To all the Rivera TBR guys:

[Francorossi]

This is my first post, was a lurker for some months.

I grabbed a TBR-1 out of a cave from someone together with a 4x12 cabinet.....laid there for +10 years, and is still working!

The serial number is hard to identify due to corrosion, and it hasn´t got the output option with classA etc......standby switch only got two positions, on and off!

Actually I´m getting familiar with this amazing amp, the cleans are really, really beautiful, lots of options, etc.........

I already read a lot about the uniqueness of the item.

How do you manage to achieve a real good lead tone out of it, with a boost/ overdrive in front of the amp, or with something like OCD in the "pre-pre-amp( P.Rivera)", i.e. the patch above pcomp?

I have an Intellifex for the effects loop, that should work for starting.....

Can the TBR-1 been used as a poweramp only?

I´d like to check an Axe-FX occasionally, so I need a poweramp.....

Can that been done with the stereo effects returns?

If that works, it would be great to have the best of two worlds, i.e. Axe-fx and the TBR sound, controlled by a switchblade or something......

Any comments are highly appreciated

Regards

Frank from Germany

BTW, how can I insert pics?

 

[Dave L]

I´ve had one for almost ten years, it´s also one of those early ones without the power options. I´m selling it now, though, I just prefer my Knucklehead these days.

But anyhoo, I used overdrives and pedals in the normal fashion... I actually don´t think I have ever put anything in the patch loop. I guess I would try it if I had rack compressors or similar that needed a certain input level, or was running enough units before the amp to need the buffering.

Yes, you can use it a power amp without any problems. IIRC unity gain is with the returns on 7.

 

[Francorossi]

@ Dave: Thank you for the info, I appreciate it

Best wishes

Franco

 

[Dave L]

No problem, Franco. If you have any questions I´ll be happy to answer them, and I´m sure there are other guys with experience of the TBR´s around here.

 

[bigdaddyd]

I don't know if you have this or not, but it might help you. There are some great videos on youtube with Paul Sr that explain your amp. You need to remember that the knobs, especially the eq are dependent on each other. They react to how they other knobs are set. A lot of people get confused setting Riveras and give up... Also, the low input provides more gain, and the high input pads the gain of high gain pickups...I messed that up for years and played through the high input (and got great tone) and then switched to the low input (and got even better tone and more gain.) The TBR-1 is more of a vintage voiced amp, so don't expect super high gain tones. Typical Marshall style is what you will get and it will sound great...or should. Just use whatever pedals you prefer. I use a Fulltone Fulldrive 2, a TC Novadrive on the or whatever else I have laying around. Right now I usa a Rivera Duarte, which is based on the same M series as the TBR series, and a KHR55, which also came from that but then evolved quite a bit. The KHR55 has a lot more gain, and then has its own boost if I want. That said, I really want a TBR-M to add to my collection. Enjoy your amp. They are incredibly well made. If you have any further questions, you should contact Rivera...they are usually cool about answering them and may even be able to help give you advice in achieving the tones in your head.

http://www.rivera.com/manuals_html/tbr-manual.html

 

[Dave L]

There are no high and low inputs on the TBR, it´s got the PCOMP circuit instead. Which is a superb feature I wish they all had.

 

[bigdaddyd]

There are no high and low inputs on the TBR, it´s got the PCOMP circuit instead. Which is a superb feature I wish they all had.

It's pretty much the same thing, except PCOMP is more detailed. I included the instructions in my post. I was saying to be careful to match your input correctly to get the best tone....and yes all Riveras should have this feature. The TBRs were very expensive to make and they had to cut back on a lot of the features they had. I suppose making PCOMP into Hi and Low was one of these compromises.

Pickup Compensation (PCOMP) (TBR-1, TBR-2)

This exclusive RIVERA feature adjusts the sensitivity of the preamp section to match the output level of the pickups without changing their timbre. The PCOMP knob is labeled 1 thru 10. Position 4 is unity gain, meaning the output level is equal to the Input level. Position 10 is full boost, and position 1 is maximum attenuation.

