Fender Blues Junior

2007 Fender Blues Junior, 15w single channel tube amp with a 12" Eminence Gold Label speaker. Fat switch for slightly more gain from the preamp. It seems designed as a practice amp, although it can get loud enough for small gigs. My favorite feature is the Master volume knob so I can let it overdrive without pissing off the neighbors. I haven't been playing very long and I don't gig so this was just about perfect for my needs.

This amp sounds great. It has an excellent clean sound, and if the volume is cranked it dishes out some nice blues crunch that cleans quickly if you back off on the guitar's volume. As I said before, to avoid pissing off the neighbors and my family I take the volume all the way up to 12 and leave the master at just under 2. Jamming with my band, I don't need to take the master above 4 to be heard above the drummer. The distortion on this amp is good, but the BJ is no Marshall. It has enough dirt for blues and some rock, but if you want hard rock or metal tones you're going to need a pedal. I tried a Bad Monkey OD for a while, but I wasn't happy with how it screwed with my tone. I now use a BBE Boosta Grande, which transparently pushes my amp into Zeppelin territory. I play blues and rock through a G&L Tribute Legacy, and I get a great sound. I'm thinking of upgrading the speaker, but that's just my endless pursuit of tone.

I've owned the BJ for about 6 months, and because I don't gig, it has sat in the same place in my house for nearly all that time. It's been great, never given me any trouble.

I think it has a 5 year warranty.

Been playing about a year. This was my first "real" amp after a terrible Fender solid-state that was part of my Squier pack. I love this amp, and don't intend to part with it any time soon. If it was stolen, I would look around at a few other amps, like the Crate Palomino, which I've heard good things about, but I'd probably get another Blues Jr.

My experience with the Blues Jr. got off to a pretty rough start. My first one had a loose tube socket and the amp would crackle and feedback while powering up. Obviously, I returned it and got a different one. The second one is a keeper. My Junior is a 2007 model manufactured in Mexico, with the cream PCB. This is my first tube amp, so I am far from being an expert on tone.

I was a diehard supporter of Line6 products for years. I just got sick and tired of all of the tweaking needed to find useful tones with the digital stuff. I've made the conversion to tube amps and will not go back to solid state.

The Blues Jr. is a very simple amp. Basic 3-band EQ, master vol., vol., reverb, a 12" speaker, and those wonderful little glass bottles that glow and breathe fire. It also has a boost switch, labled "Fat", which gives a little more gain. The amp only has one channel, so don't expect myriad options if you're considering this amp. No effects loop and no headphone jack either. As I said, the lack of features on the Blues Jr. is what makes it such a cool amp. A simple amp, with simple circuitry.

Many love this amp because it's capable of copping a poor man's SRV/Texas blues tone. I'll admit, I love that tone, but that is not why I bought it. The Junior is an ideal low wattage combo that will give you a solid, transparent clean tone to use as a foundation for effects. I like to think of it as a poor man's David Gilmour rig. Set it up for a loud clean tone and use good old fashioned stomp boxes for overdrive and distortion.

My main guitars are a Fender Strat, a Fender Tele, and an Epi Les Paul. My effects chain is pretty simple. Guitar---Digitech Bad Monkey Overdrive---Visual Sound Jekyll/Hyde Ultimate Overdrive---Boss CE-5 Chorus Emsemble---Boss NS-2 Noise Suppressor---Blues Jr. (As I previously stated, I had a whole stable of Line6 gear, so I'm really starting my rig from scratch, so my pedal board is pretty modest thus far.) With these basic effects, I can go from classic jazz to gritty blues to British Invasion chime to Zeppelin snarl to Sabbath Sludge to Cheesy 80s arena rock to all-out Shred. The Junior can handle everything I throw at it. I get great tone and response with single coils and humbuckers. The Junior is very versatile.

Be sure to check out the amp thoroughly before you buy it. My first one was problematic. I made the silly mistake of playing a floor model, but the amp I brought home was still in the box. Play the exact amp you're going to buy before you leave the store.

