Fender Blues Junior Lacquered Tweed Special Edition

This amp was made in 2009 for Sam Ash in limited production. Made in Mexico. I believe 125 were made. Mine is number 60 of 125. All the same knobs and switches as the regular BJ's but it has the blonde/tan tolex with black sides. Super cool look. It also has the 8ohm 12" fender re-issue "Gold Label" speaker. I wish it had a standby switch but from what I understand you can get one now from BillM for about $20.00 and put it in yourself. Plenty of power with it's 15 watts. It comes with 2 EL84's and 3 12ax7's and they are the fender/sovtek tubes that everyone changes when they get home/extra money. For the super cool looks and cream chicken head knobs I give it a 9.

I play a usa strat with stock pups and it sounds as good as my NOS limited edition MIM tweed BJ I have. I just did a side by side with my morley a/b box. I did change the tweed el84 tubes to jj's a short while ago and left the stock fender/sovtek 12ax7's but the black and tan has the stock tubes and the speaker and tubes are new as well so take that into consideration. The black and tan broke up a little sooner on the same settings and sounded just a slight bit darker. Probably the tubes and speaker but I like it that way. Probably will upgrade the tubes later after they break in but will leave the stock speaker. The tweed has the ceramic 12" in it and the two played together sound awesome together. The reverb sounds the same on both. I find it very useable on the two or three songs that call for it but I dont use much reverb other than that. I like the light weight and the fact that it's very useable. If you need more volume just stick a good mic in front of it.

So far so good. I just got it. My usa pro jr and my mim NOS tweed BJ are holding up good so far so no need to worry. I do gig sometimes without a backup but only when I'm close to home. If I travel I always bring a backup.

I have two world class amp techs that keep all my gear rolling when needed so I'm covered. I've heard horror stories about fender warranty work so good luck.

I have been playing for over 35 years and have owned a lot of tube gear and others as well. I find that the blues jr fits into my working collection very nicely. When the weather is bad I just load a BJ into the truck and mic it at the club. Sometimes you don't even need the mic because it has a loud 15 watts and good reverb. I play fender tube amps only but have ownedsome solid state stuff in the past. The only solid state amp I ever played live was a bone stock marshall lead 20 and with a mic in front at the club we played that thing rocked the house so go figure. Just that special guitar/amp combination. Happy hunting for your grail.

As seen in other reviews, it has 15W of all-tube power and basic controls: Treble, Mid, Bass, Volume, Master, Reverb & a "FAT" switch. There's only one channel and it has no standby (which is why I gave a 9). Standby would've been nice, but I get around it by using my BOSS Noise Suppressor pedal in "Mute" mode, thus creating a pseudo-standby. No big deal, though. This amp was an upgrade from my cheapo Epiphone practice amp. I use the amp mostly for practice, small gigs and recording, as its 15W is plenty for that.

The tweed finish really caught my eye, as well as the layout of the controls. Basic and to-the-point, unlike a lot of the junk on modern amps with built-in effects. I play Rockabilly, so I use effects pedals to get my tone. All I need from this amp is basic EQ and I let the pedals do the rest, since I go for a raw Rockabilly tone. I never use the Reverb, only when I get a hair up my butt to play "Walk Don't Run".

Right now I'm playing on a customized Epi LP with Duncan Phat Cats and a Gretsch G5129 with DeArmond 2000's. To get my tone, I run BOSS '59 Bassman, Compression/Sustainer & DD-7 Digital Delay on Analog mode for slapback echo. I leave the Volume knob on the amp in the middle and let the '59 Bassman pedal give me the bulk of the Overdrive. This rig gives me a raw Rockabilly tone, especially when playing on the Bridge pickup on my guitars. When using the amp's overdrive, to my ears it gives a smooth, "milky" type of distortion. I occasionally use it without my Bassman pedal to get smoother jazz-like tones. But with my rig this amp gives great sounds for my style of playing and music. It does the job very well for what I use it for!

I have never had a problem with it in the year I've owned it. I've seen reviews about the bias being too high. It may be the case, but so far no problems. I've played in cold garages in the dead of winter to hot garages in the dead of summer and everything in between with no issues. Plus I baby my amp; keep it covered when not in use and I don't bang it around. But shouldn't this be the case for all your equipment?

I have a few times needed to move it while it was on, and this created a screeching sound. Nothing happened, fortunately. But, hopefully my amp will live up to the legendary Fender reliability.

I've never had to contact Tech Support. Since I love this amp for practice and recording, I'll probably keep it for the rest of my playing years. I'm always the type to hang on to equipment and fix it as it breaks. I'm okay with electronic equipment, so if it breaks, I'll attempt to tackle the job myself. Failing that, there's an amp shop close to my work, so I can always hit them up for repair work if need be.

I would most definitely get another one if I lost it and kick myself in the butt. If stolen, someone's gonna die!

Overall the "bare bones" controls and tweed look complement myself and my playing style. I don't need a million fancy digital effects with a million knobs on an amp to play some Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash or old Sun Records era Scotty Moore tunes. Just give me my axe, my Blues Jr. and my BOSS DD-7 and I'll rock this town inside out. The price, control simplicity, tweed and tone had me sold when I tried it out at Guitar Center.

Although I wish it had a standby switch, this amp does exactly what I need it to do. When I'm ready to do bigger gigs, I'll get myself a Blues Deville 410 Reissue, as the Blues Jr. convinced me that Fender amps are awesome.

This is an updated review on a cream board Blue Junior NOS after mods. Let me say that I liked the amp right out of the box. However after reading several forums, I found out that the amp could be improved. My preference is for warm clean tone with maximum head room which can be used with both single coils and humbuckers.
First I changed tubes to JJs. Eddie at Eurotube is great to work with. Next I changed the stock Jensen speaker to a C-Rex. These changes did help me achieve a warmer sound with a bit more head room.
Finally, after reading about Billm mods,I decided to make a local road trip out to visit Bill himself,who could not be a nicer guy to work with. He is extremely knowledgeable and a true gentleman. Bill let me play through his various amps with different mods,speakers etc. By comparison, it was like my amp had a blanket over it even with the speaker and tube changes.
I decided to do the basic cream board mods, presence switch, clean boost, twin stack mod and change the reverb pot to a tapered audio pot which gives finer and more gradual control over dialing in reverb. I must tell you that Bill's prices for labor and materials are extremely reasonable compared to Techs I have used in the past.
After Bill did this work, I myself changed the reverb tank to a Ruby and installed the 3-way stand by switch ordered from Bill. The instructions he supplied could not be clearer and I made the upgrade in 15 minutes (working carefully/slowly) After the addition of a presence control and standby switch, I give this amp a 10 on features.

