Members FFStratophile Posted June 14, 2011 Members Share Posted June 14, 2011 I've been out amp hunting this past month, and came to the conclusion that I really like the Fender clean sound. So considering my budget, I narrowed it down to Blues Junior, Hot Rod Deluxe, Deluxe Reverb and Princeton 65 RI. Now I'm really having a hard time deciding this. Currently the Junior is at the bottom of the list, but still on it cause it's the cheapest and it's small, and I'm looking for a bedroom amp. So, what do you think? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DaleH Posted June 14, 2011 Members Share Posted June 14, 2011 Deluxe Reverb is hard to beat IMO. Can practice with them or gig and there easy to move around. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members slushpup96 Posted June 14, 2011 Members Share Posted June 14, 2011 I also vote for the Deluxe Reverb. Not sure how they are as bedroom amps but they're great for gigging. Solidly built, great tone, and they can get loud! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Flatspotter Posted June 14, 2011 Members Share Posted June 14, 2011 I have a DRRI. It's a bit loud for a bedroom amp. I doubt you'd be able to turn it up past 1 unless you have a guitar with really low output pickups. It does sound great, though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Stackabones Posted June 14, 2011 Members Share Posted June 14, 2011 No matter what you get, read this ... www.singlecoil.com/docs/magic-six.pdf Great starting place for getting a good tone out of a Fender amp. Start with it and tweak. As far as bedroom Fender amps, get the Mustang I. A good bedroom amp should have a headphone jack (and this one also has a USB). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Kid Klash Posted June 14, 2011 Members Share Posted June 14, 2011 Small, relatively inexpensive, Fender cleans, really well built and capable of sounding good at bedroom volume... have you considered a Super Champ XD? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jtr654 Posted June 14, 2011 Members Share Posted June 14, 2011 Deluxe. But all are really to loud for the bedroom. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members csm Posted June 14, 2011 Members Share Posted June 14, 2011 You need a '65-style Twin Reverb or Super Reverb. Both sound great with the volume on 5 or 6. Your neighbours will love you ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Stackabones Posted June 14, 2011 Members Share Posted June 14, 2011 Yeah, I guess we should've asked the size of the bedroom and if he lives on a farm or out in the woods. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Sheraton Posted June 14, 2011 Members Share Posted June 14, 2011 I've been out amp hunting this past month, and came to the conclusion that I really like the Fender clean sound. So considering my budget, I narrowed it down to Blues Junior, Hot Rod Deluxe, Deluxe Reverb and Princeton 65 RI. Now I'm really having a hard time deciding this. Currently the Junior is at the bottom of the list, but still on it cause it's the cheapest and it's small, and I'm looking for a bedroom amp. So, what do you think? Everybody makes a good point about suitability for bedroom use. I'm guessing you may use the amp for other purposes too. If not then Super Champ XD would be my choice. In looking at the others I have a couple observations. 1. I recommend buying used. These amps are all readily available used so might as well save the money. 2. In the used market, for whatever reason, a Princeton Reverb Reissue and a Deluxe Reverb Reissue are about the same price. That makes the DRRI a no brainer. 3. In the used market a Hot rod Deluxe is almost the same price (within $50) as a Blues Jr. Again, no brainer for the HRD. All that said there are different Fender clean sounds. If you're talking Blackface then it's the Deluxe Reverb and the Princeton Reverb. This is the traditional Fender clean sound. The Hot Rod Series (Blues Jr. and Hot Rod Deluxe) are based on different designs and are a "less clean" clean. In general they share a moderately scooped mid range and accentuated highs and lows. With the exception of the Tweed Fenders (not the tweed versions of the HRD and BJr) this is kind of the Fender sound. All that said I would buy a used Hot Rod Deluxe and look for one for $350-$375. With master volume and 2 Gain stages they are versatile and can sound very good at bedroom levels. The Bleckfaces need to breathe a little to sound their best. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jersey Jack Posted June 14, 2011 Members Share Posted June 14, 2011 Well, I'll go the other way and recommend the Princeton Reverb. I in fact spent a fair amount of time A/B-ing the PRRI against the DRRI and to my ears the Princeton won. YMMV, of course, but I think the PRRI is a better sounding amp, and it's far more suited to your needs. And lighter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DaleH Posted June 14, 2011 Members Share Posted June 14, 2011 Didn't see the bedroom part. Channel 1 on the Super Champ XD is pretty nice fender tones. You could use it at 3.5-4 for bedroom level practice. I use an EQ pedal infront of mine. The onboard eq setting have a pretty narrow range. Reverb is ok, it does the job but nothing like the reverb on the DRRI. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Sheraton Posted June 14, 2011 Members Share Posted June 14, 2011 Well, I'll go the other way and recommend the Princeton Reverb. I in fact spent a fair amount of time A/B-ing the PRRI against the DRRI and to my ears the Princeton won. YMMV, of course, but I think the PRRI is a better sounding amp, and it's far more suited to your needs. And lighter. I'm not disagreeing with you. I like the PRRI. I just think in the grand scheme of the universe that it's about 60% of the features and ought to be 60-70% of the price. Used DRRI's are $650-ish. I'd pay $450-ish for a PRRI. there was a time when Best Buy was blowing out excess inventory of new ones for $599. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mightysasquatch Posted June 14, 2011 Members Share Posted June 14, 2011 Another vote for the Deluxe reverb. As far as the super champ, I'd say a Vibro-Champ XD would fit the bill better for home. Ch #1 on the super champ is just the #4 voice on the Vibro champ, and the vibrochamp is 5 watts vs 15w for the superchamp. I have a Vibrochamp XD, and it works. