Fender '65 Super Reverb Reissue

Tried this amp in the store, don't own one, but would make it my number 1 choice for an amp if I didn't already have an original '65.

Versatility? I dunno. I've only been playing pro 26 years, and haven't found a style it's not suited for. If you can't throw down a Tube Screamer and get the highest quality of versatile sounds you've ever heard with this amp, either the sound's not worth going after, or you just don't have what it takes.

Effects? We don need no stinkink effects! Just plug in and go.

There's so much talk about how to get Stevie Ray Vaughn's sound with this amp. How about, listen to and learn from the same people Stevie did? Then detune your guitar and use extra heavy strings? Then grow a set of Stevie's hands?

Or how about: Get a life.

What's important is this: The amp won't make you sound like someone else. What it will do is give you the best of the best of the old blackface Super Reverb tone. I've owned quite a few, and that's the highest praise anyone can give an amp, IMHFO. This time, Fender has apparently got it nailed.

Again, there's a lot of pissin' and moanin' about reliability of tube amps when it comes to tubes.

Here's a secret to keep in mind: IT'S A TUBE AMP! Tubes have ALWAYS had problems with reliability, even when they were made brand new and in large quantities in the USA by Phillips, Sylvania, et al.

I own or have owned original Fender tweed, blonde and blackface amps. I've also owned and played through Marshall, Boogie and other tube amps through the years. I've always owned at least one blackface Super Reverb. Now that Fender is making this amp again, the holy grail is within reach of anyone with the cash to afford it. If you dig the blues, rock or country, you'd be nuts not to at least try one.

We all know the features

Here is where we get into the meat of this amp. I play mainly blues and yes SRV is my influence. Who doesn't want to sound or play like SRV! I have a 2000 American strat with Seymore Duncan Antiquity's. I use a RI TS-9, Ibanez Rotary Chorus and the Super Reverb. I replace all the tubes with NOS General Electric American tubes and this amp transformed into a true TONE GIANT. Before I could't get a breakup at any level that sounded good. At 5.5/6 I get a warm breakup and when i add the ts-9 (Drive-2, Tone 11 o'clock, Level-3 o'clock)it gets down right SRV. I set the amp - Vol - 5.5/6, Treb-7, Mid-7, Bass-3, Rev-2 and use Vibrato channel 1. This thing will shake any room but will maintain a warm tone. Thanks to the NOS American tubes , clean is creamy and warm. I know it's not a '65 but it sound evry bit as good.

Have had no problems

No experience

Though pricy, I am glad I spent the money. It has a tone all it's own and it is one that I think any guitar player would recognize and appreciate. Feel free to contact me with any comments.

You know...2 channels, normal/bright, bright switch, vol/bass/mid/treb, adjustable tremolo, foot pedal. All teh features of the original w/o the outlet in back (Why doesn't Fender do that any more?). 4 x 10" Jensen reissues.
Mostly beautiful tone with lots of head room. For distortion, I use a Fulltone Fulldrive 2 pedal

The best from Fender since Leo owned it.
Very quiet, sonds great at lower volume. Not as loud as my 'Custom' Vibrolux, but certainly smoother. Can't imagine a better sound for a Strat. Yet to try my Gibson ES-335

Dont own one of these yet, but my other Fender Deluxe Reverb RI had a pre-amp tube go out, but that can happen. I wish Fender would put in better tubes. Perhaps Fender got the message, cause of the complaints here and at the retail level.

Fender has a customer relations problem. I always try to deal with the locally owned shop or amp tech.

Been playing for a long time. In search of the ultimate tone machine...this could be the one. Don't like the weight, but I dont plan to travel with it. Compared it to a Soldano and Rivera...it's more open and clear sounding. For pure tone, the Fender Super Reverb RI wins my vote. Just need to sell some other gear and first born to afford.
With the new Clapton Strat or any G&L 'super Strat'...I cant imagine anything much better. Anxious to try my ES-335 on it.

