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Post subject: Re: Fender Amp for Blues recomendations
Posted: Fri Jun 05, 2015 12:20 pm
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Booger007 wrote:
I do like the DRRI a lot but my pedal board is pretty large and I would really like its connectivity to work between my multitude of amps. I do have a friend that owes me a little money on a Carvin Head I sold him and he has a barely used Blues deluxe I may just get for what he owes me and a little cash on my part, if so I will just probably get 2 amps! Gonna pick it up from him to try it out this weekend. For the Blues Deluxe what seems to be the common speaker upgrade for these? On my Marshalls I am a Greenback guy and also have a 4X12 with 2 V30's and 2 G12H30's that works pretty well. I do have some Creamback 65's and 75's, and an Eminence Texas Heat, Swamp Thing as well as a cpl V30's laying around to try.



I hear ya. I never had an amp with a Celestion Greenback until I built the 18 watt clone. I was originally looking at a Weber Silver Bell for that amp. I'm a huge Weber fan, but that Greenback just seemed to belong in it and I liked it right away. With the Blues Deluxe, anything would be better than the stock speaker. They always sounded like somebody threw a blanket on the amp to me. A Swamp Thang might be a good choice, but it all depends on what you want to hear yourself. Man, I gave up on 4x12 cabs when I had a Sunn Scepter. The PA systems are so nice now compared to the 60's and 70's. Now all my amps are in the 20 watt range and my ears and my back thanks me every day. Can't go wrong on that amp deal for sure.

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Post subject: Re: Fender Amp for Blues recomendations
Posted: Fri Jun 05, 2015 5:01 pm
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Which speaker? :| To me, that's like asking which is the better flavor ice cream: vanilla, chocolate, strawberry..........etc. I like chocolate, but that doesn't mean you will. :lol:

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Post subject: Re: Fender Amp for Blues recomendations
Posted: Sat Jun 06, 2015 8:51 pm
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Surprised no one mentioned the DRRI head and the cab of you're choice. This way you get to shop out the speakers you prefer. If I could do it over again, that's what I would have done. Of course the head wasn't an option until recently. May cost a little bit more that way..


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Post subject: Re: Fender Amp for Blues recomendations
Posted: Mon Jun 08, 2015 5:09 am
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Yeah really don't want a head and a cab, a combo would be ideal. Well my buddy brought his amp by and it is not a BD its a HRD in the finished maple cabinet with the Jensen speaker. Its minty, haven't plugged it in but will today. I do believe I read somewhere that a lot of these had problems.


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Post subject: Re: Fender Amp for Blues recomendations
Posted: Mon Jun 08, 2015 10:50 pm
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Booger007 wrote:
For larger stuff I primarily play through my Marshall 6100 or my DSL40C for classic rock and harder stuff. Last few years I have just fell in love with the blues. I am really wanting to get a Fender Tube amp for things like open blues night at a small bar local here in Indiana. So let me provide some criteria for all of you and lets see what opinions I can get from all of you. Really want a combo amp as it would be a relief to not have to lug anything all to heavy.

Either one speaker or a 2x12 would be ideal.
Need good clean headroom for a small to medium bar for cleans but able to get some grit.
The place where I would really be using it usually mics the amps
Looking for something that will cover tradition blues with those Fender cleans up to some SRV tones and possibly some Kenny Wayne type of stuff.
An effects loop would be nice as I have a very nice pedal board but this is not a must have.
I'll have to buy online as there just isn't anyplace within a couple of hours.
Will probably buy new through AMS on their payment plan.

Been considering the White DRRI, the 68CVR, as well as the hot rod deluxe III and the Blues Deville III

So thanks in advance, looking forward to what you all have to say.


Sounds like what you need is the Blues Deluxe Reissue.

I am not to the point where I am gigging, as I am relatively new/beginning player, but the BDRI is amazing. I play it in my apt at bedroom levels and it sounds great. Neighbors head out of town on weekends so I can crank it pretty darn lound and it sounds even BETTER. Its completely stock and when paired with my TS-808HW, Vox Wah and Wampler Velvet Fuzz, I can absolutely get the SRV and Hendrix blues tones.

Try one out in your local store and see for yourself. Has plenty of clean headroom, not too heavy, sounds great even with stock speakers, and its a few hundred dollars cheaper than the Deluxe Reverb Reissue. You will not be disappointed with this amp.


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Post subject: Re: Fender Amp for Blues recomendations
Posted: Tue Jun 09, 2015 5:44 am
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Booger007 wrote:
Yeah really don't want a head and a cab, a combo would be ideal. Well my buddy brought his amp by and it is not a BD its a HRD in the finished maple cabinet with the Jensen speaker. Its minty, haven't plugged it in but will today. I do believe I read somewhere that a lot of these had problems.


I think the HRDlx III series are a bit better than the first series they made in Mexico. My HRDlx was horrible in the reliability department. It spent more time in the shop than it did on stage or at rehearsal. It was built like garbage and I finally sold it. The Blues Jr always sounded boxy to me until you ran it through a different cabinet. BillM has a ton of mods for it too. The Bjr isn't what I would call the "Classsic" Fender sound. Way different, but so was the HRDlx. That whole series misses the mark for me, but we all hear differently and have different tastes.

I used to recommend Egnater, but they've had their share of issues too. I have a Rebel 20. One of the first production runs and it's been great. Later runs as well as the Tweaker series had a lot of transformer issues. It seems to be fixed in the Mark II amps.
Personally, I would look at either Vintage Silverface Fender, VHT, and Jet City and Supro for more affordable and reliable options. The new Supro line is seriously impressive and well made and is also made in the U.S.A.

