Fender Super

The Fender Super was a guitar amplifier made by Fender between 1947 and 1963 and, as the Super Reverb, until 1981. Though it was designed for a clean sound, its overdriven sound is praised by players and critics.

History

The Super evolved from the so-called Dual Professional, "often cited as the world's first twin-speaker amplifier," which was introduced in 1947. The Dual Professional had two slightly angled 10" Jensen speakers, and had two 6L6 tubes producing 18 watts. It was renamed the Super in the fall of 1947.

The amplifier's circuit was changed in 1955 (until then it was identical to the Fender Pro, except for the speaker configuration) when the 6L6 tubes were exchanged for 6V6 tubes; the 1956 5F4 model was again equipped with 6L6 tubes, so its circuitry was again almost identical to that of the Pro (5E5-A model) and the Bandmaster (5E7 model).

The 5F4 model had Presence, Bass, and Treble controls, and separate Volume controls for the microphone and instrument inputs. It used 12AY7 pre-amplifier tubes for "more clarity and headroom" than a 12AX7 would. A fixed-bias output stage and split-phase inverters helped the Super overdrive more quickly than the Fender Bassman and produce a sound that, according to Vintage Guitar's Dave Hunter, "in the estimation of many a vintage-amp fan, is among the sweetest and most delectable of any amp ever made."

See also

• Fender Super Reverb