Blues amp choices

[axmann]

Cyg, I just got done getting the lowdown. I'm off on my description. It didn't come with a Silvertone guitar, it came with a Fender Mustang. It was from a cousins aunts cousins brother thing. Radio Shack speaker. Its a 1968 , functions great, looks are at about 65/75%. He rarely uses it, has other firepower he prefers for the style of music played.

[Cygnus X1]

Cyg, I just got done getting the lowdown. I'm off on my description. It didn't come with a Silvertone guitar, it came with a Fender Mustang. It was from a cousins aunts cousins brother thing. Radio Shack speaker. Its a 1968 , functions great, looks are at about 65/75%. He rarely uses it, has other firepower he prefers for the style of music played.

Cool.
At 375 he stole it!
Should be a silverface drip edge, one of my favorites.

[catzodellamarina]

I'd stick with Fender or a close cousin.. like Zinky.
I've had a Zinky BlueVelvet 50 w/5881's for 6 years. It's been very reliable and has balls of tone. I'm not sure the price of their 25 watt el84 version but perhaps it's worth a look. I almost bought a Carvin Nomad 50 but once I heard the Zinky, I was sold. I'd still consider a used Carvin if cost was tight.

[Chad]

Why not just use the RM100? It weighs 90 pounds, looks good on stage, and can't be carried in a backpack. What more do you need?

[axmann]

Yeah, I have a little bit of a handle on some of the going prices. I like to think there is a deal still floating around out there on old equipment. I actually passed on a Princeton many years ago. It was cheap, like a couple hundred bucks. I was playing a JCM 800 50watt lead head at the time and no other amp existed (ha). Some day I would love to have a more in depth talk about smaller tube amps and the building process. I'll leave that for another day and not melt this thread. I will say though, that little Fender amp has some serious soul in it. Nice ,nice tones. If I played mostly blues and wanted something to easily carry to rehearsals and gigs, that might be my first choice. That thing just has a feel. I would probably have some cat build me one with some tweaks. Thats me . I also own a Carvin and have had great tonal experiences with it.

[Cygnus X1]

I'm with you axmann.
Great suggestions!
Not a derailment.
J and I have been dancing around the Spitfire idea for a while, someday it will happen for him.
Concerning amps in general, I love high gain amps as well as vintage styles.
I build old designs to teach myself more, and the Spitfire is really the only one
I "cop" on a regular basis, as is, with a master volume.

The trick for me is an amp that sounds good clean, slightly dirty good, and gain.
There are a lot of good suggestions here and I think CL will probably provide the answer for now.

[sambencuda]

Hey John, Jay the other guitar player in my band just picked up a Seymour Duncan combo off of ebay for about 300. He hasn't gotten it yet, but he's going to have me go over it for him when it arrives. I'll let you know what the deal is with it. A buddy of mine had one back in high school when they first came out. Seemed like a good amp, but I wasn't much into tone back then so I really have no idea. We still have to hook up to compare the Randall and the Engl too. I haven't forgotten.

[markD]

I had 2 Astroverbs. A head and a combo. I tried so hard to like them. I thought it was a very sterile sounding amp that sounded solid state.

i am with you....i thought the astroverb was a total turd. i couldn't wait to get rid of mine!!!

[Firebird V]

I played a hot rod deluxe yesterday with a hollow top strat ( had f holes - dont remember model but it was set up with a blend knob between the humbuckers which was very cool) and the amp was really nice. the clean and crunch channels were very versatile and you could do a lot with this amp.

[jgcable]

Hey John, Jay the other guitar player in my band just picked up a Seymour Duncan combo off of ebay for about 300. He hasn't gotten it yet, but he's going to have me go over it for him when it arrives. I'll let you know what the deal is with it. A buddy of mine had one back in high school when they first came out. Seemed like a good amp, but I wasn't much into tone back then so I really have no idea. We still have to hook up to compare the Randall and the Engl too. I haven't forgotten.

Thanks Bro, I brought the Randall home so let me know because I want to make a move on it. I have a fresh 5150 4 x 12 cab we can compare the 2 amps with.

JG

[hippietim]

Fender Pro Junior. It's the most kickass amp in the Hot Rod series. It sounds better than a Blues Junior. You have to replace the stock speaker though - a Celestrion Greenback 10 or Vintage 10 both work great. The Pro Jr is basically one of the old Fender circuits from the 50's.

[hippietim]

i am with you....i thought the astroverb was a total turd. i couldn't wait to get rid of mine!!!

+1 - I returned mine.

[DonP]

Fender Pro Junior. It's the most kickass amp in the Hot Rod series. It sounds better than a Blues Junior. You have to replace the stock speaker though - a Celestrion Greenback 10 or Vintage 10 both work great. The Pro Jr is basically one of the old Fender circuits from the 50's.

I have heard this a lot as well. Is there any hope for a Blues Jr.? Mine is from 1996, a US version.

[hippietim]

I have heard this a lot as well. Is there any hope for a Blues Jr.? Mine is from 1996, a US version.

If you haven't already, swap the speaker. The stock speakers in the Pro/Blues Jr. leave a lot to be desired IMO.

[jgcable]

Fender Pro Junior. It's the most kickass amp in the Hot Rod series. It sounds better than a Blues Junior. You have to replace the stock speaker though - a Celestrion Greenback 10 or Vintage 10 both work great. The Pro Jr is basically one of the old Fender circuits from the 50's.

I am going to check that out Tim. Thanks bro.