up from yesterday's entry, an extract from a local Dartford newspaper on the fire at the Vox Works in Erith on the 1st December, 1965. Some of the amps destroyed were evidently AC100s that had been loaned to the Beatles for their autumn tour, the highlight being the Shea Stadium concert (caught on film).

"Employees ran for their lives as fire spread rapidly through the building. Within minutes the factor[y], working flat out on export orders to 64 countries, was a mass of flames. Kent and London Fire Brigades attended."

"Forty thousand guitars, organs, musical equipment, and amplifiers, including those used by the "Beatles" on their last trip to America were lost in the fire. Thousands of pounds worth of equipment awaiting transportation for overseas markets went up in smoke."

EMERGENCY SCHEME

"But within hours the Company was running an emergency production scheme. Said Managing Director Mr Tom Jennings: "In spite of this disaster we shall be able to meet all our orders"."

"Jennings Sales Director Mr Reg Clark commented: "The factory literally blew up. It went up like a bomb"."

"Oil storage tanks for central heating were situated on the top floor of the building where the explosion occurred. The "Reporter" understands that total damage caused by the blaze could reach £1,000,000."

26th February

Thanks to Stephen, pictures of AC30 Super Reverb Twin serial number 4691, chassis probably assembled in the second quarter of 1965, but the amp not sold (or at least ready for sale/dispatch) until a little later. Further .

AC30 SRT serial number 4691.

It is perhaps worth saying, on a general level for the time being, that the fire at the Erith Works in December 1965 had a profound effect on sales and dispatch lasting for some months thereafter. Large numbers of items were affected - Reg Clark estimated many thousands - not only by smoke and fire, but water too from the efforts to contain the blaze. Presumably numbers of amplifier chassis had to be reboxed, their existing cases damaged beyond repair.

The two smaller fires at the Works earlier in the year were not reported as being significant.

25th February

Copied over from the AC100 website. A few days after the trade fair at the Russell Hotel in late August 1964, Tom Jennings and Eric Summer, chairman of Royston Industries, the company that owned a controlling share in JMI, applied to Companies House to form "Vox Sound Equipment Limited". VSEL was duly incorporated on 11th September (entry below from the digest Companies House register).

The principal reason for the creation of the new company: to provide a new vehicle for Jennings/Vox sales that was unconnected with the deal that JMI had just finalised with Thomas Organ in the USA. More on this to follow.

Below, shots from Google Street of Tom Jennings's house in Bexleyheath (half obscured by the tree); and Eric Summer's place in Belgravia (no. 54, end of terrace).

24th February

Thanks to Stuart, pictures of serial number 0505X - proof positive that the new sequence of numbers for this model was kicked off at 500, the highest number encountered so far being 604 (recorded by Jim Elyea). It is likely however that even after the introduction of this new sequence some AC30Xs were given numbers properly belonging to Twins. Serial number 11586 is probably an example. The same is true for Super Twins, which were also given a sequence of their own (beginning at 2500) in 1964. From time to time standard Twin sequence numbers were evidently assigned, escaping the watchful eye of Jack Jennings, who kept the production and dispatch log-books and oversaw the provision of plates.

Expanded Frequency AC30s - which are superb combos - unfortunately did not sell all that well, weight and size perhaps being prohibitive factors. Towards the end of 1964 the model was deleted. In terms of numbers produced: probably around 200-300, not the "fewer than 100" or "around 500" sometimes cited. Chassis were assembled in batches by Westrex. It is likely that finished units sat on shelves for some time at Dartford Road, to be made up (final assembly with cabinet and speakers) in small numbers as orders came in.

23rd February

Just to draw attention to a small clutch of repro serial number plates stamped (at some point in the last 10 or 20 years) with numbers in the 6000s - number 6207 below. Numbers 6408 and 6832 are currently on AC30s that are up for sale on Reverb.

Repro plate stamped with non=original stamps. Note the lack of short lines under the "o" of "No."; the fatness of the letters in "Jennings Musical Industries Ltd"; and the placing and font of "A C Mains Only" and "115/255V 40-60 ~".

For comparison, the original plate of serial number 6000.

21st February

Entries for two early AC30 Super Twins in slope-sided cabinets - late 1964 / early 1965 - now added on the - serial numbers 3470 and 3597. Rectangular cabinets lasted into the mid 3600s (and a little beyond); transition to the new-style slope-sided enclosures was therefore relatively slow.

20th February

Entries for a spread of slope-sided AC30 Super Twins with serial numbers in the 4000s have now been : 4179, 4215, 4221, 4259B, 4293, 4452, 4713, 4817 and 4821.

