Fender FR-12 preamp mod : The Hissterectomy

MicroMort said:
so us early birds don't get the upgraded Nichion and TDK caps? Is that even going to be noticeable for us?
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Not audibly different, just more expensive.
Most of the parts that I have here for the first builds were bought over 10 years ago so they cost much less.

The nichions are for all the electrolytic caps. (There are only 3 in the audio path) 2 are necessary for phantom power protection. Those should have a little longer life.

All of the parts that I am using both for here, and for the assembly contract, are a big upgrade from the cheap parts in the stock FR preamps. All of them are getting gold plated circuit boards. All of the resistors are the precision metal film type.

They just cost more now. Like everything else does.

The components I have here that are going in the first V2s are from this X7 build. It is really nice stuff.

IMG_4660.jpeg
 
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Would you sell/ship one to Canada? @WKSmith

Also, is it possible to recap what this X7 version will do for FR10/12 owners? I know it will be quiet, or dead silent, but what else does it do? (If anything)
 
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sick pickle said:
Would you sell/ship one to Canada? @WKSmith

Also, is it possible to recap what this X7 version will do for FR10/12 owners? I know it will quiet, or dead silent, but what else does it do? (If anything)
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It does a lot. 🤣
It has a new eq in the middle of a tuned and refined version of the stock preamp.

It adds phantom power protection.
It adds a clip light through a clear vol knob.
Premium eq/cut pots with 40 fine clicks.
It hisses less than even the "fixed" stock pre.
The bass knob is tuned to hit a lower freq.
The mid knob is now a fat wide q.
The ICs are in sockets for tinkerers.
Soic pads also included for tinkerers.
It has pads for a mute/standby switch.
It has a Jumper for bypassing the x-over.
The PC boards are 2 sided with dual ground planes and are gold plated.
Premium passive parts everywhere.
Heavier AWG cables for better power/signal.

It is fully plug and play. Stock holes, screws, nuts, washers, and plugs and jacks.

And it's sexy AF!
 
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Yo!! As one of the lucky beta testers I can say this preamp is great. Here's some specific feedback (no pun intended). Read the bold comments embedded in the quote below:

WKSmith said:
The natives are getting restless 🤣

I have asked my Alpha Testers to evaluate the V2 proofs this morning.

They are on my very relaxed schedule and unpaid (God Bless 'Em) They are also 2 Continents and 8 time zones apart. ... so be nice 🙂

I asked them to evaluate:

The Hiss (or lack thereof) No Hiss, if these had come this way there wouldn't have been any complaints from the beginning.
The build quality Stellar. Better than factory.
The design esthetic (especially since it's now plug-n play) Again, better than factory. By miles. Its beautiful and is a super easy install.
The tone. Feel. You people get me❤️. Sounds and feels great. Certainly as good as stock, but I think it might sound a little better/more musical.
The eq. The wide q mid, the extended low end. The EQ adjustments definitely feel a little better but I'm not sure exactly how or why.
The premium pots I really like these pots. The micro clicks are very fine so they don't feel limiting at all. They were a great choice.
The accuracy matching the stock AITR curve! This was just as important as reducing the hiss imo, and it seems spot on. None of the FR's mojo has been sacrificed at all.
The new additions (clip light, phantom protection, etc I didn't test the phantom power protection at all. The clip light is a little tough to see in bright light, but a lot easier to see in even slightly dimmer conditions. It's definitely cool to have on there. At the same time, I think it still sounds good when clipping a bit (I didn't notice the clipping until it was well past the light just starting to come on.

I am about ready to contract assembly for the first 100ish (or so 😉) V2s

You can believe ... they have been given all the Hell 🔥 they can take .. and then some.

This will be the finest FRFR preamp on the planet for $99 (ish)
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This preamp is good, guys. Really good.
 
Can confirm; i've been test-driving an early version of @WKSmith 's preamp against my (modded) FR-12, and it's really really good!


PXL_20240225_175146454.jpg


Some highlights:
  • Literally plug-and-play - other than needing a slightly larger mounting hole for the transparent shaft volume pot, which i understand won't be an issue with the final version. Took 5 minutes to open the amp up and connect the new board, which worked right away.
  • Dead quiet without input. It's even slightly quieter than my OPA1604-modded FR-12, which is pretty remarkable.
  • EQ and cut knobs work perfectly, without weird interactions even on extreme settings. @WKSmith wasn't lying about the low-end - bumping the Bass knob to 3 o'clock or so yields beautiful, resonant bass which plays great with high gain tones. Thing's a chug machine.
  • XLR phantom power protection works exactly as advertised.
  • A+ build quality, all premium parts. I particularly liked the use of pots with micro-indentations, which feel great under the fingers.
My only piece of feedback with this early version was that gain didn't quite match the stock preamp board (you had to crank it just a tad louder to get the same volume), but this is a trivial fix which will be on final production version.

