2 vs. 3 spring reverb pan..., what is the tonal difference?

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mcq
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2 vs. 3 spring reverb pan..., what is the tonal difference?

Post by mcq » Thu Jun 14, 2012 2:42 am

I have the stock pan for my Encore 65, but, one of the springs (NOT the reverb spring) that floats the spring assembly in the pan has broken. There is no place to buy a replacement spring and I haven't been able to find anyone with a broken pan to scrounge the spring from, so.... I'm contemplating buying a new pan and keeping the old one for testing purposes.

Which leads to the question: what is the tonal difference based on your observation when you changed to a 3 spring from a 2 spring?

I know..., subjective! But I would like to get opinions from people who have tried a 3 spring!


Kevin

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Enzo
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Re: 2 vs. 3 spring reverb pan..., what is the tonal differen

Post by Enzo » Thu Jun 14, 2012 4:40 am

Not a lot. They do sound different, but not like tons. If someone flipped an amp on and played, it would be hard to say which was in it. A/B comparison would be a lot easier to tell, but isn;t that usually the way anything is?

I don't think they have a different tone, just the reverberant sound is a bit more complex with the extra spring. Like two voices versus three voices singing harmony.

If I had to buy a new pan, I'd probably spend the extra couple dollars for the three spring. (For technical reasons some vendors call them six-spring. Each long spring is two shorter springs joined in the center. Don't let that confuse you.) But I don;t remotely think it would be worth it to pull a good two-spring out just to get a three.

Meanwhile, the little support springs are not that fancy, if a good hardware store or Home Depot doesn't have something, don't you have a music store or repair shop nearby? Ask the repair shop if he has a dead reverb pan he could take a corner spring from. I'd give one away here, but even if he charges you a dollar, that is tons cheaper than ordering a new pan just for the spring.

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65 SG
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Re: 2 vs. 3 spring reverb pan..., what is the tonal differen

Post by 65 SG » Thu Jun 14, 2012 9:09 am

A rubber band will probably work for the suspension/return spring, if you need a quick fix. I have an old pan in my junk box that uses some kind of elastic cord in all four corners and that's where the idea came from ;-)

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