Further Super Twins and Super Reverb Twins to come shortly. In 1965 and 1966 finished chassis could evidently sit on shelves for some time, to be taken up for final assembly (with cabinet and speakers) in small batches in no particular order. Going by visible component date codes, the chassis in serial number 4221 was clearly made in late 1965. The chassis in serial numbers 4774 and 4784 on the other hand look to be from early 1965. For Super Twins and Super Reverb Twins, the gap beween manufacture and point of sale (final assembly) during this period might be many months.

19th February (2)

Added to the page on AC30s with , six new entries: serial numbers 11297B, 11444T, 11781T, and chassis numbers 3086, 3443, and 3545 (at the end of the page). It may be necessary to move the section on "serial numbers unknown" to a page of its own in due course.

19th February (2)

A first set of measurements of the case of an - thicknesses of birch ply used in its construction:

Back panel and bottom: 3/8 inch thick.

Front: 1/2 inch thick.

Sides: 11/16 inch thick.

The main lid of the case is the same in mirror image - ie. the top is 3/8 inch thick, everything else as above. The inner lid (covered in orange vinyl) is 1/4 inch birch ply all round.

18th February

A question that has been nagging away now answered. The roller switches on early Vox Continental organs were made by Morganite, Type V, which evidently covered a fair range of styles in Morganite's catalogue. Later Continentals had rocker switches.

Early Continental roller switches.

Later Continental rocker switches

16th February

Late in JMI's run of AC30s, a new type of cabinet was introduced, horizontal and vertical crossbars across its baffle instead of the single (vertical) bar of older cabinets. The new-style cabs appear in the 20700s. perhaps a little before - the first definite example is 20705 - and continue into the 23000s (end of JMI production).

General view of a late JMI cab interior.

Also new was the cut-away for the speakers, no longer a gently curving cut, but a long thin section (radiused at top and botttom) removed:

Detail of serial number 22355's cab. The speakers are later replacements, along with the wiring.

Almost all later cabinets, Italian and English made, through to 1973 followed the late JMI style of double crossbar baffle. None, or at least appearently none, adopted the long thin speaker cutaway.

As for who first made these cabinets for JMI, there seem to be only two candidates: "Heathpoint Timber" (possible) and "Heslop and Company" (likely). That the strange speaker cutaway is not found in post-JMI cabinets suggests the latter: JMI and Heslop collapsed together in December 1967 as a consequence of the failure of the Royston Group, the man responsible for the series of mis-steps that led to Royston's demise being Eric Summer, named in the incorporation record in yesterday's entry and standing far right in the picture below.

Party at the Royston headquarters in Mayfair following the conferring on JMI of the Queen's Award to Industry, April 1967. Left to right: unknown; Charlie Cobbett; Colin Barratt; Joan Jennings (?); Tom Jennings; Cyril Windiate; Dick Denney; Reg Clark; Dave Clark (roving ambassador for JMI); unknown; Eric Summer. Thanks to Andy Barratt, Colin's son, for the picture.

15th February

From the digest of the Companies House register, the incorporation of "Burndept Electronics Limited", April 1963. This was the branch of Burndept that had been assembling various amplifier chassis for JMI - from the autumn of 1962.

The principal director - Eric Summer - was in fact chairman of the Royston Group of Companies, of which Burndept and JMI (from late January 1963) were both members.

It may be that "Burndept Electronics Limited" was formed expressly to cover the work done for Jennings. Burndept was hugely diversified. Its other interests were: radio and telecommunications (civil and military); avionics; nucleonics; and domestic appliances.

14th February (2)

Updates on the page for are: 7260N, 7732B, 7770N, 7834B, 7836B, and 7951B.

14th February

Entries for a further seven AC30s with now added: 8102, 8258N, 8462N, 8499B, 8803N, 8892N and 8905N.

13th February

A further small piece in the puzzle - the incorporation of "Thundersley Cabinet Supplies Limited" as listed in the digest of New Companies, 1963. "Thundersley Cabinet" was evidently the company that preceded "Heathpoint Timber" at 533 Rayleigh Road - see the entries below (3rd and 4th Feb.).

Exactly when "Thundersley Cabinet" came into being is unknown, possibly some years before its incorporation in April '63.

During the course of 1965 the Rayleigh Road works (still a timber merchants today) were taken over by "Heathpoint Timber". To date no former member of JMI has recalled any contract with "Thundersley Cabinet Suppplies Limited".

12th February (2)

Entries for three more amps with now added: numbers 10237B, 10586N (though the chassis is stamped "Treble") and 10600N.

12th February

A link to Joe Pampel's excellent blog - - has been added to the Links page (link also in the header above).

11th February (2)

Four new entries have been created for AC30s with , three Twins, one Super Twin: numbers 9370N, 9396N, 9642B, and 9664B.

The Super Twin amplifier section has its original brown cover - heavy vinyl, now well worn but hanging in there. A number of surviving amps have the BASS runner directly below the logo instead of lower right on the front.

