Just finished the Healy mod on my twin. YIKES!

JB Arnold · Post by **JB Arnold** » 13 Aug 2003 9:03 pm

Just got my twin back from the tech with all the healy mods done and played a farm gig over the weekend. YOW! Talk about clean power and clear highs and lows. My Goodness! Zimmerman the tech said he's never seen so much clean power out of a twin-ever. Distorion free till just before the line goes flat from a full clip. Ungodly. Never knew a steel would sound this good thru that baby, now I know why cage insisted I get it done. Really had the bands attention too. And it seemed to gather stregnth as the night went on. Unbelievable. Now I gotta get some serious speakers in this thing. If you have a twin-this is the mod you MUST do. Once again , Healy just proves what many of us have known all along-when it comes to sound, there's Healy and then there's everybody else...

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAA!

JB

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Fulawka D-10 9&5
Fessenden D-10 8&8
"All in all, looking back, I'd have to say the best advice anyone ever gave me was 'Hands Up, Don't Move!"
www.johnbarnold.com/pedalsteel
www.buddycage.net

http://www.nrpsmusic.com/index.html

[This message was edited by JB Arnold on 13 August 2003 at 10:05 PM.]

Ricky Davis · Post by **Ricky Davis** » 13 Aug 2003 9:17 pm

Ok what's a Healy Mod; and where do ya get one...and what does it consist of???> I must have miss the memo somewhere...ah..ha

Ricky

JB Arnold · Post by **JB Arnold** » 13 Aug 2003 9:46 pm

Hi Ricky

I had posted this on a thread about a month ago, but here it is-I had asked about some eq setings, and this was a chunk of his response
Let me suggest a place to start: First, in addition to changing all of the
caps, you will want to change all of the plate resistors for non-inductive metal
film versions. Also change all of the cathode resistors and use tantalum
capacitors for the bypass caps (I use military grade axial lead versions).
This, especially for steel, will greatly improve the high frequencies yielding
the pure and clearer bell like tones. This is very important. Next, after you
have chosen the tubes (no matter who says what, American made tubes are way, far
the best) you will want to carefully examine the phase inverter / driver
network. This is, as they say, where the rubber-hits-the-road. Finally, the
careful setting of the bias has a lot to do with the good sound. There are a
few other things but this is the main idea.

The bass control has the least distortion when set around three which is also
the best balance point for low end punch while maintaining clarity.

Try treble set at 4 to 7 depending on the room you are playing in, the mids all
the way up, the bass about 3. If you do all this to the amp and try these
settings you will be pleasantly surprised. JBL speakers aren't my favorites by
far. The thing with speakers is: what ever you're used to or what ever you
like. There's no real right or wrong, it's a matter of taste. Good luck, Dan


Boy, is he right....

JB

------------------
Fulawka D-10 9&5
Fessenden D-10 8&8
"All in all, looking back, I'd have to say the best advice anyone ever gave me was 'Hands Up, Don't Move!"
www.johnbarnold.com/pedalsteel
www.buddycage.net

http://www.nrpsmusic.com/index.html

Ricky Davis · Post by **Ricky Davis** » 14 Aug 2003 8:01 am

Ok thanks JB.

Scott Swartz · Post by **Scott Swartz** » 14 Aug 2003 9:39 am

Tanatalum caps are well known to be less reliable than electrolytics, and I personally would never put them in the hostile environment of a Twin (lots of heat).

The concept however is good, electroytics do tend to dull the highs and sound grainy.

A better choice might be metallized polyester, there are some fairly compact ones now like Solen (available at Parts Express or Angela Instruments) or the Cornell Dubilier DME series (which are available at Mouser).

For some tech info on linearity of cap types, check out:
http://members.aol.com/sbench102/caps.html http://members.aol.com/sbench102/caps1.html

You will see that tantalum does not measure very well, in fact worse than electrolytic.

JB Arnold · Post by **JB Arnold** » 14 Aug 2003 10:47 am

Yes, well, Brad Sarno and I are both desciples of Healy-I don't know anything about electronics-I just have one rule-Whatever Healy says..

You out there Brad? He's a tech wizard and can explain why this works...

JB

------------------
Fulawka D-10 9&5
Fessenden D-10 8&8
"All in all, looking back, I'd have to say the best advice anyone ever gave me was 'Hands Up, Don't Move!"
www.johnbarnold.com/pedalsteel
www.buddycage.net

http://www.nrpsmusic.com/index.html

Brad Sarno · Post by **Brad Sarno** » 14 Aug 2003 11:33 am

Well JB, I would have to describe myself as more dangerous than wizard, but thanks. Scott has a good point about the hi-quality film cap being more reliable and better than the tantalum cap's. But the issue here is size. The cathode bypass caps are 25uF and a good film cap at that value would be huge. The Tantalum caps, like aluminum electrolytics, are extremely compact for their capacitive value. The tantalum way outperforms aluminum electrolytic with regards to high frequencies, and I think that's where Healy is coming from. I generally avoid tantalums and favor the film types whenever possible but I think this is a practicality issue.

