The Gretsch Pages: Discussions: Other Amps: How to make my Blues Deluxe RI's Reverb louder?

How to make my Blues Deluxe RI's Reverb louder?

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- Rated: 115 ↑
Aug 13, 2008 9:23 p.m. wenzel:

Thanks Walter. Do you know what the price comparison would be between buidling your own and having a GOOD surf tank purchased would be?
- Rated: 66 ↑
Aug 13, 2008 9:31 p.m. Walter Broes:

well, the Weber, even with some changed parts, is going to be cheaper if you're building it yourself. But I do have to say I've been pleasantly surprised at what some quality reverb tanks have been going for on Ebay, Kendrick, Victoria, Valvetrain, and some other boutique companies.

Not so interesting for me as most of them don't ship to Europe, and shipping and getting it to 220V will take the cheap right out of it, but if I lived in the U.S., I'd keep an eye on Ebay.

You could also try to get a quote from one of the different companies that will assemble a weber kit for you. (there's a link on his site)
- Rated: 40 ↑
Aug 13, 2008 9:50 p.m. roadjunkie:

Chris contact Diggey I think he still has a tweed Victoria reverb tank for sale. Might be more money then you want to spend but it could give you a better idea of what the used market is about.

Edit: I just double checked and it seems it's sold
- Rated: 67 ↑
Aug 14, 2008 6:41 a.m. antik:

I was looking at the reverb circuitry in the Blues Deluxe Reissue and saw it is different from that in the Blues Deluxe. But the reverb circuit in the BDRI is quite similar to that in the Hot Rod Deluxe. There is one substantial difference though. The reverb driver in the Hot Rod has about 4 times the gain as the driver in the BDRI. The value of one resistor makes the difference. R34 in the BDRI is 180 ohms whereas it is 47 ohms in the Hot Rod Deluxe. If I was experimenting with the BDRI I'd initially probably try and split the difference between the 2 and put in 82 or 91 ohms for R34. That should about double the drive into the reverb tank.
- Rated: 8 ↑
Aug 14, 2008 7:30 a.m. ChuckH:

I been following this thread, and was just checking out the schematic of my Peavy Delta King, i thought it was all tube, as its advetised. but sure enought it has IC's on the input and output of the reverb tank... It sounds ok to me so I guess, I shouldn't worry too much that there solid state in the chain, but I don't think they should advertise it as all tube.
- Rated: 102 ↑
Aug 14, 2008 7:57 p.m. Setzer:

Chris, sorry to hear about Fender misleading consumers. That's not right.

If your serious about building your own let me know. I have the cab specs. I built this one to house my Dula Tube Amplifiers outboard reverb unit The chassis is a old intercome base! Jimmy used the original RCA circuit that Fender used. I have three knobs; Dwell Mix and a tone. It adds a little boost and has WAY more reverb that I'll ever use. Drippy freaky splashy reverb when maxed.:
- Rated: 19 ↑
Aug 14, 2008 9:30 p.m. TyPierce:

Wenzel said: Which one is it?
Sorry, Wenz. I was referring to the standalone 5G15 reverb kit he sells for $415. I've heard he also has one that will mount inside your existing amp, but for my money I'd run the outboard tank, as you'd always have the option of keeping it if you sell the amp, or selling it if you keep the amp.

Plus, with an outboard you can do that crazy "kick the tank" surf thing!

Edit - Sorry for the redundancy... that's what I get for replying without reading the rest of the thread first.

The Fender RI tanks seem to go for between $300 and $400 or a little more on eBay, depending. Some guys swap out a tube for a more "vintage" sound, but the tank will definitely give you as much reverb as you'll ever need.

I've been using a DigiVerb for a while, and it has plenty of reverb on tap. As good as it may sound, though, it's no substitute for genuine tube-driven 'verb.

And Fritz is totally right about SG101 - that forum should come with a Dwell control of its own!

Walter - That Admiral looks very intriguing... looking forward to hearing your take on it!
- Rated: 115 ↑
Aug 14, 2008 9:43 p.m. wenzel:

Thanks Setzer and everyone else for their input. I contacted mojomusic supply and finally decided on a 9EB2C1B reverb tank. It's an exact replacement for Peavey amp's, but the ohm's and resistance matches my amp and it's a 3 spring 17" tank. I'm curious to see how much better or worse it sounds.

I'll let you know when it arrives and how it sounds.
- Rated: 115 ↑
Aug 15, 2008 11:02 a.m. wenzel:

Well, I ordered a 3 spring tank to see if it improves what I am looking for. If not, I'll have to build a tank then. I'll keep you guys updated on the results.
- Rated: 42 ↑
Aug 15, 2008 11:32 a.m. seadevil:

Just don't waste your money on the Holy Grail - it's kind of okay as a supplemental unit, but it sounds hopelessly cheap on its own. I'm a reverb snob and I've found that the only SS pedals worth a damn are the TC Electronics Nova Reverb and the T Rex RoomMate. I have an original BF Fender tank, and the Nova is amazingly close.

Look up the Japanese band Terry and Blue Jeans (featuring Tekeshi Terauchi) sometime if you like surf music, BTW. Great music and humorously awful English-language titles - what more could you want?

An even better Japanese surf band is the Surf Coasters, who are doing a brief tour of the West coast this September. They are as good as it gets. Even PJ and the Galaxies, the Challengers, and Laika and the Cosmonauts can't surpass these guys.
- Rated: 115 ↑
Aug 22, 2008 10:16 p.m. wenzel:

I didn't have time to go through every post in this thread, but a HUGE thank you to whoever it was that recommended putting a 3 spring reverb in my blues deluxe reissue!!! I am so ecstatic right now that I just kind hide it. The new reverb tank kicks butt and is as surfy as I'd ever want to go. I love it to no avail!

Anyway, if you have this amp, you have to try this reverb. 9EB2C1B is the model number. It really sounds as surfy as I could ever want and has that fat spring sound.

Chris
- Rated: 115 ↑
Aug 23, 2008 3:45 p.m. wenzel:

Anyone have a comment? Please see my previous post. thanks.
- Rated: 19 ↑
Aug 23, 2008 10:26 p.m. TyPierce:

I'll second Seadevil on the Surf Coasters... I'm just starting to check out their stuff, but this Youtube video of them playing Misirlou should give you a taste.

I don't know anything about Terry and Blue Jeans or the Nova Reverb, but I'll be looking into them immediately - thanks for the recommendo, SD!

Great to hear the replacement tank was the fix, Wenz! Much cheaper than a 6G15 unit, and one less box to tote around to gigs and whatnot. Good reverb = Very happy.

I just ordered a 3-spring Ruby tank for my Blues Junior that supposedly opens up the reverb in a big way - not expecting it to get into Dick Dale territory, hoping it'll get me by until I can trade up to a blackface reverb - so it's good to hear that the inexpensive option of a 3-spring tank swap can have a huge effect!
- Rated: 115 ↑
Aug 23, 2008 10:43 p.m. wenzel:

Man, what an affect it was too. I'll have to do a sound demo when I get time, which I have very little of lately taking 3 classes right now on top of work. It was the fix I needed and wanted and I am totally happy about it!

Yes, way cheaper than a tank, which basically does the same thing anyway. As long as the 2nd and 3rd characters are the same, you can swap out to basically any reverb tank you want. Mine was accutronics BTW.

Chris