AC30 Super Twin, serial number 9664B.

11th February

Thanks to Enzo, pictures of AC30 Top Boost, serial number 5499 - Italian made - have . The amp is still in Italy.

Various updates to other pages (JMI and post-JMI AC30s) coming shortly.

8th February

An advert placed by Reg Clark (Tom Jenning's general sales manager in JMI days) in the music press, November 1974, signalling that Tom was now the Managing Director of Vox. The company had been bought (and saved) by Dallas in the summer of 1973, thanks to Reg's efforts behind the scenes. Reg had joined Dallas in late 1969.

In 1973, Tom was still running "Jennings Electronic Industries" (JEI), the business he had founded soon after his dismissal from JMI in 1967. But by the spring of 1974 he is said to have become extremely dissatisfied with JEI, and Reg, doubtless knowing this, cleared the way with the Dallas people for his return to Vox (first announced in July 1974).

Tom's tenure did not last long alas. In early 1975 Dallas ran into severe financial difficulties, having overspent massively on its new manufacturing facility in Shoeburyness. CBS Arbiter came to the rescue but Tom was out. He retired thereafter from the music business for good.

November 1974. Material on Dallas AC30s is being .

7th February

A new page on Heslop & Co., one of JMI's cabinet makers, has been . It will be linked through to the Vox AC100 and Vox Supreme websites (to replace various scattered comments there) in the coming days.

It seems very unlikely that Heslop made any AC30 cabs before 1966 possibly even before 1967.

5th February

The page on the , compiled from contemporary sources, has now (at long last) been completed.

As noted, the increase in price of the AC30/4 and AC30/6 in March 1961 may be a consequence of the introduction of the Celestion blue speaker (T530).

Companion pages on the Twin through to 1964 and the Super Twin from 1961 to 1964 will probably follow soon.

4th February

Ok, it took far longer than it should to do this - a map showing the respective positions of cabinet makers "Heathpoint Timber" and "Heslop and Company" as a follow-up to yesterday's post. The former was technically in Thundersley (south of the Southend Arterial Road). Heslop was squarely in Rayleigh.

Detail from Ordnance Survey Map TQ8089A - scale 1:2500.

Heathpoint's address was 533 Rayleigh Road, Thundersley. Heslop's was Gladlyn Works, Brook Road, Rayleigh. The question of when Heathpoint started in business remains.

3rd February

Added to the page on , an advert placed by "Heathpoint Timber" in "Beat Instrumental" magazine - "since 1965" is highly suggestive.

"Beat Instrumental" magazine, July 1975.

The Wikipedia article on the Vox Continental asserts that "The original cabinets were constructed by Heathpoint Timber in Rayleigh, Essex...". That unfortunately can only partly be true.

(1) It is clear from the image below that some (at least) if not numerous Continental cases were made by Heslop and Company, which was, along with JMI, a member of the Royston Group of Companies. See the entry for 8th December . Heslop was based in Rayleigh too. Perhaps that is where some confusion arose.

(2) During the course of 1964 demand for Continentals grew exponentially and it is perfectly conceivable that Heathpoint was contracted by JMI in tandem with Heslop to make runs of cases (again, perhaps in large numbers) - but possibly only from or after 1965. That the advert mentions speaker cabinets alone gives cause for caution - for the time being at any rate. One really needs to know for certain when Heathpoint came into being. It is not a stretch to say though that "from or after 1965" applies to cabinets for AC30s.

(3) Quite what Wikipedia means by "original" is hard to say. The earliest Continental cases (1962 and 1963) were not made by either of these two companies.

One of a series of pictures taken in the Heslop Works in late 1965 / early 1966. Thanks to Martin Kelly for the image.

2nd February

Just to signal that the second of the two sections on Tom Jennings's post-JMI company - "Jennings Electronic Industries" - is in the process of being expanded on the Vox AC100 website. The .

Copies of the pages on the organs will be added in due course to the section on . In naming his new JEI models, Tom went back to old days, giving them the "J" prefix of the mid 1950s. The sequence began with the J67, 1967 being the year in which he formed the new company - "Jennings Electronic Developments" as it was then, later adjusting it to "Jennings Electronic Industries" (in late 1969).

1st February

There's nothing new under the sun - well almost. Below, details of a Dallas trade catalogue from 1949. On page 16: the Woden AC30 and AC60.

Tom Jennings will probably have known this catalogue. Dallas was one of the big fish in the music trade at the time along with Rose Morris and Selmer. But "Jennings Musical Instruments", as it was in 1949, had no direct dealings with Woden until later.

Also to note that there were plenty of products around with "Vox" in their name well before Tom came up with "Univox" - "Vitavox", "Rupertvox" and "Premiervox" being the most common. This for the moment is a case of "just saying" (whatever that means).

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