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Fender 65 Deluxe reverb reissue any good?

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- Rated: 2 ↑
Jan 14, 2008 9:00 a.m. Johnboy:

I'm still kinda hankering after a new amp to replace my vox ad50 valvertronix. I'm after something that'll do Rock'n'roll, rockabilly and country. I gig semi-regularly so it needs to be reliable and not too heavy.

Just been in a guitar shop in town and tried out a "Fender Deluxe reverb-amp". I'm assuming this is the 65 Deluxe reverb re-issue?

So, a couple of questions.

First - are they reliable? What do people generally think of these amps?

Second - it's only 22 watts, compared with my 50 watt valvetronix. The guy in the shop said that 22 watts of tube amp will be just as loud as 50 watts of solid state. Is this correct?

Lastly - the amp is second hand (but looks like new)and I've noticed it's got a 12" Celestion 30W G12H speaker rather than the stock Jensen. Is this a potential problem?

For any UK GDP'ers out there, it's £575. Bargain - or walk away?

A lot of questions - thanks in advance for the answers!

Johnboy
- Rated: 212 ↑
Jan 14, 2008 9:27 a.m. Proteus:

I don't know what such things usually sell for in the UK, but at the current exchange rate, and knowing what they sell for HERE, that seems very expensive. 575.00 US would easily buy a used one here.

This amp has its detractors here on the GDP, both because it's not point-to-point vintage construction and may thus be difficult to repair, and because (the detractors say) it doesn't sound "good."

I have no position on the PTP vs PCB construction. I have, however, played through the amp and compared it directly to a "vintage" Deluxe. I have the Deluxe, a buddy had the RI. We played for hours, back and forth, multiple guitars. I liked the RI just as well as the original, and better for many purposes. It had more headroom before breakup, and was tighter and less woofy in the low end, with the same sparkle on top.

Now my DR is an early 70s, and at the time of the comparison, no doubt had some tired components. I've since had it freshened up and blackfaced (functionally, not cosmetically), so I'd like to re-do the comparison.

But my take at the time was that the DRRI is a VERY worthy amp.

And yeah, its 22 watts will keep up with most 50-watt SS amps I've heard. (As long as you understand that it will probably break up earlier in the game).

It will easily gig – and there are always microphones.
- Rated: 20 ↑
Jan 14, 2008 10:14 a.m. DangerousMan:

No. That's not a bargain by any stretch. For an extra £150 you can get a DRRI brand new; here is a link. Incidentally, the price you see here includes tax and shipping. I've never done business with these guys but I've heard a couple of nice things about them. Happy hunting.

http://www.thomann.de/gb/search_dir.html?sw=Deluxe+Reverb

Oh Pro, gear in the UK is quite a bit more expensive than it is in the US and even more expensive again here in Ireland. Europeans generally get the short end of the stick when it comes to this kind of thing. Here's an example I enjoy citing: Fender Blues Junior in the U.S. approx $400 - $450. Fender Blues Junior in Ireland approx 750 euro. That's about a thousand dollars Pro... would you pay that for a blues junior?
- Rated: 83 ↑
Jan 14, 2008 10:42 a.m. Mark S(ynchro):

I heard a DR RI last Saturday night a Century Bob's gig. The venue was pretty spacious with a high ceiling and a lot of floor space but te Deluxe hung right in there. The volume was set at three BTW.

Unless you are using very hot pickups most Deluxes will stay clean until 4 - 4.5 and display some gentle breakup as you go upward from that point. Cranked to 11 they'll scream, but for anything approaching normal volumes they are pretty mellow.

The reverb is top-notch, it's tube driven and captures the classic Fender sound. It has a tube rectifier which should give you a bit of sag, at least in theory. At ear preserving volumes I doubt this would happen all that much.

Some people find the new DRRIs a bit harsh on the Vibrato channel. If this is the case it's easy to remedy, just clip one cap, C10 and the treble bypass of the volume control is gone for good.

