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Post subject: Re: Vibro Champ Club
Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2012 10:40 pm
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Yes, alnico. The Oxford 8EV was quite common to the Champs and Vibro Champs. I have one in my '68 Bronco as well.

Arjay

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Post subject: Re: Vibro Champ Club
Posted: Thu Mar 22, 2012 5:07 am
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Here's my 1973 Vibro Champ. Its been recovered and needed a bit of TLC when I got it (a new pot or two and some filter caps). The speaker (1975 Oxford 8EV.59) was not original - but correct.

Based on all the love Weber speakers get here and some direction from BMW202Ti, I just upgraded the anemic Oxford (with a magnet about the size of a Halls cough drop) to a Vintage Series 8F125-O. (B'mer - thanks for taking the time to talk to me about the speaker replacement. I greatly appreciate it.) And our resident shop teacher Lynyrd "Retroverbial" Skynyrd should know I actually did the replacement myself and I didn't eff anything up. However, no soldering was required. :lol:

Very Crunch. Very Fun. I wanted something that might break up early.... all the other amps are pretty clean. Since this amp has had a bit of a harder life, I figured it would be ideal to experiment with the crunchy speaker.

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Post subject: Re: Vibro Champ Club
Posted: Thu Mar 22, 2012 9:25 am
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phansford wrote:
And our resident shop teacher Lynyrd "Retroverbial" Skynyrd should know I actually did the replacement myself and I didn't eff anything up.


LMFAO!!!

Love that Ferromax, Pat. How does it sound?

8)

Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY


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Post subject: Re: Vibro Champ Club
Posted: Thu Mar 22, 2012 12:13 pm
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Arjay - it sounds 100x times better than the Oxford. :lol: This is the first and only ceramic speaker I have and it really give me a different tone.

I'll get a real chance to play thru it tonight. I've been in meetings all day and I'm trying to get a project out the door today, so I have not had the chance to take a guitar break today. :oops: :lol:

I think the old Oxford is going on CL tonight. I am going to ask $45 for it. I have to imagine there is some one out there looking for a vintage "fender" speaker for their '75 Champ. I certainly am not reinstalling it in any of my Champs. :lol:


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Post subject: Re: Vibro Champ Club
Posted: Thu Mar 22, 2012 4:14 pm
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phansford wrote:
I think the old Oxford is going on CL tonight. I am going to ask $45 for it. I have to imagine there is some one out there looking for a vintage "fender" speaker for their '75 Champ. I certainly am not reinstalling it in any of my Champs. :lol:


I faced a similar situation with my all-original '68 Deluxe Reverb -- a beautiful amp, strangled by its mediocre OEM 12K5 Oxford. After replacing it with a fresh JBL D120F, I put the Oxford away in a box for "safe-keeping"......didn't even unsolder the speaker wires. That way it can be returned it to 100% stock when my widow puts the amp up on Ebay.

:lol:

Arjay

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Post subject: Re: Vibro Champ Club
Posted: Thu Mar 22, 2012 4:20 pm
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Phan, you are welcome. I normally like alnico magnet speakers. But, this 8-inch in that single ended amp is like a marriage made in Heaven. Great harmonics & a nice onset of OD. Plus, the Weber seems to give the amp a couple more "numbers" to the volume control. :lol:

Believe it or not, when I gig friends, they keep telling me to turn the VC down!

Glad you like it.


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Post subject: Re: Vibro Champ Club
Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2012 5:24 am
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phansford wrote:
I think the old Oxford is going on CL tonight. I am going to ask $45 for it. I have to imagine there is some one out there looking for a vintage "fender" speaker for their '75 Champ. I certainly am not reinstalling it in any of my Champs. :lol:


Quick update - I sold the Oxford yesterday for $40. The guy who bought was on his way to buy a '75 Vibro Champ and wanted an extra speaker. And I have absolutely no remorse. :D


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Post subject: Re: Vibro Champ Club
Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2012 6:30 am
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Here's one I bought off eBay an year or so back. All the tolex had been painted over with brown paint...

I cleaned it up, and got it serviced, and here it is...

'81, I believe.

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Post subject: Re: Vibro Champ Club
Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2012 9:53 am
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Wow - that looks great.


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Post subject: Re: Vibro Champ Club
Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2012 10:13 am
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Very nice job. It's so great that these amps are being restored to consistent, reliable playing status. Kinda living proof of the legacy. Very cool.

I don't know how many guys looks at me sideways when I bring in a PR or VC--- sometimes with no pedals. They're like" "Ok we'll let the old fart get a few God awful riffs in, then turn his mike down. Or ask him to get beer or something."

Three hours later, they WANT that amp. Straight up trade for a modern head unit or a modelling Line 6. Love the magic that good tubes and well-made, simple circuitry can give. A tone that all the fancy-schmancy EFX do-dahs can not seem to aprroach.


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Post subject: Re: Vibro Champ Club
Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2012 4:08 pm
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I'm a new member to the club and I have to say these little babies are awesome. I just plugged this little weasel into my classic 50 using it as a cab. Wow, this thing sounds great as a head into a 2X12 cab. Think I am going to make a custom cab soon for this. Thinking maybe dropping some WGS ET65s in there.

Any other suggestions are always welcome.


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Post subject: Re: Vibro Champ Club
Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2012 4:25 pm
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Bear in mind, the Vibro Champ's output tranny is wound for a 4-ohm (actually, a 3.2-ohm) secondary. Thus, a pair of your favorite 8-ohm speakers wired in parallel will go well with it.

Rawk on!

8)

Arjay

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Post subject: Re: Vibro Champ Club
Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2012 5:53 pm
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That's exactly what I did! Just got done playing. I think a lot of people underestimate how loud these amps can get. For fun, I threw my OCD in front of it, dimed everything and my ears are ringing! 8) These are the perfect practice amps.

This amp stays pretty clean with everything dimmed using my TX Specials, but it gets real nasty (in a good way) with my humbuggies! <- stole that phrase from Gearmandude

Going to swap the two preamp tubes with some spare Sovtek and JJ's I have lying around too. Curious to see how it changes the amp.


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Post subject: Re: Vibro Champ Club
Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2012 6:22 pm
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djwhitjr wrote:
That's exactly what I did! Just got done playing. I think a lot of people underestimate how loud these amps can get. For fun, I threw my OCD in front of it, dimed everything and my ears are ringing!


You got it, babe! My little Bronco (same as a Vibro Champ) sounds like a cross between Robert Cray's Super Reverb and SRV's Vibroverb when wired to my Dual Showman cab and pushed with an OCD. But it's not so loud that it shakes your fillings loose or rattles the light fixtures off of the ceiling.

8)

Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY


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Post subject: Re: Vibro Champ Club
Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2012 7:03 pm
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Retroverbial wrote:
.....sounds like a cross between Robert Cray's Super Reverb and SRV's Vibroverb when wired to my Dual Showman cab......but it's not so loud that it shakes your fillings loose or rattles the light fixtures off of the ceiling.


And that my friends is the beauty of a low watt tube amp! 8)


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