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Author Topic:  Fender Tube Amps
Sonny Jenkins


From:
Texas Masonic Retirement Center,,,Arlington Tx
Post  Posted 4 Oct 2017 10:16 am    
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Would like to hear some opinions of the new models of Fender tube amps,,,smaller ones,,,Blues jr. etc.
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Mike Scaggs


From:
Nashville, TN
Post  Posted 4 Oct 2017 11:21 am     Re: Fender Tube Amps
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Sonny Jenkins wrote:
Would like to hear some opinions of the new models of Fender tube amps,,,smaller ones,,,Blues jr. etc.


Ok, being honest... Total junk and terrible. Those things are like Big lighters, disposable. Sorry for being brutally honest. This is coming from a builder and repair tech. Take that money and buy a REAL Fender and call it a day.

My 2 Cents
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John Goux

 

From:
California, USA
Post  Posted 4 Oct 2017 1:56 pm    
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The Blues Jr is a great little all around amp. There are reasons you see them all over the place. Enough headroom for decent clean tones and they take OD pedals well. They are light and pretty cheap. And tube.
I have 2 and they are the older version with Eminence speakers, which I prefer. I leave one at a second location to practice steel and guitar.
I do not use them to record.
Loud enough for rehearsals and small gigs. My friend brought his to the Vista steel jam last weekend and it worked fine in a room full of Stereo Steel rigs.

I am not a tech, so I can't tell you about the inside. But I have plenty of vintage and high end amps to compare. It is not the worlds best amp. It just works, plain and simple.

The even smaller amp, Pro Jr has a 10" speaker and no verb. Nice pure sound.

John
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J R Rose

 

From:
Keota, Oklahoma, USA
Post  Posted 4 Oct 2017 2:32 pm    
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Hey Mike, I wish you would learn how to speak your mind and not hold anything back that way we all would know where you stand!! Just Kidding, J.R.
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Sonny Jenkins


From:
Texas Masonic Retirement Center,,,Arlington Tx
Post  Posted 4 Oct 2017 2:39 pm    
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Talk about varied opinions,,,LOL.

I should have stated that I would be using for PSG,,,,not guitar.

I jammed over at a guys house a few week s ago and he had a collection of old Fender tube amps,,,,I had forgotten how "warm" and "full" the tube amps sounded. Of course the vintage collection he had would be not only out of my price range,,,but really beyond my physical capacity,,,those suckers are heavy!

But I got to thinking about the newer, less expensive, lighter tube amps for steel guitar???
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Mike Scaggs


From:
Nashville, TN
Post  Posted 4 Oct 2017 3:49 pm    
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J R Rose wrote:
Hey Mike, I wish you would learn how to speak your mind and not hold anything back that way we all would know where you stand!! Just Kidding, J.R.


LOLOLOL...

Well, I am hoping to save the OP some real grief. I bet I get 4 to 6 calls a week to repair all that stuff and I send it all away. I learned that once I touch em I am married to them for life, no thanks.... Now watch out or I will really tell you what I think LOL HAHA

You decide where to spend your hard earned money




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Tony Prior


From:
Charlotte NC
Post  Posted 5 Oct 2017 2:22 am    
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while it is certainly true, from a technical point of view, that the new era is different than the old era, for maintenance and repair. I too am a repair guy.

Qualifier ..I am a huge fan of Fender amps, Twins, Showmans etc, owned a million, best amps on the planet.

Back to the new era.

Ok, Amp wise, sound wise, I have owned 3 HR Deluxes and still own and use a HR Deville. Amps can tend to lean bright but that can be a reflection of speaker choice as well . I believe the stock speakers are the Fender Gold Label Eminence , which for me, is what I prefer. I have never had one of the amps fail and I have used them since 1996. Never died on a gig and I am talking lots of gigs. Never had any issue with tones, volume, reliability. Guitar or Steel. I no longer own a HR deluxe, sold them but use a Blues Jr every gig and have for 2 or 3 years non stop. My big amp for guitar or Steel is still an HR Deville, a 1999 built amp. Owned since 2000. I love it.

Ok , on to repair and maintenance, if we are looking for the cats meow of repair/maintenance , these amps are not it . But maybe thats not such a big deal overall.

The PC bds are indeed very thin and literally have no room for error if maintenance is required. The solder traces will lift off the back of the PC bds very easily even with a light wattage iron.

To remove the PC bds you have to literally take the entire amp apart. I don't recommend it.

