Fender tube combo amps?

[SpinWheelz]

I'm pretty sure that I was convinced to buy my last Les Paul because I played it through a Fender Blues Jr. in the shop. Since then, I've been trying to get a better understanding of these Fender tube combo amps. Currently, I play through a Crate V18 212 and it's a lovely piece of kit, but I keep jonesing for a Fender amp.

I worry about potentially "downgrading" by going from the two-coned Crate V18 212 to the 15W Fender Blues Jr. How about the Fender Hot Rod Deluxe or Blues Deluxe - what are the key differences there? Is either a worthy upgrade from the Blues Jr?

Would really love some insight to this. Cheers.

[Hamtone]

65 super reverb ri...Nuff said best amp I have ever owned. The only thing I would add is a Ri twin and a marshall 1962 for studio stuff Imo those are the 3 amps of blues, rock and country/southern rock.

Its a little more money but for about $800 you can get a 65 ri in great shape. Awesome amp. I personally dont like 2 channel amps, I just want it clean and then dirty when I drive the front end, thats it.

[SpinWheelz]

Thank you for the reco. At that price point, I worry that it's a bit more than I can afford to spend on. I've been seeing Blues Jr. amps for around the $350 mark, and Hot Rod Deluxe amps for around the $450-$500 mark - used, natch. My aim is to replace the Crate with one of these, if it pans out. Heck, I could try and trade my Gibson Melody Maker for one of these amps.

With regards to your point about two-channel amps, that's the one feature I miss on my Crate. It's a single channel amp and I do wish I had the switchable ability to get clean and distorted out of it. Clearly I don't have a good understanding of distortion, so I'm not too savvy on what "drive the front end" means - I presume that means overdriving the pre-amp tubes? Are there other ways of driving distortion?

I'm trying to understand the merits/demerits of these Fender amps.

[es345guy]

I have to second ham on the super ri. I have one and love it and although it is not a vintage one, it sounds wonderful. I also have a limited edition hot rod deluxe that is a nice sounding amp -I have had no problems out of mine but have heard some stories about the hot rods having problems. good luck.

[Hamtone]

Originally Posted by SpinWheelz

Thank you for the reco. At that price point, I worry that it's a bit more than I can afford to spend on. I've been seeing Blues Jr. amps for around the $350 mark, and Hot Rod Deluxe amps for around the $450-$500 mark - used, natch. My aim is to replace the Crate with one of these, if it pans out. Heck, I could try and trade my Gibson Melody Maker for one of these amps.

With regards to your point about two-channel amps, that's the one feature I miss on my Crate. It's a single channel amp and I do wish I had the switchable ability to get clean and distorted out of it. Clearly I don't have a good understanding of distortion, so I'm not too savvy on what "drive the front end" means - I presume that means overdriving the pre-amp tubes? Are there other ways of driving distortion?

I'm trying to understand the merits/demerits of these Fender amps.

I am pushing the tubes to break up with an od or booster, and then when I turn it off its clean as a whistle.

My personal problem with 2 channel has always been, you get a great clean sound, then the OD side sucks or vice versa. The blues decville is another great amp.

Im not a crate fan at all, so I will say any fender you get your hands on would be an improvement in playability and tone. Keep in mind I am being a bit biased about it.

[SpinWheelz]

Thanks for clarifying the "front end" bit. I'm very fond of turning up that gain knob and letting that do all the work. Also, thanks for the reco on the Deville. A quick search turned up a few in the $500 price range, too. 4 cones, bloody hell!

[overdriver]

Originally Posted by Hamtone

65 super reverb ri...Nuff said best amp I have ever owned. The only thing I would add is a Ri twin and a marshall 1962 for studio stuff Imo those are the 3 amps of blues, rock and country/southern rock.

Its a little more money but for about $800 you can get a 65 ri in great shape. Awesome amp. I personally dont like 2 channel amps, I just want it clean and then dirty when I drive the front end, thats it.

What is going on Ham again I totally agree with ya!!! But there are alot of other nice Fender tube combo The Bassman, the tweed deluxe , 65 Deluxe reverb etc. etc..

To the OP try out a used pro Jr. If cheap small Fender is what your after. IMO they sound better than the BJr.

Currently I use a 57 tweed deluxe clone (5e3) when I played out i used a Super reverb as well as several other Fenders, Bassman...

