fender "red knob twin" aka "the twin"

J

joeydude

New member
89fenderthetwin.jpg


bought one of these the other day and i gotta say it sounds ****in sweet.

i wonder why these amps arent very popular. they go for way less than alot of similair amps. good cleans, nice built in spring reverb, all tube (cept the rectifier i think), hi or low output power switch. very versitile (lots of knob tweakin to be done). dual chanel mode where you can blend both channels if you want. enough volume for almost any situation.

the only reason i can think of that theyre not considered highly desirable is because the distortion channel dosnt sound like fender distortion. but to me thats a good thing, i find fender distortion usually to muddy. its got nice fender cleans but can also do wiked high gain tones.
 
Re: fender "red knob twin" aka "the twin"

My bro in law has one, and I generally agree w/you. Where I would differ a bit is the OD channel. I found the OD to be somewhat useful, but not great. However, that is just my personal preference. Had I fooled w/it longer, I get the feeling I might have viewed the OD more favorably.

I think that they are a great bargin.
 
Re: fender "red knob twin" aka "the twin"

yeah you gotta tweak the od channel. theres 5 knobs that make up the od channel tone, not including volume, and 4 of those are push pull pots so they can be pulled to change the sound. then theres also how much reverb you add. my point is there alot of tweakin to be done, and its nto just one of those amps that has a million knobs but soudns the same no matter how its set.
 
Re: fender "red knob twin" aka "the twin"

Now that you mention it, I do remember quite a few knobs w/push-pull. I'll have to arrange for more time w/the bro in law's amp...I do know that he's been very happy w/that amp.

I remember an interview w/Chris Stein of Blondie, about 10 yrs ago. His amp at that time was "The Twin".
 
Re: fender "red knob twin" aka "the twin"

I'm pretty sure Kurt Cobain had one of these and loved it...or at least I thought he did and so I was trying to buy one for a while. I know Fender's been working on their 'hi-gain' tone for a while...I wonder if THE TWIN's OD sounds like an less-refined version of the Fender Supersonic's gain...'cuz I like that amp's gain a lot.

It's a good thing you like it, you just have to ask yourself an important question: Can it be plugged into a 4x12 cabinet? If so...you could have a sweet 6x12 stack of speakers there...FENDER METAL ahahaha
 
Re: fender "red knob twin" aka "the twin"

I was just reading about these amps this morning. Hmm, I wouldn't mind one after reading through this thread!
 
Re: fender "red knob twin" aka "the twin"

F to tha P, you gotta get your hands on SOME sort of older tube Fender bro. It will make your life so much sweeter.
 
Re: fender "red knob twin" aka "the twin"

these were great amps for that sound... i dreamed of owning one of these in the late 80's!!! never did.... i had to settle for a SS Princton Chorus.. But i see these Red Knob Twins once in a blue moon for sale and oneday i'll have to pick one that is priced right... High Gain sounds from a Fender...
 
Re: fender "red knob twin" aka "the twin"

I owned the same model....2 bad I was young and "Tone-Def" at the time:P Man do I regret Selling it!!

~Mitch~
 
Re: fender "red knob twin" aka "the twin"

I have one. I either use the clean channel with a Zombie Rectified Distortion or mixtures of that and the OD channel. That gives me some sweet tones. Sounds just like a better version of a Mesa
 
Re: fender "red knob twin" aka "the twin"

I had my first real job at Guitar Center Lawndale back when those new red knob Fenders were all over the store. I remember pricing all the amps, and Marshall JCM800 channel switchers were also popular during those years. 86-89,

I remember The Twin being something like $769.
 
Re: fender "red knob twin" aka "the twin"

I had one of the single 12" speaker red knob jobbies called the Super 112. I liked it a lot, but after I heard the Ampeg Jet I have now, I traded it...the cleans were too clean, and the overdrive was too dirty for me. The Peggy is just SO much warmer and natural sounding. But, you know what? Empty Pockets NAILED it on the head when he said get to an older Fender, and MAN is that right on! I recently got to play through a '78 Pro Reverb (using my '78 LP, hehehe) and there is just a UNIVERSE of difference in the overall tone from the old amps to the ones of just a few years later. I could have just shut myself up in a room and played that thing for weeks. Just inspiring. :bigeyes:
 
Last edited:
Re: fender "red knob twin" aka "the twin"

guitfiddle said:
I could have just shut myself up in a room and played that thing for weeks. Just inspiring. :bigeyes:
Click to expand...

this sounds like a good idea, but i'm actually working my way out of a lot of debt right now because i did this with my Bassman.

Maybe getting a good amp is really a BAD idea, y'know in the grand scheme of things...if you let it get out of hand anyway.
 
Re: fender "red knob twin" aka "the twin"

Personally, I've never liked them as much as a mid 60's Fender Twin Reverb. But one of my favorite guitarists, Robben Ford, loves them and always sounds great playing through one. When he's doing a clinic or something where he doesn't bring his own gear, the red knob Twin is one of the amps he asks be rented for him to use. They get a bad rap from amp snobs (like me! laugh!) but they're actually excellant amps.

Lew
 
Re: fender "red knob twin" aka "the twin"

i used to have one and sold it to a good friend of mine who still uses it. they are good all around amps. the cleans arent as sweet as a black face amp, the dirty isnt as good as a great marshall but they are really versatile. two channels, good fx loop and reverb, and the low power switch helps getting good tones at a lower volume. even at the 25w setting the amp is pretty loud.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top