Members Sailorofdarknes Posted December 23, 2012 Members Share Posted December 23, 2012 I have been wanting to try changing out the speaker in my Blues JR for some time now, nothing wrong with the one it came with but what the hell I want to try something different. It's a standard non Jensen model. I have been looking seriously at the Swamp Thang or the Texas Heat. What do you all think? Any other suggestions or successful swaps? Not exactly sure what sound I am going for but it's not really the crazy high end piercing rip the Bj has. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GAS Man Posted December 23, 2012 Members Share Posted December 23, 2012 Just from my reading and listening to sound samples, I'd go with the Swamp thing for that extra bit of bottom end. I know my Blues Junior NOS version could use a bit more butt to its tone. But it is getting better since the stock Jensen in it has broken in a bit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Wayne2 Posted December 24, 2012 Members Share Posted December 24, 2012 I've had a Red White and Blues for a few weeks and am really liking it so far. It preserves that Fender sound while at the same time taking the unpleasantness out of the high end. Mine's in a Princeton 112 Plus. If you email Eminence directly they are helpful. I'd also look at a Cannabis Rex for that amp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Sailorofdarknes Posted December 25, 2012 Author Members Share Posted December 25, 2012 Thank for the suggestions guys! I think I am going to purchase a Swamp thang and the Red white and Blues. Neither are that expensive, and it will be fun to monkey around. I was going to get a Celestion Gold, and I herd one live in an DRRI but did not like it. I have an old extension cab too, so which ever one I like better will stay in the amp and the other in the cab. Can't wait to get started! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members wagdog Posted December 25, 2012 Members Share Posted December 25, 2012 Have you done any other mods to it? I've done quite a few, and honestly am very happy with the stock speaker. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Sailorofdarknes Posted December 25, 2012 Author Members Share Posted December 25, 2012 Wagdog I have been reading up on modifying the amp at http://www.billmaudio.com/ and another site for a German fellow named Gunther that shows you how to get a Vox like tone from the BJ. I definitely could do the mods myself and would like to eventually. What mods have you done? I was just thinking a speaker change would be the most direct route. Besides I kinda collect speakers, Don't know why but I just like having them around. Strange but true! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members wagdog Posted December 25, 2012 Members Share Posted December 25, 2012 Been experimenting w/the blues jr a bit. Mines a 2003. Had bad/leaky filter caps, so I changed all of those. Used 22uf F&T's and replaced the 47uf w/a 100uf - that gave me a little tighter bass response. After that I changed the bass cap in the tone stack to a .1uf orange drop, much nicer bass response and mids. Added the jumper on the mid pot. Did not change the mid cap to a .015 but may do that in the future. Changed the treble cap to a 250pf silver mica. Put a switch on the 100pf bright cap across the channel vol to switch between 100pf and 45pf. Ended up putting the cap back in as I found it sounded best w/the 100pf cap. Have now wired a couple of cathode bypass caps on the switch to go across r17 (creme board, btw - v2b cathode). I'm using a 25uf and a 4.7uf cap - finding the 4.7uf sounds best as the 25uf seems to boost the bass too much and combined w/the Fat switch, is too much. I don't know for certain, but think this is what the billm "clean boost" does. Not really a critical mod, but an interesting one. Added a bias pot and reduced the bias of the output tubes. They were dissipating about 13w w/the stock configuration. I have them set about 10w dissipation right now, which is still hot, but it sounds good. I found that taking it down the 8.4w 70% dissipation that things sounded a little thin. Fender biased these hot for a reason. Too hot, but there was a reason for it! Anyway, I think the 100uf filter cap and tonestack mods had the most impact. Thinking about doing the cathode follower mod at some point. Have a TO20 replacement output transformer coming at some point - definitely interested to see if that has much impact. It's funny, but I'm the direct opposite - I'll mod an amp like crazy, but rarely will I change a speaker! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members wagdog Posted December 25, 2012 Members Share Posted December 25, 2012 btw, I do have a "mini stack" of 2x 1x12 closed back cabs for my egnater rebel 20. The blues jr sounds GREAT through it, very tight bass and loud. I'm sure the closed back of the cabs weighs into that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Sailorofdarknes Posted December 25, 2012 Author Members Share Posted December 25, 2012 So it seems like most of the mods are centered around fixing up the bass side of the house? Would you say a nice closed back cab would be a short cut to that? I would love to do that work but don't know where Ill find the time! And would you consider the 110uf filter cap and tone stack the most worth while, and if so do these mods require preliminary mods? Sorry if If I have a lot of questions, I was an electronics type in the Navy and I am just starting to understand tube amps. Correction, Most mods seem to aimed at filling out the bass and smoothing the top end, would a closed back cab remedy some of this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members wagdog Posted December 25, 2012 Members Share Posted December 25, 2012 I'd say that most blues jr mods are centered around taming the highs and boosting and cleaning up the bottom end. I really don't know if a closed back would be a short cut to that end. I would say in order of impact that the tonestack is first, followed by the 100uf first filter cap. I would think that you need to get those frequencies to the speaker in order for a speaker to add its impact to the overall sound. But, I admittedly don't know because I went the mod route. I am curious about the difference the output transformer might make. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members theAntihero Posted December 25, 2012 Members Share Posted December 25, 2012 If taking out treble is the whole idea here i dont think a Red White and Blues will be a good choice at all, if i remember correctly they are apretty bright speaker. Swamp Thangs actually have some treble to them they just have tons of lowend as well and a midrange that sounds mean. I would check out the Cannabis Rex and if you can find one the Eminence Lady Luck which is by far the greatest speaker ive ever tried to tame a bright amp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members wagdog Posted December 25, 2012 Members Share Posted December 25, 2012 Well, the op just says he wants something different, doesn't really say the amp is too bright for him. Most blues jr mods do seem to be geared around reducing the brightness of the amp (except the bias mod). The tonestack mod doesn't really tame the brightness, rather it makes more (and better sounding) bass and mids available. What I've found with amps in general is that I can eq out an amp that's too bright, but can't make the lower end sound better if the circuit doesn't support it. Hence the tonestack mods for the blues jr. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Wayne2 Posted December 25, 2012 Members Share Posted December 25, 2012 Originally Posted by theAntihero If taking out treble is the whole idea here i dont think a Red White and Blues will be a good choice at all, if i remember correctly they are apretty bright speaker. The Interwebs are all mixed up about the Red White and Blues. Some people say it's bright, some dark, blah blah. In my experience it definitely works at taming shrillness and giving a more solid sound with better bass. YMMV. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Ancient Mariner Posted December 25, 2012 Members Share Posted December 25, 2012 I'd be careful with a Cannabis Rex - that can get quite harsh at the high end, and is also a bit directional. When modding an amp it's good to have a standard speaker as the control point, so that you can hear what each change has done. Swapping speakers will mod the tonal output, but in different ways to making component changes and it's all a bit uncontrolled by comparison. Speaker mods are also further down the chain, so won't really fix a flaw, though they may disguise it a little more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Sailorofdarknes Posted December 25, 2012 Author Members Share Posted December 25, 2012 Originally Posted by wagdog Well, the op just says he wants something different, doesn't really say the amp is too bright for him. Most blues jr mods do seem to be geared around reducing the brightness of the amp (except the bias mod). The tonestack mod doesn't really tame the brightness, rather it makes more (and better sounding) bass and mids available.What I've found with amps in general is that I can eq out an amp that's too bright, but can't make the lower end sound better if the circuit doesn't support it. Hence the tonestack mods for the blues jr. Considering the guitars I play, Schecter TSH-1 and a Les Paul Custom I can't say the amp is too bright really, but a little unclear down low. As stated I can EQ the highs down quite a bit. I am beginning to think that the tone stack etc.. is a better way to go first to free up the tones, I think i'll still get the swamp Thang but I also think I'll do the mods too. I am excited to see what happens! This thread has been extremely helpful and has helped me really think about what I want. Thanks all! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members wagdog Posted December 25, 2012 Members Share Posted December 25, 2012 Cool man, it's a fun, easy amp to work on for sure (if you're into that kind of thing, and you alluded to that above). Definitely recommend the .1uf bass cap and changing out the treble cap to a silver mica. I am going to change the mid cap to a .015uf at some point to try it out, but I don't think the change will be as profound as the change to the bass cap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Sailorofdarknes Posted December 26, 2012 Author Members Share Posted December 26, 2012 Last Question! lol what brand caps do you recommend? Thanks again! