The sunn Forum
Sunn Musical Equipment => Q & A => Topic started by: robbass on February 24, 2010, 06:27:16 pm
-
Hi all,
I'm new to the forum and dig all the great information!
I was curious if anyone knew the date ranges for their logos on amps and cabs. We all know the smiley face was around the start of the company and I think the red logo came out in the BETA series period circa late 70s and early 80s. Does anyone have additional information on the other dates for the black on silver logos or silver on black logos? Do the different colors signify different ownership thoughout the Sunn years?
-
As a graphic designer who thinks the sunn logo is one of the coolest/best designed logos ever, I'd like to hear more about the history of it as well, if anyone knows...
I've always been particularly curious about the "serif'ed" logo that I've seen on a few pieces here and there - most notably the Coliseum 300 amp below, and on some PA/mixing board equipment.
(http://i71.photobucket.com/albums/i147/_touchdown/IMG_1464.jpg)
It still looks cool, but I've always wondered what prompted that move - seems like it didn't get applied too consistently or frequently, and it's always interesting when a company with such an iconic brand/logo decides to alter it in someway... at least for those of us who pay attention to such things as part of our livelihood...
-
Possibly adding more bulk to represent the sound/appearance of the amps/cabs. Also, possibly to better fir the 0))) I too am looking at the new(er) logo from a graphic designer's(as I'm going to school for that and am pretty close to being done) point of view.
-
The wider, serif logo was introduced in the early '80s, when Fender bought Sunn. Don't really know why they changed it, maybe just a slight alteration to signify new management?
As the OP said, red logo was introduced in the late '70s at the onset of the Beta period.
To the best of my knowledge, late '60s was mostly black on silver, and the silver grill was popular, as visible on the (mostly) tube amps of that period.
Honestly though, I'm really not the best person to answer this...
-
The wider, serif logo was introduced in the early '80s, when Fender bought Sunn. Don't really know why they changed it, maybe just a slight alteration to signify new management?
I kinda figured it might be something like that, but like I said, it doesn't seem like they were very consistent or thorough about applying it across the board... which I gather is pretty much the way Fender seemed to handle the Sunn brand overall - as a sort of half-assed afterthought.
-
I vaguely recall a thread a few years back where someone posted all the different logos they could find. Pretty neat stuff.
As far as fender acquiring Sunn, they're a corporate black hole, sucking up anything that comes into their possession. Last going off, they were just slapping the 'classic' Sunn logo on products that would never sell under the Fender name.
-
As far as fender acquiring Sunn, they're a corporate black hole, sucking up anything that comes into their possession. Last going off, they were just slapping the 'classic' Sunn logo on products that would never sell under the Fender name.
Isn't the Fender Bassman 300 the exact same amp as the "discontinued" Sunn 300T, though? I think the Sunn 1200s hybrid lives on as the Fender Bassman 1200 too...
-
Here's the original "Smiley Face" logo on a T Shirt. I'll be offering a few of these in the classified section soon. PM me if you want more info...
(http://i626.photobucket.com/albums/tt341/EdBass/DSC00004.jpg)
-
Groovey smiley face logo shirt!
That's kind of what I thought with the logos; Black on Silver was from the 60's tube era and silver on black may signify the solid state years in the 70s(?). It appears that they signify different product lines such as the red logo for the BETA years, or this was done in conjunction with a change in company ownership. The logos and branding was not done very consistently as my Coli 300 has a red logo and the photo posted is the a silver on black logo...
I can comment on Sunn while I worked at Fender in the late 80s. The Sunn product line was practically nonexistent, along with Rogers percussion and a few other brands, which I believe was acquired as part of Fender's CBS period. I did pickup some Sunn PA cabinets and floor monitors during my time at Fender where (funny, all the logos are mismatched but the price was dirt cheap and I still use the Sunn PA cabs and floor monitors). From what I recall at the time, Fender was more focused on improving their own product and image post CBS years, so Sunn became less of a priority. I worked in Finance for Fender and Sunn, along with Rogers, were low revenue performers on our reports for the management team which is a crying shame cause it could have really developed over the years as Fender had some really talented R&D.
-
Here's a thread with a picture I posted of the pre-75 badges.
http://sunnforum.ampage.org/sdp/index.php/topic,4099.0.html
Edit: Fixed link
-
Here's the original "Smiley Face" logo on a T Shirt. I'll be offering a few of these in the classified section soon. PM me if you want more info...
(http://i626.photobucket.com/albums/tt341/EdBass/DSC00004.jpg)
Be still, my beating heart
PM'ed
-
Here's a weird one - Hartzel-era SB160 combo, with the serif-ed logo on the "head" portion" and the standard logo on the cab/speaker portion
(http://images.craigslist.org/3m93o83l25Of5Pf5Raa2s103cfcc115cf1416.jpg)
http://dallas.craigslist.org/ftw/msg/1622457948.html
-
I sent you a PM as well, EB. Cool shirts!
-
It amazes me that Sunn came up with such a truly timeless logo. The smiley face looks extremely dated, but the sunn o))) logo always looks fresh and new, unlike other logos from the same era. Others have come and gone, or stayed, and are classic, but still look old-fashioned, like Marshall and Fender. Or dated and not classic, like Peavey.
-
It amazes me that Sunn came up with such a truly timeless logo. The smiley face looks extremely dated, but the sunn o))) logo always looks fresh and new, unlike other logos from the same era. Others have come and gone, or stayed, and are classic, but still look old-fashioned, like Marshall and Fender. Or dated and not classic, like Peavey.
I agree, but my favorite is the smiley face. Probably because I also look extremely dated. :wink:
-
Here's the original "Smiley Face" logo on a T Shirt. I'll be offering a few of these in the classified section soon. PM me if you want more info...
