Fender '68 Custom Pro Reverb 1x12-inch 40-watt Tube Combo Amp
Fender '68 Custom Pro Reverb 1x12-inch 40-watt Tube Combo Amp Reviews
The Fender '68 Custom Pro Reverb tube combo amplifier takes everything you love about late-'60s Fender amps and optimizes it for modern gigging guitarists. Loaded with a 12AX7 preamp section, 6L6 power tubes, and built-in spring reverb and tremolo, you've got every classic Fender amp tone at your fingertips. And thanks to the addition of a Mid tone control, you have even more sound-shaping capability than vintage models offer. Plus, you'll definitely appreciate the reduced size and weight of the cabinet, loaded with a single 12-inch Celestion Neo Creamback speaker. With plenty of volume for the stage, as well as high headroom that takes pedals well, the Fender '68 Custom Pro Reverb delivers everything players love about vintage Fender amps.
Clean head room
This is the second pro reverb I bought basically for my stereo rig and this setup with 2 pro reverbs sounds great with my delays and reverbs this setup gives me a very dynamic sound that sounds huge and very clean and articulate and just what I need. And I want to thank Andrew for giving me a great deal and quick delivery
Best clean tone of current available new Fender amplifiers
Great amp
This is a great workhorse amp for me. I play all types of music, I used a pedal for my overdrive and this amp as my pedal platform. It has great head room, keeps up with my drummer, can get gritty or stay clean. It's in between a deluxe and a twin, basically a vibrolux but lighter and one 12" speaker. I love mine, came perfectly packaged from Sweetwater.
Clean, Loud and Full of Tone
First, thanks to Greg Savino for rushing this Fender Pro Reverb to me in time for a show after literally blowing out my gigging amp in a rehearsal! This Fender Pro Reverb has lots of power and headroom without the weight of most tube amps with similar spec's. It sounds really good out of the box, but keeps sounding warmer and fuller as the speaker breaks in. I'm not looking for any break-up from this amp so can't really speak to that. This amp takes pedals with ease and is easily clean and loud enough for small to medium venues. I was concerned about the reviews claiming tube-rattle, but have not found that to be the case. Clean, loud and full of tone describes this amp pretty well.
Best with a simple mod
This is the perfect all-around amp with the sweetest sound.
The tube rattle issue on other reviews is a real one indeed. However, I eliminated this with some very beefy tube rings. Product I bought ~$10 for the pair is called:
"EuroDamper" Tube Damper Rings for Preamp Tubes
Tube rattle gone, sweet sound prevails. One year in this amp makes me happy every time I hear it.
Sweet Sounds
I haven't cranked it past 5 yet but, I've played vintage Fender amps for 45 years... the "68" Pro Reverb is as sweet as you could ask for, adding a mid control was a great addition, allowing me to dial in the sounds without compromising highs and lows. I love it!
Great sounding amp
I did have to return the first I got because of an occasional buzzing noise……..However the second one has been amazing so far after a year of heavy use ! I constantly get positive comments from musicians about my tone ! It's small, light powerful and has the perfect amount of headroom. I'm not even gonna take away a star because the first one was defective. At this point it's more than made up for it since . Love it !!!
Nice amp Poorly voiced
I'm a tube amp whisperer and bought one of these just to see how close it is to a vintage Pro Reverb. As it comes from Fender its NOT, its weak sounding amp with poor bass response and very sterile nasal tone. After revoicing the amp to vintage values AND fixing the reverb tank that was installed backwards AND doing lead dress also added a master volume along with adjustable neg feedback THIS AMP WILL ROCK YOUR WORLD with fantastic vintage- modern mix of glorious fender tones at INSANE volumes! Pretty effin COOL!
Fender Got Things Right With the Concept But Tweaks are Needed
Fender '68 Custom Pro Reverb 40-watt Tube Amp
This amp rocks! It has a beautiful clean sound even when cranked up. It only weighs 35lbs making it a breeze to load up into my car and head to my local jam session. Fender has taken the best features of their original '60s Fender Pro Reverb amp and condensed them into a great sounding smaller amp that's perfect for playing in smaller venues.
Honest Review after 100+ shows
It's a Fender
My sales guy Damon has been great and patient with me, buying online with out being able to try an amp is hard. I've bought and returned a Vox AC15 and a Blackstar Black&Blue finally settled on the Fender. I think it's overpriced but I think I'll keep it. I've read a few reviews that guys have upgraded the speaker to a Weber, may try that down the road. I'll also look for a used Black&Blue...it was a good deal. Thanks Damon.
Pro reverb amp
This amp is fantastic. I can't describe how good it is. If you are reading this, you must buy it for yourself.
5 star amp with tube rattle
I've had the amp for about a month now and it is spectacular! It sounds fantastic, has plenty of headroom and is very lightweight. I'm using it primarily as a pedal platform at lower volumes. Would have given it 5 stars but it suffered from noticeable tube rattle right out of the box. Based on the number of other reviews and forum posts that I've seen with similar complaints it would seem that Fender May need to revisit their stock tube choice on this one. I realize I could have gone through Fender and taken the amp to an approved repair center to get a new set of the same tubes but since I have the ability to bias, I just picked up a new pair of Tung-Sol 6L6's and that fixed the issue. Despite the tube problem, I would still highly recommend this amp.
Great amp
Please be aware. This amp has a ton of power in small cabinet, resulting in a massive amount of beat up on chassis and tube rattle.
