The 22-watt ’65 Deluxe Reverb® amp is for rock, country or blues players who want a moderately powered amp they can crank up at the gig or in the studio. The full, snappy guitar tones heard on many famous recordings from Memphis to Abbey Road were made using the Deluxe™ amp. Features include dual 6V6 Groove Tubes® output tubes, one 5AR4 rectifier tube, four 12AX7 preamp tubes, two 12AT7 tubes, one 12” 8-ohm Jensen® C-12K speaker, dual channels (normal and vibrato), tube-driven Fender® reverb, tube vibrato, two-button footswitch for reverb and vibrato on-off, black textured vinyl covering and silver grille cloth.- Series: Vintage Reissue
- Amplifier Type: Tube
- Model #: 0217430000
- Channels: Two - Normal and Vibrato
- Normal Channel: Volume, Treble, Bass.
- Vibrato Channel: Volume, Treble, Bass, Reverb. Vibrato: Speed, Intensity
- Depth: 9.5" (24.13 cm)
- Width: 24.5" (62.2 cm)
- Height: 17.5" (44.5 cm)
- Weight: 42 lbs. (19.05 kg)
- Speaker: One - 12" Jensen® C12K with Ceramic Magnet
- Total Impedance: 8 ohms
- Inputs: Four - 1/4", Two Normal and Two Vibrato
- Auxiliary Input: N/A
- Effects: Reverb, Vibrato
- Speaker Jack: Two 1/4" Parallel - Internal and External
- Amplifier Covering: Black Textured Vinyl Covering with Silver Grille Cloth
- Cabinet Material: 7-Ply 5/8" Birch Plywood
- Control Panel: Blackface™ Style
- Handle: Moulded Plastic Strap with Nickel-Plated Caps
- Knobs: Skirted Amp Knobs
- Amplifier Jewel: Red Jewel
- Pre Amp Tubes: 4 x 12AX7, 2 X 12AT7
- Power Tubes: 2 x 6V6
- Rectifier Tube: 1 x 5AR4
- Cover: Optional Fitted Cover Available
- FootSwitch: 2-Button FootSwitch Included
- Other Features: Tube Driven Spring Reverb, Tube Vibrato, 2-Button FootSwitch, Baltic Birch Plywood Cabine
- Price: $2,499.00
Review
Why do I write this stuff down? Because, manufacturers keep changing their spec and if nothing else I've got the part number. Anyway, the "Blackface" Deluxe Reverb Reissue (DRRI) is a reissue of Fender's vintage range that includes:- '59 Bassman LTD
- '63 Tube Reverb
- '65 Princeton Reverb
- '65 Deluxe Reverb
- '65 Super Reverb
- '65 Twin Reverb 15
- '65 Twin Reverb
Per Fender site:
With tweed nearly forgotten during the 1980s height of high-tech rack-mount amplifier sophistication, Fender took a bold step forward in the early 1990s by looking to its own past and introducing its first Vintage Reissue amp—the ’59 Bassman. With great amps based on a great past, this popular family expertly recreates the mighty tweed and “Blackface” amps of Fender’s original 1950s-1960s golden age, with outstandingly authentic tone and looks.One might think Fender haven't made a classic amp since 1965!
Features
How do I describe the features of a reissue of a 50 year old amp. By how closely it recreates the original or how does the amp to other amps from 1965?Well it's not hardwired or have modern features like distortion, effects loops, line outs etc. However, it is a cost effective copy of the original fairly simple hardwired circuit mapped onto individual circuit boards, i.e. power valve tube sockets are on a separate PCB. Good.
Sound
It's the baby of the '65 reissue range. It doesn't have all the features of its big brothers the Super Reverb or the Twin Reverb (SRRI/TRRI) like the mid control and treble switch. All amps share the same pre-amp section but differences in the power stages means the DRRI gets down to business at a reasonable volume with the SRRI louder and cleaner, the twin is impossibly loud and clean. The DRRI volume is just right for home/studio venues and can be wound for smaller gigs with really great drive thou the rig might need to be mic'd for bigger gigs.Maintenance & Upgrades
Who can say. I've only had it for about a month. I've moved away from complicated amps and my Reissue Bassman so I expect similar mileage from the DRRI. has been very reliable, in fact all my amps have been reliable for a while. There are plenty of original amps from 1965 around so I expect this to around in 40 years. (I hope I am).Some mods have been performed:
- Replaced faulty Accutronics reverb tank with Mod® 4AB3C1B;
- Replaced power supply filter caps;
- Replaced the existing Jensen C12K speaker (9.48 lbs.) with either the WGS ET65 (7.5) - done;
- Replaced speaker lead and plug (replaced plug with switchcraft);
- Replace reverb leads (I broke the original leads removing amp from cabinet.
Future modifications to be considered:
- Replace C12 with Vishay 562R capacitor;
- Move heater supply off the PCB;
- Move screen resistors off the PCB on to tube sockets;
- Replace resistor (R40(?) 1M with 470K) to improve tremolo depth;
- Replace cap (C21 ? .01μf with .022μf) to give a slower minimum speed;
- Put 10nf cap across the opto-coupler to remove ticking (from leg of 10M resistor to ground on the other side;
- Rewire cathode wiring loops on power tubes;
Overall Rating
I've bought many amps before the DRRI:- A Marshall like amp made in Australia: Too Big. To Heavy. Left me deaf.
- Roland JC-120: Too loud. Too clean (I thought I might get a synthesiser). Never bonded with this amp.
- Marshall 15 watt: First amp after about 25 years. I little solid state amp. Light weight. OK as practice/starter amp but not really a great sound.
- Fender Hot Rot De Ville: Too loud (went from nothing to blasting with nothing between). Good clean/reverb and with pedals but awful distortion, real heavy to lug around and with the tube sockets mounted on the PCB a bit unreliable.
- Fender Twin Amp: Way too loud, too hot, too clean & way, way, way too heavy. I reckon it baked the PCB.
- Orange Tiny Terror: light weight, nice distortion, no reverb & no clean a practice level. Not really a performing option so I updated to a…
- Rockerverb 50 (reverb/gain/clean): Still got this one. Like a Marshall but a bit deeper. Very versatile amp;
- Fender '59 Bassman Reissue: Still got this too! Great clean and big sound. After all. It was the prototype for the Marshall. Starts getting real crunchy around 4 with HBs or 5 with single coils.
- Rivera Pubster: A great little amp with many features: distortion, line outs, effects loop, etc. Good studio amp and very well made. The only thing it doesn't have is the DRRI sound or the live presence of the 12" speaker.
It works at home for practice, in the studio. In most live settings I have the amp around 4 on the padded input. I measure my happiness by my desire to play this amp. I just can't stop.
