In this amplification special, Fender amplification could not be missing. A true gem has landed in my hands: the FENDER ’64 Vibroverb Custom. In plain language, and after the tests I’ve run on it, I could sum up this review as: “absolutely incredible.” So as not to reduce the language to adjectives of dubious nobility like “killer,” I’ll stretch my review over several pages, through which you’ll get an idea of what this amplifier really is.
In the summer of 2001, César Díaz, the world-famous “Doctor Amp,” worked closely with Fender® to perfect this new edition of the original 1964 Vibroverbs. We all know that these original (1964) amplifiers are practically collector’s pieces that are hard to find in 2003, and especially sought after by lovers of “Texas Blues.” Thanks to this version we can enjoy authentic Fender Blackface sounds, characteristic of countless country, jazz, and rock recordings. Building on its technological development, by adjusting just two switches we can modify the amplifier to create intensified sounds, full of sustain and harmonics.
A quick verbal rundown of the amp’s capabilities:
- Two independent channels (high gain and normal).
- 40 W output power at 8 ohms and 4 ohms.
- 15" Eminence speaker of special design.
- Rectifier with a selectable solid-state DIODE or Tube option.
- Amp configuration selectable between Modified or Traditional.
- Tube circuit.
- Two-button footswitch (included) controlling reverb and vibrato.
- Hand-wired turret board circuit.
- Pine cabinet with dovetail joints.
- Tilt-back legs on the cabinet for more comfortable monitoring.
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Lately, we guitarists have grown used to working with emulation gear. Clearly, these systems that emulate give us a variety of styles and sounds within a single unit. We get used to hearing them and end up convinced of their effectiveness (which in many cases is true). Then a REAL AMPLIFIER falls into our hands, one that doesn’t emulate, that doesn’t have so many bells and whistles, and that is expressly conceived to be one of the best at what “it” does. Without a moment’s hesitation, when we plug the cable into this amp, our previous emulations of blues sounds and tube sounds fall to the floor, since no emulation is capable of delivering the power, harmonics, sustain, and body that the real thing generates. Today we are facing one of those “monsters” of faithful, real, dense, and powerful sound. That sound that gets inside you and warms your veins. We’re not just talking about sustain and magic; we’re talking about a tonal richness, body, sound, and attack that, in short, greatly increases our capacity for expression, adding infinite shades of interpretation to a single phrase.
The amplifier we’re testing on the bench today certainly doesn’t have seven hundred configuration presets. With it, however, we will make the most authentic and powerful sounds of a guitar “that speaks.” The guitar sounds the way it should sound, and its amplification is, I dare say: AUTHENTIC AND PERFECT.
On top of all this, we must add the technological tweaks that give us great flexibility and sound variations. That is, we don’t have a single sound. On the contrary, and within the perfection of the amplification, through the Fender ’64 Vibroverb we can manipulate endless sonic possibilities: softer, more intense, deeper, rounder, more crystalline, more opaque, more “shrill,” more relaxing, and an endless list of “mores.” RECTIFIER switch (TUBE/DIODE) and circuit configuration (STOCK/MODIFIED selection).
Now we have to add (activated from the included pedal and adjusted from the front panel) the reverb; a serious, professional, and again authentic reverb, which can be dialed from 0 to 10. And finally, its vibrato, which opens up a new range of sounds in combination with all those described above. As you’ll see in the listings a little further down, we control the vibrato speed and intensity with the “Speed” and “Intensity” knobs.
Amp Layout
Front panel, Normal channel: - Normal input 1.
- Normal input 2: for instruments with high output or preamplified.
- Bright switch.
- Volume.
- Treble.
- Bass
Vibrato channel:
- Input 1.
- Input 2. For high-output or amplified instruments (input gain 6 dB lower than input 1).
- Bright switch (which boosts the high-frequency response and is especially suited to playing at low volume). The boost decreases as the volume setting increases.
- Vibrato channel volume.
- Treble.
- Bass.
- Reverb.
- Vibrato speed.
- Vibrato intensity.
- Power indicator light.
Rear Panel
- Rectifier switch: selects between TUBE, the traditional sound, and DIODE (solid-state rectifier) to increase low-frequency response and power.
- Fuse.
- Power inlet.
- On/off switch: power.
- Standby: used for a short pause, avoiding warm-up delays.
- Main Speaker: lets you connect the main 8-ohm speaker.
- External Speaker: lets you connect an external speaker.
- Footswitch: connects the pedal (included) that activates reverb and vibrato.
- Circuit configuration: STOCK selection for traditional Vibroverb sounds, MODIFIED selection for a “Texas Blues” sound.
- Reverb output/input: RCA connectors to route the signal to and from the reverb pan.
Sound and Conclusions
You can get an idea of the amp’s power from the warning (I’m quoting from memory, so it’s not exact) in its manual: “Caution: Fender amplifiers can produce sound pressure levels so high that you must take precautions to avoid damaging your hearing.” With a smile, I can confirm that the punch and volume this amplifier develops are truly generous. In fact, in the place where I tested it, I couldn’t get past 4 on the volume dial, and it was already sounding at full (and I mean full) tilt.There is little left for me to add to my comments on the effectiveness and the excellent taste this amplifier has left in my mouth. So much so that I’m starting to feel real distress at the thought that it has to leave my recording studio; I’d happily let it stay here and live with me, we get along wonderfully, and I miss it already before it’s even gone. For the more experienced guitarists, I don’t think much more needs to be added, since I think you have a perfect idea of what this amplifier represents: an authentic sound, 100% impossible to achieve (as it sounds here) with any emulator. For those guitarists who are still a bit lost when it comes to amplification and are thinking of buying a new one, I would point out that this amp is a perfected classic, a gem, a true luxury. Surely, when a novice guitarist’s experience reaches the level of an experienced guitarist, the tendency will lead him to an amplifier like this one. On the other hand, consider that it is a high-end amplifier with a distinctive sound, a definitive purchase if you are quite sure of what you want. Conversely, if what you’re after is a versatile amplifier full of different emulations, of undoubtedly lower quality but more varied, with added multi-effects and hundreds of sounds, you should head down other roads, surely less professional but cheaper and more “colorful.”
FENDER ’64 VIBROVERB CUSTOM: in short, with a recommended price of 3,568 E, it is a professional amplifier that every self-respecting guitarist should, at the very least, try at some point in their life.