Bandmaster Reverb, to build a Super Reverb or Vibroclone?

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Rob Livesey
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Bandmaster Reverb, to build a Super Reverb or Vibroclone?

Post by Rob Livesey »

Hi Chaps,

Just picked up a really clean Bandmaster Reverb head from '71 with the idea of building combo out of it. It will get the usual treatment, recap blackface mods etc, might even do the "Cool Mod" to the normal channel.

I like the idea of the Vibroclone, smaller, lighter, only one speaker so it will cost less to build. But the Super really has me drawn too despite the extra cost of the four speakers etc.

I mostly play a 335 these days, which amp would you build and why?

Cheers,
Rob.
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Rob Livesey
Manchester, UK
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Gibsonman63
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Re: Bandmaster Reverb, to build a Super Reverb or Vibroclone?

Post by Gibsonman63 »

Why not just leave it as a head and get a couple of speaker cabinets. A Super Reverb drives in to 4 parallel speakers at 2 ohms, so a new output transformer would be required for that configuration. An alternative is to run 4 8-ohm speakers in series parallel to keep the load at 8 ohms. You could get another 2 x 12 cabinet and load it with 16 ohm speakers in parallel and swap back and forth. Get one of those plug-in diode rectifiers and you could use that with the 2 x 12 for the twin sound and use the tube rectifier with the 4 x 10 cabinet for the Super Reverb sound. You could also have the reverb on both channels so you can mod each side to work best with a certain cabinet.

I have a 1972 Silverface Super Reverb that I converted to blackface specs and it sounds wonderful, but it's not so good on the back. I would highly recommend going to the music store and lifting one before you commit.
Bob Simpson
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Re: Bandmaster Reverb, to build a Super Reverb or Vibroclone?

Post by Bob Simpson »

Rob,

I have a '76 BMR Vibroclone with a Weber California 15".
Tilt back legs, etc. Not really so much heavier than the stock BMR head.

It is my current favorite grab and go amp.

If you make the few changes required to get it to the 63 Vibroverb circuit, it is an excellent new color in the box.

Good luck.

Bob Simpson
Please understand that IMO an answer to this question is of no practical relevance at all. - Max
Lousyatit
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Re: Bandmaster Reverb, to build a Super Reverb or Vibroclone?

Post by Lousyatit »

Gibsonman63 wrote:Why not just leave it as a head and get a couple of speaker cabinets. A Super Reverb drives in to 4 parallel speakers at 2 ohms, so a new output transformer would be required for that configuration. An alternative is to run 4 8-ohm speakers in series parallel to keep the load at 8 ohms. You could get another 2 x 12 cabinet and load it with 16 ohm speakers in parallel and swap back and forth. Get one of those plug-in diode rectifiers and you could use that with the 2 x 12 for the twin sound and use the tube rectifier with the 4 x 10 cabinet for the Super Reverb sound. You could also have the reverb on both channels so you can mod each side to work best with a certain cabinet.

I have a 1972 Silverface Super Reverb that I converted to blackface specs and it sounds wonderful, but it's not so good on the back. I would highly recommend going to the music store and lifting one before you commit.
I heartily endorse this concept. I would also suggest installing a tapped 2/4/8 ohm OT. This would allow you to switch between cabinets. The stock OT on a BMR is on the small side. The bigger OT will give you more punch, like a Super.
Bob Simpson
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Re: Bandmaster Reverb, to build a Super Reverb or Vibroclone?

Post by Bob Simpson »

FWIW, I had the BMR OT replaced with a '66 Super Reverb OT to match the 2X6l6 output to the 8 ohm 15".

Bob
Please understand that IMO an answer to this question is of no practical relevance at all. - Max
Rob Livesey
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Re: Bandmaster Reverb, to build a Super Reverb or Vibroclone?

Post by Rob Livesey »

Thanks for the ideas chaps.

I've owned two Supers and they are beasts to move around, but nothing quite flaps your trouser legs like a Super Reverb :D

I built a Vibroclone over ten years ago around a Pro Reverb chassis and I really liked it and have always regretted selling that too.

My grab and go amps are my 1965 Deluxe Reverb or my '71 Pro Reverb.

At the moment I'm erring on the side of the Vibroverb again, simply to keep costs and weight down and Tube Amp Doctor do ready built cabs and even authentic faceplates.

Has anyone got experience of the Jensen Neo 15 ? I have some 12's in the Pro and I really like them, but I'm bothered the bottom end may be overpowering in the 15.