So how do I replace E caps ? Because they will need replacement. Me I'm old school. I replaced them from the component side, cut them out and pig tailed the new ones to a portion of the old leads. Secured them to the PC bd, top side, with a nesting compound. I did this on each of my HR series amps. It's about a 30 minute job and can be done very neatly. NO issues.

When changing power tubes , on a positive note, it is very easy to set the bias.

While it is true that other things may require attention, the E Caps and two power resistors are the most common items that need maintenance over the lang haul.

IF the cheap jacks need replacement , remove the old ones carefully, then wire in the replacements which should be the original style not the new concealed plastic style. Since 2000, 3 amps, I have only had to change one.

back to sound and reliability, the 40 watt HR Deluxe and the 15 watt Blues Jr are perhaps viewed as crummy from a repair perspective but for operation and sound, personally I have never had any issues other than needing new E Caps and some tubes now and then. Same with the 60 watt HR Deville.

The 40 watt HR Deluxe is actually Fenders #1 selling amp for all time.Sure there are complaints but overall it serves us well, moderate sized rooms with reasonable headroom . I will say this, if headroom is an issue, don't spend $$$ and time trying to get more, step up to the HR Deville. we really can't change an amps basic circuit design, maybe a tad with external parts , it is what it is as long as everything is at peak performance, tubes, speaker etc...

The Blues Jr is short on headroom as it's only a 15 watt amp. It uses EL84 tubes so the tones are different than the standard 6V6 or 6L6 circuits. Think VOX AC 15 or AC 30.

thats all I got

t

PS Oh yeh, why don't I own a HR Deluxe anymore. I found it just a tad light on headroom for the Steel ( for me) but perfect for the Telecasters. I now use a N112 for the Steel but hate it for the Telecasters. So I carry a N112 for the Steel, wonderful amp, and the Blues Jr for the Telecasters . Tube amp for the guitar , SS for the Steel. Both lightweight and I can get all the gear in on a single cart trip. No worries. Larger rooms I will use the HR Deville for both Steel and Guitars.
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John Goux

 

From:
California, USA
Post  Posted 8 Oct 2017 9:54 am    
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Worth noting, there are more PSG players using the Blues Jr than would be suggested from this thread. Try a search on this forum.

I am not a fan of the reissue Fender BF or SF amps. The few Hot Rod amps I've tried did not impress me. I'm sure all those amps have their fans. I prefer the sound of the Blues Jr.

Currently on CL, a clean BF Deluxe or Princeton Reverb goes for $2500 and up. Boutique amps even more. Blues Jrs are $300 to $400.
If you have the cash to spend, those BF amps are the bomb. .

If you want something more affordable, the Blues Jr has as much, or more headroom, and punches way above its weight class.
Inexpensive, light, tube tone, nice reverb, dependable, and versatile. Your spine and your wallet will be the better for it.

J
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Barry Coker


From:
Bagley Alabama, USA
Post  Posted 8 Oct 2017 6:06 pm    
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I have a Blues JR and like it for what it is I also have an Ampeg J12R reissue from the 1980's. The Ampeg is 15 watts 12" speaker and reverb almost just like the Blues JR. and has that clean Ampeg sound.
For a practice amp or very low power needs it works great for me I am surprised I have seen very little use or mention of Ampeg amps on the forum. Question Question
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Godfrey Arthur

 

From:
3rd Rock
Post  Posted 8 Oct 2017 10:31 pm    
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Quote:

I am surprised I have seen very little use or mention of Ampeg amps on the forum.


Perhaps because Ampeg for the longest time has been a bass/guitar player's amp company, has a certain tone for guitar and bass. You can't find them everywhere unlike Fender.

Keef from the Stones used an Ampeg VT-22 to get his Stone's tone.


Ampeg VT-22. Lush Ampeg early 70's clean tone.


Sympathy for Beelzebub?



I have a B25b with the B25b cab 2x15's a monstrous cabinet weighs like a fridge.



While I have old Fender Bassman and Dual Showman reverb amps, I also have a Fender BXR25 solid state bass amp I use for studio air and it works well, has lasted over 17 years now.


10 inch ported gets low frequencies. 10x18 inches 32 pounds. Was about $200 new over a decade ago.

You can find them for under $100 these days used just to give an idea of how it's not boutique vintage resale (yet).

When price, weight, size are entered into the mix, there are amps that will fit that description and work.