As mentioned after the mods, it was like I pulled a blanket off my amp. Let me be clear, Bill's mods do not change the character of the amp, but rather bring out it's full tonal potential. Tone is subjective, however there is no dispute that the moded amp tone is cleaner, more articulate with greater headroom. The boxiness, we typically hear of with the BJ is gone also. The twin stack mod allows you to totally dial out or signicantly reduce the mids which helped greatly to achieve a cleaner non-boxy tone. Bill even got out the annoying amp hum, buy re-routing wires which is part of the basic mods.
The addition of the presence adjustment allows you to contour the treble sound from sharp to warmer. Lower bias is dialed in with the newly installed manual bias mod, part of the basic cream board mods which makes the amp run cooler and yields greater head room. The Ruby reverb tank is warmer with longer duration. The audio taper pot on the reverb is a must, with this or even the stock Accutronics tank, giving you finer control, bringing the reverb in slowly as you turn up the reverb control.
While the Jensen speaker is much cleaner than the stock emminece speaker in the black tolex model, it is just too schrill, or what some call "ice picky" on the high end. I just love the rounded mellow tone of the C-Rex speaker. Now I get nice warmer highs, with that Fender chime, and a tighter, deeper, more pronounced bottom. The bottom end was improved further with Bill's power stiffening mods.
You may say, after all of these changes, "why not just buy another higher end amp". Look, if you are so inclinded to tinker, as myself and many of us do, I would have made some changes to refine the sound of any amp I buy. In fact, I plan to change the stock speakers in my 65 twin reissue to the C-Rex. However, for me, the BJ now gives me the exact tone I want and is a keeper. Thanks Bill for the mods, many e-mail conversations.

No problem since I have owned this amp.

Well, now with the mods done, the warranty is is void, but I do not care with the tone I have achieved. Even if a problem develops in the future, I just take a ride out to see Bill again. Why go to a random authorized Fender Tech when you can go directly to the "BJ Guru".

I have been playing guitar for over 40 years and am fortunate enough to own many high end and vintage guitars which this amp compliments well. In my opinion, you do not necessarily have to spend thousands on boutique amps to achieve really nice tone. I hope this review was helpful, because we, whether hobbiest or professional musicians, rely on one another for feedback and ideas.

This amp, made in Ensenada, Mexico, in 2008, has 15 watts from a single channel tube head, a Jensen 12" speaker and an attractive tweed covering. It has reverb, three-band EQ, volume and master controls, a "fat" switch, and a single input jack. It weighs 31 lb, and has a leather strap handle centered on the top. Power comes from a pair of EL84s; the pre-amp is composed of three 12AX7s and a solid state reverb driver, and the rectifier is solid state. It is constructed around an integrated circuit board.

It is retro-Fender in appearance, with the controls mounted at the top back edge, and has a brown and chrome "Fender" plate above the speaker baffle. It most resembles a '55-'59 Deluxe or Pro, and I find it attractive.

I use mine for coffee house gigs, church (the "Baptist Blues Band") and general jams.

For a basic guitar combo, it has plenty of features. Some may prefer an amp with switchable channels (I have a couple of them, myself) but they would be ought of place on this one.

I bought this to play my Gibson ES-335 through. I wanted a rounder, chimier tone than I was getting from my Fender Jazzmaster Ultralight, and it delivers. It's not crunchy (although you can get a creamy distortion by turning the volume -- pre-amp gain -- up) but those who want such sounds would not like the modest size on stage. I use mine on a tilt-back stand.

I play my 335 with a glass slide (getting old and arthritic in the fingers) and this amp sings: toneful and rich, and it will bite when I dig in with the pick.The responsiveness is one of the things I really like. By adjusting pick attack, I can easily go from mellow to stinging or anywhere in between.

It's an amp that works better to dialing in than to trying for a wide variety of sounds, which suits the way I play. If I want to be more aggressive, I have other amps for that, but for now I'm happy with this one.

If you're looking for the focused sound of the Deluxe Reverb reissue, this one may not be the one for you. On the other hand, I find the Blues Junior's chime more musically useful than what I hear from the DRRI.

I have not noticed any noise, and I have played reasonably large venues without micing it.

The reverb is Fenderish, but I improved mine by swapping out the stock reverb pan for a Ruby Reverb. It has a bit more shimmer, to my ear. Neither one could be used about about 3 on the knob, however, without becoming overpowering.

It's not an amp for all seasons, but it sounds the way I like to hear myself.

I haven't had it very long, but I note that there are many used ones around, and they work fine. A friend just acquired one several years old: he plugged a guitar in and it sounded almost as good as mine.

No worries for now.

No experience

Fender is increasingly finding sweet spots of size, sound and price. I hear people gripe about the circuit board wiring and "they don't make 'em like they used to" and all the rest, but this is an inexpensive gem. Try pricing an original Pro or Deluxe from the '50s and you'll find that you'll pay a lot more. The Hot Rod Blues Junior NOS (to give it the full title) is an excellent sounding, lightweight and attractive amp that looks at home everywhere I take it -- especially coupled with my natural blonde 335.

I own several Fender amps (Band-Master VM, the Blues Jr, and the Jazzmaster Ultralight), and each one works with one or another of my Gibson electrics (the 335, a Les Paul, and an SG).

I've been playing since '70, and bought my first tube amp in '74. Over the last couple of years I've been downsizing (no more 150 lb stacks!) and I was delighted to find this. It's great that Fender is building modern amps with warranties that sound this good.

If it walked, I'd definitely get another. It has gotten me away from my long-time love (the Les Paul) and made me play the 335. That's not a bad thing.

My comments are regarding the Fender Hot Rod Series Blues Jr. NOS, 15 watt, 12" Jensen speaker, Tweed finish. Purchased the amp new through MF a few weeks ago, approx $650 or so. Basic features, nothing special. I read a lot of praise on the various internet sites regarding this amp so I bought it. Had so many problems I sent it back and am now looking for something else. Going through many of the comments about the amp again, some sites are stuck on comments from two years ago!

Most often play my PRS Semi Hollowbody II and Fender VG. I generally play classic rock and blues. I delve into some alternative rock and metal w/ my son. I'll have to say, playing clean, the Blues Jr. NOS sounded OK. I tried the amp w/o added effects, altered the settings as much as I could....really, was NOT impressed. It is possible the poor sound was related to the problems written about below.

Fender, if you're listening, address your quality control. I've read other comments about new amps arriving w/ tubes rolling around the cabinet. I've read about malfunctioning reverbs. I think I experienced every problem w/ this one experience. The amp arrived w/ external packaging in great condition. Still, when opened, all the tubes were rolling around in the cab. There was also a loose spring and a metal bracket free in the cab. Replaced all the tubes, couldn't tell where the spring or the bracket were supposed to go. Plugged in and turned on. Reverb didn't work, it just let out a loud hum. Gain switch was crooked, didn't add much to the sound anyway. I got clean sounds out of the amp, not much else. Oh, there was an annoying vibration when every I played my 6th string!

I didn't call customer support. The amp sounded bland, reverb didn't work, couldn't coax much distortion, there were still the two loose parts, and the vibration occured every time I played the 6th string. Too many problems to try to fix. Sounded too bad to try to fix.

I've been playing guitar for 30 years, 10 years electric. I expect quality out of my gear and this Fender was a dog. I won't give Fender another chance, there are too many other choices out there. I purchased this amp because of all of the positive reviews out there, although, in retrospect, there were some red lights. Trayner has their "No matter what" warranty, perhaps I'll try the Custom Valve 40WR YCV40WR instead. Funny, I wrote a similar review for Musicians Friend where I purchased the amp but the review never appeared on the Blues Jr. NOS page. Hmmmm? Shop carefully. Too many people lately have been voicing concerns about Fender quality issues, I'm a prime example.

I have an 08 Tweed Blues Jr. It has pretty basic controls which is perfect. Volume, Reverb, Treble, Middle, Bass, Master and little guy called a fat switch. I think the basic Blues jr needs that fat switch but the tweed version with the Jensen speaker is nicw without it. You may have read that it does not have a standby...IT DOESN'T NEED ONE!! This is a 15 watt amp and has no need for one and it will not affect its performance at all.

