Fender 65 Twin Custom 15

Stephen Winters · Post by **Stephen Winters** » 16 Jan 2004 10:24 am

I was just looking on a website at the Fender 65 Twin Reverb re-issues, and saw a new model of Fender 65 Twin. It is called the 65 Twin Custom 15. It has a 15inch speaker factory installed. The description had in it "perfect for steel guitarist".

I may end up buying one of these.

Ken Fox · Post by **Ken Fox** » 16 Jan 2004 10:47 am

The 90's Custopm Vibrasonic is a 1965 Twin Reiisue with a 15", two channels with reverb abd a steel voiced channel. Just another ways to go. The new amp soounds very much like the Vibrasonic.

David Doggett · Post by **David Doggett** » 16 Jan 2004 11:28 am

Anyone know what these new Twin 15s will sell for?

Tim Whitlock · Post by **Tim Whitlock** » 16 Jan 2004 1:10 pm

Stephan - Do you have the link? - Tim

Andrew Buhler · Post by **Andrew Buhler** » 16 Jan 2004 1:11 pm

They are listed for $1100 on the Musician's Friend website.

jim milewski · Post by **jim milewski** » 16 Jan 2004 2:59 pm

what type of 15 is in it, and is it a 4 ohm, I put a 15 in a reissue twin and it sounds great

Donny Hinson · Post by **Donny Hinson** » 16 Jan 2004 6:39 pm

Though the RI's may look attractive, I don't consider them anywhere near as practical as the older versions, and I don't recommend them. Maintenance and modification are far easier in the hand-wired amps, and longevity of the circuit boards in a tube amp is always questionable. Add to this the simple fact that you'll take a big hit if you ever decide to sell one of these new RI amps, and you'll see why they get a big "thumbs down" from most experienced players and techs.[This message was edited by Donny Hinson on 18 January 2004 at 09:13 AM.]

Rick Schmidt · Post by **Rick Schmidt** » 17 Jan 2004 3:37 pm

The speaker is made by Eminence, but it's been designed to recreate the exact specs of a JBL D130F-circa 60's & 70's. The cabinet is also a little bigger than a regular Twin. I'm really interested in hearing somebody like Ricky Davis test this out and report back to us.

Fender is advertising this as a steel amp!

Donny Hinson · Post by **Donny Hinson** » 18 Jan 2004 9:11 am

Yeah...evidently they've finally heard that Peavey's doing pretty good in that "limited steel amp market"!

HEY Fender? Can 'ya hear me now?!? (LOL!)

However, since the "Big F" has been asleep at the switch for the past 20 years, they'll have to do more than this to capture my attention!

Nick Reed · Post by **Nick Reed** » 18 Jan 2004 6:50 pm

I have 4 Steel Amps. They are a Peavey Nashville 400, Nashville 1000, A '65 reissue Fender Twin Reverb, and a Webb 6-14E. I like the sound of my Twin Reverb better than my Nashville 1000 because of the bite those tubes give me, The N-400 doesn't get used much anymore except in my price room. And of course the Webb is my main gigin amp. I think Fender has always had the best reverb units in the industry. Nick

Joe Alterio · Post by **Joe Alterio** » 21 Jan 2004 10:29 am

This is VERY tempting!!!!

Joe

Rick Schmidt · Post by **Rick Schmidt** » 21 Jan 2004 11:34 am

Yeah it really does look tempting. Especially a pic like that. I do think Donnie's skepticism is probably well warranted though. I've known a number of guitar player pals that have been less than thrilled about the whole re-issue thing. Alot of them prefer the Hot Rod & Blues Devilles to the RI's. I did play one of these new Twins at the NAMM Fender booth last sunday. It sounded great with a $15,000 Benedetto jazz box, but you can never really tell with all that chaos going on there.

I suppose if you could buy one at Guitar Center(?) with their "no questions asked" 30 day return policy, you might be able to really run it through it's paces. I'd really like to try one on one of those cool "Enhancer" acousic "horn"/amp stands! Now that might really be the ticket....

