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King Loudness « Great reissue of a classic »
Published on 12/12/11 at 22:17The Fender Deluxe Reverb reissue is Fender's best take on the production line Deluxe Reverb amplifier as it appeared in its golden "blackface" era (so called because of the black face on the control panel) circa 1965. It's a 1x12 tube combo that puts out about 22 watts of power and runs on 6V6 power tubes. It's pretty standard in the Fender layout of two channels. The first channel (normal) has simple volume, treble, and bass controls. The vibrato channel (with its own separate inputs) has volume, treble, bass, reverb, and controls for vibrato speed and intensity. The amp is loaded with a single Jensen speaker as stock, and other than reverb and vibrato there are no onboard effects.
UTILIZATION
Getting a good sound out of this amp is pretty simple. It does the classic blackface Fender clean really well, and there's a reason so many players like and use these amps for a variety of applications. Dialing in each channel can be a tad difficult because on occasion the EQ tonestack might appear to not be doing a whole lot when you turn the controls. I find this more apparent on the normal channel than the vibrato channel with this particular amplifier. That being said, perhaps I'm just used to more modern amps and their tweaker mindset. Other than that, the controls react like you would expect and dialing in tones is not overly difficult. Most people run pedals into the front end of these anyhow, which will change your tone up anyway.
SOUNDS
This amp is meant to do one core sound... classic Fender clean. It's not going to offer any of the overdriven sounds that many players today desire. You can get some nice drive sounds by using a pedal in front, but this is the type of amp that is used for clean and clean only. There's no master volume, so in order to get any kind of tube breakup you would need to turn the amp up to 10, which isn't feasible in many places. It's a very clear sounding amplifier overall, great for funky or bluesy tones. I find it a little bit sparkly in the top end for true jazz tones (which to my ears should be darker and richer) but for those types of tones where you need a classic wiry sounding blackface style clean at a reasonable wattage point, you can't get much better than this amp.
OVERALL OPINION
All in all I think the Fender Deluxe Reverb reissue is a great amp for someone looking for great clean tones in a reasonable package. Many players like the tone of a Twin Reverb or Pro Reverb, but don't wish to contend with the huge size and huge volume that amps like that put out. For those looking for true vintage Fender cleans in a portable package, this is your amp. They sell new for about $1,100 which is a good deal considering the quality and tone that you're getting. If you're into Fender cleans and want something good for jams or gigs that won't blow your ears off, check out the Fender Deluxe Reverb reissue. You won't be disappointed!
UTILIZATION
Getting a good sound out of this amp is pretty simple. It does the classic blackface Fender clean really well, and there's a reason so many players like and use these amps for a variety of applications. Dialing in each channel can be a tad difficult because on occasion the EQ tonestack might appear to not be doing a whole lot when you turn the controls. I find this more apparent on the normal channel than the vibrato channel with this particular amplifier. That being said, perhaps I'm just used to more modern amps and their tweaker mindset. Other than that, the controls react like you would expect and dialing in tones is not overly difficult. Most people run pedals into the front end of these anyhow, which will change your tone up anyway.
SOUNDS
This amp is meant to do one core sound... classic Fender clean. It's not going to offer any of the overdriven sounds that many players today desire. You can get some nice drive sounds by using a pedal in front, but this is the type of amp that is used for clean and clean only. There's no master volume, so in order to get any kind of tube breakup you would need to turn the amp up to 10, which isn't feasible in many places. It's a very clear sounding amplifier overall, great for funky or bluesy tones. I find it a little bit sparkly in the top end for true jazz tones (which to my ears should be darker and richer) but for those types of tones where you need a classic wiry sounding blackface style clean at a reasonable wattage point, you can't get much better than this amp.
OVERALL OPINION
All in all I think the Fender Deluxe Reverb reissue is a great amp for someone looking for great clean tones in a reasonable package. Many players like the tone of a Twin Reverb or Pro Reverb, but don't wish to contend with the huge size and huge volume that amps like that put out. For those looking for true vintage Fender cleans in a portable package, this is your amp. They sell new for about $1,100 which is a good deal considering the quality and tone that you're getting. If you're into Fender cleans and want something good for jams or gigs that won't blow your ears off, check out the Fender Deluxe Reverb reissue. You won't be disappointed!