Basically, this and the Twin RI are good blackface amps designed to capture the classic Fender sound of the '60s at a reasonable price.
- Rated: 19 ↑
Jan 14, 2008 11:06 a.m. Gretschington:

Proteus said: I have, however, played through the amp and compared it directly to a "vintage" Deluxe. I have the Deluxe, a buddy had the RI. We played for hours, back and forth, multiple guitars. I liked the RI just as well as the original, and better for many purposes. It had more headroom before breakup, and was tighter and less woofy in the low end, with the same sparkle on top.

Hey Proteus,

I have a 1968 DR, my friend has a reissue. I had the same experience. I found the answer. I knew the circuit hasn't changed and I'm not a big believer in all the hoo-ha about point-to-point wiring vs. PCB drastically affecting the actual sound. So what's left? Exactly... I set the amps back-to-back and tried his speaker with my amp and vice versa. It's the speaker, man. The new Jensen being used now is way better. As you said, "tighter and less woofy." I liked it so much I bought one and put it in. I still have the original speaker on a shelf in a box, but since I'll never sell this amp or put that speaker back in I guess it could be considered clutter. I should probably sell it. I don't obsess about vintage correctness and resale values as much as I just want my gear to sound its best to me.
- Rated: 212 ↑
Jan 14, 2008 11:15 a.m. Proteus:

G'ton, yeah I thought of the speaker the day we were playing, so we crossed them as you say.

SOME improvement, but my old amp was still considerably softer and woolier in the low end, subject to fartation – and it broke up significantly earlier on the dial.

There's just no doubt it had a lot of tired components. Now that it's been blackfaced, it behaves completely differently.

Before, all its useful headroom (depending on pickups, of course) came below 2, 2-1/2, 3 at the MOST. And it was plenty loud at that point. Across the breakup threshold it was farty; from the onset of breakup on up, I absolutely HAD to back the bass way down to get anything usable. As a consequence, I used it only as a clean amp and pedaled for dirt.

And I still wanted more headroom.

Now, the volume increase from nothing up to 4, 4-1/2 is much more gradual – but it's not as loud at 2-1/2 as it was before. Still a consummate clean amp, but I don't know that I really got more clean volume out of it. The dial just calibrates differently.

Across the distortion threshold and on up, though, it's now more usable. All the component-replacing did tighten up the low end and make its response more linear.

I suspect any remaining difference now WOULD be the speaker. I may put in a different speaker to get the extra clean headroom; I very rarely use Fenders up into the overdrive region anyway.
- Rated: 212 ↑
Jan 14, 2008 11:17 a.m. Proteus:

And I would NOT pay 1,000.00 for a Blues Junior. I know it's a well loved amp here – and I LIKE it – but I won't buy one at 450.00.

My next amp is either an AC-15 or a Matchless Lightning Reverb. The Matchless is still the best boutiquer/none-better amp I've heard...but of course the AC-15 is less than half the money, and I'm a sucker for cheap gratification.
- Rated: 74 ↑
Jan 14, 2008 11:51 a.m. bonedaddy:

Well, for what it's worth, I had a DRRI, and sold it. I missed it so much, that I bought another. You can do whatever you want with this amp. With the right boost in front of it, you can damn near do metal (well, that's a bit of an exaggeration).

However, you can do pretty much anything from Angus Young to Wes Montgomery with this amp. My Les Paul, on the neck with the tone rolled off and the volume on the amp about about 3 give an incredibly warm jazz tone.

On the bridge, with everything on 10 and an attenuator give an amazing distortion that ONLY power tube saturation can bring.

If you find one at the right price, you can't possibly regret buying one!
- Rated: 19 ↑
Jan 14, 2008 1:05 p.m. Gretschington:

Proteus said: There's just no doubt it had a lot of tired components. Now that it's been blackfaced, it behaves completely differently.

