Another Fisher Chadwick C-33 Console

[jonboy55]

On my way back from the Antique Wireless Association convention I stopped near Harrisburg, PA to pick up a Fisher C-33 Chadwick console.

This is my second Chadwick. My first one is in a Provincial cabinet with 460A amplifier, 460T tuner, and MPX-70 multiplex unit.

This Chadwick is a modern cabinet with a 660A amplifier, 460T tuner, and MPX-70 multiplex tuner. It looks like Fisher would either use different amplifiers as an buyers option or they just used any amplifier. The board with toggle switches on the back was for a remote set of speakers the original used in the basement (photo in next post). Also, during transport the FM dial cord fell off or broke.

The first Chadwick was purchased in Southern New Jersey last year. This one was purchased from the daughter of the original owner. It was originally purchased while the family lived in Northern New Jersey.

Sorry for the shadows in the photographs. In a couple of days I will post better photos and remove the back for a view of the speakers.

 

[jonboy55]

Here is another photo of the Fisher C-33 Chadwick console.

 

[shawnra]

that's a sweet console. nice looking amp in there. are those 6L6's in the output?

Shawn

 

[jonboy55]

The output tubes are 4x 7591's.

 

[audiodon]

That's a nice one. I love that early '60s style of console and the control knobs.

 

[larryderouin]

Sweet. I'm collecting C.E.'s and you're collecting Chadwicks. We've got the Middle sown up. LOL!!

Larry

 

[jonboy55]

Sweet. I'm collecting C.E.'s and you're collecting Chadwicks. We've got the Middle sown up. LOL!!

Larry

So far I have the following Fisher consoles:

2 - Custom Electra II
2 - Custom Electra IV
2 - Chadwick
1 - Consolette 61
1 - Contemporary C-800
1 - Stereo Companion 560
1 - Aux speaker cabinet

 

[larryderouin]

1961 Coronet C-55 Cabinet (no amp/tuner). 400 fits. It has speakers, TT.
64 C.E. VII (e-49)
65 C.E. VIII (E-490)
65 Futura VI (E-590)
69 Royal Electra (E-494)
Pair of WS-1

Damned near had an Executive, but Buglegirl beat me to it. WHEW!!

 

[Mingo]

Very nice indeed! Where do you keep all of the consoles? I only have a couple (+) and am having serious space issues. Hope that you are faring well with the weather.

 

[Stephen J]

Sweet ! :yes:

 

[ssmith3046]

What a great looking Fisher. Classy.

 

[WarrGo]

seems I need to learn to read closer. I was trying to figure why it showed that it had 7591 tubes then i re-read the first post. LOL

 

[TheRed1]

Everything OK at the Long Island Fisher Console Depot, Jon? That's a lot of consoles under one hopefully intact roof.

 

[larryderouin]

Very nice indeed! Where do you keep all of the consoles? I only have a couple (+) and am having serious space issues. Hope that you are faring well with the weather.

All of the Fishers, (except the Coronet cabinet) are upstairs in the Dining Room or Living Room (1K sqft ranch). I ended up with no power from 0230am Sunday morning to 1030pm Monday evening. No power for Sump pumps meant 8" of wate in basement. Bro in Law came thru with a generator, so got the basement pumped out and in process of salvaging stuff.
Possible loss on the Cabinets for:
Sansui SP-200 (1) guts Ok. (Wood swelling and seams splitting)
" " 2500 " " " " " " " """"
64 Grundig console. Guts Ok. " " " " """
Nova 8B (Pair) Haven't got to them yet. Later today.

Everything else was either up high on other stuff, or the bottom edge got wet, and just barely.

Larry

 

[analog addict]

Hey Carter - did you get the fisher database caught up on the C-33 Chadwick?
I know at one point they were a bit of an outlier for you since my components turned up without a cabinet. I have the 460T/A and MPX-70 also....

 

[TheRed1]

Hey Carter - did you get the fisher database caught up on the C-33 Chadwick?
I know at one point they were a bit of an outlier for you since my components turned up without a cabinet. I have the 460T/A and MPX-70 also....

