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Post subject: 1995 Bruce Zinky Fender 1x15 VibrAsonic ~CUSTOM SHOP or NOT?
Posted: Fri Aug 17, 2012 12:56 am
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Hi!
Just purchased a Bruce Zinky designed, Fender 1x15 100w Custom VibrAsonic Amplifier.
It's a 1995. I believe Fender made these for two years, 1995 & 1996.

Regarding my 1995 Bruce Zinky designed Fender 100w 1x15 Custom VibrAsonic Amp,
I'm wondering about two (2) things:

1) Does my 1995 Bruce Zinky designed VibrAsonic have a PCB board installed or are the
Vibrosonic's components "hand-wired" onto an eyelet board with NO PCBoard installed :?:

2) Is my Bruce Zinky designed 1995 VibrAsonic a Fender Custom Shop amplifer or not :?:

Reading the following three (3) paragraphs from the 1995 Vibrasonic manual,
I am confused about the "custom" wording (as marked in blue).

What does anyone "in the know" think or believe or have experienced :?:
Custom Shop or not :?:
Hand-Wired eyelet board, or not :?: Thanks. Toppscore :)

Quoting Fender: "The Fender Amp Custom Shop is dedicated to creating high quality amplification to serve top artists and discriminating players. These amps offer no-compromise sound and performance with vintage appeal and bullet-proof construction. Of course, things like point-to-point wiring do not come cheap. To better serve those who cannot afford the 100% hand-wired custom amps, Fender has created the New Vintage Series, using modern production methods to reduce cost while keeping the tone “custom”."

"In the spirit of all the great Vibrasonics of yesterday, we offer the “Custom” Vibrasonic of today. It is not a reissue of any of the old units, rather, it is a new amplifier designed for the multi-instrumentalist who requires versatility and clean power along with the classic Fender tube tone. It has 100 watts of tube power and 2 independent channels. And just like the Fender custom amps, the “Custom” Vibrasonic is painstakingly built, one at a time, by a select group of craftsmen at the Fender electronics factory in Lake Oswego, Oregon".

"The speaker in the “Custom” Vibrasonic is an Eminence ultrahigh power driver with exceptional sound and fidelity".

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Post subject: Re: 1995 Bruce Zinky Fender 1x15 VibrAsonic ~CUSTOM SHOP or
Posted: Fri Aug 17, 2012 8:56 am
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The quote clearly states it is not a Custom Shop Amp.

'Custom' here is referring to it being different then a vintage Vibrasonic.

Built at the Fender electronics factory not the Custom Shop.

A peek inside would answer your questions.


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Post subject: Re: 1995 Bruce Zinky Fender 1x15 VibrAsonic ~CUSTOM SHOP or
Posted: Fri Aug 17, 2012 11:05 am
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twotone44 wrote:
A peek inside would answer your questions.


If only he realized that a "screwdriver" doesn't always refer to a cocktail......

:lol:

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: 1995 Bruce Zinky Fender 1x15 VibrAsonic ~CUSTOM SHOP or
Posted: Fri Aug 17, 2012 3:01 pm
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twotone44 wrote:
The quote clearly states it is not a Custom Shop Amp.
'Custom' here is referring to it being different then a vintage Vibrasonic.
Built at the Fender electronics factory not the Custom Shop.
A peek inside would answer your questions.


I was leaning that way, but Fender connivingly used the word "custom"
on a frequent basis. Thanks. Toppscore

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Post subject: Re: 1995 Bruce Zinky Fender 1x15 VibrAsonic ~CUSTOM SHOP or
Posted: Fri Aug 17, 2012 7:22 pm
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Without pulling out my dreaded tools :mrgreen:
and twisting my arm off turning back cover screws :idea:
and amp chassis strap bolts :?
and de-commissioning electrically charged components :shock:
and screwing up grill cloth and front baffle alignment :shock:
and avoiding leaving the amps in unfinished within shop for another two weeks :lol: :lol: :lol:
and blah blah blah
and double checking gosh dang ampware schematics
and trying to get an accurate Fender Factory assessment . . . .

Bruce Zinky Fender amps do not have PCBoards, right?
or, SOME Bruce Zinky Fender amps do not have PCBoards, right?
or my 1994 Fender Tone Master amp,
and my 1995 Fender Vibrasonic amp do not have PCBoards, right?

