what You Need to Know

1 What does ‘tweed’ refer to? In general, it refers to amps produced by Fender roughly between 1948 and 1959. These were covered in a varnished yellow and black cotton twill, known to all as tweed, although most people particularly associate it with the ‘Narrow Panel’ amps made from around 1955. The circuit designs created by Fender during this era have served as the basis for many other guitar amps, and Fender tweeds are probably the most recorded of all amplifiers.

2 Why use an Alnico speaker? It’s a loudspeaker with a magnet made from an alloy of aluminium, nickel and cobalt. Although the magnet is just one component, Alnico loudspeakers are generally regarded as having a more detailed treble. They’re also more expensive and less efficient; most Alnicos are rated at 30 watts or less.

3 What’s special about the vintage capacitors? Fender has recently introduced a whole range of Pure Vintage capacitors. The yellow ones are intended to be a replica of the paper, foil and resin Astron caps used in late-50s tweed amps. It’s debatable as to how much of a difference these make, but they certainly look the part!