(Belated) NAD: Fender Frontman "Twinkiller" Project - Phase 1

[Steve DeRosa]

My wife and I were on vacation last month, when we had the good fortune to discover that the local Best Buy had been one of the select group of 94 branches that also housed a full-line music store; as many of you are aware, they have been blowing out equipment at ridiculous prices (at least the stuff that GC didn't snap up in bulk) and we managed to score a ~$300 set of Pearl Primero fiberglass congas w/stand for $83 out the door (in addition to being my #1 rhythm guitarist she's also a part-time conguera). A four-day post-Labor Day/pre-school term getaway found us back (small wonder...), where we managed to wangle an "open box" (just that - never used/displayed) Fender Frontman 212R for $159...

My point...?

As many fellow forumites have discovered, there's a load of good, solidly-built gear to be had out there for not a whole lot of cash - and, other than a couple of excursions into more rarefied territory over my 50+ years playing guitar, most of the equipment I've purchased - particularly during the last three decades - has been of the value-per-dollar variety. Ever since its introduction I've felt that the 100-watt Frontman (nee FM 212R) had the potential, with a couple of relatively low-cost mods, to be the "poor man's Twin": the power and clean tone have always been there, and although the speakers have been revoiced to a more characteristically "Fender" tonality (along with a change to Jensen-style "brown label" cosmetics) - those first-issue "green label" Celestion wannabes could rip your face off with both volume and treble bite - some efficiency (read output) has been lost in the bargain. It's also pretty well-accepted among the congnoscenti that the Drive/More Drive channel isn't quite up to Hot Rod DeVille standards, lacking somewhat in inherent girth; similarly, the built-in small-tank reverb is best described as workmanlike - no real competition to a Super or Twin in stock trim...

And so...?

Having turned a $300 MIC Bugera V22 into a NYC studio "key club" Ampeg tone clone (one that'll go toe-to-toe with my Super RI in terms of volume) with a simple tube swap/rebias and speaker change - for a total post-purchase investment of ~$200 - I'm looking to put together, as the title suggests, a "Twinkiller": comparable tone/output levels with solid-state reliability/ease of maintenance, the added versatility of a built-in OD channel with independent EQ, and some Twin-style cosmetics - all for about one-third the price of the genuine article. I've had excellent success with the Eminence Swamp Thang in my Bugera - and they're a recommended replacement for the aforementioned "green labels" in the discontinued FM 4x12" bottom - so I'll probably be looking at a pair of those in spite of the attendant increase in weight. Accutronics also makes several upgrade reverb units that are electronically compatible; I'm just having trouble deciding whether to go "stealth" with a small box (and let the gearheads wonder where all that tone is coming from) or pump it up all the way with a six-spring long box. Fortunately neither one is particularly expensive, so cost won't be a consideration - and, just for the heck of it, I'll probably slap on a set of tilt-back legs to complete the "Twin" look...

I'll be breaking it in and getting more familiar with things over the next few weeks before I make my final decisions; stay tuned - this one looks like it's going to be fun...

[Darwin]

Excellent idea Steve. Those are both upgrades that can really make a difference. Just quality speakers will make a huge difference. I am also a fan of Eminence. Ii have a Red Coat BIg Ben 15" which is awesome. -- Darwin

[Steve DeRosa]

Thanks, Darwin...

Checked in with the boys (and girls) at SurfGuitar101, and the 'verb seems to be the key to getting Twin tone from the Frontman. Although the full-length Type 4 (same one used in the Twin) is the tank of choice over there, having grown up in NYC the lusher sound of Ampeg reverb was the one I became most accustomed to, thanks to a succession of rented Gemini I/II amps in my early teen years; if at all possible, I'd like to approach that feel with a Fender-style tone stack in the front end - a best-of-both-worlds scenario, if you will - so I'm leaning toward the Type 9 six-spring box and a nested double-isolation bag. As I said before I'm still in the break-in stage - and not getting as much playing time as I'd like now that the term's begun - so I probably won't be doing the 'verb mod until Christmas vacation at the earliest; while the OEM Jensen-knockoff speakers aren't the greatest (certainly no match for the Swamp Thang) they're livable for the time being, so I'll just break them in for a while and see how everything else plays out...