So there's a guy who wants to trade me his 1967 super reverb for my 1966 bassman + cab. The reasoning is that he wants a little more low end punch, and I like to run reverb, which the Super excels at. What I'm wondering is, is this a good trade? Will I miss the growl of the bassman? Can a super sound like a caged animal? I know both amps have a pretty solid following on the internets.
What would you guys do?
Posted: Sun May 04, 2014 9:31 pm
by paul_
The Bassman is capable of a fatter/thicker sound. Sounds like you know this already, though rest assured the Super will hardly be lacking in lows or anything, you are moving plenty of air and can dial in a bassy sound (just not bassman-thick). The Super is better known for other sounds, but it's no one-trick pony (much like a Twin).
Heard Dan Auerbach fill out the early (thickfreakness) Black Keys sound pretty well with nawt but a Super Reverb at Coachella 2007, he seemed to get plenty of low end/garagey tone out of it.
Posted: Mon May 05, 2014 12:20 am
by torchindy
I just looked this set up on YouTube and wow, that sound is huge.
[youtube][/youtube]
Posted: Mon May 05, 2014 1:18 pm
by 71Smallbox
Do it, that year of Super Reverb is worth more than the Bassman, so if you decide it doesn't work for you, you could resell it and track down another Bassman. They are great amps and sound awesome. Do it.
Posted: Tue May 06, 2014 2:01 pm
by torchindy
Did the trade, and it has this way of filling a room with sound that is amazing. I'm glad I did.
Posted: Tue May 06, 2014 4:58 pm
by 71Smallbox
torchindy wrote:Did the trade, and it has this way of filling a room with sound that is amazing. I'm glad I did.
Nice, I'm glad it's working out for you. What speakers are in it? They are either AlNiCo or ceramic speakers, possibly CTS or Utah?
Posted: Tue May 06, 2014 9:45 pm
by torchindy
They are the alnico CTS speakers, and sound amazing. Original 'verb tank, all trannies original, even has RCA power tubes. Been recapped except for the blue "tone" caps which apparently everybody says to keep.
The bad though, is that the speaker grille cloth was badly repaired and is falling off the baffle, but that's a pretty easy fix.
I think I did good!
Posted: Wed May 07, 2014 12:29 am
by 71Smallbox
torchindy wrote:They are the alnico CTS speakers, and sound amazing. Original 'verb tank, all trannies original, even has RCA power tubes. Been recapped except for the blue "tone" caps which apparently everybody says to keep.
The bad though, is that the speaker grille cloth was badly repaired and is falling off the baffle, but that's a pretty easy fix.
I think I did good!
Fucking ace!!
The grill cloth is so replaceable and doesn't affect the sound. Those speakers are the best in a SR, IMHO. Congrats!
Posted: Wed May 07, 2014 2:11 am
by torchindy
So I got a chance to play it for a while today, and at louder volumes. At first I thought I would be mostly using it as a clean amp with reverb, based on what I'd heard of the super reissues, but after playing it for a while I'm noticing that all my pedals sound WAY better through it than through the AC30 I've been using, and I have so many more options for sound... fuzzes in particular sound amazing - I can go anywhere from snarly Hendrix thick distortion right up through amp-blowing-up Scott Pilgrim/Neutral Milk Hotel sounds, and it nails everything. My distortions sound more 'real', delay gives me drug flashbacks, and the amp's reverb, even at 10, is so sublime that after a while you forget it's on.