The amp is less than a year old, so I can't really comment on the reliability so far. I haven't had any major problems yet. Of course, the 5 year warranty from Fender makes it a whole lot easier to live with this amp. I do know that many people have owned Juniors for over 10 years and they're still going strong. I've had really good luck with every Fender product I've used, so I'm not really expecting any major hassles.

Never needed them, but I'm fortunate to have an authorized Fender service outlet within 5 minutes of my home. The 5 year warranty was actually a very big plus while I was considering this amp.

So far, so good. It does exactly what I need it to do. The tone is so much warmer and deeper than digital amps. The Junior loves effects. In fact, effects pedals sound so much better through a good tube amp. You could easily play a small to medium gig with this little amp. I'm not a gigging guitarist. I play and record at home, but I've also got young kids in the house, so I don't need a 100-watt stack turned to 11. If I want to play late at night and the family is sleeping, I can still fire up the Junior and get great tones at very low volumes.

I looked at many amps before purchasing the Junior. Crate V16, Crate V32, Peavey Classic 30, Vox AC-15, Epiphone Blues Classic, Peavey Valve King 112. Those amps all had good qualities, but the Junior had the most "organic" tone. It might not have all the bells and whistles compared to other amps, but it doesn't need them.

I've been playing on and off for about 18 years, but I've never owned a tube amp. The Junior is a great new addition to my rig. In fact, I'm thinking about getting a second one for a stereo rig. For the first time in all my years of playing, I'm genuinely satisfied with my tone. I've probably spent a small fortune in solid state gear since I first picked up the guitar and the solution was this simple and inexpensive little box from Fender.

If this amp were stolen I would have some major problems since it doesn't really leave my home. Hopefully there aren't any roving bands of thugs in my neighborhood breaking into homes looking for small tube amps. If so, I need to move.

Bought new in 2005 (Barcelona, Spain). Single channel tube amplifier. Volume, Master, Treble, Middle, Bass, and Reverb controls. A lovely, simple and cheap tube amp. The stock speaker Emminence (Gold Label) has been upgraded with a Jensen P12R (Alnico speaker).

I mainly play Jazz and Blues using a Gibson ES-150DC (hollow-body guitar) with the neck pick-up, playing at home and jams. I love the tone of this guitar with this particular amplifier.

Of course, do not expect to get a boutique tube amp for this price (this is what I consider 10, with that bell harmonics in the air), but at this comparatively low price I think it???s quite difficult to find anything better.

Different pre-amp tubes were tested (v1) and the most sweetest sound comes from the NOS 12AY7 (gain factor 20), increased clean head-room and breaking-up later than the stock 12AX7WC. In addition, this tube provides a characteristic vintage sound clean and overdrive. In fact, this tube was the v1 tube in different old 50???s Fender amps. I also tested a TAD 12AU7 (lower gain factor of 10) at different positions but it has less influence on its tone, apart from a lower output volume and practically no break-out. However, it provides nice warm sound for jazz in position v3. According to different reviews appeared in this website, I tested a pair of JJ EL84 as power tubes, but I didn???t like the tone I got. They sounded substantially brighter and the distortion was less pleasant to my ears than the obtained with the stock power tubes. But I am a jazz guitar player, so may be I???m not the most appropriate person to judge this type of sounds.

On the other hand, the overall performance of this amplifier can be substantially improved replacing the stock Emminence ceramic speaker by the alnico Jensen P12R speaker (25W). This was my first choice due to the remarkable creamier and vintage sound of the alnico speakers (don???t forget I???m a jazzer). After installation, the amp sounded mellower, sweater, less boxy, although a little bit brighter. My perception is that every day it sounds better, what could be explained by the continuous breaking-in of these type of speakers.

These two mods are relatively inexpensive and you can improve substantially the tone you obtain.

I also tested a Boss DS-1 overdrive pedal but the sound is also a little bit artificial, without soul. If you like the thickness and harmonics of saturated power tubes, I???m sure you know what I mean.