But let's not forget that this is the sage advice of Dan Healy. That man has tried and tested and succeeded for longer than perhaps anyone in the biz. The quality of sound that man helped to manifest is unsurpassed, hands down. Total genius and the proof is in his results.

I've done most of the mod that JB quoted except for the non-inductive metal film plate resistors. That's next. The other mods were amazing. I've never heard a Twin so open and sweet and clear and hi-fi before. The steel just sings thru it.

------------------
Brad Sarno
Blue Jade Audio Mastering
St. Louis

Jon Light (deceased) · Post by **Jon Light (deceased)** » 14 Aug 2003 11:52 am

Any of you guys know how or if this-all applies to an ultralinear? (70's Vibrosonic reverb 135w master volume)

JB Arnold · Post by **JB Arnold** » 14 Aug 2003 12:25 pm

Hi Brad-I knew there was something there-I imagine I'll be seeing you at the ISGC!

JB

------------------
Fulawka D-10 9&5
Fessenden D-10 8&8
"All in all, looking back, I'd have to say the best advice anyone ever gave me was 'Hands Up, Don't Move!"
www.johnbarnold.com/pedalsteel
www.buddycage.net

http://www.nrpsmusic.com/index.html

Scott Swartz · Post by **Scott Swartz** » 14 Aug 2003 1:27 pm

Dims of a CDE 10 uF (biggest in the series) 100V film cap, it will fit no problem on a eyelet board twin, and is enough capacitance for still for good bass.

.453 x .827 x 1.024 inches

Actually for steel, you may want to selectively REMOVE the bypass caps (for some linearizing feedback), especially the first stage. A hot steel pickup can overdrive it fairly easily. The overall Fender preamp has way more gain than is required for steel use, and there are ways to trade off the gain for less noise and distortion, which most steelers would find desirable.

The fender reverb circuit is particularly bad from a noise and distortion standpoint (yes I know this is blasphemous to many). There are ways to mix dry and wet without padding the dry by a factor of 10 and then re-amplifying.

If the above statement did not prompt you to fire off a nasty email to me, you may be interested in the alternate Fender preamp concept here:
http://msswartz.tripod.com/project1.htm

[This message was edited by Scott Swartz on 14 August 2003 at 02:29 PM.]

Brad Sarno · Post by **Brad Sarno** » 14 Aug 2003 3:21 pm

Well JB, I would have to describe myself as more dangerous than wizard, but thanks. Scott has a good point about the hi-quality film cap being more reliable and better than the tantalum cap's. But the issue here is size. The cathode bypass caps are 25uF and a good film cap at that value would be huge. The Tantalum caps, like aluminum electrolytics, are extremely compact for their capacitive value. The tantalum way outperforms aluminum electrolytic with regards to high frequencies, and I think that's where Healy is coming from. I generally avoid tantalums and favor the film types whenever possible but I think this is a practicality issue.

But let's not forget that this is the sage advice of Dan Healy. That man has tried and tested and succeeded for longer than perhaps anyone in the biz. The quality of sound that man helped to manifest is unsurpassed, hands down. Total genius and the proof is in his results.

I've done most of the mod that JB quoted except for the non-inductive metal film plate resistors. That's next. The other mods were amazing. I've never heard a Twin so open and sweet and clear and hi-fi before. The steel just sings thru it.

------------------
Brad Sarno
Blue Jade Audio Mastering
St. Louis

Bob Hamilton · Post by **Bob Hamilton** » 14 Aug 2003 4:58 pm

I did the Healy mods on my 69 Twin a few weeks ago, and couldn't believe the difference in the highs. I was getting some breakup above the 15th fret with the volume setting above 5 or 6, and it's completely gone now, clear as a bell. It's like a different amp.

Ivan Posa · Post by **Ivan Posa** » 15 Aug 2003 12:05 am

Where do we find Dan Healy? Is this the Dan Healy of Grateful Dead fame?...IP
[This message was edited by Ivan Posa on 15 August 2003 at 01:11 AM.]

JB Arnold · Post by **JB Arnold** » 15 Aug 2003 12:13 am

You don't, and he is. He doesn't do the work, and only gave me the info as a favor. He is, for the most part, retired. You'll need to take the info in this post to a qualified amp tech and have it done, like I did, unless you can do it yourself, like Brad. Healy is NOT an amp tech.....

JB

------------------
Fulawka D-10 9&5
Fessenden D-10 8&8
"All in all, looking back, I'd have to say the best advice anyone ever gave me was 'Hands Up, Don't Move!"
www.johnbarnold.com/pedalsteel
www.buddycage.net

http://www.nrpsmusic.com/index.html

[This message was edited by JB Arnold on 15 August 2003 at 01:14 AM.]

Karl Oberlander · Post by **Karl Oberlander** » 15 Aug 2003 3:43 am

I assume these mods will work on a BF Super Reverb as well. I have two and would like to make a Steel amp out of one of them.

Let me know if I'm barking up the wrong tree.

Thanks,

Kobe

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Gibson D-8 Console Grande
Stringmaster T-8
Fender Super Reverb

Brad Sarno · Post by **Brad Sarno** » 15 Aug 2003 6:48 am

Karl, the same should apply to most BF/SF Fenders, including the Super Reverb you mentioned.

