Fender Blues Junior

Had originally purchased a little Marshall DFX-15, didn't like it, so "traded-up " to the Blues Jr. from Musician's Friend. Got it in December 2004, so I guess it is a current model. Generally play rockabilly, blues and don't gig out anymore, so the amp stays put.
Really simple amp w/ one channel, no effects loop or headphone jack. Reverb is decent for my needs and nice to have. Have a foot switch for the "fat" option and it' pretty good, although I now prefer to just sue my Route 66 for distortion/compression.

Currently playing an Epiphone WildKat w/ 2 P-90s and a Squier Fat Tele. Generally play rockabilly, blues and this should be an ideal amp for what I do. Originally found the amp to be great, good sound, easy to control. However, after about 2 months, began to hear prominant sub-harmonics (4th below fundamental) that only became worse. Had to pull the bass tone way done to elimninate it. Shortly thereafter the amp didn't even turn on. It appears to be a bad transformer. Very disappointing since I had read nothing about such fun. It's covered under warranty, but the shop I took it to syas they have seen this problem before on the amp. I played one on theirfloor and it soundes great,so I'm just in a waiting mode until I get it back.

Don't know what to think with this transformer issue (also the tubes were all crooked when I got it). The construction seem to be quite durable, so I don't anticipate much of a problem. Although I've seen so much about tossing the stock speaker, getting new tubes, I'm not sure why everyone praises this amp only to change all the guts!

We'll see about the repair of the transformer, although the shop told me tha last one they did took six weeks to get the part. Not encouraging.

I was primarily a keyboardist, but played guitar since the late 60's on an off (depending on the band). No other amps anymore, sold all my keyboard gear except for a Traynor head and mixer and my MiniMoog.

I really like the look and sound of the Blues Jr. and it seems to do everything I need (when it works). Not a big believer of effects so I just run through a Voodoo Labs tremolo, Route 66 overdrive and sometimes a CryBaby.

Having grown up around Fender Twins, Bandmasater and Bassmen, I want to believe that this little amp will live up to it's legacy.

It is designed for practise and maybe small gigs, so expect nothing more from this amp...there is no effects loop which is my only disappointment...otherwise a great little single channel all tubde amp.

The amp itself has a lovely tone especially when driven...I put a Seymour Duncan pickup booster in front of it and it sounds fantastic...my guitar also has powerfull SD pickups as well which also helps. If you are looking for a variety of sounds then look at one of the Line6 or Roland digital amps...but for pure tube tone this is great...I have a GT8 which I have programmed my favourite sounds in and I put this in front of the amp, which is handles quite nicely, so I get some great tones from this set-up, but I also have the option of really nice tube tone if I want it !! QUite a few pro musicians have used this amp such as Noel Gallagher so this speaks volumes for the amp.

This has been the only area of concern...the amp started making some scary popping and banging noises when I switched it on...and if you have ever heard these noises you will know what I mean...but new tubes sorted this problem out and the amp sounded even better...although I am worried about any damage that may have been done. The amp is a little noisy but this may be down to another asoect of my set-up such as cables or pedals. The reverb unit has also been a little iffy...sometime it stops working and I have to knock the reverb housing to get it working.

No experience...Machinehead changed the valves for me and provided their usual excellent service.

Overall this is an excellent little amp that could be used for small gigs if you really needed to. I have been playing for a while now on and off and love the tone of this thing. If it broke, I would seriously look at replacing it although I have to be honest there is so much on the market at the moment I would look around. Apart from troublesome valves and reverb unit this amp has been really good...I wouldn't recommend that anyone buys this amp...but I would recommend trying one out, because I can see that it may not be for everyone.

I have two, One is a 1995 [USA] green circuit board and the other is a 2000 [Mexico] beige circuit board. We all know what this amp has. One channel with Master volume and channel volume. Boost button that is also switchable. Been the same since the beginning.

I have a Fender strat with noiseless pickups [1986]. A Tele with noiseless pickups [1986]. It has 3 pickups. The regular two and a third strat pickup in the middle. Only made 2 years then they changed it to the Tex-mex pickups. But what I really want to add to these reviews is the response of the tubes put in the amp. The ones that Fender puts in, throw out, their garbage. Throw out the speaker, it's garbage too. Pick preamp tubes [12ax7] to your choice. They come pretty much the same. All will distort when driven. But now the power tubes [EL84]. They come in ten different hardness. 1-4 or 5 will start to distort earlier. 6-10 will stay cleaner at higher volume according to their number. Higher number, less distortion. If you want to turn it up high and stay very clean use a 10. Then use a pedal for your chosen overdrive. If you want to get dirty fast use a 1. Or choose something in between to your own volume and playing style. This worked with both my US made and Mexico made amps. By putting 9 in the US made and 4 in the Mexico made, and putting a Peavey Black Widow 12" speaker in each, they sound very close to exactly the same. I was looking for high volume clean. No other amp mods needed. Run the master volume all the way up and adjust your volume with the channel volume. What I realized from this is that the earlier US made amps are designed electronically to distort earlier. When Fender changed to Mexico made, they redesigned the electronics to distort later. This explains my different tube choices for each amp. Each tube choice working with the electronic design to creat the same sound.

Expect them to last a long time.

Haven't delt with them but I hear they are slow.

I've played music for 35 years and the cost per quality of these amps is excellent. Great for low to mid volume situations.

This review is for a mid 1990s tweed covered Blues junior that I purchased used six years ago.

It has the normal features for a small tube amp in this category: the usual controls, spring reverb, 15 watts of output power, and one remarkable feature: it has the legendary look of a late 1950s Fender tube amp.

Mine is stock with no modifications other than a speaker change to a Celestion Vintage 30.

I play two different guitars these days. My first love is a Fender 56 Closet Classic Stratocaster. The other is a Gibson Les Paul Studio. Both guitars are all stock. I play blues, classic rock, and country-rock.

The BJ sounds fabulous with both guitars. I leave the settings the same, but I turn the "Fat" switch on for the Strat and off for the LP. The sound is warm, yet detailed. Not surprisingly, the Strat can stay clean at higher volumes then the LP can. The BJ isn't a distortion amp, but its overdrive at higher volumes is very pleasing.

Speaking of volume, the BJ produces more than you'd expect from a small 15 watt package. It's good for practice and gigs in smaller venues. A little too much for at home use, really. At the low volumes you'd use at home, it just doesn't show its best side.

I've used this amp regularly for six years. No major problems, but the original plastic input jack wore out several years ago and I replaced it with a sturdier metal one.

I've replaced the preamp tubes once, and the power tubes 3 times, even though they probably had some life left in them. I just feel it's good pactice to put in new EL84s every other year.

The leather handle is showing some wear and I'll replace it someday, too.

It was out of warranty when I bought it.

This is as good a buy as you're likely to find, if the BJ is an amp that covers your needs. If you need tube tone at moderate volume levels for blues, country, or classic rock then it's perfect. It's not suitable for loud bands in medium to large clubs and it's not a distortion amp.

The bottom line is that the Blues Junior is a compact, good looking combo that sounds great and costs little.

This is an update on my first review in 2000. Now that the honeymoon is over I'll tell you the falts I've found in it.

Im calling this features or lack of them.

First thing is that this amp is built very cheap. When I looked in side I found out that they cut corners on the quality, for example the pots are all the plastic carbon type, metal pots even the small ones you find on other circuit board amps would have been a better choice for dependablity. Plastic pot shafts, not metal like they should be. Plastic input jack, that will be a replacement your likely to have to do, find a metal replacement if you have to replace it. It has a thin circuit board and the rest of the componets are the absolute minium values required to make it work, what I mean for example: the resistore and other componets are light duty, like you would find in your cheapest home stereo, something like that. Not very road worthy. Should have been built better inside.

If you have one of these you know they sound great. But for me It could be a little cleaner at higher volume, breaks up a little too much with my SG with HB's. Great tone with stock Strat single coils pups. I swapped the 12AX7's for 12AT7's and that helped, still I would like more clean. But over all great tone.

Fender used to make good quality amps, they were over built and it wasn't an accident that they were. Leo demamded it, CBS continued it, today forget it.

Well so far it has worked with out a problem except for the Reverb broke I think it's in the Reverb Tank, that seems like a common problem with these amps.

I still have all the original EL84's in it and they all check out on the tester like new, same with the original 12AX7's, but I recently replaced them to get a cleaner tone, right.