The thing about psg is, it wants a larger amp with larger speakers to sound authoritative, just like bass amps so YMMV if you go small and if you like the Robert Randolph tone as I do, you will get distortion before gain on a smaller amp like a Deluxe.

And Blues Jr., well that already tells you for what the amp is voiced. But hey you might like the sound!

Does it speak for you?

Roland/Boss makes some very small big sounding amps too so there's those, like the Katana.


50 watts 25 pounds. $200...

There's still the Peavey 112 as well.


I should add that as time progresses and amps start to be totally digital and model based, the older all tube pre-digital-amp-modeling will sound more analog of course comparatively.
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David Cubbedge


From:
Toledo,Ohio, USA
Post  Posted 9 Oct 2017 8:27 am    
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I recently purchased a 100 watt Boss Katana and love it! Light, versatile and it actually sounds a lot like my 85 lb. Twin Reverb!
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Tony Prior


From:
Charlotte NC
Post  Posted 10 Oct 2017 1:42 am    
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David Cubbedge wrote:
I recently purchased a 100 watt Boss Katana and love it! Light, versatile and it actually sounds a lot like my 85 lb. Twin Reverb!



But it's not a tube amp and it's not a Twin Reverb ! Side by side on a big stage , one will shine like the sun ! The thread is about Fender Tube amps not lite weight SS amps as kool as they may be.
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Mark Fowler


From:
Minnesota, USA
Post  Posted 10 Oct 2017 3:40 am    
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I agree the build quality of new tube amps is low and repair a nightmare but they sell like hotcakes and players like their tones, go figure.

Touring bands coming through town always request newer Fender rental amps which I consider junk but they love them. Not much in demand for great old blackface amps for rental but both young and old players seek them and I repair them.

I have to fix Ampeg SVT bass amps and sell 6550 tubes all the time. The new SVT are another nightmare.

Mark
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Mark Hershey

 

From:
New York, USA
Post  Posted 10 Oct 2017 6:45 am    
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It all depends. I’ve seen so many bands playing live that have new Fender amps and the sound coming off the stage can sound great!

I have a pro guitarist friend that plays a reissue and he loves it. I think a lot of musicians just want something new and reliable that they don’t care if it gets beat up on the road.

That being said I have old Fender amps and I love them. I also have a modern pro blues jr and it sounds damn good for Guitar. When you find something that sounds great to your ears just go for it.
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Godfrey Arthur

 

From:
3rd Rock
Post  Posted 16 Oct 2017 9:39 pm    
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Mark Fowler wrote:


Touring bands coming through town always request newer Fender rental amps


Doing work for tour production I notice similar. The players are not period specific concerned as they are model specific and don't really care if it is vintage or not. As long as it works.

And yes they do get great tone out of them because they are good players.

For the most part it is a tube amp they look for, for guitars.

Mostly Twins and the occasional Vox AC30 even if the AC30 is made in China, if it's not a Marshall half-stack.

That said, the 15 watt Blues Jr., for a gig at least would be too light in the power section for clean steel at least. For guitar, I'm not a fan as for $500 Benjamins there are other amps cheaper even that can out pace a Blues Jr.

The newer Fender amps (outside of the staple Twin, Deluxe, Vibrolux, Vibrosonic, Bassman) are catering to a weekend warrior/bedroom slasher market.

Fender tried "small and great" with the Princeton recording amp but you don't see many of those around be it looks, power or reliability.

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Steven Paris

 

From:
Los Angeles
Post  Posted 16 Oct 2017 11:00 pm    
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I see a lot of love for the Blues Jr. How does it compare, side by side, to a Deluxe Reverb reissue? Both ~ same power; Deluxe appears to be ~ 30% more$$.
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Mark Hershey

 

From:
New York, USA
Post  Posted 17 Oct 2017 6:46 am    
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Steven Paris wrote:
I see a lot of love for the Blues Jr. How does it compare, side by side, to a Deluxe Reverb reissue? Both ~ same power; Deluxe appears to be ~ 30% more$$.


Blues Jr.sounds more like a Marshall when loud but not quite a Marshall. My favorite thing to do with the Blue Jr. is push it toward the tube break and I get a nice crunch from it. I only like it with guitar, the few times I put a PSG into it didn't work too well for me.

I have little experience with a Deluxe but my impressions from the few I played a guitar through one were it was good bright amps with nice cleans. I never really pushed one hard so I can't speak to how they sound broken up.
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Brett Lanier

 

From:
Madison, TN
Post  Posted 17 Oct 2017 8:07 am    
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The '65 Deluxe Reverb reissues are consistently good in my experience. I also really like the Pro jr, and the Tweed Bassman reissue from the 90's. Anytime I've played any of those amps it's been great! Hard to speak for any of the other amps they make just because sometimes they are good and sometimes they are noisy, or have a piercing high end that is impossible to get rid of...