According to my experience, an attenuator is the only way to get nice distortion sounds at reasonable volumes. For those who like overdrive classic rock sounds at bedroom volumes I bet for the Weber Minimass attenuator (speaker-based). I normally play at attenuator setting of 5 (3-6 dB attenuation) for clean sounds and at setting 1-2 for overdrive sounds with master and volume amp controls higher than 7 (think of classic rock sounds of the 70???s). However, it is worth to mention that it has a perceptible effect colouring the final tone (a little bit darker) but the thick and tube sound you get is much better than the obtained using any overdrive pedal. Furthermore, you also get the option of adding different speaker cabs (4, 8, and 16 ??) without modifying the amp impedance. Think about I???m playing my hollow body guitar for saturated sounds and this is not the most appropriate guitar due to the lack of sustain. However, thinking of Steve Howe playing an ES-175 with distortion in that old Yes albums, do you miss any sustain?, it is a peculiar and characteristic sound.

So far, so good. But I play mainly at home, trying not to disturb my neighbours.

No experience

Playing guitar since 25 years ago. My overall impression is it is the best small tube amp for this price. It has one single channel, so you are forced to use a distortion pedal or an attenuator to get overdrive sounds at low volumes. You can also use the pre-amp overdrive tubes by pushing up the Volume control and controlling the overall volume with the Master control, but neither will sound like power tube overdrive. You can only get that by cranking the amp.

This is a 2007 Blues Junior.
It is a very simple amp; one channel with volume, 3 band EQ and a fat switch in the preamp section, master and reverb in the master section.
The fat switch boosts the preamp so it gives you more volume and breaks earlier. It's not an overdrive switch!!!
This amp is perfect for home recording because of its low wattage, but it can defiantly get loud enough for rehearsals.

For me this amp is a perfect blues/classic rock amp after I invested 100$ in a new speaker. It can easily compete with much larger and expensive amps!

First of all, the stock speaker is crappy! It lacks in lows and in details on the high end. The highs are shrilling and unpleasant with overdrive. I replaced the stock speaker with a Celestion Greenback (100$) and I got a brand new AMAZING amp!!! If you have the money for such an upgrade, you would thank me for this advice.

I'm using this amp with a Fender Tele and a Gibson Les Paul. Both sound great through, both clean and with overdriver.
The sound is very warm and reach suitable for blues, classic rock and even jazz.
You can get good sounds very quickly which is an important thing for impatient guys like me :-)

The EQ is very responsive, especially after the speaker replacement. For overdrive I use a combination of three pedals:
Seymour Duncan Pickup Booster -> Ehx Double Muff -> MXR 10 band EQ.
This combination is one pedal for me, I rarely use the double muff alone, and it sounds divine though this thing!
I have a much more expensive Marshall which I use mainly for rock, but this amp is much better for blues work!

The reverb is nice but it adds some noise... nothing too bad though.

I give it 8 because of the crappy speaker, but after the replacement it is a round 10 for me.

Standard EQ, Bass/Mids/Treble
2 Volumes, "Volume" and "Master", which comes in handy for natural distortion.
A "fat" switch, which beefs up the sound, and makes the natural drive more attainable.
1 input jack

I'm a bit of an audiophile, but the tone I want usually has a fair range: so simple amp controls are all I really need. The great thing about the Blues Jr EQ, is that it really compliments your guitar sound, instead of warping it, I love my jaguar tone, and the EQ on the Blues Jr is damn subtle, underlying the original tone of the guitar. I can perfectly tweak it to get what I want. Fuck big, complex EQ'ing, man. This works great.

No other channels for your distortion or anything, but I use pedals for my distortion anyway. Plus, this baby does it's own.

Only 15 watt, but damn it's loud. And hella versatile, and it loves pedals. Suits me fine. Unless you're a metaller or something I guess.

