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Topic: What year is this amp? |
Ben Turner
From:
Myrtle Beach, SC, USA (deceased)
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Posted 25 Feb 2016 1:16 pm |
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Fender Twin Reverb, silverface. Here are the numbers I have, power trans. #606827 - reverb #022699 output #606834, someone said 1968-69 and I'd like to verify it.
It's had a lot of work done. The cab was recovered, reverb tank recovered, grill recovered, new caps, I doubt the speakers are original they are 12" EV "Force" speakers. I have more pics if needed. Any info is appreciated, thanks.
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Benjamin Turner |
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Michael Butler
From:
California, USA
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Posted 25 Feb 2016 5:03 pm
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just from what you've posted, 68-9 may be correct. the drip edge aluminum is missing but may not have been replaced when the cab was redone.
the PT and OT transformers seem to be correct but the reverb seems to be newer. the 4th number usually gives the year. the first 3 are manufacturer's codes. it most likely came with jensen, utah or oxford speakers.
is there a tube chart on the inside wall of the cab?
what is the serial number on the chassis looking at the back of the amp?
post more pics. that may give myself and others on this forum to give you more info.
here is a decent site with some info.
http://fenderguru.com/amps/twin-reverb
and, another site.
http://www.superiormusic.com/page195.htm
play music!
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please see my Snakeskin's Virtual Music Museum below.
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Ben Turner
From:
Myrtle Beach, SC, USA (deceased)
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Posted 25 Feb 2016 6:09 pm
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The plug has also been updated to a 3 prong. Hope these help. Thanks for your time and information.
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Benjamin Turner |
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Michael Butler
From:
California, USA
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Posted 25 Feb 2016 6:28 pm
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nice pics. thanks.
depending upon price, this looks to be very well rehabbed and may be a great machine. but it is your call. do you know who did the work? may be worth contacting that person.
play music!
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please see my Snakeskin's Virtual Music Museum below.
http://muscmp.wordpress.com/ |
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Ben Turner
From:
Myrtle Beach, SC, USA (deceased)
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Posted 25 Feb 2016 6:43 pm
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The person who did the work is a local boutique amp builder. I just want to make sure everything is legit. The actual serial on the back is # A 14709. The asking price is 900, but I have worked out a trade for it.
Forgot to mention before, it's also been "blackfaced".
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Benjamin Turner |
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Tim Marcus
From:
San Francisco, CA
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Posted 26 Feb 2016 8:29 am
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those maroon colored caps in the preamp are notoriously the worst sounding caps Fender ever used. The good Twins have the blue molded Sprague caps in the preamp. You may find that this amp is going to be a bit brittle sounding and tough to tame compared to earlier revisions.
whats strange to me is that there is one blue molded cap way far on the end of the circuit board in the phase inverter section. (you can see it in your picture - its blue with a big white label on it) One side of the output will have the blue cap, and the other has the maroon cap... must have been the last blue molded cap they had in the bin before switching over entirely. 
another thing I would recommend checking is the power cord wiring. That was not converted properly when it was done. Also, the power cord looks way too small (not high enough gauge) and the safety ground (the one your life depends on) is not attached in a very safe way.
900 for that seems high for me. It probably works, but there are much better Twins out there for less.
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Milkmansound.com |
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Mike Schwartzman
From:
Maryland, USA
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Posted 26 Feb 2016 1:11 pm
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My guess is 1969. I used to own that same model, same year.
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whats strange to me is that there is one blue molded cap way far on the end of the circuit board in the phase inverter section. (you can see it in your picture - its blue with a big white label on it) |
I noticed the same thing as Tim. Interesting. The rest of those brownish looking caps are what techs used to call "chocolate drops" with 1 orange drop replacement . One nice thing that got rehabbed is all the excess wiring (lead dress)from that year has been trimmed back. Definitely take Tim's suggestion and check that cord replacement. I think I see the "death cap" still in there. I can't see if it's still in circuit or just sitting there. If I remember correctly, that cap shouldn't be connected with a proper 3 prong conversion.
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Emmons Push Pull, BMI, Session 400, Home of the Slimcaster Tele. |
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Mike Schwartzman
From:
Maryland, USA
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Posted 26 Feb 2016 1:12 pm
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My guess is 1969. I used to own that same model, same year.
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whats strange to me is that there is one blue molded cap way far on the end of the circuit board in the phase inverter section. (you can see it in your picture - its blue with a big white label on it) |
I noticed the same thing as Tim. Interesting. The rest of those brownish looking caps are what techs used to call "chocolate drops" with 1 orange drop replacement . One nice thing that got rehabbed is all the excess wiring (lead dress)from that year has been trimmed back. Definitely take Tim's suggestion and check that cord replacement. I think I see the "death cap" still in there. I can't see if it's still in circuit or just sitting there. If I remember correctly, that cap shouldn't be connected with a proper 3 prong conversion.
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Emmons Push Pull, BMI, Session 400, Home of the Slimcaster Tele. |
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Stephen Cowell
From:
Round Rock, Texas, USA
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Posted 26 Feb 2016 9:16 pm
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That's a good year... you still got cloth wiring, a big plus. It's a '68, it would have come with drip-edge around the grill. Looks like the final cathode 'balance'' circuit has been removed (the funny white caps outside the PT), that's probably for the best.
As Tim noted, the 3-wire power cord has not been implemented well... it looks like the neutral is fused, which the mod should get rid of (put the switch and the fuse in the same (hot) line). Lose the chocolate drops for better tone and coupling caps.
Your amp is probably an AC-568... the paper on the inside says AB763, that's a blackface circuit. I've got one just like it (highly modified), you got a killer amp, the cloth solid-core wiring is better since it stays where you put it. Lay all the wires close to the chassis except the grid wires (on the pre tubes)... tug them up in the air (per Aspen Pittman). Plastic wiring won't do that, you got one of the last cloth-wired Fenders.
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Too much junk to list... always getting more. |
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Bruce Derr
From:
Lee, New Hampshire, USA
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Posted 27 Feb 2016 5:47 am
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Yup, 1968. The chassis date stamp is the best clue for silverface amps. Week 49 of '68.
Is v2 healthy? Hard to tell in photo but it looks white, as if it lost vacuum.
Nice amp. |
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Ken Fox
From:
Nashville GA USA
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Posted 27 Feb 2016 7:03 am
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An 18 AWG power cord under 50 ft is rated for 10 amps at120VAC. That's 1200 watts, your power cord is fine. A 16 AWG cord can handle 13 amps
See tables at the link below:
http://www.stayonline.com/reference-circuit-ampacity.aspx
Your amp was an AC568 (fifth month of 1968) circuit before it was modified. Easy to spot for any amp tech that has worked on a lot of these amps. The tube charts were never updated by Fender for the newer circuit. A very short lived circuit that was updated again in 1969. It appears to have been converted to a Blackface era circuit. |
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Ben Turner
From:
Myrtle Beach, SC, USA (deceased)
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Posted 28 Feb 2016 11:31 pm
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Thanks for all the info. Has anyone tried these 12" EV Force speakers for steel?
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Benjamin Turner |
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Lefty
From:
Grayson, Ga.
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Posted 1 Mar 2016 6:42 am
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Ben,
Do a search on Jerry Gleason. He did a comparison of these speakers against Black Widows and JBL D120s using the same cabinet and amp set up.
Pretty interesting.
I have a 69 Super reverb with the maroon capacitors, and it is one of my favorite amps. I am comparing it to my 1964 and 1968 Super reverb.
regards,
Lefty |
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