Fender Blues Deluxe

Just picked this up today. For blues and rock this amp has everything you will need in a tube amp.

If your looking for that SRV tone and distortion or any other 'blues' sound and tone this amp is a bargain! Great clean and over drive. You may not need that tube screamer (well...)

Its a tube amp from a tried and proven manufacturer. If something breaks replacements are easy to find!

Buy it. If it gets stolen buy another one.

The amp almost has too many features. I just use volume, mid, high & bass with a bit of reverb. 40 watts may not sound like a lot of power but remember the old Fender Bandmaster & Super Reverbs where 40 watts. There is plenty of power for most gigs. Also you get tube saturation (distortion) with out breaking your ear drums.

I use a Guild Starfire IV and a Modulus G1. This is a rock and roll or blues amp. It does an excellent job at that. It's a bit too gritty for Jazz or Acoustic guitar. You can use different tubes that have less saturation if Jazz or acoustic is your thing.

No opinion yet.

I have been playing for too many years... I also have a Roland Jazz Chorus JC120 with JBL speakers when I want a clean sound.

The Deluxe Blues is a rather specialized amp. It's excellent for what it was designed for. But it's not for everybody. I think it's an excellent buy. I think it would hold it's own next to a Messa Boogie !

Made in 2005. 2 channels - normal and drive. Has mid, bass and treble, reverb, presence, bright switch etc...all tube amp. These features are listed on the Fender site as well as numerous guitar storefront websites. The features are very basic and that's why I bought it. I was looking for a kind of basic/modern/blues type amp and the Blues Deluxe meets all the requirements for blues. Plus the vintage tweed look is definitely makes it an attractive buy. If you want more features like 4 channels and effects you should really look at other brands and models like Mesa Boogie or Marshall or buy a bunch of pedals.

This amp fits the kind of music that I play - a lot of early British and Chicago type blues and classic rock like Allman Brothers.

40w is indeed enough for gigs unless you play arenas and gigantic venues for a living. In my opinion 40w is enough for all of my normal gigs as well as at home practice and sessions. And if you really need extra volume and power just mic it up.

I use a Gibson Les Paul Standard w/ Burst Buckers, Robert Cray signature Stratocaster and a Jerry Donahue Tele with hot rails in the bridge.

This amp is suprisingly quiet. The only thing that I found annoying is the rattle of the tubes when I crank it up full blast. I suggest playing around with the settings to dial in the sound you want. For my Les Paul I put the bass at 4, Treble at 6 and mid at 5, reverb at 4, presence all the way to 12 and put it on the drive channel with the drive all the way to 9 for that Clapton Bluesbreakers tone. The sound of humbuckers are rich and full on the clean channel and when on drive it gets gritty and breaks up nicely with a very creamy warm kind of sound. The single coils are great as well for that classic Strat and Tele clarity and that distinctive cutting distortion when cranked on the drive channel.

When you crank this amp past 6 it still retains great sound quality but past that I find it to shatter hearing. I rarely crank it past 8 and this is during gigs as well.

The distortion is not for metal heads and wasn't made for that kind of playing in mind - hence the name. But for all other kinds of playing mostly rock, blues, country and others of that ilk it works like a charm.

I found the presence feature didn't really change the sound dramatically. More subtle than anything.

I uselly had to use a tube screamer for more musical distortion on my other amps but with this I just plug straight in.

Very reliable unless you don't know how to take care of your equipment like pulling out the tubes while the amp is still on (don't ever do that), messing with the chassis when you don't know what you're doing.

I've gigged with it and its great. Always carry a backup amp and extra tubes and fuses. Thats like a standard procedure for musicians. Easy for carrying around and loading into my car.

I haven't had the amp that long to change the tubes yet but it seems as if it can handle my gigs. I usually change tubes every 6 months or so.

Gaven't had any problems that needed dire assistance.