If you consider how cheap they made this amp it's almost a wonder it hasn't had other problems, but unlike some people I know I take good care of my equipment.

Don't drop it or bump it around, I don't think it will take the abuse.

Since it still works and I like the amp, I'll be nice and give it a 5.

Forget it, I tried to contact Fender about the Reverb problem but I'm a year over the Warrantee, time.

The plus is there are lots of after market companies who can help you with most Fender amps.

From what I know now, I would have gotten a Peavey Classic 30 for almost the same price, they are better built and have more going for them and gig well. I wanted a small amp and this fits the bill, I have enjoyed it for 5+ years and hope it last another 5-10, as far as a giging amp, I've used it but think I'll get something with a little more power to get a cleaner tone, other wise it does the job good enough for small Bars and private parties, we don't play real loud music, but this amp is loud enough for most any gig.

Mine is a 1995 tweed model that I bought used. It's stock, except for the speaker, which is a Jensen C12 and it has a set of RCA NOS power tubes. Also, the previous owner shellacked the tweed, which makes it look like a mid 1950s amp. Otherwise, it's stock. The usual controls and features as listed in all the other reviews.

I use two guitars: a Fender American Series Strat with an ash body and Van Zandt pickups, and a Fender '52 RI Tele with a 4-way switch and stock pickups. My style of play is blues and classic rock.

Both of these guitars sound fabulous through this little amp. I usually leave the Fat switch turned on and the Volume set at about 5, and I adjust the Master for the volume needed for the room. The reverb is pretty weak, so I have it turned up to about 10, but it sounds just right at that setting. Present, but not overpowering like some amps I've used.

What the Blues Junior offers is simply a fine, well rounded tube tone that overdrives nicely at resonable volume levels. My band plays in mostly small to medium sized clubs and this amp is just the thing for my purpose.

I've been using this amp regularly for more than 3 years and it's been perfect. I've replaced the power tubes once, and that's been the only thing I've needed to do.

Long out of warranty

For a low priced, gig-worthy tube amp, this is a great buy. For a weekend warrior like me who has 2-3 gigs per month in small venues, it's perfect. But it's not something the professional musician who's out playing several nights each week would use.

It's not all things for all purposes. But what it does, it does well.

I bought this amp in November of '04 new, so i guess its an '04. Its a pretty straight forward amp, one channel, so not really versitile, but i play with my feet more than with my hands, so the pedals give me the versitily. This amp is sweet, it only does one thing, but it does it well. It's got about everything i was looking for. I used a modelling amp before and it just had too much stuff on it for me to deal with, I had time to dial in the 4 or five knobs on this amp. So far I've used the amp only in practices, jamming with friends, and bedroom playing. This is not a huge amp, and that was a big thing for me. For anyone who actually carts equipment around a lot its perfect. Oh yeah it has the fat switch, an awsome idea. Hard to give this amp a lot of points, because it's a minimalist amp. Not a lot of features.

I've used both humbuckers and single coils through the amp, but mostly single coils. Sounds pretty awsome, gives them such a warm sound, no trebely pain, but you can play with the eq knobs to change that. Its an awsome amp, just really warm, I set it so that its just barley breaking up when you play chords, fat switch on. I took the switch from my peavy and pluged it into the fender and use it as a remote switch. Pretty cool for a bit of a solo boost. I play everything from folk to some weird hardcore metal through it. Mostly just garage rock/punk/folk stuff though. It really makes everything sound great and creamy, or on lower setting, warm and crackly. It's not really noisy at all, but I use single coils, and for some reason manufacturers never bother sheilding the wires in guitars so I deal with a bit of hum. I use a whole lot of pedals and get some hum from them but not much, this amp really lets them shine, especially the fuzz and distortion boxes. There's only the one channel on the amp so it gets distorted as you up the volume. I must say that having a master volume is genius, makes it versitile depending on how much hearing damage you want. The amp's distotion never gets too crazy, at max its a good solid overdrive. Solid sounding amp

I've read the horror stories below, fender is a jerk about cutting corners, I hope people really complain and maybe bring Fender down a couple notches. Too many companies riding on their names. So far I haven't had any problems though. Some of the lettering that's screened on near the knobs is wearing off though. I've had the amp for about 4 or 5 months now, so I guess I should have waited longer to give a review, no big reliablity issues as of yet. The pins on the tubes weren't pushed in too far when i bought it. It stopped making sound once, I pushed in the tubes and all was well again. Its a learnign process as it's my first tube amp.

Haven't had the pleasure yet

I have been playing only 3 years, and I probably own too much equipment compared to how long I've been playing. This is my first tube amp, but I put in the hours at the shops and tried out a lot of stuff. This is my step up from the Peavy transtube i was using before, I really just needed a less artificial amp that could warm up my sound and make my pedals sing, and it did that. I like the fact that you can get the good tone and not the broken ear drums as well. The Blues Jr. is not a tiny sounding amp though. Before I shopped I came on here and read reviews. It's all true. This amp is more than enough volume in my band situations so far. This 30 watt is a lot louder than the 65 watt Peavy solid state. This amp is often up against the Peavy classic 30, and although the Classic 30 has two channels for the same price, you can hear the difference. Fender put everything into the one awsome channel, and peavy split it in two. The Fat switch was a really good idea. I only really use the clean setting because of my pedals so the fat switch gives me something I will use. Its a really good idea. Everything on the amp is stock and so far its lived up to my expectations,. I'm really happy with it. Like evrything though it really isn't worth as much as they sell it for, hard to give it full marks for that.

I suppose a 2004 amp. New amp, exchanges in a shop with my 2001 Hot Rod Deluxe to much loud for the small clubs where I play. Most time my volume was about 2/3 too low for a good valvle sound.
Single channel with bass-mid-treeble eq, pre-volume & master volume. Reverb is good for my needs. A pre-out is the only plus feature I need, to drive a second more powerful amp without extra boxes, when I play in big gigs. I've solved with a Marshall Supervibe box.
Is enough loud for the 80% of all my gigs, with a mike in front ad a good pa system I cover the other 20% with non problems.

A wonderful blues tone. Is perfect for my sound. If you play blues, blues rock o old rock this is a great amp. Is very good as a pratice amp. With master volume at 2 and pre volume at 5 the sound is warm and funny.
I play it with a '79 stratocaster, a '91 G&L Asat Classic and a '00 Stratocaster with Texas Special. Is amazing, I can ear the voice of every single guitar, the HotRod was and "effect" this is an "amp" !
Playing since 1980, mostly rock & blues, this amp let me play better becouse every single note is clear and warm. No noise at master volume to 7/9 and the pre volume to 5/6.
My amp at high volume produce a good saturation, with pre volume at 6 I can turn to 12 the master volume with no distortion, this with single coils pu.

It's a Fender I never had problems with amps o guitars.
I use it as main amp on gigs, but I've planned to bought another, used if I got it at reasonable price, to double it on stage and to experiment some modifications.

2 years warranty.

I'm playing since 1970. I own other two transistor amps: a RokAxe Classic 10watt to pratice and a Fender FM65 as backup or monitor in big gigs.
I've just planned to bough another (used), becouse I love all of this amp. I've bought it for the sound and I've compare only with Peavey Classic 20, but it loose.

1995 Tweed BJr.
Simple Master Volume amp with 3 band tone stack + reverb.

Same features for 10 years of production
(not counting factory PC board layout changes.)

Celestion Greenback.

Got it a month ago, not bad but could be better.

I replaced the 4 power supply capacitors (1 x 47uF, 3 22uF 500V),
and dis the BILLM reverb mod (pre-master signal insertion),
and the V1B cathode Cap mod (change C3 from 22uF to 47uF).

Also replaced all the potentiometers, cause they felt worn.
(found a crack in the volume control's trace.)

Resoldered the input jack, as one lead post was free.

Re-tubed with JJ EL-84's, V1 and V2 =12AX7EH's, a Sovtek 12AX7WA
for the phase inverter.

Sounds much much better now.
Good clean and distorted with either single coil or Humbuchers.

Since I just did the 100,000 mile service on it,
I expect that it's gonna last another 10 years,
with just regular maintainence.

I must say, however, that the PC board is cheesy and
difficult to manuver. The snap-in pots (Alpha 12mm) are cheesy too.
But, all in all, the design works.

DIY warranty.

Fender does not sell parts. But they will refer you to a part
company that is barely in business...