Example 1. Weak single coils such as old Strats would require much more gain to achieve a pleasingly hot timbre than a modern rewound humbucker. The PCOMP setting would thus be between 8 and 10.

Example 2. Some super hot pickups can distort anything resembling an amp. These require reduced gain to sound clean, allowing both the true timbre of the pickup can be heard and differentiation among the Individual strings. The PCOMP setting would thus be between 2 and 4.

Example 3. The player using an Instrument equipped with humbucking pickups desires an outrageous hot timbre in CHANNEL 1 but when he switches to CHANNEL 2, he requires a slightly edgy lead timbre yet with a clean background. PCOMP would be assigned to CHANNEL 2, as CHANNEL 1 has an adequate amount of gain (with the MASTER knob pulled out).

CHANNEL 2 (VOLUME, TMEQ, and MASTER) would be adjusted in conjunction with the PCOMP knob to achieve the required edge. Example 4. The musician has a typical stock Strat and wants two different tonalities of a hot sound with thick sustain. PCOMP would be assigned to BOTH and adjusted to position 8 or 10, with CHANNEL 1 and CHANNEL 2 adjusted to taste for those timbres (most likely both MASTER and BRIGHT boosts would be pulled out).

PCOMP may be assigned to either or both channels of the amplifier using the ASSIGN switch to the right of the PCOMP control knob. This enables the musician to selectively boost or cut the normal gain in accordance with his wish to play anywhere from extra clean to extra distorted and sustained.

PCOMP can also be bypassed while still utilizing the SEND jacks for a buffered direct signal feed by pulling the PCOMP knob out (this also bypasses the PATCH bay RETURN jack).

 

[Dave L]

There are no high and low inputs on the TBR, it´s got the PCOMP circuit instead. Which is a superb feature I wish they all had.

It's pretty much the same thing, except PCOMP is more detailed. I included the instructions in my post. I was saying to be careful to match your input correctly to get the best tone....and yes all Riveras should have this feature. The TBRs were very expensive to make and they had to cut back on a lot of the features they had. I suppose making PCOMP into Hi and Low was one of these compromises.

Yeah, I just didn´t want him to start wondering why his doesn´t have two inputs

The gain structure on these is indeed a bit of a balancing act, but with all the options available you can dial it in just right with a little work. With PCOMP set too hot the pull boost just generates flubby mush, for example... so you can´t just crank PCOMP and volume and then add the boost... but a bit of fiddling will produce beautiful classic leads and crunch. I mostly used a Tubescreamer set to unity gain or a compressor (rather than slamming the input level) to add a little extra bit of juicyness for solos.

And as with all Riveras, keep it loud. 3,5 or above on the master is where it´s at, and for maximally clean tones crank the master to 10 and regulate the volume with the... well, volume/gain knob.

 

[bigdaddyd]

Yeah, they are fun amps. On my Duarte I found the manual and it has some reference settings for both channels in it. I haven't messed with those in a while, so I thought I would give them a shot. I forgot how cool the Slavemaster feature is on those amps. I turned off my Marshall SE100 and set it with that and there were a million others tones available. Also, on mine I think there is something wrong with my reverb circuit since it lowers the volume a tad...Paul Sr told me to send it to him and he would take a look and fix it, but I actually like what it does to the sound...lol. I set my tone with it and can kick it off for an additional boost. Sort of like what Kotzen does. Like a reverse boost. Anyway, regarding the volume thing...every sound setting has the volume at 3-5. That is EXTREMELY LOUD on this amp. I usually play on 1 with a 18db attenuation. and that would equal bedroom volume. 3-5 on the Duarte is pretty friggin loud. I couldn't imagine cranking it.

 

[Dave L]

Yeah, 3 or over is really loud on all the Riveras I´ve ever tried... but I don´t bother bringing the Riveras if I can´t get them up to around 3,5 on the master. It´s that big a difference once you get over that hump, in my opinion. If it´s a close call I´ll knock it down a few dB´s with a Powerbrake, but it starts to mush out once you get beyond the first few clicks on the dial... maybe 6 or 9 dB attenuation or so? These are live amps, and it really shows! Maybe I should look into the newest generation of attenuators and see if they´ve gotten any better.