I've been playing for a little over 5 years. I consider myself still inexperience in the world of guitar gear (according to the standards of gear geeks and tone snobs) but I usually know what works and sound good for me and my playing.

I would definitely buy another one if it was lost or stolen.

I just love the classic sounds of plugging straight in and getting that chicago and british blues sound. People always try to chase these old classic sounds from the past and its rather simple to obtain unless you're looking for something else. I find plugging straight into this amp is what works for me because that's what the old blues players did and I think that its a tried and true method to those classic sounds that most players seem to be throwing pedals onto.

So if you're into classic Fender clean, and classic blues distortion then this is it! There are other amps that are twice as much such as the Twin and Super which I've own but I find that I didn't really need it for my gig requirements. Don't get me wrong those amps sounds awesome but the Blues Deluxe sounds great as well.

But this review is just my opinion. I suggest you get out there and try it out all the amps that sparks your interest and see which one is right for you. That's the only way because all of us have our own preferences and opinions on what a "good" amp is.

After a hundred or so reviews, the features should be listed by now. Doesn't have a reverb on/off switch. I tried buying a footswitch with one and it still doesn't work.

This is why I'm here. I've never written a review before, but I thought anyone interested in the Deluxe might want to know this. I previously owned the Blues Deville, and the amp is simply TOO LOUD for any conventional club playing. This is, if you want to get the most from this amp without a power break. So I bought the 1x12 Deluxe. It was a good decision. You can get the tubes warm and driven at a relative volume without the engineer/bandmates complaining. *NOTE- Groove Tubes are CRAP. Anyone who buys a Fender amp should replace these as soon as possible. I replaced my 6L6's with Svetlana "Winged C" tubes (about $40.00 a pair), and Electro-Harmonix 12ax7's. I'm sure you can find better preamp tubes, but for the price, EH makes pretty decent ones. Now this is KEY....replace the phase inverter preamp tube (it's all the way to the outside) with a 12AT7 tube, instead of a 12ax7. The difference is pretty phenomenal. Before the overdrive was just too brittle and had some unpleasant biting tones at the top no matter what I did to the EQ. Now it's a smoother gain, I can crank the pre up a lot higher and get an exact match of the Angus Young sound. This is with a '78 Les Paul Custom straight to the amp. You won't get any kind of palm mute "chunk", though. But that's not what I play. GREAT chord definition, doesn't get muddy. I HIGHLY recommend this change because I've been dealing with these amps for a couple of years now and this is the best I've heard from them so far!

No problems so far. Haven't gigged with it yet.

Haven't had to deal with them yet.

I've been playing hard rock for 10 years. You CANNOT BEAT THIS SOUND FOR THIS PRICE. I think the value will go up eventually like all great Fender amps once they discontinue them. For a few easy tube modifications, you can't beat this deal! If mine were stolen I'd definitely by another because of the value!

As discribed in other reviews. I hardley ever use the drive channel. I changed to speaker to a pair of Jensen P10R's (10"), see below. Let's see if my review can add something new to the countless other reviews.

I play blues (check my band at www.hiptwist.tk), jazz, soul (www.souled.tk) and more. I play mainly an old Framus archtop through it, with P90-like pu's. The amps sounds just great: punchy, warm, very responding, sensitive and bringing out the best of your instrument. This applies especially when played at relatively low volumes. It has a very good usable sound at higher volumes, but: a tendency to sound (too) bass-heavy, even with the bass-control all the way down, and it sounds somewhat "small" (no big wonder of course) and clinical. I always liked the sound of it as it was, but I recently changed the 12" Emminence speaker to a pair of 10" P10R Jensens (4 Ohms, lined up in series for the 8 ohms it needs). I'm glad that I did. Now the amp is a lot less bass-heavy and has a sweet singing "brown" tone. At high volumes, when the Jensens are realy crancked, the break up very nicely! It did loose a little funky-punch though, because of the Jensens responding somewhat slower. For me that's no problem, considering the styles I play, but if you only do funky rythms, the P10Q or the ceramic Jensens might be a better choice.
I never experienced much with the tubes, although I prefer to use Sovtek 6L6WXT+ (matched pair) for the power-tubes. The sound differs with different tubes, presumably because of different rates (the one pair running hotter or colder than the other). The pre-amp tubes I never changed and are still the factory-originals.

