Why the 5A3 is the best Fender Tweed Deluxe - History, Mods, Vintage Guitars and more 

Thanks for your kind comments, it's much appreciated. We have loads more content lined up so stay tuned...

Absolutely agree, superbly pro production

Thanks Chris really appreciate it

Looks like a couple 5E3's

I prefer the Gretsch part of the video, I have always believed an early 60's Vox AC30 covering is much more comfortable to sit on than 50's tweed... The roughness/grippy-ness of 50's tweed is much better for standing on when changing light bulbs and such.

@@timothyarnold6731 lol

Thanks John and you make a fair point. Keep tuned in because we can guarantee you'll get to hear exactly that and a lot more Deluxe amps of all shades too.

Thanks for your support! We have a Deluxe amp shootout amounts other videos in the pipeline so plenty of 5E3 with Blue clips on the way. Thanks

That's it exactly Gary. It's just a case of swapping the two grid connections on the first tube.

Thanks Jonny Huw's 5A3 will be featuring in a forthcoming episode. The Celestion Blue has been retained but the inputs have been re-tweaked.

Our pleasure!

No it doesn't. They're surprisingly comfortable ;)

Thanks Jammy. Glad you've enjoyed them. Aberaeron is one of our favourite towns.

The best Jensen we've heard is a vintage P12Q. Great alnico Jensen tone with higher power handling.

We don't, but it is simply a case of swapping the two grid wires over on tube 1. Just as we show you in the closeup shot. Nothing more to it but please be safe 'cos these things are dangerous!

Hi KG, thanks for your question, hopefully we can help. Yes we have found that most new speakers are a bit stiff out of the box, the simple answer is the longer you play them at a good volume the better we find them sounding. Often people say 50+ hours but we haven't tested it scientifically, rather we just gig/use our amps as much as possible to break the speakers in. When you say your's is feeling bit stiff, is this at a decent volume (4 and up on the dial) or at lower house volume? Do you use the amp loud for gigs etc or at home at low volume? The reason we as is that some hopefully helpful solutions may change for each scenario. If its stiff at louder volume then we'd recommend having a good tech check the bias of the output valves, they are often set too cool from the factory to preserve component life, we like ours a bit hotter but as always the responsibility is with you and your qualified tech. We have also had good results swapping the valves to NOS, especially the output valves and the rectifier, these do have a big impact on feelings of stiffness. If you are running the amp mainly at low home volume then the above advice still stands, but may have less noticeable effect on the low volume feel and response. The higher powered Tweed circuits do really need to be turned up a bit to get everything singing at its best. If you have the issue of stiffness at low volume then we'd recommend trying: 1) an attenuator (doesn't have to be an expensive one. Huw in fact wrote a "build your own article" for Guitar magazine a few years back guitar.com/guides/diy-workshop/diy-workshop-build-your-own-attenuator/ There are many fantastic ones out there, ED is particularly fond of the UAD OX, Fryette Powerstation and Badcat Unleash. 2) an overdrive or clean boost pedal set lower than unity in front of the amp can actually sound great and lower the overall volume but still keep the big amp feel 3) a good compressor pedal before the amp at low volume can give some cranked amp squishy feel 4) good old fashioned poor mans attenuator i.e. turn the amp around to face the wall away from you, put a guitar case in front of it to block some volume and then turn the amp up louder than you had it before to get more dynamics with somewhat reduced volume Hope these tips can be of some use to you and others Thanks

We have 2 ES330s at our disposal - the cherry 62 in the video and a recently acquired sunburst 64. The ES225 is a very different beast. A solid block of maple glued to the top gives it more sustain and makes it closer to a semi solid in tone. And of course, the earlier 50s P90s sound different to the 60s ones.

All a matter of taste

Fair enough ;)

Not necessarily.

@@tonetwinstv2863 My response was both a compliment and factual because the increased volume of close miking by default lowers the ambient spl with respect to direct sound.

Thanks Charles. We like the Jensen too, but more for low volume and recording applications. Push it too hard and it doesn't break up in a nice way, and that limits the otherwise impressive volume and gain range of the 5A3. But we can certainly understand why some tweed fans would choose to retain the original Jensens.

Many thanks.

I still enjoy using my Line 6 POD 2 Jim. Didn't know they based their small tweed model on a 5A3 - H

@@tonetwinstv2863 I’ve been mildly obsessed with the 5a3 ever since. There seems to be a lot surfacing on eBay now. Wondering if Fender will do an official reissue. HNY!

Hi Ohio. TBH we just needed something to sit on so we could both fit in the shot. Then again, We've always sat on our amps. Never thought twice about it. As seats go, they're not the most comfortable - unless it's one of those Kustom amps with the padded leatherette. They're very nice to sit on. Thanks for the kind comments on Huw's day job.

Can't hurt those amps

We have Mallory 150s in both our 5A3s. If an original cap measures leaky - and they invariably do - I put them in the over at a temperature that's just sufficient to melt the way. The old paper and foil will then push out of the cardboard tube, and I put the 150s inside the tube, re-seal with wax and reinstall. The restored amps look totally original but sound much better. Regarding the V-Front mod, there is no switch. I simply swap over the two grid wires on the first tube.

@@tonetwinstv2863 Great info! Thankayoo! Don't know if it's related but I just tried a big magnet celestion speaker and one of the 6sl7 got squealy microphonic, any tubes you would recommend, NOS or these new tung-sols?

@@theblazevellutocollection The best 6SL7 equivalents we've tried are the Mullard ECC35. The best tone and totally non microphonic.

The mic jack socket with the instrument volume - if that makes sense. Thanks for your kind comment and glad you enjoyed it.

Thank you!! That makes perfect sense to me!! No grid resistor; but through the bright side of the tone stack!! Thanks for the follow up! Much appreciated!

Yes Christian, you can do the same mod. But the 5C3 also has negative feedback from the speaker. If you want quicker overdrive, try disconnecting the feedback too. Or maybe try it first.

@@tonetwinstv2863 thanks, looking at the schematics, the A3 and C3 look very similar

Try looking up a tube socket diagram and figure out which pins correspond to the two grids. With respect, the fact that you feel the need to ask and you have asked about 6SC7s rather than the 6SL7s that are in these amps suggest you might be better advised to ask your tech to do the mod for you. Stay safe please.

.. pulled up the schematics, I can see slightly different values on some transistors at the input and ground. Just curious if anyone has played them back to back.. But I do also understand that you could have 2 identical 5A3's and they'd sound different too!

@@rennpart It is confusing Aaron and we're not sure we can offer any insights. Looking at the circuits we've found, they appear identical but according to some, the 5B3 had the wide panel cabinet rather than the TV front. No transistors in either amp - but we're assuming you meant resistors and it was just a typo ;)

@@tonetwinstv2863 Thanks, finally found a nice 1950 5A3 from a reseller in California. The insides are all original down to the 2 prong cord, however I believe the P12Q is from 1954 according to the date but I believe the choke (or maybe output transformer?) is mounted to the speaker. It sounds amazing and was worth the wait to find a nice one.

.. I believe the wire swap mod shown @26:40 is incorrect, at least on my amp all it does is switch the volume pots for the inputs.

We checked to see some examples of your dazzling whammy technique, but it appears you haven't posted any videos. Be sure to let us know when you do and many thanks ;)