Fender Harvard Model 5F10 Tube Amplifier (1958)
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Fender Harvard Model 5F10 Model Tube Amplifier (1958), made in Fullerton, California, serial # H-01537, tweed fabric covering finish.
This tweed beauty is a well-preserved Fender Harvard 5F10 -- the Princeton's collegiate big brother and one of our favorite amplifiers. This is an excellent example of the big-sounding "Steve Cropper Classic". It looks like it has seen only moderate use over 60+ years, unlike its brethren that worked for decades in recording studios and club and roadhouse stages.
First introduced in 1955, filling the gap between the 5-watt Princeton and the 15-watt Deluxe, the Harvard 5F10 circuit uses two 6V6 tubes in push/pull, yielding about 10 watts, with a 12AX7 phase inverter and a 6AT6 input tube. Its fixed-bias power section was only shared at the time by its nearly identical sibling of the following year, the Tweed Vibrolux. This gives the amp a tight low-end and more clean headroom than most Tweed Deluxes and a roaring and distinctive breakup. This amp's tube chart has a stamped code of HC, indicating assembly in March of 1958. The piece of masking tape inside the chassis denotes it was wired up by Lily, who did the chassis work on every Harvard we've come across thus far!
Steve Cropper, Memphis session guitarist and member of Booker T. and the MGs famously used his Esquire (or Telecaster) and Harvard amp on nearly every Stax hit of the 1960s. These ranged from the mellow arpeggios on Otis Redding's "I've been Loving You too Long" to the biting distorted riff of "Green Onions" by Booker T. and the MGs. This amp will do all that and more, one of fender's most tuneful if often overlooked creations.
Height is 16 1/4 in. (41.3 cm.), 17 3/4 in. (45.1 cm.) width, and 8 7/8 in. (22.5 cm.) deep.
This Harvard is very clean, both externally and under the hood. The old-style tweed covering shows a lighter patina, with only minor signs of wear, mostly around the corners and some on the edges. The faceplate is shiny with mostly unsullied plating, save for a few minor blemishes, though all the stenciled graphics are intact. Even the somewhat fragile original leather handle is still completely intact.
Internally the amp is unaltered with all original components. The original Jensen P10R is stamped 220-749, dating it to the 49th week of 1957. It has been professionally reconed and sounds great. Both the power and output transformers are marked 66079-B and 0246, respectively, and are made by Triad. The visible pot date code is 307-541, dating it to the 41st week of 1955 -- early but the solder joints look untouched. The amp has received our typical maintenance and servicing, including replacement of all electrolytic capacitors, all sockets, pots and jacks cleaned, a new grounded 3-prong power cord installed and biased to spec.
Despite its stellar history the Harvard remains one of Fender's less well-known gems and a shop favorite. This is easily one of the most perfectly undisturbed Harvard we have had, and one of the cleanest examples of this fairly rare amp we have ever seen -- an increasingly rare find well into the 21st century! Excellent - Condition.
This tweed beauty is a well-preserved Fender Harvard 5F10 -- the Princeton's collegiate big brother and one of our favorite amplifiers. This is an excellent example of the big-sounding "Steve Cropper Classic". It looks like it has seen only moderate use over 60+ years, unlike its brethren that worked for decades in recording studios and club and roadhouse stages.
First introduced in 1955, filling the gap between the 5-watt Princeton and the 15-watt Deluxe, the Harvard 5F10 circuit uses two 6V6 tubes in push/pull, yielding about 10 watts, with a 12AX7 phase inverter and a 6AT6 input tube. Its fixed-bias power section was only shared at the time by its nearly identical sibling of the following year, the Tweed Vibrolux. This gives the amp a tight low-end and more clean headroom than most Tweed Deluxes and a roaring and distinctive breakup. This amp's tube chart has a stamped code of HC, indicating assembly in March of 1958. The piece of masking tape inside the chassis denotes it was wired up by Lily, who did the chassis work on every Harvard we've come across thus far!
Steve Cropper, Memphis session guitarist and member of Booker T. and the MGs famously used his Esquire (or Telecaster) and Harvard amp on nearly every Stax hit of the 1960s. These ranged from the mellow arpeggios on Otis Redding's "I've been Loving You too Long" to the biting distorted riff of "Green Onions" by Booker T. and the MGs. This amp will do all that and more, one of fender's most tuneful if often overlooked creations.
Height is 16 1/4 in. (41.3 cm.), 17 3/4 in. (45.1 cm.) width, and 8 7/8 in. (22.5 cm.) deep.
This Harvard is very clean, both externally and under the hood. The old-style tweed covering shows a lighter patina, with only minor signs of wear, mostly around the corners and some on the edges. The faceplate is shiny with mostly unsullied plating, save for a few minor blemishes, though all the stenciled graphics are intact. Even the somewhat fragile original leather handle is still completely intact.
Internally the amp is unaltered with all original components. The original Jensen P10R is stamped 220-749, dating it to the 49th week of 1957. It has been professionally reconed and sounds great. Both the power and output transformers are marked 66079-B and 0246, respectively, and are made by Triad. The visible pot date code is 307-541, dating it to the 41st week of 1955 -- early but the solder joints look untouched. The amp has received our typical maintenance and servicing, including replacement of all electrolytic capacitors, all sockets, pots and jacks cleaned, a new grounded 3-prong power cord installed and biased to spec.
Despite its stellar history the Harvard remains one of Fender's less well-known gems and a shop favorite. This is easily one of the most perfectly undisturbed Harvard we have had, and one of the cleanest examples of this fairly rare amp we have ever seen -- an increasingly rare find well into the 21st century! Excellent - Condition.