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Post subject: Re: Fender Amp for Blues recomendations
Posted: Tue Jun 09, 2015 10:15 am
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Well as I said my buddy have me the Hot Rod deluxe in the Maple cabinet with the Jensen speaker upgrade which looks super cool and I got it for the 175.00 he owed me so I cant go wrong there! I got the fromel? mods kit for it to hopefully address some of the reliability issues. So then I went ahead and ordered a Blonde DRRI which will arrive tomorrow. Pretty excited!. Since the HRD is a limited run I will probably keep it just because of the coolness of it. Think once I recover from these expenditures I shall look for BD and maybe even a higher end Fender amp. Thanks everyone!


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Post subject: Re: Fender Amp for Blues recomendations
Posted: Tue Jun 09, 2015 10:33 am
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Booger007 wrote:
Well as I said my buddy have me the Hot Rod deluxe in the Maple cabinet with the Jensen speaker upgrade which looks super cool and I got it for the 175.00 he owed me so I cant go wrong there! I got the fromel? mods kit for it to hopefully address some of the reliability issues. So then I went ahead and ordered a Blonde DRRI which will arrive tomorrow. Pretty excited!. Since the HRD is a limited run I will probably keep it just because of the coolness of it. Think once I recover from these expenditures I shall look for BD and maybe even a higher end Fender amp. Thanks everyone!


Great! The Fromel components are top notch. When you install the power resistors, I'd put a dag of high temp silicone under them and keep them off the board. That was a huge problem the the HRDlx. Also be very careful not to lift the traces off the board with too much heat. I'd also check the tube sockets for cold solder/fractured solder joints. When you pull the board, I'd change the input jacks to some Switchcraft jacks and hard wire them to the board. It might save you some aggravation down the road. Nice score though. Best of luck with it!

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Post subject: Re: Fender Amp for Blues recomendations
Posted: Tue Jun 09, 2015 1:02 pm
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Thanks for the info and I will silicone those as suggested. I did get the big kit that comes with the switchcraft jacks I believe and will wire it as suggested also. Jack problems appear semi common with these. Should I just go ahead and reflow solder for the tube sockets just to be safe?


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Post subject: Re: Fender Amp for Blues recomendations
Posted: Wed Jun 10, 2015 4:53 am
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Booger007 wrote:
Thanks for the info and I will silicone those as suggested. I did get the big kit that comes with the switchcraft jacks I believe and will wire it as suggested also. Jack problems appear semi common with these. Should I just go ahead and reflow solder for the tube sockets just to be safe?


I would for sure, then I think you would have all the bases covered. There were tons of documented issues and this guy Juston Holten had a whole manual on issues and how to correct them. I think the link is down now. Not all of them had giant issues. Mine did, but many players didn't. I only gigged mine for three months two or three days a week before it went belly up, but I know another guy who gigs quite a bit with his and it was great. It blew a power tube while I was sitting in with his band using his guitar and amp. He's plays keyboards, guitar and harp. I felt kind of bad about it, like I was cursed by the HRD gods. :lol:

I just found this zip file for Juston Holton's Unofficial Hot Rod Deluxe Manual. You may need winzip, but I just tried it and it's there. It's a seriously interesting, unbiased and informative read.
http://www.stratopastor.org.uk/strato/a ... 20file.zip

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Post subject: Re: Fender Amp for Blues recomendations
Posted: Thu Jun 11, 2015 9:14 am
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Thanks again, I will give it a read for sure!


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Post subject: Re: Fender Amp for Blues recomendations
Posted: Tue Jun 23, 2015 11:05 pm
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I use a Super 210 for blues, though they might be a bit hard to find. In days of old I used a Bassman 50 with a 2 X 12" ... very classic bluesy sound to my ear ... and you can find those on Reverb and EBay. I'd also consider an older Band Master if 40W would work for you. On the other hand, I had a Band Master VM and although the built in FX were convenient (if you don't need a lot of FX), I found the overall sound too sterile.


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Post subject: Re: Fender Amp for Blues recomendations
Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2015 6:28 am
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philipk wrote:
I use a Super 210 for blues, though they might be a bit hard to find. In days of old I used a Bassman 50 with a 2 X 12" ... very classic bluesy sound to my ear ... and you can find those on Reverb and EBay. I'd also consider an older Band Master if 40W would work for you. On the other hand, I had a Band Master VM and although the built in FX were convenient (if you don't need a lot of FX), I found the overall sound too sterile.


I had a 74 SF Bandmaster the the giant 2x12 cabinet. It was a great sounding amp. I only sold it for a 76 Twin because the Twin had more power. I wish I still had that amp. I was excited when the VM series Bandmaster came out, but was totally disappointed in the sound and build quality. I cranked it up a little at GC and the grill fell off the cabinet because it only had Velcro holding it on. SF Bandmaster's are still pretty affordable.

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Post subject: Re: Fender Amp for Blues recomendations
Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2015 7:44 am
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63supro wrote:
I was excited when the VM series Bandmaster came out, but was totally disappointed in the sound and build quality. I cranked it up a little at GC and the grill fell off the cabinet because it only had Velcro holding it on.


Yet another epic fail for Fender's R&D department. The product life-cycle for the VM line was less than two years. They lost money on every one they sold.

:roll:

Arjay

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Post subject: Re: Fender Amp for Blues recomendations
Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2015 8:46 am
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Retroverbial wrote:
63supro wrote:
I was excited when the VM series Bandmaster came out, but was totally disappointed in the sound and build quality. I cranked it up a little at GC and the grill fell off the cabinet because it only had Velcro holding it on.


Yet another epic fail for Fender's R&D department. The product life-cycle for the VM line was less than two years. They lost money on every one they sold.

:roll:

Arjay


The VM series made the Hot Rod series look like boutique amps.

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