Parts are not expensive and tubes are plentiful, but I did have a hard time obtaining the mini-pots, and the 500V versions of the caps
were not available from the usual sources (like "mouser").

The amp was $150, and the parts cost about $40 (not counting my time).
I already had tubes. So, for about $200 I've got an amp that sounds
really good (not as thin as the new BJr's).
I'm happy with the outcome.
Of course, the amp is no AC-30.

BTW,
I don't suggest that folks that are unfamilliar with high-voltage
circuits go anywhere near the amp's internals. If you need help
seek a pro. The voltages inside even these little amps - can kill.

Mine was made in 1995, so it's one of the older tweed ones. It's versatile up to rock. nothing more. But what it does it does do WELL. I mainly use this in my bedroom and I intend to do small gigs with it. I kinda wish it had Tremolo i think that would compliment the vintagey sound I can get out of it. I wish it had a headphone jack.

I use a Vantage Ghost LP style guitar and a TS-7 Tubescreamer with this. I play everything from blues to all out metal. For blues this amp can't be topped in the price range. The OD is very good, really nails that raunchy blues sound that I adore. When i try to drive it hard I hear some rattling, i'm not exactly sure what it is, but one guy who reviewed it said he thought he heard the filaments rattling in the power tubes. So that might be it.

It's ten years old and still kickin. No corner protectors so the tweed is a little frayed on the edges.

Never Dealt with them.

I have been playing about 2 years. If it was lost or stolen I would prolly save up my money and buy this again. Or something a lot like it. I was going to buy a vox AD30VT but I liked this better, and i got a fairly good price on it.

Not sure of vintage, it is blonde tolex, made in usa. I play blues, rhythm & blues, very borderline jazz, country and just plain old rock n roll. This amp is more versatile than I expected, it even sounds decent with my ES175. It looks great.

I find my American Texas Special Fat Strat performs best with this amp. My Yamaha FX550 just crapped out last week bringing closer to my roots with this little amp and it works just fine. I find when I'm doing a high gain solo that I can hear what appears to be the filaments rattling in the power tubes. The guy that owned the amp before me did a lot of recording. I suspect that's why I got such a good deal on this premium little rocker. Humbuckers don't fare well at high volume with this amp. It's a washout.

I've only used this amp to rehearse and record with. No problems. I wouldn't hesitate to use it at a small gig.

Fender is very good with their warranty work. My Strat needed warranty work and I got to pick the Luthier.

I've been playing longer than I'd like to admit for my skill level; but people seem to like me and keep calling for gigs. I've been fortunate enough to have acquired and held onto a little bit of everything good to great. Gibson, PRS, Martin, Taylor and Fender guitars, basses and amplifiers. I miss my MkIII; but I just don't play venues that large anymore. You can't go wrong with a Fender Stratocaster and any gig worthy Fender amplifier.

This 'little' amp is a powerhouse! I bought it new in March of '04 and play in a 60's pop/retro band. I thought I'd use this amp for rehearsal and my Hot Rod Deluxe for gigs, being as they are both tube amps and I love the tube 60-ish sound. As it turns out, I mic it and use the Blues Jr. for gigs. The reverb went on it and needed to be replaced, so it was out of commision for 2 or 3 weeks, but the repair was covered under the warranty. As others have stated it is a design flaw that perhaps Fender should look at. The repairman told me it was a fairly common problem with the Blues Jr's. The clubs we play are small, but I've used this amp in outdoor venues, (mic-ed), and never had any problems.

I use a Fender strat plus and a Fender re-issue '69 thinline. I love the sound of both from this amp. Sixties music is my forte and the guitars mentioned with the Blues Jr. and my 3 stomp boxes, (Chorus, Digital Delay and Overdrive, DOD pedals), I get all the flair of the 60's I need. This amp is capable of clean sounds and just enough distortion and quite a variety of tones in between. I must sound like a commercial for fender products, but I have not been disappointed by the company yet...and I don't even work for them.

I depend on this amp a great deal. I gig without a backup and when the reverb unit quit on me...it was during a gig. Because I mic the amp the front speakers had reverb from the P.A., but using the amp as my 'monitor' it was sans reverb...It was painful, but I made it through the night. I live in a brutal winter climate region so, I baby this baby. I take the amp inside my house and don't let it live in the band trailer between gigs. Take care of your gear, it will take care of you.

Fender is tops in customer service. Friendly and helpful. Repaired, yes. Under warranty, yes. Authorized service center, close by. Five year transferrable warranty....you can't beat that.

My band plays the top hits of the 1960's, and I've been playing guitar/piano since those songs were on the charts. I own several fender amps, tube and transistor. KORG keyboards and Behringer key amps. Several fender guitars and an Epiphone Dot guitar. Heaven forbid it ever gets lost or stolen, but I would absolutely replace it with the same. I love the compact size and big sound. I have nothing else to add except that I am extremely happy with this amp.

This AMP is marketed exactly for the features it offers. Very simple tone shaping controls, FAT switch (increases gain for smoother leads and a bit louder), Reverb control, Volume (pre-amp gain control) and master volume (overall loudness). Suits me fine, nice and simple and complements my marshall nicely. I give an 8, because it's not a very versatile AMP only having a single channel. Beutiful sparkly clean, but not have good heavy power chord distortion, only just distorting to brekaup. Really a good blues amp and slightly overdriven rock type stuff. Extremely loud, considering I bought it for home use. Mines a 2004 mexican built black with silver face, totally stock.

Sounds absolutely fantastic. Very hard to stop playing when plugged in. I bought to bring out the best in my single coil strats, and in this it does a great job. This amp really sparkles. To some it may be a bit bright, but the tone controls can be easily tweeked to account for this. The only hum I get is typical single coil noise, but only when the volume is right up. Other than this, no background noise at all. It has a really sweet gradient of distortion right up until max, were it starts to breakup. Not a heavy or death metal AMP. With FAT switch in and max gain (volume), great for smooth blues type leads. To me, the reverb is great, when it works!. Very warm and awsome for jangly chord work.

Only had the AMP a short time and the reverb went bust. Reverb is a big part of my sound, so I was pissed of. The input coil in the tank had an open circut. Beats me why Fender put up with this, as it is a common problem, and one that would be easy to prevent with a re-design. For the rest of the AMP, who knows, havn't had it long enough to make a judgement.

Good and bad. The order for the replacement tank went missing in action. After two weaks I rang up the dealer on a Friday, it was re-orderd, and the tank was here on the monday having come half way around the world. It was covered under warranty, so that was a good thing.

I've been playing for twelve years, so it was a real boon to own my first real toob AMP. My other one is a hybrid with a single toob pre-AMP. I absolutely love this beast, If it were nicked, I'd certainly buy another (if I could afford it!). I don't trust the reverb will keep on functioning, but am keeping my fingers crossed. I bought it 'cause someone loaned me a Pro Junior, which I fell in love with. I really wanted a little bit more versatility with similar tones. Never did try any other brands as I am a fender nut anyway, so am biased (Ha Ha, get the pun :-))

Had this 1 day , and I must say , it is does exactly what I thought it would . No fancy built in FX (other than reverb which is fine!!)and a fat switch that adds a bit of gain . Works rather well . The combination of the master and volume knobs gives anything from ultra clean to slight crunch. Not for metal heads , but hey , just use your favourite pedal and instant karma!
It is also very loud for 15 watts . More than adequate for home use or I guess even small pub/club gigs

using a US Telcaster 9std) and a delux Strat Plus (Lace sensors). Play blues /rock / New wave style . I have just replaced a silver face Pro Reverb with this , and I am not at all disappointed with the change . Reverb is not as deep as the pro reverb , and only 1 x 12" speaker probably limits the sound , but it is still excellent

too early to tell . But if it is like other Fender products , it will be around longer than me

N/A - 1 year in UK

Been playing longer than my talent suggest !! I love the amps simplicity and ease with which it can a killer tone . It really is a blues amp. I would buy again if stolen . I sound better already.

This is a no frills amp. It does what it says on the lid. Paid 200 english pounds for it and it rocks

I play a fender custom shop nocaster and a gibson ES335. The sounds from this little amp put a lot of larger amps to shame. because of the low wattage you can really push the little mother flipper and get a really sweet warm clean valve sound it has that wonderful chime bell like quality. Turn up the gain and you get a lovely blues sound. It cant compete with my Marshall TSL100 for the real dirt, and bottom end,but this little amp is pure nectar to the ears if you want a real valve sound at low volumes. Thats not to say that its a quiet amp, it can happily keep up with a drummer in the practise room or a small gig. Mine has had a few tweaks/customizations.