A few years back I experienced the same troubles as some other users described: the amp cutting out and switching channels randomly. This problem is described at http://studentweb.eku.edu/justin_holton/. Cause: broken solder-joints around the pot-meters and around the ceramic 470K-resistors (the resistors still intact). Solution: re-flowing the solder-joints (touching them with a hot soldering-iron). Never had any problems since, but I check the joints and resistors regulary and transport the amp in the back-seat (not in the trunk) of my car.
One of the jack-inputs screw-threat is worn, so it is kept in place with some tape now. I'll have to replace it sooner or later. The cabinet and chassis seem very well constructed though, but I regret Fender didn't point-to-point wire this amp, however understandingly form economical point of view. All in all some points off in this category.

Never dealed with Fender.

I like the Fender-tone (never cared much for Marshall). Love this amp, played it for over a decade now. It's relatively small and easy to handle, which is why I prefer it over a Twin Reverb. I played a lot of amps over the years and this amp always pleased me most (except maybe for some very expensive vintage or boutique-amps). With the recent speaker change it suits my playing even better than before. The reliability could be better, and is a result of Fender's choice to use PCB-boards and a wrong way of soldering the 470K resistors (see at http://studentweb.eku.edu/justin_holton/). Nevertheless I love it and it will probably stay in my set-up. For me, it deserves an overall 10-rating, now that I know

I am rating a 1997 modelyear limited blonde BDX.
I won't list all the features, as you all know already.
Just want to tell you, what is missing, to give it a 10 for the features:
The overdrive is not a separate channel, but more like just an additional effect.
The "effects loop" is not switchable and not perfectly matching all different types of gear.
The reverb is not switchable.
So I give it at 7 - that's more than enough

I am exclusively playing Strat-type guitars, as there are: a 2001 JB Strat, an early 80ies Squier JV-Series Strat (equipped with Texas Specials), a Squier '51 and a Starfield Altair SJ Custom.
For effects, I am a lot playing around with my gear, as there are a Boxx GX-700, a Tubescreamer, an old Ibanez chorus and a Treble Booster. But most of the time, I just play the guitar right into the amp and I use Weber MiniMASS powerbrake.
I play mainly Blues with sometimes some Rock or even Jazz mixed to that. My sonic heaven is the sound of SRV as well as of Eric Clapton.
That said, I have to tell you, that I am quite dissapointed by this amp. Bought it via eBay and I am currently selling it again via the same way. It lacks sparkle and depth. I checked out wether this is due to the speaker by cross-checking the BDX with the speakers of my Concert Reverb and vice versa - it is to blame on the amp.

For anyone, looking for some sweet BF tones - this amp is NOT for you. It reminds me more of some Marshall-type sounds and it sure has a nice Rock-attitude, but it is not what I expect from a Fender.

I am still unsure about the rating, because I don't want to blame the amp for not meeting my personal expectations - but I cannot give more than a 7.

Anyone who brakes this one - it's your own fault.

I am not happy with the European local support - but the HP with all those user manuals and circuit schematics is really nice.

I am playing electric guitar since 13 years now and always sticked to the Stratocaster and Fender-Amp formula (despite a 3-year romance with a Vox AC30).
I will not buy a BDX again.
Originally, I thought, this might be a cool alternative to my Concert Reverb - but related to price and weight, the BDX does not do the job.

At least, build quality and the good reputation let me expect to not loose any money due to selling it again.

