Finally scored a Vibrolux!

[foo3001]

Yes!

After a long time of of searching I finally found a ´76 Vibrolux in mint condition (well the pilot light needs to be changed) for a decent price!

I tried it for approximately 10 seconds and I was sold on the sound.. This one really has TONE. Not shrill by any means even with the bright switch on, warm and sweet all over.. Even the pots are completely scratch-free and!

..and the reverb and tremolo are gorgeous.

Couldn´t be happier!

 

[Vasshu the humanoid typhoon]

Re: Finally scored a Vibrolux!

Great amps for sure
Congrats!
Niels

 

[foo3001]

Re: Finally scored a Vibrolux!

Great amps for sure
Congrats!
Niels

Thank you my friend!

I´m really itching to get out there and play this weekend.. A new amp and a superb new OD pedal.. This must be the best weekend of the year!

(btw loving the blue led! )

 

[Vasshu the humanoid typhoon]

Re: Finally scored a Vibrolux!

Hehe yeah...like those blue leds!

 

[Pink Unicorn Horsey]

Re: Finally scored a Vibrolux!

Wow! I'm totally (and tonally ) jealous. You have any pics to share?

- Keith

 

[Jeffrec]

Re: Finally scored a Vibrolux!

Congrats. I love those amps. Definitely post a few pics.

 

[B Bent]

Re: Finally scored a Vibrolux!

Ahh dude!!! Welcome to the club brother! Mine is a 75' and I can't imagine another amp that takes me to the tonal heaven that mine does!!! PLEASE LETS SEE IT!!! PLEASE!!!!! Also hit me up if you want some real life tips on taking it over the top!!!

When I 1st got mine:

Now.....

 

[foo3001]

Re: Finally scored a Vibrolux!

Ahh dude!!! Welcome to the club brother! Mine is a 75' and I can't imagine another amp that takes me to the tonal heaven that mine does!!! PLEASE LETS SEE IT!!! PLEASE!!!!! Also hit me up if you want some real life tips on taking it over the top!!!

Sweet looking pics!

Too bad I don´t have a camera, but it´s in 98% mint condition with just a few minor dings here and there.

It has CTS AlNiCo speakers, I think they sound pretty nice. Much better than the Oxfords I´ve tried before. Noticed You had switched to Webers, how did the amp change with the speaker-switch?

I also thought about blackfacing the circuit, but I think I´ll leave it as it is, it sounds real good now. If it ain´t broken, don´t fix it.

It has quite loud background hiss, taking it to my tech tomorrow to see through it.. Hopefully it´s nothing major. Also hope the power tubes are in shape, as they´re the original RCA:s!

 

[the guy who invented fire]

Re: Finally scored a Vibrolux!

NICE SCORE BROTHER!!!

Greg's amp sounds nice, and IMO much better than it did when he got it (I am the guy that found it for sale and pointed Greg towards it, and helped him with these "real life" ti[s to get it cooking...).

Take my word it and do this...get that amp Blackfaced as soon as you can swing it, don't forget a cap job, then as soon as you can swing it swap the speaker for some Webers...the alnico CTS are good (and you're right...they are MUCH better than the Oxfarts of the time period) but a set of good Webers or old Jensens will take it over the top after a cap job, BF'ing and new tubes. The webers you want to get are the 10F125's or if you want to crank the amp and get a bit more speaker crunch out of it swap one of the 10F125's for a 10A125 or if you want max speaker break up go for a pair of the 10A125's. A lot of guys (Ted Weber included) will point you towards 10F125's...I can't tell you how much of a mistake that would be...you will loose a LOT of top end and the amp will not sound nearly as lively as it will with the 10F125's.

On to tubes...the new Tung Sol reissue 12AX7's are killer in BF/SF Fenders, both Greg and I use them and are both very happy with them, for new 6L6's the Winged C SED's are killer...I use them in my Twin and got Greg to use them in his Lux and both amps love them.

Now, you have a killer amp that Im sure sounds killer but if you really take it to the next level cap job, BF'ing, tubes and speakers as money permits...take it slowq if you want to but trust me you'll LOVE IT when it's done! Greg kept telling me how good his amp sounded stock and I kept saying "You haven't even really heard that amp yet"...Greg can tell you if I was right or not!

 

[foo3001]

Re: Finally scored a Vibrolux!

A lot of guys (Ted Weber included) will point you towards 10F125's...I can't tell you how much of a mistake that would be...you will loose a LOT of top end and the amp will not sound nearly as lively as it will with the 10F125's.

So which speakers are You actually suggesting?

the new Tung Sol reissue 12AX7's are killer in BF/SF Fenders, both Greg and I use them and are both very happy with them, for new 6L6's the Winged C SED's are killer

Yes, I´ve used the TungSols for a while now, and I think it´s the best 12ax7 at the moment. NOS quality. Had a pair of -C- Svetlana 6L6s in my Groove Tubes Soul-0 a while back, they sounded phenomenal but there was a (not very common) quality issue with the pair. Although they were a matched pair, the other tube turned out to be completely different from the other after used for a while.

