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Is The Fender Twin Reverb Too Heavy, Too Loud, Too Big, or Just Right?

The Fender Twin Reverb get’s a lot of criticism for being big, heavy, and loud, but if you want a fantastic clean tone at real gig volumes it is perfect.

I currently have two 70s Twin Reverbs. One is completely stock other than the electrolitic caps, and the other has been modified to the ab763 schematic. I love my Twin Reverb amps just as much as I love my Dumble clone.

For a while, I was on the hunt for a Deluxe Reverb, but when I would try them at gig volume they just couldn’t get the beautiful clean tone that I love. Smaller tube amps just always have some inherent crunch to the tone when you turn them up.

Someone commented on my video “Too Heavy? Too Loud? To Big? or just right…….”, and the answer is “just right”.

Fender ’65 Twin Reverb: https://amzn.to/31k0icr

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Trying Thomastik Infeld Jazz Swing 11-47 JS11 Guitar Strings

These strings sound great! They are punchy and even but they don’t have an overstated midrange. They are warm but not dead. Awesome stings!

Going up to 11 with the TI Jazz Swings didn’t feel a whole lot heavier than regular 10s. The strings have a great feeling balance against the pick. They are almost snappy feeling, but they still have the tension I like.

The G string is wound and when you bend strings it will kind of roll under your finger, so if you need to be able to really bend then you might want to grab a single G string.. something between .17 and .19 will do the job.

Since the time I filmed this video, I’ve used them on my Telecaster as well. I like them more than I liked the Chrome 10s. They are currently my favorite flat wounds.

TI Jazz Swing JS111 on amazon: https://amzn.to/2IrRaYK

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How Fragile are Tubes in a Guitar Amp?

One of the arguments against tube amps is that the tubes are fragile, but in my experience they tougher than you would expect. Yes they are glass, and if you threw one at the concrete it would (probably) break, but once they are in the amp they are safe.

I’ve dragged my tube amps all over the place and even dropped them without any damage to the tubes. One time I had a Twin Reverb fall over on it’s face so hard that the speaker was damaged, but the tubes were fine.

Tubes on amazon: https://amzn.to/2mH9qpz

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What to Expect at Jam Night or an Open Mic

Let’s talk about what to expect at a local jam night. I’ve been hosting jam nights in the Dallas / Fort Worth area on and off for 15 years and there are some things everyone should know before they show up at a jam.

Each jam session is different, and the best thing to do is show up without planning to jam if it’s a new place that you haven’t been to. See how it works and talk to the other musicians so that you know what to do.

Be prepared and bring your instrument, but please don’t bring your pedal board or amp 🙂

In this video, I go over everything you need to know, so check it out and then find a jam night.