Its not a heavy metal amp (you can use any old shite as long as its loud for that) but if you love the classic sound of the electric guitar it wont let you down.

no problems so far

No idea, no problems so far

A great little amp, not for Nu Metal, which sucks any way. But for people who want the real sound of valves with out upsetting the the entire street this amp rules. It loud enough to do samll gigs, and mike it up for large venues. It rocks full stop, and thats the bottom line.

See other reviewers for features - I will note that my new Blues jr amp can be disconnected from the stock speaker and run into an extension cab, but this black tolex silver-grill model I just bought comes with a Fender Special Design Gold reissue speaker, and it sounds GREAT! Deep full bass and clean highs. Forget about the Jensen speaker replacement- the new stock speaker is WAY better than I expected from a $400 tube amp!

Reverb doesnt work at all, but Im actually grateful- dont know if the tank is broken or if it was never wired, but nothing happens when I turn the reverb knob all the way up on the amp. From what I remember the reverb sounded like wet shallow crap on a floor model I tested 3 years ago.
Im not returning the amp just for the reverb because everything else works fine- the amp is VERY loud, and the tone is fantastic. I have an Electro Harmonic Deluxe Memory Man analog delay, and chorus and flanger pedals so I dont need the reverb anyway. And I have plenty of overdrive pedals. A solid state Fender amp NEEDS reverb, but not a Fender tube amp. The amp is VERY loud- I suspect the excellent 12 inch speaker has ALOT to do with the volume the amp can produce. Kudos to Fender for improving this amp over the years- and thank God I waited until now to get this amp with the reissue Fender Gold special design speaker.

Reverb doesnt work at all. The tubes get really hot without even playing the guitar- Hot Rod series for sure.
My Crate V-58 amp (6 watts Class A) has better harmonics than the Fender amp. The Crate amp is for heavier blues or classic rock while the Fender is for cleaner blues and rock.

The Fender sounds better, clearer than my Marshall AVT 50 watt amp, unless Im CRANKING the Marshall. The Marshall needs high volume to sound good- the Fender sounds good at all volumes.
I dont care about the reverb on the Fender amp. I use a 1989 Gibson Les Paul Standard guitar which has great electronics. Been playing 25 years and counting. I play blues and rock, lots of lead guitar, some rhythm. I own tons of effects pedals like the Fulltone Soulbender and Roger Mayer Spitfire fuzzes, as well as a dozen overdrive pedals like the Banzai Cold Fusion and the Maxon OD-820.

This blues jr. has the cream colored board, I believe it was made in 2003. Made in Mexico. There's no headphone jack, but you can turn it down enough and still get a good tone. There's a "FAT" switch, which performs like a loudness button on your radio.It's cool but, I seldom use it. I use this amp for practice at home, playing blues, jazz and alittle rock and roll. It's plenty loud for me- I seldom get it above 4. It's a "personal amp".

I use a modified lite-ash strat with alnico 2 pickups. I replaced the solid state rectifier in the amp with a 5Y3 tube. That mod was alittle involved (had to add a 5V filament transformer and centertap the primary, etc.) but was well worth it. It lowered the bias and seemed to open it up. On occasion(when I'm pissed), I can crank it pass,say, 7 and get some awesome natural distortion. If you do the rectifier swap, the tube WILL make it have more noise, of course. It's a nonissue around volume level 3 or 4, where I usually play. A hole got punched through my original speaker soon after I got it. I replaced it with a vintage 1961 Jensen P12Q, while the original was off getting reconed by Weber. The Jensen was in immaculate shape, it's sound was pretty good-maybe a touch too "dark", though. Once I got the original back from Weber, I slapped that baby in and WOW! They (Weber) did a fantastic job! A Weber reconed(no doping) Fender Special Designed Eminence is the way to go.I did the tube exchanges-currently having a NOS 12AT7 in V1, EH 12AX7 in V2 and a 5751 in V3 with J.J. power tubes. To tell you the truth, I really don't hold much stock in the power and preamp tube replacement game. Maybe, I haven't found the right combination. Difference in tones are slim,if any. I also replaced the reverb tank with a larger one(about twice the size of the original). That helped. This amp is well suited for the type of music I play-I like it clean. With all the mods I'll give it a 10. But stock, I'll rate it as a high 8.

I have had this little jewel for alittle over a year, with nary a problem. Seems to be very reliable.

Never dealt with 'em. You can go to www.mrgearhead.com to obtain the wiring diagrams and schematics, if your so inclined. I'm sure my warranty is blown to hell with all the mods I've done.

Been playing for about 8 years. If it was lost or stolen, I'd buy it again. It's a good, inexpensive all tube amp that produces good clean tones. It can get loud enough for your house or a small gig. Anything other than that, you probably need a microphone. It's an excellent practice amp fo' da blues.

2003 made.

not "versatile", but has good basic tone. preamp doesnt do high gain distortion, just "overdrive" tones. poweramp saturation kills, and you can get it at managable levels. versatile enough for me.

it's a damn good amp for playing bluesy rock stuff, take the preamp to halfway ish, crank poweramp, use the volume on guitar to control. very versatile for that kinda music.

but i dont use the amp like that. i run it clean (the preamp at 2 to 3 ish with cranked master). this makes a pretty "saturated" clean tone, lots and lots of harmonics, and a teeny hint of breakup. i run my pedals thru it and use them to create various tones. so basically i use the amp for a basic sweet clean tone to build on.

it has one channel, but i run it clean and use pedals, so i don't mind. it does have a "fat" switch tho, raises the gain a little bit. it doesnt have an effects loop, and sometimes i wish it has one. no headphone jack, but you can mod it yourself and add one if you really want.

i use this amp everywhere, at home, band jams/practices, and gigs. this definately has enough power for ANY situation. it's a fairly bright amp, so it cuts through the mix quite well. loud enough to compete with a loud drummer, and small/mid sized gigs. if you're playing a gig that's too big for the Blues Junior, there will definately be a decent sized PA system anyway, so just mike it.

i mainly use this rig:
squier 20th anniversary strat with seymour-duncan JB jr. in bridge, into...
-->Vox V837 Wah (im gonna truebypass it ASAP)
-->Boss TU-2 Chromatic Tuner
-->Boss DS-1 Distortion
-->Boss EQ-7 Equaliser
-->Boss DD-3 Digital Delay
-->Electro-Harmonix Stero PolyChorus

...and then into the blues junior.

now... a lot of poeple say the tone is a bit too "boxy".
Before you change speakers, buy cabs...

DO THE BILLM TONESTACK MODS.

before you start complaining about your tone...
http://mywebpages.comcast.net/machrone/bluesjunior.htm

DO THE MODS.

pretty dependable. has never broken down yet. ive had it for quite a while now, nearly a year i think.

no opinion here.

if it were stolen or lost, id definately buy it again.
i love it mainly for the basic decent tube tone and the poweramp saturation. i dont really hate it, but i suppose the reverb could be a bit better (it's not too bad, but definately not "fender" reverb).

and one last thing
it's LOUD. class A all tube into a 12inch speaker. the volume is nearly comparable to most other 50 watt combos.

1st or second year made, tweed covered, speaker jack, footswitchable mid boost (fat switch) I have been able to use this amp in every situation from bars to 10,000 seat arenas

I play a les paul dc faded with p90's and a PRS MaCarty. I think this amp was made for p90's, it sounds better than any other amp I have tried for styles I play which include all but shred trash metal but with my original ts9 I can do that too. It's all in your hands anyhow. No more noise than any other tube amp. Live or to tape, this is the best and one of the first el84 based designs of which there are now too many to worry about. If you don't like this amp you need to practice.

Why fender dosen't build it with a better, deeper cab and metal jacks and chassis mounted pots ect come on guys you have awinner here. Build like you mean it. Had to replace input jack and tube sockets suck, tubes rattle if I don't bend pins to secure them, lost retainer years ago, but it has been ABUSED and with a little common sense retro fitting it will last forever.

20 year player. Owned every other amp from silvertone 1 12 to boogie mk4. Still have a Gibson GA-18 1959, use two bj's live, split with a pearl dual delay. Les Paul-Boss CS3-TS-9-Pearl-bjx2 and there you have all I ever needed. I would love to have all of these amps that are sitting unappreciated please call me I'll come get them.