(http://i626.photobucket.com/albums/tt341/EdBass/DSC00004.jpg)
...great idea. Add me too, please!
-
Back to the topic at hand here, the logos, but put me down for one of those bad ass shirts too. Any one know when the yellow Sunn logo was put out? I have one on my 610L but I dont know the date or anything. Ive rarely seen the yellow logo, was it put out for a specific series or anything?
-
Cool shirt ! I bought one of the sunn shirts on ebay with the red logo like the logo on my beta amps.
-
Love the shirt, EB! Just arrived today.
:-D
-
I've got two Sunn 215RH cabinets, one with the red "doppler effect" logo, the other with the yellow one.
The cab with the red one seems to have been built (i'm french, sorry if this sentence is awful to read, don't know if it's correct) in 1979.
Does anyone knows if the yellow logo was used before or after the red one ?
(http://a5.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/199220_10150104782691423_663516422_6740606_3093570_n.jpg)
-
I don't think I knew that they ever had a yellow logo. Does anyone know about this? It looks kind of cool.
-
I've certainly never seen a yellow one before seeing that photo. I suspect customization.
-
It seems like I've seen orangish/yellowish logos before. Here's a picture of a cab(not mine)that's right in between the two cabs posted above as far as redness goes. Is is possible that the paint being used at certain times faded easily? Maybe a summer or two of outdoor festivals and sitting in the hot sun caused some of these paint variations.
It's just a crazy idea anyway.
-
I have a 'mid-switch' redknob T w/ a seemingly orange logo. i always thought it was faded red. but on closer inspection it looks legit orange. how weird is that? it too bright to be faded red.
(http://i298.photobucket.com/albums/mm275/stanosaur/Photo8.jpg)
-
I think I've seen other stuff with the yellow/orange logo through the Internet.
It seems to be the original color, and not a faded one.
Besides, between the two 215RH I have, the "yellow" one was better treated and got a cover (looks like a brand new cab, it's impressive), so...
-
I did a Google search a couple weeks ago and found an ad for Sunn name plates here....
http://losangeles.backpage.com/MusicEquipForSale/classifieds/EnlargeImage?oid=12521152&image=13945340 (http://losangeles.backpage.com/MusicEquipForSale/classifieds/EnlargeImage?oid=12521152&image=13945340)
I was away on a little vacation and it came while I was gone. It looks much better than the photo. But he did not include the screws
This is his picture not mine
(http://images1.backpage.com/imager/u/large/20333637/sunn_nicks___stuff_1.jpg)
It's not as nicked up looking as the picture.
The jagginess is from him blowing it up or the place that hosts the ad shrinking it down etc
-
You do know that's a knock off? I like the yellow/orange logos maybe the guy in LA will get creative and start knocking off different color logos :wink:
-
You do know that's a knock off? I like the yellow/orange logos maybe the guy in LA will get creative and start knocking off different color logos :wink:
Sure
But then so is my cabinet..... :-D
-
Here's my best guess for some of the logo questions. Sundholm owned Sunn: Smiley faces and Silver on black, either anodized or silkscreened. Harzell owned Sunn: White Sunn, Red 0)) either screened on metal, later plastic. The yellow/orange on metal is most likely fading (sunlight etc) probably from switching screen ink formulas to something less toxic because screeners were getting goofy on fumes. It was always kinda like happy hour in the silkscreen dept. Late Hartzell, (1984-ish) serif logo. The serif logo tends to go with the Bennett miter-fold cabinets, with the plastic edge molding and plastic laminate instead of tolex. (Bennett was in Troutdale OR, cabinets were built there after Sunn closed the Williamstown KY plant, a cost-cutting measure) Fender owned Sunn: Back to the White Sunn, Red 0)), plastic logo. There was always some overlap / mixing because logo plates were bought by the thousands, and chassis were made in relatively small quantities.
-
Fender / Sunn logo's, crossbranding.
I think the serif logo was incorporated around 1984 as a "new look" with the Bennett miter-fold cabinets (plastic edge trim). Sunn was struggling, they were cutting costs and corners, and Jim and Tom Hartzell were getting disillusioned. This lasted until Fender bought Sunn in 1985.
To the best of my knowledge, other than building out and selling existing Sunn stock, Fender never built the miter-fold cabinets or used the serif logo. They didn't need to: John Cherry was building great cabinets in S Cal, and Ensenada was firing up with good cabinets too. By the time Fender bought Sunn, there really wasn't much left to buy, other than Tote Box powered mixers and lighting, which were both actually doing fairly well, with good profit margins. Fender's main interest in Sunn was to have a manufacturing facility to bring manufacturing back to the USA from Japan.
There were many Fender products that got Sunn logos put on them because this allowed Fender to sell thru both Fender and Sunn distribution channels, primarily overseas. There were Twins, Champs, Deluxes etc dressed in Sunn clothing, with different model names, and likewise, Sunn products dressed in Fender clothing (mixers etc). Same guts. Fender was doing VERY well, and could barely grow fast enough to build the new red knob Fender stuff, much less any slow-selling Sunn stuff. Sunn got lost in the shuffle. There was no slapping the Sunn logo on inferior stuff that I know of, at least not in Lake Oswego.
-
I think the switch from the smiley face to this logo (sans the "R") was made in 1966;
(http://images1.backpage.com/imager/u/large/20333637/sunn_nicks___stuff_1.jpg)
That was fairly early in the Sundholm era, and I believe Hartzell used it as is for a year or so, before adding the red graphic in the mid-late 70's.
On a side note; I personally think the serif logo is butt ugly!
-
Conrad sold the company to Hartzell some time in 1971, so they stuck with that style at least through 1975 (the last catalog I have from that era).