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It is my contention that a Twin Reverb likes to be played LOUDly at 5 and above. At home volumes, it is going to sound thin and anæmic. That is because the speakers rated for use with the Twin like to be pushed before they give up their goods. The solid-state rectifier makes it cold-sounding, less organic warmth than you hear with tube rectifiers.
It could work if you swap the speakers out for lower-rated ones. But you run the risk of blowing them up should you accidentally turn up the volume.
Take out a pair of 6L6s to halve the power.
The Vibrolux, Vibroverb or Pro Reverb might work better. I know we say we don't plan to move them but invariably, we will. The waifu requires that corner vacuumed!Last edited by Jabberwocky; 08-22-2016 at 07:36 AM.
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08-22-2016 05:08 AM
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I agree that the twin likes to be played somewhat loud. At 1 or 2 it may not be at its best. I play usually around 4 and back off the guitar volume a bit. That is significant volume but still quite ok for home ... Granted we live in a free standing house and my wife is tolerant. For an apartment that would be too much. Again, I have profiled my twin at volume five and the Kemper profile sounds great ... And can be used at any volume. Through my little Bose L1 it fills the room nicely and does not have the directionality issues of guitar amp speakers.
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When I was very active in amp building years ago, I kept a Twin Reverb in my shop to A/B against each amplifier I built. The point was, "how does this amplifier compare with a known standard--the Twin Reverb?"
Alas, when I scaled back amp building--I build only about one/year now--I got rid of the TR because ... I don't know; it was a stupid decision in retrospect. It was a GREAT amp around the house.
A guy in a local band still uses that amp, at this point. It is loud as heck...original speakers, and all...and works each and every time.
I replaced that amp with an old Lab Series L-5 (also a great amp), but I wish the TR was still around. Hard to carry? Absolutely. Worth the schlepp? Absolutely.
I have two outdoor gigs coming up. The TR would be perfect. Instead, I will be taking two Polytone MiniBrute IV amps. The only advantage? One amp in each hand. Nominally, the power of the MBs is going to be about double what the TR was. In reality? The TR would blow them away--both of them. And, be clean and clear in the process.
[Did any amp ever outperform the TR? Yes. I have built 5f6a Bassman amps that I thought sounded better. That amp, if you get the planets in alignment, is unbelievably beautiful sounding.]
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Why buy when you can find it as a house amp in many clubs? And weigh pros and cons on the job. I did, and came to conclusion it's not for me. It's not plug and play kinda amp, without pedals it sounds pretty blunt to me. At least with my Guild archtop, maybe it just a bad match, who knows...
Originally Posted by yebdox
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I disagree that Twins don't make good home amps.
use my '66 all the time and it sounds great @ home.
now if your woman keeps telling you to turn it down to 1, I can't help you.
using Twins almost exclusively these days.
everyone says they like to run a small amp through a PA.
we played a gig this weekend where I was assured there'd be a PA.
guess what, no PA so my Twin saved the day and could be heard way @ the back of the venue.
> point Twin.
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btw, what are all these pedals and EQ's you guys are talking about.
plug in and play, the only thing between my guitar and the Twin is my Pitchblack tuner, which sits on top of my amp.
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With archtops it is important to understand how to set the tone stack on a TR. Try bass = 1, mid = 8, treble = 1 sometime. This is like setting an Ampeg bass = 5, treble = 5. It's a great jazz setting. Johnny Smith would approve.
Otherwise, you get a profound bass "hump," that is going to do some stuff that archtops don't need. You will end up being the pianist and bassist's first name on the "to kill" list.
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I agree, Yebdox. As to volume, my Twin Amp has a functionactivated from a rear panel switch that , as the user’s manual explains “ When in the OUTPUT HIGHposition, the maximum output power of the Twin is set to 100 watts RMS, when inthe OUTPUT LOW position, 25 watts RMS. The OUTPUT HIGH position is normally used in most applications, and the OUTPUTLOW position is useful for simulating a smaller amplifier […].” Plus “In addition to a HIGH/LOW POWER switch, that you canhear, the TWIN also features external bias and balance adjustmentcapability. The four 6L6WGC/5881 outputtubes can be set up by anyone with a digital voltmeter without removing thechassis. This means that you can re-biasevery time you re-tube and can check bias and balance over the life of thetubes.”
The users’ manual also states that “The selection of aFender amplifier will reward you with years of quality music in a wide range ofcontrolled sounds. […]” In can attest to that. Best amp I ever had.
Originally Posted by yebdox
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Hello, does someone have experiences with the 68 custom twin reverb?
I'm interested at this amp but i don't know nothing about the speakers, Celestion G12v70.
I have the possibility to buy one of this or the '65 TWIN REVERB ANNIVERSARY (the one in tweed with two celestion V30).
Thank you
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I begrudge no person his/her pedals. I own a bunch. Occasionally I will practice with my Ditto pedal to lay down a vamp and improvise over it. Rarely, I will use my delay pedal to get slapback when I am fooling with Chet stuff at home.