For some silly reason I went a bought a Bad Monkey overdrive pedal before my amp arrived so I can play this amp at bedroom volumes but still get that creamy overdrive. No need for it, you can turn the volume up to 12 o'clock and the master as low as you want and it just oozes tone. Add the fat switch and you just faint. Well okay it does sound good and I am basing this on a 15 watt newly made amp, my bed has a 69 50 watt Marshall rectifier with original cab that looks like Hendricks dragged it around for years that sounds better but.....IT'S 15 WATTS AND ONLY WEIGHS 36 POUNDS!

This amp is not for someone who wants high headroom, it does break up easy, I have a guitar with P-90's and I can hardly get it clean but thats okay for me, I bought it for its overdriven sound.

Okay here's a story about this little guy's toughness. I bought a blem model from Guitar Center. Hey I figured they were selling the exact model with beer stains and a torn grill for a $100 more and calling it a special edition so how bad could a blem look. Well mine looks perfect so not sure what the blem was. Anyways when it arrived they had stuck it in a box that was too big for the amp and put a little paper in there to keep it from sliding around and that was it, no styrofoam or bubble wrap just the amp in a flimsy cardboard box. I mean when it arrived I could feel it sliding around and hear things rolling around inside (not a good sign). When I opened it I found three of the five tubes rolling around loose in the amp so I put them all back in and tightend up the others and turned it on and much to my surprise they were all glowing. The amp came through that horrible shipping without a scratch and it is working great.

I have never had to deal with a problem yet so can't say but the amp has a 5 year warrenty.

I have been playing for 8 years and am just a hacker but I am a tone whore and have been since I was 11 and hung around the stereo shops and that has been a looong time. I play a PRS with P-90's, A Washburn 335 copy modded that was way to chimey on my SS amp but is a blues machine on the Jr. I don't use effects much but have the Bad Monkey and a Zoom G.2 that I use for various effects when needed. I would get another if stolen for sure but may choose to not have it shipped!

On/Off Switch, Reverb, Master, Middle, Bass, Treble, Volume, and a Fat Switch. Those are the only controls on this amp. Nice and simple. Those are also the only controls you need on a good amp. To me that is better than having a bunch of built in modeling and effects. Those amps have a ton of features and do everything, but they don't do any of it good. This amp has all the controls you need to go from the cleanest of cleans to a gritty rock sound. I wouldn't advise getting this amp if you're into playing metal though. Kind of like you wouldn't buy a Mesa for its' cleans. It also handles the pedals I've used on it very well. They all sound great through this little amp. Add to that the Jensen speaker and the tweed casing and this amp has all the features you could want.

I use a Fender Am Deluxe, a Fender J5 Telecaster and some Ibanez guitars. I mainly use the strat and tele though so the others don't matter for this amp. I use this amp for blues, rock, classic rock, funk, etc. Can get a nice SRV to a RHCP Frusciante to a grittier rock sound with it. The amp is not at all noisy. I use a Dimebag wah, Boss DS1 and a Big Muff Pi. All 3 pedals sound great through this amp. Even with these pedals there's very little noise (obviously there's some when you're using a distortion/fuzz pedal though). That's good though cause I like playing with feedback.
This amp has the best clean tones I've ever heard. I love them. The first 2 nights I owned this amp I was up until 330am playing my guitar because of it. Eventually I became worn out and had to get a decent nights' sleep though. That's how good it sounds.

I haven't had this amp very long, but I have had no problems with it. I researched it pretty thoroughly before buying it and I didn't come across any complaints of people that had problems with it.

I have never had to deal with Fender's customer support. I think this is mainly because they make quality products that can take quite a beating.

I've been playing for 11 years. My other amps are a Mesa Boogie Dual Rectifier and a Vox Valvetronix AD30VT. The Mesa is amazing for high gain distortion and has a decent clean sound. I don't like the vox as I don't care for built in effects, modeling, etc.
The Blues Jr cleans blows anything I've heard away. I actually prefer the distortion I can get from the Blues Jr with the Big Muff Pi and the DS1 to the 2nd channel on my Mesa. Obviously though the Blues Jr can't compete with the Mesa when you switch the Mesa's distortion to Channel 3, but it's not made for that. Just like the Mesa's clean channel can't compete with the Blues Jr's cleans.
The only products you can compare this to are other Fender amps because no other amp can get that Fender clean sound. There's nothing I wish this amp had. I knew what it could do when I bought it and it does it all great.

This review is for the BJ Lacquered Tweed Limited Edition "Relic" version. The stock speaker is a Jensen P12R AlNiCo. I believe there were only 120 made, and it was made around 2005. I wasn't really looking for an amp with a relic job, I bought it for the oh-so-sweet sound. This amp also has the billm mods, which might also explain the smooooothe tone of this amp. I don't know if all the relic tweed ltd.ed. BJ's had the billm mods but mine did. Other features same as all other BJ's

With the billm mods, cream board and Jensen P12R AlNiCo speaker, this is the BEST Blues Jr. that I have ever heard. Virtually no amp hum or buz, can get anything from nice clean sparkly highs to fat crunchy overdrive without any pedals - Just by adjusting guitar volume, EQ, reverb, amp volume and amp master volume. I play the Blues & rock using Tele's & Strat's. I use this in my home and have played clubs with a band for up to 75 people with no problem. Compared to all the other BJ versions out there, I would have to rate the sound of this particular Fender BJ version a solid 10.

I have 4 fender tube amps, and 5 Fender electric guitars and I have never had one break. I just keep my equipment in good service and it has never let me down. Credit to Fender for good solid products!

I have asked a few product questions via email and have always gotten a timely response. I had some warranty work on a pickup height adjustment on a new Strat once, and they got right on it and got her fixed.

I've been playing over 40 years. I got the BJ because it is an excellent sounding amp for the size and price (easy to carry around) Like I said above, with the billm mods (tone stack, adjustable bias and power stiffening), and the Jensen P12R AlNiCo speaker, & the fender shop relic job, this combo has all the amp tone & mojo I need.

It has all the features I need. It would be good to have a standby switch and tremolo, but I can live without them. It also gets a point for NOT having any lame built-in digital effects.

I play it with a G&L Legacy and and Ibanez ES-335 clone. I usually put the gain on 9, the 'fat' button on, and the tone controls all the way up. It sounds great on this setting, with an edge-of-breakup sound that I can overdrive with a boost pedal or clean up with less volume on the guitar.

I owned a standard Blues Junior for about two weeks and hated the spiky treble and stiff response. I got this amp a year later and the difference is incredible! I really find it hard to believe it is the same electronics as the black version, they sound and respond a lot differently.

I have used this amp for straight-ahead jazz, funky Scofield-type stuff, SRV blues, and classic rock. It really lets the guitar and pickup sound come through and it's less finicky about pedals than my boutique amp. There is a little hum noticable at bedroom levels, but not at louder settings, and I don't notice any hiss.

It's good so far and I'm hoping it will continue to be reliable. I have a feeling the circuit-board-mounted tubes will cook the circuit board eventually but at least it is a common enough amp that an amp tech will probably know it pretty well already.

I doubt I would ever try to contact Fender if there was a problem because I don't expect that they would respond.

I also own a handmade Allen Encore blackface Fender Vibrolux/Super clone. The tone of the Blues Jr isn't as lush and responsive compared to the Allen, but that is to be expected. This amp is more portable than the Allen, which is a 4-10 combo, so it actually gets a lot more use. I would compare this amp to a Peavey Classic 30 or a Traynor YCV20, both of which I used to have, but I like this one better than either of those two and it is way above the standard Blues Jr.

