It seems that for a short period in early 1968, Jimi Hendrix used a few Fender Dual Showman amps for his live performances. These amps were spotted at the Fillmore East on February 1, 1968, the Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco on February 2, and the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim on February 9, 1968. According to some sources, Fender supplied these amps for Jimi to use during the 1968 U.S. tour.
However, during the Anaheim show on February 9, 1968, a Marshall amp was seen on stage below a Fender Dual Showman, apparently because the two Fenders broke, and the band was unable to finish the set. After this gig, Jimi struck a deal with Buck Munger of Sunn Amplification and likely stopped using the Fenders.
The amplifiers broke down during the first show, resulting in only four numbers being played during the second show. After the show Chas and Jimi were approached by Buck Munger representative for Sunn Amplification who replaced their Fender gear (provided at the start of the tour, but not powerful enough for Jimi’s tastes) with brand new Sunn equipment.
1968-02-09 Anaheim Convention Center, Anaheim, California USA
Fender Dual Showman amp used on Voodoo Chile?
According to Eddie Kramer, Jimi used a Fender Showman amp during the recording of Voodoo Chile. Considering the song was recorded about two months after Jimi was seen using Fender Dual Showman amps on stage, it’s possible, though unlikely, that one of those amps was used. While the Dual Showman amps broke after the Anaheim gig, there’s a chance they were repaired and put back into use.
It’s worth noting that the only difference between a Showman and a Dual Showman amp is the output transformer: the Showman has an 8-ohm transformer, while the Dual Showman has a 4-ohm transformer, designed to pair with its dual-speaker cabinet.
Surprisingly, the amp he used on that song was not a Marshall stack. It was actually a Fender Showman top with a huge cabinet with eight 10-inch speakers in it. You can hear it rumbling around on the floor of the Record Plant when you listen to the beginning of the song.
Guitar Center interview with Eddie Kramer, webpage is now taken down
As for the cabinet Eddie referred to, a Fender Dual Showman typically came with a large 2×15 cabinet. It’s possible Eddie mistook it for an 8×10 cabinet. Another possibility is that the cabinet was a Marshall 1990 8×10″, though Jimi was never seen using one. It’s also possible the cabinet belonged to the studio and wasn’t part of Jimi’s personal gear.
The 8×10 cabinet could have possibly been from an Ampeg SVT but you would need to check the dates for when the SVT was first produced. The Stones were given a bunch of SVT prototype amps for their 1969 USA tour as Keith loved them.
Just prior to the USA tour the stones were using Hiwatt amps (Hyde Park) and they did not like them.
Here is one more
https://youtu.be/mvPx_YhWqc4?si=jUtsnyVa3uCv2nyX