------------------
Brad Sarno
Blue Jade Audio Mastering
St. Louis

Bill Hatcher · Post by **Bill Hatcher** » 15 Aug 2003 10:33 am

I would stick with a Twin for steel. The Super Reverb is going to break up much sooner. Twice the ouput of the Twin gives you so much more headroom for transients that steel players need.
By the way, I am not parcel to the Twin, I have 5 Super Reverbs! Great amps.

Ivan Posa · Post by **Ivan Posa** » 15 Aug 2003 1:23 pm

Would these mods apply to 65 RI Twin? What other mods make the 65 RI twin better for Steel?...IP

JB Arnold · Post by **JB Arnold** » 15 Aug 2003 5:20 pm

Ivan

Mine is a reissue. Something to keep in mind-since the RI has a circuit board, it is predrilled for the smaller caps. Th new ones have larger leads that will require the holes to be drilled out carefully just a little bit to fit the larger leads-meaning the protective coating around the holes needs to be peeled back just a little for each one. This will add about 2 hours of labor to the job. On a vintage model, you don't have that problem. But yes, this works well for the RI-mine is a perfectly good example.
JB

------------------
Fulawka D-10 9&5
Fessenden D-10 8&8
"All in all, looking back, I'd have to say the best advice anyone ever gave me was 'Hands Up, Don't Move!"
www.johnbarnold.com/pedalsteel
www.buddycage.net

http://www.nrpsmusic.com/index.html

Ken Fox · Post by **Ken Fox** » 15 Aug 2003 6:04 pm

Another old trick is to put a polyester cap of 1/10 of the value of the bypass cap in parallel with it (2.5ufd) that will bypass the needed highs around the electrolytic. I think I want to give this a try myself! I am not convinced the metal film resistors for plate loads do much for tone one way or the other (as no signal goes through them, just DC for the plates), but I already use them exclusively when replacing plate loads as they do not "snap, crakle and pop" like carbon comps do. Another thing that really helps is replacing the tone caps with Sprague Orange Drops and silver mica caps. That puts a lot of sparkle in the amp as well.[This message was edited by Ken Fox on 15 August 2003 at 07:07 PM.]

Ivan Posa · Post by **Ivan Posa** » 15 Aug 2003 9:08 pm

Any opinions on the "Linear Twin" for steel as I have a friend who has one. Do these mods apply to this amp?[This message was edited by Ivan Posa on 15 August 2003 at 10:13 PM.]

Alvin Blaine · Post by **Alvin Blaine** » 15 Aug 2003 10:25 pm

I would stick with a Twin for steel. Twice the ouput of the Twin gives you so much more headroom

Twice the power is only a 3db gain of "headroom".

Ken Fox · Post by **Ken Fox** » 16 Aug 2003 5:25 am

Ivan, the preamp on the ultraliner Twin is virtually identical to any other Twin. The mods would work there as well. These mods are moving awat from a Fender's nornmal sound. With these mods the tonal response of the amp is changed. It may or may not be everyones cup of tea. I do the tone mods with the Orange drop caps and mica caps. I really like the difference, but that's just my opinion. The bypass cap mods above will give even better high end response. The ultalinear amps are already more powerful and cleaner due to the use of the UL transformer (an old hi-hi amp method of getting less distortion). For a lot of guitar players, it is not the amp of choice. I personally think they are great, due the power clean tube tone. A very good steel or guitar amp, just add a little compression or distortion as needed for six string!

JB Arnold · Post by **JB Arnold** » 16 Aug 2003 6:54 am

Zimmerman used the orange drops in mine and man, that does make a difference. It is a steel amp now tho-6 string straight in will be a little TOO clean, but I find that with the GT6 I can get any sound I want anyway-and the twin just makes it better!

By the way, I'm using the GT6 for steel too, and it's the ultimate.

JB

------------------
Fulawka D-10 9&5
Fessenden D-10 8&8
"All in all, looking back, I'd have to say the best advice anyone ever gave me was 'Hands Up, Don't Move!"
www.johnbarnold.com/pedalsteel
www.buddycage.net

http://www.nrpsmusic.com/index.html

Brad Sarno · Post by **Brad Sarno** » 23 Aug 2003 8:55 am

JB and other Healy fans.

I just finished the Healy mod on my '69 Twin Reverb with a 15" Black Widow in it.

I recapped the signal path with Sequoa metal film/paper-in-oil caps from Angela Instruments and also 716 series Orange Drops. The Sequoa cap's are in the input section. The rest are Orange drops. Then the cathode bypass cap's are all now tantalum. Also the plate resistors on the input tube are now metal film types. My Twin also has that midrange shift so it operates near 800 Hz. I also just re-tubed and biased it with some new Tesla 6L6GC power tubes.

This thing has never sounded so sweet and clear. I didn't know a Twin could be so clean sounding. I'll test it on a gig tonight.

------------------
Brad Sarno
Blue Jade Audio Mastering
St. Louis