There's a buzz, but that might be my Jaguar (i'm semi-convinced there's a grounding problem in there). The amp breaks up well, so crystal clean tones will only last into a degree of volume. On a bedroom recording level, it does fine. And every now and then I crank it for a bit, just to hear it loud: and christ, this baby is loud, especially for 15 watts. If you want natural distortion, you can turn the "volume" control down, and the "master" control straight up (or you can just turn the whole thing up, but as I said I'm working at home just now), for surprisingly formidable distortion. Beats the hell out of my Boss Drive, I can tell you that.
The sound is warm, very natural and defined. There's a bit of "boxy"ness in there, I think that'll be down to the speaker. I'll think about changing that. I like that Fender tone, so I'll stick with the groove tubes.
It does everything I need to, and sounds mint while it's at it.

I've heard bad things about bias control leading to overheating tubes. Which scared me at first, but at present I rarely gig, so there's not a huge risk just now, and 4 months on there's no trouble. In future though, I'll definitely need to work on the bias, I've heard there's mods you can do. I'll need to sharpen up my practical skills before I try getting into something as complex (to me at least) as an amp.
Otherwise, this feels like it should last well. I'd probably gig with it without a backup.

Never dealt with them.

Been playing for about 3 years. This was my second amp, after my old practice amp (so essentially my first "real" amp). I spent almost a year running around looking for a good amp, went through first Marshall, then Mesa, then Orange, then Vox, back to Marshall, before finally settling on this. Sensibly speaking, I really should have saved cash and gone for a solid state combo like everyone else did, but hell, I wouldnt take it back. I'm not sure if I'm ready to deal with stuff like the bias, I'm pretty terrible with amp mechanics. As it stands though, I'm here with a cute, compact, and gorgeous sounding tube amp.

My setup is usually something like:
Fender Jaguar >> Crybaby Wah >> Boss TU-2 >> ProCo Rat 2 >> Boss SD-1 >> Electro Harmonix Small Stone >> Boss DD-6 Delay >> Fender Blues Junior.

Never sounded sweeter. I'm no veteran authority on amp sound and guitar tone, but on a basic level, the sound of this amp is perfect. I do everything from clean, ambient soundscaping to violent noise rock, and with an amp like the Blues Jr i can take it all in my stride. This is no substitute for a flashy, big, loud, ??10,000 amp, of course not, but it's a better competitor than those crappy solid state Marshall combos I could have gone for, god forbid. It'll do me for now, and then some. :)

All the essential features and nothing extra - high, mid, low, reverb, volume, master volume, fat switch, one input, no headphone jack, speaker out (disables amp's speaker), 15 watts, eminance 12-inch speaker, no standby. With the fat switch, you might say it has two channels.

A disclaimer or explanation might be in order before I critique the sound so that you understand my vantage point. I've only been playing for two years and have never played through a really good tube amp like a twin reverb or an AC30. My experience is limited to an old Squire Reverb 25 sidekick and a Vox AD30VT modeling amp. I have a good Fender Strat, though, and two pretty decent Ibanez humbucker guitars.

Now, on to the sound. You can dial in some nice sounding clean tones. Nothing great, but pretty dman good. The overall sound seems to be a bit diffuse in the sense that pick attack doesn't effect the tone as much as I would like. I got an AB switcher to compare it to the VOX and, interestingly, I found myself trying to dial in the Fender to make it sound like my VOX settings for the Fender blackface model. The Fender's reverg is nice, but not appreciably better than the VOX. In general, I thought the VOX had a punchier, more defined sound that articulated the pick attack better, but then there were times on certain settings when I thought the Fender sounded better. That punchy versus diffuse impression might be related to the fact that the VOX has closed cabinet and the Fender is open, which leads me to think I might like a closed cabinet sound better. In any event, it was close. The amps were clearly different and I had a hard deciding which I liked better for clean tones. Keep in mind that I wasn't comparing all the VOX emulations to the Blues Junior, only the blackface and tweed models in an effort to make an apples-to-apples comparision.