When playing out, however, I never use pedals because I don't want people to think that the Chet stuff or Merle stuff is pedal magic. I just count on the 2 pickup setting to get some chimeyness going and let 'er rip.
For jazz, I am traditional enough to just prefer the sound of an archtop into an instrument cord into an amp.
Even when I am rocking out I just dime the amp. Good old power amp distortion...Cream/Politician, etc.
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Oh, let me tell you...back in the day we used to have two guitarists with TRs turned up pretty much all the way. They won't get as rude as a dimed Super Reverb (that sounds like Jimi at Woodstock, by the way), but they will scare people right up against the back wall. One guy had a gold top and I had a Strat. BOOM!
Oh, yeah...you WILL blow out a speaker doing this.
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Originally Posted by Jabberwocky
If I were to go the speaker-swap route, rather than lower the rating (and I'm assuming you mean wattage rating), I'd select less-efficient speakers. IIRC, old Twins came with speakers with 103dB JBLs, which are going to get the most volume out of the input wattage. Swapping those with speakers of identical power-handling but less sensitivity -- say, 97 - 100 dB -- will result in lower volume without risking speaker damage.
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I just purchased a fender twin reverb to pair up with my Ibanez 95aft.
Can someone tell me if I made a great choice with this match up. I'm also using flat wound strings to achieve a warm tone.
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A Fender Twin and an archtop is considered a classic match in many jazz guitar circles. Many, many gigs have been played with that combination and probably countless recordings too.
Playing around with the EQ to find the sound you want will be fun. For a classic tone, run the mid control very high (think "10") and the bass and treble controls very low (think "1" or less). This flattens out Fender's pronounced built-in mid scoop in the tone stack. Tweak from there.
Twins are very, very loud. At home you might find 1-2 on the volume knob to be as loud as your family and neighbors will tolerate. Even in a large room at a gig, 3-4 might be as loud as you can usefully go. As a result you have tons of clean headroom at your disposal.
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If you can deal with the weight and size of a Fender Twin Reverb, it's a match made in heaven for an archtop. Mine is the master volume model from about 1973, before the ultralinear output transformer was added. The master volume control comes in handy for lower volume situations. I think the amp sounds better with the channel volume set near its mid point to turning it down to 2. Turning the master down to 5 makes that possible. If I had a twin without MV I'd actually consider adding one. I've always been baffled by people removing them in blackface conversions, since it can be easily bypassed by simply turning it to 10.
Last edited by KirkP; 04-01-2017 at 02:23 PM.
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Following up from my last. The Fender Twin Reverb and my Ibanez 95aft the best match up ever. Waiting now to see how it will match up with the Ibanez LGB 30 I'm purchasing. I'm truly blown away by the tone of this match up.
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Basically the Twin can do anything, if it could carry itself it 'd be the perfect amp. Don't think i ever played a gig with mine
but i enjoy it at home!
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My first gig is the 27th of this month. I've prepared for carrying it down 3 flight of steps. I'm hoping I can make it back up the stairs. I'll follow up with that after the gig.
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I keep chasing the sound of a Fender Twin first with a Mustang II now with Boss Katana. Neither is that close. The only reason I don't get a Twin is they're too loud for home use. Now that I know I'll keep an eye out for one with a master volume. Did not realize they existed. When I play with headphones and apps there are a couple that come very close but I, especially my aging ears, prefer a "real" amp.
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I can definitely relate to that . Tried chasing the sound with a line 6 amplifi 150 with the setting for clean twin. Not far as a comparison to a true fender twin reverb sound. Not even close. Definitely an phenomenal amplifier . Fender Twin Reverb is in a class of its own.
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I have a Twin Reverb at home, play it once in awhile in the late morning when even the neighbors aren't around...it is loud. As far as an amp goes, the Twin Reverb is one of those amps that is sooo good it can make a ukulele missing 2 of its 4 strings sound like an L5...just sayin'.....
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Do yourself a favor and invest in a hand truck with sufficiently large wheels to deal with stairs. Three flights gets old fast. I trucked a 66 pound Peavy Classic Fifty (four 10" speakers) up and down stairs for many years, as well as a Marshall half-stack, frequently using both for outdoor gigs and larger stages. Nowadays, I'm happy with my smaller amps.
But there is indeed nothing like a Twin Reverb. Except maybe a Dual Showman Reverb, with two 15" JBLs. had one of those, too.
My back hurts.
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Ouch! Originally Posted by Smooth Jazz 64
The Twin Reverb is difinitely the best amp I have never owned. It has no rival for sound. The only thing holding me back from buying one has always been the weight.
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Once you played thru a Twin, all other amps become meh....
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You haven't lived until you've toted a Twin up a set of spiral stairs in 95 degree heat to get to the top deck of a party yacht! Two days later, I was in the hospital for a heart catheterization and angioplasty. Been using lightweight amps ever since. Great tone but not enough better to be worth the trouble.
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