Watkins WEM Copicat Mk2 - black/cream

We’re tape and disc echo specialists with many years’ experience working with and restoring these machines. Our BBC-trained engineer brings our tape delays up to (or better than) factory spec and our testing ensures machines that have superb reliability and – most important – that they sound incredible. Guaranteed to give reliable service and sound superb.

• We’ve supplied Roland and Boss with Space Echoes for exhibitions and shows.
• Dan and Mick of That Pedal Show chose one of our RE-201s for their own studio collection.
• The BBC hired six of our RE-201s for the Proms’ television performance of Daphne Oram’s ‘Still Point’ featuring turntablist Shiva Fesharaki at the Royal Albert Hall.
• We’ve serviced and supplied machines for many top artists and bands including Red Hot Chili Peppers, Arctic Monkeys and Sunn O))).

Black & Cream Watkins Copicat Mk2 dating from the early-mid sixties, for sale in excellent cosmetic condition and superb working order for a 50 year-old valve Copicat.

This has undergone a thorough electrical/and mechanical overhaul/service and has been fitted with a three-core earthed mains cable for electrical safety.

The heads are new replacements and are in excellent condition (see detailed photos) – it has had a thorough overhaul and recap so should give good service for many years to come.

The case, though a little worn in places, has nearly all the original fittings in good order (one plastic grille has been replaced with a metal one) – the original black footswitch is also present.

Compared to the later IC Copicats, the valve units don’t produce such clear echoes, even when in good order as the heads are 45 plus years old (and the early valve units were never exactly crystal clear when new). This machine has seen little use and sounds lovely both as a pre-amp and as an echo unit. All three heads are in good condition, are working well and sound lovely – nice warm repeats that break up in an evocative fashion, and run into self-oscillation when the ‘reverb’ knob is turned up for authentic dub/psychedelic effects. The echoes have that Copicat crunchy tone and sit behind the dry signal beautifully – they cannot be described as accurate repeats as this is not a digital delay, but they have a sound and vibe that is most pleasing and create a unique effect that sounds ‘right’.

These valve Copicats make great preamps, and are increasingly sought-after to add character and warmth to modern digital recordings (the Arctic Monkeys used a valve Copicat when recording their recent ‘Suck It And See’ album – see Sound On Sound magazine July 2011), as a result they are becoming harder to find, especially in such good cosmetic condition. A really clean Mk2 like this takes some searching: ones like this are seldom found. These are valued in Vintage Guitar Magazine’s 2014 Price Guide at $1050 in top condition.
This unit has been fully-serviced for optimum performance and reliability, and has had the mains lead replaced with a modern three-core cable to comply with modern safety requirements.

It’s fitted with a new tape – we now supply tape loops, please enquire for details. For best performance tape loops should be changed regularly.

It is a UK 240v model so will require a step-up transformer for use in countries with 100-110v mains supplies; the UK plug will be removed for overseas deliveries unless otherwise requested (will be left on for USA/Canada/Japan).

Many Copicats on Ebay are not in great shape and (at best) need a service – this one is working fine, apart from the faults detailed, but please be aware that it is a vintage unit and may not take kindly to being shipped. It will be well-packed, but if it’s not behaving as it should on receipt, please get in touch.