So, the cleans are pretty good with some very nice sweet spots here and there, but the amp totally falls apart when you go into overdrive. I'm not talking about really driving it into distortion, which in fact was horrible. It didn't even sound good with just a little overdrive, even when the overdrive was coming mainly from the power stage (master up, volume down). The pre-amp overdrive sounded even worse (volume up, master down). The amp quickly became muddy, harsh, and completly unlistenable. I just couldn't dial in an accptable overdriven tone no matter what I did. I tried using pedals (Bad Monkey, Boss DS-1) which was a big improvement, but not good enough. The VOX is definitly better in the overdrive department, and even took to pedals better, which was surprising.

Bottom line - the Blues Junior is a good amp for clean tones only.

Seems solid.

Don't know, didn't need them.

I finally returned the amp after almost a month (30-day return policy from Guitar Center). I really tried to like it, and maybe it had some nicer clean tones here and there than the VOX, but overall, thats not enough to recommend it with the overdrive being as bad as it is. For $150 less, The VOX is a better value, and if you are a newbie like me, you'll appreciate its versatiliy more.

Basic features: Volume, Master, Treble, Middle, Bass and Reverb with a "Fat" button to boost the preamp gain and fill out the tone. I think it has all the features you need and nothing you don't for a small, basic tube amp like this. A Standby switch would be nice, but not a big deal. Surprisingly powerful for a 15 W, 1X12 of its size. Should have plenty of volume for rehearsals and small club gigs when you crank it, yet quiet enough when turned down for home use too. Separate volume and master is a nice feature, since you can set them to the same for your clean sound or crank the volume and leave the master down to adjust the ammount of breakup/overdrive you want.

For a small package and an affordable price it really gets that great fat Fender tube tone. The Fat switch really helps too, giving a volume boost and boosting the low and high frequencies for an even fuller tone. I'm a little disappointed with the bass response, which sounds a little hollow/flabby, and not very well defined. But it's really not bad considering the price and the size. Sound should be versatile enough for most styles of music (it really nails blues/country stuff, and would make a good small jazz amp too) if you spend enough time dialing in the right settings and experimenting. You can also get a nice dirty/breakup sound by setting the volume and master knobs apart, although most of the time I run it clean and use a Fulltone Fulldrive 2 for my overdrive.

One thing I noticed is it doesn't seem to handle pedals as well as my Fender Deville 410, which is of course a bigger and more powerful amp. The Fulldrive for instance sounded a little fizzy and squashed compared to the much more natural, responsive sound I get through the other amp. Likewise when I played my Boss GT-6 (multi-effects) through it. But for the size and price, I can't complain. The surprisingly good Fender tube tone and power make it alright.

I have a made in USA model. Haven't had it for long, but it seems solidly built.

Haven't had to deal with this, so no opinion.

I bought this amp because I wanted a quality tube amp that was smaller, lighter and more portable than my big Deville 410 that I could easily haul to rehearsals and jam sessions, yet would still be loud enough and have good tone. This is a good amp for that. I am still planning on using the bigger DeVille for most live gigs, but the Blues Junior is great for rehearsals/jam sessions because it is half the size, weighs half as much, is easy to tote around, but still sounds good. I think of it as a mini version of my Deville. Obviously it's not as powerful or tonally versatile as the DeVille (or some other bigger and more expensive Fender amps), but it's still a pretty decent compromise nonetheless for its size/price. (After all, what can you expect for $300?)

I think it's a great value and as I said before, a very economical amp. It's affordable and portable, but doesn't sacrifice tone, power or quality. Ideal for a smaller practice amp, for small gigs, or a good amp to start off with if you're looking for a basic, portable amp that's well-made and sounds good. I have a feeling it would be a good choice for home recording as well. It's nothing fancy, but leaves nothing out and doesn't have any bells and whistles you don't need. It's got that Fender tube tone we all know and love, just in a smaller, more affordable package. For it's sound, price and size, it's a good choice.