This amp was made in the USA in 2001. I play classic rock, metal, and blues. The features on this amp are basic, but adequate for a small tube amp. As far as power goes this baby has more than enough power for me. I play at home and rarely need to crank it to the max.

I play an American Deluxe Fat strat, and a Jackson RR5. The sound of this amp is excellent. It suits my musical tastes great. The clean sound is really nice, and when going dirty you can crank the volume and saturate the tubes to get great tone.

This is where my amp takes a huge nose dive. The plastic input jack retaining nut broke free after a few months. This caused the instrument cable to not be firmly supported in the jack which loosened the soldering points. This results in the sound going on and off, as well as huge amounts of feedback at times. Very annoying, and dissapointing. Also not easily fixed as the input jack is soldered directly to the circuit board.

The cost of shipping makes it hardly worth having it fixed on warranty.

If not for the lousy build quality I would give this amp a great overall rating. I love the sound, but definitely would not gig with this amp.

A basic tube amp with solid state circuit driven reverb.
The usual controls, no stand-by switch, no ext. speaker.
Nice 15W practice amp for home use. Easy to carry.
Should be mic'ed for playing with a band.

Replaced the original speaker with Celestion Vintage-30 (40 euros): A noticeable change. Totally different amp. More power, definition and vibe.
Replaced the power tubes with JJ's: Not a big change.
Replaced the first pre-amp tube with a Svetlana after testing 5-6 different makes: A little bit mellower sound.

Axes: Fender Stratocaster 1986.

Styles: Instrumental, blues, jazz, pop

Nice clean sound.
Short reverb tank + a solid state circuit do not make an ideal combination.
The Fat switch which activates a solid state circuit never used
Vintage Tube Screamer used for distortion.

Quite optimal solution if you are looking for a reasonably-priced portable tube amp and are willing get mic'ed!

I've used the amp for 2 years wothout any problems.

No experience.

Got my 1st axe 25 yeas ago.

After the modifications the amp does what it is expected to do.
A reasonably-priced tube combo that has a good clean sound.
Great for late-night practising because it delivers in very low volumes, too! Would by it again.
I wish it had an external speaker jack and a tube-driven reverb circuit.

Master, Volume, Treble, Mid, Bass, Reverb. Fat switch. Simple, and they work well. I don't buy 15 watt amps for their complexity!

I got one of the Made in USA models with the Rev D board, so no modifications required.

Woa. I didn't have much comlaint about the sound with the stock tubes, but after I put in an NOS Mullard AT7 (only Mullard I can spare right now), a Sovtek AX7LPS in V2, and a GE NOS 5751 in V3, this thing sounds beautiful. The key to these new amps is to put NOS tubes in them. There is just no comparison to the sound you will get that way. It's one reason the botique amps sound so good - and the secret to the old sounds of the blackface and plexi era. Just go to any of the well respected botique makers and you will see NOS tubes being put in.

The clean is beautiful and articulate. Smooth, rich, warm. The driven sounds aren't very driven at the moment due to my hodgpodge tube arrangement. As soon as I can get all NOS AX7 tubes for it, I suspect it will sound perfect. That Sovtek doesn't break up too well.

Don't know. Not crazy about plastic sockets for tubes.

For ~200 on the used market, this little jewel is a great find. Put good quality NOS tubes in it and you will love the sound.

Not sure about the year - probably sometime in the 20th Century. I got the Limited Edition Blues Jr. with the purple tweed covering and the 13 & a-half inch speaker. Completely awesome!! I use it mainly as a PA to call Bingo at the local V.F.W.

When I plug a guitar into it, I typically use a Coral sitar from the 60's. It has the standard 6 strings, but I can really space out and get my vibe on when I randomly strum the 13 sitar strings and howl my mantra. This particular Blues Jr. is completely quiet. There's no hiss - you can't even tell it's on. On this model, I noticed that when I would turn up the Clean channel, it would distort. And on the flip side, when I turned up the Distort channel, it was clean. I tracked the problem; it seems the purple color of the tweed was screwing up the electronic response of the channels. So I dyed the tweed a natural-tweed color, and all of a sudden it began working better. I do miss the custom purple tweed color, though. Also, I pulled a couple of tubes out of my Sony Walkman and changed out the ones that were in the amp, and the sound was sooooo much better!

It's a very dependable little box. I've never had a problem with it yet on my gig at the V.F.W., though one old geezer who had one too many tripped and fell into it one night. I heard a bunch of stuff fall down in the back of it (sounds of glass and metal hitting wood), and it's had a peculiar rattle to it ever since, but never fails to work perfectly everytime! I've begun setting an oscillating fan behind it now to disseminate the smoke while it's turned on. Other than that, I'd say it's quite reliable.

Fender folks are the best. When I told them about the purple dye in the tweed causing problems, they promptly sent me a bottle of natural-tweed dye. They also supplied the schematics for changing out the tubes with those from portable CD players. They think of everything.

I've been playing since I was a little child. First it was Lincoln logs, then Legos, toy trains...I guess I've played for most of my life. I also own a Marshall amp that I nailed to a telephone pole out back of my house. The extra wood from the pole really makes a nice soundin' board, and some evenings the family and me pull up lawnchairs and sit around it listening to various Mexican radio stations it picks up. If my Limited Edition Blues Jr. were ever stolen, I would probably replace it with one of those totally rad' beltclip Fender amps. I'm a sucker for portability.

Same old features. Blues Jr. Tube amp, Vintage Style. etc.

Using a Telecaster custom. Sounds awful weak compared to Marshall AVT series. Clean sounds alright.

Reverb was broken when I got it. Things rattling around inside. STickers for numbers on dials fall off easily. Cheap chrome and stickers for numbers are very dissapointing. Controls are upside down. BOOooooo.

Sent it back to were I got it. I now have a Marshall AVT50. Nothing compares to the Marshall.

Played for 5 years. Would never buy this again. Poor quality from a famous name.

i have a tweed blues junior and its pretty cool for what i paid . i keep it on my navy ship so i dont have to bring my pre cbs fenders . typical deep fender reverb , the fat switch is just that gives it some balls.

i play blues and go between two strats one with texas specials and one with those new fender pickups ,pretty good strat tones . a real 63 sg junior , the p90 rocks through this one not quite as much as my 15 watt marshall but cool otherwise . the les paul is creamy and smooth . i hope my 52 tele reissue sounds as cool when i get it next week . a 1 at low volumes but crank it a little and it sounds real nice

dont gig with it so i dont know i leave that duty to vintage ptp amps . i dont know about this one because ive had trouble with pcb amps but all i do with this one is play it so i dont worry to much

havent had to yet and wouldnt anyway if it blows up it gets rebuilt with a ptp board . those you dont have to worry with .

ive been playing almost 20 years . i have a 63 sg junior , a late fiftys epiphone , les paul standard premium plus , american standard strat with an ash body , a strat plus with texas specials , a les paul special and a 52 tele reissue , amps a marshal studio 15 , a 63 gibson amp , the blues junior and a 1965 fender bandmaster (pre cbs) .im building a 59 bassman this winter and a high power twin to go with the tele . i would buy the amp again if i had it to do over . its a good player to goof around on .

I have used the Blues Junior since it was first issued (around 1995)and have surprised every musician and soundman with the sound delivered from 15 watts. I have played rock, blues/rock, and blues with this amp. I play very authentic sounding Hendrix (feedback and all), SRV, and blues using the Blues Jr.

Great tone without blowing the hearing of the audience. Changed the stock speaker to Celestion Vintage 30 (16 ohm) and y'd in a Vibro King 2-12 extension cabinet with Celestion Vintage 30s (the stock speaker is ok but the amp really opens up with a Jensen or Celestion). My settings for the Master run 4-6 and the Volume run 6-8, FAT switch always on, Reverb at 1-2, tone controls depend on the room. Pedal chain includes VOX V846 (Italian), TS-808, Marshall Bluesbreaker (a great pedal!), MXR Distortion+, MXR Micro Amp, MXR Phase 90, and Ibanez EM-5. All tubes are stock.

I have never had a problem.

No problems, thus no need to call customer support. The 5-year Fender warranty is a great coverage.

