1965 Deluxe Reverb

[digitmusic]

A friend has a 1965 Deluxe Reverb. I played it 10 years ago and it was fine.
It is not being used and is in a humid basement in NY.
Last week, on vacation, I turned it on...not working. Red light was out but decided to look at tubes.
Some tubes were hot. Plugged in a guitar (same cable I used last time).
The reverb crackled loud. I heard guitar through amp (virtually NO volume) but controls did nothing.
Reverb crackles were super loud. Turned off reverb. no more noise.guitar barely heard.

I hear it is a great amp.

Wonder if anyone has a brilliant idea of what should be done with amp.

Ron

[phantomman]

Incredible though it may seem there are actually people who repair, restore, and maintain such equipment. They're known as "amp techs".

Perhaps you've heard of them .

Find one.

[OldStrummer]

@phantomman kinda beat me to it, in a more succinct fashion.

I confess to not being an amp tech, but the first thought that occurred to me was, "It's probably going to be necessary to remove the cover, clean and inspect the innards and repair/replace parts that are worn out." Since I'm not up to the task, I'd contact my local guitar repair shop and go from there.

[NTBluesGuitar]

Hit the pots with DeOxit - Usually a good starting point and not intrusive.

But yes, find a tech if possible as I would bet the filter caps are dried out or leaking.

[digitmusic]

As much as I appreciate the sarcasm, that's not an option for me. The amp is not mine and is in NY (I am in CA). The owner is obviously not motivated to do anything since, as I said, its been sitting in a basement for 10+ years.

I just wondered if anyone had wild guesses about what happens to an amp like that (50+yr old 20W Fender tube amp) with no use for more than 10 years.

I had only a few minutes with the amp and I didn't even look to see if the 12AX7s were working...but the power tubes were lit.

Good to know that it could just be pots or filter caps.

So I guess you are all saying that nothing drastic could be wrong with it by just sitting unused. Good to know.

Thanks for the info.
Ron

Another question that I had but didn't ask specifically is; Is the amp considered something special? I took a couple of pictures and it has "A division of Columbia Records." This seems to identify it as being a bit sought after. Is that correct?

[Cogs]

Yes, they are very popular amps

[digitmusic]

If I was able to get this amp to me in CA, is there any reason to worry that an amp tech would take some parts out of this amp for another one of their projects and replace with newer parts?
Like transformer or original speaker? Are there parts in this particular vintage amp that would temp anyone.
Sorry, not besmirching anyone...just a cynic.
I guess the only way to protect against this is to get a recommendation of a tech.
Do people go to the lengths of sending an amp like this to a tech in another state or can great techs be found anywhere?
I suppose there MUST be the perfect tech somewhere in southern CA.
Any recommendations?
Ron

PS I saw this ad 1965 Deluxe Reverb for sale and realize Ken Fischer is no longer with us. If this amp has the potential of being this good, I just want to get it into the hands of someone who will use it...and out of a humid basement in rural NY.

[phantomman]

If you can get physical possession of the amp and if you don't mind a drive to central California, Skip Simmons is the best there is on the west coast. Google his name and you'll find his website. You'll find no one more competent or trustworthy than him.

[Offshore Angler]

My first concern would be the transformers, humidity is not their friend - water and iron don't mix.

Then the usual capacitors and resistors. A DR is a pretty simple device. Well worth the investment to bring it back into its prime.

John Nau is in upstate NY and is a talented and reputable tech/builder/artisan.

www.nauengineering.com

[digitmusic]

Oh. All good info. the amp is in Hudson. But I don't think I can motivate her to take it anywhere. I'm worried how I can get it shipped even if I can get her to revive it.
And I used to drive to Berkeley to drive my daughter to school once a semester but no longer.

Thanks for all the info everyone. Now I just have to figure out how motivated I am to save this amp.

[jrgtr42]

Oh. All good info. the amp is in Hudson. But I don't think I can motivate her to take it anywhere. I'm worried how I can get it shipped even if I can get her to revive it.
And I used to drive to Berkeley to drive my daughter to school once a semester but no longer.

Thanks for all the info everyone. Now I just have to figure out how motivated I am to save this amp.

I'd halfway joke that |I'd be willing to make a detour to pick it up - I'll be going more or less near there in a couple weeks, but...
IN all seriousness, being in a humid basement could cause any number of issues, like others said - caps transformers, who knows what else.
It's definitely worth resurrecting this amp - they're in massive demand, and can be worth $$$.

[Tele-Bob]

Had similar issues with one recently.
I just wiggled the tubes in their sockets a little and the amp came to life. I know it needs work but I was at least able to get an idea of what it sounded like and that it was repairable.