Touring bands request newer amps because that's what's available. And let's say a backline company had a "vintage deluxe reverb" on their list. That's a roll of the dice. I've heard plenty of vintage blackface deluxes that sounded worse than your average reissue.
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Godfrey Arthur

 

From:
3rd Rock
Post  Posted 17 Oct 2017 8:54 pm    
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Brett Lanier wrote:

Touring bands request newer amps because that's what's available. And let's say a backline company had a "vintage deluxe reverb" on their list. That's a roll of the dice. I've heard plenty of vintage blackface deluxes that sounded worse than your average reissue.


I was part of production for Tony MacAlpine playing with Billy Sheehan, Mike Portnoy, Derek Sherinian.

They did not bring their own gear, roadies or even sound crew.

The promoters hired a sound company that brought defective Marshall heads.

I wasn't involved with that.

MacAlpine wanted a Marshall JCM800 head which is for the most part a vintage amp, at least the one that was provided by the backline for the concert, not the reissue. But it hummed like a wasp colony.

So MacAlpine had to make do with another Marshall head.

Even if he complained, I helped him find a more secure amp (since he didn't have his own roadie and it was close to gig time) and he was able to transcend the situation.

The audience never knew the difference.

Hence a backline company should try and make sure their equipment is up to snuff providing for the majors no matter the year the gear was made.

A blackface Fender in bad repair does not belong in a backline list any more than a newer reissue with quirks or any piece of gear that is not 100% working.

That said, quality control on new amps is hit and miss.

"New" isn't a guarantee that it will be foolproof.

You will notice that even if an artist brings their own gear, it will contain redundant amps sitting on stage in the event of a failure.

Or if renting, will order a backup just in case.

No matter how good an amp may be, Murphy's Law seems to rear its little head on occasion.

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Mark Hershey

 

From:
New York, USA
Post  Posted 18 Oct 2017 6:07 am    
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Godfrey Arthur wrote:
Brett Lanier wrote:

Touring bands request newer amps because that's what's available. And let's say a backline company had a "vintage deluxe reverb" on their list. That's a roll of the dice. I've heard plenty of vintage blackface deluxes that sounded worse than your average reissue.


I was part of production for Tony MacAlpine playing with Billy Sheehan, Mike Portnoy, Derek Sherinian.

They did not bring their own gear, roadies or even sound crew.

The promoters hired a sound company that brought defective Marshall heads.

I wasn't involved with that.

MacAlpine wanted a Marshall JCM800 head which is for the most part a vintage amp, at least the one that was provided by the backline for the concert, not the reissue. But it hummed like a wasp colony.

So MacAlpine had to make do with another Marshall head.

Even if he complained, I helped him find a more secure amp (since he didn't have his own roadie and it was close to gig time) and he was able to transcend the situation.

The audience never knew the difference.

Hence a backline company should try and make sure their equipment is up to snuff providing for the majors no matter the year the gear was made.

A blackface Fender in bad repair does not belong in a backline list any more than a newer reissue with quirks or any piece of gear that is not 100% working.

That said, quality control on new amps is hit and miss.

"New" isn't a guarantee that it will be foolproof.

You will notice that even if an artist brings their own gear, it will contain redundant amps sitting on stage in the event of a failure.

Or if renting, will order a backup just in case.

No matter how good an amp may be, Murphy's Law seems to rear its little head on occasion.


That pic is hilarious.

I remember I went to see Motorhead on tour, I've always really liked Lemmy and wanted to see him live. Up on stage you could see his Marshall on wheels rotated on an angle so you could see the depth of the cabinet. They were so loud and so good.

Unfortunately it was on a Gigantour which featured Megadeth as headliners. They had the facade of Marshall stacks just like in that pic and they were so much quieter than Motorhead.

To hijack this thread a little bit, are the Marshall reissues any good? They are so damn expensive I'm priced out but I'v always loved those classic Marshall's wit a guitar. Thanks!
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Godfrey Arthur

 

From:
3rd Rock
Post  Posted 18 Oct 2017 6:41 am    
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Mark Hershey wrote:


That pic is hilarious.