This is a real tone machine!A Blues or Rock Players dream.The amp is a USA built version and not the Made In Mexico reissue.This is the most warmest sounding tube amp I have ever owned.At 40 watts I have more then enough power for any gig I may play.

I use the amp with both my Les Paul and Fender Stratocaster.I use an Ibanez TS-808 Tube Screamer in front of it.Thats all you need.The prices of these amps will go up in the future now that the Made In Mexico reissue is out on the market.

I have never had any problems with this amp.Tube amps can be quirky sometimes but this one semms to be very reliable.I play it 4 nights a week and have had no issues with it.

Never had to deal with Fender.

I have been playing 25 years.If I lost this amp I would buy another one in a minute (but not the reissue).The amp was worth every dime i paid for it.I am lucky to have found one in mint condition and I did not mind paying the price I did because of that.

This is a tweed amp. Built somewhere between '93 and '95 I believe. They stopped making these for awhile but they've been reissued now. It's a 40 watt all tube amplifier, with a 12" eminence speaker, driven by three 12AX7 preamp tubes and two 6L6 output tubes. It has a normal channel which includes a "bright" switch, and a drive channel. There's a footswitch for going back and forth, but there's a definate hiccup as it kicks in to the next channel, I assume because it's an all tube amp. That doesn't bother me at all personally. It also has an effects loop, which I never use, so I'm unqualified to say if it even does the job. It's got 2 inputs.

I mainly play with an American Telecaster through this amp, which has had all of the paint sanded off it and a Little '59 Seymour Duncan put in the bridge locale. I love the guitar, it has a little more beef and warmth than a normal American Tele, and I think it sounds really excellent through this amp. Having said that, the amp is a little noisy, which can be a problem if you record like I do. I don't really mind a little noise on a track though, I think it adds a more life-like quality. It may bother you though.
When you consider this amp, really consider the name, Blues Deluxe. It really is a blues amp. In my experience with it, it stays clean for a very short while. Put the volume up to 4 (on the normal channel mind you, not the drive) and you get a really sweet tube driven distortion. SO TASTY! Even at 3 it will start to break up depending on your pick-ups and attack. I think this is great personally, because I really like a natural overdriven sound, without having to make my ears bleed. Down at 2 or so it's pretty clean sounding, but never clean like some of the fender black-faced amps. This amp really colors the sound of your guitar in a bluesy way (for lack of a better word), so if you want the clean sound of your guitar to really show, I would look for something else. I plan on getting a Twin Reverb soon for that purpose, because I do play a lot of clean stuff and this amp isn't the best for it. But for blues, classic rock, etc. it sounds really, really cool. It's just not an all in one amp. Who wants that though, then you lose the excuse to buy more gear!
The drive channel on this amp is good, but not great. There's a reason you don't see metal and hard rock bands with tweed amps on stage --- it's not meant for that. Don't try it with this amp.

I haven't had this amp for that long and it's mainly a studio amp, so I can't really be the judge of it's reliability.

Never had to deal with Fender.

I've been playing about six years. I own a few guitars and another amp that's solid state (which I never use anymore). I play out a few times a month, but I use acoustics when I do, kind of a solo, folk review type thing. I really like this amp, it sounds really cool. Rich and Warm and Naturally dirty. Not muddy, that's not what I mean by dirty, but very colorful and sweet when driven a little bit. If it was stolen I would probably get a Twin Reverb instead, and then eventually get another one of this. I like this amp a lot, but I'm not married to it. It's clean sounds leave something to be desired, and it's a little noisy, but it sounds classic and unsterile and I like that. I give it an 8 overall. If that sounds like something you'd enjoy, I would go check one out.

Few options, but most vintage enthusiast like it like that. All tube with a SS rectifier and SS Reverb unit. I agree that seperate equalizer would be nice for the two channel, or omit them at all. It's really a cross between the old tweed amps and the modern channel switchers.