[Hamtone]

Originally Posted by SpinWheelz

Thanks for clarifying the "front end" bit. I'm very fond of turning up that gain knob and letting that do all the work. Also, thanks for the reco on the Deville. A quick search turned up a few in the $500 price range, too. 4 cones, bloody hell!

Yeah 4x10s

Like Overdriver said there are plenty of great fender tubes. You cant beat fender reverb either. The deville is great the jr is good too. General rule for all around tube amp you can beat fender. Marshalls are great, vox is good and so isnt peavey, but a true work horse for just about everything (except modern thrash metal etc or other super high gain stuff) is a fender.

[SpinWheelz]

Thank you very much for the advise and recos. Now I really need to find a way to trade out for one of these amps. God, I might have to go to Guitar Center, try more out and see if there's some trade deal I can work out that doesn't leave me completely reamed. Yeah right.

[Standard 64]

Originally Posted by SpinWheelz

Thank you very much for the advise and recos. Now I really need to find a way to trade out for one of these amps. God, I might have to go to Guitar Center, try more out and see if there's some trade deal I can work out that doesn't leave me completely reamed. Yeah right.

Dont trade youll get reamed.Sell on ebay or in the newspaper.I had 2 Crate tube amps and was wanting Fender so now I have 2.The BJ is kind of boxy sounding(I had one)the hot rod deluxe is a lot louder(40 watts)but is not boxy sounding and stays cleaner better not being a 15 watt amp that breaks up sooner.Very good Fender cleans with a speaker upgrade(Celestion V30 or Eminence Cannabis Rex)For blues crunch or Marshall roar try a Fulltone OCD pedal in front(guitar into pedal,pedal into amp) for low or high volumes.Good luck.

[G Man]

When you go amp shopping also check out the Deluxe Reverb RI and the Princeton Reverb RI, both very sweet sounding fender tube combos that won't totally break the bank. For now, the Blues Jr is fulfilling my needs, but I don't need it to gig with. For what I use it for I find the 15 watts plenty loud. I also did the BillM mods and put a Cannabis Rex in it and it sounds round, full and warm. A great sounding amp IMHO.

[zeppelin101]

I have a blues jr and love it. Its a really great amp but I do have some mods on it. You CAN gig with it but it doesnt get THAT loud. I love it it sounds great and it can get really dirty but it kinda rolls back for that slightly overdriven sound. Its a good amp for the time being and def. worth the money. The tweed is a good option as well.

[zeppelin101]

Originally Posted by Hamtone

Yeah 4x10s

Like Overdriver said there are plenty of great fender tubes. You cant beat fender reverb either. The deville is great the jr is good too. General rule for all around tube amp you can beat fender. Marshalls are great, vox is good and so isnt peavey, but a true work horse for just about everything (except modern thrash metal etc or other super high gain stuff) is a fender.

Amen brother

[Belzeebub]

I have the 4x10 Blues Deville ri and it get the job done all the time. Plenty loud enough for 99% of the time - and if you really have to play in a stadium, well, just mic it. Superb clean (aka: tons of headroom), 2 channels, fx loop, OD isn't high octane, but you can push it over the edge with a tube screamer or distortion pedal. Depending on your style, the Deville can help you make it. Say if you ran a Line 6 POd X3 Live heavy distortion sound through the Deville's cranked OD channel, YOU WILL cut everyone's head off. Its that good.

[SpinWheelz]

Given some of the advice I've read here and elsewhere, I worry that anything over 20W might be slightly untenable for home use, given that that's how the amp will be used 95% of the time. I keep reading about how goddamn loud these larger amps are, so as sexy as the Deville's 4x10 configuration might be, it may well be overkill.

I have no doubts that the Blues Jr. will fit the bill for home use, and even some of the smaller places I play when I take it out. Given the option, I'd love to go for the Jensen-equipped Blues Jr. - presumably that's the only difference (beyond aesthetics) between that and the more "generic" black and blonde ones?

Based on the advice here, all signs seem to be pointing to the Blues Jr. I just need to unload some stuff pronto to get my hands on one!

