Our columnist’s beloved Fender Super Reverb head goes under the knife.
Vintage Fenders are some of the best-sounding amplifiers around, but from time to time, they need a bit of love to give up the goods. Here are the top issues you’ll encounter with your black- and silver-panel Fender amps, and how to fix them.
Trouble and worrying are part of a vintage tube amp owner’s life. In this article, I will try to teach some basic troubleshooting for vintage Fender amps. It will only require a little practice, patience, and, most importantly, curiosity, which to me is the single most important skill in life—we can accomplish great things by reading, seeking advice, trying, failing, and not giving up. So, let’s start!
As usual, I will refer to the silver- and black-panel Fender amps, but everything is applicable to earlier amps as well. I will often refer to tubes: On a Deluxe Reverb, for example, the tubes are referred to from V1 to V9. Always consult your amplifier’s schematic to confirm these placements.
No Reverb
The reverb tank is the most delicate component of these amps. The springs, wires, and soldering joints are thin and weak, and the reverb cables and plugs are also easily damaged, as they are exposed on the backside of the chassis.
First, check the plugs on both the amp and reverb tank. Unplug and switch the input and output to see if the previous player made a mistake. Often, the plugs are damaged and not conducting current, or the inner wire or outer insulation are broken. I recommend replacing old cables with new, vintage-correct ones if you suspect the slightest cable or plug issue.
“Trouble and worrying are part of a vintage-tube-amp owner’s life.”
A bad V3 or V4 preamp tube may also cause reverb loss. If replacing tubes or reverb cables does not help, you should try hooking up another amp’s reverb tank to verify whether you have an amp or reverb tank issue. The reverb springs may also have jumped out of position and need to be re-attached. I recommend refreshing soldering joints here.
No Vibrato
First, the footswitch must be plugged in for the vibrato to work. If you don’t have one or suspect that it’s malfunctioning, you can either buy or make yourself an “always-on” phono plug that is shorted internally with solder. A bad vibrato-driver tube may also cause vibrato loss, which is fixed easily by replacing the V5 with another 12AX7. If none of this helps, a tech should open the amp and inspect the vibrato tube circuitry, and/or replace the opto-oscillator component.
Blown Fuse
Pull all the tubes before replacing a blown fuse. If the fuse blows repeatedly without any tubes installed, a tech should be involved for inspecting the filter caps/resistors, power transformer, and the high-wattage resistors on the power-tube socket pins.
If the pilot lamp light is on when all tubes are pulled out, start inserting tubes one by one from the V1 rectifier tube. Turn power/standby on. If the fuse blows, the rectifier tube is bad. Then, insert both power tubes and turn power/standby on. If the fuse blows, you need new power tubes, and possibly new screen and plate resistors. Continue this procedure for each of the preamp tubes until you identify corrupted tubes that draw too much current.
Weak Tone
Check speaker cable(s) and speaker terminals. I find it useful to connect to a second amp’s speakers to determine if it’s the speakers or an amp that is the problem. (Remember to turn off or set the amp in standby whenever speakers are disconnected.)
Then, verify that the tubes are working by following the previous “blown fuse” procedure. Look for loose power-tube sockets causing bad connections by gently pushing them around in the socket. If speakers, tubes, and sockets are working fine, a tech should further inspect the amp.
Distortion, Reduced Volume, or Weak Bass
When playing powerful 40-watt amps at low volume, it can be difficult to hear if only one tube is working. If one of the power tubes is malfunctioning, you will experience distortion and farty bass. Non-matching power tubes can also result in distortion and reduced clean headroom, which is detected by measuring with a bias meter.
Preamp tubes in wrong positions may also affect volume response and cause an amp to distort too early or too late. Check all tubes and replace them one by one with fresh ones as you listen for tone changes. Sometimes we prefer the wrong tubes because we like more distortion. (My tube strategy is to replace tubes only when they fail entirely. I don’t mind weaker power, rectifier, or phase-inverter tubes since these amps are more than loud enough.)