This is a modern entry-level working-man's professional tube amplifier designed for the masses, intending to look and feel like a vintage Fender amplifier. The one i purchased is a used brown-tolex MIM likely originally purchased from MF. Condidering its size and price, i think it has enough features to satisfy. A small amp with decent reverb and a wide tonal range plus enough power for most gigs is good. These days, with good, cheap pedals out there, this is all the amp a person would need. The amp is lightweight and easy to carry. It nails the Fender tone completely, although the speaker is not the greatest, nor is the small reverb tank. But for the price, it is not an issue.

As i said, it nails the Fender tone of yesteryear. It is very much like a mini-Twin Reverb due to the excellent clean tones (solid state rectifier, same as Twin Reverb). I was surprised by this due to the EL-84 power tubes. I was expecting more of a british note, but Fender did a great job of dialing in their signature sound. The distortion and "FAT" switch are o.k. and remind me of what modded Fender amps from the 60's and 70's have going for them. It stays clean for quite a ways when cranking the vol up. If tou turn the reverb down all the way, you can get some good old-style tweed sounds. This is the closest thing out there to one of my all-time favorite amps -the SuperChamp.

Well, it was in the store and needed repair before i bought it - the input jack had issues and the reverb wasn't working. Apparently it was minor, they fixed it & it works fine. Any tube amp will have issues from time to time. I've banged it around enough already to determine it is basically well-made and well-designed. I don't care what amp you have - always bring a backup to a gig if you can. That being said, this is as good as any other amp out there in this price range.

This is a very popular amp, like the Volkswagen Bug of amplifiers. There should be no problem finding repair services. Fender is a pretty good outfit, I've actually gotten through to talk to a real person before! I think the warranty is 5 years. This amp is likely beyond warranty.

Currently I own a 1960 Ampeg Reverberocket, a 1966 Vox Cambridge Reverb tube amp (Sepulveda), A 1960's Silvertone (Danelectro)1482, & A 90's Sovtek Mig50H. I have owned at one time or another just about every version of the Fender "Reverb" amps (my all-time favorite being the Princeton Reverb, 2nd favorite is the Superchamp -i wish they would re-issue that one!)I have replaced the speaker -big improvement, and will put a bigger r-tank in. I love the look, tone, size, and price of the amp. This is like a mini Twin Reverb as far as tone. The circuitry is fine as-is, don't mod this amp - just put in a better speaker. If you don't like Fender tone, get a different amp!

Very basic features. One channel, no Effects loops, no Headphone jack (wich i wish it had), it has Volume, Treble, Mid, Bass, Master, Reverb, and fat switch button that increases the pre amp gain. It's all i will ever need for my style. I keep the fat switch all the time. the tone knobs seem well balanced. So far i use this at home but hope to use it in a band and in live settings. it has plenty power for home use but if i where going to use it with drums, bass and other insturments i would run it through an external speaker cabnet (perhaps a 4X12 fender cabnet).

This amp pretty much has only two settings on it's own, clean and dirty. I dont belive it was made for that nu-metal or heavy metal crap. It's pretty much made for one style and one style only, and that's my style. I love this amp's clean sounds. It tends to be more crisp and bright on most settings. I play an Ibanez AF-105 hollowbody. It really brings out the guitar's natural dry sound alot. I belive it will make any guitar sound the way it was ment to sound on the clean setting. The clean seems to stay clean at louder volumes, with mabey a small hit of natural breakup at max volumes.

When you turn up the Volume to max and turn down the master you a get your dirty sound. I dont care for the dirty sound as much because it sound kinda boxy and muddy through my hollwbody. I prefer to use a good distortion pedal on the amp's clean settings. Right now in useing a Boss DS-1 for that cruchy White Stripes type of sound, but im looking to upgrade to somthing better soon.

