Smooth Operator!
Well, you have a great support group here.
Now roll up the sleeves and start ordering some parts!
Smooth Operator!
Well, you have a great support group here.
Now roll up the sleeves and start ordering some parts!
You got it. Pics to come soon, hopefully.
Feel free to shoot me an e-mail or have your builder do the same. I'll be happy to share my layout drawings and notes/experiences. I've probably done a dozen of these Hot Rod rebuilds now, including my own personal "Hot-Rod 5E5A re-build SN#000001":
They're really fun projects with lots of room in the chassis to work with.
"...pray do not imagine that those who make the noise are the only inhabitants of the field;
that, of course, they are many in number; or that, after all, they are other than the little,
shriveled, meagre, hopping, though loud and troublesome, insects of the hour."
-Edmund Burke
And I Have #000002 sitting in my garage, waiting to go out for a run tonight !Originally Posted by NTBluesGuitar
I've probably done a dozen of these Hot Rod rebuilds now, including my own personal "Hot-Rod 5E5A re-build SN#000001":
Kenny Belmont
>:^{I)>
No!!! You have the BLUES DELUXE re-build #000001!
And yours is the rarest model since that mid control and custom faceplate was only available in that one amp...they had to be changed after that one.
"...pray do not imagine that those who make the noise are the only inhabitants of the field;
that, of course, they are many in number; or that, after all, they are other than the little,
shriveled, meagre, hopping, though loud and troublesome, insects of the hour."
-Edmund Burke
WoooHooo!
I start the bidding at
ONE MILLLLL--EEEE---YON Dollars!
Kenny Belmont
>:^{I)>
Hate to dig up an old thread, but +1 on NT's HRDX conversion. I did it to mine, and love the thing.
It's a fun project, isn't it?
E-mail me, LGS, I have a question for you.
"...pray do not imagine that those who make the noise are the only inhabitants of the field;
that, of course, they are many in number; or that, after all, they are other than the little,
shriveled, meagre, hopping, though loud and troublesome, insects of the hour."
-Edmund Burke
I'd contact Ted Weber and ask for the guts from a kit that's the circuit you want to build. At one time he was talking about doing rebuild kits for these amps.
Yeah, real fun, and informational. Even for a knuckle dragger like me!
I have a Blues Deville from the first yeaqr Fender came out with them. Used it for many years in a club gig. Loud? Yes but if you dial it in right and use a Blues Driver or Tube Screamer it was a gret sounding amp. Loads of clean headroom too.
Having said that I bought a 65DRRI and it is the cat's meow!!! This amp does it all. Pure vintage Fender tone that can't be beat, except for a real clean Blackface Deluxe Reverb.
DR...even at low volume, I have learned to appreciate it.
I ignored this amp for a long time, and now realise how great it really is.
'67 drip edge BF. Abused, used, and now back to top form.
Do all HRDXs crash and burn is there any difference in the ltd?
Jerry
Sooner or later, all amps "crash and burn". However the HR-series seem to be prone to it with all possible alacrity, compared to some of the re-issues (Twin, Super, Dlx, Tweedie Bassman).
Jus' the nature of the beast I reckon......
I've worked on a couple of aged HRDs that actually didn't show much in the way of the infamous issues they have. The charred 5W power resistors, etc.
The LTD Hot Rods are nothing other than different speaker and cabinet treatment. The insides are exactly the same.
I saw some knuckle head trying to sell a purple LTD Hot Rod Deluxe for $1,799 claiming it's 'rare'.
"...pray do not imagine that those who make the noise are the only inhabitants of the field;
that, of course, they are many in number; or that, after all, they are other than the little,
shriveled, meagre, hopping, though loud and troublesome, insects of the hour."
-Edmund Burke
You recommend a Reissue Deluxe Reverb?
Jerry
Feel free to shoot me an e-mail or have your builder do the same. I'll be happy to share my layout drawings and notes/experiences. I've probably done a dozen of these Hot Rod rebuilds now, including my own personal "Hot-Rod 5E5A re-build SN#000001":
They're really fun projects with lots of room in the chassis to work with.
IIRC, you posted pics of one of those builds. I would love to see those again. I have been wanting to do this for a while now. Perhaps this will be my winter project.
I can still bring this amp back, I like the dlxr, is it a good amp.
I mean a blakface?
Are you asking if it's worth it for you to return the Hot Rod Deluxe towards a Deluxe Reverb RI?