If it went missing I would either look for another one of these or for a PTP Princeton or Deluxe Reverb type amp, depending on cash available. I really like how I can leave it on one setting and the overall sound comes from my guitars. It's very versatile in that way. It's not going to replace nicer boutique or PTP amps but it does a great job for the price and I like it the best of any circuit board mounted amp this size in current production.

The features have been covered countless times. I have everything I need on the control panel except a stand-by switch, which is a common complaint. The 50's style lacquered tweed and brown/gold grill cloth are lovely and the leather handle is a nice touch. The light weight is also a great advantage as I have to carry my own gear around. Roadies can get expensive.

Since I am throwing my opinion in here, this seems to be the most popular and reviewed amp on this site, I can only echo what other Classic Rock/Blues players say. This is a great amp for such musical styles. Beautiful clean to dirty tones and a nice Fender reverb. Surf sounds and 50's & 60's pop are also in this amp. I use Strats, a 335 and a new Tele and the amp allows the sonic character of each guitar to come through, whether you are playing clean or with the wonderful tube distortion that the Blues Junior produces. The controls are very interactive so dialing in the right mix is not an issue. Pedals are no problem either as it will take any pedal you can think of. One more thing, it has VOLUME and can get quite loud, especially considering it's size.

I have only had it for 3 months, but it seems very solid and well built.

Have never needed it.

I would rate this a 9.5 as 10 is considered perfect and no electronic device is perfect, yet. I demoed this with a standard Blues Junior, an Orange Tiny Terror combo and a VOX AC15. The Orange is good but a little more aggressive than I was looking for, while the standard Blues junior was not as full sounding as the Lacquered Tweed version. This is probably due to the Jensen speaker up-grade which is in the amp I bought. I already have a VOX AC30 and since I wanted something with a different sound, I passed on the AC15 even though it sounded very good. I still think the Blues Junior is a better amp for this size and price range (400.00 to 600.00) and I love the 50's look. This is a wonderful value for a Fender amp and I highly recommend it to players who are looking for a low to mid-powered amp and are into good musical tone and not massive metal noise pollution.

It would be great if this amp had a tremelo. Not really a problem though-reverb is good and has the basic controls you need.

The sound of this amp is wonderful! It has very nice glassy clean tones and has a good dirty blues tone when turned up. I usually use a 57 strat and a Les Paul w/50's neck through the Blues Jr and they both sound great. This amp is great for getting that Stevie Ray Vaughan tone. It is not an amp for metal players, but would suit any blues/rock player perfectly. The amp sounds the best if it's projected by a stand or is at ear level.

So far so good-haven't had any problems. It is a tube amp though, so be careful when carrying it around!

I got this amp at a very good price-only $400. I have been very pleased with it. It has that classic fender tone in an affordable, lightweight box. As good as any fender amp-check it out!!

All you need, really. No standby switch or effects loop, but good reverb, and tone controls that make a difference. 15 watts is a perfect output for everyday use. You would need to mic it if playing with a drummer.

Excellent. As good a fender amp as i have ever used. There not many amps that can conjure up a clean or overdriven tone at everyday levels any better, no matter how much you spend.
Its quiet, and handles effects fine.
The upgrade speaker from the standard is worth every cent.

Been rock solid and it had to put up with being stored in a garage and then played in varying temperatures. Not a problem.

this amp is best value I have come across. I have owned many, and also use a Matchless and a boogie mark one. this holds its own, which is amazing.
It does not feel as robust as those amps, and the covering feels a bit flimsy, but these are the most minor of quibbles. I would recommend this without hesitation. It is well worth paying the extra 80 bucks or so over the standard for the Jenson speaker. Put aside any sniffiness about it being made in Mexico and enjoy.

I have had very mixed feelings about how to rate this amp. Read on because I eventually wound up with a terrific sounding amp that I am very happy with. Nice features include spring reverb and a footswitchable gain boost and midrange control. Kudos for Master volume which is a crucial feature for me, not necessarily just for getting overdrive. It also allows me to dial in just the right charactor of clean tone too.
Basically this amp is a jack of several trades, master of none but is low priced compared to any boutique equivolent. I would not say this amp is generous for the price however. Overall build quality is POS: cheap particle board cabinet, flimsy pc board with super thin traces, cheapo plastic pots mounted directly to a pc board and with NO threaded nuts securing them, and feeble power supply. Push a little on any pot and you flex the entire board!

The fixed resistor value it comes with runs the bias WAY WAY too hot which cooks the power tubes so hot the paint burnt within the first day! It sounds raspy, weak and edgy until the bias is fixed. The reverb is op amp driven, something I didn't even think was possible and the boost uses a JFET or some type of transistor. The other glaring problem is thanks to poorly laid out board: It is highly prone to oscillation. This accounts for the low level squeals with cranked gain and also the unstable "swimming" sort of response that kept irking me. Go find BillM's site on the internet for help.

This amp is for all practical purposes, really not a Fender amp. It is better thought of as a low budget hotrodded Vox AC-15. Before buying it I constantly read complaints of a "boxy sound". At first I didn't know what they were talking about until I stepped away from the speaker. For some reason this amp has very, very poor off axis response. Consequently it does not project sound well at all which was immediately obvious when I tried playing along with a friends fender deluxe and vibrolux reverbs. I highly recommend a good amp stand which went a long way to correcting this issue.

I bought this amp knowing full well it needed aftermarket work. I also own a Marshall plexi 50w reissue that I completely rebuilt with ptp board etc. I bought this little amp because I have been enjoying getting back to my roots with old zeppelin, more jazzy blues rock etc. And I DO love a tinkering project if gets me somewhere. I am mostly playing a Fender Custom shop strat with Dimarzio HS-3 PUS. I DO manage to get a great old fashioned strat tone with these pu's believe it or not.

If you do nothing else, at least jump the midrange pot and Kudos to BillM for coming up with this trick! That extends the range of the mid pot such that you can pull down mids more and get much more of a traditional fender tone. Out of the box, the distortion was ok but raspy and not inspiring. Clean sounds were ok but bland, thin and also not inspiring. I constantly had the sensation of a nice tube tone being somehow suffocating in a closet. The response of the amp was also jumpy and erratic.

Here is everything I did which finally got the old fashioned vintage tone I was seeking: A tech friend installed adjustable bias and got the power tubes running in the proper range. Then we converted power section to triode mode. This drops power to about 10 watts but gained much needed density and richness to the tone. Doubling the power supply cap gave it a bit more punch. I have seen preamps with a more robust power supply than this amp! Jump the mid pot as I discussed above. Then I replaced coupling caps with high voltage film-foil orange drop types. Icing on the cake was replacing the high voltage plate resistors with funky old fashioned carbon compositions which generate a lot of low harmonics when under stress and also gives you a richer sound. The final step was caving in and putting a Dunlop 10 band eq in front of the amp. Try this before you go mucking around revoicing the tone stack. I put in a mild midrange bump with the modded midpot down to 3 and notch out 125hz about 6 db. You might question why hit the amp with a midboost and suck it out again but trust me its not the same and works like magic. Notching out 125hz might be simulating a 10 inch speaker which perhaps might be more appropriate for this amp and a mod I contemplated. After all this, I have a really vivid, authentic old electric-chimey yet purring warm clean tone, very much like Zeppelin's "since I've been loving you" off led zep 3. Although the amp's distortion is now quite good, I like to use an analoge delay which requires distortion BEFORE it. So I use a fantastic non-op amp based pedal by zvex call the "box of rock" which I will review seperately. With the eq in front of it, I get a very dumble-ish distortion texture that really inspires me. So, out of the box, this amp gets a 6. I list the score AFTER modding it to include my eq pedal trick which didn't at all impart a cheap transistor tone I would have expected. Also despite being allergic to op amps I did finally start using the reverb and frankly I admit it manages to sound good, not the "boing" you get with tube driven springs but still decent and usefull.