Dave Van Allen · Post by **Dave Van Allen** » 22 Jan 2004 7:57 am

I doubt I'd buy one, but I would put it in the backline rider for a fly date...

David Doggett · Post by **David Doggett** » 22 Jan 2004 10:37 am

The main criticism of the Fender late model silver faces and reissues seems to be that because of the pc boards, they are not as easy to repair and modify. Is this something unique to modern Fenders, or is this true for all mass produced new amps?

Joe Alterio · Post by **Joe Alterio** » 22 Jan 2004 12:21 pm

I'm finding it odd that repairability/reliability is even an issue here. Many steel players speak high praises of Evans amps for their sound, yet I have read here that these amps are somewhat suspect when it comes to reliability (compared to Peavey). I would have to think that the new Fender amps will have a much higher reliability record (just like Peavey) versus the smaller boutique amps, while providing the sound that many of us have been looking for. My experiences (and from what I have seen) have shown me that Fenders and Peaveys are pretty much bulletproof.

In terms of the tone and reverb I like as well as reliability, I'm seeing this new amp as a win-win situation.

For those of us who aren't well versed in amp technology, what matters is "can my amp repair-guy fix it when it breaks" -or better yet- "can my amp be fixed easily/cheaply"......of the new amps out there, I would have to think that Peaveys/Fenders are very easy for amp techs to work on *should* they break, while the Evans/Webb/Randall/etc amps of the world may be a bit more difficult (and priced accordingly)...no? Even if they are hand-wired, schematics are needed and Evans and Webb are hardly known at all outside the steel-guitar world....I can easily see an amp tech charging more for fixing a boutique amp because, well, its a boutique amp.

In any event, I have longed to be able to play my high-output humbucking Carter through my Fenders without distortion (if even through the LOW gain input!)....this may just do it!

I hope someone here tries one of these soon and reports back!

Joe[This message was edited by Joe Alterio on 22 January 2004 at 12:29 PM.]

jim milewski · Post by **jim milewski** » 23 Jan 2004 2:27 am

I just looked at my reissue owners manual, it has a complete schematic, no parts placement layout, but I'm guessing the components are marked on the circuit board?? I've also heard that some guys won't "wheel" amps with casters because of the shaking and vibration to the amp. I've worked on circuit board amps, and when replacing a component just clipped the part off leaving the leads and soldered to those, removing the need to disassemble the amp to get under the circuit board, this is ok.....right? I also think that if more six string pickers would try a single 15" speaker they would prefer them over 2 12" speakers

Bob Carlucci · Post by **Bob Carlucci** » 23 Jan 2004 5:14 am

Do yourself a favor.. You can buy a clean early 70's Twin for about $600..and a nice used or reconed JBL 15 for about $100-150 . Spend a few hours and take the the speaker baffle and speakers out of the Twin,make a new baffle board with the 15 and put it in the Twin. You will have a BETTER sounding more reliable amp,and all you have to do to return it to original is re install the original baffle and speakers. It makes NO sense to buy a reissue when you can get the real deal for half the price... just my $.02 bob

Mark Herrick · Post by **Mark Herrick** » 23 Jan 2004 4:17 pm

Came across this today on www.guitaramplifierblueprinting.com

"A well built amp, well designed, and using great components, is a great amp, whether PTP, Hybrid, or PCB.

My most "supported" amps, those in the shop the most often, are the true PTP amps that are out on tour on the road, that were done by "boutique" designers that jumped on the vintage bandwagon. They have parts that are true PTP, not tagboard (as the Fender Tweed and Tolex era amps), and not turret board, but true PTP. These amps have those bigger caps, just hanging out in space, swaying around as the equipment truck or bus bounces hundreds of miles down the road, from city to the next city. These amps end up with cracked solder joints at best in many many cases, and most of them play their own symphony physically, depending on the note coming out of the speaker, as the components resonate.

So, before you consider an amp with PTP vs. PCB vs. Hybrid, do a little more thinking. If it is a multi channel amp with switching ability, the last thing I'd personally ever buy would be a NON-PCB amp in this arena.

