the reverb on the vibro champ sounds great - much better than my TC hall of fame which i am now getting rid of. and overall the amp can sound nearly identical to the original at the right settings, but is also capable of a lot more.
Yeah not sure what he's hearing but the reverb isn't supposed to be a spring so maybe in that regard it sounds bad; digital hall reverb won't sound like tube driven spring but such is life. I also think out of the box this amp beats a lot of other amps in this price range. It's not a deluxe or a twin but you might actually get more use in the studio out of an amp like this. I agree on the issue of the speaker. I need to change mine but all in all this things rocks.
The best sounding speaker that I ever had was 75 W celestians loaded in what was a butcher series PV cabinet. Yes it is subjective but this cabinet was great for hard rock and class crop in some ways. It's like ice cream as you say some people want rocky road some people want neapolitan. Or something of that nature. Keep them coming Lyle.
I've enjoyed watching all the videos on these amps, thank for this closure video ... ill be replacing the 1030 on my new vibro champ reverb soon (Weber or WGS) ... it's making that resonate scraping sound but only on certain notes.
If you want to hear a good digital reverb, Andy Fuchs really did a great job implementing digital reverb in his amps. I wish other amp makers would take some PCB design cues from Mr. Fuchs too. The SPIN chip was developed by the guy who founded MXR way back when I was in still short pants.
Of course the speaker is usable in this amp... he has his own views based on this speaker in much more powerful amplifiers. I guess it's there to accentuate the bass as far as possible in such a small cabinet. I've played one and for solo use in a small room there's plenty of bass and it sounds really good. It's not for use in a band situation or to be compared with larger more powerful amps in the same room. That's just apples and oranges.
Very good choice of speaker. In any amp really. If you ever want a more “authentic” tone, the Weber 12F125, 30 watt, light dope speaker does the early 60’s Oxford tone with more bass. The 12F150 is really good too but requires a lengthy break in.
@@matthewf1979 Cool thanks Matt. I’ve heard good things about those speakers, but haven’t had a chance to play through one yet. I’m curious about the Alessandro as well.
@@jonl7819 The Alessandro speakers are fantastic. Especially for the price and availability. It’s actually my favorite speaker in he Deluxe Reverb, but the others are just as good. Just depends on what you want to do. Don’t hesitate to pick one up.
Lyle - You're videos are always grab-the-popcorn-time for me to sit back and enjoy your amp sleuthery, wizardry and Jedi-level knowledge. I have two questions if you don't mind. 1. Without considering cost - what is your *favorite* speaker for a Deluxe Reverb Reissue? 2. What is your recommendation for the fastest or best way to break in a new speaker? Thanks for any feedback you can provide.
Thanks! Favorite speaker for a DR depends on the playing style, but for the quintessential '60s Fender sound the WGS G12C is perfect. And the best way to break a speaker in is to play through it. But if you are inpatient, play bass-heavy music through it. I'm partial to Paul's Boutique but almost anything with the 808 will get the speaker moving.
@@PsionicAudio - Thanks for the feedback. I have a mod'd DRRI with a Weber 12F150 25W that sounds pretty darn good, but am interested in potentially trying something else. I use this for clean to crunch tones in the Country, Surf, CCR, Petty/Campbell vein. I just checked and there is also 50W version of this same Weber speaker.
Thanks for bringing some clarity to the 57 Custom Champ vs the 68 Vibro Champ battles. For a few hundred dollars more you have an heirloom piece imo that will hold it's value and possibly gain some and as you stated, in 10 years will you be able to replace parts on this Fender PCB? Add the quality pedals that you need to match the Vibro and you will always have an amp that will stand the test of time. I know you don't like 8 inch speakers, but for me as a primary bedroom player, it is more than enough for me. I have the Fender Super Champ X2 and for about half the price that amp hangs with the Vibro.