Been playing for 30+ years and have other great amps (1960 Concert, 1966 Super Reverb, 1982 Marshall JCM 800) but always use the Blues Junior for gigs and jams. I have played small clubs, outdoor beer gardens, and small pro concert venues without problem. In the mid- 90s I played a weekly blues jam...five players ended up purchasing Blues Juniors after hearing mine. Walked into a pro-club for an open stage blues jam with a full sound system...the soundman chuckled when I told him I had a 15 watt amp...the other 2 players had 40 and 60 watt amps...the soundman asked me to turn it down! Hands down, a great amp! For most playing situations, plenty of volume...if you need more, mike it (I rarely run through the PA)!

This is a brand spanking new amp - ITS A BLUES JR RELIC, so it comes with a JENSEN speaker, it looks like a beat to hell tweed. It has the std FAT switch and basic controls. I like things simple.

I use it with the built in Jensen and ran my ALTEC extension cab. With a Fulltone 2 I can honestly say I can go from chimey Jeff Buckley Tele sounds to Santana rich leads. I am shocked! It is low power, and ya it a'int a CARR or MATCHLESS but its hella versatile. I play everything from straight R&B to ROCK. see www.olinmusic.com

Sound is amazing for the price

I dunno so far but I have loved all my fenders

Amazing versatile amp. Very small and very strong. With the Jensen alone it gives very stones-y kinda chimey sounds. I use it with a PRS and a Tele 52 RI or a 54 Strat RI. Makes a Les Paul sound very sweet and bell like PAF (ala my Dimarzio Virtual PAFs - great pickup btw). I love its portability. Low in power. The Relic looks awesome. I fooled a lot of people into thinking it was a more expensive vintage - so don't let marketing hype fool you. Great amp so far!

This is a 95-96 model stock rev B green board. It is versatile because I don't use the amp by itself (see below). I play in a couple of bands that play at low stage volume (we have everything miked except drums). The way it is used is important to note because of all the talk of speaker and tube changes as well as the mods that have been recommended (billm etc).

I have a Epi dot, G&L bluesboy, and a 56 Fender lap steel. I play blues and contemporary music. My amp is not noisy. I bought it off of ebay a couple of years ago and the guy I bought it from said the reverb was quiet on this one (He was honest). I don't play the volume and master above 5 in the band situation, however I do crank it once in a while, it does make some noise above 7, but not a lot. This is where I would like to make my point about tone. I changed the speaker to a Greenback and I put some JJ's in. These changes made the amp a bit tighter and stronger. However the amp is a bit boxy sounding without the magic box. I know this area is not suppose to be about effects, but I got to tell you that I think that putting my Digitech RP300 in front of the Blues Jr. makes more difference than all the upgrades and mods you could come up with. As players we are working to make the whole package work toward a sound that makes our ears happy. This is the 21st century, why not use the tools. I don't get it sometimes why guys want to twiddle with circuits when the answer to great tone and versatility might just be a fairly inexpensive effects unit. Anyway I cannot crank this amp in the bands I play into get to tone heaven(way too loud above 4-5). The amp is a good solid platform to build useful sounds. I am happy with it.

No issues with reliability.

Fender sent some manuals that I requested. That was nice.

I have been playing since about 1965 (yeah,yeah,yeah). Instruments listed above plus an Electra Bass and Hartke A35 amp. I love the size,weight,price,useability,sound. I like the fact that Fender hit a nice balance at the price point(We can afford it yeah,yeah,yeah).
I chose this because I had a real blackface super reverb in my youth. I will never stop feeling sorry that I sold it. I would never lug the super around. I would just sit and look at it and turn it on once every 6 months. My only add is that before you upgrade speakers,tubes,and tear the amp apart to change the circuit try some magic boxes. Remember Fender improved the circuit on the NEW silverface line (and they were professionals).

I think the features have been covered - maybe a little too much. I did make a few changes. I started with the cabinet. I wanted wood, so I made one out of birch plywood and covered it with black tolex ($100 for cab). The speaker sounded harsh, so I bought a Celestion GT-75 for it ($95). The stock tubes are crap, so I bought Mullards and used them for preamp tubes ($90). I swapped out the stock Groove Tubes power tubes for JJs.

I am rich so I have just about every guitar there is. If I want to see how a particular guitar sounds through it, I just buy it, then return it or sell it on ebay. I do the same with amps. I play mostly disco and rap music, some jazz and blues, and death metal/thrash/screach this isn't music anymore, just noise. I dunno, I think I need to replace all the ceramic caps with paper caps, and all the resistors with American made silicon ones. I may also change the tone stack. Sound is blah blah blah. I use an LP and American Deluxe Fat strat, they sound ok I guess, kinda sorta. The diodes seem kinda cheap too, so they will be replaced.

It cuts out now and then, but what do you expect after a year? It hisses at me all the time.

I got the schematic from Fender. I did all the mods myself, so who needs support? If it craps out I just throw them out.

Iv'e been playing about a month now, I got this for my 16th birthday.I pretty much know everything about amps by now. Much more than you old tube geezers will know in a lifetime of "I give it a 10 becuase it sounds like my Marshall/Mesa/Bogner what-ever" I have already hand wired 3 amps similar to Fenders old AB763 circuit. Piece of cake. Point-to-point is the only way to go. These PCB amps have a looooong way to go, but with about $200-500 worth of mods, they might sound ok, I guess. What-ever.

Just to address what was said in an a review a couple down from this. I used to work at guitar center (I quit because of the schmuck factor. That and the green ooze dripping off all the salespeople :) ) Anyway, I wanted a little tube amp and the blues junior had all the features I needed. I looked up cost, and GC only makes about $45 in profit on these things. So I suspect that fender doesn't make a huge profit off them either since they probably sell their biggest volume of them to GC and Musicians Friend. Anyway, they are good amps, not the shit, but good for the price. I ended up getting a classic 30 and doing a mod to make the OD channel sound close to the BJ. Same price range, but don't be discouraged. The BJ is a solid little amp for the money. Do the BILM mod and they sound fantastic.

Who ever wrote the "WOW 400 Dollars" review, below, is right on the money, and gave me a real good laugh!
Thanks Buddy!

The Blues Jr is made of the finest quality Fender Stem Cells.
It features pre-digested Alpo in a notable reverb sauce.

I play a Coors StratPaul with KellyRippa pickups and it's the
cat's aargggh! I play with the amp on zero and the stereo on 10
while dancing in front of a mirror wearing only a pyrimid and face smeared with strawberry from 'Little Debbie' jelly rolls.

Fender, having sealed the internal components is a glass of fetid cabbage juice, has made a most reliable salad. Leslie West has chucked his diet as we speak...

Fender is the most people oriented mega-corporation that the third world stone from the sun has ever singed itself on. A Monolithic Corporation, devoid of heart and soul, building products of expression. Go figure...

Actually, I've 2 BJ'rs. An older Green board one and a newer cream board one. Both are tubed with 12AX7EH's and JJ EL-84's. The green board one (Celestion Greenback and Billm Tonestack mod)) sounds best with single coils, while the cream board one (Celestion V30) sounds best with Humbuckers. Both amps played together really compliment each other. Neither one has ever had a minuite of unscheduled down time. Great bang for the buck.

WOW!400 dollars at G center-therefore they paid 150 bucks for it
Fender sold for 150 bucks,therefore it cost them 50 bucks to make it
20 of those 50 bucks were for man labor and shipping across seas-
so figure the speaker mabe cost ten bucks,maybe less,and a 20 dollar preamp-though from what I remember its not really an "all tube" amp-all tube amps have a tube rectifier and sometimes a tube phase splitter I think its called-what makes my amazing sound is a printed pc board that can also be found in 7$ radioshack calculators and toy remote control cars-old school amps had point to point wirring,which means some time and product cost went into them-Ive been playing for 63 years and its great!though I forget what my older amps sound like

Ive been playing for 72 years,I use to own a pevey practice solid state amp that I bought last year-I put some christmas lights in the back to look like tubes and wow!what a tonal differnce-and this amp it the same-there are glowing tubes back there so therefore I can tell you that it sounds good!great!amazing!I play my $100K 59 les paul standard through it and wow,it was like they were made for each other!actually I bought the junior on musicians friend and am waiting for it to be delivered,but its a tube fender!so I can tell you now its sounds great!!!!!!!

Ive been playing for 83 years I can tell you this amp is rock solid!
If anything should brake inside it no matter what part it is it will only cost me 50 bucks or less to replace it.

its great!Fender plus tubes means its great!its better than any old fender,ampeg,gibson amps-those suck-I know,Ive been playing for 81 years-those old amps back then in there day cost adeast a grand + each-which could be about 2-3000 dollars in todays money-so now if you spend 500 bucks on an old school amp ,not only have you bought an amp for for about what it cost them to make it in their day's money value ,yove of gotten a $3000 amp for 500 bucks-why do that?you can buy an amp that cost 50$ to make for your $400-hey,its a fender,it sounds great!