If so, and you have the means to cover the extra cost, than I say, hell yes.
General, shoot me an e-mail and I'll get you all the pictures, layouts and notes I have.
"...pray do not imagine that those who make the noise are the only inhabitants of the field;
that, of course, they are many in number; or that, after all, they are other than the little,
shriveled, meagre, hopping, though loud and troublesome, insects of the hour."
-Edmund Burke
Hey NT, is a 75 SFDR worth $800? and can it easily be converted to BF specs?
Converting most SF Reverbs to BF specs is pretty easy, assuming you are just focusing on the circuitry.
The SF transformers are different the BF iron, so there's always that difference to consider, but the SF iron is still pretty good in general.
Regarding the SFDR...$800 would be on the high end of reasonable, IMO, and that would assume it's in really good cosmetic condition.
You could get a used DRRI for MUCH cheaper...if you're industrious enough you could gut it, put in the hand-wired circuit and get the BF cosmetics then.
"...pray do not imagine that those who make the noise are the only inhabitants of the field;
that, of course, they are many in number; or that, after all, they are other than the little,
shriveled, meagre, hopping, though loud and troublesome, insects of the hour."
-Edmund Burke
If I was going to buy DRRI I would play it till it was out of warranty and had a major problem before I did a rebuild. The amps sound great the way they are, they are just more likely to wear out before a hand wired amp.
I was about to say something similar in retrospect. Honestly, having a DRRI is just as good (if not better, depending on your point of view) as a 'vintage' SFDR.
"...pray do not imagine that those who make the noise are the only inhabitants of the field;
that, of course, they are many in number; or that, after all, they are other than the little,
shriveled, meagre, hopping, though loud and troublesome, insects of the hour."
-Edmund Burke
Can you bridge the two channlel on a DRRI with a cord out of the 2nd input channel one to first input 2nd channel to run both channels, is it harmful to the amp?
Jerry
It doesn't work on the Deluxe Reverbs. The phase inversion between the Normal and Vibrato channels causes phase cancellation. It blocks the signal.
Not if you run at diferent volumes, I just tried it.
Jerry
True, but still doesn't work like jumping channels on a Tweed Deluxe, for example. The relative volume between the two will hit cancellation...other than that, it is just weirdness at either end.
Like the others have said while you can do it, your not going to get an improvement in tone like you will with a tweed or Marshall amp. You also risk losing some of the signal due to the phase cancellation. Your better off using a pedal if you want to get more crunch or a more aggressive sound.
How are you enjoying your new DRRI? Is it the sound you were looking for?
Yeah it sings, I like channel ones overdrive, well I actually like channel 2s also. This amp is sweet like I remember. I had one in 66 and this comes close to that one. It is getting better with use. My only problem is that I am playing to loud for my neighbors, oh well it sounds good quite too.
Jerry
NT, can you please talk about how removing the pcbs from a DeVille improves the sound. Are the pcbs in the signal path if you don't use the verb or the effects loop. Are there other mods done while extracting the unwanted stuff. I'm got a used Deville at a good price and really liked it after putting 12AT7 in V1 and V3. I play mostly clean like a little grit when I dig in or play octaves. I would be interested in making it better if possible.
Ron
I put a JTM-45 board in a HRDx - used Ted's 6M45 schematic as it's more suited to a silicon rectifier - stock Fender speaker - can't remember what value 25W ally clad power resistor but it got the plates running at around 410 and the grids I think were around 395 somewhere... 80's mft'red Reflektor 6n3c's and stock V1-V3 - got around 35W at clipping but it was sweet (it has - in fact prompted me to finally rip my HRDv conversion apart for the third time and do it properly - this time with an isolated bottom chassis plate so I can fit some KT-66's in it and stop having to replace the damn PI every 6 mos or so!!!) - but this HRDx conversion sounded wonderfully warm and Fender-y up to around 4.5-5 on the dial - after that the Marshall influence kicks in very gradually - never actually turned it all the way up because it was doing everything I'd want an amp like that to do at around 7.5-8... I used a 47K/4.7K combo for the GNF feed to make it more open (much more natural sustain) and a 47K mid pot (thanks again Kap - that way works for me!) for more mid grunt - a good 'cut about the rest' rock and blues amp... if you wanted to really sweeten it up better tubes and speaker (the stocker started getting a bit nasal as you started to really push it) but the rest is all there...
If I could find a road to get away it wouldn't be too soon....... Shipwreck Moon.......
