Deluxe Reverb Silverface - yes or no?

[PJazzmaster]

hey, I have the chance to buy a SF DR, fully original, late 70's, export Version (not soooo easy to find around here) for around 1.2k EUR
I am short of money but I could arrange it somehow. Last thing I need is another amp. But this seems to be a great deal, right?
Problem is that I have to pay some university fees next month (I am attending weekend and evening classes on top of my dayjob)... but I could arrange it somehow

a) What are you waiting for, buy it! You can still sell it easily for more it if you really need the money...

b) Buy it and sell some other gear as this is an awesome deal and an awesome amp

c) don't buy it

[Larsongs]

The early 70's Silverface were pretty much the same Amp as the pre CBS Blackface amps. From what I've read & from memory as the 70's progressed the Amps continued to get modified by CBS & aren't as desirable. That said it still could be a good Amp.

Best thing to do is try it out & see whether or not it works for you.

Good Luck on your Quest!

[Despot]

http://fenderguru.com/amps/deluxe-reverb/

So I've already been down this road with my Princeton, which is a SF '73 model. I've had it converted to black face specs - relatively easily.

Unless the amp is from '77 to '79 (when it had the pull boost pots) I would be all over it - it's basically a slightly modified black face circuit (different rectifier iirc). I haven't had any hands on experience with the BF or SF Deluxe, but I have had experience with Princetons and I liked my non-reverb Princeton so much that I've just bought another SF - a Princeton Reverb from '71!

That's a pretty good price for Europe - and export amps are rare finds (no need for a step down transformer, which makes life easier if you're gigging it - nothing worse than realising you've forgotten the step down transformer when you start setting up).

Do it!

[PJazzmaster]

Thanks, I do think it's the volume boost version. What's so bad about it and is it still a good EU price for this version?

[cestlamort]

Don't worry about the pull boost - just ignore it.

The later 70s fenders tend to be a bit heavier than their late 60s counterparts (cabinet construction?) but still sound great, and the smaller ones didn't have many changes.

I'd go for it if it's not too much of a hardship.

[OffYourFace]

The Deluxe Reverb didn't really change too much over the years. The pull-boost is shit but just don't engage it.
I've had so many amps over the years and all I play is my '76 DR now. I put a 50w ceramic Jupiter speaker in it and I'm all set. It does everything I need it to do.
IME, the SFDRs with the 5U4G rectifier are more pedal friendly and have a bit more headroom than the BF models with the GZ34/5AR4 rectifier.
The 70s cabinets aren't the best but they're fine.

[PJazzmaster]

Thanks all for your help / advice!

So it's here and it's nice! A bit dirty but in great condition overall. I have removed the back panels to clean it inside.

I think it's actually from 1980! It came with the 2 original switching pedals (the 2nd one with for the volume boost, which is bad indeed) but the normal channel sounds very good. I guess it needs a service sooner or later as the vibrato and the reverb are really really noisy when engaged. I will find out.

So if I bring it to a service, what mods would you recommend?
- Blackfacing it?
- Getting rid of the volume boost push pull and using it for the bright cap instead?
- A different rectifier tube?
- Mid control to be added added to former boost switch jack on the back?
- Anything else?

If I can, I will keep the amp for a while...and decide after the service (for sure also good for it's resale value)

[OffYourFace]

I would just have the pull boost removed and get it recapped and retubed where necessary. Don't do anything else or you will lower the value. You won't miss having a midrange control. You can get different sounds from pedals if necessary. Just turn up the amp and it'll sound amazing.

On the tech-y side, the phase inverter may have 330k resistors instead of 1meg. That's how mine is. I prefer the 330k with this amp. It should already have a proper bias ckt so you're good there. The main point of the blackface mod is to rewire the bias and phase inverter ckts.

Oh and the plate resistors in the output section might be 100k/100k instead of 82k/100k. That's no big deal. I believe that's how mine is. There's the slight chance that there could 47k/47k resistors there. I'm not sure if the DR received that change... The bigger amps did. If so, I'd personally change them to the 82k/100k.

[Larsongs]

If it's all original I would do the least possible as far as changing anything.

