Fender Hot Rod Deluxe or a Fender Blues Deluxe Reissue?

Pacomc79

Novawind wrote:

I might swap out the speaker eventually but the problem is a lack of capital ($) right now.

The other project standing in the way is that I want to build a custom 4x10 or 4x12 cab for my Epi Jr, since the 8" combo speaker is only ok for very very low volumes, and I'd like a wider freq response. What kind of speaker is the Vintage 30, Celestion?

Yes, it's a celestion.

Rhyno

Pacomc79 wrote:

Please consider a 59 bassman ltd.

I wanted to try and spend less than $1000, but do you think a Bassman is noticeably better than a Blues Deluxe or Hot Rod Deluxe?

HailHailVitalogy

Rhyno wrote:

I wanted to try and spend less than $1000, but do you think a Bassman is noticeably better than a Blues Deluxe or Hot Rod Deluxe?

a 59 bassman is gorgeous, thats all that can be said

ianvomsaal

Rhyno wrote:

I wanted to try and spend less than $1000, but do you think a Bassman is noticeably better than a Blues Deluxe or Hot Rod Deluxe?

The Bassman is very nice (I own one), but I find it breaks up a lot harsher and much more flabby than the others.
Personally I'd stay with the HR series, and then just upgrade a little.
Don't rule out the click: PEAVEY CLASSIC Series Amps - nice all tube amps for the price.
I have an OLDER version of a Classic50-4X10 - looks just like my Bassman, but has a better range of OD tones.

Rhyno

Thanks for the input. Can someone tell me the affect that having multiple speakers plays? Like 4 speakers in the Bassman versus 1 in the Hot Rod Deluxe or the Blues Deluxe...

ianvomsaal

Rhyno wrote:

Thanks for the input. Can someone tell me the affect that having multiple speakers plays? Like 4 speakers in the Bassman versus 1 in the Hot Rod Deluxe or the Blues Deluxe...

More speakers = more air movement = more depth and fullness to your sound.
Because of this 2 or 4 speakers sound way better than a single speaker (IMO).
Cheers . . .

- Ian

qontheboard

Okay, so I'm about 1 week away from purchasing a new amp. It's gonna be the Fender HR DeVille 212 or the HR 410. The price difference is only $55 so would you go for the 2 12's or the 4 10's. What are the Pros and Cons?

Also, is there any adverse affect on an amp from extended use of an Omnisonic type device?

q

Pacomc79

qontheboard wrote:

Okay, so I'm about 1 week away from purchasing a new amp. It's gonna be the Fender HR DeVille 212 or the HR 410. The price difference is only $55 so would you go for the 2 12's or the 4 10's. What are the Pros and Cons?

Also, is there any adverse affect on an amp from extended use of an Omnisonic type device?

q

I'd go with 4x10's without thinking twice personally but they sound different so play both if you can.

Yes, if you use the Attenuator all the time and heavilly you can have some issues with blown fuses, tubes and transformers it just depends on how heavilly you tend to use them. They work great to knock the sound down a few DB (you do lose some perceived treble response) but they don't work so well for cranking the amp and turning it down to bedroom all the time. I've got a Weber I used for a while but the Master Volume on my Orange is fairly decent and in conjunction with pedals and the gain I can get a pretty good quiet tone. I'd get the amp first and play with it a while before seeking any power reduction devices.

http://www.amptone.com/powerattenuatorfaq.htm


These are a common sight in the HRD amps as well. I've seen quite a few HRD's with Vintage 30's and Yellow Jackets.

http://www.thdelectronics.com/product_page_yellowjacket.html


congrats on the new amp by the way. It's going to be awesome.

qontheboard

Pacomc79 wrote:

congrats on the new amp by the way. It's going to be awesome.

Thanks, I can hardly wait. Another question for you. The last amp I bought was a used 59' Bassman (I mainly play harp through it). I have not bought a new amp for close to 20 yrs now. My question is, should I feel comfortable buying the amp right off the showroom floor (they {Long and Mcquade} only have one of each in stock) or should I have them order one for me?

q

ianvomsaal

I agree, play both - I play the 4x10, but you may like the 2x12 (I warn you, they are LOUD amps).
Again, yup - an attenuator will generally break your components down faster (tubes, trannys, caps, fuses).
If you're not playing with a band maybe think about a Deluxe since it's less wattage, but will still EASILY
work with a band (again, these are loud amps). Then if you want more air movement either Head It and
use a cab with more speakers, or just run an external cab with the amp. I've thought many times about
heading my DeVille and just running an external cab (the combo's quite heavy).

- Ian

keeponrockin

ianvomsaal wrote:

I agree, play both - I play the 4x10, but you may like the 2x12 (I warn you, they are LOUD amps).
Again, yup - an attenuator will generally break your components down faster (tubes, trannys, caps, fuses).
If you're not playing with a band maybe think about a Deluxe since it's less wattage, but will still EASILY
work with a band (again, these are loud amps). Then if you want more air movement either Head It and
use a cab with more speakers, or just run an external cab with the amp. I've thought many times about
heading my DeVille and just running an external cab (the combo's quite heavy).