Its inherent in the design. The amp sounds fantastic however if you're going to crank it you're going to get tube ratlle and everything else. combo if you're if you're sensitive to everything
Fantastic Amp
A great clean sounding amp on its own and it takes pedals wonderfully. I had a 65 deluxe reverb reissue and I honestly think this amp sounds better. It's a little clearer and not as muddy as a deluxe reverb reissue. Also, it's a little lighter than the deluxe reverb reissue which is nice for gigs. Currently I have a 1962 Fender blonde Bassman and the pro reverb is able to produce the clean clear sounds of the Bassman. I highly recommend it! Special thanks to my sales representative Jordan Dean for making it happen. He's the man if you ever need a new piece of gear!
Great amp, poor customer service
Great sounding amp, however a power tube went defective (microphonic) within the first 30 days. I contacted Sweetwater to and told them about it to see what my options were. I was told by Ian that tubes are NOT covered and I'm out of luck. He offered to knock off some money on a set of 6L6 tubes. I contacted Fender directly and the told me tubes ARE covered for the first 90 days of purchased through an authorized dealer.
Thanks Sweetwater! I will take my business elsewhere from now on.
Excellent Amp
I went into the Sweetwater store to try out a couple of Mesa combos, and walked out with this Fender Pro Reverb! Absolutely blew me away. If you want a Deluxe but need more headroom, and don't want to go with a Twin, I'd highly recommend this amp. It's very light weight, takes pedals very well, and 40 Watts gives me the headroom I need. I'm on and off the road frequently and in long tracking session and rehearsals on the regular, and it has proven to be up to the task. Handles everything I've thrown at it.
Love!
Just got this amp and already thinking I might not need my Maz 18 anymore. This amp bleeds classic Fender tone with my telecaster. Tons of clean headroom and works amazingly with a Green Rhino to get my Mike Campbell on. Gear geeking is an illness, but I could see myself keeping this amp forever.
Tribute Amp.
I loves me a good Tribute Amp. And this is it.
Back to the tube amp
Excellent!
Within days of receiving the Pro Reverb, I was in the studio recording the very last guitar solo from an upcoming release. I decided to use this amp and it was fantastic! My main gigging amp has been a Deluxe reissue, which has been great, but with the bright switch, the middle control, and the 40 watts, the Pro Reverb offers more headroom and a bit more tonal variation. And at 35 lbs, it's a breeze to carry. As a 63 yo lifetime pro who has owned everything, I highly recommend this amp!
disappointed
right out of the box this amp had an awful tube rattle and a loose baffle. the neo creamback was not punchy or warm as per the celestion description. no noticeable headroom difference between this and the 22w silverface fender deluxe either. returned it immediately. no new amp should have mulitple issues right out the box.
Exceeds my expectations
Bought my first Fender Pro Reverb amp about 4.5 decades ago. Nice silver face, but with 2 twelves and large cab, much too heavy. NOW, Fender has the right combination of power, sufficient clean headroom, frequency response and light weight! Using it mostly for pedal steel and a little bit of Tele. Loving that great Fender tube sound. Surprisinly strong down in the lowest ranges of my pedal steel. Must have something to do with the Celestion cream back speaker. I like it a lot.
Fender Pro Reverb
I love this amp! Bought it as a backup for my Fender Twin Reverb. Now the Twin has become the backup! Great sound and feel! I run my King of Tone into the Pro Reverb and it sings! Lots of volume and headroom. Also at 35 pounds you aren't going to break your back. So glad that I pulled the trigger on this one!
A Very, Very Nice Amp!
First off - many thanks to Ben Robinson, my Sales Engineer for several years now. OK - I trust this guy's input! Ben helped me with the purchase of this amp. Having several great amps already, I was looking for a tube amp that would be a decent practice amp, and could work in smaller venues. This Fender '68 Custom Pro Reverb fit the bill. One channel, reverb, tremolo, 12" speaker, and 40 watts. Not too heavy (36 pounds), great looking, and quiet without distracting hum or noise. Comes with a nice foot switch and a very nice cover. All of this is great, but how about sound? Great Fender cleans sounds and with wonderful punch right through the mix. Add pedals and take off! I'll enjoy this amp for a long time. Get one - you'll love it.
Perfectly Ideal
This amp is truly everything I could ask for! A single channel, a bright switch, a mid eq control (frickin sick), which allows it to stick out even more in a mix, some atmospheric spring reverb, a crisp vibrato channel, it's light weight, gig worthy, travel worthy, and it's 40 watts…it is a beast, truly. Fattens up my strat and brightens up my Les Paul, and it's a wonderful pedal platform. I'm sticking a BOSS delay, an MXR chorus, and an Angry Charlie pedal through it and it's so great. In a way, it's basically the link between the Deluxe and the Princeton reverb amps. I love it and I would buy another one and recommend it to anybody. It's the perfectly ideal amp!
Perfect Amp
Perfect size and weight. Nice clean tone. Fat and smooth.low noise level. I can hardly tell its powered up. Takes a wampler distortion very well. Im getting clean distortion sounds I never got with any other amp including expensive boutiques. Im very happy with this amp.
Have Questions About the '68 Custom Pro Reverb 1x12-inch 40-watt Tube Combo Amp?
Or call us at (800) 222-4700
Sweetwater's Sales Engineers are regarded as the most experienced and knowledgeable professionals in the music industry, with extensive music backgrounds and intense training on the latest products and technologies. They are available to offer you personalized product advice any time you need it.