The History of Kustom Amps

[westen44]

It is often said that they sounded awful, but looked cool and were durable.  But there were some famous artists who played Kustoms.  Just maybe not much anymore. 

[Grog]

I bought my LP-12 amp from a Kustom collector from Texas, Bryan Sawyer i believe. He would sponsor booths at guitar shows & invite Bud Ross to attend. My amp was a “Mallard” in his huge collection of Kustom amps & guitars.

[westen44]

I really wanted a Kustom when I was very young.  I loved the look especially.  This is the first time I made a Black Friday purchase, but I found a Kustom practice amp for only $100.  It's definitely worth that.  But since it's only a practice amp, obviously that's not the same thing as buying an amp you can gig with.  It was a fantastic deal, though, and I actually needed it. 

[Dave W]

John and Tom Fogerty used Kustom amps on stage back in the day.

[morrow]

They often go pretty cheap , but you see more and more fetching collector prices.
I was never that crazy about their tone, they were loud though.
I suspect there’s a ton of them around here in basements and barns.

[patman]

They were very warm sounding for early solid state amps.

They were very popular here in the 60's and 70's.

[Pilgrim]

I simply loved the way they look - and I still do.

Even though every time I look at one, it reminds me of 1960's jokes about a trip to Tijuana for a tuck n' roll upholstery job. 

[Psycho Bass Guy]

Every music store and pawn shop around here was infested with them when I was younger. I never played a single one that sounded good and I have tried just about every model they made, including the infamous 3x15 cabinets.

[Happy Face]

The attraction in the day was that they were loud. Necessary if you were in a band with guys diming Twins & Supers. My Thunderbass and Traynor could not keep up. 

Then the Sunn Coliseum heads came along which I preferred at the time. 

A few years ago i received one back I had lent out on a "perma-loan". I was psyched to crank it up out of nostalgia. Alas, it was like seeing the prom queen at your 40th high school reunion. 

[gearHed289]

Then the Sunn Coliseum heads came along which I preferred at the time. 

A few years ago i received one back I had lent out on a "perma-loan". I was psyched to crank it up out of nostalgia. Alas, it was like seeing the prom queen at your 40th high school reunion.

I know the feeling. In my early high school days, the Sunn Concert Bass was a pretty desirable amp. Years later, a guitarist I was playing with had one, so I thought it would be fun to use at rehearsal. I was underwhelmed.

[Pilgrim]

I had a solid state Coliseum-300 for a while.  That was a very nice head with 7 bands of EQ.  I liked it a lot, but I sold it when I went to lightweight equipment. 

[Dave W]

My first bass amp was a 40 watt Sunn tube combo.

[D.M.N.]

I've used the heads a couple times, and I've liked the way they sounded, the old K200s. I've never needed to dime them, but they sound good for an old SS head. I think the weak link was always the cabs. Stu Cook in CCR used the heads, but paired them with the Sunn 2000s cabs, which I've done as well and the heads hold their own. That said, I'd rather pair the 2000s cab with the 2000s head. And If I'm playing SS I prefer an Acoustic. But the Kustom Tuck and Roll is still a fun old amp.