Fender Blues Junior - opinions?

[kenjones]

I have been gigging with a Fender '76 SFDR (Silver-Face Deluxe Reverb) for the last 4-5 years. I love the way it sounds but I keep finding that I wish it wasn't quite so loud. I love the clean sound but to get a decent distorted tone I have to turn it up too loud. I have tried a bunch of different overdrive pedals but really prefer the sound of an overdriven amp without any pedals.

Anybody have an opinion on the Fender Blues Junior? Will that get me more in the ballpark for good overdriven amp tone at lower volumes? Is the clean tone okay?

Or should I just get a Trademark 60?

Thanks!

[Thundernotes]

I've played in several blues bands over the years where that's all the guitarist used. They put out a great sound for the money, and they're super portable.

[Turdus]

I owned one for a very short time. I'm not a Fender amp lover, and therefore did not care for this amp at all.

Heard so many good things, so had to try it. Here's what I think... if you like Fender amps, you'll love this one.

I like a smooth overdrive, and did not hear it from this amp.

[jaberwock]

The small cabinet tends to make them sound a little nasal, especially with a Celestion vintage 30; not much clean headroom, but great fun cranked. Not loud enough to compete with an enthusiastic drummer.

Never owned one, but used my friends for several shows; he eventually did a lot of upgrades which improved the sound enormously over stock.

Hope this helps Jaberwock

[Thundernotes]

Not loud enough to compete with an enthusiastic drummer.

Well, that's certainly true.

There are also a bunch of mods including adding an additional gain stage to the amp. One of the 12ax7's only uses one of its two triodes in the original design. I've modded several of these amps to throw a little more low end, but never tried the gain stage mod.

[Hfan]

The small cabinet tends to make them sound a little nasal, especially with a Celestion vintage 30; not much clean headroom, but great fun cranked. Not loud enough to compete with an enthusiastic drummer.

Never owned one, but used my friends for several shows; he eventually did a lot of upgrades which improved the sound enormously over stock.

Hope this helps Jaberwock

I have a Blues Jr and did most of Bill M's mods (http://www.billmaudio.com/). Huge difference over stock, I love it. Check out Bill's site, lots of stuff on the Blues Jr. I would say get a used one and mod the hell out of it. Most of the mods are pretty simple.

[Caddie]

We did a little shootout of small tube amps with a few friends several years ago. Fender Pro Jr, Fender Blues Jr, Ampeg j12t, Peavey Classic 20. The first one voted off the island was the Fender Blues Jr. Hard to explain but it just didn't have any balls, no character, nasally. I know, I know, but yes even the Peavey sounded better. The best of the bunch was the Ampeg. Very cool retro sound n look, remarkably loud, nice reverb n trem. Get a screw driver and crank down every screw you can find to get rid of the rattles.

Lots of reports that the Blues Jr can sound absolutely awesome after the mods. So if you like the aroma of smoldering flux enjoy yourself and mod away!

just my $0.02

caddie

[Jimbilly]

I've got a '76 DR too! -what are the odds... The '76 has an inspiring clean tone, doesn't it?

I don't think the Blues Jr is going to be much quieter for breakup the ones I've been around are pretty loud. Try a 12AY7 or 12AV7 in V1 the DR? Or maybe also a Variac and drop the voltage a little? There's just a couple of 'blackface'-ish mods for the '76, the PT is different than a BF so it's not really possible to make it just like a blackface. Can you substitute a different rectifier tube for the 5U4 to get lower voltage? I know it's possible to sub a 5R4 for a 5AR4, but I'm not sure about substitutions for the 5U4, I'll have to ask my tech.

Champs can sound really good, my tech buddy did a little mod to my friends SF Champ to 'beef up' the low end, it's really-really good now. I've got some questions for my tech in the morning.

[Brewmaster]

The Blues Jr is a good grab and go amp ONLY after the base Bill M mods are done AND you replace the speaker with a Cannabis Rex. One of the basic mods is on the mid pot which opens up the amp sonically so you get more highs and uppers mids. The Cannibis Rex is rated @ 102 db sensitivity which will allow one to play over an aggressive drummer.

Just my .02

[jaberwock]

The Blues Jr is a good grab and go amp ONLY after the base Bill M mods are done AND you replace the speaker with a Cannabis Rex. One of the basic mods is on the mid pot which opens up the amp sonically so you get more highs and uppers mids. The Cannibis Rex is rated @ 102 db sensitivity which will allow one to play over an aggressive drummer.

Just my .02

Talking of agressive drummers, I played in a soul funk outfit way back when; the drummer, Barry, was a Second dan Judo black belt; a group of bikers in the audience started chanting very, derisive comments at the band, I saw Barry's blood begin to boil until mid song, he waded through his drum kit, jumped into the crowd, and flattened the lot of them.......... I never complained about him being too loud after that.

