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Topic: BEST KEPT SECRET in Fender amps |
Bob Carlucci
From:
Candor, New York, USA
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Posted 7 Aug 2005 5:39 pm |
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If you are gassin for that sweet tubey goodness of an all tube Fender for your steel, let me let you in on a little known secret.. From about the late 60's to mid/late 70's Fender made a PA 100 and a PA 135.. These are ALL TUBE 100 or 135 watt Fender Reverb heads...
They sound as sweet as any Showman or Twin for less than 1/2 the price, just because they say PA on them..They are 4 channel with no mid control,[which is borderline useless on Fender amps anyway].. They go on ebay in the mid 200-300 range in VERY nice cond.. I have had a couple.. they work GREAT for steel...
Just trying to shed some light on the last CHEAP 100 watt Fender reverb head... bob |
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T. C. Furlong
From:
Lake County, Illinois, USA
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Posted 7 Aug 2005 7:58 pm
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| Quote: |
| gassin for that sweet tubey goodness |
Bob, you really know how to turn a phrase! Thanks for the tip.
TC |
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John Bechtel
From:
Nashville, Tennessee, R.I.P.
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Posted 7 Aug 2005 9:43 pm
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I have Gas, just thinkin’ about it!
------------------
“Big John” Bechtel
’04 SD–10 Black Derby w/3 & 5 & Pad
’65 Re-Issue Fender Twin–Reverb Custom™ 15” Eminence
web site
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Bob Carlucci
From:
Candor, New York, USA
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Posted 8 Aug 2005 3:18 am
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| These are 4 channel heads that are somewhat larger and considerably UGLIER than a Showman, but they are really the same head... same sound, same great reverb,no trem of course.. and usually about 1/2 the price... bob |
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 8 Aug 2005 4:01 am
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| Quote: |
| They are 4 channel with no mid control,[which is borderline useless on Fender amps anyway].. |
Au contrare, mon ami! The mid control (and tone stack) is what made the Fender amps so versatile. Without a mid control, what you basically get is blah cheap "Silvertone" sound. Lead instrument amps without some kind of mid-range control went out of style in the '50s. |
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Roger Kelly
From:
Bristol,Tennessee
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Posted 8 Aug 2005 5:27 am
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| Good point Bob...when I play through my Peavey or Evans amp, and am miked through the house PA, what am I playing through, my Amp, or the house PA? By the way, Leo Fender got the Fender Amplifier Circuity from a RCA Electron Manual and improved on it. The rest is History. |
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David Doggett
From:
Bawl'mer, MD (formerly of MS, Nawluns, Gnashville, Knocksville, Lost Angeles, Bahsten. and Philly)
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Posted 8 Aug 2005 5:35 am
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| I'm not so sure about that, Donny. I fiddled around with a Vibrolux for pedal steel. They have no mid tone knob. Plugged into a 12" or 15" speaker, I could get sound that was very close to a Twin. Not as loud, of course, and not quite as versatile, but good Fender tube sound. And it's one of the favorite guitar amps of all time. I agree that with Twins and Duals, you need to play with that mid, but that's because of the way the treble and bass are set up. The two knob system seems to be set up different, so you can get by without the mid control. [This message was edited by David Doggett on 08 August 2005 at 06:36 AM.] |
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Dave Mudgett
From:
Central Pennsylvania and Gallatin, Tennessee
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Posted 8 Aug 2005 6:29 am
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| I probably wouldn't go so far as to say a mid control is useless on a Fender amp. But on mid-level amps like the BF/SF Deluxe and Vibrolux Reverbs, they simply put fixed values of what they considered to be the optimum R and C values in the tone stack, and it gives that 'signature Fender' tone every time. For guitar, it's generally perfect - for steel, I probably prefer just a tad less mid. This is easy to handle with outboard gear, though, and I don't consider lack of mid on an old Fender a serious defect. Also, it's very easy to go in and change these different fixed values. One could also put in a trim pot or run a full mid control to the back of the chassis. Not a big deal, these aren't collector items, and probably never will be. |
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 8 Aug 2005 7:58 am
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| Quote: |
| I don't consider lack of mid on an old Fender a serious defect. |
I will respect that opinion, but cannot agree with it, especially where pedal steel is concerned.  Modifications and outboard devices can certainly negate this deficiency, but paying for such devices and modifications effectively removes most of the "bargain aspect" of this amp, IMHO.[This message was edited by Donny Hinson on 08 August 2005 at 08:59 AM.] |
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Charlie McDonald
From:
out of the blue
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Posted 8 Aug 2005 11:04 am
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| Boy, I miss that mid control on my white-knob brownface bassman.... |
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Dave Mudgett
From:
Central Pennsylvania and Gallatin, Tennessee
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Posted 9 Aug 2005 1:40 pm
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| Donny - my general thought here is that when I buy an old amp like this, especially if it's a bargain, it's going to need some type of service anyway. They almost always need filter caps, maybe some tubes, and maybe a resistor or capacitor here and there. In this context, tweaking the tone stack is pretty small potatoes. But of course, I expect to get an amp like this inexpensively. |
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