[MattGator]

Hey all. Long time lurker, first time poster.

Anyway, I've been looking into buying a new amp for a long time and I think I've finally narrowed it down. I'm either between a Fender 65 reissue deluxe/twin reverb or a vintage 64 Super Reverb. The Super Reverb has had its speakers removed and the guts fitted into a head box to run into my 4x12 speaker cabinet. It also sounds better than any amp I've ever played before.

I'm just worried about the reliability of such an amp. Is there anybody that has experience with old Fender amps or any of the reissues? Is it worth it to spend the extra bit and go vintage?

[strumminsix]

Buy the vintage...

I play 3 vintage Fenders and I love them all.

IMO, just as reliable if not more.

But always bring a backup.

[Laytonco]

Buy the vintage, buy the vintage, if it hasn't been said before, buy the vintage. Here's the deal. Reissues are good. Very good. But they have "circuit boards in them. Tiny little threads of solder that carry the electricity (tone). The vintage amps have large guage wiring carrying the electricity (you'll hear about point to point wiring). Here's the analogy. You live in LA where traffic is horendous 24 hors a day. Do you want to join everyone in traffic on a two lane road (circuit board) or on a 16 lane freeway (heavy guage wiring)? BTW, I have a 74 blackfaced super and it is sweet.

Peace,

Gil

[motto]

Vintage.

But Gil, your analogy doesn't really make sense. Are you saying that the use of a circuit board increases the time it takes electricity to get from poin A to B? The wiring paths are crowded?

One disadvantage of having a circuit board is the fact that they can be difficult, if not impossible, to repair. Boards can have many layers of wiring that are inaccessible to someone without expensive equipment. Point-to-point wiring is generally much easier to repair.

And most people will say the 'tone' of point-to-point wired amps is 'better' than a circuit boarded amp. That is subjective, but to each their own. I am sure that there are some reissue amps that people find better than the original.

[Crowhead]

Don't overlook the old Gibson amps.
I've got a Gibson Vanguard from 63 or so. I think it sounds as good as the Fender Blackfaces but its a hell of a lot cheaper. You can get one for $4oo or so.

[strumminsix]

Good points, motto!

I will agree with you that it is more about the repairability, servicability, and customizationability than tone. I've heard some PCBs sound incredible and some PTPs sound crappy.


*yes I know I made up 3 words in the post above.

[tigerstrat]

The Super Reverb has had its speakers removed and the guts fitted into a head box to run into my 4x12 speaker cabinet.

That effectively makes it a Bandmaster Reverb head. Go vintage!! Ask about its repair history, it should have been recapped at some point.

[MattGator]

The Super Reverb has had its speakers removed and the guts fitted into a head box to run into my 4x12 speaker cabinet.

That effectively makes it a Bandmaster Reverb head. Go vintage!! Ask about its repair history, it should have been recapped at some point.

There's also a '73 Bandmaster Reverb and a '63 Bandmaster and this amp completely beats the pants off both of 'em. Is there anything in particular I should be looking for in a repair history? I'm not sure what recapping is.

I'm also concerned about the output. The original Super Reverbs were made to put out 2 ohms but I think my cabinet runs at 4 or 8 ohms.

[deadted]

Recapping refers to replacing the filter capacitors. They 'filter' the hum & noise out of the AC lines. Electrolytic capacitors have a shelf life of about 10 to 15 years. Yup that's right boys, even if you don't even turn the freaking thing on! Luckily caps seem to last much longer. But push your luck and a filter cap blows and takes out the power transformer with it. Whip out that charge card and bend over!

I concur... sort of. Vintage is nice when they work, kind of like a '55 Chevy. The reissue will not have the character and sound, but should be reliable. I say should because like the toothpaste coming out of Asia these days, you just don't know.

How about new? I have seen some slick new production amp work from a bunch of amp makers these days. Vintage construction, modern parts, nice stuff and might not be too far off in price compared to the vintage stuff.

2 ohms? Basically you match the impedance of the amp to that of the cabinet. How do you figure out the cab impedance? Ahh, it depends on how the speakers are wired -- series or parallel. Do some web searches, plenty of info out there...

Oh yeah and the bit about circuit boards and traffic is not quite right. Although Jim Capaldi was awesome in Traffic! Anyway, the big problem with circuit boards is that the designers have a very difficult time making a good circuit board for tube circuits. Tube amps oscillate and produce noise and so careful layout is critical to sound! It's very hard to get it right on a circuit board. But like anything, you can make a decent amp with a circuit board if you design the board properly... but did I tell you about the Asian toothpaste?