One of the MI industry’s hottest lines is going to become a lot hotter this summer with the market introduction today of the all-new Supro 1699R Statesman at Summer NAMM 2017 by KMC Music, the industry leading value added distributor of Musical Instruments, Pro Audio, and Band & Orchestra products. The introduction was made in Booth #1143 by KMC Vice President of Merchandise Roger Hart. For a video of the 1699R Statesman in action, click here.
“The Supro 1699R is a stunning combination of vintage tone and state-of-the-art technology that delivers sound quality that is worthy of the largest arenas and stages,” Hart said today. “David Koltai and designer Thomas Elliott have created a new modern masterpiece that is going to set the industry on its ear. We are thrilled to bring this remarkable new amp to our customers. We are fully stocked and ready to ship!”
The 1699R Statesman is a two-channel, 50W amplifier that unites vintage Supro tone with modern channel switching functionality, tube-driven reverb and a multi-purpose, all-tube effects loop. The red channel found in the Statesman uses the two-knob preamp from the legendary Supro Thunderbolt amplifier for high-headroom rock & roll power. The Statesman’s blue channel contains the high-gain preamp, 2-band EQ and all-tube reverb section of Supro’s acclaimed Comet model.
The Statesman provides A/B/Both channel switching operation, allowing the two channels to be run in parallel, creating a massive, dual-preamp sound where each channel contributes part of the overall texture. In addition to the tube-driven spring reverb, the Statesman’s blue channel contains an all-tube, switchable effects loop that provides a set of useful functions — including wet only reverb effects, which can be independently dialed in and blended with the dry sound from the red channel. The variable send-and-return levels allow the effects loop to function as a level and/or gain boost when engaged, even when nothing is plugged into the loop. The effects loop can also act as a master volume for the blue channel when bedroom levels are desired.
As a final touch, both the effects loop and the reverb on the Statesman feature a relay-controlled spill-over effect, allowing reverb and delay trails to decay naturally when switching between channels. The 50-watt power amp in the Statesman is switchable between Class A and Class AB operation. The Class-A (cathode bias) setting provides the distinctive midrange growl that has been the cornerstone of the Supro sound since the company was founded in 1935. The Class AB (grid bias) configuration presents less compression along with additional headroom, more punch and faster attack. The Statesman comes loaded with military-grade Sovtek power tubes that are precision-matched at the Supro factory in Port Jefferson, New York.
The Supro Statesman is available in a 1×12 combo format or as a compact head, covered in black rhino hide tolex and sized to sit perfectly atop the 1×12 and 1×15 Black Magick speaker cabinets, as well as the new, 2×12 Statesman speaker cabinet. Designed by Thomas Elliott, this all-tube masterpiece is equipped with 16-ohm, 8-ohm, and 4-ohm speaker outputs with enough power to drive up to four 2×12 cabs simultaneously for a look and sound worthy of the biggest stadiums and arena stages.