I have not had a problem but surely would have without fixing the bias. You would only get one chance to drop anything on the amp's pots. This is not a rugged amp, treat it like a newborn baby.

N/A

If you are making the transition from a cheap solid state practise amp you will most likely be delighted. If you've have owned and played the best like original vintage tweed amps, boutique stuff etc you will either accept it for what it is or make a rewarding project out of fixing its flaws and wind up with a terrific sounding little amp cutie of an amp. The oscillation problems and totally idiotic bias out of the factory are inexcusable however.

Also forgot to mention tubes. I used to roll my eyes over exclaimations of joy from swapping preamp tubes. My tech friend has a tube tester and we are astounded at how rare a sovtech 12ax7 ever ever measures beyond "reject". 9 times out of 10 at least one half the tube is practically dead. Yes, we compare other tubes, any generic chinese tube usually has strong emissions. Sure enough all three stock sovtech preamp tubes were practically dead on the tester. Replacing them to include a pricey NOS vintage 12ax7 for the first stage was indeed a miraculous improvement though not initially enough to overcome all my complaints until the rest of the amp was tuned up.

Features have already been previously described for amp. I like things simple and this amp does just that. In addition I was looking for something light weight, portable with good sound. I own a fender Twin 65 reissue and a Hot Rod Deluxe, both pretty heavy to transport. I rated it a "9" because a standby switch would have made the simple features of this amp perfect.

There is a big diffence in the NOS tweed version with the Jensen vs. the Emenence speaker in the standard black tolex BJ. I was originally considering the black tolex version, but just was not impressed by the sound. It was just OK. Then one day when I was in Guitar Center, and was listening to one of the sales guys playing a Les Paul which sounded great (warm clean). I was surprised to see it was a tweed Blues Junior. I asked the guy to play through both amps and comfirmed the big difference in sound between the two amps. I must admit that I originally thought while the tweed was pretty cool looking, the difference bewteen the two amps was just in appearance. Boy was I wrong and I bought it on the spot for $500! I did re-tube it with a set of JJ tubes which for $53 made a noteable improvement to the already warm clean sound with additional head room as I play primarily "clean". By the way, the Eddie at Eurotubes was just great speaking with me via e-mail as well as on the phone to put together a JJ tube set combination designed for the sound I wanted. I play blues, rock, jazz and Christian contemporary music. I own a Hertiage H555, Les Paul, Strat, '59 Gibson ES 125, D'Aspiranta New Yorker and all sound great through this amp. In fact, I rarely use the Hot Rod Deluxe any more since I have this amp. My twin is too heavy to move and stays at my church where I use it to play with a contemporary choir.

After a day or so I discoved one of the original pre amp tubes was microphonic and Guitar Center immediately replaced the tube. Since then, I have had no other problems.

No support from Fender required. I only received customer support from Guitar Center replacing thhe bad tube without question.

Best production line small small amp out there for the money. Great sound (warm clean Fender tone), cool looking, light weight and plenty loud for a 15 watt amp. This amp could easily be miced if played in a larger venue.

all features have been previously described. i don't know how to operate a real tricky amp so it's plenty good for my purposes.

mostly blues with strats and dual humbucker solid bodies. this amp is easy to dial in. much more responsive than the two bj's i owned a few years ago. just twist a few knobs and you get a great warm clean or a dirty and dirtier grind tone. nice grit to it, maybe not the best of all time but it is a very useable amp right out of the box.

my first one started making hawaiian noises and the 12ax7 in V1 was going major microphonic. guitar center gave me a new tube and it was less microphonic. trusted it enough to gig with it, however it died in the second set. luckily i had a back-up. GC exchanged it for a new one and so far so good. i'm gonna try it at our next few shows. hope it works.

fender customer support? ok i guess.

i'm a retired guy, kinda new to gigging, been screwing around with the blues for about 7 years now. been through stacks of amps, built and rebuilt a few. i kinda know what sounds ok. this one is my current fave. portable and sounds bueno, clean or grind. i'm gonna knock off a point for the reliability factor. for the money (not a knock, it's priced fairly for a mass produced amp) it sounds far better than most.

I have the 60 anniversary tweed cream board.
I had heard about it and when I turned it on the first time I understood the rage. None of this applies to metal...Jazz very wide variety in this 24 year band.
We cover 60,70 80's dance wedding band..not many bars after 40 years of playing
R&B Classic rock..Clean is drop dead and I own Budda, mesa, ada Mp2 150 comb0, '65 twin ' original 53 fender ..many others.
In a small gig it smokes with a very natural organic natural 'sit in the mix and cut' sound clean. Clapton tone is stunning!
Simple set and forget! No boogie 'tweakness don't move a single knob paranoia"..too complicated and will certainly distract / interfere with your playing a Boogie and tone wimps out! Junior is S I M P L E thank God after rack midi nightmare days!

'53 teal my dad bought new..real deal,,,Lindy Fralin rewound original. Absolutely nails tele clean and overdrive. I use PRS '87 bought new and PRS HB2 which feedsback to soft harmonic beautifully..strat. Single coil or 'buckers both well!! Very quiet..so organic natutral !! Drop dead Stones tones...Locked and slaved to the Budda 18 watter it is absolutely the best sound I have gotten all these years..Bigger gigs get both..small gig Fender only by demand of killer players in the band far more talented than me. With 2 Keeley pedals and fulltone OCD (Marshall in a stomp box..Santana Gary Moore)..and
L O U D in a hot room. I will never sell this amp as it also is the perfect bedroom amp.
The Budda if mid size large gig..there is a" badger" amp for you from clean to Brutal..11 for blues junior IMUO> I L O V E this little 31 pound monster. I have played some fairly large rooms..no mike...BUY ONE!! ...huge on stage sound that just wails!!! Junior best value for $ anywhere!!!!!!

It;s a fender and getting the tubes breathing very hard with low wattage is key for me personally. Just super warm tube saturation and I love the el84's. Suits vintage well. Mertal players do something else..whatever that is!
Has seen some very hard gigs and loud plaing..not one single problem. Again you will never find this sound at this price with any amp!! Do Not let 15 watts fool you..it's loud on it's own
and through a 4x12 Marshal or 2x12 it's blastin!!

mmm no clue..NOT BOOGIE or BUDDA for sure from what I'ver heard...Budda is unreal as in they call or email back in minutes or hours same day with tube questions...great bunch of guys at Budda...(Sorry just can't shut up about my precious Budda 18..all Boogies for sale!

Playing 40 years..drums for 10.5 in college. Would buy another the same week. Very articulate and immediate pick response..funk licks are slammin'
Look guysat the end of the day its about a simple great sounding amp so we can play and woodshed..not tweak for days! This amp and the Budda are set and forget...very responsive to volume and tone clean up. Ok I do Love it so much I hate I waited to buy. So fast load in and out...small 4 pedal board. I would have paid twice as much...very close to many Victorias I have played. It's funny in that I am blessed to not have to worry about money but I go for this $520 amp anyday!
Higher cost is BUDDA 18 hands down. play one and you will probably buy it in a vintage cover band. EXTREMELY LOUD 18 watts..never above 5 in huge clubs and convention centers.