Basic features to be expected from this portable size.

I play a very nice Fender American Fat Strat Deluxe. The combo is very clean but very bland. Couldn't get any natural overdrive from it. Got a lot of hiss from the second one though. See Reliability below. Very limited in what it can do on its own i.e. just clean. Basically you need effects pedals to do anything else.

Very unreliable. The reverb on the first one I got didn't work so I had to exchange it. The reverb on the second one I got worked but it had a very annoying hiss even with everything turned right down. Perhaps Fender didn't bias the tubes right. So I took it back again. By this time I had gotten fed up with Fender Blues Juniors so I got a Crate V1512 instead.

A bland, unreliable basic portable amp with no variety.
I'm actually glad the two Fender Blues Juniors didn't work properly because the Crate V1512 is way better with richer tones, more variety and character in the sound and it is reliable.

Not Bare bones, but not many features either but who needs features when it sounds as great as this

tried it with a les paul, a strat, an esp kh-2 and they all sound great. i have had many amps, marshalls, mesas, vox, line 6, but none have a warm overdrive perfect for blues like thi little amp. don't let the price fool it a real amp, and real loud for 15 watts

just got it

fender won't help you but there are plaety of forums that will.

it is a great value and it sounds incredible stock, i can just imagine what mods will make sound like

Basic features but delivers a good sound for a small amp.

The stock sound is good but if you realy want it to sound great put in a set of JJ Tesla tubes and definately change the speaker. The stock speaker is okay but I threw in a Celestion Vintage 30 and now this amp sings and doesn't break up. The reverb on the amp is basic and I changed my with a three spring reverb that I purchased from ebay through Curtis Lauer. This guy makes great reverb tanks that are easy to change and I can now play surf guitar through this small amp.

Very dependable and a great practice amp or small gigging amp. I would definately change the speaker if you use it to gig as it will greatly improve your tone.

Never dealt with Fender's support but I'm sure they would be good.

Stock this is a good amp but modified and it becomes a great amp. I play a 62 reissue strat with Lindy Fralin blues pickups and a custom shop Robert Cray strat (way better than the Mexican production model) through the amp and it sounds great just running straight through.

the features of this amp are slim, but it delivers great, great tube-tone. i play fender teles and strat plus lapsteel in two bands in germany. the only thing i am missing is a second input, so i don`t have to unplug guitars, when changing to lapsteel. but i knew this when i bought it. so what.....

i play retro-bluesish music and singer-songwiter type of stuff, alt. country and bluesrockish music and with all kinds of fenders and various lapsteel guitars, old framus babies made in the fifties in germany. the amp is very capable to sound in differend, very satisfactory ways: you can get choppy rhythms a pretty high volumes, very nice "Lindley-CooderLowell-George"-slidetones and a excellent "workhorse"-bluesrock-sound. i owned nothing but music man amps before, and it was impossible to get the sounds i needed so easily!!!! this amp really does the trick for little money and it sounds loud enough for small clubs even since the other guitarman in my band plays a twin reverb! time passed and then i startet to fiddle with the amp: i put a celestion vintage 30 into the cab and that was a huge improvement to a already good sounding little amp. and then a miracle happened (to say it a bit dramatically): i ebayed a used handmade full-wood laquered tweed cabinet made by clarkamplification. now this really dit THE trick in a mayor way!!!! suddenly the whole amp sounds much bigger, better and more open. it seems that the structure of the wood has a big influence to the sound. we compared the amp to a couple of others, victoria, for example, and it can stand the race no problem! so here is my little tip: if you plan on souping up a blues jr. try another cab first! it is very easy to do and has a really huge influence! i wonder what happens, if i put really good tubes into the thing, but i can't complain in this department. also the reverb sound much, much better in the clark-cab.

so far no problems, but whem we took the amp apart, it was very visible to see the weak spots in the construction: all pots are connected directly to the "motherboard". so if anything goes wrong, there is no way to easily repair a pot, i would say... but all pots are hidden safely in the cabint so one has to be areal butcher to break them off or do harm to them.

got no idea, since the amp is so heavily modified, it will be hard to get any support.

well i play for thirty years, always in bands . i own a pro jr. stock as well, plus a couple of music man amps. i have a couplke of fenders (tele strat) ans three lapsteels. i am really sorry, that i did not own the little fender amps for a longer time before, because now my sound is the best i ever had. man, i use the juniors in stereo and that blows my mind everytime i plug in. even my bandmates are happy, because the sound happens at low volumes and is very full. i can really recommend the blues jr. as a fully capable amp for all situations. if i would buy one new, i would let the dealer change the emeinence speaker for a celestion before taking it home. evn without the cap-change the amp was really great, life and during rehearsals ans inspired me to play with more fun and joy. hopefully the pot-motherboard-situation will make no troubles, all the rest is good.

I give it a 9 instead of a 10 only because I wish it had an ext speaker jack. I also think it would be nice to have the FAT pedal jack easier to get to. Other than that this amp deliveres what it is aimed at in spades.

As it comes stock I give it an 8. This is a seriously great sounding amp. Stock it is wonderful and covers the famous Fender soundscape famously. After I did the BILM mod (I only did the fixed bias and tone stack mod as I'm too lazy to do anything else to this amp.
With this mod I cooled down the Bias down to about70% voltage at idle
and stuck a set of JJ tubes in both POWER section and Pre section)
These Mods turned this amp into a Blackface Princeton Reverb with none of the issues of an ancient amp (and believe me, I have plenty of them). There's no need to do any mods to this amp though I just couldn't leave it alone. The stock 12" speaker sounds great with my Gibson Les Paul! I'll shave a little off for the sound with my Strats with the stock speaker but when I hook up my open back 2x12 loaded with Electro Harminix Vintage 30 clones: Oh.... My.... GOD!!! What a sound. Try it with my all original 1964 Fender Jazzmaster and it brings me back to my 1st birthday!!
This is a seriously great blues amp at an excellent price and with an hour to spare and $5.00 worth of parts you get the feel of a black face era fender with none of the age associated issues.

Never Had a Problem with mine and It is used regularly for guitar students at my studio

Can't rate it as I haven't ever need help from Fender for any Fender amp I've ever had. By Fender Stable at this time consists of: 1968 Bassman ( Silverface AC568), 1966 Bassman(Blackface AB165), 1972 Dual Showman Reverb (TFL500D),Late 1980's Twin, so the Blues Jr. is in good company and it's right up there with them in terms of great ampness

What more is there to say? Best value out there at this time!!
If they'd fix the noise issue with the Pro Jr. They'd be the best tandem ever.

Made before 2001 - The usual -

Update to earlier submission (search for Flying V98)

Changed the EL84's to JJ Tesla's, and picked up a G212H cab from Avatar with Celestion Blue Alnico's. The Blues Jr sounds fantastic! The stock speaker that came with it isn't as bad as some assert, but mine lacked articulation, and got muddy on the low end. The JJ Tesla el84's brightened the tone a bit, but the alnico's allowed the real ability of the Blues Jr to come out. Creamy yet articulate - really nice throaty Fender sound!

Been beating on this for years - no problems since I bought it in early 2001.

Haven't needed it

With a few tweeks, the Blues Jr can't be beat for the price

Tube amp, no features as such just simple basic design. EQs master vol and volume to control the gain. Comes with reverb and fat switch for fuller tone.

Don't let the size fool you i've used these amps in a variety of setting and people are always blown away by the tone. I use two teles a 52 and a US one. The US gives a great modern bright ballsy tone and the 52 is great for that Steve Cropper thing. I also use a Les Paul which crunches the amp up for classic rock, think Jimmy Page and Paul Kossoff of Free. I use a bluesbreaker pedal to push it for solos which is great. I play blues rock and these amps are great for country, blues, jazz and rock. They do everything except heavy rock. I've never had to push the master volume past four and i play with a loud drummer. They really cut through. If your after that Kieth Richards, Ryan Adams Gold or SRV sound these amps are a must have. Forget Bassmans, super reverbs and Plexis. If you want classic sounds without being heard two towns over these are great.