Thanks for the Fender Forum Help. Toppscore 8)

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Post subject: Re: 1995 Bruce Zinky Fender 1x15 VibrAsonic ~CUSTOM SHOP or
Posted: Fri Aug 17, 2012 7:35 pm
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Looky what I found, right here on the Fender website. Sometimes it pays to open your eyes and look around. You never know what you might find. :lol:

http://support.fender.com/schematics/gu ... ematic.pdf

Looks like a PCB to me. :wink:

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Post subject: Re: 1995 Bruce Zinky Fender 1x15 VibrAsonic ~CUSTOM SHOP or
Posted: Fri Aug 17, 2012 9:01 pm
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bluesky636 wrote:
Looky what I found, right here on the Fender website. Sometimes it pays to open your eyes and look around. You never know what you might find. :lol:
http://support.fender.com/schematics/gu ... ematic.pdf
Looks like a PCB to me. :wink:



Dang. Looks like that capacitor board is PCB. Thanks, Bluesky.
Should I give away these amps?
Does this development really make the Paul Rivera Fender II amps
the last Fender amps without PCB boards? What about the VibroKing?

Got a quote from a amp builder friend: "the Zinky amps are DEF PTP, handwired"
Maybe the Zinky amps still have hand-wiring to some degree
and a quality PCB capacitor board strategically placed.

You know, I read nothing but great reviews on these early/mid 1990s Zinky amps.
The Tone Master really has some great and unique tones coming from that amp head.
British tone is what I'll call it.

Have not had time to really blast out the new VibrAsonic, yet.
It's my only 1x15" combo amp. For my amp heads,
I've an excellent large 1x15 Fender cabinet
and a 4x15 Fender cabinet, both on wheels.

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Post subject: Re: 1995 Bruce Zinky Fender 1x15 VibrAsonic ~CUSTOM SHOP or
Posted: Fri Aug 17, 2012 9:05 pm
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Could be wrong, but I do not see PCB in the Vibro King schematic.

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Post subject: Re: 1995 Bruce Zinky Fender 1x15 VibrAsonic ~CUSTOM SHOP or
Posted: Fri Aug 17, 2012 9:48 pm
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Toppscore wrote:
Dang. Looks like that capacitor board is PCB. ...... Got a quote from a amp builder friend: "the Zinky amps are DEF PTP, handwired"
Maybe the Zinky amps still have hand-wiring to some degree
and a quality PCB capacitor board strategically placed.


The whole damn amp is on a PCB.

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Post subject: Re: 1995 Bruce Zinky Fender 1x15 VibrAsonic ~CUSTOM SHOP or
Posted: Fri Aug 17, 2012 10:00 pm
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Toppscore wrote:
Could be wrong, but I do not see PCB in the Vibro King schematic.


That's because it doesn't show the board, just the schematic.

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Post subject: Re: 1995 Bruce Zinky Fender 1x15 VibrAsonic ~CUSTOM SHOP or
Posted: Fri Aug 17, 2012 10:04 pm
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bluesky636, you know darned well that "amp builder friend" trumps Fender's own schematic. :mrgreen:

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Post subject: Re: 1995 Bruce Zinky Fender 1x15 VibrAsonic ~CUSTOM SHOP or
Posted: Fri Aug 17, 2012 10:13 pm
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shimmilou wrote:
bluesky636, you know darned well that "amp builder friend" trumps Fender's own schematic. :mrgreen:


Sad to say, that is apparently true. I'll e-mail Fender first thing in the morning and let them know that their schematic is wrong. :cry:

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Post subject: Re: 1995 Bruce Zinky Fender 1x15 VibrAsonic ~CUSTOM SHOP or
Posted: Fri Aug 17, 2012 10:44 pm
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bluesky636 wrote:
Toppscore wrote:
Dang. Looks like that capacitor board is PCB. ...... Got a quote from a amp builder friend: "the Zinky amps are DEF PTP, handwired"
Maybe the Zinky amps still have hand-wiring to some degree
and a quality PCB capacitor board strategically placed.

The whole damn amp is on a PCB.


That is depressing.

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Post subject: Re: 1995 Bruce Zinky Fender 1x15 VibrAsonic ~CUSTOM SHOP or
Posted: Fri Aug 17, 2012 10:52 pm
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shimmilou wrote:
bluesky636, you know darned well that "amp builder friend" trumps Fender's own schematic. :mrgreen:


Not quite, Shimbo. Thanks for taking your valuable time to read.
"amp builder friend" stated the comment to me, and it's the reason for my inquiry.
He could be mistaken. But, he like many others may think an amp with any
non-machine hand-soldering is considered to have some or more "hand-wiring".
Guess you get the amps that no human touch. What do you think?

Back on track.
I am disappointed to learn the Vibro King is heavily tied to PCB electronics.
Too bad. Toppscore :)

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Post subject: Re: 1995 Bruce Zinky Fender 1x15 VibrAsonic ~CUSTOM SHOP or
Posted: Sat Aug 18, 2012 6:16 am
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Topp, just because the amp has PCB boards doesn't neccesarily make it bad. The famous ARC D76 has boards and is one of the most reliable and desirable hi-fi amp.

FWIW...


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