I remember I went to see Motorhead on tour, I've always really liked Lemmy and wanted to see him live. Up on stage you could see his Marshall on wheels rotated on an angle so you could see the depth of the cabinet. They were so loud and so good.

Unfortunately it was on a Gigantour which featured Megadeth as headliners. They had the facade of Marshall stacks just like in that pic and they were so much quieter than Motorhead.

To hijack this thread a little bit, are the Marshall reissues any good? They are so damn expensive I'm priced out but I'v always loved those classic Marshall's wit a guitar. Thanks!


I like Motorhead. Never saw them live though. No more Lemmy...

I saw Megadeth with Marty.




Depending on who you ask, some don't like the reissues as much as the original issues, the ones that were made when Jim was alive. The sound isn't the same. And although it's spouted to be made exactly the same way, with today's costs and the tendency for parts to be made more cost effective one can't guarantee the same results as before the economy took a dive pre 2008.

Most serious PTP tube amps today are going to be one or two grand and up. A Marshall JCM900 is easily 2 grand new and it's still a reissue.

Would be nice to have a time machine...


The JCM800 that MacAlpine wanted to use sounded great except for the hum. He was running one of those Yamaha mini amps through the Marshall as well to get his tone.



Yamaha THR10
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Greg Lambert

 

From:
Illinois, USA
Post  Posted 18 Oct 2017 8:40 am    
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Tony Prior wrote:
while it is certainly true, from a technical point of view, that the new era is different than the old era, for maintenance and repair. I too am a repair guy.

Qualifier ..I am a huge fan of Fender amps, Twins, Showmans etc, owned a million, best amps on the planet.

Back to the new era.

Ok, Amp wise, sound wise, I have owned 3 HR Deluxes and still own and use a HR Deville. Amps can tend to lean bright but that can be a reflection of speaker choice as well . I believe the stock speakers are the Fender Gold Label Eminence , which for me, is what I prefer. I have never had one of the amps fail and I have used them since 1996. Never died on a gig and I am talking lots of gigs. Never had any issue with tones, volume, reliability. Guitar or Steel. I no longer own a HR deluxe, sold them but use a Blues Jr every gig and have for 2 or 3 years non stop. My big amp for guitar or Steel is still an HR Deville, a 1999 built amp. Owned since 2000. I love it.

Ok , on to repair and maintenance, if we are looking for the cats meow of repair/maintenance , these amps are not it . But maybe thats not such a big deal overall.

The PC bds are indeed very thin and literally have no room for error if maintenance is required. The solder traces will lift off the back of the PC bds very easily even with a light wattage iron.

To remove the PC bds you have to literally take the entire amp apart. I don't recommend it.

So how do I replace E caps ? Because they will need replacement. Me I'm old school. I replaced them from the component side, cut them out and pig tailed the new ones to a portion of the old leads. Secured them to the PC bd, top side, with a nesting compound. I did this on each of my HR series amps. It's about a 30 minute job and can be done very neatly. NO issues.

When changing power tubes , on a positive note, it is very easy to set the bias.

While it is true that other things may require attention, the E Caps and two power resistors are the most common items that need maintenance over the lang haul.

IF the cheap jacks need replacement , remove the old ones carefully, then wire in the replacements which should be the original style not the new concealed plastic style. Since 2000, 3 amps, I have only had to change one.

back to sound and reliability, the 40 watt HR Deluxe and the 15 watt Blues Jr are perhaps viewed as crummy from a repair perspective but for operation and sound, personally I have never had any issues other than needing new E Caps and some tubes now and then. Same with the 60 watt HR Deville.

The 40 watt HR Deluxe is actually Fenders #1 selling amp for all time.Sure there are complaints but overall it serves us well, moderate sized rooms with reasonable headroom . I will say this, if headroom is an issue, don't spend $$$ and time trying to get more, step up to the HR Deville. we really can't change an amps basic circuit design, maybe a tad with external parts , it is what it is as long as everything is at peak performance, tubes, speaker etc...

The Blues Jr is short on headroom as it's only a 15 watt amp. It uses EL84 tubes so the tones are different than the standard 6V6 or 6L6 circuits. Think VOX AC 15 or AC 30.

thats all I got

t

PS Oh yeh, why don't I own a HR Deluxe anymore. I found it just a tad light on headroom for the Steel ( for me) but perfect for the Telecasters. I now use a N112 for the Steel but hate it for the Telecasters. So I carry a N112 for the Steel, wonderful amp, and the Blues Jr for the Telecasters . Tube amp for the guitar , SS for the Steel. Both lightweight and I can get all the gear in on a single cart trip. No worries. Larger rooms I will use the HR Deville for both Steel and Guitars.


