Tim C Vibroking Mod...Review

[pfrischmann]

I performed the Tim C mod on my VK. With a lot of help from our own Fullerplast. A very cool guy.

The mod really does open up the amp. It sounds more like a traditional fender now. It also has more headroom. I'm not sure I like this part. I'd suggest anyone who things their VK sounds a little tinny or congested give it a shot. Be careful though. There is NOT a lot of room for soldering.

I have one thing to fix on mine. Everytime I hit a B anywhere on the neck I get a buZZing in the backround. I cant tell if it's electical or mechanical......Oh well.

 

[TheAmpNerd]

Originally posted by pfrischmann
I performed the Tim C mod on my VK. With a lot of help from our own Fullerplast. A very cool guy.

The mod really does open up the amp. It sounds more like a traditional fender now. It also has more headroom. I'm not sure I like this part. I'd suggest anyone who things their VK sounds a little tinny or congested give it a shot. Be careful though. There is NOT a lot of room for soldering.

I have one thing to fix on mine. Everytime I hit a B anywhere on the neck I get a buZZing in the backround. I cant tell if it's electical or mechanical......Oh well.

What is the mod?

I've found there to be plenty of room in a vibro king, are you adding a bunch of stuff in it?

 

[pfrischmann]

Hi theampnerd,
It's about 7 component swaps. I couldn't tell you everything the mod does from a technical perspective. I'm not there yet.

If you go to the blue guitar site, you can find the mod there.

Thanks,
Paul

 

[TheAmpNerd]

Originally posted by pfrischmann
Hi theampnerd,
It's about 7 component swaps. I couldn't tell you everything the mod does from a technical perspective. I'm not there yet.

If you go to the blue guitar site, you can find the mod there.

Thanks,
Paul

Hi,

I looked but counldn't find it.

What is the file name?

 

[pfrischmann]

Here's the link,

http://blueguitar.org/

If you go to schematics, look for

vk_mods.txt [2k]

 

[ArchtopAnimal]

Paul ,

I've ordered a VK 20th for next week ( had a 2010 for a year or so )
and this has me reading the VK mods threads again . Although I've not
touched anything on the 2010 ( other than tube changes ) , I see that
you made a few alterations . Would you mind sharing your thoughts
on the resultant tone/performance changes that happened please ?

Cheers,

Neil

 

[pfrischmann]

Neil,
I just saw this. It's been too long for me to respond with conviction. It short, I felt the original VK was a little harsh when pushed. It compressed out too easily. The Tim C mods fixed this and mad the amp bigger sounding and less squished out when dimed. It also made the amp louder before break up.

I have know idea if Fender did any revisions to the amp from mine, which was a first generation with the blue marvel speakers and EL-84 reverb tube.

 

[ArchtopAnimal]

Hi Paul !

The new VK has arrived and settled in nicely .
It's rather different than the older one ( Jensen speakers ) in that the
latest Jensen speakers that Fender commissioned are much better than
the previous . Still scooped in the middle but a flatter response ( not compared to a Celestion Gold 10" though ! ) than the others .
The volume control is more gradual , but it goes just as loud . Resonance is warmer with the solid cab . Still runs as surprisingly warm ( on standby )
as the previous model . I pulled the chassis out and it appears to be the same as the 2011 was ............ I say " was " , since I've just sold that on CL .

Here are the new speakers : http://www.jensentone.com/vintage_alnico/p10r_f

compare to the old Jensens : http://www.jensentone.com/vintage_alnico/p10r

and the Celestion Gold Alnico that I'm researching : http://celestion.com/product/7/celestion_g10_gold/

The amp breakup character is no different .

Cheers,

Neil