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As you can see we
have many choices for guitar tones. In the 50's and 60's Leo Fender produced some of the finest guitars
and amplifiers in the world. The desirability of these instruments is due to the superior craftsmanship thus leading
to a quality which is arguably the best in the world today. Under great mics and preamps these Fenders come to
life and sound unbelievable. The rest is in the hands of the musician.
From L to R - 66 Jazzmaster,
65 LPB Strat, 62 Dolphine Blue Slaboard Strat, 65 Candy Apple Red Strat, 70 F Hole Tele with Bigsby.
VINTAGE FENDER AMPLIFIERS
1952-1966
The Fender Tweed amps consist of a Champ, Princeton, Tremolux
and Super. Turn these amps to 7-10 and add a little Klon preamp in front of any these monsters and you
will have lead or heavy rhythm tones that will make the hair on your arms stand up for a week. Or just open them up
to 5 and front end them with vintage Strat and its game over for most guitar tracks.
The Fender Blackface amps
happen to be my personal favorites for recording. They seem to have just the right amount
of breakup for great guitar sounds. They can also be “dialed in” to create many unique tones
by setting a variety of combinations between the Volume, Treble and Bass. I have 5 1964 Baseman’s
with AA864 circuitry. Fender only made this model in 64 and I believe it is one of the sassiest amplifier ever
built. The best of the bunch has vintage Telefunken 12AX7s and RCA Blackplate 6L6
tubes. When I plug straight into the 1960 Gibson 335 with PAF's I am always overwhelmed by the results.
The 1966 Deluxe reverb sits in the control room ready at all the time. It is the default utility amp
chosen by many top pros all around the world. May I say it is probably the most recorded amp in history?
In addition, the other Fender Blackface amps include a couple 64 Champs, 65 Pro Reverb, 2 64 Tremoluxs and 5
Blackface Bandmasters. In short, it's really a lot of fun to A/B these legendary Fender guitars and amps
to create a customized tone that works best for each individual song.
Thanks to the
late Leo Fender who had the passion and desire to create and build some of the finest instruments in the world.
His work will live on forever.
BASSMAN AA864s & GREAT GUITARS
All the amps are Fender Bassman AA864s.
In addition, from left to right - 1957 Gibson Les Paul Special, 1959 Gibson ES335 hardtail, 1963 and a 1965 Strat.
OTHER COOL AMPS w/The
BEATLES!
THE WATKINS DOMINATOR
The amp that inspired Jim Marshall to build his first amp!
Vintage Fender 2x12 Cabinets
In search of the perfect tone has led
me to the Fender 2x12 cabinet built in the early to mid 60's. The construction quality of these closed back cabinets is
second to none. They are just the right size to create the perfect guitar tone that sits properly in the mix.
I feel the speaker/cabinet itself is just as important as the guitar and amp when going for the ultimate recording tone. Each of the cabinets has a small white label attached
to the handle indicating the make, model and year of the enclosed speakers. Yes, I have personally been inside
every cabinet and inspected and/or swapped the speakers. This collections of Fender 2X12 speaker cabinets
contain the best Vintage guitar speakers in the world. From Jensen, Celestion, CTS, Oxford, Utah, JBL, Rola.......
They are all vintage matched sets with original cones. Some of my personal favorite are Vintage Jensen P12N
and C12N from the 50s and early 60s. There are many flavors of Jensens to choose from. Do not count out the Oxfords.
One of my favorite cabinets contains a pair of "swiss cheese" L series Oxfords from the mid 60's.
Also, there are a couple cabinets loaded with some 60's Celestions with plusonic cones. They sound
very smoooth!
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