When Simpler Is Better | Fender '68 Custom Deluxe Reverb

[@daveogarf]

I LOVE that you take the small amount of time and effort to ensure that the cap values can be read from the top.

[@MichaelSmith-rn1qw]

I like your "thinking out loud" approach to these videos. You are getting close to 30K subscribers! I was with you at the 5K level or possibly before that. I'm glad my 70's Deluxe Reverb is hand wired. Even someone like me was able to recap it, replace bad resistors and even correct a couple of wiring errors a previous "tech" did on it.

[@butchlauer]

This was a good school session for the d r reissues.

[@sgt.grinch3299]

I’m always amazed at your ability and diligence to not just make the amps work, but improve their performance. Thank you for sharing your knowledge Sir.

[@ditchgator1]

No... You wouldn't say it. But I will....You sir...ROCK 😎👍

[@ferdberfle5069]

Ah, the old K.I.S.S. principle! Looking forward to seeing you on Tone Talk tonight.

[@tjminasi1442]

Thanks!

[@bryanbailey6963]

I learn something new with every one of your videos - you find interesting faults.

[@paulantoni1046]

Well…I know to whom I will be sending my 68 custom pro reverb for repairs and reliability upgrades👏 love these videos

[@jerrymcgeorge4117]

Once again many thanks Lyle, those of us that have those promising but frustrating amps really appreciate your sleuth work!

[@ClarenceHW]

Appreciate you work... very enjoyable to listen to.

[@michaeleaster1815]

I'm here from the Tone-Talk Q&A ! Enjoyed that interview and looking forward to this channel... I'm not a tech or even handy though I took some E&M physics 100 years ago... hoping this channel might fire some synapses of yore

[@richclayton5785]

One of your better vids! Of course they are all good…

[@75YBA]

Thanks for all your excellent info Lyle!

[@royconway8700]

Always enjoy your informative videos.

[@richclayton5785]

Nice work and great advice as usual delivered humbly of course as usual. Thanks!

[@rocinblues]

Yep! imperical and practical knowledge solved these issues. Excellent video !

[@LPCustom3]

knowledge & experience Lyle can fix alot of things! You did exactly what I would have done! Bravo!

[@TheStratman007]

...very interesting. Thank you.

[@RayLawrenceJrMUSIC]

Do you take these amps straight from the box and do a complete setup so they work as they are supposed to. I like the 65 Deluxe Reverb and had an original. I want to have that unmolested Fender tone with a properly set up amp. I just need a well skilled tech to make it happen and a price.

[@jayybone6227]

Fantastic video, thank you

[@nevillegoddard4966]

Great video thanks Lyle! That 220uF turned into a half a none-o-farad capacitor! Dreadful luck its resistor went open circuit! Do'h! As so often happens, the 'protection' circuit goes faulty.

[@sharplessguy]

Thanks... great lesson in troubleshooting

[@Busyfingers24]

I really don’t understand much of what you’re saying like micro farit this and flux capacitor that, which I’m sure I spelled wrong! Nevertheless, I cannot stop watching you work in all these vids and listen to you explain things…you truly are a master at your craft! If my DRRI ever craps out I think it’ll be worth every penny to send it across country for you to work your magic👍 GREAT CHANNEL

[@MarySmith-bw5xm]

Keep doing what you're doing . Built 2 se kt88 5879 amps and love them.

[@Electrondivize]

Believe me simplicity is the mother of all invetion.

[@goodun2974]

Boy, I wish ----- many engineers and designers seem to take the most convoluted path imaginable to arrive at a solution to a relatively simple problem. Sometimes they apparently want to demonstrate how clever they are. My personal experience is that morons are impressed or awed by complexity but a genius recognizes and appreciates simplicity.

[@Electrondivize]

Take the lightbulb for example was a bright idea.

[@marksguitars5617]

I have one of these amps, I am generally happy with it but I do notice that the bass is kinda booming and I think what you are saying around 7:45 kind of explains that, thank you.

[@nikonmikon8915]

they have less negative feedback, that's why they're bassier. the speaker impedance curve has a bigger impact on the frequency response of the power amp

[@RJ_HTx]

It is a simple mod. I jumpered that resistor on my 68 Custom Princeton and I have a better control of the Bass. I haven’t done it on my 68 Deluxe Reveb cuz I usually play on the second channel. That resistor is only on the first channel, what Fender calls the Bassman tone stack.

[@mickeystanic4750]

Can it be jast taken out or it needs to be bridged once the resistor is out? Thank you. @@RJ_HTx

[@RJ_HTx]

@@mickeystanic4750if you take it out it needs to be replace by a piece of wire.

[@mickeystanic4750]

@@RJ_HTx Thank you!

[@azlanx]

1 i really appreciate all your videos, 2 i hear you say a lot "Leo would have fired x" I like to think Leo or whoever would have looked at poor work and then trained the person to do it well

[@johnwilliamson467]

Great demo . Do see you point that the need for ESR cap test is not need when you know it a bad cap. ESR testing is good for the less well experienced tech. So the 18k resistor is to voice the bass tone circuit in a way not wanted by the player . Bell and Whistles for no good use . It not bragging when you deliver . So 45 years ago heard a very good surgeon say in front of me it what I know not what I have to do that your are paying for . You can have cheap , right , or fast but you only get 2 of 3 you choose.

