Members twotimingpete Posted April 20, 2011 Members Share Posted April 20, 2011 been close to buying a new fender amp (finally!) after the last one was stolen. was looking at devilles (like my old one) and deluxes, but now the blues jr. III has caught my eye. 15 watts is sort of an in between area, though, I'm curious if this is good to keep up with a loud drummer for practice/smallish shows. any thoughts on this amp? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DaleH Posted April 20, 2011 Members Share Posted April 20, 2011 You can gig them. They cut nice in a band setting. Never cared for the tone as a bedroom amp though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bjcarl Posted April 20, 2011 Members Share Posted April 20, 2011 I agree with Dale-loud enough to keep up with a drummer, at bedroom levels only really satisfying if you're looking for a clean, quiet tone... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BoneNut Posted April 20, 2011 Members Share Posted April 20, 2011 They definitely suck loudly and like the rest have said, not a good bedroom amp. I (like many, many others) have yet to find the perfect low volume bedroom tube amp. So far, the closest I've found was the Univalve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DonK Posted April 20, 2011 Members Share Posted April 20, 2011 Plenty loud IMO. It'll handle the situation you're describing, with aplomb. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BeowulfKingsley Posted April 20, 2011 Members Share Posted April 20, 2011 I keep one upstairs in the TV room as a practice amp...sounds good clean, and good if I slap a little OD on it too. Cranked up onstage they sound great, especially with the right guitar! Plenty loud enough for a Blues band in a medium-large room. More than that and I'd mic it anyway. I switch between that and a DRRI, depending on what I want to hear and how many stairs there are ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members twotimingpete Posted April 20, 2011 Author Members Share Posted April 20, 2011 with only one channel I wasn't really thinking it'd be overdriving too much unless you crank it -- however if it's like other fenders it likes dirt pedals. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DonK Posted April 20, 2011 Members Share Posted April 20, 2011 with only one channel I wasn't really thinking it'd be overdriving too much unless you crank it -- however if it's like other fenders it likes dirt pedals. It takes pedals really well, and you'll need one for a fatter sound without diming it, and even if you do you might want more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Flintc Posted April 20, 2011 Members Share Posted April 20, 2011 Be aware, though, that the Blues Jr. doesn't have a whole lot behind the lower frequencies, and at higher volumes it can sound pretty shrill. If you like the sound, you might step to a Deluxe, which has a lot more bass (and smoother response across the whole range, and it's MUCH louder too.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members twotimingpete Posted April 20, 2011 Author Members Share Posted April 20, 2011 Be aware, though, that the Blues Jr. doesn't have a whole lot behind the lower frequencies, and at higher volumes it can sound pretty shrill. If you like the sound, you might step to a Deluxe, which has a lot more bass (and smoother response across the whole range, and it's MUCH louder too.) good point Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Elias Graves Posted April 20, 2011 Members Share Posted April 20, 2011 It's not the cleanest amp ever, but quite loud. My son did a solo thing the other day in a 3500 seat auditorium and filled the place up just fine. My nephew plays nearly all his gigs with a Jr now. Unmiced in small rooms, with mic in bigger ones. EG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Sailorofdarknes Posted April 20, 2011 Members Share Posted April 20, 2011 Thought another owner of a JR should chime in. I used mine plenty for blues gigs, it does get a tad shrill. Using my Dearmond LP copy with SD 59's it sounded beautiful. I think it should be fine. But a Deluxe would be a better choice. On a side note Blues JR on 10 + MXR fullbore metal + MXR Carbon copy = instant Zombie war!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jtr654 Posted April 20, 2011 Members Share Posted April 20, 2011 I like Pro Jr. better they will also handle small gigs. I at one time though about getting another one for a quick setup and running them stereo. Their a video of Jeff Beck doing a Rockabilly/tribute to Les Paul with 2 Pro Jr sounds great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members kayd_mon Posted April 20, 2011 Members Share Posted April 20, 2011 As everyone has said, it'll do fine. I gigged with it all the time before I got my AC15. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Johansolo Posted April 20, 2011 Members Share Posted April 20, 2011 great amp that takes pedals well and yes...its a loud sumbitch Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members PINKUSFLOYDUS Posted April 20, 2011 Members Share Posted April 20, 2011 Save your money up and get a MesaBoogie Mark III. After playing for 30 years and buying and trading tons of amps, I finally got one. You won't be sorry! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members adlo76 Posted April 20, 2011 Members Share Posted April 20, 2011 I gig for about 2 straight years with a Pro Jr. As long as you're not looking for a crystal clean jazz tone it should work fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Johansolo Posted April 20, 2011 Members Share Posted April 20, 2011 Save your money up and get a MesaBoogie Mark III. After playing for 30 years and buying and trading tons of amps, I finally got one. You won't be sorry! funny that you mentioned this...i used to run my Blues Jr and Mark III together! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GCDEF Posted April 20, 2011 Members Share Posted April 20, 2011 been close to buying a new fender amp (finally!) after the last one was stolen. was looking at devilles (like my old one) and deluxes, but now the blues jr. III has caught my eye. 15 watts is sort of an in between area, though, I'm curious if this is good to keep up with a loud drummer for practice/smallish shows. any thoughts on this amp? Personally, I think they sound horrible, and the harder you push them, the worse they sound. I don't believe they have the headroom to hang with a really loud drummer. I recently picked up a Peavey Valveking in a trade that I use for rehearsals. It costs less than the BJ, and while I wouldn't call it a fantastic sounding amp, it is a very good sounding amp, it costs less than the BJ and sounds 1,000 times better. I can't think of anything better in its price range. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BoneNut Posted April 20, 2011 Members Share Posted April 20, 2011 Personally, I think they sound horrible, and the harder you push them, the worse they sound. I don't believe they have the headroom to hang with a really loud drummer. Exactly! That's why I said it sucks very loudly! If you're not going after bedroom volumes anyway and want something that will sound good both quiet and loud, give the Peavey Classic 30 a look. Sounds great out of the box and responds well to better tubes and speaker swap in the future. I know a lot of beginners love the Blues Junior but once you start listening to good tube amps, the BJs deficiencies become very noticeable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ken361 Posted April 20, 2011 Members Share Posted April 20, 2011 Just got my self, re-tube the preamp, sounds really good with my tele/59 in the bridge. Middle position more cleaner sounding it just spanks when cranked@ master maxed and the volume at 6 or so. Sounds so crystal clear! great little amp. Depends you know what guitar your using, my SG wont do the cleans good at all on the small fenders. I use a Mogami 55 dollar cord that sounds very clear! If you guitar sucks and and the cords your tone will suffer. Check my boy out on his blues Jr, his tone suck? dont think so lol http://www.steviesnacks.com/gear-videos/?currentPage=2 I had many amps, and pricey fenders and the Jr does hold up well Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bjcarl Posted April 20, 2011 Members Share Posted April 20, 2011 I loved my Blues Jr, but if you're open to other recommendations...Peavey Delta Blues 1x15 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Kuz929 Posted April 20, 2011 Members Share Posted April 20, 2011 Do you plan on playing a 10,000 seat arena? No, then you'll be just fine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members =JL= Posted April 21, 2011 Members Share Posted April 21, 2011 You specifically said a "loud" drummer. No chance. It has no headroom at all, and although it has the same power section as a Pro Jr it is nowhere near as loud in a band setting. It almost completely disappears if you have a piano player IME. It's not a bad sounding amp for the price, but if you want good old Fender tones look elsewhere, it's a little bit Vox-y if anything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bluesnapper Posted April 21, 2011 Members Share Posted April 21, 2011 I like them. I understand they can be a little shrill, but I normally have the treble turned almost all the way down, plus I play a Strat with Texas Specials - very middy pickups, which probably helps. They also sound fantastic with humbuckers. They are definitely loud enough for me - I play dirty blues and classic rock stuff mainly and I love the natural tube distortion you can get with a 15W amp. I wouldn't recommend them for gigging large bars if you want a clean sound though. I haven't seen a Mk3 yet - apparently there have been improvements - but I don't think they're very durable amps. They get pretty hot when you run them hard - and as the circuit boards and components are located above the tubes I have seen them go wrong on numerous occasions. Fine for the occasional gig or rehearsal but I wouldn't rely on one as a full-time gigging amp. Well there's my 0.02 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.