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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 3:48 pm
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cedarblues wrote:
Jody, looks like you're new here, welcome to the forum btw... the HRD's are kind of an inside joke here. There's some here who've had issues with them, and I know a few working musicians locally who can't stand the amps, not because of the way they sound, but because of reliability issues, they spend too much time getting serviced...

Arjay is one of the most helpful and knowledgeable people around here when it comes to amps, specially vintage, so if you do end up going that route, and I highly recommend it for what you're trying to accomplish, his knowledge and help will come in handy I'm sure.

Good luck with your search. Check ebay and craigslist for late 60s Fender amp heads, lots of great deals out there! You can even check GC's used inventory, I'm sure there's a few listed there.

Oh BTW, Egnater makes some great amps, from what I hear, where's Supro when you need him! I tried them and it didn't work for me, not Fender enough, which is I'm looking for these days...


I tried the Bandmaster VM and thought it was pretty nasty. the grill fell off the one I tried. LOL

As far as Egnater goes, if you lean toward the 6V6 side and play with the watts control, you can get pretty close to a Tweed Princeton. I can get "Fender Like" but not real Fender. Even Fender can't get the "Real Fender" tone with most of these newer amps like the HRD series and the VM which I have dubbed "Vintage Molested". The new Bandmaster sounds nothing like any of the old Bandmasters. It really isn't that loud of a 40 watt amp. The output trannie's pretty small compared to other 40 watters. To me, the DSP effects sounded like a jumbo GDec. I'd seriously go vintage.

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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 5:17 pm
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cedarblues wrote:
Arjay is one of the most helpful and knowledgeable people around here when it comes to amps, specially vintage, so if you do end up going that route, and I highly recommend it for what you're trying to accomplish, his knowledge and help will come in handy I'm sure.


Not to worry, CB. The original poster is right.

I don't know jack fookin' chit -- about anything!

Some four decades ago I used to use a Bandmaster through a Vibratone......

Image

Frankly, it didn't sound all that great and I only played the rig for about five years. I'll go find my spare box of kleenex now and snivel in solitude.

:mrgreen:

Arjay

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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 7:12 pm
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cedarblues, Thanks for showing or telling me the ropes and letting me know about the inside joke.
63supro, Thanks for your input. I'll stay clear of the bassmaster VM, I really don't want any digital anything.. I've been there, done that and wasn't happy.
Retroverbial Why can't you be kind like the others? I apologize for popping off back at ya though. I aint gotta be rude back. Do you play lapsteel too? Back when I played guitar I played thru the vibratone when I first inherritted it I didn't like it. I love it for the lapsteel with the music I play.

I've heard good/bad things most all newer fender amps, but they haven't let me down SO FAR (jinx myself now). Regardless, I'm always strapped for money and spending a chunk of money for anything is a HUGE deal in my household, yall have heard the story 1000 times. Anything nice I've got, I inheritted (for real). I got the JR and Deville used at GREAT prices 5 years or so ago, replaced tubes, reverb tank on JR, and have been thrilled with tone thru my vibratone cab. I'm not a fan of the tone/sound using the speakers that come with the amps, which is why I lug the dang vibratone everywhere. Either way, I got the tone I want regardless of what any one else thinks, so thats why I wanted a 'deville' head. It just works for me, but again, not without the vibratone in the mix.

Unlike many lapsteel players, I don't like alot of highs, and I actually prefer crisp bassy tone and my vibratone seems to throw out that bass when I want it. I assume the vibratone speaker is somewhat 'compressed' with it being behind the rotating cone. The vibratone also puts a serious dents in my highs. My lapsteel is a cheap one that I've gutted and customized with a Jason Lollar P90 in it. I hate the hum, but love the tone of the p90. Note- if it matters, I primarly play in a 3 piece band with a drummer and acoustic guitarist, so I need that bassyness. We play blues, rock, funk type stuff, sometimes heavy sounding rock stuff, but not death metal in anyway. When I play in the 5 piece, where we have a bass player, I turn the bass down a lot on the amp crank up my highs.


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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 7:26 pm
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You could just do a speaker upgrade on the combo and forget about hauling the cabinet around


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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 7:41 pm
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I did a speaker upgrade, and I still didn't like it. I ended up putting the speaker I bought in my vibratone. I love my vibratone, its not going anywhere until I grow old and can't physically lug it around. I also got a smaller leslie speaker assembly with a 8" speaker off ebay a few months ago that I intend to build a cabinet for when I get time. I hoping it will get me by in those small venues when space is tight.


