Are these Fender Deluxe amps the same? and other questions

HEY!!! He said what I said. AND what I Quoted Justin on.

But anyway, from what I read from both sites was enough for me to get a pair and check them out.

Thank You Wes for going the extra mile for us!

I gotta go. The wife made dinner plans with another couple and she's telling me it's time to go.

I'll be back. Thanks Again Wes!!!

That's so cool you have a great source for detailed info. Hmmm, reminds me of, well, this place! Nice post Wes. :D

Well, I finally biased my HRD. It is simple. Incredibly simple. If you pay some tech $60, you are throwing your money away.

I don't know very much about electronics, I had one basic course back in High School 33 years ago. But at the same time I was always around this stuff. My Dad is a genius at it, he worked for the military calibrating the instruments on jet aircraft. When I was very young he owned a TV repair shop. Our house was full of old TV's and I've seen my Dad work on them on the kitchen table hundreds of times. He used to built a lot of his own test equipment as well. My Dad taught me the most important thing. Put your left hand in your back pocket and always work with one hand. Electricity always takes the shortest path. If you work with two hands, the electricity will pass from the one right through the other, which means it goes right through your heart! That's a big no no. So I have a healthy respect for electricity.

Anyway, as soon as I popped off the back cover of the amp my fears were relieved. The bias pot is large and blue. It is right there facing straight out, so you don't have to stick your hand in the amp. Also, the circuit board with the bias solder point shown on the HRD site is right there as well. It is a little to the left of the furthest power tube (the big ones) on the left. It faces outward as well, so again you don't have to stick your hand in the amp. So, just seeing everything was very easy to get at and you don't have to stick your hand in the amp (you bias the amp with it on) was a great comfort.

You turn on the amp (standby on) and let it warm up. Just turn Volume and Master all the way down. You DO NOT have your guitar plugged into the input jacks. That is not necessary at all. You then attach the black lead from your meter to the metal chassis with an alligator clip. Do EVERYTHING with one hand. Turn standy off now, your amp is live. The large blue bias pot has a slot for a straight edged (normal) screwdriver. It was at about the 1 o'clock position. I turned it back and forth as Justin suggested in his instructions. It would turn counter-clockwise to about the 7 o'clock position. It would turn clockwise to about the 5 o'clock position. I went by the screwdriver slot, but there is also paint on the bias pot so you can easily see it's position. I returned the bias pot to it's original position. It is easy to turn. Set your multimeter to read Volts DC (VDC). Then with one hand only touch the red lead to the bias solder point on the circuit board (it is all by itself in the corner). Justin said that Fender turns the bias down to around 50mV. This is cold but makes the tubes last longer. He was correct. It was about 55mV. So, I set the red probe down and with one hand adjusted the blue bias pot slightly clockwise. Then I re-tested.
Now, it was about 60mV. After about 3 adjustments I had it at 69mV (the slot was in about the 2:30 o'clock position now). Justin recommended 68mV. This was close enough for me. I checked it several times over several minutes and it stayed at 69mV, so I was happy. I turned the amp off and unplugged it. I put the back back on. Taking the cover off and on is the most difficult part of the job.

I plugged my guitar in and fired the amp up. I turned Volume up to 4 (everyone is home). You can tell a difference. It is warmer. It goes into saturation much earlier now at a lower volume. There was more sustain. When I went to the Drive channels the amp was singing. I had Master at about 3, Drive at 12. It will feedback earlier now if you get close to the amp. I like that. I am a feedback guy. I like when an amp sounds on edge like that. At these settings it was close to the volume I use at gigs, although at gigs I stand maybe 10-15 feet away from the amp.

The tone controls are more sensitive as well. What I mean is that they seem to change the tone more when you turn them. This is good. More control over tone. I don't think this was my imagination. I have owned this amp for quite a while, and I know it pretty good. Anyway, that is my impression.

I also looked at the power tubes when it was warmed up. They are glowing brighter now, one had a blue glow (normal).

Anyway, I must make a dis-claimer.

IF YOU DO NOT HAVE ANY ELECTRONICS KNOWLEDGE OR EXPERIENCE, TAKE YOUR AMP TO AN EXPERIENCED TECHNICIAN TO HAVE THIS PROCEDURE PERFORMED. ELECTROCUTION IS POSSIBLE.

So, it was super easy, but again, if you have no knowledge of electronics take your amplifier to an experienced technician.

Wes, I think you've just made a great adjustment to your amp and contribution to us "poor boys" who can now save the sixty bucks and DIY. I hate dealing with electricity and have been zapped a few times with outlets in homes. Still, with your detailed explaination, I think I'll be one to get new tube and "do the Wes!"

I'd do that soon but I'm driving 1,500 miles (in a 35' truck and a 20' trailer) to move my dad and his stuff down to good old Florida. I'll be back in a week and get back to reading the posts here at GN. (For those who read my ridiculously long posts about going on vacation to FL 2 months ago, yep, I'm bringing my SG again. A glutton for punishment for sure since I'm flying back and will have to deal with loading the guitar in the belly of the plane). Ah, but that's a sidebar. See y'all in a week! :D