NAD: 1968 Super Reverb

[SoK66]

What do you think about the paper vs the kaptan formers?

I have two fender blue frames from the 90s which (correct me if I'm wrong), I think are supposed to be equivalent to the eminence Blue Frame 1028 Alnicos (not sure if they're paper or kaptan). I plan on putting those in the super reverb.
View attachment 1072348
Am I correct? Are they similar to CTSs, and equivalent to Eminence Blue Frame 1028s?

Those would be excellent in a Super Reverb. I had them in a killer '91 Bassman Reissue and have a pair I bought in 1990 in a tweed Super clone. They are far better than the Jensen P10s in the current Bassman reissue.

 

[itsGiusto]

Lyle Caldwell, Psionic Audio. If you haven't seen his videos on amp service & repair they are worth the time.

Ah yeah, I watch him a bunch.

 

[itsGiusto]

Those would be excellent in a Super Reverb. I had them in a killer '91 Bassman Reissue and have a pair I bought in 1990 in a tweed Super clone. They are far better than the Jensen P10s in the current Bassman reissue.

I am curious why they put Fender those speakers in tweed bassman reissue amps. Did vintage bassman amps ever run CTS alnicos? My impression was that they used to run exclusively Jensen alnicos.

 

[jumpbluesdude]

I am reading with safety in maind, and no, I didn't miss that the ground switch and death cap were out of the circuit. I asked the question because what you are suggesting be done is contrary to common practice, I.E., fusing and switching on the hot side with neutral, not hot, affixed to the primary. Again, if the transformer shorts to ground the positive current shorts to ground and to the guitar if one is plugged in. Matters not if we've seen a Schumacher short, safe practices work on potential fails. Depending upon the circuit breaker in a club to operate to code? I think I'll pass.

Again, I’m not teaching a class. If the transformer shorts it hits a chassis with a dedicated ground wire tied to it and snaps the circuit breaker.

I can’t help that you want to rely on and trust the common practice of hot to fuse, but reject the universally accepted practice of circuit breakers and electrical inspections. It’s not my job to convince you. Do what you want, Mr Contrarian. I’ll trust my training and common sense. The FACT is my way is the safest and now that you’ve said something, you can’t back down without losing face. I won’t further entertain your attempts to do that, so I’ll not be responding to you.

 

[jumpbluesdude]

Yeah, I’ll still pass on the line of logic that has someone not wiring the hot to the fuse. …

That’s fine. It’s not my job to help you understand the concept of a circuit.

 

[Jasonpatrick]

Again, I’m not teaching a class. If the transformer shorts it hits a chassis with a dedicated ground wire tied to it and snaps the circuit breaker.

I can’t help that you want to rely on and trust the common practice of hot to fuse, but reject the universally accepted practice of circuit breakers and electrical inspections. It’s not my job to convince you. Do what you want, Mr Contrarian. I’ll trust my training and common sense. The FACT is my way is the safest and now that you’ve said something, you can’t back down without losing face. I won’t further entertain your attempts to do that, so I’ll not be responding to you.

I bet yer a riot at dinner parties

 

[SoK66]

I am curious why they put Fender those speakers in tweed bassman reissue amps. Did vintage bassman amps ever run CTS alnicos? My impression was that they used to run exclusively Jensen alnicos.

The original 5F6-A Bassman had Chicago-era Jensen P10Qs or Rs, which of course weren't avaialble in 1989. As the story went from way back when the Bassman Reissue was introduced, Fender got Eminence to recreate the original spec with a bit more power handling capability. The Italian Jensens they used later weren't in production at the time. The latter speakers get a bad rap, but some seem to be OK. In my experience with a '60 6G4 Super and later a tweed Super clone, they are really stiff, nasal and bright when new. With time they loosen up and are OK. Slill not what the blue frames were right out of the box. If you're looking for alnico speakers check out Weber's 10A150s. They used to have a CTS clone version, I can't recall what the designation was but if they're still in production you'll fimnd it on their website.

 

[SoK66]

Again, I’m not teaching a class. If the transformer shorts it hits a chassis with a dedicated ground wire tied to it and snaps the circuit breaker.

I can’t help that you want to rely on and trust the common practice of hot to fuse, but reject the universally accepted practice of circuit breakers and electrical inspections. It’s not my job to convince you. Do what you want, Mr Contrarian. I’ll trust my training and common sense. The FACT is my way is the safest and now that you’ve said something, you can’t back down without losing face. I won’t further entertain your attempts to do that, so I’ll not be responding to you.

It has nothing to do with "losing face", what you recommended goes against every safety practice we've ever read and probably doesn't conform to code. A line voltage short to the chassis combined with a faulty circuit breaker, etc. would at least momentarily send wall current staight up the guitar cord and to a players hands, with the resulting charge possibly going across their chest, stopping their heartbeat. I trust MY training as well.

 

[Jasonpatrick]

It has nothing to do with "losing face", what you recommended goes against every safety practice we've ever read and probably doesn't conform to code. A line voltage short to the chassis combined with a faulty circuit breaker, etc. would at least momentarily send wall current staight up the guitar cord and to a players hands, with the resulting charge possibly going across their chest, stopping their heartbeat. I trust MY training as well.