- Ian

How difficult is it to 'head' an amp?

Pacomc79

qontheboard wrote:

Thanks, I can hardly wait. Another question for you. The last amp I bought was a used 59' Bassman (I mainly play harp through it). I have not bought a new amp for close to 20 yrs now. My question is, should I feel comfortable buying the amp right off the showroom floor (they {Long and Mcquade} only have one of each in stock) or should I have them order one for me?

q

It depends really on store traffic. I've done both. Most Pro Stores I just buy off the floor, I know they don't keep inventory due to space issues and they take care of thier stuff generally. The negative is people may have touched it or played it and or left it on for days etc.... but most of the time they are perfectly fine and they still should have the 5 year warranty. Just go over it thoroughly if you get the floor model and let them know you prefer one packaged. You might get them to knock a few bucks off for a floor model. You should be able to tell the general things that could go wrong, dust, burnt out pilot lights, loose tubes, dinged speakers etc early on in the process.

59 bassman for harp. TAKE THAT Sound Guy! I bet that sounded freaking huge. Did you just use a green bullet?

ianvomsaal

keeponrockin wrote:

How difficult is it to 'head' an amp?

Just pull the CHASSIS and you have the actual amp in your hands.
Now just find a head box that it fits into, or you can just build one.
Here's what some of Mojo's boxes look like - Mojo: Head Box Cabinets
They'll even build one for you if you can't - just look at the blue box on the bottom.
I just saw this as well: http://cgi.ebay.com/New-Fender-Style-amp-Head-empty-cabinet-Cheap-25-start_W0QQitemZ130191901590QQihZ003QQcategoryZ43375QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
Get the dimensions of your chasis and see if it'll fit.
Remember to leave room for the tubes and reverb tank.
Cheers . . .

- Ian

keeponrockin

ianvomsaal wrote:

Just pull the CHASSIS and you have the actual amp in your hands.
Now just find a head box that it fits into, or you can just build one.
Here's what some of Mojo's boxes look like - Mojo: Head Box Cabinets
They'll even build one for you if you can't - just look at the blue box on the bottom.
I just saw this as well: http://cgi.ebay.com/New-Fender-Style-amp-Head-empty-cabinet-Cheap-25-start_W0QQitemZ130191901590QQihZ003QQcategoryZ43375QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
Get the dimensions of your chasis and see if it'll fit.
Remember to leave room for the tubes and reverb tank.
Cheers . . .

- Ian

Hmm interesting!

qontheboard

Pacomc79 wrote:

59 bassman for harp. TAKE THAT Sound Guy! I bet that sounded freaking huge. Did you just use a green bullet?

Before I got the bassman I was playing through a Traynor with 4 10's that just didn't cut it. I discovered that Harp players hailed the 59 bassman as the Holy Grail of Harp amps. After the first gig I played with the bassman, the sound guy was freaking out about how good the Harp sounded.

My first couple of years I used the green bullet, but I developed a style of playing that was similar to John Popper, so I found the bullet too big and too heavy. I ended up using a Shure SM48S. I took the cage off, pulled out the foam and hammered the top of the cage flat but at a slight angle. This brings the Harp closer to the mic and gives a slightly distorted sound. If I let the bassman warm up for an hour or two before gig time you get a fat tone with a dose of overdrive.

q

Rhyno

Alright. So, I decided to go with a Hot Rod Deluxe and just got the Texas Red version! Can't wait for it to arrive!

Rhyno

MLC2006 wrote:

go on ebay and type in "omnisonic". I have one of those, which is a volume box that plugs into the effects loop. it allows you to turn the overall volume down but allows you to crank the amp's controls all the way up as loud as you want. so you can get a cranked sound at a lower volume. if I recall, it cost less than $20. I would say that most tube amps with no headphone jack would be too loud for me (I have a wife and 2 year old who go to bed at 8pm) if I didn't have the omnisonic. I also had an omnisonic on a 5150 halfstack and it worked just as well.


here is the ebay link http://cgi.ebay.com/Omnisonic-Tube-Amp-VOLUME-BOX-for-PEAVEY-Classic-30-50_W0QQitemZ130185924255QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item130185924255 the one in the link is for a Peavey, but they make them for Fenders too.

I have a question about these...can they harm the amp or are they a legit way to get the best tone at lower volumes?

ianvomsaal

Rhyno wrote:

I have a question about these...can they harm the amp or are they a legit way to get the best tone at lower volumes?

USE AN ATTENUATOR TO ACHIEVE THE BEST TONE AT LOWER VOLUMES -- BUT SCROLL DOWN AND READ #31 & #29.

seanw1010

i really like the hot rord
never tried the blues deluxe, but i would really reccomend the hot rod. my instructor uses one as a back up for his mesa

Rhyno

ianvomsaal wrote:

USE AN ATTENUATOR TO ACHIEVE THE BEST TONE AT LOWER VOLUMES -- BUT SCROLL DOWN AND READ #31 & #29.

Thanks. I missed those. Again, thanks to everyone for your feedback. This board is very helpful!