Kustom amps History

An American Icon

In the mid 1960s, a young, small town entrepreneur named Bud Ross battled the odds to combine America’s love of music with its passion for high-speed hot rods.  Imagining the future wapped in sparkling car upholstery.  Ross experimented with covering speaker cabinets with the same colorful Naugahyde material.  Musicians responded with an enthusiastic “outta sight!” and an icon of the modern music industry was born.

As with all great ideas, the timing for Kustom was perfect.  What began in Ross’ garage quickly expanded to a full-blown facility in Chanutte, Kansas, with products flying out the doors to feed the dreams of musicians all across the USA.  Kustom responded to the burgeoning demand by developing a full-range of amplification products, from guitar and bass amps to P.A. systems, organs, guitars and even the first Talk Box (the Bag), as used by Stevie Wonder and Jeff Beck.

 Artists using Kustom products in the 1960s and ‘70s spanned a wide stylistic range from Rock (Creedence Clearwater Revival, Leon Russell, The MC%) to Country (Johnny Cash) to Pop ( The Jackson 5, the Carpenters) to R&B ( James Jamerson) and Jazz ( Herbie Hancock).  There are many reasons for this wide acceptance: higher power levels than the competition, product reliability, the visual flair and innovative features that other companies simply didn’t offer.

Today, Kustom honors its trend-setting past by building award-winning amplifiers and P.A. systems with features and tones that inspire a whole new generation of players.  Products like the all-tube Coupe Series guitar amplifiers and Groove Bass models are earning accolades in print and from a growing list of new endorsers such as music legend Brian Wilson (The Beach Boys), country rock pioneers Van Zant, John Moyer (Disturbed), Rob Holliday (Marilyn Manson), Rich Eckhart (Toby Keith), C.J. Pierce (Drowning Pool), Bryan Austin (Clint Black), and many more.

Kustom P.A. products such as the best-selling, portable Profile systems can be found everywhere that music and voices need to be amplified, from clubs and schools to restaurants and churches.  And for the first time in years, Kustom is again building select P.A. products covered in its iconic Tuck n’ Roll material.  Seems like good ideas never go out of style.

Take the time to investigate a new Kustom  amp or P.A. system for yourself. Listen to their unique, soulful tones. Experience with their one-of-kind features. We think you’ll come away wondering why you hadn’t checked out Kustom a lot sooner.

·         It’s coming to Modular Display and all Lyric stores early March