[sdiy] Re: reverb spring on eBay

[Glen]

At 02:18 AM 10/29/04 , Colin Hinz wrote:

>I'd be tempted, too, if it weren't on the far side of the continent.
>
>Nobody else wants it either, it seems. Or at least not for US$35.
>
>Which leads to the next question, what *is* a sensible price to
>pay for a spring reverb tank?

This particular spring reverb tank is somewhat fragile. The pickup element
of many old Hammond reverb tanks is a crystal, instead of a rugged magnetic
transducer. The length of the unit also makes shipment more dangerous,
because the springs on such a long tank will probably be flopping around a
great deal during shipment. Those larger springs naturally have more mass
than the springs in a compact reverb tank, and I would expect them to be
capable of doing more damage to the transducers when thrashing around on
the UPS truck, than the springs in a small reverb tank. Then, you have to
wonder how well the seller is going to pack this item. Do they know much
about this item and its specific vulnerabilities?

It's a shame that you don't get the driver or recovery amps along with the
reverb tank. Building your own substitutes might be a real aggravation. Of
course, the original driver and recovery circuitry was tube-based. It's
hard to say what sort of impedances were involved, and what input drive
levels are safe to use with this tank. Having the original circuitry would
make this less of a worry. The tubes might also add to the character of the
sound greatly.


later,
Glen