2005 Blues Jr amp. 15 Watts of El-84 tube power, Single Channel, 1X12 Jensen speeker. I like the fact that it has a gain knob as well as a master volume knob. I wish it had a stand-by switch but I have found a way arround that by using a tuner pedal that mutes the signal when engaged. The light weight is really nice. It is designed to be a straight forward single channel amp with great tone and that's exactly what it is. However, I gave it a 7 because when you get right down to it it's elegently simple.

I play Strats and LP's through this amp. Both sound great! I play blues, classic rock and alt rock. It excells at blues and classic rock and get by as a alt rock amp. It takes pedal real well (you might want to get a reverb pedal because the reverb leaves a little to be desired.) I also usa TS-808 Tube Screamer modded by Robert Keeley that sounds awsome through this amp.

It took me a little bit of time to dial this amp in and it definitaly seemed to improve sonically as the Jensen speaker broke in. When I first brought it home it has serious ice pick goning on but it has since warmed up VERY nicley. Some say it is too warm but I love it's tone, especially when it is played loud in a band! However when you are playing loud in a band you cannot expect this little beauty to be sparkley clean. It will always be a little "hairy". I gave it an 8 only because when compared to legendary amps like Deluxe Reverb or a Bassman or compared to great boutique amps it is still falls a little short. It's still a great amp though and I love it.

Never a problem, owned for one year and transported it to an from rehersals the whole time. It's never let me down.

I have never had to call Fender for anything.

I have been playing for over 20 years and have owned a Boogie Mark 4 and a Fender Twin. In my opinion the little beauty sounds better than the Boogie and the Twin. This is a great little amp. The only reason I would consider replacing it is if I needed more power. Until, and if, that moment ever comes I will continue to play the snot of this little jewl.

I believe this amp is made in m along with the other Hot Rod Series amps.A single channel reduces flexibility but the treble, mid and bass knobs really allows you to sculpt whatever sound you are looking for and the master volume allows many varities of cruch at virtually any volume-great for practice or small gigs. The reverb is fine, and the fat switch does give you some control as you can purcase a foot control for this.

I originally bought the black tolex version of the blues jr from a small local music shop. I was upset at myself when i realized several weeks later that there was a tweed version available at Guitar Center that looked alot cooler and also featured a Jensen C12N speaker. When I compare the two amps directly at a Guitar Center store I realized immediately that I bought the wrong amp! The Jensen speaker took away the harshness that I was hearing in the stock speaker and added depth, warmth and richness. I purchased the NOS version and sold my old blues jr on Craig's list within 24 hours!I am ecstatic with this amp, as it has a beautiful clean sound and a creamy distortion that is reflected by the sweet EL-84 output tubes. I know everybody likes to talk mod, but this amp does not need a single thing done to it.

it seems very well built.

i have been playing for 35 years and own several PRS guitars and currently playing a fender deluxe strat alot.I love the way this amp looks and sounds and I think it is a killer value.

This amp has been reviewed so much that I'll only add here that I replaced the EL84 Groove output Tubes with NOS RCA Black Plates ($100 matched pair), put in a GE 5751 ($12) in V-1, and 12AY7 in V-3 ($15), left the Fender V-2 12AX7 alone. I also put a Boss FDR-1 (Fender Deluxe Reverb pedal, reverb/tremolo/gain) in front of it.

The amp now produces the closest thing to the classic Chicago Blues tone of a Fender Deluxe Reverb that I could ever get (think Mike Bloomfield, Albert King, etc.) in a 30 lb amp. The Jensen speaker really helps. To get that sound one has to dime the Master (pushing the output tubes), and put the volume on 6 or better (which controls the pre-amp tubes), mids about 6, bass 6-9, treble 4-5. It's very loud even in a smaller bar at that point, but I have a Dr Z Airbrake attenuator that will reduce volume in smaller locations or at home and leave tube saturation alone. I use the reverb/vibrato mix from FDR-1 pedal, add a little gain, and presto! The NOS Blues Jr. just sings!

I also have a Fuchs BJ 21 6V6 tubes very clean amp that with the FDR-1 pedal won't make that sound like the BJ does. It takes a Fender circuit wired for reverb to get it. I couldn't get it with a Fender Deluxe clone (5E3 circuit) either.

I only had one Fender (new Champ) that had a bad circuit board in 50 years. I trust Fender products, and know their centers repair them.

Never needed any in last 50 years.

Playing since '55. I now play Gibson ES-345 and Heritage H-157 (original LP factory in Kalamazoo), both with PAF '57 humbuckers. Only other pedal I ever use is Boss Blues Driver with heritage, but seldom need it with ES-345 as I have Varitone switch and wiring (like BB King), and moving switch from 2 back to 1 gives big volume increase, and moving pickup switch from Neck to both pickups is all the boost I ever need.

Past BJ's I have owned sucked, were too too muddy, not clean enough, most probably due to Sovtek tubes and bad speakers. I tried, but never kept one. Tweed Pro Jr.'s (USA) were better and cleaner at lighter weight. Fender has hit a home run with this NOS model!

The old full time guitar tech (old friend) at GC turned me on to it, and I couldn't believe it. I had the chance to A/B it with the FDR-1 pedal and a Deluxe Reverb while there, and was stunned at the tone!

I made this review simply in the hopes that it may help another player who likes the Deluxe Reverb sound to have it in a 30 lb. rig, that costs much less even after buying FDR-1 and new NOS tubes ($800 vs $1200). Also, the NOS BJ has a multitude of other great tones for R&B, classic rock, surf, anything other than heavy distortion and metal. My new 30 lb Blackface Fender!

You know the details.
You know what, this amp is simple, perfect. I use it for it's clean tones primarily. it's overdriven tones are good too. The reverb is decent. the fat switch does fatten it up a little and the eq section does what you would expect. For the money, it has nice features and sounds good. I wish it had a standby switch but it doesn't and that doesn't ruin my day. I use this amp with a small pedal board. I use it for blues and classic rock and it works perfect. it sounds good with a harmonica/mic too. I don't gig out with it and if I did I would mic it and run it that way. It's actually pretty loud for it's size. It's nice and light so if your drummer isn't a lumberjacker, your golden. I really like the laquered tweed. Once you go tweed, you never go back!

I love the way it sounds. I could rate this against a twin but this isn't a twin. this is a good sounding, inexpensive response to what alot of amatuer musicians were asking for. I run some pedals through it and it sounds good. I overload it for fun and it has never broken up or given me any lip. It just does what it does and nothing more. If I wasn't married, I'd have another and run them stereo bacause I could. But I am so that dream is smothered. It's not any more noisy than any other amp. The amp goes from sparkly clear to light overdrive. You can mod this to your liking though. Lots of mod sites. Lots of Bj cults. Check them out. Good info. For blues and classic rock tones, it's awesome. If you want to play slipknot or L.O.G., go get a Rivera or Mesa. But if your loaded you probably went straight to the twin anyway. Whatever. For 5 bills it sounds excellent and is fun to play.

I have heard that they run hot and you can mod them so you don't burn your tubes up and ruin the board and plastic sockets. But I don't really know so I'll probably just play it to death and them think about that stuff when i need to revive it. It has never quit on me so far. If I was worried and so inclined, I might get some nicer tubes and all that but I'm not. I'm lazy. I think its fine. two years and no problems. And i do some stupid stuff to it. It's not made for metal but I wouldn't know.

