chewy1281734128 Posted March 24, 2009 Share Posted March 24, 2009 im a gigging musician in a band, playing a marshall mg100dfx amp. i use the over drive channel with a tubescreamer for solos. i like this marshall tone, but the clean channel is very poor. its an amp that does the job but is pretty poor on anything but that marshall over driven sound. im switching to fender for the fender bright tone. im looking for something inbetween the twin reverb (too expensive) and the blues junior (too small) was thinking of a vox ac15 but they seem unreliable as a gigging amp from what ive read. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wiggy Posted March 24, 2009 Share Posted March 24, 2009 Could be worth giving the BC30 a look - 30W, Clean channel is wonderful, takes pedals really well, voiced similiar to Fender/Vox rather than Marshall, built like a tank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sexygibson Posted March 24, 2009 Share Posted March 24, 2009 Don't forget about Carvins. I am leaning to a carvin for my next amp purchase. I was , like you, considering a fender until their latest price increases and know just don't think they're worth it. With Carvin, you order directly from the factory and I believe them to be much better bargains than Fenders, unless of course you want to look into the used market. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnMcClane5000 Posted March 24, 2009 Share Posted March 24, 2009 How about a wonderful Fender Deluxe Reverb (22 Watt) or Pro Reverb (50 Watt)? Ever considered these two`? The Pro Reverb is the underrated little brother of the twin and it looks like one (at least the 60's/70's Versions)... Or you could buy a Twin and pull out two powertubes which would reduce it to 50 watts (if you are goin for a mid-70's 100 Watt Silverface Twin...) Fender amps are still the best for that sparkling clean sound! Even the reissues (even if they lose in value very fast) JM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m-theory Posted March 24, 2009 Share Posted March 24, 2009 You're playing a solid state Marshall and you like the "Marshall tone" that it has? Dude, I hate to break it to you, but that amp doesn't have "Marshall tone!" Then again, neither will a Fender. How much is "too much?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluelake07 Posted March 24, 2009 Share Posted March 24, 2009 blues junior (too small) was thinking of a vox ac15 but they seem unreliable as a gigging amp from what ive read. Specs-wise, the Blues Junior and AC15 are comparable; both about 15 watts and a 12" speaker. The Fender Hot Rod Deluxe is cheaper than a Twin Reverb and puts out 40 watts which should be sufficient for most players. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dylan1281734152 Posted March 24, 2009 Share Posted March 24, 2009 Everyone I know is very particular about their amp (and that is a good thing). I understand exactly what you mean about your search for a shimmering clean tone. Fender was the answer for me. I know that you said that the Twin Reverb was too expensive, but I'm still going to cast my vote in that direction. About ten years ago, I finally got my chance to play through a Twin, and I knew that I had to find a way to own as soon as possible. It just called to me (if that makes sense), and has become my favorite amp. I love my Twin. It was amazing to hear my guitars through a quality amp for the first time. Wow. I would never bad-mouth anyone else for their choice of amplifier. I would just advise you to strive for the tone in your soul and mind. When you find the amp that helps you to achieve your art, that's the amp for you (regardless of make or model). Now I'm rambling, and I'm not sure if I offered any help at all. Sorry about that. Good luck in your search. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sledge57 Posted March 24, 2009 Share Posted March 24, 2009 One thing to add, I bought a Fender Blues Jr Saturday at a local GC. The amp was $150 less than the online price. I asked why the online price was higher and was told "The online price reflects Fenders 30% price increase, the in store price goes up April 1st." If you want a Fender amp go to a local GC and check the price, you have a week before the hammer drops. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m-theory Posted March 25, 2009 Share Posted March 25, 2009 I know that you said that the Twin Reverb was too expensive, but I'm still going to cast my vote in that direction. About ten years ago, I finally got my chance to play through a Twin, and I knew that I had to find a way to own as soon as possible. It just called to me (if that makes sense), and has become my favorite amp. That's what I was aiming at when I asked how much is too much. SF Twins can be had for probably $500-$700, depending on where you shop and how patient you are. Figure another $300 to bring it up to spec and you've got yourself a phenomenal, hand-wired, 85, 100, or 135 watt amp for $800-$1000. In that same vein, BF Pro Reverbs have never garnered massive money, so you can find those for $1200-$1500 just about any day of the week. SF models can