killbabykill34
Joined: Apr 03, 2010
Posts: 3201
Jacksonville, AL
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Posted on Sep 13 2011 10:15 AM
Do any of you have experience with this amp? I know they are kind of pricey but I recently found one for 1800 and am very interested. I know they are point-to-point and have a full 63 Fender Reverb built in...
This past weekend we were recording and I played through a Super Reverb Reissue and fell in love with it. Upon pricing them I realized that by the time I paid for the amp and an outboard unit I would have already paid the price for the VibroKing that I found....
Thoughts? Critisisms? Anecdotes?
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WoodyJ
Joined: Apr 05, 2006
Posts: 1547
Bethlehem, GA
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Posted on Sep 13 2011 10:30 AM
Vibro Kings are great blues amps and would be OK for midsize venues (assuming no FOH support) as a surf amp but for $1800 you could do a lot better. The speakers that come in VK's break up pretty early. These amps do have a nice, warm tone.
For that kind of coin, the Dual Professional is a better choice although they come with Celestion Vintage 30's that IMO are awful for surf. Some guys love them, I don't. The DP has 100 watts and the same onboard 3-knob reverb as the VK. They are harder to find but the going price on on a nice one is $1500. Here's one on ebay right now:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Fender-Dual-Professional-Custom-Shop-vibro-king-amp-kil-/290498693110?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item43a31247f6
Just my opinion. Others will probably disagree. A Dual Pro with some decent speakers will rock your world...ask Ivan P.
— Jack Booth
(aka WoodyJ)
The Mariners (1964-68, 1996-2005), 2025
The Hula Hounds (1996-2000)
The X-Rays (1997-2004)
The Surge! (2004, 2011-2012)
Various non-surf bands that actually made money (1978-1990)
Last edited: Sep 13, 2011 10:34:11
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aqualadius
Joined: Aug 30, 2010
Posts: 415
Charlotte, NC
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Posted on Sep 13 2011 12:12 PM
We've been using the Vibro King for several years and it is a great amp. We pair it with a vintage Fender Concert '65 and the VK gets a similar tone. As with all combo's with integrated reverb, the reverb is weak and a tank is much better obviously. As far as it overdriving early, Jimmy's doesn't for whatever reason, especially compared to where the Concert breaks up. We also have matching Dual Professionals and let me just say that those NEVER break up. I finally replaced the Celestions in the DP with Fender branded Eminence's and now it sounds better, but what an amp. The Dual Professional is probably the loudest amp ever.
Jeremy
— Jeremy
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Strat-o-rama
Joined: Oct 23, 2007
Posts: 385
Boca Raton, Florida
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Posted on Sep 13 2011 12:26 PM
Interesting comments.
Jeremy, can you get a Dick Dale/Astronauts type of drip out of the built-in reverb in the Dual Professional?
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killbabykill34
Joined: Apr 03, 2010
Posts: 3201
Jacksonville, AL
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Posted on Sep 13 2011 12:29 PM
So, what is it about the onboard reverb, which is supposed to be the same circuit as the Fender 63 Outboard, that makes it weak? Is this something that can be modded?
— THE KBK ... This is the last known signal. We offer Sanctuary.
www.thekbk.com
http://www.deepeddy.net/artists/thekbk/
www.reverbnation.com/thekbk
www.facebook.com/thekbkal
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aqualadius
Joined: Aug 30, 2010
Posts: 415
Charlotte, NC
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Posted on Sep 13 2011 12:39 PM
Strat-o-rama -
Yes I was able to get that sound on my Dual Pro, however Jimmy's had a much weaker mix for some reason. Even when cranking it up past 6 the guitar sound overpowered the reverb feedback in the mix. But on my Dual Pro the mix is fine.
killbabykill34 -
for some reason it's the same as what I heard coming from a super reverb or the super sonic 22. It's not that it's bad reverb, it's just not as rich perhaps? We always just use the tanks instead.
Jeremy
— Jeremy
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Brian
Joined: Feb 25, 2006
Posts: 19349
Des Moines, Iowa, USA
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Posted on Sep 13 2011 01:13 PM
Try these searches to uncover some older threads on this amp:
http://surfguitar101.com/search/?q=vibro+king&models=forums.topic
http://surfguitar101.com/search/?q=vibroking&models=forums.topic
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Last edited: Sep 13, 2011 13:15:32
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WoodyJ
Joined: Apr 05, 2006
Posts: 1547
Bethlehem, GA
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Posted on Sep 13 2011 01:24 PM
The reverb thing is interesting. I had a Dual Pro for a long time and the reverb was very good but for some unexplained reason, an outboard tank DOES sound better, at least to my ears.