Weird thing about the '65 DRRI... There are so many different special editions with their various speakers and tolex coverings... and yet none of them sound like a Deluxe Reverb to me except the standard one with the Jensen C12K speaker. And then I bought a vintage 1967 Deluxe Reverb with an original '66 Jensen speaker and... OMG what a tone! Funny thing though, when I had it serviced after buying it, the first thing the tech recommended is that I change the speaker, and he gave me a list of various unobtainium to look for. Hahaha! Everyone has their opinion as to what this amp should sound like. Although I am intrigued by the Altec Lansing 417-8H... heard a LOT of stories about that speaker in a Deluxe in LA during the 80s
So you recommend a Katana over the Vibro Champ Reverb? Really? I respectfully disagree :) I have played the other Fender ’68 series amps and I was underwhelmed, hissy and noisy amps. I bought the new Vibro Champ Reissue and it is dead quiet. Fender get much flack for using the cheap Celestion 10-30 speaker, but to my ears it actually sounds really good in this amp. Also, many automatically suspect the reverb to be inferior to a real spring reverb but I have owned many amps with tubedriven reverbtanks sounding inferior to the CVC reverb. Since this amp has a ss rectifier it sounds more lika a mini-Twin than a mini-Princeton Reverb. This means there is no sag and high headroom for a little five-watter. With those ”limitations” in mind, try this with simgle coils: Treble at 4, Bass at 6, reverb at 3, Volume at 10 and back off the volume on the guitar. Voliá! Bonu fun: set the bass and treble both at 0 and full volume, instant oldtimey SF Vibro Champ! My favorite sound for home use right now is a Fender 5F2a princeton clone linked together with my Custom Vibro Champ. The Princeton is little mellow, the CVC has the blackface shimmer. I like it.
Lol just got this used today and felt like maybe i should get a tone master or a boss katana artist after this video lol. How are you still liking yours?
Speaker coil can detached from cylinder as well the cylinder detach from cone. Cone suspension detachment makes noise. Speaker disassembly may be appropriate for repair.
In my humble opinion the Deluxe Reverb is the greatest diva in the amp world when it comes to speakers. It can sound horrible, average or glorious depending on which speaker you put in, and there are not too many that make it sound glorious.
My 1977 hand wired Deluxe Reverb had a Jensen C12Q speaker in it and I didn't like it. It broke up way too early at volume level 4, especially on the vibrato channel. I put in a Celestion Vintage 30 that's about 25 years old and the amp sounds much better. Oddly enough the Jencen C12Q sounds pretty good in my Carvin Vintage 16 (it outputs either 5 or 16 watt RMS). After finishing watching your video, I didn't like the sound of the Vibro Champ reissue. My original Vibro Champ was purchased in 1979, and had the small 8 inch speaker. I played thru that for many years, but then built a new cabinet and put in 2 10 inch Eminence speakers, and it is a great sounding amp! Of course, I still have the original cabinet with the 8 inch speaker in the event I ever decide to sell it.
Waiting patiently for the Park 150 videos! Man, I wish Fender would bring back the 6G3 Deluxe or any Brownface amp really. They did the Vibroverb in the early 90’s but it wasn’t too successful. Everyone wanted the AB763 Vibroverb, like SRV used a the time. That brown/wheat/tan combo is just gorgeous! Whom ever owns that brown ‘65 reissue picked a killer version of it. The reissue C10K is horrible in those amps. The Weber 12F125, 12F150, Eminence GA12 SC64 and the Celestion G12H75 sound killer in my hand wired Deluxe Reverb. Replacing the speaker is the biggest tonal change you can do to an amp.
I'm sure you know this because I see you comment on the same things I watch. The Suhr Hombre is John Suhr's take on the 6G3. I picked one up after watching him talk about it on a Tone Talk episode. It comes with a Celestion V-Type and sounds great to my ears. I'd love for Fender to reissue it too because it would then be a Fender. I haven't built one yet because I have enough home brew stuff that I don't need more amps that will be hard to sell 😂
The Hombre is a great deal too. If you ever get curious about a speaker swap, the 75 watt Creamback is killer for that amp. A bit more headroom for what cleans there are and a creamy overdrive.