be had for a few hundred. SF Vibrolux Reverbs, which changed very little from their BF counterparts, would be another fine option. There are a bunch, in fact, both BF and SF, that could be had for under $1k. Just need to know what the price range is and what kind of output you're looking for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnMcClane5000 Posted March 25, 2009 Share Posted March 25, 2009 I'm shamelessly taking this oportunity to Fender-ize you with some eye-candy! ;) Fender is the way to go! Ask Jack White! No one needs a phony Marshall anyway except for cock-rockers like Slash and Bon Jovi! JM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SlagJones Posted March 25, 2009 Share Posted March 25, 2009 List out your equipment brotha! I see Fender, Danelectro, Epi, etc... Give us the low down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnMcClane5000 Posted March 25, 2009 Share Posted March 25, 2009 List out your equipment brotha!I see Fender' date=' Danelectro, Epi, etc... Give us the low down.[/quote'] You asked for it: Guits: 2006 Epi Cas 00's Fender Tele "Muddy Waters" 90's Danelectro DC-12 70's Epi FT-565 Amps: Vox Valvetronix 15 Watt Fender Blues Junior 15 Watt 1975 Fender Twin Reverb 100 Watt Effects: Danelectro: Reel Echo, Daddy-O, Cool Cat, Little Blue Plastic Pedal---> Slap Echo Thingy Marshall: Echohead, Reflector (Reverb) Digitech: Whammy 4 Ibanez: Tube Screamer TS-808 Boss: Compressor Electro Harmonix: Little Big Muff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rafaelh Posted March 25, 2009 Share Posted March 25, 2009 Sweet looking SF there John. I'm definitely takin M's advice and probably going with one, or used one, rather than a reisue. Although right know it sems I'm pretty much covered between my Red Knob and Princeton...that Red Knob is just smoking, even my SG likes it all of the sudden. Hell..I think I might have just jinks myself ;) . Maybe get something in bewteen...would like to have a back up for my twin. Anyhow very nice SF. Since we are showing pictures what the heck. Here's a shot of my beast basking in the sun. Been through hell and back with this monster. ...and my small Princeton. LOL...it's spend quite abit of time in the trenches too. This one's been in the family since day one, new, although it's been bounced back and forth quite a bit. The Red Knob I got used from a friend back in '89 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Memphs1978 Posted March 25, 2009 Share Posted March 25, 2009 ive seen vids and pics of Slash using VOX amps.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m-theory Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 Where'd this dude run off to? I've got some great input for him, but he needs to give me something to work with. Price range, power output range. I started really digging into Fender 8-10 years ago, so I've got gobs of information stored up that I can share. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chewy1281734128 Posted March 27, 2009 Author Share Posted March 27, 2009 this dude is back, been working away, in cambridge of all places. i think im going for the fender hot rod deluxe. here in england, twin reverbs are in the region of £1000 (new) hot rods are just over £500. im still open to offers, because i dont see the point in settling on one without playing them all. thanks for all the input. and im also looking at 2nd hand as well as new. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnMcClane5000 Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 this dude is back' date=' been working away, in cambridge of all places. i think im going for the fender hot rod deluxe. here in england, twin reverbs are in the region of £1000 (new) hot rods are just over £500. im still open to offers, because i dont see the point in settling on one without playing them all. thanks for all the input. and im also looking at 2nd hand as well as new. [/quote'] The Hot Rod Deluxe has THE worst overdrive I've ever heard... it's disgusting! The first link here is for Twin Reverbs on Ebay.co.uk, the second one is for the pro reverb Both are great amps! Handwired, solid as hell, you won't really have any problems with these Silverfaces! http://shop.ebay.co.uk/items/?_nkw=fender+twin+reverb&_sacat=0&_trksid=p3286.m270.l1313&_odkw=fender+deluxe+reverb&_osacat=0 http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/VINTAGE-FENDER-1978-PRO-REVERB-AMP_W0QQitemZ200322540678QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_MusicalInstr_Amplifiers_RL?hash=item200322540678&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1688|66%3A2|65%3A12|39%3A1|240%3A1318 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
