NAD - Fender 68 Custom Vibrolux Reverb

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taylornutt
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NAD - Fender 68 Custom Vibrolux Reverb

Post by taylornutt »

My amp hunt has come to a very successful conclusion.

I put out a feeler on Craigslist in the local area and had someone respond last week. I didn't hear from him for a week but today he texted me back and I purchased his amp from him. It's basically been sitting in his house since he bought it and it never left. The amp looks brand new and everything works.

This amp is a Fender 68 Custom Vibrolux Reverb from Fender's Vintage Modified series. They discontinued the Vibrolub Reverb back in 2018.

It's very similar to the 68 Custom Deluxe Reverb, but it runs 35W instead of 22W, has bright switches and is a 2x10" vs 1x12" speaker configuration.

I plan to put it through its paces latter tonight but I am ecstatic with how good the amp sounds and the condition it's in. It's a perfect match for my 1979 Fender Vibro Champ.

Image

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ImageUntitled by Joey, on Flickr

ImageUntitled by Joey, on Flickr

ImageUntitled by Joey, on Flickr

ImageUntitled by Joey, on Flickr

ImageUntitled by Joey, on Flickr

ImageUntitled by Joey, on Flickr
J Mascis Jazzmaster | AVRI Jaguar | Tuxedo-stang |Fender Toronado GT |
Squier FSR Sparkle Jaguar | Squier CV Mustang |1971 Fender Bronco| Baja Telecaster |
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plopswagon
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Re: NAD - Fender 68 Custom Vibrolux Reverb

Post by plopswagon »

Wow!
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ekwatts wrote: Wed Dec 21, 2022 12:53 pm The word "moisty" has made me irrationally angry.
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Thom
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Re: NAD - Fender 68 Custom Vibrolux Reverb

Post by Thom »

Nice score!
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NickD
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Re: NAD - Fender 68 Custom Vibrolux Reverb

Post by NickD »

That looks lovely!
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taylornutt
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Re: NAD - Fender 68 Custom Vibrolux Reverb

Post by taylornutt »

First impressions:

Reverb: It's the best Spring Reverb I have heard on a Fender Amp. Very Smooth and sounds great around 5 to 6 when I played it.
Tremolo: It's also very smooth. I want to compare it to my vintage Vibro Champ and see how the circuits differ.

Both work great with the provided foot switch and are accessible on both amp channels.

Vintage Channel: Exactly what you expect from a Fender vintage channel. Super clean and Bright.
Custom Channel: Definitely sounds different from the Vintage Channel. More Bass/mid response and not as bright as the Vintage Channel.It's supposedly a Bassman tonestack, but either way it sounds great.

Both channels have Bright switches. I never had an amp with Bright switches but I really like them. Depending on the guitar you are running, it' great to be able to add some additional high end boost/sparkle or conversely reduce it the high end on a super bright guitar. I wish the switches were more firm like the pickup switches on my Jaguar guitar. They feel a little cheap in the way they slide but as long as they work its not a big deal. All the pots roll really smoother and feel like quality.

Overall: My initial goal was to get a clean amp with more clean headroom that takes pedals and that doesn't weight 100lbs. This was exactly the type of amp I was wanting and more. It just ticks all the boxes and I am thrilled that I was able to score one in basically new condition.

I hope to just play the amp for a while to really learn how my guitars react to it and what channels go best with each guitar. I might grab an ABY box so I can switch back and forth between the channels.
J Mascis Jazzmaster | AVRI Jaguar | Tuxedo-stang |Fender Toronado GT |
Squier FSR Sparkle Jaguar | Squier CV Mustang |1971 Fender Bronco| Baja Telecaster |
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Re: NAD - Fender 68 Custom Vibrolux Reverb

Post by taylornutt »

Thom wrote: Mon Apr 04, 2022 5:56 amNice score!
Thanks. I couldn't believe the condition. Sounds amazing.
J Mascis Jazzmaster | AVRI Jaguar | Tuxedo-stang |Fender Toronado GT |
Squier FSR Sparkle Jaguar | Squier CV Mustang |1971 Fender Bronco| Baja Telecaster |
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taylornutt
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Re: NAD - Fender 68 Custom Vibrolux Reverb

Post by taylornutt »

I just grabbed a used Fender ABY pedal to compare the Custom Channel to the Vintage Channel.

I had to play at lower volumes (3) due to sleeping kids so the differences were not quite as obvious. I had the treble at 8 and bass at 6.

Custom channel has a little more bass/mid response.
Vintage channel is super clean/bright and more of that scooped sound you expect.

I will give it another go when I can crank it up a little more.

Even if the channels were identical, you could simply EQ them differently and still get great sounds.
J Mascis Jazzmaster | AVRI Jaguar | Tuxedo-stang |Fender Toronado GT |
Squier FSR Sparkle Jaguar | Squier CV Mustang |1971 Fender Bronco| Baja Telecaster |