All in all, good stuff :D This would make a great preamp period for any powered FRFR cab besides just Fender products.
 
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bigEjams said:
Picked them up on the way home from work. Set them up and jammed out for an hour or so. They are dead quiet with no signal coming through. I’m either going deaf (possible, I stand in front of marching bands and jazz bands for a living), or I have the factory updated version. Will still crack the cab soon and take pics for science.
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where did you buy them from?
 
Lysander said:
Can confirm; i've been test-driving an early version of @WKSmith 's preamp against my (modded) FR-12, and it's really really good!


View attachment 136719


Some highlights:
  • Literally plug-and-play - other than needing a slightly larger mounting hole for the transparent shaft volume pot, which i understand won't be an issue with the final version. Took 5 minutes to open the amp up and connect the new board, which worked right away.
  • Dead quiet without input. It's even slightly quieter than my OPA1604-modded FR-12, which is pretty remarkable.
  • EQ and cut knobs work perfectly, without weird interactions even on extreme settings. @WKSmith wasn't lying about the low-end - bumping the Bass knob to 3 o'clock or so yields beautiful, resonant bass which plays great with high gain tones. Thing's a chug machine.
  • XLR phantom power protection works exactly as advertised.
  • A+ build quality, all premium parts. I particularly liked the use of pots with micro-indentations, which feel great under the fingers.
My only piece of feedback with this early version was that gain didn't quite match the stock preamp board (you had to crank it just a tad louder to get the same volume), but this is a trivial fix which will be on final production version.

All in all, good stuff :D This would make a great preamp period for any powered FRFR cab besides just Fender products.
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Awesome write up! 👍❤️🙏
 
MrMooney said:
I also would like to purchase this plug and play unit discussed. In my experience nothing beats the research and experience of the original creators. Sometimes installing third party modifications will render devices useless. Also, warranties are voided. In short, perhaps the FR10 & FR12 were designed to sound as they do. Any person with musical abilities would agree me. Rock on!
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AI, is that you? Your accent is familiar.
 
MrMooney said:
I also would like to purchase this plug and play unit discussed. In my experience nothing beats the research and experience of the original creators. Sometimes installing third party modifications will render devices useless. Also, warranties are voided. In short, perhaps the FR10 & FR12 were designed to sound as they do. Any person with musical abilities would agree me. Rock on!
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So let me make sure I understand you clearly:

You want a (vastly superior) V2 preamp
Despite your belief that:

1) the FR device may be rendered useless
2) The FR series was originally designed to hiss.(although FMIC quietly swapped ICs mid-production)
3) the warranty will be voided.
4) if we disagree, it is a lack of musical talent on my part.
5) my decades of research and experience means nothing compared to the accountant that built the stock pre.
6) your FR already sounds glorious .

With much love good Sir,
Go play your guitar, I can't help you
 
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MrMooney said:
I also would like to purchase this plug and play unit discussed. In my experience nothing beats the research and experience of the original creators. Sometimes installing third party modifications will render devices useless. Also, warranties are voided. In short, perhaps the FR10 & FR12 were designed to sound as they do. Any person with musical abilities would agree me. Rock on!
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Crappy Amazon product Description Meets crappy AI Post:

"I also would like to reply to this post discussion. In my experience nothing beats robots and experiments of the overlord creators. Sometimes installing shark party modifications will render 3D shark devices useless. Also, worries are voided. In short, perhaps the T1000 and ED209 were designed to sound more humanity. Any person without not disabilities would not agree. Continue On!"
 
MrMooney said:
I also would like to purchase this plug and play unit discussed. In my experience nothing beats the research and experience of the original creators. Sometimes installing third party modifications will render devices useless. Also, warranties are voided. In short, perhaps the FR10 & FR12 were designed to sound as they do. Any person with musical abilities would agree me. Rock on!
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The original creators didn’t do a very good job on this. You put too much faith in that a companies research and experience can’t be beat. Companies put out deficient products all the time. Not all companies go that route but many do.

For the Fender FR’s, it’s well established that despite it sounding good, it has a poorly designed preamp that makes noise. Of course they knew about it but they decided to go with it anyhow. And tried to play it off. Which was a mistake and they had to fix it. And to top it off, they got the idea for the fix not from their ‘original creators’, but from a gentleman on the Gear Page.
 
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