[digitmusic]

Ah. Good thought. I didn't spend enough time with it cause we were on a quick visit. and waited till the last hours before powering it up. I'm not sure what I can do with it because I can't ask her deal with packing it up.

[phantomman]

Most commercial shippers offer professional packing service.

[Michael Smith]

For shipping to an amp tech, ideally the chassis should be removed from the cabinet, the 3 larger tubes removed and individually bubble wrapped, and the chassis put in a box with padding on all sides, and then put in a larger box, again with Styrofoam or similar on all sides. The 6 smaller tubes with metal tube shields can be left in the chassis. No need to ship the cabinet, speaker or reverb tank unless they need work also.

Electrolytic capacitors age even if the amp is not being used. I found that out the hard way with my 1968 Bassman that sat idle for about 5 or 6 years. Luckily I just had a mess to clean up, and then did a complete service on the amp.

Colleen Fazio is a qualified amp tech in Los Angeles. Check out her videos on YT under Fazio Electric.

Also you can check out the recent selling prices for that particular amp on the Reverb website.

[digitmusic]

For shipping to an amp tech...

Thanks Michael. I have checked Reverb for pricing and for their shipping video so I've gathered a bit of this info.

that's where I realized that it might be special. Its a shame that it just sits there. She agreed that it should be played, said its not sentimental value that keeps it in her house. But we flew to Boston and then drove around for vacation finishing up in Hudson.

I can't think of a scenario where I could realistically ship it for less than nearly $1,000. She can't box it. I'm still scheming how to get it though. I will be visiting a daughter at UPenn for Thanksgiving.

Not sure I'll have the guts to ask her if I can take it. I don't need it myself cause I'm ancient and already have a 63 or 64 brown tolex Vibrasonic. I had it boogied back in the day and just plugged it in. Sounds pretty amazing with just a tad of 2 gain stages.

But ...still greedy and would love to get that amp fixed and played.

[Michael Smith]

Thanks Michael. I have checked Reverb for pricing and for their shipping video so I've gathered a bit of this info.

that's where I realized that it might be special. Its a shame that it just sits there. She agreed that it should be played, said its not sentimental value that keeps it in her house. But we flew to Boston and then drove around for vacation finishing up in Hudson.

I can't think of a scenario where I could realistically ship it for less than nearly $1,000. She can't box it. I'm still scheming how to get it though. I will be visiting a daughter at UPenn for Thanksgiving.

Not sure I'll have the guts to ask her if I can take it. I don't need it myself cause I'm ancient and already have a 63 or 64 brown tolex Vibrasonic. I had it boogied back in the day and just plugged it in. Sounds pretty amazing with just a tad of 2 gain stages.

But ...still greedy and would love to get that amp fixed and played.

I purchased a 69 Bandmaster Reverb at the end of last year and had it shipped from California to Texas (using UPS Ground) and the shipping was around $170. That included the supplies for the seller to wrap it with layers of bubble wrap and plastic wrap, the box in a box, his time, etc. It took me nearly an hour to completely unpack it (including the 9 tubes which he had in individual bubble wrap cylinders he had made and numbered). It arrived in perfect condition and was very heavy. It did have a cold/cracked solder joint which may or may not have occurred during shipping, but I found that pretty quickly using the "chopstick" method and fixed it. I also changed out all of the electrolytics, doghouse dropping and balancing resistors, rebuilt the bias supply, and added a bias trim pot to the bias balance pot. The cost of the parts was minimal (and my labor was free).

I understand her unwillingness to box it herself, but I think FedEx provides that service (maybe UPS also, I'm not sure). If I were shipping an amp of that value, I would probably build a wooden crate for the amp itself, and then use plenty of padding and put the crate in a heavy duty box. Another option is a flight case. When I bought my Deluxe Reverb a couple years ago (here locally in Houston), the seller was going to give me a flight case for it, but I didn't want it, and she knocked off $50 from the price of the amp. I told her to sell the flight case to someone else. I don't know what they cost.

[Cogs]

Just some random thoughts:
While these may be great amps, they are not as rare as they might seem. There are many for sale, & although the current price might stagger you (I've seen Deluxes priced higher than Super Reverbs from the same year!), they can be easily acquired if you are willing to pay the money.
So as I see it, there are only two reasons to seek out this particular amp: 1) it has some personal or sentimental value, or
2) it can be procured below the market value after all the costs are figured out

[NTBluesGuitar]

My DR reproduction doesn't power up now either. I need to get some time going through it. If I figure it out I'll share what I learned for you.

[Bill Moore]

My DR reproduction doesn't power up now either. I need to get some time going through it. If I figure it out I'll share what I learned for you.

Must be something in the air, I have neglected mine for a while, last week, I plugged in, when I switched off standby there was a pop, and no sound! Need to find time to see why.