[@PsionicAudio]

Thanks. ESR testing can be critical in circuits dealing in MHz frequencies or where temperature changes can cause big issues. As you know - I’m just explaining for the peanut gallery. In this case I knew it was a bad filter stage, and given how bad the stock caps are I knew I would be changing them all out. Normally I don’t bother measuring a bad cap but figured someone might like to see it.

[@johnwilliamson467]

@@PsionicAudio In the hi-fi end it is of interest for those of us down in the weed of power supply design . For this app the power supply is used and design for a different purpose more quiet and flexible on voltage to achieve desired sound or tone . HI-FI is looking for a very quiet low ESR wide band with very low voltage change not at all the same thing . You do a very nice job of help amp tech with the knowledge they need to do good work .

[@Dirge4july]

Interesting. So my amp has been humming off an on when I turn the reverb up. I did replace caps not to long ago. I have no idea if they were power cap or filter caps. If there’s even a difference .

[@johnthornburg4049]

Lyle, as far as tremolo thud, have you ever swapped in a sovtek 12AX7C for the tremolo tube and it reduce the tremolo thud? I've ran into that. BTW, I liked this one because it was a bit unexpected. Like to see that.

[@PsionicAudio]

Changing for a lower gain tube is usually more effective with a bias wiggle circuit, IME. And thanks, I try to change things up as I can.

[@jamesunderhill1603]

I can't believe that Fender hasn't improved it's amp building when folks like this keep flagging up faults.

[@ericecklund676]

Lyle, I love your videos and learn so much from watching them. You have a great eye for the small details and customer service. I've noticed that you don't do any 57 Deluxe Reissue Tweed amps. Wouldn't those amps also benefit from upgraded Caps and components?

[@PsionicAudio]

Thanks! No customers have brought any in. Not a lot in Memphis I guess. Had a few EC Tremoluxes but no RI 5E3s.

[@1Dougloid]

Those are a good multimeter for the moola. Do the Al Green riff, will ya?

[@BradsGuitarGarage]

G'day Robert!

[@1Dougloid]

@@BradsGuitarGarage And to you, my friend!

[@chrisfit]

Does the 64 Custom Handwired have the same noise floor? It also shares channels

[@ffbai]

It sure does. It also has bleed over from each channel. You need to keep the volume of the unused channel at zero otherwise you will get unwanted noise in the channel you are using.

[@clemdog76]

Where do I get the caps? Also, that circuit on the bass pot of the first channel, just remove it? Nothing more just cut it out?

[@stormyweather2837]

That's the whole circuit board from a 68 custom deluxe ri ?

[@PWB87]

Do you find it necessary to also replace the cathode bypass caps, or just the power supply related caps when one comes in like this?

[@audiotechlabs4650]

Lyle, which of the two channels in a Deluxe Reverb has the most volume and tone? There seems to be a controversy over which channel would be the one to chose if building a single channel Deluxe. A tech friend and I are on opposite sides of the issue. ❤️ your channel! Thanxz

[@PsionicAudio]

They have the “same amount of tone” just different characteristics. The Vibrato channel potentially has a little more gain but that can be reversed if resistors in the circuit are out of spec.

[@joepascual967]

What are your thoughts on a12au7 on the phase inverter? Would this require a rebias?

[@michaelcottle6270]

Is there a higher voltage 40 uf cap you could substitute for the 500V MOD & keep the option open for the solid state rectifier replacement?

[@shckltnebay]

Why is there 400v on the reverb driver in these amps? That tube runs crazy hot in my 79 DR

[@PsionicAudio]

‘79 might have the unbypassed 470 or 680 ohm. Can be merciless on the tube. Change for 2.K bypassed with a 22uf. Will be the same AC signal but less DC stress on the tube (to oversimplify). Needs the voltage for the current swing, which is right at the edge of what a 12AT7 can provide. Notice the standalone reverb unit used a 6V6 as the driver. The reverb driver stage is an output stage driving a small output transformer into an 8 ohm load.

[@shckltnebay]

@@PsionicAudio Thanks was watching your vid on the vibrolux and you mention that so I just did it.!!!!! Thanks so much will be testing it tomorrow.

[@dcbowling80]

I consider myself a smart man, and as a smart man, I accept your a smarter man than me when it comes to guitar amps. I think I'll take precautionary measures and just replace the caps in my deluxe.

[@gigmandrew8975]

What would I need to do to slow down the tremolo speed in my 68 custom deluxe reissue amp? I never use the highest trem speed setting so it wouldn't matter to me if that was affected.

[@robertmailloux3720]

Hello,thx for posting! How to get rid of the white noise on these?? I was about to buy a 68 Deluxe and finally went another way because of this stupid white noise lol. Sad because it sounds good and is a beautiful amp.

[@t.nieblas2679]

How do the MOD capacitors compare to F&T and Sprague? Are they just as good or are they more comparable to the IC capacitors?