Price? Probably over-priced by a couple hundred. Then again it's a lot of amp with great tone. $300 better that a "Custom" Vibrolux? I would say so.
(I used to own one),you prefer Strats.
The Vibrolux is a better match with a Tele. For $1,000 new, and out the door would be a fantastic value...wish me luck!

who cares about the features with this amp?

This amp definitely sings. I had a blues deville for years and thought that the clean channel sounded pretty good. The deville doesnt even come close to sounding as good as the Super Reverb. 700 bucks was the worst money ever spent on the deville and selling it and a Line6 AX2, then going out and buying the Super Reverb was the best money ever spent. I havent had this amp very long, but i have no regrets whatsoever. I personally think this amp sounds excellent with any setting, but this is how i typically have the settings.....vibrato channel 1, bright on, volume 8, treble 6, middle 7, bass 2, reverb 2-3. Sometimes I will use either a TS-9 or a Tube King. If anyone has any comments, tips or advice, feel free to send me an e-mail.

So far, so good

Never had to deal with them

Buy one if you are into blues(rock). I am considering buying one of the Pro Reverbs to run along with the Super Reverb. If anyone out there is currently doing that, or has tried it, let me know what your opinion is with that setup.

I bought this amp new about six month ago. It is a reissue of the well known '64/'65 BF Super Reverb. I don't use any effects other what's available in this amp.

I was on the search for an original Super Reverb and they had also this reissue in the shop. I compared them and decided to buy the reissue. I changed all the tubes, the Groove tubes are horrible. I use Svetlana 6L6's, and the rest are all NOS tubes.
The Jensen speakers need some time to break in and after this six month of playing they sound great. I always liked Super Reverbs and I'm very happy with the reissue. I think Fender did a great job with this reissue. The other reissues don't do the original's justice but this SRRI get's the tone. I don't like to give a 10 because tone is hard to descripe, but I will in this case because Fender really did it with the Super Reverb Reissue.

Besides the crappy tubes,no problem. I had a tube failure two days after I bought it.

Never dealt with Fender.

I play more than 25 years and still gig, not as much as in my college years. I love this amp and it is getting better with time, this Jensen speakers need their time to break in. It is getting the tone I was looking for, which is the classic BF Super Reverb tone. The only thing I don't like about this amp is the weight. I normally use a Tweed Bassman and I love the solid pine cabinet. Would have been great if Fender would have used the original solid pine instead of ply-wood for the cabinet. The retail price is a bit high, but if you search around you can deal a little. The cabinet and price makes it an eight for me.

I've yet posted a review on the Super Reverb (Markie Ray) in this section ... I've done some modifications to my amp ... here comes the follow-up ...
Features : few, but enough to create a great sound. No effects loop, no phones jack, no master , etc ... you simply don't need them.

Some people in this section told they couldn't catch a good SRV Tone with the Super. Let's talk ...
I've put other (better) tubes in my Super a week ago : Svetlana (Sylvania) and Tesla tubes. Read also the review of Lefty in this section : I've changed the same tubes, but didn't do the point-to-point wiring. It doesn't affect tone much in my opinion.
My Super didn't sound bad with the original Sovtek tubes and I was pretty happy with it but not 100% satisfied, but now, after I've replaced the tubes, my amp sounds FANTASTIC, GREAT, UNBELIEVABLE, SUPER !!! I just can't describe it : It just sounds like the original vintage Super Reverb from the late 60's : clean but with a unique vintage accent !!! Let the collectors have their original Supers : my re-issue is brand new, way more reliable and sounds just the same. Add a 808-MODDED (= JRC4558D opamp) ts-9 pedal between an american standard strat, or even better (I have a SRV Strat), link the input 2 of the normal channel with the input 2 of the vibrato channel (so you're using ALL the tubes this amp has) and you're in TONE HEAVEN.
Set drive at 2 or 3, tone all the way up and level as you wish on the TS-9 : PURE Stevie Ray Vaughan !! I've been looking to catch his tone for years, but now it has no secrets anymore for me ! The combination between a Super Reverb and a modded ibanez ts-9 pedal is the perfect marriage !
I'm so happy ... thank you Fender , the amps you produce are really the top, but the tubes you put in them are crap ! Replace them as soon as possible !

