gringopig's guitars
Fender Deluxe Reverb '65 re-issue
This is a Fender DRRI as it is known: a Deluxe Reverb Re Issue and a recreation of a model from the blackface era of 1965. With some notable difference. Most of which weren't good. This is in Fudge Brown tolex and a very rare model in this limited edition form.
Click on gallery for larger version
The blackface era Fender amps are sought after. Mostly by players who are lead to believe that this is the only amplifier circuit type worth having and that just isn't true. The silverface amps of the '70's were just as good if not better and they are much cheaper too; quite often they are actually the exact same circuit!
This amp was released with a Jensen P12Q, brownface era tolex in a rare limited edition. Weirdly, the shop I bought from had 2 of them in and I was lead to believe online that only 9 were sold in the UK. This may or may not be true though.
However, all was not well. Where to start...
The reverb was noisy, there was hiss from the 'vibrato' circuit even when set to zero intensity and it sounded really sharp and unpleasant with distortion pedals in the 'vibrato' channel at low settings.
It wasn't terrible but work needed done and I quickly worked out that the 'vibrato' circuit (really tremolo) was different to the older models in that EU regulations had a problem with new products being sold with an opto-coupler. Something about Cadmium. So, they logically added, in place of this tiny 'roach' like bulb and sensor arrangement in a tiny plastic wrapped package, an entirely new circuit added into the chassis. With its own power supply! That's two boards full of components with ICs to provide the timing for the tremolo effect. Smart thinking EU!
The power supply was right next to the power transformer as well and, along with sloppy lead dressing, the potential for noise ingress was obvious. So I bought an opto-coupler from Tube Amp Doctor. In fact, this one:
Check the environmental destruction potential of that. Shocking!
Now look at what EU regulation forced Fender to do to all their 'vibrato' equipped amps:
Now, it's those PCBs that replace the tiny wee opto-coupler. A side product was a terrible hiss which the poor wiring arrangement didn't help. Nor did the fact that Fender ship all European amplifiers with a jumper set to 230V instead of the UK 240V. It's just a jumper and easy to change!
Another problem was that all Fender Deluxe reverb amplifiers have a fixed capacitor on the Vibrato channel which allows high frequencies through all the time and at low volume settings, this can be quite bright and it doesn't play well with distortion pedals. This is by design and all Deluxe Reverbs have this.
So, all in all as seen in the photos taken by Time Travel Audio, the work done was:
Replace digital 'vibrato' PCBs with opto-coupler and solder the thing onto the mainboard in the exact location that was left empty by Fender in the first place.
Change the volume pot of the Vibrato channel to a push pull and have the capacitor on the pull position only.
Dress the wiring around the amp to eliminate noise.
Put in Philips ECG JAN / 6V6GT valves as a matched pair and a Mullard in V2 and bias.
Replace the reverb tank cables with shielded ones and solder the speaker cable onto the speaker lugs.
So now it works! Quiet and it sounds amazing. I added a Tone King Ironman II mini in order to get maximum flexibility. I can now turn it up and attenuate. What a sound!
Thanks to Time Travel Audio for the great job they did on this and for the work seen above.
You can find them in Leith adjacent to Edinburgh and on their website here: Time Travel Audio