Tony , Approximately how often should the E caps be replaced? How do you know when they need replacing? Does the tone gradually lose its quality or is it sudden?

The reason I ask is that Im thinking about getting a tube amp but I dont want to have to go through the cap issue.

Does the caps in a solid state also require replacements over time?
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Bobby Nelson


From:
North Carolina, USA
Post  Posted 18 Oct 2017 2:49 pm    
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I think it has something to do, not only with your ear,but, with the era one comes from. When I started playing in the 70's (6 string), they were coming out with all kind of solid state stuff but, you could still buy BF Super Reverbs, vibroluxs, Vibroverbs, twins etc (I'm not a Marshall guy so I can't speak to them) for 2-3 hundred bucks, and tweed Deluxes and Bassmans for 3 or 4 hun all day long. I, personally, never played a new amp of that day, that couldn't be blown off stage by any of those old amps I just mentioned.

Today? It's gonna be real hard for a kid to lay out $5000.00 for a 5F6A Bassman to learn to play Hanna Montana so, if they learn on a PC board amp, it's probably going to be what sounds best to them. We also, were playing very loudly and buzz didn't mean a thing to us.

Lastly: when I started out on this quest for steel guitar, I first bought a NV 400 which, I thought sounded great. However, I then bought a 1973 Twin (which I would've turned my nose up to back in the day) and put K-120's in it and: Presto! suddenly, The NV 400 doesn't sound so good any more - doesn't even come close. I suppose if I start playing gigs where I need a lot more volume we'll see how that shakes out for me.

I guess I'm saying that it's a personal history and experimentation thing.
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Bobby Nelson


From:
North Carolina, USA
Post  Posted 18 Oct 2017 3:03 pm    
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I have to say one more thing: A twin w/JBLs is a certified beast to tote around, and I'm sure I'll taking the Peavey (not much less a beast but manageable at least) to things I don't have to sound my best at (rehearsals for example). That said: when I want to sound my level best, it'll be the Twin.

One more note: I saw a Silver face Twin @ guitar center yesterday for $799.00 - at that price, I'm thinking about picking it up myself and, maybe that'll solve any volume at big gig problems that may arise. ... Just sayin!
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Tony Prior


From:
Charlotte NC
Post  Posted 19 Oct 2017 2:00 am    
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Greg Lambert wrote:


Tony , Approximately how often should the E caps be replaced? How do you know when they need replacing? Does the tone gradually lose its quality or is it sudden?

The reason I ask is that Im thinking about getting a tube amp but I dont want to have to go through the cap issue.

Do the caps in a solid state also require replacements over time?


Historically, and I am certain others may take issue, but E Caps live in the 15 year +/- realm , used or not used. Obviously this is a window, not hard and fast. They can start to dry up. Better brands perhaps last longer than cheaper brands but they ALL need replacement at some point. Whats the first thing we notice, ? the bottom end starts to rumble, some overtones start to be present and we can't dial them out. Tube amps are more prone than SS amps as the DC voltages are way up, in the over + 400 range, a Twin reverb may see +465 with a 500 VDC rated E Cap.

SS amps are more in the under +50 VDC range so they may not get quite a workout, but still should be replaced. I recently restored a few Vox SS Super Beatles, the main PS is +30 VDC , the caps did indeed require replacement, but then again the amps were 50 years old .

E Caps are the heart of the power supply. IF we spend $700 on a nice Silverface amp, why not spend $100 and bring it up to snuff. By the way, the PS is the heart of the amp !


The last HR Deluxe I had began to rumble ( overtones) on the low end, it was probably 15 years old. I changed the E Caps, reset the bias ( not even new tubes) and all was well. I did the same thing to my HR Deville at the same time which is a 2000 build. It was just time. Tube amps just need some attention and they will go another 15 or 20 years with excellent reliability.

By the way, there is no such things as "those Caps look good " ! They don't have to show signs of leaking to be poor performers.

15 years or so is the so called rule of Hoyle . This is not hard and fast.

I should also note that I have never had any Fender tube amp die on a gig, ( over 50 years of gigs) even the HR Deluxe with the overtones was still pushing air. But I have had 2 or 3 SS amps die on gigs. This is not to say that tube amps don't die on gigs, they can. So can a new car die on the HWY if we don't change the oil or service it now and then.
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