I have to give the BFing a thought.. I must say I´ve never heard a BF´d amp that sounds like a real BF amp. There´s always something missing and they usually turn out real treble-y and shrill.

 

[the guy who invented fire]

Re: Finally scored a Vibrolux!

Im suggesting 10F125's or 10A125's or a mix of one 10F125 and one 10A125...if it was mine I'd go for a pair of 10F125's.

 

[the guy who invented fire]

Re: Finally scored a Vibrolux!

as for the tubes, the new TS AX7's are nice...not NOS imo but nice, as for the blackfacing, just get it done right...it can depend on other things, like the trannys and such but if it's done all the way and correctly it shoudl be real close...if you want to go all the way get a new cab too, that said most guys don't take it that far...also, that might be one of the reasons they never sound 100% too!

 

[B Bent]

Re: Finally scored a Vibrolux!

OK....Plus 1 to everything Christian said.

I thought my amp sounded GLORIOUS.... I mean ABSOLUTELY GLORIOUS even when I 1st got it. Christian DID keep telling me to have a cap job and have it Blackfaced, but it took a while of convincing. The speaker change is what I thought really made a ton of difference before I had it BFd and cap jobbed.

After I spent the cheese having it modded and capped I almost crapped my drawers at how much better it sounded. I would never have guessed, but it was worth it.

 

[foo3001]

Re: Finally scored a Vibrolux!

After I spent the cheese having it modded and capped I almost crapped my drawers at how much better it sounded. I would never have guessed, but it was worth it.

Which speakers did the amp have originally and how did the tone change with the speaker-switch?

And how did blackfacing change the amp?

I´m really hesitant of doing any mods to my amps.. Even my ´64 Bassman hasn´t had a cap job to my knowledge.. And the power tubes are absolute crap sovteks. BUT I just love the way it sounds now, and honestly, I´m afraid if I´ll "fix" it or make it better with a cap job / better tubes it´ll actually sound worse afterwards.

 

[the guy who invented fire]

Re: Finally scored a Vibrolux!

Which speakers did the amp have originally and how did the tone change with the speaker-switch?
And how did blackfacing change the amp?
I´m really hesitant of doing any mods to my amps.. Even my ´64 Bassman hasn´t had a cap job to my knowledge.. And the power tubes are absolute crap sovteks. BUT I just love the way it sounds now, and honestly, I´m afraid if I´ll "fix" it or make it better with a cap job / better tubes it´ll actually sound worse afterwards.

Greg's Lux had one crappy alnico Fender speaker and one even crappier Pyle Driver with an aluminum dust cap and a ceramic magnet the size of your head in it...total junk.

As for the cap jobs...look at it like this: If you buy a 2nd (or 3rd or 4th) hand car that hasn't had it's oil changed in about 15,000 miles and someone tells you to get the oil changed are you gonna agree because it needs it or are you gonna say "it runs great as-is"?!

Filter caps just like tubes and many other parts in an amp wear out, they are not made to last forever and they don't...

 

[CapoFirstFret]

Re: Finally scored a Vibrolux!

my Super Reverb has the CTS Alnicos in it and man those things sound really good. I do want to have it blackfaced though...just puttin up the cash for it is rough. I'm not even thinking about a speaker change. If I change speakers, I'm gonna go ahead and have a new baffle cut too to put the new grillcloth on with the new speakers

 

[foo3001]

Re: Finally scored a Vibrolux!

Filter caps just like tubes and many other parts in an amp wear out, they are not made to last forever and they don't...

Yes, I´m well aware of that.

But, I think the vintage tone I love comes partly from worn-out speakers and filter caps that are past their sell-by date. I mean, the tone I love about my Bassman for example surely isn´t the tone it had when first played in ´64. But as long as I like the sound and the way it behaves and sound engineers keep complementing the tone I think I´ll stick with it as is. If I want an amp that sounds good but more defined and, well, new, I´d go for a Bogner instead.

Of course I will get it recapped and retubed at some point, but I just don´t see the point why to do it now.. Also, back to the Vibroluxes, there´s talk around the internet that the silverfaces sound actually better than the blackface ones (I´ve personally never played a blackface VR).

 

[Pink Unicorn Horsey]

Re: Finally scored a Vibrolux!

Also, back to the Vibroluxes, there´s talk around the internet that the silverfaces sound actually better than the blackface ones (I´ve personally never played a blackface VR).

That's interesting. Any specific year ranges for the "better" silverfaces?

- Keith

 

[foo3001]

Re: Finally scored a Vibrolux!

That's interesting. Any specific year ranges for the "better" silverfaces?

Nah, I was just reading through fenderforum.com and there, to my surprise, some were in favour of silverface ones contrary to popular opinion.

I think it´s a matter of personal taste, really. I´m sure that to someones use even a red-knob Twin is the perfect amp. Some might even like the POD better than any amp.

So, a "better" silverface year probably doesn´t even exist.. Someone probably tried a bad blackface VR and a good silverface VR and decided that in general silverfaces are better..

 

[nepalnt21]

Re: Finally scored a Vibrolux!

:32:

NICE scoop! i LOVE the vibrolux! nice indeed!