The very best onboard reverb amps I've played have been Deluxe Reverbs, both an original '65 (that I've had since it was new) and a recent reissue. Both these amps have reverbs that sound a bit lusher and "surfier" than the one on my ex-Dual Pro. Why? I have no idea. Perhaps Fender just stuffed too much electronics into one box.
I love vintage Fender amps (have several) but I am no amp snob. I have no problem with the reissue Fender PCB amps. Bang for the buck and unless you have to have a piggyback rig, if you want a loud, clean amp it is hard to beat a reissue Twin Reverb + a reissue reverb tank. To me even the stock speakers in a reissue Twin have a surfier sound than the relatively dark-sounding Celestions that come in the Dual Pro.
However...if money wasn't a factor my first choice would be the Dual Professional with a tube and speaker swap. IMO one of the best Fender combos ever for surf music. I also like the short-lived Custom Vibrasonic which had 100W and a single 15".
— Jack Booth
(aka WoodyJ)
The Mariners (1964-68, 1996-2005), 2025
The Hula Hounds (1996-2000)
The X-Rays (1997-2004)
The Surge! (2004, 2011-2012)
Various non-surf bands that actually made money (1978-1990)
Last edited: Sep 13, 2011 13:34:40
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HallmarkSweptWinger
Joined: Jul 27, 2006
Posts: 1284
Berlinesia, Germanifornia
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Posted on Sep 14 2011 06:15 AM
killbabykill34 wrote:
Do any of you have experience with this amp? I know
they are kind of pricey but I recently found one for
1800 and am very interested. I know they are
point-to-point and have a full 63 Fender Reverb built
in...
This past weekend we were recording and I played
through a Super Reverb Reissue and fell in love with
it. Upon pricing them I realized that by the time I
paid for the amp and an outboard unit I would have
already paid the price for the VibroKing that I
found....
Thoughts? Critisisms? Anecdotes?
1800 dollars for a Vibro King? Get it!!!!
I play my Vibro King a lot these days. Very reliable live beast also!
The built in reverb was at first totally lame and boring!!! Definitely NOT similar to an outboard tank!!!
I kicked out the crappy Accutronics pan and installed a TAD reverb pan and: YEAH!!!! That`s it!!! Splashy splashy surf sound now!
(BUT: An outboard reverb STILL sounds better!)
The basic clean sound of the Vibro King is fantastic! Very loud if you need it loud. And always clean.
Full and warm Fender sound.
High recommendations for this Fender amp!
(I made recordings a few weeks ago. I used the Vibro King and Reverb tank. Soon I`ll tell you more!  )
No recommends for the Dual Professional in my opinion! I had one for four years and changed the speakers for lighter Jensen Neodyms. They sounded much better than the built in Celestion Vintage 30s! The Celestions had a rock and blues sound. But definitely NO surf sound.
Yes, the DP is maybe the loudest amp ever, but the sound was always to harsh, to hard for me. I always missed a nice character in the sound! It was okay for alone playing, but together with the band it sucked...
These are my experiences.
No to forget that EVERY amp sounds different, even its the same model. Maybe I had a bad one?
I guess the DP is built for big "rock" stages. It has the 60s look but everything else than a 60s sound.
— Twang cheers!
Ralf Kilauea
www.kilaueas.de
https://kilaueas.bandcamp.com/album/touch-my-alien
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killbabykill34
Joined: Apr 03, 2010
Posts: 3201
Jacksonville, AL
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Posted on Sep 15 2011 08:17 AM
Well, I waited too late on the 1800 dollar VibroKing...oh well...It wasn't meant to be...I thought it was a good price but I also thought it would prevent me from having to invest 5-6 hundred in an outboard reverb as well...Oh well...I still have my eye on the Super Reverb. I recorded with one last weekend and fell in love with the tone...
— THE KBK ... This is the last known signal. We offer Sanctuary.
www.thekbk.com
http://www.deepeddy.net/artists/thekbk/
www.reverbnation.com/thekbk
www.facebook.com/thekbkal
|
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