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Posted: Sun May 16, 2010 7:35 am
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When it comes to the HRDLx there are a lot of mods out there, some simple and some very complex. As I stated earlier in this discussion, I disagree with 63supro about the quality of these amps, but I'm not going to rehash that argument. I chose to modify my HRDLX, and it has worked out well for me. I have been playing the amp almost daily for about 4 or 5 months now, and this is with the volume pots cranked because I use the Omnisonic volume control, so the tubes are cooking. I'm doing just about everything possible to fry that PCB board, and thus far it hasn't skipped a beat. That being said, having gone through the mod process, there are really two viable choices to improve the tone of your HRDLx:

1) Change the speaker and tubes, use the Omnisonic, and then have the circuit modded. Will cost in the ballpark of $400.00 - $500.00.

2) Change the speaker and tubes, use the Omnisonic, and then put a high quality pedal in your signal path. Will cost about $300.00 to $400.00 depending on what you use, could be more but could be less. The Visual Sound Route 66 would be a great pedal for this because you get a great compressor and a TS808 style OD pedal all in a dual stompbox format.

Option 2 is definately the safe bet. You avoid the risk associated with modification, and you can sell or continue to use the individual components if you decide to change amps. Also, you can always put the original speaker and tubes back in if you have to make a warranty claim. If you have a newer HRDLx, particularly if you purchased it new, I would recommend option 2 for the reasons cited above. If you are like me and you purchased a used HRDLx cheap then either option is good. I enjoyed the modification process, and learned a lot. Jim at Omega amps is great to deal with and will tailor your amp to meet your needs. If you are going to mod, definately give Jim a call.

http://omegaamps.com/mods2.html

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Posted: Sun May 16, 2010 9:41 am
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WRC73 wrote:
When it comes to the HRDLx there are a lot of mods out there, some simple and some very complex. As I stated earlier in this discussion, I disagree with 63supro about the quality of these amps, but I'm not going to rehash that argument. I chose to modify my HRDLX, and it has worked out well for me. I have been playing the amp almost daily for about 4 or 5 months now, and this is with the volume pots cranked because I use the Omnisonic volume control, so the tubes are cooking. I'm doing just about everything possible to fry that PCB board, and thus far it hasn't skipped a beat. That being said, having gone through the mod process, there are really two viable choices to improve the tone of your HRDLx:

1) Change the speaker and tubes, use the Omnisonic, and then have the circuit modded. Will cost in the ballpark of $400.00 - $500.00.

2) Change the speaker and tubes, use the Omnisonic, and then put a high quality pedal in your signal path. Will cost about $300.00 to $400.00 depending on what you use, could be more but could be less. The Visual Sound Route 66 would be a great pedal for this because you get a great compressor and a TS808 style OD pedal all in a dual stompbox format.

Option 2 is definately the safe bet. You avoid the risk associated with modification, and you can sell or continue to use the individual components if you decide to change amps. Also, you can always put the original speaker and tubes back in if you have to make a warranty claim. If you have a newer HRDLx, particularly if you purchased it new, I would recommend option 2 for the reasons cited above. If you are like me and you purchased a used HRDLx cheap then either option is good. I enjoyed the modification process, and learned a lot. Jim at Omega amps is great to deal with and will tailor your amp to meet your needs. If you are going to mod, definately give Jim a call.

http://omegaamps.com/mods2.html



I have worked on my HRDlx myself, and they ARE poorly built and designed and do use cheap components.

Throwing away $300-500 on even a used HRDlx gets you into a used DRRI which is IMO a way better built and better sounding amp. It also has two real channels with separate EQ. Why even buy an amp that needs more than a tube change or on the outside, a speaker change. I thought mine would get by on just a tube change. I was dead wrong.

The tubes are not "cooking" with a volume box in the effects loop, it doesn't work that way It's not an attenuator, It's a volume control. An attenuator reduces the volume at the speaker not before the power stage. That's when things are cooking. What you're doing is turning the amp up but cutting the volume just &^$% the volume control on your guitar. You're not pushing the amp's front end and there's no sonic benefit. There are way better amps on the market especially if you factor in the upgrades and mods.

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Posted: Sun May 16, 2010 12:10 pm
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Retroverbial wrote:

If amps were automobiles I think we both know which one would be likened to a Fiat......

:mrgreen:

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Posted: Sun May 16, 2010 2:15 pm
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63supro,

You must have really loved your HRDLx to be so let down when it failed that you continue to harbor such hate and resentment? I'm not disagreeing with you about the DRRI, IT'S A BETTER AMP. I'm also not advicating that people mod new HRDLx amps, that would not be cost effective. However, you act as if these amps fall apart like they are made out of paper and popsickle sticks. I known three different people that have a HRDLx, and none of them, including myself, have had the issues you had with yours and preach that everyone else will have. I am sorry that it was such a bad experience for you, but they aren't THAT bad. I have under $600.00 in mine and won't spend anymore on it. It's tough to find a good DRRI for $600.00.

As I have said before, if I was in the market for a new amp I would not buy a HRDLx, there are to many better options out there that better fit my needs in the same price range or less. That being said, that does not mean that they are total crap. Check out the Youtube link on the Omega amps website for that modded HR DeVille, are you really going to tell me that is bad tone? My HRDLx sounds a lot like that, but 1X12 is never going to sound exactly like 4X10, for less than $600.00. How can that be bad? I would use a little less reverb myself though. 14 years and running strong, thats a good track record in anybodys book who isn't blinded by hate!