It's a fender, need I say more?? yes, they are probably just as big a pain in the butt to get ahold of as anyone else these automated days. But I have never had a problem and I have been abusing it for two years now. I'm not going to drag a rating down because I don't know.

I like it. I like these low wattage, tube amps. I like the way it sounds. it's light and portable. the tweed is cool. I use it for harmonica also. if anything is going to blow it up, I'd think that would be it but it's not a problem. I have run some pretty long strings of effects through it and it's cool. It's not top of the line but it's far from bottom. For what it is it is perfect for the money you pay and the sounds you get from it. If you're a tube person. I have been playing for 13 years. I'm not going to tell you I know good tone. I know what I like and it's more than likely not the same as your tastes. But from a versatility standpoint, very. It's going to appeal more to blues, classic rock, etc. If it were stolen I'd be pissed. these tweeds are hard to find and I like it. I didn't compare it to other products because there weren't any in that price range. If I wish it had one thing it would be a standby switch and/or better reverb. It's usefull up until 3 and then it's just too damn much. But i'm sure someone will love it and find a use for those tones. So I would just say the standby switch. that's it. But it's not a big deal. I paid 5 bills and not 10.

I just picked up the amp brand new so I assume it is a 2007 model. I think it is a very versatile amp in the context of what it is. It is a bles amp and so will not be good for metal. However, as far as blues tones go, this amp is great! Everytime I plug in I am able to get some new sounds out of it. I have only had it for a couple of weeks but I have been playing it about 2-3 hours daily. This is a very basic tube amp combo, no effects loop, no headphone jack. Single channel, three knob eq, master and pre-amp volume, with reverb. It also has a "fat switch" that give it a little mid boost. I play it at home and it gets pretty loud but not too loud. I can crank it without getting the cops over but it still has enough to piss off my wife. I really like the basic controlls on this amp.

This amp sounds great!! Since getting it I have been late to work everyday because I cant stop playing it. I need to qualify that by saying that this is a $500 dollar amp, and in that price range I don't think I could find anything better. I have heard some people compare this amp to much more expensive amps and complain that this amp is not as good. That is true, but for this price range this amp sounds real, real good. The clean is just beautiful. I like that you can really turn up the clean without too much breaking up.The amp breaks up at about 6-7 on the volume and does it perfectly. When playing master volume and preamp volume both flat out chords get pretty muddy, but single note soloing just screams! I have been able to get a variety of sounds out of it with no effects in. There are time playing through this amp I get a shiver up my back from the sheer sconic quality.I am playing a custom warmoth strat with DiMarzio noisless pickups. There is some noise at higher volumes but nothing that bothers me at all. The reverb is the biggest drawback. Past 2-3 and it is about useless to me. Not the type of reverb I normally think of when it come to Fender. But it is usable at those low levels. I played a standard version of this amp at the store and there is no comparison. I would not have purchased that amp but the Jensen speaker in this tweed addition make a huge difference.

I only have had this amp for a couple of weeks so I can not comment here

Have not had to deal with the company ever.

I have been playing for 24 years. I have owned several Fender amps as well as vox and Marshal. I have owned solid state but cant stand the fake sounds that I have gotton from most of those. This amp is real tube tone and to my ears is beautiful. I play blues, rock, punk, jazz and rockabily and this amp seems to work for all. If someone stole this amp they better hope I never find them because I would be seriuosly pissed off. Sound vs price this is my favorite amp I have ever owned.

This is the third (countem: 3rd) Tweed NOS Blues Jr. I have owned but more on that story later. I also own a Mesa/Boogie F-30 combo.

For such a small, highly portable combo, this little class A tube amp's 12 inch Jenson Ceramic speaker brings memories of classic rock and roll with a little bluesy twang. But, with a twist of the Volume knob this thing also growls and drips dirty yet creamy tones all over its beautifully lacquered tweed covering delivering a powerful punch from within such a refined exterior.

The controls are just like the amp itself: straightforward. The Power Switch and red jewel power indicator are located on the top of the cabinet next to the Master Volume & Volume, tone and reverb control knobs. The control knobs are all black "chicken-head" style knobs again commanding images of those classic tweed amps of the 50s.

This amp works great as a practice amp at home as well as in small jam sessions like I have at two different friend's homes. Being powerful and portable is great. Just a hair shy of being powerful enough to rattle the next door neighbor's dishes and yet still being able to rattle yours' is a major plus in this little beast. Can you control it??

For what its worth and how the amp's features work in relation to the amp's tone, the tweed covering appeal and the combo's overall size, I give it a 10 on features as it is exactly what I want for its size and tone.

From clean bell tones to classic broken overdriven tube tones. The Jensen Ceramic speaker is a significant upgrade from the standard Blues Jr's speaker. As I worked in Guitar Center all summer and fall, I had many opportunities to A/B this amp (INCLUDING A STANDARD BLUES JR) with many many other amps in the store. The fact of the matter is several sales associates and I agreed to the amp having the best looks, tone and overall bang for the buck when compared to several more expensive amps and several much more expensive amps. I have had many occasions to completely max the Master Volume and find where I think the sweet spot is around 4.5 on the Volume control. Anything higher is a bit muddy in my opinion.

I did enjoy playing through the Mesa/Boogie Express 5:25 which were very close in sound quality on the 5 watt setting, which I found surprising considering the price difference which was the major factor for not purchasing the new Mesa (I do already have the f-30) Nothing from Marshall, Peavey, Line Six, B-52, Crate, or even Fender could come close for value, looks, size and that bang for the buck factor. The AC15 Vox did come in a close second because it was close in price and tone but the look of the NOS Blues Jr won.

Actually, what got me to purchase this amp again was how it sounded when played WITH a Mesa F-30 like the one I have at home. Standing there in the store with a blend of those awesome two amps bathing me from both sides was invigorating and as smooth a deal closer as you ever heard of in your entire life. Having them together in a stack and mixed together is my tone now.

I also had the privilege of playing several dozen guitars thru the amp as it was always my demo amp of choice while at Guitar Center. Never had to worry about tweaking that one to make whatever guitar we were trying out sound good right off the bat.

My personal electric guitars include a PRS Custom Artist 24, a custom Stratocaster, and a Gibson Flying V.

No Pantera or Children of Bodom tones from this amp without pedals.

But damned if I can't nail Clapton's Lay down Sally or Knopfler on Sultans as clean tone examples and ZZ Top's La Grange all fat and dirty with NO EFFECTS. Throw a tubescreamer in the line and damn, as Billy G says "watch out watch out..." Being single channeled is actually just what I need does not limit this one if you have a good effects pedal line up.

A hand built point to point amp might get a 10 for sound but this one sure deserves a 9 for sweet tone outta the box.

So, as I said this is my third one.

FIRST (December 2005) Immediately dug the look and when a buddy of mine got one, I had to have one. I had mine for a couple of days and it started continuously rattling in the reverb even when the reverb was not on. I took it back and upgraded to the Mesa/Boogie F-30. I still have and love that Mesa.

Second (Sept 2007) After working in Guitar Center and realizing what a truly versatile amp it was, even comparing it to the Standard Blues Jr, I had to have another one. I dig many things about it and had forgotten about the trouble I had with the first one until...it started buzzing and buzzing no matter what power conditioner or supply. No explanation for what it was. I took this one back to Guitar Center remembering what happened 2 years ago. When I was there, I plugged into the floor model that I had demo'ed so many guitars thru, and had subsequently drug all over the floor during my A/B test

THIRD (October 2007) I took the floor model home because even with the hours I had personally played on it at the store, not to mention all the times I literally plugged someone into it, the thing was in PERFECT condition and obviously sounded great and already broken in. I have begun to call this one BURLEY and am stoked it has been played by COUNTLESS people.