This…..


as I’ve seen more then a few outlet conversions that the ground is not even hooked to anything, I’m not keeping the faith with the breaker popping as stated above if the transformer shorts to ground.

 

[Jasonpatrick]

great amp!

 

[itsGiusto]

The original 5F6-A Bassman had Chicago-era Jensen P10Qs or Rs, which of course weren't avaialble in 1989. As the story went from way back when the Bassman Reissue was introduced, Fender got Eminence to recreate the original spec with a bit more power handling capability. The Italian Jensens they used later weren't in production at the time. The latter speakers get a bad rap, but some seem to be OK. In my experience with a '60 6G4 Super and later a tweed Super clone, they are really stiff, nasal and bright when new. With time they loosen up and are OK. Slill not what the blue frames were right out of the box. If you're looking for alnico speakers check out Weber's 10A150s. They used to have a CTS clone version, I can't recall what the designation was but if they're still in production you'll fimnd it on their website.

Weber got rid of their closest speaker to CTS (they called it the CTA). Now all they have is the ceramic version:

CTC10 – Weber Speakers

www.tedweber.com

Weber currently recommends this as a CTS replacement:

Alnico Signature 10 – Weber Speakers

www.tedweber.com

But I hear people say they're not inspiring, really flat, and not like the CTS speakers.

 

[schmee]

So, I mentioned I'd put up a picture. Behold!

View attachment 1072505

View attachment 1072504

Honestly, I think it's kinda cool looking, besides that white stain on the grille cloth. I have no immediate plans to change anything cosmetically, but I won't rule anything out long-term. Grille cloth would be easy to do, but I'm less certain about tolex, specifically because the previous owner put some sort of clear finish on the wood. If I had to sand it all off, then screw it. I hate sanding.

That looks nice, some blonde grill cloth would really make it cool!.

Actually the finish on the wood would be a good thing if Tolexing. Bare wood soaks up the glue too fast. I have actually shellac'ed a pine cab prior to Tolexing and it helps!

 

[schmee]

Weber got rid of their closest speaker to CTS (they called it the CTA). Now all they have is the ceramic version:

CTC10 – Weber Speakers

www.tedweber.com

Weber currently recommends this as a CTS replacement:

Alnico Signature 10 – Weber Speakers

www.tedweber.com

But I hear people say they're not inspiring, really flat, and not like the CTS speakers.

Yeah, that whole series of Webers were good. I was disappointed when they discontinued most of them.... but they had raised prices too high for a little light duty speaker anyway. Originally they were very reasonable priced.

I had I think ....3 sets over a couple year time span back in the day to try them out. CTC, CVC and CTA IIRC...
The cool thing about those speakers is they had paper voice coil formers like the old "Chicago Telephone" speakers, like the vintage Jensen P10R did. For some reason paper VC formers make the speaker respond to picking nuance in a cool way. maybe because they are low mass? They are a bit fragile if you push them too hard though.

I actually preferred the ceramics myself.

 

[ahiddentableau]

Sweet amp. I envy everything except your poor back.

Love Super Reverbs.

 

[tubedude]

Great amp, great price, you did well.
So much happening here.

I had the same Carvin/Eminence speakers in a VT-50 4X10. They were tone mufflers. The Weber 10A150's I replaced them with were awe inspiring.

Hot to fuse before anywhere else. Transformers short to ground sometimes, but windings also short to other coil sections of the winding, draw excessive current, get hot as hell and become a fire hazard. A fuse in the hot leg prevents this. There's a reason it's specified in the IEC and NFPA regs.

Atoms have a smaller slightly more modern cap inside. The big blue case is for appearance/marketing only. They are not better than F&T caps, just more expensive and larger, hogging real estate.
I don't know who makes caps for MOD, and have no experience using them.

The blue Ajax caps are gold. Keep them until they leak, if ever. I've worked on hundreds of amps with these in them and have seen exactly two that were leaky.

Those 2000pF caps on the output tubes may have already been removed at a service. They were discovered as tone killers decades ago and have been removed from amps more often than not.

I was on team "we hate brown turd caps" for decades, until I worked on a super full of them. After an electrolytic cap job, I powered it up and it was the best sounding Super I ever heard.

Lastly, Amp Garage is the best resource for amp information. If you are respectful, members will go to great lengths to help you with reliable info.
Most have been building or designing amps for ages. A mix of technicians, engineers and a few cherries, but good information with less chest pounding and pissing than other sites.

I used to gig with a Super, and it's my favorite factory amp. It's only downside is it as heavy as a a neutron star. Congrats!

 

[patricksginnaty]

The Carving V10 speakers were made by Eminence. My SFSR came with the same speakers, it sounds real good. I thought about changing them, but left them in the amp
I was told that they are comparable to an Eminence Copperhead.

 

[Michael Smith]

I used MOD filter caps when I recapped my 1968 Bassman 2 years ago, and also in my 1969 Bandmaster Reverb a couple of weeks ago. So it's too early to know if they are reliable. I sprung for the F&T's when I did my 69 Super Reverb and 77 Deluxe Reverb.

It wouldn't be a bad idea to try a mix of alnico and ceramics, maybe the ceramics on the bottom and alnicos on top.

I would have snapped up that Super Reverb for $500 in a heartbeat, even if it hadn't been serviced. Check out "Uncle Doug's" YT channel for a tutorial on installing tolex.