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Post subject: Fender Super 112 (Am I Right On The Age?)
Posted: Sun Jul 11, 2010 6:13 pm
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Joined: Thu Mar 18, 2010 6:16 pm
Posts: 182
Location: KY
So the tone of my old Stage 185, while nice for a solid state amp, just wasn't cutting it. I sold it for a paltry $165, saved up some extra cash, and went out and purchased a Fender Super 112 for $240.

The speaker was upgraded from the stock FSD Eminence to what I want to say is a Eminence Screaming Eagle. I'm not quite sure on that because there isn't a model label on the speaker magnet like you would usually find; the front of the cone, however, does read Eminence, allowing you to see it through the grille cloth (quite neat). The preamp tubes appear to be replaced by various appropriate tubes, one might be a NOS 12AX7 of some brand (can't quite see what brand it is, I will look closer at them all later).

The guy who had it even threw in a set of Sovtex 5881WXT power tubes.

This amp was sort of the missing piece to my tone. I've always been intrigued by players who managed to make a Strat sound just as heavy as a Paul. Richie Blackmore and Billy Corgan come to mind. If I dial this amp in just right, click my Russian Big Muff on, I can get a nice, thick tone, one with plenty of meat.

I don't like being a one trick pony, though. Luckily, my Super is pretty versatile. I can click on a TS-9 and get a nice, mild overdrive tone good for blues. Hell, with the gain on the overdrive channel set somewhere within the 2 to 4 range, I can still get the same great, mild tone I need for blues licks.

The clean is the same great Fender clean. Sounds just as good as a Rivera Fender Concert amp for $700 I was considering before I found this amp. I don't really mess with the bright setting, though. I haven't found much of a place to use it.

I also haven't found a pedal this amp won't take to. It was the same way with the Stage 185. The RK amps were made to take any pedal board you could throw together.

To the PTP vs. PCB snobs, keep being snooty. I like being able to buy a somewhat vintage U.S. built Fender tube amp for a song and a dance, so keep insisting on buying Blackface Deluxe Reverbs for the price of a used car and I'll happily pay a small fraction of the price for the DR's bastard red-knobbed son. Yeah PTP may have some advantages, but this amp sounds great and, hey, I can actually use the onboard overdrive on a Fender amp for once (I really like to color it using the RBM).

I'm also happy to say that the tube schematic chart is still intact on the inside of the cab.

But that brings me to what I'm going to say next: the QA code that you use to date these Red Knob amps has went missing somewhere during its lifetime. Don't know why. I'm left with just the serial number to date it with and that's not exactly accurate.

The serial number is L0-188096.

Because it predates Fender's '90/'91 serial number scheme, I want to say it's from 1989 or 1990.

Anyway, I'm more than pleased with this amp. If you hate it or have ever hated it, keep on hating, haters. I'm going to buy up every one I find.

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2006 Fender AVRI 70s Stratocaster: Natural Ash | Sovtek MIG 60 & A No Name Cabinet | Pedals & Junk


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Fender Play Winter Sale 2020
Post subject:
Posted: Sun Jul 11, 2010 8:51 pm
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Joined: Wed Mar 31, 2010 12:48 am
Posts: 26417
Location: Tombstone Territory
Those amps are fine -- it's the red knobs I can't stand!

:mrgreen:

Take a looked at the stamped EIA codes on your trannies for dating info. Assuming they're original to the amp, they'll give you a rough idea of when it was assembled.

HTH

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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Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2010 11:06 am
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Joined: Thu Jun 21, 2007 4:57 am
Posts: 40
Location: Oklahoma
Congrats on your find.

I picked up a Super 210 (same as yours except 2-10" speakers) for $175 in mint condition.

It's a nice sounding amp, plenty of bottom end on mine.

The main complaints on the Supers (Super 60, Super 112, Super 210) is the weight (I put casters on mine) and the volume difference between the clean and overdrive channels. The sound difference is normal on these amps, it's just the way they're designed.

One owner said that his owners manual states that the sixty watt rating is on the overdrive channel only. I just set the hot channel to a decent low OD and use a pedal for any lead work.

One drawback is the PC board is mounted upside down and a slight pain to get to.


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