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Vox Berkeley Speaker Cabinets and Trolleys.. |
Although identical in size and sharing the same swivel trolley, Thomas Organ released four distinct versions of the Vox Berkeley 2x10" speaker cabinet.
Vox V-8 Berkeley Speaker
The first version of the Berkeley speaker cabinet was introduced in late 1965 and was assigned the Thomas replacement part number 84-16796. It accompanied the tube V-8 Berkeley Super Reverb Twin amp head. The top, bottom and sides of this open backed enclosure were 3/4" fir plywood, the baffle and back were particle board. The "open" back panel had an oval shaped hole measuring 4.5" x 16."
The cabinet was equipped with two 10" UK Celestion 16 ohm 7442 speakers wired in parallel to yield an eight ohm total load. These speakers were given the Thomas Organ replacement part number 33-5068-6.
A "round top" Amphenol three pin male XLR jack was installed on the back for connection to the amp head.
The front of the cabinet featured the classic "split front" Vox cosmetic. Gold "tee molding" separated the fret cloth from the vinyl covered area of the front panel. A horizontal VOX logo, designed by Thomas Organ, was installed in the upper left corner of the panel.
Earlier production of the V-8 Berkeley speaker cabinet used a small strap handle with brass plated end caps. Later verions of the V-8 cabinet used a traditional Vox logo vinyl handle with brass plated loops in each end. Eight one-pin corner caps were also installed.
The serial number for the cabinet was printed on a narrow strip of paper and glued to the inside of the front panel.
With trolley, the Berkeley speaker cabinet measured ~32" x ~25.5" x ~13." Less trolley, the cabinet measured 27" x 17" x 9."
Vox V4081 and V4082 Berkeley II Speaker
The next versions of the Berkeley speaker cabinet were designed to accompany the solid state V1081 Berkeley II amplifier head introduced in mid 1966.
The V4081 and V4082 cabinets retained the same fir plywood construction as the prior V-8 Berkeley speaker model. The V4081 used the same "open backed" rear panel as the previous V-8 model. The V4082 had a closed solid back. See photos at left.
The V4081 and V4082 cabinets were equipped with two 10" UK Celestion 8 ohm 7424 speakers wired in parallel to yield an four ohm total load. These speakers were given the Thomas Organ replacement part number 33-5085-6.
The new lower four ohm total impedance of the Berkeley II speaker cabinets was designed to optimize the power output of the solid state V1081 Berkeley head. However, this four ohm impedance rendered these cabinets incompatible with the V-8 Berkeley Super Reverb head.
The serial number was stamped onto an aluminum plate mounted to the back of the enclosure.
Vox V4083 Berkeley III Speaker
The final version of the Berkeley speaker cabinet was designed to accompany the solid state V1083*6 Berkeley III amplifier head introduced in mid 1967.
Thomas Organ was looking for ways to reduce manufacturing costs. To this end, Thomas dropped the UK made Celestion speakers used in prior Berkeley models in favor of a pair of less expensive 10" Oxford alnico "gold" speakers produced in Chicago. These speakers were given the Thomas Organ replacement part number 33-5080-6. The V4083 cabinet retained a four ohm total impedance.
Thomas also dropped the use of plywood in favor of particle board. The particle board Berkeley III speaker cabinet was assigned the Thomas Organ replacement part number 84-18617.