If your tech thinks that replacing a component on a PCB board is hard, then frankly, find a new tech. Components have been replaced for decades on computer and military PCB's where folks lives rely on the unit .... not just a simple guitar amp. BUT, there is a bit of proper soldering knowledge attention, and the proper tools, which are pretty darn easy to come by. If your tech complains about burnt etches and problems in PCB's, this may be from first hand experience, and you may want to consider a different tech in the future. If they can't do this right, they are probably making other mistakes much bigger in other areas."

Just thought I'd stir the pot...[This message was edited by Mark Herrick on 23 January 2004 at 04:20 PM.]

Bobby Lee · Post by **Bobby Lee** » 23 Jan 2004 7:47 pm

Point-to-point isn't necessarily more reliable, unless you wired it yourself! Cold soldered joints do leave the factory, and they can come loose when you hit a bump in the road on your way to a gig.

I believe that wave-soldered PC boards are more reliable than "factory" point-to-point wiring, even in the best factories. The most reliable amp, though, is the one you've soldered yourself.

------------------
<img align=right src="http://b0b.com/Hotb0b.gif" width="96 height="96">Bobby Lee - email: quasar@b0b.com - gigs - CDs, Open Hearts
Sierra Session 12 (E9), Williams 400X (Emaj9, D6), Sierra Olympic 12 (C6add9),
Sierra Laptop 8 (E6add9), Fender Stringmaster (E13, A6),
Roland Handsonic, Line 6 Variax

Donny Hinson · Post by **Donny Hinson** » 24 Jan 2004 5:58 am

Printed wiring boards (solid-state designs, with surface-mount technology) are about as reliable as it gets. The real crux of the problem we're discussing, however, is tubes mounted on a printed wiring board.

The printed wiring board is the "chassis" for most all components, and it works very well as long as the components don't get real hot, and as long as those components arent real big. Tubes get very hot, and there's no suitable way to mount them on a Printed wiring board (or "CCA", circuit card assembly, as they're now called) and keep their mass close to the board. Continued vibration of a board with large "external mass-moments" (that's big dinguses mounted to it precariously) will cause failures such as loose connections due to poor wetting (cold-solder joints), and broken tracks. That's unavoidable. Yes, those failures can be repaired, but even with the best technology available (I'm talking expensive digital temp vacuum desoldering equipment), there's a very low limit to the amount of reworks you can perform on a board, and still maintain the integrity of the tracks and thru-holes.

So yes, there's nothing "wrong" with printed wiring boards...until you mix them with tubes, and users who are prone to "experiment".

Then you'll have problems.

jim milewski · Post by **jim milewski** » 24 Jan 2004 7:41 am

Bob C, I did recently acquire a silverface 135 watt twin($150 total investment with new tubes and BW speaker), and the reissue I got for $400 with 20 hours on it, cover and manual included, so I couldn't turn it down, both have been converted to new 15" baffle boards with BW speakers, all my amps are all different, but pleasing to the ear in different ways, besides I still think a Fender just plain looks good on stage, but I have been more than pleased with all the trouble free years of various Peaveys, not total trouble free but all fixable by me, and Peavey parts and customer service is great

John Floyd · Post by **John Floyd** » 25 Jan 2004 2:41 pm

$1099.99 in Musicians Friend latest catalog. The Peavey NV 1000 is a lot more amp for less money.

Sam Marshall · Post by **Sam Marshall** » 25 Jan 2004 7:54 pm

The Fender re-issue Twin Reverb amp does not have PCB mounted tubes.

Sam in AZ

Joe Alterio · Post by **Joe Alterio** » 2 Feb 2004 1:18 pm

More info on this amp can now be found on Fender's website....here.

Joe

Pat Burns · Post by **Pat Burns** » 3 Feb 2004 7:03 am

..you can buy the real deal, a Vibrasonic with 15" EVM, for $650 plus shipping right now on "buy and sell"...I bought the same model amp and speaker from this same guy last year, and it is a kick-ass amp!...

...if I had the extra money, I'd buy this one, too, just to have around...

http://steelguitarforum.com/Forum3/HTML/019651.html