Rattling Noise
Loose screws and nuts can cause rattling noise and should be inspected and tightened regularly, including on the chassis, baffle board, tilt-back legs, speaker, handle, and anywhere else. If the baffle board is warped and worn so that the screws are not tight, I never hesitate to install a new, solid-pine baffle. This usually improves tone and robustness compared to old, warped MDF baffles
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Enter Stompboxtober Day 18 for your chance to win today’s pedal from Xotic Effects! More pedals to win tomorrow!
Xotic XW-1 Wah Pedal
BIAS, WAH-Q, HI AND LOW EQ
exciting and innovative!
Self-lubricating nylon bushing pivot for quiet and smooth operation with fully-adjustable rocker pedal tension.
Gold contact relay true bypassing, which allows for transparent true bypass tone, while incorporating ultra reliable switching with minimum one million life cycle.
20% smaller footprint than conventional wah pedals.
Fully adjustable Wah-Q and Bias controls and a two-band EQ with +/-15 dB center-detent potentiometers optimize the voicing for different playing styles and gear.
Fuzz friendly buffering circuit assures a great sounding wah tone with your favorite fuzz pedals.
Watch the livestream of "Concert for Carolina" featuring Luke Combs, Eric Church, Billy Strings, and James Taylor on October 26. Free access for Hurricane Helene-impacted areas, $24.99 for others. All proceeds go to hurricane relief efforts.
Due to overwhelming demand, Luke Combs, Eric Church, Billy Strings and James Taylor have partnered with Veeps to livestream “Concert for Carolina” on Saturday, October 26. The livestream was added to ensure that all fans would be able to see the show after tickets immediately sold-out this past Thursday. The stream will provide an additional opportunity to raise as much money as possible for Hurricane Helene relief efforts. Link to livestream HERE.
The livestream will be available worldwide with free access for those impacted by Hurricane Helene, as “Concert for Carolina” and Veeps have used geotargeting to ensure that those in the affected areas will not be charged. For those not directly impacted, the livestream will cost $24.99 with an option for additional donations available. All proceeds from the stream will go to the same organizations that Combs and Church selected for ticket sales to benefit: Samaritan’s Purse, Manna Food Bank, Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest NC, Eblen Charities and the organizations supported by Chief Cares.
As noted above, North Carolina natives The Avett Brothers, Scotty McCreery, Chase Rice and Parmalee have all now joined the line-up.
Presented by Explore Asheville and the Buncombe County Tourism Development Authority, “Concert for Carolina” will take place at Charlotte’s Bank of America Stadium and also feature performances from Sheryl Crow, Keith Urban and Bailey Zimmerman. The event will be hosted by ESPN’s Marty Smith and Barstool Sports’ Caleb Pressley. Full details can be found at concertforcarolina.com.
“Concert for Carolina” is made possible due to the support and generosity of David and Nicole Tepper and Tepper Sports & Entertainment, Explore Asheville, Biltmore Estate, T-Mobile, Jack Daniel’s, Whataburger, Miller Lite, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina, Belk, Lowe’s, Atrium Health, Tractor Supply Company, Bank of America, American Airlines, Food Lion, Duke’s Mayo, GE Aerospace, Harris Teeter, Pinnacle Financial Partners, United Healthcare, Bud Light, Preferred Parking and Gildan.
Born outside of Charlotte and raised in Asheville, Combs is a proud North Carolinian. Growing up singing at school, it wasn’t until he attended Boone’s Appalachian State University that Combs first performed his own songs at a beloved local bar, leading him to his now historic country music career. Since moving to Nashville in 2014, Combs continually returns to North Carolina for landmark moments including his first-ever headline stadium show at Appalachian State’s Kidd Brewer Stadium in 2021 as well as sold-out, back-to-back nights at Charlotte’s Bank of America Stadium last summer.
