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Topic: Dual Showman owners unite! |
Kyle Everson
From:
Nashville, Tennessee
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Posted 17 Jun 2008 3:49 pm |
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| Just got my first Dual Showman as a back-up for my Twin. It's a '68 silverface with reverb. I do have one question though. My Twin requires a 4 ohm load; this one doesn't specify. Should I be running a 4 ohm load on this unit as well? Is it a bad idea to run a single 8 ohm speaker? |
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Jon Light (deceased)
From:
Saugerties, NY
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Posted 17 Jun 2008 4:12 pm
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A) Dual Showman output is 4 ohms. This is the difference between the Showman (8 ohms) and the Dual Showman.
B) I have ran my Dual Showman Reverb into an 8ohm cab, pushed pretty hard for many hours every week with no problems. Many Twin Reverbs have run into 8 ohm D130's forever with no problems. The correct answer is 'match the impedence properly' but the real world answer seems to be that you are ok with this particular Fender amp mismatch. |
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Dave Mudgett
From:
Central Pennsylvania and Gallatin, Tennessee
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Posted 17 Jun 2008 4:15 pm
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I have a '69 silverface Dual Showman Reverb. They were normally matched to a 2x15" speaker cab with two 8-ohm speakers in parallel for a total 4-ohm load. These amps are the same chassis as in a comparable-period Twin Reverb.
On the output impedance matching - views vary somewhat. The output transformers on Dual Showman Reverbs are pretty robust, and can tolerate some level of mismatch. But if I was pushing one hard, I'd prefer to run at the correct matched impedance, 4 ohms. |
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Michael Johnstone
From:
Sylmar,Ca. USA
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Posted 18 Jun 2008 12:58 am
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| I had a 66 single Showman and a 68 Dual with the vertical cabinet both totally stock pre-silverface and pre-reverb. Best rock and roll guitar amps I ever had - and they never broke down. Played a 55 Fender Esquire thru it with no effects except an outboard 62 Fender reverb unit. It was so much better than those shrill,thin,boxey Vox SS Super Beatles that I used to have to play thru on the backlines of those package road shows in the late 60s. I'd kill for one of those amps now but they're an arm and a leg when you can find them and just like me,they're all wore out..... |
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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 18 Jun 2008 8:24 am
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A Silver-Face Dual Showman Reverb with master volume is my main gigging amp. The best sound for it (for pedal steel) is when I use two separate 1x15 cabs, each with a JBL D130. They are 8 ohm speakers, so I use a Y adapter to hook them in parallel to the single "internal" speaker jack.
I also have a heavy duty Eminence 15" 4 ohm speaker in an old Vibrasonic combo cab modded to a closed-back reflex design. It doesn't have the high end sparkle of the JBLs.
I also have an old Twin cab with no chassis and the original 2x12 Jensens (4 ohms total). The chassis slot is closed up, and plywood slats cover about two-thirds of the back for a modded open-back. It sounds pretty good for blues and rock, but is too thin and trebley for my tastes for country and jazz.
But the JBLs sound the best. If I couldn't replace them, I'd use Weber Californias.
My understanding is that you can run a single 8 ohm speaker safely, but you loose a little volume and clean headroom.
I also have a Silver-Face Pro Reverb that has some black-face mods. I think that ruined it for pedal steel, killed much of the clean headroom, and I will get those mods reversed. |
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Kyle Everson
From:
Nashville, Tennessee
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Posted 18 Jun 2008 5:55 pm
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After closer inspection, mine appears to be a '69. The transformers are from the last two weeks of 1968; I'm left to believe it was completed as a '69 model. Also, it has black grillcloth, which is not flattering in my opinion. What's the deal with that? I've seen all sorts of '70s Fenders with this grillcloth as well.
I've got a Weber California on the way, and Jeff Surratt is working on a speaker cab for me. I can't wait to try it out. |
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Dave Mudgett
From:
Central Pennsylvania and Gallatin, Tennessee
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Posted 18 Jun 2008 6:50 pm
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The deal with black grill cloth on a '68 or '69 Fender amp is that somebody had bad taste. 
IMHO, this is one of the greatest sounding jazz guitar or pedal steel amps ever made. I suggest taking that ratty grill cloth off and get some blue-thread silverface type grill cloth on there. If you don't know the service history, I'd also have it checked out by a good tech to make sure it's up to spec before I turned it on, especially in the filter capacitor and bias supply departments. |
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