[Gibsonblues]

I've got a Blues Jr NOS though there is nothing really NOS except the lacquered tweed For a small inexpensive amp, it is okay. Fifteen watts can get pretty loud. It's got the Jensen speaker in it and it is an okay speaker. It takes pedals well and it is light weight. Tons of mods for this too. I like mine as is, just a plain ol' BJ. The cab is way to small for a 12 inch speaker. I can dial in a tone I like with the 3 EQ knobs just fine. I did change the el84s to JJ's and I had some NOS preamp 12AX7s (RCA, GE) I put in and it sounds good to me for a inexpensive tube amp. Seems to be built well to me. I can run my OCD, Brownie, and TL-2 through it and it's a rocking little amp! I had a Hot Rod Deluxe and it sounded great on clean but I didn't care for it dirty unless I was running pedals through it. Tons gig with that amp (my son is using it now) and after a tube change and rebiasing, it is a good amp too, but it gets trashed a lot by folks. The volume pot isn't linear and it makes it pretty loud when turned low. Of course there is a fix for this.... Good luck...

[geochem1st]

No love here for the Blues Deluxe RI? Excellent amp, nice deep bass response, 40W 3x 12ax7

[Gibsonblues]

Originally Posted by geochem1st

No love here for the Blues Deluxe RI? Excellent amp, nice deep bass response, 40W 3x 12ax7

Hey geochemist - I don't have any experience with the Blues Deluxe RI but I've have heard they a nice amps.

[geochem1st]

Originally Posted by Gibsonblues

Hey geochemist - I don't have any experience with the Blues Deluxe RI but I've have heard they a nice amps.

They are. I had to sell mine recently due to finances, but when things pick up I'm going to be on the hunt for one again

[SpinWheelz]

This is frustrating - I've reached out to no fewer than half a dozen Blues Jr. sellers in the last two days, and not one is open to a trade of any kind. Everyone wants to raise cash, and understandably so, given the way things are these days. And my only currency is gear right now!

[Gibsonblues]

Originally Posted by geochem1st

They are. I had to sell mine recently due to finances, but when things pick up I'm going to be on the hunt for one again

Excellent... Hope you can get another soon!

[Gibsonblues]

Originally Posted by SpinWheelz

This is frustrating - I've reached out to no fewer than half a dozen Blues Jr. sellers in the last two days, and not one is open to a trade of any kind. Everyone wants to raise cash, and understandably so, given the way things are these days. And my only currency is gear right now!

Most that I see around here and on the local Craigslist are for cash deals too. Times are economically tough still for many, myself included, so I guess everyone is looking for cash and not the trade at the moment. Keep looking and you might still find someone interested in a trade. Having gone through getting rid of most of my stuff in the long past for cash and school money, I'm hanging on to everything I buy these days. Trying to build up to what I had in the past except for higher end amps. Just can't manage that at the moment. Good luck and keep on looking

[darkr_reaver]

Originally Posted by SpinWheelz

Thank you for the reco. At that price point, I worry that it's a bit more than I can afford to spend on. I've been seeing Blues Jr. amps for around the $350 mark, and Hot Rod Deluxe amps for around the $450-$500 mark - used, natch. My aim is to replace the Crate with one of these, if it pans out. Heck, I could try and trade my Gibson Melody Maker for one of these amps.

The Hot Rod Deluxe is an awesome amp when it's played through the clean channel. IMO the distortion isn't too great... I use pedals to get that sound that I like. Really love the amp's mids and bass.

[SpinWheelz]

Apologies for veering this slightly off-center, but how do the Fender amps in question, like the Blues Jr. or HR Deluxe, compare to Peavey Classic amps? My local shops don't carry any the Peavey Classics so I can't try 'em out, so I thought I'd solicit some opinions here.

Cheers.

[darkr_reaver]

Originally Posted by SpinWheelz

Apologies for veering this slightly off-center, but how do the Fender amps in question, like the Blues Jr. or HR Deluxe, compare to Peavey Classic amps? My local shops don't carry any the Peavey Classics so I can't try 'em out, so I thought I'd solicit some opinions here.

Cheers.

You know what? I've never played a Peavey "Classic", so I have no way of comparig the two. The amps I've played though are Bugera, Crate, Raven, Peavey, and Vox amps. Out of all of those amps, the only ones I've really liked are the Fender HRD and the VOX AC series and Night Train.

[SpinWheelz]

*Edit* - my query is moot now. Cheers.