[@PsionicAudio]

I don’t use IC or (high voltage) Sprague Atoms. I happily use MODs, F&Ts, and would use TADs.

[@t.nieblas2679]

Why not the high voltage Spragues? Are there quality issues with those or is it because they cost more?

[@PsionicAudio]

Those aren’t what they used to be. Now they’re small caps in a big blue tube. And the quality has gone down but the price is high. No bueno, no gracias.

[@t.nieblas2679]

@@PsionicAudio hmm, that’s very interesting to know. I guess I’ll give a little more thought if I want to buy Sprague atoms as filter caps for my next project.

[@nikonmikon8915]

does running the reverb circuit without a tank fry the reverb transformer? I've heard it's pretty much like an output transformer, you don't want to send signal into it when it has nowhere to go. your thoughts?

[@PsionicAudio]

Won’t hurt for quick testing like this but if you’re going to use a Fender like this with no tank connected, pull the reverb driver tube (V3 on most of them, V2 on a Princeton).

[@nikonmikon8915]

@@PsionicAudio i hadn't even thought of pulling the tube, thanks 👍

[@goodun2974]

At 0:53, "OL" stands for "Overflow"!? Who knew? Electrons leaking out and forming a puddle on the floor? 🤔🤣

[@PsionicAudio]

Over Limit, Over Load, Overkill.

[@gringopig]

I always thought it was Open Loop

[@goodun2974]

@@gringopig , Open Loop actually makes sense.

[@BradsGuitarGarage]

stack OverfLow

[@matthewpage8108]

Lol, I always thought “open line”. Thanks y’all

[@matambale]

That lead dress issue really surprised me - seems as though it's more than a QA issue, but a layout issue. Leads sensitive like that should have been 'designed for manufacturing' such that they'd be optimized for minimal noise and then -- immovable. Am I missing something obvious?

[@garynash7594]

Question, if you can help me..... I have a Bogen CHB 100 want to use for home audio.. why does the 750 Ohm 7 Watt ( doing choke duty?) anyway , it flames out time and again even up to a 25 Watt replacement? If you can help, would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!.

[@PsionicAudio]

Odds are something is drawing way too much current after that resistor. Shorted cap likely. Take it to a tech.

[@garynash7594]

@@PsionicAudio THANKS A LOT ! I used to work on amps but went back to playing guitar I've forgotten how to work on them. Appreciate your help .

[@Jonathan_Doe_]

Series caps that aren’t the same value or voltage rating… Just asking for trouble

[@Crunchifyable2]

The more I think about it the more I realize that channel switching amps just do the same thing two or three or four times. And it's all a compromise. But it is nice to have two amps in one if they are both good.

[@joeltunnah]

Isn't the essence of modern (post blonde era) Fender and Marshall amps "added complications"?

[@AROSFC]

Can someone please tell me if there's a Lyle video reparing or working on a red knob Fender?

[@PsionicAudio]

There’s at least one, not sure if it’s here or on FB.

[@muntor7935]

pretty sure brad has a red knob video too

[@AROSFC]

@@PsionicAudio tks, I'll htake a look

[@AROSFC]

@@PsionicAudio I can't open your facebook page...

[@AROSFC]

@@muntor7935 I couldn't find it either and also Uncle Doug does not have one also.

[@lwv6966]

I don't care what Brad say's. I stopped watching hin last year when he posted the vid of him breaking LP's and dropping F bomb's and getting political. never watched him since. Angry politics do not belong in amp repair video's (or, frankly, anywhere else) I like yer stuff, Keep it up! :)

[@cgavin1]

Everyone has ups and downs.. he was going through some stuff. Brads on the spectrum and as a fellow non-typical its often our misfortune to disengage the filter from time to time. Especially when things aren't going great personally. I don't think he gives a hoot about the commercial side of it anyway. He's evidently not poor. ;)

[@jordangibson695]

A solid state plug in is STILL bad news because you are hitting your power tube plates with too high a voltage. They are already pressed too much.

[@GilgaFrank]

Amps just aren't built to last now, they're designed for the convenience of the manufacturer rather than for reliability or serviceability and aimed at bedroom players who will never let the amp roll out of a tour bus.

[@joer5000]

I’ll take a 65-67 BF tube amp any day. They sound warmer! Great video though!

[@vadenk4433]

Those 68 customs are good sounding amp’s but they do tend to be noisy af. Sometimes obnoxiously so. That said my #1 amp is an original 68 Super Reverb, from before they were all changed to the silverface circuit, and it can sometimes make noise too. But at gig & rehearsal volumes it’s not an issue to me. The only real problem I’ve ever had with it (other than having to lug its heavy/awkward sized ass all over the PNW) is at one certain venue where I’d occasionally pick up the 10’ Clock news. I’d literally have Dan Rather coming through my speakers & everyone in the club would burst out laughing. It wasn’t funny to me though - it was freaking embarrassing- especially when it happened during a quiet bridge or intro part. When I’d plug into a different outlet it would usually go away. And since it was intermittent- you might get through half the set list before it’d happen- so sound check would never seem to catch it.