DeArmond Amps
With our recent addition of amps to our website, we want to shine a spotlight on one amp manufacturer we feel deserves way more attention for their unbelievable quality; DeArmond Amps. Most know the brand for its revolutionary archtop pickups, but in the late 1950s to 1960s, DeArmond offered an entire amp lineup with a groundbreaking tone.
Based in Ohio, Harry DeArmond created his first pickup in early 1935 out of repurposed automotive parts, and later that same year officially started DeArmond Research. Soon after, DeArmond partnered with fellow entrepreneur Horace Rowe of Rowe Industries. Rowe specialized in manufacturing small motors and had a production facility in their shared town of Toledo, Ohio. At DeArmond’s insistence, Rowe used his experience with motor production to shift focus to guitar pickup manufacturing and thus began a multi-decade partnership that spawned many revolutionary inventions.
One of the most notable came in 1941, with the advent of the Model 60 Tremolo Pedal; widely regarded as the first effects pedal ever made for the public market. This pedal was immediately put to use by musicians for a unique sound, with notable early adopters such as Bo Diddley and Les Paul himself.
With the rise of the electric guitar in the 1950s, DeArmond and Rowe decided to shift focus and create a new line of amplifiers in various sizes; with most models utilizing an onboard version of their popular Tremolo Control pedal. These new amps were referred to based on their wattage, with the smallest being the R5, followed by the R15, and finally the R25. Amps with the onboard Tremolo received a -T suffix, and all Tremolo-equipped amps featured rate and depth control knobs to further tune the sound to the player’s liking. This effect can be toggled on and off with the included brown footswitch, and most of the examples we have still retain the original switch! Internally, the circuits and components were very similar to the Fender amps of the era, with the R5 being the “Champ” of the line, the R15 as the “Deluxe” and the R25 as the “Super” equivalent. All featured Jensen speakers, and utilized 12AX7 preamp tubes and 6V6GTs, aside from the R25 which used 6L6 power tubes. Little is known about the production history of DeArmond’s line of amps, with exact dates and production numbers unknown to this day. Based on our inventory and what we’ve seen in the marketplace, these amps were likely only produced from late 1959 until 1964.
The sound of all of these amplifiers is truly astounding, with bright clean tones at low volume, snarling overdrive, and great breakup the higher and harder you push the amp. The distortion sounds remarkably natural and full with an aggressive attack and searing top end. The onboard tremolo is useful as well; with the capability to add a subtle tonal dimension or an in-your-face tremolo effect.
In summary, we’re extremely proud of our collection of DeArmond amplifiers, and we couldn’t be happier to offer these for sale! If you’re looking for a compact amp with a huge vintage tone, any of these models are for you! Be sure to check out our inventory of DeArmond amps HERE!
Works Cited
“DeArmond Numbered Products.” Music Pickups, www.musicpickups.com/dearmond-numbered-products/. Accessed 11 July 2024.
“DeArmond Company History.” Music Pickups, www.musicpickups.com/company-history/. Accessed 11 July 2024.
“History of DeArmond.” DeArmond Pickups, dearmondpickups.com/history/. Accessed 11 July 2024.