I'll post pics when it's up and running,
Cheers,
Rob.
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Rob Livesey
Manchester, UK
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MacLoud
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Re: Bandmaster Reverb, to build a Super Reverb or Vibroclone?

Post by MacLoud »

Hi Rob

Allparts in the UK sell the Mojo cabs and they are less expensive than buying from TAD.
I have an old Bandmaster Reverb head and I am doing the same Vibroclone thing. I have the Jensen Neo 15" and the cabinet is on order. Got the Jensen for a reasonable price from Hotrox UK.
Is it a good idea to put a bigger output transformer in it, as I have read that the one in the BMR is a little underpowered.
If you want the face plate at a good price pm me for an email address in Thailand, $35 each and very quick delivery.
MacLoud
Rob Livesey
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Re: Bandmaster Reverb, to build a Super Reverb or Vibroclone?

Post by Rob Livesey »

MacLoud wrote:Hi Rob

Allparts in the UK sell the Mojo cabs and they are less expensive than buying from TAD.
I have an old Bandmaster Reverb head and I am doing the same Vibroclone thing. I have the Jensen Neo 15" and the cabinet is on order. Got the Jensen for a reasonable price from Hotrox UK.
Is it a good idea to put a bigger output transformer in it, as I have read that the one in the BMR is a little underpowered.
If you want the face plate at a good price pm me for an email address in Thailand, $35 each and very quick delivery.
MacLoud
Ah, thanks for the info, I know Andy at Allparts, I'll give him a call. And yes, I'll pm you regarding the faceplate.

Re the output tranny. In my last Vibroclone I fitted a multitap Bassman tranny and hard wired the 8 ohm tap. The amp did sound great and had a lot of headroom with a Weber C15N speaker in there. This time I'm going to keep the smaller BMR tranny in there and see how it sounds. I don't play as loud these days and despite the impedance mismatch (4 ohm output, 8 ohm speaker) I think the amp might be what I want. BMR's give up the goods a little earlier because of the smaller tranny, they feel squishier and more compressed earlier on the volume knob. The amp will handle the mismatch ok and I've always got the option to fit a bigger tranny. What a lot of guys did was to use a Twin output tranny, huge iron, but with only 2 6L6's, the impedance matches the 8 ohm speaker and you'd get the most headroom possible out of the amp.

One thing to watch, depending on the speaker you are using, the output tranny you are using and the cab. Some people found that after fitting the larger tranny and sliding it back into the cab, the output tranny hit the speaker frame. This happened with my first vibroclone and I had a new baffle made which offset the speaker away from the tranny. Ted Weber actually started to make speakers with custom cutouts in the basket so that the corner of the tranny would sit inside, but not touch the cone. I don't expect this to be a problem with the stock tranny tho as it's teeny.

Cheers,
Rob.
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Rob Livesey
Manchester, UK
------------------
Rob Livesey
Posts: 189
Joined: Fri May 12, 2006 10:53 am
Location: Manchester, UK
Contact:

Re: Bandmaster Reverb, to build a Super Reverb or Vibroclone?

Post by Rob Livesey »

MacLoud wrote:Hi Rob

Allparts in the UK sell the Mojo cabs and they are less expensive than buying from TAD.
I have an old Bandmaster Reverb head and I am doing the same Vibroclone thing. I have the Jensen Neo 15" and the cabinet is on order. Got the Jensen for a reasonable price from Hotrox UK.
Is it a good idea to put a bigger output transformer in it, as I have read that the one in the BMR is a little underpowered.
If you want the face plate at a good price pm me for an email address in Thailand, $35 each and very quick delivery.
MacLoud
Hi, just to let you know. I sent payment for the faceplate to the guy in Thailand on Tuesday and I had it by Friday! Top notch faceplate too, looks the biz.

Cheers,
Rob.
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Rob Livesey
Manchester, UK
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Buschman
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Re: Bandmaster Reverb, to build a Super Reverb or Vibroclone?

Post by Buschman »

You should go play the reissues. They sound similar(vibroverb vs super) but feel a bit different. 4 10s seems to push more air but in a very cool way. You can point it at a wall and fill a room with it. A strong 15" can part your hair.
I've got blisters on my fingers!
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Buschman
Posts: 419
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Re: Bandmaster Reverb, to build a Super Reverb or Vibroclone?

Post by Buschman »

You should go play the reissues. They sound similar(vibroverb vs super) but feel a bit different. 4 10s seems to push more air but in a very cool way. You can point it at a wall and fill a room with it. A strong 15" can part your hair.
I've got blisters on my fingers!
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