layboomo Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 The BF Bassman and Bandmaster heads are still some of the best values out there for vintage tube amps IMHO. If you already have speaker cabs hangin' around they can be just the ticket! A cranked Bassman and a Plexi Marshall are very similar FWIW. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m-theory Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 Yeah, the HR deluxe and deville have truly harsh, ugly distortion. On to of that, they don't have that glorious "Fender clean," either. Your price range doesn't leave many options for truly solid amps, unfortunately. I don't know what the used Fender world is like over there, but what you should be looking for are silverfaced models, such as the Twin Reverb, Vibrolux Reverb, Deluxe Reverb, and to a point, Pro Reverb. That last one actually never got its wings in terms of vintage pricing, even in blackface version, so that's a possibility as well. Other noteables are the forementioned Bassman and Bandmasters, neither of which has gained tremendous affection with collectors, either. In the US, you could expect to find most of these amps for $500-$700, although the BF Pro, as well as the two piggyback amps, the Bassman and Bandmaster, would probably run you a grand or so. You could also look into something like a Silvertone 1484, a really fantastic 2x12 "piggyback" amp, similar to a Pro Reverb, in terms of output and features. There are countless other options as well, in that "off brand" genre of vintage amps, but I'm really only personally familiar with the Silvertone, for that size amp. Others to consider would come under the names: Airline, Valco, National, Supro, Magnatone, Gibson, etc. Personally, if it were me looking, I'd double my budget, and spend some time researching in the meantime. Also, be aware that, if you do buy a vintage amp, it'll need a full servicing before it can be put into use. At the very least, the filter caps will need replacing. More than likely, it'll be those caps and other electrolytics, screen grid resistors, and a few tubes, as well as possibly a set of speakers. Don't try to put a 30-40 y/o amp into use without getting it completely gone over by a qualified tech first. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ladyscaglyc Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 Hot Rod Deluxe. Clean is good. The Drive channel does nicely (IMHO) Tubes & not terribly heavy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chewy1281734128 Posted March 27, 2009 Author Share Posted March 27, 2009 since i posted that, yeah i did hear not-too-great things about the hot rod. if i was going to up my budget, id probably get an AC30. £300 less than a twin reverb. theres plenty of good places i can take to get the amp serviced if i bought it 2nd hand. lots of good feedback, cheers. and it seems m-theory is the go to guy for all fender amp questiosn. i wasnt gonna up my buget because im getting a macbook, a telecaster and going on 2 holidays to africa this year so im not exactly rich at the min. good point though, no need to rush in to buying an amp if saving up for a little longer is better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
layboomo Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 If those big round cleans are to your liking check this one out! I got a 67 Bandmaster head for $350 a few years ago and the chassis was mint,but the cabinet was trashed so I had a matching set made and put an Altec 421 15" speaker and a Jbl K 110 in the cabinet for a 4 Ohm load and it sounds amazing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rafaelh Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 Very nice Lay...and very clean too. I seen a couple locally a few days back, but they where trashed and asking over 6 bills for them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m-theory Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 It's important to keep vintage amp pricing in perspective. Shop around for a new hand-wired 40-50 watt 2x12 combo amp and see what you'll spend. I'd be shocked if you could find one for much less than $3k, to be honest, and even that's not outrageous, when you consider what goes into building one. Price this stuff out bit by bit, and see where you end up. Do a scratch build Fender Pro or Twin Reverb, and you'll probably spend in the neighborhood of $2k just in parts. THEN, take a look at those used SF amps that go for $500 - $700 USD, and you have an entirely different view. Same with those bassman and bandmaster piggybacks. Sure, you can find them for a few hundred bucks now and then, but is $600 for one that's "trashed" really such a horrible deal? Put $500 or so into a trashed one and you've essentially got a brand new, handwired, 40-50 watt amp that kills, for $1100 or so. That's a steal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rafaelh Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 Sure' date=' you can find them for a few hundred bucks now and then, but is $600 for one that's "trashed" really such a horrible deal? Put $500 or so into a trashed one and you've essentially got a brand new, handwired, 40-50 watt amp that kills, for $1100 or so. That's a steal. [/quote'] Oh I agree M. LOL...sometimes what I type don't come out with the intended meaning. I was making note on what a great deal I thought Lay got compared to what I've seen them going for now a days, or at least the ones I've seen, in much worst condition. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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