Im thinking a lot of us fellerz in here were built in the 50'sDon't sell 1950's technology short......it got us to the moon.
(an' we ain' been back since, even with the advent of the "digital era")
The thing about the DeVille is that it is all (really cheap) printed circuit board. You'll be gutting it to replace the PCB with an eyelet or turret board if you go NT's route. I've been in contact with him recently about putting some parts and layouts together for me. Since I know I won't be able to put together the amp pron he does, I may save up a bit more and ship the chassis to him to rebuild for me.
Here's a cautionary tale of HR DeVille ownership.
I bought a DeVille on clearance at my local music store. Should have bought the DRRI next to it, but I was stupid and thought the MV on the HRDv would help make a bit more friendly on the wife - volume continuum.
So I take it home and play it for awhile, but I'm never completely happy with it. My biggest problem is the volume control jumps what seems like a massive change past 2.5 and that's all you get. It just gets worse sounding the further up you go. I don't really dig the reverb (although I hardly ever use it) and the tone controls don't do much for me. It's just not inspiring (almost typed "inspiting" there, which it very much is).
Then I find Justin Holt's website. I want to be clear that this is not a dig at his site. He has some very good info there, and a lot of people have done the mods he details with success. I am not one of them.
I contacted a well-respected local amp tech (This isn't a dig at him, either. He's done everything I could ask of him.) and he took the job on. The tone stack was made more BF-ish, the plastic input jacks were changed out, the volume pot was changed to an audio taper pot, and the reverb treble bypass was cut. If only I'd stopped there. Thinking preventatively, I had him replace the cement resistors and the caps with higher quality components. The amp worked for awhile, but then I turned it up past seven.
Now, about a minute after turning up, I get a weird oscillation that will not stop. It's been back in the shop several times, but it all comes down to that crap pcb they use. It will not take kindly to modifications, period. If you decide to mod it, just go all the way and put in a tweed or BF circuit on a turret or eyelet board. Then you'll have something reliable that sounds like a Fender amp should.
And NT's prices are incredibly reasonable for the work he does.
Essay over.
We charge in the region of 250-350 GBP for these conversions depending on whether they want the 'full monty' cosmetic changes as well... it's a fair price for a handwired amp made with top quality components that will be maintainable/repairable for decades to come.
It's not just PCB's that let most modern manufacturered amps down - it's the way they're designed physically. The market has been driven by the public's demand for 'features'... the manufacturers have constantly produced 'knee-jerk' solutions to meet these demands - often with little consideration for the long term satisfaction of their customers. We've got a DC-3 in for repair (all the electrolytics above the preamp tubes have leaked through constant exposure to heat) and to get at the solder side of the PCB the ENTIRE amp needs to be dismantled! If you want to pay for what IMO is totally unnecessary bench time (easily 10 times the cost of the replacement components) due to poor mechanical design that's fine by me as long as you don't hold a grudge... the problem is you will.
Imagine the excitement of a customer ringing up and saying he's bringing in a
link
and it duly arrives looking like a stunning example of a classic amp only to find this
link
inside... the heater wires are just barely twisted and badly dressed... the PT's fried because they've driven the price down with the manufacturer and it isn't up to the job and although the PCB's a reasonable enough quality the components are cheap and nasty... and how much did this amp retail for??? What I suspect TJ hasn't quite realised yet is that every amp he has built or re-built is already a legacy of a master builder...
If I could find a road to get away it wouldn't be too soon....... Shipwreck Moon.......
I just got a Vox AC30 to replace my AC15 (not loud enough for outdoor gigs). I was going to sell the 15 to help defray the cost of the 30 but somebody just offered to trade it for a Hot Rod Deluxe.
Good idea or bad idea?
www.notinmybook.com
uh......depends.......
Did your AC15 work?
If not....its a good deal!
(TJ says....huh?)
Kenny Belmont
>:^{I)>
LOL! Thanks! I think I'll just sell the AC15.
www.notinmybook.com
Huh?
"...pray do not imagine that those who make the noise are the only inhabitants of the field;
that, of course, they are many in number; or that, after all, they are other than the little,
shriveled, meagre, hopping, though loud and troublesome, insects of the hour."
-Edmund Burke
I am actually one of the few here that likes my HRdx
It sounds as good as one ever will - as a HRdx.
No weird mods, just some issues addressed, decent tubes (not high end) and a good speaker.
I wouldn't tour for a living and depend on it though.
Kenny Belmont
>:^{I)>
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