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions, comments, hints, ... on getting the Stevie Ray Vaughan tone.

marsus@belgacom.net

As I said : very good ! Never had any problems with Fender products.

Never had to deal with Fender.

Read my other review in this section.
I was a little too enthousiastic when I wrote that review some months ago. I just bought my Super and you know how that feels.
But now, after I did the little mods to my Super and my ts-9, I'll tell you : this is the BEST FENDER AMP available. And I can compare.
I've had a Bassman, Prosonic, Blues Deluxe, ... before and none of them sounded like my Holy Grail.
A friend of mine heard it this weekend (he has a Bassman, also with better tubes) and is going to sell his car and his amp to be able to buy a Super ! He just looked like he took some drugs, when he went home ! Friday I'm playing for the first time with my modded amp before a crowd ... people won't believe their ears I think ! This is going to be a great night ...
Really, I can't give another overall score to this beauty than a BIG 10 !!! Fantastic value !

2001 '65 Reissue. I wouldn't call it "versatile" but the clean sound is just gorgeous, great for jazz, blues, country, all points in between. You need a high gain pedal for high gain sounds, obviously. I use this amp for most gigs I play (I'm a "pro" or at least focused on playing for a living); not for studio (tried, just couldn't get it to sound right. Needs to cranked?) 40 all tube watts, reverb, tremelo ,footswitch for reverb & tremelo. Have to give it a 9 or 10 for sound even though it doesn't have many features. Basically I try to start with a great clean sound and go with pedals from there and this is a REALLY good clean sound.

Gibson SG and Parker Nitefly through this amp sound really good. Supers sound great for any style that I play (jazz, blues ,fusion, R&B, country, etc.). Not noisy at all. Great for the glassy yet sweet clean sound or the Robert Cray grit blues sound. Breaks up around 5 and up. Sounds better as the night goes on (by 3rd set, this amp with just Tube Screamer howls like a mother******!)Still can't get the Stevie Ray sound (probably because I don't have the Dumble Steel Stringer wired to it, nor will I ever, most likely) like some people claim in this section.

I've had it for less than a year, haven't had any problems. I try to take good care of it but I use it quite a bit so we'll see.

Playing for 15 years (I'm 25 now). Have a Blues Deluxe for backup, Gibson SG Special, Parker Nite Fly, Run basic setup -guitar to TubeScreamer, sometimes SansAmp GT-1 (very high gain), Boss DD3 Delay,to amp. I would buy another Super in a heartbeat. Had a Twin Reissue before that and loved it, but this sounds a little sweeter and breaks up easier, obviously. (Twin works better for country, and for festival gigs if they don't mike you. )Twins have better bottom end and maybe more overall snap but I prefer the Supers. I was at the store, playing this one and a Vibrolux, couldn't decide and my girlfriend said "get that one"(the Super) and she was right. The only thing is they're kind of expensive, overpriced, but at the same time I'm satisfied and very happy with the amp. Sometimes I think I want something with more features, more gain, but then I realize, I'm simply going to have to buy another amp to cover those areas and use the Super for its strengths. But I'm a musician and don't have any money. Oh, well...

It what it is. Great Idea but doesn't quite get there.

Stiff, Lifeless & Lacks Midrange Punch. The Tone controls are flexible though but not quite that much

No Problems.

Never needed it.

I have been playing for 21 years. I think the "Custom Vibrolux" has a much better responce however it is kind of noisey. I guess I'm very happy with my Vibro-King.

Features:
40 watts of output power
Four, 10? Jensen P-10R AlNiCo speakers
Two, 6L6GC power tubes
Four, 12AX7A tubes
Two, 12AT7 tubes
One, 5AR4 tube rectifier


Height: 24 7/8 in.
Width: 25 1/8 in.
Depth: 10 * in.
Weight: 63.8 lbs.
Sound: LEGENDARY

This was Stevie Ray Vaughan's preferred amp. Enough said ...

