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I'm hoping my Surf guitar 101 brethren can help me out - I have the
opportunity to buy a late 70's model Dual Showman Reverb for $700.
Pretty clean condition. It has the Huge speaker cabinet, loaded with
JBL D 140 F's, The head has a master volume and a pull boost.
Anything I should be wary of? Is it a good deal?
Thanks in advance!
Chris
Hi Chris,
Roland from the "Lunar Tiki's" uses one and I must say it sounds pretty
good for surf IMHO.
I know some people bash most of the silverface Fender amps, but they are
good value for the money. Also the JBL 140-F's are very nice.
It's a nice loud amp, good onboard reverb, perhaps not wet enough for
surf, but sure more than good enough for Ventures tunes etc. Also the
vibrato on those SF's are very nice (IMHO)
The only downside (for me that is) is the huge size of these amps, the
cabinets don't fit in your regular car, and they are not back friendly.
I saw players using a cart to lug those beasts arround. But hey, it's
all in the sound. If I was able to buy me a complete SF Dual-Showman
reverb with the KBL 140-F cabinet, I would not hesitate. Black face is
for many the way to go, but economy wis, I'd go with the SF any time.
Ofcourse, my opinion, not meant to harras anyone.
Check the speakers for tears and repairs, also be prepared for a recep
job, this is probably a post '74 amp that will need new capicitators. As
for the speakers Brain and Dan will have much more info on this subject.
Kind regards,
Jerry S.
-----Original Message-----
From: kahunatikiman [mailto:]
Sent: woensdag 11 februari 2004 18:13
To:
Subject: [SurfGuitar101] Dual showman Reverb - should I buy it?
I'm hoping my Surf guitar 101 brethren can help me out - I have the
opportunity to buy a late 70's model Dual Showman Reverb for $700.
Pretty clean condition. It has the Huge speaker cabinet, loaded with
JBL D 140 F's, The head has a master volume and a pull boost.
Anything I should be wary of? Is it a good deal?
Thanks in advance!
Chris
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Chris,
That sounds about right if you're in fact getting the actual
JBL's. Make sure the cones sound fine at ALL volumes. If they are not
I would negotiate a bit on the need for a recone. Blown JBL's are
still sought after so I wouldn't be too critical. Check to see if the
power tubes are originals. If they are not, a little negotiating may
be ok.
Inspect the inside of the cabinet to make sure there no
structural problems to consider. Grill cloth is readily available and
not so pricey (depending on what color/style you buy) so don't worry
if it is dirty, has holes or tears. Main thing with the cabinet is
that it the integrity of the structure is sound and the speakers work
at all levels in my opinion.
All in all, the chassis should go for around $375. The cabinet
with two 15" JBL's is more than worth the other $325. If it is a
pickup only kind of a purchase I think that is a great deal. If
everything was in good playable condition with no major issues that
rig ought to fetch $850-900 (w/JBL's only). If it is through eBay
then I would check to see what the shipping will be because it could
be expensive because of the size and price you out. Remember, play it
quiet and loud and listen. If it sounds great then it is a tremendous
buy. Good luck. JWL
--- In , "kahunatikiman" <chris@b...>
wrote:
> I'm hoping my Surf guitar 101 brethren can help me out - I have the
> opportunity to buy a late 70's model Dual Showman Reverb for $700.
> Pretty clean condition. It has the Huge speaker cabinet, loaded
with
> JBL D 140 F's, The head has a master volume and a pull boost.
> Anything I should be wary of? Is it a good deal?
> Thanks in advance!
> Chris
Thanks for the help - The speakers are indeed d140f's, we took off
the back. I was hoping for d130f's, because I know they are more
valuable. I am going to go by the store on my way home from work and
give it a try with one of my guitars -
What should I look for in regards to the tubes?
Thanks again
Chris
Chris,
Just make sure the power tubes are not showing any type of white
powder or flaking on the inside. If they do they have a vacuum leak.
When the amp is turned on, make sure the plates of the tubes are not
glowing orange. If they are the bias is improperly set and the tubes
are pulling too much current. A bias adjustment could cure this. Left
like that for too long and the tubes will wear out prematurely.
For the price of the amp and cabinet it is a very good deal so I
would not quibble over these things too much as a thirty year old or
so amp will have some things that will need to be replaced and
repaired so long as the map is functioning reasonably. Tubes are the
second things to switch out and greatly improve the power output,
tone and electronic stability.