I would say the Vox Night Train sounds considerably better, and louder, than an unmodded Fender BJ, very portable, but you'll need a speaker cab.

I use an an Alessandro Boxer 20 watt combo, which with a Neodynium speaker weighs 27 pounds, in a different league altogether with the BJ; you can find them used for about 700 bucks.

just some more grist for the mill Jaberwock

[kenjones]

Thanks for all the replies everyone.

I was reading this thread here and decided that instead of buying yet another amp I would try a different overdrive pedal. I am currently using a Sparkledrive and while I like it I don't really like to leave it on for very long. I have had a FD2 for years but never have found a sound that really did it for me. Maybe the OCD will do the trick? I will report back and let you know what I think.

I am still intrigued by the portability and "not quite so loud" aspect of the Blues Junior. I might head over to Rockin' Robin or Guitar Center and try one out sometime this week.

[Hfan]

I really wasn't crazy about my Blues Jr until I did the mods. Night and day. Good luck with your tone quest.

[whiskeyzulu]

The Blues Jr is a good grab and go amp ONLY after the base Bill M mods are done AND you replace the speaker with a Cannabis Rex. One of the basic mods is on the mid pot which opens up the amp sonically so you get more highs and uppers mids. The Cannibis Rex is rated @ 102 db sensitivity which will allow one to play over an aggressive drummer.

Just my .02

I recently sold mine - full Bill M mods and C. Rex speaker and it was loud enough for my drummer (who wears headphones to protect his ears!) For a bigger sound at outdoor gigs also ran extension cab. It was a great grab n' go amp. I also have a PV C30, which is a bit heavier and has more head room - don't care for its distortion channel, but since I play amps clean and use pedals (as I did w/ blues Jr) its not an issue.

[Hfan]

The Blues Jr is a good grab and go amp ONLY after the base Bill M mods are done AND you replace the speaker with a Cannabis Rex. One of the basic mods is on the mid pot which opens up the amp sonically so you get more highs and uppers mids. The Cannibis Rex is rated @ 102 db sensitivity which will allow one to play over an aggressive drummer.

Just my .02

I recently sold mine - full Bill M mods and C. Rex speaker and it was loud enough for my drummer (who wears headphones to protect his ears!) For a bigger sound at outdoor gigs also ran extension cab. It was a great grab n' go amp. I also have a PV C30, which is a bit heavier and has more head room - don't care for its distortion channel, but since I play amps clean and use pedals (as I did w/ blues Jr) its not an issue.

I've been considering a new speaker. Mine has the Jensen C12N made in Italy that came with the tweed Blues Jrs. the mods may have out paced that speaker. I keep hearing good things about the cannabis rex in this amp, was also considering a Texas Heat if anyone wants to weigh in. Good thing about Eminence speakers is that they are reasonably priced so you could try a few especially if you have other amps to put them in.

[JohnnyB]

Could a '76 Silverface Deluxe Reverb be modded for a pentode/triode switchable circuits so the power section could be taken down to about 5 watts? That seems to be all you need rather than fiddle-fucking with a new amp that is not in the same league.

Otherwise, take your DR to a good guitar shop and try it into a variety of overdrive pedals. Personally I'm partial to the Maxon OD808. I use it (when I use one) into a Top Hat Club Deluxe, which has a power section like a brown era pre-reverb Fender Deluxe. The OD808 is the current in-production OEM version of what became the legendary Ibanez TS808 Tubescreamer.

Audio samples here.

[Lockbody]

I think the BSIAB2 (Brown Sound In A Box ver 2) is one of best distortion boxes I've ever put in front of a Fender Amp. Some friends were over recently, and while I was showing off a new SG Std I fired up my Pro Reverb with the BSIAB2 and we were just floored at the sound coming out of the speakers (Didn't hurt that the guy trying the amp, Tim Boykin, is a jaw-dropping-good player, either.).

I've gotten similar results with a couple of other Fenders (a Bassman 100, and another I can't remember). The BSIAB2 is inexpensive used, too.

[jaberwock]

If you like the sound of your amp but want to tame the volume, you could try one of these:

http://www.eminence.com/speakers/speaker-d...odel=ReignMaker

A friend put one in an Ampeg 50 watt combo (very tight squeeze ), and it works very well,though it does change the tone a tad under attenuation, but just a little brighter; we both prefer it to the Jensen it replaced.

It would mean you wouldn't have to mess with your amp's circuitry.

Jaberwock

[velorush]

Could a '76 Silverface Deluxe Reverb be modded for a pentode/triode switchable circuits so the power section could be taken down to about 5 watts?

Yes. This guy shows how it's done. Cool idea.

[JohnnyB]

Could a '76 Silverface Deluxe Reverb be modded for a pentode/triode switchable circuits so the power section could be taken down to about 5 watts?

Yes. This guy shows how it's done. Cool idea.

Cool!

[cloakerz]

+1000 on the maxon od808 its my main pedal for drive