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2005 Fender 65 Twin Reverb 40th Anniversary Valve Amp

The mid-60s Fender Twin Reverb - "possibly the quintessential combo amp".  Clean, loud, classic and legendary.  So much so that Fender started reissuing the 1965 model as early as 1991, with this one marking the 40th anniversary in 2005.  Pure genius.
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Thanks to John Teagle and John Sprung in Fender Amps: The First Fifty Years for that "quintessential combo amp" comment.  A hardback copy of the book is going for over £1000 on Amazon . . . But really, so much has been written about this fabled amp, you don't have to pay or search hard, and I'm not going to add a jot of new information that you can't find anywhere else.  Try Fender's own story as a great place to start: Pristine Cleans. Aggressive Overdrive.  Exactly as it is, from 1952 to today.
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The 65 Twin Reverb really has made every effort to reproduce the design and sound of those original mid-60s models.  Yes, printed circuit boards replace the original hand-wiring.  But this still whacks you with the massive 10-valve, 2 x 12" 85W punch that everyone loves about the  original.  And those speakers are duplicates of the equally loved Jensen "Specially Designed For Fender" speakers.  Vibrato may not be as vogue as it once was, but if you're going to use it, you don't get any better than this.  All with that fabulous Fender shimmering reverb.  I think they may be right - it really is the quintessential combo amp.
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So, no surprises, there's a lot of love for this amp: Dave Gilmour, Johnny Marr, Alex Turner, Jack White, Thom Yorke, Johnny Greenwood, Lenny Kravitz & Brian Molko, to name just a few.  How about you?
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And a perfect blonde-on-blonde combination with this beautiful 1962 Fender Duo-Sonic.
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Specification

Make

Fender

Model

65 Twin Reverb 40th Anniversary

Year

2005

Serial  Number

AC 056512

Valve/Transistor

Valve

Power

85 Watts

Speakers

2 x 12" Special Design Eminence, built to 1965 Jensen specs

Channels

Normal

Vibrato

Additional Features

Independent Bright Switch, & Volume, Treble, Middle, Bass Controls in each channel
Vibrato & Reverb

2 x Tilt-back legs

Additional Speaker Output

Weight

29kg

Accessories

Fender 2-Button VIB-REV Footswitch

Fender black vinyl cover

Further Information:

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  • Some discussion threads suggest that only 400 of these 40th anniversary editions were made.  I haven't found anything to validate that, but it's fair to say these are still pretty unique in their own right.

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  • For a start, that blonde tolex/wheat grille combination.  That was a feature of the 1962/3 Fender Twin, replaced in 1963 by the Fender Twin Reverb, with its now familiar black tolex and silver grille.  Which is the design used on the reissue from first launch in 1991 to today.  But why not?  If you're going to do something special to mark 40 years, this blonde/wheat look is the definition of eye-candy.

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  • Elsewhere it's all in the detail.  The logo scripts, the polished footswitch, and, oh, that "jewel" power light.  I remember that feature with misty-eyed wonderment.  My first proper amp was a 1960s Fender Bandmaster - a piggy-backed amp and cabinet, staggeringly large, utterly impractical, perfectly voiced.  That jewel light, and that familiar hot tube smell that only Fender can create, it takes me back to a different and wondrous place.

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  • And, of course, that sound, ringing true across the decades.  Surprisingly noiseless for such a highly-geared valve amp, beautiful clear tones, and so much power under the covers, this is a proper professional gigging amp.  Yes, you can keep it to neighbour-friendly levels, but it's got to be better to get out there, loud and proud and a legend in your own right, surely?

Sources & Links
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