Silvertone 1484 Twin Twelve - Restore Pics

[CoopDaKill]

Silvertone 1484 Twin Twelve - Restore. Just wanted to post some pics.

[überfuzz]

Nice going!

You might wanna post this somewhere else in the forum. (Doesn't seem to be any trouble.)

Oh, sound clips would be fun.

[JHow]

Everything looks clean and nice. Do you have any "before" pictures?

[CoopDaKill]

Here's some before pics of the amp. It was pretty clean, when I got it. Been stored well. One of the nicer ones, I've seen. I also have the combo Twin Twelve (1474). The 1474 was the amp that got me into tube amp restoration and repair, several years ago. And the passion is stronger than ever. I'll get some finished (after) pics soon. I'm diggin' the sound of the 1484, with original tubes and Jensen speakers.

Question: Can anyone tell me if the output tranny is original stock? Thanks....

[olddawg]

Funny about 1484s. I have one that I'm about to restore myself. But I remember them being absolutely worthless in the 80s. You could buy them working all day for $50. I once put 6 chassis in a dumpster. Jack White uses one and all of a sudden they became desirable. I remember them sounding awful and being pretty useless. It will be interesting to see what this one sounds like when restored. I'm older, don't play as loud, and my tastes have changed.

[soundmasterg]

Here's some before pics of the amp. It was pretty clean, when I got it. Been stored well. One of the nicer ones, I've seen. I also have the combo Twin Twelve (1474). The 1474 was the amp that got me into tube amp restoration and repair, several years ago. And the passion is stronger than ever. I'll get some finished (after) pics soon. I'm diggin' the sound of the 1484, with original tubes and Jensen speakers.

Question: Can anyone tell me if the output tranny is original stock? Thanks....

The OT does look stock, though I will have to look at the 1484 I have at home to be absolutely sure. The OT is the one on the left when looking at the back of the chassis. The taps on the original OT's are 4 ohms (used on the 1484) and 2.6 ohms (used on the 1485.

BTW, olddawg, Jack White uses a 1485, which has 4 output tubes, two each through their own identical OT, and then the output from each OT goes to a cabinet with 6 10 inch speakers in it, 3 for each OT. The 1484 has a lo-fi grungy sound stock. The reverb is comically bad, and the amp doesn't have the nice crisp top end and clean tone like the Fenders, but it is a very useful and valid tone by itself. The trem is the best sounding roach trem I've heard. These amps can really use a mod to add a voltage doubler and adjustable bias adjustment to the bias supply. Their voltage is too low and it runs the tubes hard. Also be aware if anyone is thinking of modding one that if you increase the gain very much in the amp, they really start to hum a lot when compared to most other amps due to the location of the PT, and the inputs to channel 2 being right in front of the PT.

Greg

[CoopDaKill]

Thanks guys for your input. I enjoy working on tube amps. It's a hobby for me that I enjoy more and more. I like the sound of this amp, for what it is. Granted, it aint no Fender, but I do like it. I got this amp at a pretty good deal, and it was in such good condition, I had to try to save it.

Question : Where can I find a footswitch schematic for this amp? I'd love to make one. I guess I could use most any 1/4" dual button footswitch, huh? The original would be cool. I looked on Ebay, not too many popping up, right now.

[Gtr_tech]

JW used those *because* they sounded crappy/nasty/lo-fi/whatever. Thats what he was going for....

[dumbassbob]

I need someone to fix up mine..It has been sitting in my garage for 20 yrs ..Any takers?

[Regis]

I have one of those, a buddy gave it to me. It's in pretty bad shape, the OT isn't even hooked up. The thing is such a rats nest I'm no sure I'll ever restore it.

[soundmasterg]

I need someone to fix up mine..It has been sitting in my garage for 20 yrs ..Any takers?

I've overhauled several of these but they are such a pain to work on that they end up costing more than your typical Fender because it takes longer to do everything on them, and also because of the two doubler power supply, there is more work to do since there are more caps to replace. You have to get creative with the can cap since those are not available anymore with those values...either use a custom Weber one and resize the hole in the chassis for the can, or use discrete caps inside the chassis and leave the can in place disconnected. The reverb sux on these and if it doesn't work there is no point trying to make it work. The trem is great though and is worth saving if it doesn't work. THese amps can usually work fine with replacement of all electrolytic caps, but depending on the vintage some of the coupling caps will also need replacement. Also the carbon comp resistors used were very poor and sometimes those need replacement too. A voltage doubled adjustable bias supply should also be added. Aside from those things, the amps usually work fine after a rebuild. If you can work on amps you should be able to do it yourself. If not, then I am sure a lot of amp techs are around. Where are you located? I could do the work if I wasn't already too busy with school.

Greg

[soundmasterg]

Thanks guys for your input. I enjoy working on tube amps. It's a hobby for me that I enjoy more and more. I like the sound of this amp, for what it is. Granted, it aint no Fender, but I do like it. I got this amp at a pretty good deal, and it was in such good condition, I had to try to save it.

Question : Where can I find a footswitch schematic for this amp? I'd love to make one. I guess I could use most any 1/4" dual button footswitch, huh? The original would be cool. I looked on Ebay, not too many popping up, right now.

The standard vintage Fender footswitch works with these amps also, but you need a 1/4" jack on the footswitch. I would suggest to buy the one that CE Distribution/Antique Electronics sells that is the generic replacement for Fenders as it comes with the 1/4" jack already.

Greg