Jon has it listed as part of the '62 model year at the Fisher Consoles website. He did that because the chassis, 460-A/460-T, and now his new one with the 660-A seem to belong to that year. However, the cabinets on both of his are leftovers from the '61 model year. The only ad I have for the Chadwick is from Jan. 1964. It lists it as a discontinued model (with no year given) among other leftover Fishers from the 1963 model year. It's original price is given as $595 - which would have overlapped the '62/63 Custom Electra's pricing territory - reduced to $399.95.

So it looks like Fisher was putting together consoles from leftover parts from previous model years and offering them under the Chadwick name at a reduced price. There was also a Fisher console model called the Warwick which (in the one example I know of) consisted of a '64 Futura cabinet with the guts of a '65 Custom Electra. It was advertised late in the model year in July, Aug. & Sept. of 1965 with the original price listed as $845 - same as a Futura - but reduced to $545.

So when I hear "Chadwick" I think "last year's Custom Electra with whatever chassis were lying around the factory floor." For "Warwick" just substitute Futura for Custom Electra. I wonder if the chassis used on these might not have been the ones that failed quality control testing and eventually went back and got fiddled with until they passed. There is someone here at AK who could probably tell us for sure. I'm hoping he will drop by the Fisher forum one of these days and introduce himself.

 

[jonboy55]

Everything OK at the Long Island Fisher Console Depot, Jon? That's a lot of consoles under one hopefully intact roof.

Most of the consoles are in the garage right now.

No water damage. We lost power between from when I went to sleep Saturday night until I woke Sunday morning until Monday night. I live near a bay that connects to Long Island Sound and the bay overflowed onto the local roads.

I had no water in the basement during the storm but a strange thing happened. On Tuesday morning there was about a 1/4 inch of water in about 20% of the basement (it slopes). My contractor says it probably came up from the concret floor due to the pressure of the water having no where to go.

 

[jonboy55]

Jon has it listed as part of the '62 model year at the Fisher Consoles website. He did that because the chassis, 460-A/460-T, and now his new one with the 660-A seem to belong to that year. However, the cabinets on both of his are leftovers from the '61 model year. The only ad I have for the Chadwick is from Jan. 1964. It lists it as a discontinued model (with no year given) among other leftover Fishers from the 1963 model year. It's original price is given as $595 - which would have overlapped the '62/63 Custom Electra's pricing territory - reduced to $399.95.

So it looks like Fisher was putting together consoles from leftover parts from previous model years and offering them under the Chadwick name at a reduced price. There was also a Fisher console model called the Warwick which (in the one example I know of) consisted of a '64 Futura cabinet with the guts of a '65 Custom Electra. It was advertised late in the model year in July, Aug. & Sept. of 1965 with the original price listed as $845 - same as a Futura - but reduced to $545.

So when I hear "Chadwick" I think "last year's Custom Electra with whatever chassis were lying around the factory floor." For "Warwick" just substitute Futura for Custom Electra. I wonder if the chassis used on these might not have been the ones that failed quality control testing and eventually went back and got fiddled with until they passed. There is someone here at AK who could probably tell us for sure. I'm hoping he will drop by the Fisher forum one of these days and introduce himself.

I have to update the Fisher Console web site to include this new version of the Chadwick - as well as a lot of other information.

I think you are right when you say the Chadwick was just a method of moving older cabinets and components out of the warehouse. As far as the chassis(s) perhaps being QC problems, I just think they took whatever chassis(s) were laying around and used them. The priority may have been to get rid of the cabinets since they take up a lot of valuable storage space. After all, this was a business whose main purpose was to increase revenue and profitability. They didn't look at things as a collector might. Their goal was to sell product and introduce technically new products every year.

 

[analog addict]

If my theory is correct, I'd propose that the 460T/460A was the initial load, and the 660A was an update/afterthought. If you look at the tube layout posted in the start of this thread, you can see where Fisher used separate diagrams for the tunner and the amp. This diagram is all one piece....:scratch2:
Could have also been that Avery ran out of his production run of 460As and decided to go with the 660A instead.

Thoughts?

 

[analog addict]

To keep things together....