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members wagdog Posted December 26, 2012 Members Share Posted December 26, 2012 I pretty much buy all of my amp parts at http://tubedepot.com/ these days - flat rate $4.95 shipping, good stock, and fast service. For filter caps, these have been great (and fit well in the blues jr): http://www.tubedepot.com/ftgermany.html - the 100uf 450v is what I used for the first filter cap and the 22uf 500v for the other 3. As far as tone and coupling caps, you have a lot of variation and choice here. I use the orange drop 715 series. You can also get the 716 series, or the Xicon or Mallory. I've read online that some people don't like the 715's, but they seem to work fine and sound fine to me. I have found in the amps I've built that the orange drop for the bass and the mallory 150 for the mids gives a little more top end shimmer then using both orange drops... but, admittedly I could be hearing things. For the silver-micas, whatever brand tubedepot sells is what I'm using: http://www.tubedepot.com/silvermica.html When I build, or if I had to replace a cathode bypass cap, I use the sprague 25uf electrolytic caps. Hope that helps! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Sailorofdarknes Posted December 26, 2012 Author Members Share Posted December 26, 2012 Fantastic! Should be all I need for now, I am pretty safe and ready to work. The Navy made me paranoid as hell about electricity since I regularly had to safe the Spy RADARS 75,000 volt caps. Needless to say, every time my butt hole was very tight. But I am going to try this when I get back to San Diego after Christmas in NY. Can't wait to tinker! Thanks again Wagdog you have been a great help. I'll resurrect this thread with updates and pics as I get things done. Dan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members wagdog Posted December 26, 2012 Members Share Posted December 26, 2012 All right man, good luck! Considerably less voltage then what you would find in a 75KV cap, but dangerous nonetheless. In spite of what billm shows in his site about discharging the filter caps - discharge the caps by bleeding them. I use a 20k resistor and a grounded alligator lead and then check each cap with the meter. Takes a few seconds and no surprises that way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members kayd_mon Posted December 26, 2012 Members Share Posted December 26, 2012 I might be late to the party here, but having tried both of those speakers in my Blues Jr (which I sadly no longer own), I'd say that the Eminence Legend GB12 is the best speaker for that amp. No additional mods needed for the low end or anything. My Blues Jr. Had the GB12 and some JJ tubes, and that's all that wasn't stock. It had great cleans and even better natural overdrive. Sadly, I had to sell it when I had been out of work for months. Anyway, good luck with your speakers! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Sailorofdarknes Posted December 26, 2012 Author Members Share Posted December 26, 2012 Originally Posted by kayd_mon I might be late to the party here, but having tried both of those speakers in my Blues Jr (which I sadly no longer own), I'd say that the Eminence Legend GB12 is the best speaker for that amp. No additional mods needed for the low end or anything. My Blues Jr. Had the GB12 and some JJ tubes, and that's all that wasn't stock. It had great cleans and even better natural overdrive. Sadly, I had to sell it when I had been out of work for months. Anyway, good luck with your speakers! Thanks for the tip! I am still going to do the mods, but having input on speakers for later is always helpful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Peaveyaddict Posted December 27, 2012 Members Share Posted December 27, 2012 Not to hijack this thread, but is the new Blues Jr III basically a factor modded Blues Jr? And what speaker in a Blues Jr III would get you closest to a DRRI clean tone? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members wagdog Posted December 27, 2012 Members Share Posted December 27, 2012 Originally Posted by Peaveyaddict Not to hijack this thread, but is the new Blues Jr III basically a factor modded Blues Jr? And what speaker in a Blues Jr III would get you closest to a DRRI clean tone? There are some differences in the III. Billm pretty much spells it out here in much detail: http://billmaudio.com/wp/?page_id=709No idea on the speaker. I've owned a DRRI, and obviously still own a blues jr - and they are different amps, so much so that I don't think you're going to get one close to the other. Some people have added octal sockets (something I'm thinking about) for running 6V6's, however the most major of the differences is the completely different pre-amp topology - they are just very different amps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members NITROHOLIC Posted January 1, 2013 Members Share Posted January 1, 2013 texas heat will also make the amp louder due to its high sensitivity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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