My style involves a bluesy sounding guitar crunch sound but NOT blues music. think rockabilly (Stray Cats, Reverend Horton Heat, Carl Perkins, Buddy Holly) and some indie rock (The Strokes, Sonic Youth, or the White Stripes). This amp sounds perfect for these styles!! With rockabilly i play clean and just turn up the reverb and you get that wet sticky reverb slap'n sound while palm muting, and it sounds just like Luther Perkins playin style that made Johnny Cash so famous or turn up the Volume for a little overdrive and it sounds like The stray cats kinda style. This is the style I love and this amp hits the nail right on the head.

This amp is rock solid! because it is an all tube amp it's a little more prone to damage if it was droped or mistreated, and tubes dont keep there quality forever.

Never dealt with fender but heard others say they are great. One year warranty!

Iv been playing now for about 8 years. Iv gone trough a few guitars and amps such a a Fender Automatic SE, and a Marshall MG50DFX that cost about the same price but a hundered times worse wich the blues Jr blows away as far as quilaty and sound. I wish it had a 2nd channel (with footswitch) and better sounding overdrive. What i really want is a Fender Blues Delux, but at $400 bucks the Blues Jr is perfect.

I bought the laquered tweed NOS model new at my local GC for about $500. For details check the website. Basically you have a single Jensen and 2 12AX7s and 3 EL84s rated at 15 watts

The only feature I would add is a standby switch. But you can turn down the volume so I suppose that's being picky. Maybe an effects loop might me nice but it's not essential.

This amp is designed for anything from a bedroom to a 100 seat venue. I've never played it with a drummer but it is strong enough to punch through a mix of bass and rythym guitar. I'm not rating it a 10 because there aren't a lot of features. But read on because that's not really the issue here.

Okay here is where the rubber meets the road. Let me qualify that I am rating this in comparison to other amps in this category. It's not going run with a 100W high gain amp or even a 50 watt Deluxe or Twin.

But in a small to medium venue the sound is better than anything I have ever heard. And believe me I have tried virtually every product made in this category of sub 25 watt amps.

Here is the testimonial I loaned my amp to a guy, whose name I won't mention out of respect for his privacy and I don't know if he would appreciate the gratuitous product endorsement but suffice to say he is generally considered one of the 10 best guitarist in the world.

He cranked that baby up to 12 on the master to get a really clean tone. The only stompboxes were a tremelo and delay. The sounds that came out of that amp had a 100 people in the audience dropping their jaws in amazement. It sounded like a wall of amps in stereo. The complete range from country to funk to Hendrix was covered and absolutely nailed.

The amp as a very clear strong tone. Since it is not overpowered you can get the gain up there where the tubes really open up and sing without shattering eardrums. When I see guys rolling in a small club with a Marshall stack I wonder what their thinking. This amp with the master at 12 and the volume at 5 is going to sound far better than a Marshall TSL with the master and volume at 2 or 3.

I shipped my amp via ground freight across the country. The case was beat to hell so I knew it took some abuse. I remove the tubes for any long distance trip. I pop the tubes back in and this bad boy cranks right up. No problems whatsover.

But it is a tube amp so I would keep a stock of spare tubes. And be advised EL84s or not uncommon but generally not in stock at your local superstore.

have not need any support.

I've been playing for 40+ years and own enough gear to start my own superstore. Maybe not that much but I do own about 20 fine guitars and 10 amps. And I have a PA system and recording equip in my house.

I won't go into details but know my collection includes Tele's, Strat's, LP's, Rickenbacker 12's, Marshall, Fender, Peavey and don't even get me started on acoustics.

I don't post here very often but I did think it was only fair to talk about his amp. When you get to a certain stage in life this is the amp for you.

Everybody is looking for that beefy big bottom sound. Unfortunately there is a tendency to think the way to get there is with abigger amp and then crank it down as needed for the venue. Also most guys go for distortion and crunch because it is forgiving to a novice player.

But if you think clean is better then this is it. And you want an amp that is mated to the guitar and appropriate for the venue. You want to be able to turn the amp up enough to where you are getting the performance that is designed for that amp.

Most musicians don't have the luck to play huge concert halls or stadiums. Usually they venue is 100-200 at best and often much less. This is the best amp I have found out there for that purpose.