I'm using a SRV Signature Strat, TS-9 (not modded), Vox Wah and POD 2.1 (for more modern sounds) through it. I play pop and rock in a band but my favourite style is the blues a la SRV. I owned a Fender Blues Deluxe, a Bassman '59 reissue and a Fender Prosonic before. The Bassman had way too much bass, even with the bass set at 0 !!! The Prosonic was a nice amp but it's treble sound couln't satisfy my needs. But with my Super I can achieve almost every tone I wish.
I've always been searching for the marvellous sound of SRV as on the 'Live at the El Mocambo video'. With the Super Reverb (not modded) I can achieve 95 % of the real SRV tone ... the only thing is it all sounds too 'new'. Stevie obtained a very used and abused sound coming from its amp(s).
But I'm very happy with my Super Reverb, it has a very responsive eq and the sound is just FABULOUS !!! But you have to play with a real strat through it, not with a squier or a gibson. My SRV strat just loves my Super Reverb ... I can feel it in my fingers when playing !

ANY SRV FAN THAT READS THIS MESSAGE WISHES TO EXCHANGE THOUGHTS ABOUT GETTING 'THAT SRV TONE' (hints, questions, gear, etc.) : mail me at marsus@belgacom.net

I've had it now for 1 month ... I think it's too early to rate this category now. But I've never had any problems with Fender products before.

Never had to deal with Fender ... and I hope it never will be necessary too !

I've been playing for 10 years now, mostly in several bluesbands but now I'm playing in a pop-rock band. I've always dreamed of having a Super Reverb, just like SRV, and now that Fender has reissued the Super, I knew from the first day that I would buy one. I now have the SRV Stratocaster and Stevie's main amp ... think I'm in heaven.
And now I know why Stevie preferred this amp above all the others ... It is in my opinion the best Fender amp available. It lets your guitar sound just how your guitar IS !!! Yourr guitar comes alive with this amp.
I love this amp and I will never again have to change it for another amp. Only thing : it is a HEAVY motherfucker !!!
But the sounds that come out of it are THE BEST you ever heard !!
I also heard Fender will increase the price of these amps with at least 10%. So hurry to the music shop to get one !!!
I give it a 10 because an 11 is not available ...

We are all familiar with the amp. The main feature is TONE. Period.

I`m using a `62 American reissue Strat, Fuzzface, Vox wah with bypass mod, Ts9 to 808 specs,Ce2 Chorus, Digitech delay, to amp. True bypass is a must, if you want that clean tone to shine thru.The amp has a sweet spot at around 3.5 on the volume, with bright switch on, treble 4,mids 7, bass 4-6, depending on the room.The EQ on this amp is very responsive, and the mids are the key to sustain on this amp, so you`ve got to tweak it, but you`ll notice good results. I pulled the first preamp tube for a noticable increase in gain, as I only use the vibe channel.I replaced the power tubes with Sovtek WXT+`s, and that really woke her up!! Also 12ax7LPS preamp tubes in the other spots.
If you play a Strat, you`ll drool over this amp`s tone. I`ve owned origionals, and I must say this amp is much more full-sounding, than any I`ve owned or tried recently. I think th Jensen speakers are the best out there for this amp, and I was fully expecting to haver to swap them out for something better.After about two months of regular gigging tho, the Jensens really came into their own.I `ve had the amp for a year now, and I`m very pleased , althought it was expensive!!! The reverb is the best around, and anyone that trashes the Vibrato, isn`t spending enough time dialing it inot the tune they`re playing.

So far, so good. Well built, althought others will dispute that fact. I gig almost every weekend, plus rehearsals during the week, so it gets used.

Too soon to tell.

I`ve been playing now thifty five years, and I think I know good tone when I hear it now! Yes I`d replace it if stolen. The tone is the best feature of the amp,,after all thats why we buy amps,isn`t it? Its heavy, and cumbersome, but it beats lugging a 4X12! The reason for the 8, is the price, other wise it`d be a 10!!