I give this amp a reliability score of six (2 of the 3 I have owned went back to the store) and still wonder about that even though the one I have is proving to be a stalwart example of the Tweed Special Edition Blues Jr for sure.

Never had to deal with Fender directly as Guitar Center took the amp back both times no questions asked.

I think if you are looking for a great sounding practice amp that you could almost swear was a vintage amp in looks and tone, then the Tweed Blues Jr Special Edition is the one for you. When compared with many other amps in this size and price range, this one wins hands down. The ability to have such a diverse range of tone from super clean to fat and dirty is wonderful in such a small package.

The tweed covering is also very nice to look at so you could almost leave this one in the living room and get compliments from the guests instead of having it out in the garage...

I am a bit concerned about the durability of this amp but am glad to report that this particular one has done rather nicely. In the past two months since I picked it up, I have had it on a cross country trip jamming in 4 states along the way and in several jam situations since I have been home in Park City. I think if it breaks down for any reason I will send it to Billm and have his modifications applied. But right now I will continue to rock it daily...

If someone stole it I would be bummed but they will have to get thru my attack powderdog first...

Not sure of the year, it was bought new in late 2007 (so I'm guessing it's a 2007 model).

I play alternative, rock, and blues. This amp is definitely a great choice for much of the stuff in those genres. You won't get heavy rock or grunge out of this thing without a pedal though.

Single channel amp (with preamp and master volumes) with a spring reverb tank, no effects loop or headphone jack.

It would have been nice to have this be a multiple channel amp with an effects loop, but for the size and cost, it's probably not feasible.

I use this amp mainly at home (volume is usually around 2-3). This thing certainly has the power for playing with a band and small club gigs.

It includes three 12AX7 preamp tubes and two EL84 power tubes, and a solid state rectifier.

This is the best sounding small portable amp I have ever played through. Compared to the stock (black tolex) Blues Junior, this thing kicks butt. It's certainly worth the price premium over the stock version (which I have previously owned). The tone is thicker and has more bottom end. I can't get enough of it!

The amp goes from classic Fender clean to a mild overdrive. I haven't cranked the amp to gig levels yet, but from what I hear it's not too difficult to get nice power tube overdrive out of this thing at higher volumes. If you need the extra clean headroom, you can swap to tubes with a different rating.

I play with a Fender Highway One Stratocaster, and the combo is absolutely to die for.

There is a very small amount of low-level hum when the amp is turned on (though much less than the Vox AC15CC1 that I bought and returned). Though, it has to be really quiet in order for you to hear it (at Guitar Center, with the ambient noise and my ear right next to the speaker, I couldn't hear the hum...only at home where it's dead silent was the hum apparent, and only if you're really close to the amp).

I haven't had any problems with this amp yet (though it is still pretty much brand new).

I haven't had to deal with customer support at all. It does have a 5-year warranty though.

I've been playing guitar for the better part of 12 years now, and have gone through a multitude of electric and acoustic guitars, amps, and other gear.

At this point, I can say that the Fender Blues Junior NOS Tweed is the best amp I have come across for the size (portability is a big factor for me) and cost. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to anyone, and like I said previously, it's a HUGE step up from the stock black tolex Blues Junior.

If this amp were lost or stolen I would get another one immediately.

First let me say that this and other "tweed" Blues Jr. amp's are no different than any of the tolex or other models with the exception of the speaker. This 60'th Anniverisary issue comes stock with a Jensen C12N, which is a HUGE improvement over the stock Eminence "Fender" speaker that comes with other models. The circuitry is the same as all the BJ's made since 2001 when the tan board version came out. The tan board version has had some changes made to it as compared to the old green board version used in the early models. The reverb circuit was changed and the layout of the circuit board is different as well, but other than reverb circuit, the main circuit remained the same as the older model. I have a tweed 1996 model as well as this new tweed model. They do sound different, and with the bugs removed from the older green board model, I believe that they have a better tone than the new models. I modify my own amp's, and I've done and tried every mod ever thought of and then some for this amp. The tone stack mod's as per the Bill M mod's are a must, and changing all the cap's to better ones help's too. I use the amp for harp, and as it comes stock, is an OK amp with the C12N, but for harp, a vintage Jensen P12R is THE only speaker for this amp. A P12R only, don't use a P12S, P12Q or other type. The P12R was made for a 18 watt amp and is perfect for the BJ. With the right mod's for harp, this amp can be one of the best 15 watt amp's ever made for harp, but the mod's are a must. With the right mods, the amp has great crunch and distortion, plenty of volume and tone comparable to the old class A amp's. The vintage Jensen P12R alone makes a big improvement. With the right mods, it's a tough amp to beat for harp tone. Very loud and awesome Chicago blues tone. With a seperate master and preamp volume, the tone controls and reverb, you have total control over the sound of the amp. Not many 15 watt amp's with all these features sound this good!

The tone is very shapable with all the controls available, and the reverb on the new tan board models can be a bit harsh, but that can be fixed. I modified my amp to make the reverb sounds adjustable to suit my taste, but I still like the old green board reverb better. I don't use a lot of reverb, so it really not a big issue. The overall sound quality of the amp is very good. If you want it for harp, the Jensen C12N is a good speaker, but if you want a more distorted crunchy tone, then stick a vintage Jensen P12R in it. Get a vintage one, not a new P12R, there's no comparison. For guitar, the stock Jensen C12N is a great speaker. Very efficient and gives the amp lot's of volume.

Being in the amp repair - modding business, I've seen many Blues Junior amp's with problems, mostly due to the flimsy soldering on the circuit boards. They run very hot as they come from the factory, and they go through power tubes much faster than they should. This is a problem that can be fixed as well by having the bias lowered, or made adjustable. The volume and tone pot's also wear out quite easily, but go easy on them and you'll get a few years out of them before they need to be replaced.

Depends on where you have to take it. Support from Fender is OK.

Overall, the Blues Jr. laquered tweed model (60'th Anniverisary)is a very cool looking amp, and it does sound much better than the other stock models thanks to the Jensen C12N speaker which does not come as stock with other models. Out of the box, OK. Modified it can be one of the best 15 watt amp's around, especially if you play harp. I'm not a guitar player, but I have many friends who have played through the amp stock, and I have to say that it's an impressive amp for being only 15 watts. Good tone and plenty loud. Very loud with a guitar. I don't know why some people are paying $700 for it when it can be had for $550 or less if you're patient and look around. I paid $413 for mine, thanks to my buddy at the store where I bought it new, but I have seen them for sale new for around $500 on the net. Would I buy another if it were stolen? No, I'd hunt down the person who stole the amp and use my older one until I found them. If they made it out of the country, I would definately buy another one!

This is my baby as far as amps go--there are so many people who rag on this kind of amp--but when you listen to them -they are playing metal or hard rock and wanting this to do that--it is a BLUES amp--says it right on the back--this sucker is pristine and for more distortion--throw a tube screamer at it--chorus--get a t.c. electronics scf--this thing is loud but not annoyingly hot rod deluxe loud--i am convinced most guitarist are deaf these days--this thing will hold up and deliver--it also sounds good with acoustic guitars--but with a strat--forget it--i put it up against anything else out there--and that's from a blues player for 25 years of searching for the right tone.