This mid-1970s U.S. made Music Man 210 ‘sixty‑five’ is a real gem of a vintage valve amplifier. In my view, it’s a genuine ‘sleeper’ find. After Leo Fender left the company he created, he signed a 10‑year agreement not to compete. Once his obligation to Fender expired, he turned his sights to designing amps, guitars and basses under the Music Man brand. However, this isn’t just any Music Man amp; it is one of the much sought after early ‘first series’ models, including the black on silver badging (later ones reversed the colouring). Although it is technically a hybrid amp, it has a pre-amp valve (a 12AX7 for the splitter/phase inverter, tech‑heads). The power amp is all-valve (2x6L6 instead of EL34) and hand‑wired point‑to‑point! Very cool. In summary, it has 2 channels, one with tremolo and spring reverb, as well as additional switches for added flexibility, producing up to 65 watts RMS into 2 original 10” alnico‑magnet Music Man speakers. The cabinet is joined solid joined pine. It is only the early models (1974-1979) that have all these features. Leo Fender felt that his Music Man amps were improvements on the models being made by Fender at the time. When Ernie Ball acquired Music Man in 1984, manufacture of the amps and guitars had been discontinued, which is a huge shame.

This particular one Amp is in excellent, all-original condition. Thankfully, it has survived intact over the decades – the superb original speakers (often changed) and the original dual footswitch (often lost or stolen) are present and working. The specification is one thing; it also sounds fantastic, just like a vintage valve amp carrying genuine Fender DNA should sound (and feel). From clean to overdriven, the sparkling tones are all present and correct.The reverb is sensuous and the tremolo is one of the best ever made. The ‘Bright’, ‘Deep’ and ‘Hi/Lo’ switches mean that it adapts easily to many difference situations.