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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 8:06 pm
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jody

never mind ole arjay hes set in his ways with gear. hes been around the block several times and a couple of those he was carried rumor has it. :wink:
seriously, he and supro63 are the best two for info on this site for this question. their experience boggles the mind.
when it comes to serious hardcore answers needed i press on in my posts until one if not both finally show up and answer the question.
i dont always follow their lead but i do respect their opinion highly and sometimes cant move on until i get it.

the blues jr is a love it/hate it amp on here.
some of us love it (i do) some of us hate it, they do.
its ok because they dont have to play my blues jr or yours.
but please understand that tones in voice or sarcasum cant be read
on forums (writen text) most of the time.
arjay and the guys on here have created a nice home here on this forum
for anybody who wants to join in. the knowledge on here is amazing.
we dont always agree with eachother on everything but the "family" feeling
remains the same.
i just had a disagreement with a fella on here a few days ago.
so feathers got ruffled but no big deal. two day later the same guy
set me down for some one on one education i greatly needed.
all past forgotten. thats how it goes. even though i stood my ground and he stood his, he came through when i needed him w/o fail.
johnny on the spot with heavy info that i needed.
so, tell'em to kiss your butt about the bluesJR and take their advice
as opinion and education, because thats what it is.
great guys indeed on here. tons of valuable info to be had for the asking.
oh and listen to supro63 on that egnator. he finally convinced me to go give them a solid looksee. man i want one. the most versatile amp on the market today period.

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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 8:22 pm
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way cool jr! Thanks for the conversation. Very cool of you to take the time. I'm as sarcastic as anyone you'll meet. It still boggles my mind that you can't get a blues jr head or a deville head.. Egnator, vox, and others offers the same amp in head only or combo, for the most part. I just find it odd, thats all, and wondered why.


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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 8:36 pm
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JodyP wrote:
way cool jr! Thanks for the conversation. Very cool of you to take the time. I'm as sarcastic as anyone you'll meet. It still boggles my mind that you can't get a blues jr head or a deville head.. Egnator, vox, and others offers the same amp in head only or combo, for the most part. I just find it odd, thats all, and wondered why.


my kind of pal right there. one that can dish it out and take it in as well lol.
yeah i see what your saying. maybe they will. what is for sure is that is whats setting the todays market, the smaller head and cab.
usually somebody starts something and if it works well others will follow.
we know the wave is in motion, so lets see if fender choose's to ride the wave in. could be interesting to see.

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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 8:56 pm
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JodyP wrote:
I apologize for popping off back at ya though. I aint gotta be rude back.


Fair enough, Jody (besides, I'm fresh outta kleenex).

:mrgreen:

Since finances are a substantial portion of this equation, you might try the head/conversion route. I haven't built one based on the HR-series amps but I've been known to fabricate other "weird" stuff from time to time (you might say I'm the proverbial square peg in the round hole on this forum). If you're familiar with common hand tools and know a bit about woodworking I should think a proper head cab for your HRDlx could be built for less than $150 (including hardware, Tolex or tweed, and some grill cloth for the valence). Be sure to let that chassis ventilate to the maximum extent possible since thermal-related problems seem to claim these amps more quickly than the traditional blackface and silverface configurations.

Arjay

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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 9:08 pm
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hum....could make for a interesting project/build post. :wink:

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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 9:25 pm
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Yeah, there's no gettin' around the stone soul of a Vibatone or Leslie. They are both very cool ! I worked on a couple of Vibratones over the years, and always cut the bill so I could use them on a gig. If you like your two amps, then I'd say by all means build or buy some cabs. I guess the head- spkr cab fashion has fallen out of favor. Fender has so many irons in the fire, I'm sure it's just a matter of demand. Egnators seem like solid choices. Actually, I'm with crusty Arjay on the older head, if it were economically possible, but it sounds like you know what you're looking for. An early '68 Band Master would be my choice, to match up with the Vibratone. Art

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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 9:29 pm
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I'm glad we made up arjay. I know we both wouldn't have slept well tonight with us going to be mad at each other.

I'll think about the conversion suggestion hard. Several others have suggested it too. I'm okay with wood working, its the finishing I"m not good at. The only thing that scares me about a project like this would be the tolex, as in making it look good/right and it not coming unglued. As for heat being and issue, I could mount a small quiet fan in it. I got several small 110 biscuit fans laying around.


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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 9:40 pm
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Tolex isn't as daunting a challenge as you might think.

Some tips......

Pre-cut your pieces to the approximate size and pay close attention to the amount of overlap between the sides and the top/bottom panels.

Use the "red-label" DAP contact cement and follow the protocols found on the can (adequate ventilation a must when using this stuff).

Useful tools: 24" carpenter's framing square, utility cutter with plenty of blades, sponge-rubber wallpaper roller, disposable brushes to apply the adhesive.

HTH

Arjay

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Post subject:
Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 9:47 pm
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now jody,
are you thinking about building something?
i mean who likes to see/read build posts? i mean who wants to see a guy
who has a need, take action with a few primitive tools and build something so darn cool and useful? i mean i dont know anybody on here that would like to see you do a step by step build thread with pics along the way, all the while solving your own needs right before our very eyes.
besides, theres nobody that i know of on here that would offer suggestions and comments along the way to make a very cool and interesting post
(if it were) go as smooth as silk for you.
wow, only if some folks would walk through this project with you and help make this would be could be project better than you could have imagined it to be. i dont know, you might have to go over to that "G" word site to find folks interested in that type of post. :wink:
sarcastic enough? :lol:
ok ok ok i know nobody likes a smartazz. :P

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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 9:54 pm
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way cool jr wrote:
i dont know, you might have to go over to that "G" word site to find folks interested in that type of post. :wink:


Just stay away from that "HC" site.

Most of those rump-swabs couldn't find their own arses in a locked closet with a flashlight, both hands, and thirty minutes' notice.

:mrgreen:

Arjay

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