Ah. I had already done all the restoration work to mine so it was in tip top shape and more of an apples-to-apples test when I swapped speakers.
- Rated: 2 ↑
Jan 14, 2008 1:33 p.m. UD:

Johnboy, It's a good amp! I play my DSV thru it and my strat and it's plenty loud. I play in a 3 piece Surf band and it's great! Go for it!

Ud
- Rated: 12 ↑
Jan 14, 2008 1:46 p.m. jonhope:

Hi,

I agree for UK buyers it isnt a bad price as the lowest price for new ones are in the region of £725.

In terms of volume it will easily keep up with the Valvetronix

The Celestion G12H's are a well regarded speaker

Cheers
- Rated: 19 ↑
Jan 14, 2008 2:35 p.m. TyPierce:

UD: You're using a DRRI for surf? Awesome news - I'm in the middle of selling my Ampeg, but I'm already eyeing up surf-able replacements when I have a bit more cash coming back in. The DRRI is on my list to try out, so it's good to hear someone else is using it for surf.

Are you running the DRRI's onboard reverb, or are you running an outboard tank? How does it stack up?
- Rated: 74 ↑
Jan 14, 2008 2:45 p.m. bonedaddy:

TyPierce, there's no need for outboard reverb on a DRRI. The DRRI have the most EXCELLENT reverb.

Think Chris Isaak's "Blue Hotel" and then some. You can easily pull Ventures, Castaways, all that stuff. Miserlou, Pipeline are all at home on a DRRI.
- Rated: 212 ↑
Jan 14, 2008 2:53 p.m. Proteus:

At LEAST as good a reverb as any amp ever. Some may be different, and as good, but DR reverb is world-standard stuff.

It'll do easily for surf, and get that amp-on-fire brutal clean-ready-to-break sound at MUCH lower volume than the Twin.

Which will kill you.
- Rated: 53 ↑
Jan 14, 2008 3:01 p.m. Ratrod:

I have it on my radar as well. But I'm fearing it won't be loud enough and big sounding enough. Also on my shortlist are the Twin Reverb and the Bandmaster Reverb. I'm starting to lean towards the Twin Reverb beccause of the two speakers, 85 watts and it's supposed to sound really good with a Hughes & Kettner Tube Factor.
- Rated: 41 ↑
Jan 14, 2008 3:26 p.m. dubkitty:

speaking as someone who owns a 100-watt silverface Twin, a Twin is more amp than anyone really needs unless you're playing ballrooms or something...i don't think i've ever turned it up over 6 except for my traditional 4th of July observance, when i used to turn everything all the way up and play "The Star-Spangled Banner" a la Hendrix. a Twin at ten will kill your ears tout suite, and those of everyone around you as well.

you could always rig up a 2x10 or 2x12 cabinet if you need to move more air...you'd be amazed how much air you can move with 20 watts of tube power.
- Rated: 83 ↑
Jan 14, 2008 3:53 p.m. Mark S(ynchro):

dubkitty said: a Twin is more amp than anyone really needs unless you're playing ballrooms or something
You have that right. Century Bob's band was doing mostly surf with some other instrumental Rock thrown in. Bob his-self was using an Ampeg with an RE-20 and a TR-2 while the other guitarist was coming across perfectly plugged straight into a DRRI. It sounded like something from an early '60s beach movie and power was never a problem.

Twins are great but, no fooling, once you move one around a bit the novelty wears thin in a big hurry. They are just large enough, and cumbersome enough to be troublesome and your back will take notice in a New York minute.
- Rated: 25 ↑
Jan 14, 2008 3:53 p.m. Dawg:

Good timing on this - I bought a '65DRRI new from Peter Cooks in Hanwell, London last week for £750 - the Jensen speaker needs playing in, but on first impression, it's an absolute winner.