[cestlamort]

I would just have the pull boost removed and get it recapped and retubed where necessary. Don't do anything else or you will lower the value. You won't miss having a midrange control. You can get different sounds from pedals if necessary. Just turn up the amp and it'll sound amazing.

Does the pull boost effect anything when pushed in? I've always thought you could just leave as-is.

[OffYourFace]

I would just have the pull boost removed and get it recapped and retubed where necessary. Don't do anything else or you will lower the value. You won't miss having a midrange control. You can get different sounds from pedals if necessary. Just turn up the amp and it'll sound amazing.

Does the pull boost effect anything when pushed in? I've always thought you could just leave as-is.

Technically no. But the signal is still going through the wire runs. I'm all for eliminating unnecessary lengths of wire.

[Despot]

You know I was thinking about this after I got your PM Pjazzmaster...

I'm sort of an oddball when it comes to amps and guitars ... I can never leave them alone unless they're all original (and in that original format, they work for me). So when I got the Princeton NR I wasn't too concerned about making minor mod/changes, because it had already been wired for solid state rectification (now corrected and put back to the original spec), and the original speaker was gone ... so I didn't feel too bad about ripping it out and putting the Weber in there.

On the other hand the Princeton Reverb I'm picking up tomorrow sounds fantastic - and it's all original (except for the baffle - which is no big deal as it's been done well). I wouldn't touch or change anything on the SF PR, but I feel fine with changing the SF PNR as it had already been mucked with.

Trust your ears Pjazzmaster. The SF PNR sounded really really good when I got it (with the mods that had been done). I took a gamble that it would sound even better with the changes to put it back to how it was stock ... and that paid off. I knew I could always change back if it didn't work, but that didn't turn out to be necessary. If it sounds good and works, it's good. No need to overthink it.

So - if you plug in, hit a chord and the sound makes you smile ... play it. If it needs a work over to sort out the reverb and tremolo ... not a problem ... these are normal 'quality of life' repairs that are needed from time to time, like fixing a busted pot on a guitar. But other than that - just play it!

The whole debate about BF v early SF v late SF/80s/red knob/Riviera era Fenders (which I'll admit I'm 100% guilty of getting into) is redundant if you like the sound.

[PJazzmaster]

Big thanks to all of you! This is some really great input!

I do like the current sound of the amp. The normal channel is nice and warm sounding, great for pedals.
The reverb / trem channel sounds very bright but it a nice way, very Fenderish.

There are sooooooooo many possible modifications, but hey. It sounds good as it is..
Ok, it obviously has some faulty tubes but that's not a big deal.

I was thinking a lot about possible mods but came to the conclusion (after all your inputs and after seeing many youtube demos) that I actually really like how this amp sounds. Ok, youtube isn't known for sound quality but I was surprised that I actually preferred most Silverface DR demo's over most of the Blackface ones (talking about demos of vintage examples).

So to avoid bad surprises and to keep the amp as original as possible, I finally decided to:

- bring it to a sevice as soon as I can afford it ( ). This is a must anyway, especially if I wanna sell it at a later stage
- getting rid of the volume boost push pull but using the push pull the bright cap instead (yes, the existing bright cap in the 2nd channel), hoping to make the reverb channel a bit more versatile with this mod
- and getting it checked overall... tubes, caps etc. ... let's see

more later but not before October or maybe even November...

cheers

[cestlamort]

Good ideas all.

- getting rid of the volume boost push pull but using the push pull the bright cap instead (yes, the existing bright cap in the 2nd channel), hoping to make the reverb channel a bit more versatile with this mod

Maybe see if you can have the pull knob function like the switch (engaged = bright on, in = bright off).

[PJazzmaster]

Good ideas all.

- getting rid of the volume boost push pull but using the push pull the bright cap instead (yes, the existing bright cap in the 2nd channel), hoping to make the reverb channel a bit more versatile with this mod

Maybe see if you can have the pull knob function like the switch (engaged = bright on, in = bright off).

that's exactly what I want! so that the bright cap is getting activated by the pull and "bright off" is the "normal"