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Posted: Sun May 16, 2010 3:34 pm
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You got a good one, WRC -- there is no disputing that. And that said, I say "keep it". Play it, enjoy it, revel in the fact that it hasn't let you down (mebbe get one of those hare krishna fellows to sprinkle some "karma water" water on it from time to time). My former rhythm guitarist also had a good one (specifically a 2 x 12 DeVille). He bought it in late '95 or early '96 and played it up through 2005 when we parted company. Never a problem and he beat that thing like the proverbial rented mule. The following year he foolishly traded it in on a tweed version (Blues DeVille I believe) and within six months the POS had been back to the shop four times, each instance with a different problem. We usta laughingly refer to it as the "hangar queen". He actually went back to the store to try and buy his old HRDvl back but they'd sold it. Now he's back to a re-issue BF Super Reverb and couldn't be happier.

I'm guessing that certain production runs of these amps (mebbe the older models) are less prone to problems than others.

Arjay


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Posted: Sun May 16, 2010 6:22 pm
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WRC, no, mine was a love/hate relationship. Yes I do have better amps. I still have a 76 Twin and a 74 Champ as well as my Egnater Rebel 20 that is light years ahead of the HRDlx. I bought the HRDlx because it didn't sound like any Fender amp I've ever owned. I thought it would be reliable because Fender made it. Why not? All my other amp that said Fender were as reliable as the Sun coming up in the morning. I had a 64 Vibrolux Reverb, a 73 Bandmaster, and a few other amps in my day. Ampegs, Sunns etc. Never had a Marshall though. I've been playing over 40 years so I have a pretty good reference point. An amp should not be hit and miss in the reliability department. ven my 74 Champ is built as though you'll gig with it. No cut corners, no cheap components. In 36 years It's never been in the shop. My HRDlx lived there. I know a few musicians who have no problem, but I know more than twice as many who do have problems, and I've actually gotten decent at repairing them on the fly for them.

That's the problem with the HRDlx. They have pretty shabby Single sided boards with thin traces with tube sockets mounted to them that have no business in a tube amp period. It's a recipe for disaster and in many cases including mine, they were.

I'm glad you got a good one, enjoy it but don't discount the folks who didn't. There are many of us, way too many.

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Post subject: blues deluxe reissue better than the hot rod!
Posted: Fri May 21, 2010 12:44 pm
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given all the issues and problems quoted , always think the blues deluxe reissue is better


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Post subject: Re: blues deluxe reissue better than the hot rod!
Posted: Fri May 21, 2010 2:37 pm
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volodia wrote:
given all the issues and problems quoted , always think the blues deluxe reissue is better


Not much, it's pretty much the same amp without the more drive and prone to many of the same problem. The Blues Deluxe always sounds muddy to me.
Out of the HRD series, IMO the Pro Jr is the most reliable, but sounds boxy unless you put it through an extension cabinet. That's when the real deal comes out. None of the HRD series really captures the "Classic Fender Sound" not that being different is a bad thing. That's what drew me to the HRDlx in the first place. The Egnater drew me further into something new and very different. Reliability is just as important to me as tone and that's where Fender drops the ball in the HRD series.

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Posted: Fri May 21, 2010 11:06 pm
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I love my Hot Rod Deluxe (ducking as fast as I can...........)

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Post subject: Re: blues deluxe reissue better than the hot rod!
Posted: Sat May 22, 2010 3:25 am
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volodia wrote:
given all the issues and problems quoted , always think the blues deluxe reissue is better
I have a blues deluxe that never gave me trouble and although you dont hear as many complaints about it ,I wonder if its simply that there are fewer owners of the blues deluxe.Fender obviously cut corners to keep the price down.


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Posted: Sat May 22, 2010 9:50 am
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I also have a Blues Deluxe and the only problem I've had was a mechanical failure of the channel select footswitch. I felt it "break" as I was changing channels. It was fixed under warranty, and all else has been good. My only issue with the amp is that you have to play it too loud to get it to OD on the drive channel. I use it with the matching tweed extension cab.

For sure, the number of complaints on the Hot Rod are due in part at least, to the fact that it is a very high volume seller for Fender. Others may argue, but it's just a fact of statistics, regardless.

I know of several friends that have Hot Rods and love them with no problems after years of use.

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Posted: Sat May 22, 2010 10:20 am
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Peavey sells a lot of amps too and you don't hear stuff like this. Fender make and sells tens of thousands of other models outside the HRD series and you never hear the amount of problems you have with the HRD series. They are built to a price point. IMO they are not meant to be gigged and moved every day they are just too fragile. Even the cabinet is cheap particle board. My amp thech tells me he sees more HRD series amp then any other models. His business thrives on the repairs.

Like I always said, I wasn't that unhappy with the sound after I changed the tubes, it was its poor reliability. It was the worst of any amp I've ever owned. I know dozens of HRDlx and DeVille owners that have two and they rotate them in and out of the shop until the warranty runs out. It's usually small, weird and heat related problems.

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Posted: Sat May 22, 2010 10:26 am
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Supro, if there weren't a lot of trouble with this line of amps then why are there so many posts asking what's wrong or how to fix them? Several a day most days.
And yet after all the abuse you take you still help anyone who needs it. You are a good man Supro!! :)

Please take no offense if you own one but please do a search, just on this forum, and look at the numbers.
I hope they last forever and don't give the owners problems!!


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Posted: Sat May 22, 2010 10:34 am
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I bet there are almost as many deluxe reverbs being sold as hotrods and you dont see many deluxe reverb owners looking for help with a problem.I admit , I have been one of the lucky ones , but there have been alot of not so lucky ones.If you look at the price difference between a blues deluxe and a deluxe reverb ,its only 150 bucks.I agree with fhopkins,Supro is very helpful to alot of people, a great person to have here.


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Posted: Sat May 22, 2010 10:40 am
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Yeah, truth is some people use them for years and have no problems. They are good sounding amps.


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