Unless you play with Metallica, they are perfectly good gigging amps - Bear in mind that 22W is not half as loud as a 50W amp - they are measured on a logrithmic scale and gives an actual volume output not that far from a 50 watt valve amp. Of course there's a difference but don't get fooled by the numbers - maybe a 100w amp is twice as loud. So yes, they hold their own. If there's a decent PA system - double bonus.

The reverb and tremelo are insanely good and i've already been using it for gigs and recording.

Great amp.

Get one.

Now.
- Rated: 74 ↑
Jan 14, 2008 4:15 p.m. bonedaddy:

Ratrod said: I have it on my radar as well. But I'm fearing it won't be loud enough and big sounding enough. Also on my shortlist are the Twin Reverb and the Bandmaster Reverb. I'm starting to lean towards the Twin Reverb beccause of the two speakers, 85 watts and it's supposed to sound really good with a Hughes & Kettner Tube Factor
It's loud enough. Plenty loud enough. The thing about the DRRI is it's know for it's ability to 'project'. Just lay it back on a chair, pointed towards the ceiling; it'll be plenty big enough . The 12" speaker in it spreads out pretty good.

I have a red knobbed twin from the late 80's. It's a BEAST. Even in 25Watt mode, the 2x12 combo is crazy loud.
- Rated: 41 ↑
Jan 14, 2008 4:25 p.m. dubkitty:

once you move one around a bit the novelty wears thin in a big hurry. They are just large enough, and cumbersome enough to be troublesome and your back will take notice in a New York minute.

my mind boggles at the notion that when i was in my late teens i regularly schlepped my Twin up and down four flights of stairs.
- Rated: 83 ↑
Jan 14, 2008 4:31 p.m. Mark S(ynchro):

dubkitty said: my mind boggles at the notion that when i was in my late teens i regularly schlepped my Twin up and down four flights of stairs.
Me too. I used to come home from gigs carrying a 120 watt Randall bass amp up the stairs in the middle of the night. Never again!
- Rated: 22 ↑
Jan 14, 2008 5:53 p.m. Boyko:

Just when I had my GAS for one of these under control, this thread pops up!

I've been wanting one of these for awhile now, as a gig/recording amp. While a little large for recording by most standards, I feel that since I use a Tubescreamer for my overdrive, I won't have to put it too loud to get a good tone from it. Plus, it will gig easily for any application I can stick at it.

Any time I go into the guitar store, I plug into one of these and wish I had the spare cash. But I've been doing some figuring, and between trading in my Epi amp and my acoustic which never gets out of the case, I should only need about $200 cash. Its closer than you think!
- Rated: 4 ↑
Jan 15, 2008 8:07 a.m. mad dog:

I had both a BFDR and a DRRI at the same time. Both gone now. The DRRI came first, was somewhat harsh and thin out of the box. No wonder, biased way cold and the speaker was not impressive. Better tubes, biased right, with a Greenback in there, totally rocking speaker. Liked it so much I got the real deal. The BFDR too benefitted immensely from a new speaker. That's the best thing you can do with these amps, the right speaker transforms them. I sold the DRRI for 550 bucks, and the guy who bought it could not have been happier.
- Rated: 53 ↑
Jan 15, 2008 10:35 a.m. Ratrod:

I know what you're saying about the Twin Reverb's weight. It is on the heavy side but not even close to the weight and bulk of my Ampeg Superrocket. I do need a bit of extra headroom though. Sometimes I play outdoors or a big tent without the support of a PA system. My Hot Rod Deluxe (40W) with a 2X12 cab isn't loud enough in those situations. It just gets dirtier beyond 3.
- Rated: 5 ↑
Jan 15, 2008 10:44 a.m. HillbillyWolf:

I had a Deluxe for a few years, it was too loud to go out anp play with the people i was sitting in with, but it was great. the speaker isnt that great, i put a 1940's era alnico 12" in there and it really sounded great after that. perfect for Rockabilly and Blues, so if you could find a speaker like that, it'd be a cool investment.