I´ve never played around with the Slavemaster circuit, sad to say, since neither my K55 or my TBR has it - but it sure looks like another killer feature with a lot of potential uses.

 

[Francorossi]

@bigdaddy and daveL: Thank you so much on the input, lots of useful information on this!!

BTW, do you guys know how to "midify" the TBR?

Would by nice to have the unit controlled by a looper/switcher instead of the factory three piece FS... ...any clues?

Best wishes

Franco

 

[Dave L]

You should be able to get along with any switcher that can handle momentary switching, and the proper cable. I never bothered with it, since I always have reverb off and loop on.

 

[Francorossi]

Thank you Dave

 

[macgaj3]

On my old TBR1M I used to patch across the FX loop (since I didn't use anything in it) and then turn the knobs up to give myself a nice footswitchable volume boost (or tuner mute if I turned them to 0).

They're really tremendous amps....I miss mine....

 

[Francorossi]

........but I see in your footline that you got lots to choose from.....

 

[CaseyCor]

@bigdaddy and daveL: Thank you so much on the input, lots of useful information on this!!

BTW, do you guys know how to "midify" the TBR?

Would by nice to have the unit controlled by a looper/switcher instead of the factory three piece FS... ...any clues?

Best wishes

Franco

I'm not too familiar with this amp. Does it use 1/4th TS/TRS or DIN switching jacks, or does it have it's own proprietary switching relay? If it uses one of the former and doesn't have MIDI jacks built in, you could use a RJM Amp Gizmo to add MIDI comparability to it. The Amp Gizmo does both latching and momentary switching. Combine that with a MIDI board, and you could control the amp's functions. With the right board, you could control your pedals as well, and set up patches to eliminate tap dancing. If you've got a nice amount of cash to throw down, check out the GigRig. It should be able to do everything you want and more, and might even make dinner for you if you figure out how to program it to, hah.

 

[Francorossi]

@CaseyCor and DaveL:

Got a cheap Bradshaw RSB12 in the meantime and after reading the manual I learned that this unit can EITHER switch on/off OR momentary.........You won´t believe but it works with a cable I soldered, one end a normal mono guitar plug for the RSB, on the other end a 8-pin DIN device for the TBR!!

So I saved $$ for an extra midiswitcher/gizmo....could not be happier!

Best regards

Franco

 

[Dave L]

Very nice to hear, it´s always cool when a home-brew solution comes together. Since you´re just using a mono plug, are you only doing the channel switching? Or do you have it set-up with three mono plugs and the DIN, for the reverb and loop too?

How´s it sounding so far, by the way?

 

[Francorossi]

Hi Dave,

sounds stellar, I´m in guitar since 1979, so I can say that I never ever had such a wonderful tone like now........

A Cry Baby is on the way, still lurking for an OCD or sth., and then I´m done......maybe someday I can afford an AXE-FX, but miles to go....hahahahaha!

Together then with the Bradshaw RSB12, the old intellifex and the TBR I should have gotten the best of two worlds.

I´m sure that my home solder action could manage to switch also loop and reverb, but the main issue was channel switching.....

I had a Fender Concert, also from the Rivera Era @Fender, beautiful amp, but a bitch if you try to switch channels WITHOUT the factory foot switch, so I was warned.......

Maybe some day I´m able to share some sounds, it´s really impressive!

Best wishes

Franco

 

[Dave L]

I might have mentioned that I was trying to sell mine, but after a few weeks I pulled the ads and now it´s back in action. There weren´t any takers at my asking price, and I wasn´t about to lower it.

Anyway, I have it set up for a very authentic late 70´s and early 80´s "california studio" tone now, somewhere between Jay Graydon and the early Toto albums. Makes sense that it would kill at those tones, since that´s the scene where Rivera got going with modding Fenders for the session players. I use a BBE Orange Squash up front, and it really covers a lot of ground that my normal rig with the Knucklehead doesn´t.