Brown face: the forgotten era

Gassage

Having finally taken delivery of my rather minty 1962 BF 6G2 Princeton, I am in awe of its loveliness.

Seriously one of the biggest sounding most detailed combos I’ve ever heard, and had loads of crunchiness if you crank it.

Frankly I prefer it to the Blackface I have as there’s more hair...it’s actually very tweedy and I believe that the circuit is a variant of the 5F11 tweed (@riftamps or @ICBM may confirm this?)

The trem is quite spectacular and very throbby. In all it’s a sensational amp.

Every Brownie I’ve ever tried has been quite amazing...Supers, Deluxes, Pros etc...

Which leads me to ask, why is this era so overlooked by Fender themselves? Why so few RI’s of the stellar tones? Also, brown or blonde with wheat is simple divine to look at so why the Black and silver face obsessions when Brownies are so amazing?

RiftAmps

Brownface circuits are my favourite. I’m playing my brownface PR18 (think 6G2 with Reverb) all the time, such warmth and depth.

The 6G2 is just a 5F11 in a different box. They did update the filtering though which changes it slightly.

Gassage

RiftAmps said:

Brownface circuits are my favourite. I’m playing my brownface PR18 (think 6G2 with Reverb) all the time, such warmth and depth.

The 6G2 is just a 5F11 in a different box. They did update the filtering though which changes it slightly.

Chris, I am down your way on Sunday and might see if the Major is in his bunker- could bring both down. Btw, have you a single switch phono end foot Switch? CME forgot to pack mine and I’d be grateful if you did, to save Adrian making one for me?

but yeah, it’s bloody lovely.

DJH83004

+1 for the Brownface, regarding reissues, I look after a customers '63 Vibroverb 2 x 10, made in approx. '93 which sounds amazing, as does his Vibro King 3 x 10 reissue of the same period, great amps but quite rare even for reissues.  

horsehead

I've wanted a brownface fr ages as I've found exactly what you said @Gassage the brown era has that wonderful clean but it has more grit and girth then a blackface. I'd love a 20w brownface amp!!!!

timmysoft

Needs a boss Ns2

Gassage

timmysoft said:

Needs a boss Ns2

On it!

KKJale

Brown Fenders are probably my favourite amps. 

I don't know why they've been largely ignored in reissue terms. Some of it may be down to their relative obscurity  - '61-'63 wasn't a long period at all. A bit of it may be down to modern-day Fender feeling that the lack of reverb (2x10 Vibrolux excepting) may still be a drawback at point of sale... after all, tremolo with reverb is probably what a lot of people still feel is "the" Fender sound. Another factor may simply be the brownness. I love it but you have to admit it's pretty "country".

My No. 1 amp of all time is the brown Vibrolux (not the Vibrolux Reverb). It's basically a 2x6L6 35-watt Tremolux head with that fabulous bias tremolo jammed in a 1x12" brown combo cabinet - weirdly, the only time Fender ever did that exact combination, but the perfect power, size and weight for a club amp today. It's supposed to be the Sultans Of Swing amp. I've borrowed one on occasion and it's flipping glorious. Only ever seen one for sale in the UK, and it was £3k. Just a leeetle rich for my blood... 

RiftAmps

KKJale said:

Brown Fenders are probably my favourite amps. 

I don't know why they've been largely ignored in reissue terms. Some of it may be down to their relative obscurity  - '61-'63 wasn't a long period at all. A bit of it may be down to modern-day Fender feeling that the lack of reverb (2x10 Vibrolux excepting)

There never was a brownface Vibrolux Reverb. The only brownface amp to have onboard reverb was the 6G16 Vibroverb. If you wanted reverb with any other amp, you had to buy the external reverb unit (6G15).
 

KKJale

 I knew that, I always get my Lux and Verb mixed up 

olafgarten

They could do a modern reissue with both reverb and trem. It wouldn't really change the core sound much. 

Fuengi

RiftAmps said:

KKJale said:

Brown Fenders are probably my favourite amps. 

I don't know why they've been largely ignored in reissue terms. Some of it may be down to their relative obscurity  - '61-'63 wasn't a long period at all. A bit of it may be down to modern-day Fender feeling that the lack of reverb (2x10 Vibrolux excepting)

There never was a brownface Vibrolux Reverb. The only brownface amp to have onboard reverb was the 6G16 Vibroverb. If you wanted reverb with any other amp, you had to buy the external reverb unit (6G15).
 

@RiftAmps you make Brownface amps with Reverb and Tremolo as standard though? I was checking out your PR6 which has both I think? 

Must admit I'd love a 5w with a 12" speaker and onboard Trem and Reverb. 

ArchtopDave

Fuengi said:

RiftAmps said:

KKJale said:

Brown Fenders are probably my favourite amps. 

I don't know why they've been largely ignored in reissue terms. Some of it may be down to their relative obscurity  - '61-'63 wasn't a long period at all. A bit of it may be down to modern-day Fender feeling that the lack of reverb (2x10 Vibrolux excepting)

There never was a brownface Vibrolux Reverb. The only brownface amp to have onboard reverb was the 6G16 Vibroverb. If you wanted reverb with any other amp, you had to buy the external reverb unit (6G15).
 

@RiftAmps you make Brownface amps with Reverb and Tremolo as standard though? I was checking out your PR6 which has both I think? 

Must admit I'd love a 5w with a 12" speaker and onboard Trem and Reverb. 

I own the Rift Vibro 63, that Chris originally made for himself. It sounds fabulous with both Reverb and Tremolo onboard for use as needed. 

Gassage

My dream is an original Vibroverb, as @RiftAmps knows.

599 brown ones ever made, 19 in blonde (they fetch SILLY money in blonde- like upwards of 20k, 5-6k for a brown)

Re the Vibrolux, yup, 12" 1 x 12 only, 60-62. Reasonably cheap by Brownface standard, c 2k.

RiftAmps

Fuengi 

@RiftAmps you make Brownface amps with Reverb and Tremolo as standard though? I was checking out your PR6 which has both I think? 

Must admit I'd love a 5w with a 12" speaker and onboard Trem and Reverb. 

Yeah I do, it makes them so much more useable and as the brownface reverb circuit is different to blackface, it makes for an interesting alternative.

57Deluxe

Gassage said:

.

Which leads me to ask, why is this era so overlooked by Fender themselves? Why so few RI’s of the stellar tones? Also, brown or blonde with wheat is simple divine to look at so why the Black and silver face obsessions when Brownies are so amazing?

It isn't that they are overlooked it is that in the UK they were not officially available - nor the Tweeds. So Fender amps became more prevalent from the 65 BF era onwards and really only got a footing in the SF period.

Moltisanti

for those of us non Fender amp people, how does the Brownface sit tonally vs the Blackface and Tweeds ?

Gassage

Moltisanti said:

for those of us non Fender amp people, how does the Brownface sit tonally vs the Blackface and Tweeds ?

Very much inbetween the two ironically.

it has a little more hair than a blackface, but more scoop than a tweed.

i did a demo of my Princeton elsewhere on the amps section.

the 6G2 is a derivative of the 5F11 tweed Tremolux circuit and breaks up rather like a plexi 

crunchman

At the risk of upsetting the purists, are there any decent brownface Kemper profiles?  Or do we need to borrow this new amp that @Gassage has got and profile it?

Gassage

crunchman said:

At the risk of upsetting the purists, are there any decent brownface Kemper profiles?  Or do we need to borrow this new amp that @Gassage has got and profile it?

Reported to modmins...