The first is the filter capacitors underneath the chassis. These
need to be replaced immediately if the amp still has them. Symptoms
of bad caps are hum, buzz, motorboating, loss of power, and strange
noises. Once they are replaced you are pretty much good for about ten
years so don't worry too much about it. Filter caps will be about
forty bucks for the power and bias supply. Hope this helps. JWL
--- In , "kahunatikiman" <chris@b...>
wrote:
> Thanks for the help - The speakers are indeed d140f's, we took off
> the back. I was hoping for d130f's, because I know they are more
> valuable. I am going to go by the store on my way home from work
and
> give it a try with one of my guitars -
> What should I look for in regards to the tubes?
> Thanks again
> Chris
Hi Chris,
I went through the "buying a vintage amp" thing recently. You can pretty
much count on replacing all the tubes, you'll want to start fresh (or at
least IMHO). Which means you will want to have the amp rebiased, and while
you are there, have them replace the electrolytic capacitors (they have a
limited lifespan of a decade or so). Just ask for the typical "tube and cap
job" from a tech you trust.
I have a 2x15" cabinet that has 1 JBL D130F and 1 D140F. The 140's were made
for bass but sound just find to my ears (granted I don't play out or at high
volume). I had them both reconed by Weber as one had some cone rips and the
other would not move freely (coil rubbing). If you are going to play the
thing, then look into a recone if they need it. Reconed JBL's still go for a
lot of money on E-bay. Weber is pretty highly recommended, and on top of it,
seems to be the least expensive of all the places I looked into. Even though
I had to pay to ship them out to Indiana it was still cheaper than other
places advertising on the web.
I'm not up on silver face prices, but that sounds like a good deal. Just
keep in mind that all of the things I mentioned above (new tubes, cap job,
possible recone) add another couple hundred bucks to the price depending on
what you buy and your tech. I kept a spreadsheet of all my post purchase
costs and it scares me to look at it now. But it was worth it. I just need
to start working out if I am ever going to get the damn thing out of the
basement again.
Keep us posted! Good luck,
BN
> -----Original Message-----
> From: kahunatikiman [mailto:]
> Sent: Wednesday, February 11, 2004 3:06 PM
> To:
> Subject: [SurfGuitar101] Re: Dual showman Reverb - should I buy it?
>
>
> Thanks for the help - The speakers are indeed d140f's, we took off
> the back. I was hoping for d130f's, because I know they are more
> valuable. I am going to go by the store on my way home from work and
> give it a try with one of my guitars -
> What should I look for in regards to the tubes?
> Thanks again
> Chris
Hey Chris,
I've owned a couple of silverface,they're great amps. However, I'm
wondering if the amp is an Ultra Linear model. I owned a 78 Twin
with a Master Volume which was an Ultra Linear model and I didn't
like the sound at all. It's hard to describe but I could never find
that happy medium. The highs were too piercing and the lows too
boomy. On the flipside, I just recently owned an early 70s Super
Reverb non Master-Volume and that amp was pure sweetness. If I were
you I do some research in the Fender Forum. Take it easy--Phillip
--- In , "Jerry" <jerry.soetewey@b...>
wrote:
> Hi Chris,
>
> Roland from the "Lunar Tiki's" uses one and I must say it sounds
pretty
> good for surf IMHO.
> I know some people bash most of the silverface Fender amps, but
they are
> good value for the money. Also the JBL 140-F's are very nice.
>
> It's a nice loud amp, good onboard reverb, perhaps not wet enough
for
> surf, but sure more than good enough for Ventures tunes etc. Also
the
> vibrato on those SF's are very nice (IMHO)
>
> The only downside (for me that is) is the huge size of these amps,
the
> cabinets don't fit in your regular car, and they are not back
friendly.
> I saw players using a cart to lug those beasts arround. But hey,
it's
> all in the sound. If I was able to buy me a complete SF Dual-
Showman
> reverb with the KBL 140-F cabinet, I would not hesitate. Black
face is
> for many the way to go, but economy wis, I'd go with the SF any
time.
>
> Ofcourse, my opinion, not meant to harras anyone.
>
> Check the speakers for tears and repairs, also be prepared for a
recep
> job, this is probably a post '74 amp that will need new
capicitators. As
> for the speakers Brain and Dan will have much more info on this
subject.
>
> Kind regards,
>
> Jerry S.
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: kahunatikiman [mailto:chris@b...]
> Sent: woensdag 11 februari 2004 18:13
> To:
> Subject: [SurfGuitar101] Dual showman Reverb - should I buy it?
>
>
> I'm hoping my Surf guitar 101 brethren can help me out - I have
the
> opportunity to buy a late 70's model Dual Showman Reverb for
$700.
> Pretty clean condition. It has the Huge speaker cabinet, loaded
with
> JBL D 140 F's, The head has a master volume and a pull boost.
> Anything I should be wary of? Is it a good deal?
> Thanks in advance!
> Chris
>
>
>
>
> .
> Visit for archived
messages,
> bookmarks, files, polls, etc.
>
> Yahoo! Groups Links