Church, a native of Granite Falls, also began his musical journey in Western North Carolina, playing gigs locally throughout high school and into his time at Appalachian State University before chasing his dream to Nashville. He continues to split time between Tennessee and North Carolina with his family, even returning to the Appalachian Mountains to record his most recent project, the three-part Heart & Soul, in Banner Elk. In 2016, he was inducted into the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame and in 2022, he was awarded the North Carolina Award, the state’s highest civilian honor. Most recently, he released the song “Darkest Hour” in response to the recent devastation, with all publishing royalties being donated.
Although he is a Michigan native, Strings’ life and career has been deeply impacted by the state of North Carolina both personally and professionally, as it is home to some of his most passionate and supportive fans. Over the past few years, Strings has performed at major venues across the state including an upcoming six-night run at Asheville’s ExploreAsheville.com Arena this winter.
Singer-songwriter Taylor moved to Chapel Hill, North Carolina with his family when he was just three years old. Taylor’s father served as the Dean of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Medical School from 1964 to 1971. Taylor’s childhood home was on Morgan Creek Road in Chapel Hill-Carrboro. In April 2003, a bridge over Morgan Creek was dedicated to the musician and renamed the James Taylor Bridge. Taylor’s childhood experiences in North Carolina influenced many of his most popular songs including “Copperline” as well as the beloved “Carolina in My Mind.” As a recording and touring artist, Taylor has touched people with his warm baritone voice and distinctive style of guitar-playing for more than 50 years. Over the course of his celebrated career, he has sold more than 100 million albums, has won multiple Grammy Awards and has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Songwriters Hall of Fame, as well as the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame in 2009.
For more information, please visit concertforcarolina.com.
D'Addario celebrates the Beatles' 60th Anniversary with exclusive gear commemorating their iconic 1964 US Tour. Limited-edition picks and straps feature designs inspired by their legendary Ed Sullivan show performance and U.S. tour ticket stubs.
On the night of February 9th, 1964, 73 million people tuned in to the Ed Sullivan show and met four lads from Liverpool. D’Addario is commemorating this incredible time in music history with an exclusive Beatles 60th Anniversary collection. These limited-edition picks and straps come in two designs: the “Arrows” design features the TV backdrop from their performance on the EdSullivan show; the “1964 Ticket” design showcases a collage of ticket stubs from the U.S. tour which followed the iconic performance.
D'Addario is also releasing its first-ever John Lennon picks and straps in two collections: “Live” and “Mind Games.” The Live collection celebrates the legend’s solo performances with two meticulous replicas of straps he wore on stage, as well as Rooftop picks, featuring the pattern seen on John’s strap during the Beatles final live performance. “Mind Games” highlights the artwork from the album and single of the same name, on a strap and pick, respectively.
For more information, please visit daddario.com.
A 15-watt, Class-A 1×10 combo designed to be compact yet offer extraordinary tone.
The Montauk is a 15-watt, Class A 1x10 combo amp featuring a tube-driven spring reverb with Dwell and Level controls. This all-tube amplifier sports independent gain and master volume knobs, along with a 2-band EQ to provide a wide range of tones from chiming clean to saturated overdrive.
A trio of line outputs optimized for feeding another amplifier or recording console are driven by the preamp tubes before the master volume, allowing the player to tame the on-board speaker from rock gig to bedroom rig, as well as easily utilize the all-tube outboard gain/reverb as an effects unit or direct recording preamp. The Montauk is dressed with Supro's signature Blue Rhino hide cosmetic and comes loaded with a custom-built Supro BD10 speaker made by Celestion.
A trio of line outputs optimized for feeding another amplifier or recording console are driven by the preamp tubes before the master volume.
Supro's custom, high-power 10-inch BD10 speaker features an oversized ceramic magnet, top of the line suspension and a special British cone, resulting in rich, full articulation.
Price: $999.00.