Having a Vibro Champ Reverb for a while now and I’m pretty sure the one you got there has an issue. It has happened to me a few times when i turn it on there’s a ratty low end clipping or odd sounding tone. I turn it off and on then it’s fine. Happened only a few times, but sounds similar. But overall yours in the video doesn’t sounds right… or anything like mine. And I swapped for the same WGS.
So i took your advice and replaced my vibro champs speaker with a wgs G10C and it sounds decent But there is no over driven tube sound any more around 6-7. Isn’t 75watt rating way to high for a small combo where it will just sound sterile and never break up? Wouldn’t a veteran have been a better fit?
You weren't hearing "over driven tube sound" then. You were hearing the stock speaker falling apart. The owner of this amp wanted as much headroom as possible out of the Vibro Champ. I decreased the mids resistor too - between that and the G10C he was very happy. If you had been the client and had wanted more grunt I might have recommended something else. Speaker choice is like ice cream flavor. One person wants subtle pistachio gelato. The next wants a whole tub of rocky road. Neither is wrong.
The G10C is a 8ohm speaker? The vibro champ has a 4watt stock speaker.I understand the G10C sounds better but i wonder if the impedance mismatch has drawbacks? Why did you not chose a ET10 4 ohms? I am considering buying the vibro champ and first action will be speaker swap...
Strat sounds great, I have Kinmans in my ‘90’s MIJ Tele. There is so much speaker info packed into the first minute of this video ! Have you ever thought of writing a book of all the stuff in your head ? Maybe hire a transcriber to listen to your videos and write it all down 😲
Hi Lyle, I’ve just received a second hand Custom ‘68 Vibro Champ (original owner bought it new on January) and it sounds dull, also reverb doesn’t sound like it should, only quiet, short and like very far away. There’s a hum too in the background that doesn’t go away. What would be your bet on what’s going on with it? Thanks!
And I’m shocked! You’d pick up a boss katana over the vibro champ? What model were you thinking of the artist 100? Or how about a deluxe reverb tone master
Katana sounds better and is more flexible and costs less. With any of these disposable amps, very much including the "Tone Master" series, spend as little as you can. I'm not up on variations of the Katana, but there is a 100W for about $400. That's about right for what you get and how long it will last.
It really depends on what playing styles you're after. Jazz? Blues? Country? Want it to rock? There is no one size fits all option. I mean, many speakers cover a lot of territory but I recommend different speakers to different players.
@@PsionicAudio mmm thats my “general purpose” amp. But more blues tone. Now that I have you here, I gonna take it to a tech because the reverb is very noisy. Do you know if its a common problem or maybe its something weong with it?
@@nicolasRebagliati mine got noises too, cleaning the tube socket cured it ..... also if you want a longer reverb decay like the original you can remove the foam that’s in the center of the reverb tank as it halves the decay from 4 seconds to 2 .... cheers
@@PsionicAudio yes. It is mainly for practice. I just don't know if they are "good" amps. This one is just a champ with no reverb or vibro if you will. I just don't know if they usually need "work" to make them a better amp.
Throughout the ages Fender has put the cheapest junk speakers in their amps except for the early tweed amps. Do you think any of these are worth the new price?
Fender puts a lot of pure garbage speakers in their amps today, and Jensen's of the 1960s were USA made. The Jensen speakers of today are made by Sica of Italy. I have a stash of real Jensen P10 or P12Rs, Qs, Ss, Ns, and C8-C15 Rs through Ns. The old Jensen P12S or C12S had tiny motor magnets. They were okay for 12 Watts and under.
Thank you once again for exposing these subpar problematic amps. Amps are like guitars, Ya have to do your research and spend a nice chunk of change to get quality guitars and amps. Fender is really dropping the ball, even with their new $3000 HW amps. I will be steering clear of them from now on.
