Why don't Fender reissue amps have auxiliary AC outlets?

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gaddis

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This has always puzzled me. The reissues have a polarity switch which is not even connected to anything, yet the useful AC outlet on the back panel was excluded.
 

GuitLoop

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Never used the outlet on the back...ever. Usually I'm plugging the amp into a power strip that has lots of other outlets. Not saying there is no use for them but I've never used one.
 

Chiogtr4x

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Mostly the cost of the part and lack of use. How many people really used those?

I ( sadly) no longer have my '68 Deluxe Reverb, but when I did ( and before this, a '67 Pro Reverb) that amp outlet was perfect for my little pedal board (still use it)
I jjust ran a short extension cord ( really old school ' 2-prong lamp cord) from the amp outlet to one Power adapter that was on board ( daisy chain to other pedals)
This was a no brainer for at least 10 years fir me!

( ** amp itself was upgraded to 3-prong power cable)
 

gaddis

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...
that amp outlet was perfect for my little pedal board (still use it)
...

Exactly. That’s what I would use it for if I had one. I generally don’t bother with a pedalboard anymore because all the extra extension cord wiring annoys me on stage. I’d be more inclined to use it if I could just plug it into the back of my amp.
 

EsquireOK

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I loved those little extension outlets, and used the one on my Princeton Reverb quite often. I also use them to this day on my stereo setup. My turntable plugs in to the back of my amp/receiver. I too wish they were still there (though a grounded version would be better).
 

gaddis

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Mostly the cost of the part and lack of use. How many people really used those?

The “cost of the part” theory doesn’t really fly, because they still include a polarity switch which is not even wired in.

In the old days, the outlet was used for things like outboard reverb units.
 

Obelisk

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Power strips are more readily available today than the 60's and 70's. Liability could also be an issue. The couple of times I used the back control plug, it made the signal noisier. Why bother using these plugs? Get a good Furman power strip and be done with it. It is stupid that they put a non-functional switch on the amp without the plug. Both should have been eliminated.
 

2 Headed Goat

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This has always puzzled me. The reissues have a polarity switch which is not even connected to anything, yet the useful AC outlet on the back panel was excluded.

Well, think of it this way... you won't have to bother with punters plugging their devices in to charge them while you're playing...
 

24 track

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most fender amps these days are not on turret boards and are on PC boards using Nylon Jacks that are not tied to Chassis ground as the old PTP wired units indicating some sort of solid state , tube combo ( All SS amps do not tie to Chassis ground, and all the jacks are nylon ) not like the older switchcraft jacks that were used in the turret board units.
I suspect that the modern assembally plants in China would have to tie the ground to the chassis and this may cause some interference and become a noise factor, due to the modified design of the amps ,
I just did a recap on a 65 twin BF RI, it resembled more of a tube powered solid state than the Twins predecesor and on top of the sloppy cold soldered connections that broke blowing out all of the filter caps there was multipin connectors that were not soldered correctly and the unit was riddled with cheap components .

My point is the redesign of the new amps is not the same as the vintage units although the circuits may be similar on paper, which may be why the out let is not included ,
It may be easier to remove it by design than to properly install and shield it, JMHO
 
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VintageSG

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Cost is one main issue. Another ( and this may be Europe or the UK only ) is safety. I vaguely remember reading an opinion piece in an I.T publication regarding the removal of pass-throughs on computer power supplies, and how this was quite annoying ( true! ) as it meant another outlet was required to power the monitor. The lack of protective shuttering on a fixed IEC meant folk could poke paperclips into the outlet for squits and giggles. As to the truth of that, I suspect there is something behind it, bolstered by self-righteous blustering about interference from nanny states. I'd side mainly with cost aspects, not just the component cost, but tooling and assembly.

Aside. Amplifiers with FX loops should have a 9V 2000mAH outlet available!.
 

radiocaster

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Good for an adapter, and the original ones just had a two-prong outlet, so there isn't much else you would want to put there. Also the export models didn't have them, they had a voltage switch instead.

Looking at pics, I noticed that it might be hard to even fit an adapter if you actually keep the back on, and the new amps all have some kind of cover on the back.
 

Chiogtr4x

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Exactly. That’s what I would use it for if I had one. I generally don’t bother with a pedalboard anymore because all the extra extension cord wiring annoys me on stage. I’d be more inclined to use it if I could just plug it into the back of my amp.

MISS my vintage BF/SF amps ( needed the $$, had to sell)

An old Deluxe Reverb in terms of size/power/tone/features ( and looking so cool!) was just about the most perfect amp I could ask for!
 

Blrfl

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I'm kinda guessing that that would be a liability against their warranty. Who knows what anyone may plug into it.
I wouldn't put one either.

They'd never get it safety certified without having the outlet downstream of the main fuse, so anything that doesn't draw too much current isn't going to cause problems and anything that does will blow the fuse. There are some things you could do through that outlet that would damage the amp, but those would be abuse, which pretty much every warranty disclaims.

VintageSG is right about the tooling costs; it's not just about the extra socket and wire. The reissues are built to be sold worldwide, which would mean maintaining a different version for every combination of voltage and socket. (You may have noticed that detachable power cords with an IEC connector on one end have become the norm; this is so you can produce one version of the product and supply the right cord for each market.) A UK socket would be impossible because all outlets in the UK have to be grounded and sport a large array of safety features that make them too big for the chassis.

I don't see a polarity switch on any of the current RIs; am I missing something?
 

King Fan

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This has always puzzled me. The reissues have a polarity switch which is not even connected to anything, yet the useful AC outlet on the back panel was excluded.

Toddlers? Lawyers? Both?


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 
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24 track

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Leo designed the first amps based on a an amp used in radio circuits (RCA i believe, but dont quote me on it) his subsiquent amps were all based loosly on this design he used military standards and tubes available for design and construction , 2 prong plugs and death caps were standard , plus 110 volts A/C.

He was always experimenting with his amp designs and would pull one off the line , mod it and place it back in line without Identifying the unit he worked on , he also used parts that he could readily source so the parts could be a crap shoot at points and could be subject to some inconsistencies.

a few years back ROBROB posted a circuit for a beautifully designed Bucking transformer to aid with the voltage requirements of vintage amps
http://www.tdpri.com/threads/bucking-transformer-build.494003/#post-8705618

I digress , with the fact that reissuse Fender amps being made out of country and the shadow of the quality control used in the point to point type wiring of the vintage amps the outlets on the back may be a cost cutting initiative or a detriment to the noise floor of the amp design, untill some one does a mod to test it we will never know .
 
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