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members twotimingpete Posted June 14, 2011 Members Share Posted June 14, 2011 deluxe reverb is a nice choice because it gives you the nice cleans, it doesn't have to be quite *so* loud, and in the opinion of many, you get better distortion with a nice dirt box of your choice through the fender clean than something like a hot rod deluxe's dirty channel. though as someone who just recently picked up a HRDIII, I can tell you it has excellent cleans, excellent spring reverb, and usable dirt, but, again, for th ebest dirt I'd usually just use pedals. if you can afford it the deluxe reverb is hard to beat, if you want to save some money the HRD is still outsanding. blues jr is okay but I tried one and thought it was a bit boxy sounding compared to the others. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BoneNut Posted June 15, 2011 Members Share Posted June 15, 2011 I've been out amp hunting this past month, and came to the conclusion that I really like the Fender clean sound. So considering my budget, I narrowed it down to Blues Junior, Hot Rod Deluxe, Deluxe Reverb and Princeton 65 RI. Now I'm really having a hard time deciding this. Currently the Junior is at the bottom of the list, but still on it cause it's the cheapest and it's small, and I'm looking for a bedroom amp. So, what do you think? 1. Deluxe Reverb2. Hotrod Deluxe3. Princeton 65 RI 132. Blues Junior Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members A-20 Posted June 15, 2011 Members Share Posted June 15, 2011 Small, relatively inexpensive, Fender cleans, really well built and capable of sounding good at bedroom volume... have you considered a Super Champ XD? This. Change the tube and upgrade the speaker, and you have what you are looking for. I've played a LOT of amps, and consider a Deluxe Re-verb too now and then. But since I really don't need to gig with it, I just keep going back to the wonderful Super Champ XD (upgraded as stated above.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members A-20 Posted June 15, 2011 Members Share Posted June 15, 2011 Another vote for the Deluxe reverb. As far as the super champ, I'd say a Vibro-Champ XD would fit the bill better for home. Ch #1 on the super champ is just the #4 voice on the Vibro champ, and the vibrochamp is 5 watts vs 15w for the superchamp. I have a Vibrochamp XD, and it works. I can't agree here - Super Champ is not too loud for bedroom/studio and the other options make it more. (unless you really need to save the cash - which you don't.) Clean headroom is insufficient for a real Gig in the Super Champ, but there is a good direct out and it is loud enough to play around with friends/ practice for most situations. Yeah... I'm a fan of SCXD, so you can take it all with a grain of salt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members larry50 Posted June 15, 2011 Members Share Posted June 15, 2011 Well, I'll go the other way and recommend the Princeton Reverb. I in fact spent a fair amount of time A/B-ing the PRRI against the DRRI and to my ears the Princeton won. YMMV, of course, but I think the PRRI is a better sounding amp, and it's far more suited to your needs. And lighter. +1. It's my go to amp for Fender clean type stuff, but it can get nasty and loud too. Can't beat it for recording. Very easy to move around too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Spike Li Posted June 15, 2011 Members Share Posted June 15, 2011 Get this Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DaleH Posted June 15, 2011 Members Share Posted June 15, 2011 ^^^ Don't need that much power, I think the Orange stack behind him would be plenty.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Wyatt Posted June 15, 2011 Members Share Posted June 15, 2011 I think most here have pretty much covered it. The DRRI is my favorite out of the list, but totally unsuited for bedroom volume, as is the PRRI. I think tube amps in general make lousy bedroom volume amps. You can't turn up a tube amp to it;s sweet spot at bedroom level, not even the lowly 3-5 watt Champ/Vibro-Champ. You need a master volume. And the one big advantage that solid0state and modeling amps have is they sound the exact same whether on 1 or 8 on the master volume. The suggested Super Champ XD is a good compromise. Digital and SS front end with a tube power amp if you ever have the opportunity or need to turn it up. Out of your list, or if you don;'t want SS/digital, the only suitable option is the Blues Jr. It isn't the best sounding amp on your list (IMHO, they other three sound better when used right), but it's the only one that can be turned down to bedroom level without sounding too anemic. Just know a Blues Jr. is more tweed-like (more mids, less highs), with more mids, it doesn't have that shimmering, spanky signature "Fender Tone" that the DRRI and PRRI have. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members cratz2 Posted June 15, 2011 Members Share Posted June 15, 2011 Of the amps listed in the OP, the DRRI would be my first choice with a replacement speaker. If you like sparkling, crystal clean cleans, then many Fender amps will give them. They do sound a bit more complex at higher volume levels but I've played about 8 Twins that sound great at low levels... there is just absolute zero power tube or speaker breakup going on. Several players make the Princeton sound like a million bucks but for what I like, I much prefer the more power and more control of the Deluxe. The Super Champ XD would make a great bedroom-only amp for many players. And again, a speaker upgrade goes a long way. I personally would take the Super Champ far over the Vibro Champ. I've come to believe that I just don't care much for the cleans from amps with single power tubes. Having said that, I could get along with any amp mentioned in the OP... as long as I could swap out the speaker. But I am a clean player. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members leftybob Posted June 15, 2011 Members Share Posted June 15, 2011 Fender Mustang, comes with more fun stuff for your bedroom use. With the user sharing and PC interface you'll have alot more fun in your bedroom ... also save yourself some coin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Josh S Posted June 15, 2011 Members Share Posted June 15, 2011 No matter what you get, read this ... www.singlecoil.com/docs/magic-six.pdfGreat starting place for getting a good tone out of a Fender amp. Start with it and tweak. Interesting info. I've never seen this before - but every Fender amp I've ever owned has followed a different rule of 6: As in, set your Bass, Treble, and Mids to 6. That's always worked for me for some reason. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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