I'm using a stock '81 Gibson Les Paul Custom. The amp had a great break-up, there is one catch though. A trick I learned with all master volume amps is the just throw the master all the way up, thus elimating the volume cut-off from the circuit, then use the drive or gain control as a traditional volume. The amp is very loud this way with a break-up that does sound much like an old marshall (albeit a little thinner on solo passanges, but this could be my stock pick-ups. Gibson pick-ups from this period onwards are horrible.)

I did notice some scratching when the pots when adjusted, but once you leave the thing alone this problem disapears.

By running the reverb really low and a high drive I got a great marshall like sound. By turning down the drive and cranking the reverb I got this snappy little country sound, good old chickin' pickin' at its best.

I think the distorted tone is much better than reported by others, but again I am eliminating the master altogether. Never ever crank the gain and hold off on the master, this chokes the tubes and gives a buzzy solid-state sound. Tubes are meant to roar, so let them

Amp feels solid.

Some hissing and scratching on the pots when adjusted but this isn't a problem once you stop fiddling with it

No comment

This is a great all around amp. It has the right amount of features to get the job done. A reverb tube would have been nice, but the difference is almost inaudible. If you like to messy around with the control during a set then you might want the have the pot looked at, but if your a player with good dynamics, good controls over your guitar, and a good playing style then this little devil is great. I highly recommend it (especially since most of these amps I've seen run under 500 used). If it was stolen I'd hunt the bastard down and beat him for daring to steal this lovely amp.

Very straight forward and simple to use. Basically a single channel amp with a variable gain boost that is foot-switchable and functions as a quasi drive channel. Other controls are: Bright Switch, Bass, Middle, Treble, Presence and Reverb. Single 12" "Fender" speaker, 2 x 6L6 tubes + standard compliment of 12AX7 preamp tubes. Nice real tweed covering with a brown grill cloth.

Not a lot of extra bells and whistles, but I see that as a plus and not a minus. The only thing of would have done differently would have been to use a metal toggle switch for the "Bright" selector instead of the plastic pushbutton, (A very minor complaint)

There are several other things that could have been upgraded, (like speaker type), but then again it might have defeated the cost effective nature of this amp.

First let me say that I am NOT a huge Fender fan. I bought this amp to serve as a small, portable, practice amp that I could leave in our rehearsal space, and maybe use at smaller non-critical gigs.

My two main amplifiers that I use for live performances at least 3 times a week, are a Dr Z Maz 38 Senior 2x12 and a Soldano Lucky 13 2x12. Both of these amps are incredible in every way and are certainly deserving of 10's in every category. I really did not expect the Blues Deluxe to be even remotely in the same league as these amps, but I must admit that it is a lot closer than I would have thought.

I mostly use a Tom Anderson Cobra Special, Don Grosh Hollow Flat Top Custom, and PRS McCarty Goldtop, all with P-90's. My effects chain varies a lot, but a typical setup is as follows: Pete Cornish Line Driver > Teese RMC1 Wah > Analogman Bi-Comp > Maxon OD-820 > Fulltone Fulldrive TR100 > Fulltone Fat Boost > Keeley TS-808 > Analogman Clone Chorus > Fulltone Supa Trem > Maxon AD900 Analog Delay.

I usually find Fender Amps to be a bit too bright and a bit thin, but this little guy is quite warm and really leans to the dark side. For once I actually use the bright switch on a Fender amp. There are a lot of review in this section that talk about changing the speakers, tubes, etc., but I find this to be a solid performer as is. It will never replace my other two amps, but it is a great lightweight portable tone machine.

Seems fairly solid. I have not had any problems at this point.

No experience with Fender, but I assume that they are like the other big companies, which is why I generally steer away from the mass market gear.

I have been playing for many years and have used a lot of different gear. In a world of over-hyped advertising, this amp is more than worth the price of admission. I am always surprised every time I use this amp, at how good it really does sound. I would replace it without hesitation if it were lost or stolen... If I could find another one used around the $400 to $600 range.