The only bad thing about these amps is that they buzz quite alot. I use a stereo pair and they really buzz like that. On their own they are quite quiet.

Never had a problem and i tour all around the UK and US. Works great every night.

Never had a need for support so far.

If it were stolen i would get a new one. I love the simple amps. This amp is all about tone. Why by a solid state amp with hundreds of sounds when you will only use a few. This has a great overdrive and a great clean sound, both classic Fender. I 've used plexis, bluesbreakers and bassmans, these are great when your listening to Clapton or SRV but for todays player in a club or smaller venue they are not very suitable. I play in large and small venues and these do it all.

The features have been listed too many times already, and really, there aren't any extras-just a one channel amp with reverb and a "fat" switch to boost the signal.
I gave this an 8 because i believe if you are going to have a footswitchable option on an amp (the fat switch), then a footswitch should be included with the amp. For this amp, you have to pay another $50 just for the one button footswitch.
Also, the reverb is not footswitchable, another gripe of mine.

I absolutely love the sound of this amp! I've only used it at low to moderate volumes so far, but it has a beautiful sound, and i can't wait to get a high-end strat style guitar to play through it. Right now, i'm just using a Danelctro or Ibanez RG into a Fulltone Fulldrive-2 into it, and it handles the overdrive wonderfully. I only use my fingers for picking, and whether clean, or with the Fulldrive, the amp allows my sound to come through.
I like the fat switch, although with the Fulltone it's kind of unneccesary. If i get a chance to really crank the amp, i'm going to try it with just the fat switch and see how well it does.
My gripe in this area is the reverb. It only sounds good to me at low settings (up to about 3), after that it destroys the tone of the guitar.

Only had it about 2 months now, and only used it at home. So far, no problems. Having read a thousand of these reviews before buying it, the first thing i did when i got it home was to check the screws and see if any needed to be tightened, and sure enough, there were a few that i was able to tighten somewhat. Don't know if that would've affected the sound or not, and didn't want to take any chances.

Haven't dealt with them. The main webpage doesn't seem too in-depth, but i follwed links to a discussion forum about this amp, and that was full of info.

Overall, i think this is a great amp, for what it is. You won't go throwing your Bad Cat in the trash for this, but for it's size and intentions, i think it shines.
The most important thing to me is that the amp lets the sound of my fingers on the strings ring true, and this amp definitely does that. If it was stolen, i would definitely buy another. Also, i think it's loud enough for small clubs, and if miked, for medium-large clubs. I like the fact that it can be used for low-voulme practicing as well as for playing out if need be.

Already been said. Mine is basically a Limited Edition Tweed with the Jensen and Groove Tubes If you want a KISS (Keep It Simple, Stupid) amp, this is your baby. If you want buzzers, bells, whistles, can openers, blenders, nuclear technology, etc., look elsewhere. Don't buy this, then rate it a three for lack of features. Rate it for what it is, guys. I wanted something simple, uncluttered, with nads. The BJ suits me fine. I'm going with a 10 because it delivers the goods for what I ask of it.

I'm a dinosaur, weaned on the blues and '60s rock. I play a Tele Nashville Deluxe, which is a great marriage of a versatile guitar and a no-nonsense amp. This little amp sounds fantastic when used with a vintage, mid-'70s Marshall 4x12 cabinet. I've never been huge on pedals, but have learned to appreciate an EQ pedal and chorus (the latter sparingly). I'm a graduate of the garage band school of rock and roll, where you learn to get the sounds from the guitar and amp, without a ton of stomp boxes. With the Marshall cab, this is a 12!

So far, so good.

Don't know.

I've played Marshall plexi stacks (still my favorite, but I'm too old and weak to haul all of it around), Fender Twins, DeVilles and an ancient Bandmaster, a Peavey Bandit, an old Ampeg something, and a Line 6. Next to my 30-year-old Marshall, I love this the best. It is a workhorse and does everything (and more) I want.

Simple, straightforward, the way I like it. Only real complaint is that the knobs are turned backwards for some reason. Not sure what Fender was thinking with that. I like the addition of the fat switch, which I use pretty much all the time.

This baby definitely smokes. The loudest I would ever use it in my apartment is at 3 of 12. I definitely think this would be fine for small and medium size gigs, which I intend to use it for. I don't know where they got the 15 watts from but this sounds like at least 30 to me.

For $285 before tax new at Guitar Center this thing was an absolute steal. List is $389.99.

I use a Strat through a Digitech RP-50 and Dunlop Wah. I love the way this sounds with the Strat: a match made in heaven. It has only a little blues growl when it comes to distortion, but that doesn't really bother me. I have played very few amps that I would rely on for distortion without a pedal anyway. What I'm looking for is a good clean tone that I can manipulate any way I want, and this amp gives it to me. When I plug the RP-50 (which is a steal) in it responds extremely well. Tube tone cannot be beat. I'd take this over any solid state amp made. Definitely a 10 for the price.

Only had it about a week, can't say, I imagine it's pretty dependable though. Never had any trouble with Fender before.

Fender is always great. Easy to get service on. No complaints.

I have been playing for long enough to know what a good amp sounds like, and this one definitely makes the cut. For the price it is simply unbeatable. I compared it to a few other amps, mainly solid state, which simply do not compare to this one. Do not be afraid of the lack of a second channel. If you're thinking about buying one go ahead and get it. Don't be afraid to haggle though. I got over a hundred bucks off the list on mine at Guitar Center in fifteen minutes. Even at list though, this amp is still a steal.

Made in 2003. The amp was changed in 2001, and the early reverb problems are not existent in the newer amps. The circuit board had a change for the better also. I switched speakers with a high quality Emminence Cannabis Rex and cannot tell much difference. The Fender speaker is pretty good, in spite of what some reviewers say. The Celestion Alnico Blue is tempting but I don't think it will fit as the the chassis is 6.5" deep. The Emminence Red Fang is an Alnico low wattage that is supposed to compete with the Blue. It lists as 6.2" deep. I would be interested in anyone has made either of these deep heavy Alnico magnet speakers fit in the BJ, as I would like to try them. The unit has a speaker jack, unplug the units speaker and you can connect to external cab. I tried it with a Mesa 1 x 12 and it sounded great with the Mesa's Vintage 30. This unit is being held back by the small cabinet, not the speaker. The reverb works great and is very present. The tone controls don't do much, they do only a little. I use it with the tones turned all the way up and the fat (really a presence) in, almost always. Only one input. I have used this slaved from another amp and it is noisy, my understanding is it is the BJ as I can slave other amps without this noise. I'd be interested in hearing from anyone as to why this is and how to fix it. No input for a CD player or effects loops etc. No headphone jack (that would be a nice feature as it is a great tube practice amp). Works for gigging too. Not loud enough? Mic it.

Gibson SG guitar with humbuckers. Sounds great. A very slight noise, not noticable at all and less noise that the Gibson 15 watt I compared it to. If you turn the Master all the way up and control the volume with the volume knob you get the loudest cleans. You get nice pre amp breakup if you do the opposite. The cleans are very attractive, but a bit breathy. I love it, but it's not as clean a solid state or a Fender twin. It is bluesy. I use it with a Barber Direct Drive SS, and it duplicates the preamp distortion very well, so I in effect have a second, foot switchable channel with the distortion box. For a $400 amp I give it a 10. It's not as good as a Dr. Z Maz jr, but its good enough to serve as a backup. I'd gig with it. Mic it if it's not loud enough. It is the best small tube amp out there, IMO. Sounds great at all volumes. I'm not kidding, this amp works great. Save your money and buy a better PA, or get two, one for a backup.

So far so good. Always gig with a backup, you want to end the concert cause your equipment fizzed? No biasing the tubes, just plug them in. There are only 4 tube mfgs, a lot of the others are just one of the 4 relabled. There is also NOS (new old stock). Unless you want to experiment around just get Sovteks or any of the others. Heck, Bogner is using the Chinese tubes, so they must be ok too, in spite of what you hear. If in doubt, get Fender tubes. I'm sure they are ok. Some of the reviewers tout certain tubes, try those if you want. They all work.

Fender will come through. It has a 5 year warranty. Probably get a local tech to fix it, if it does break and try and get Fender to pay for it (call first).

I've been playing since I was a small lad. I am now a middle aged lad. I own some other amps. I'd probably replace it with another one just like it. I swear I think there are a couple of singers inside there singing boop boop. There is something addicting about listening to a good tube amp. I wish it worked better slaved and had a CD input, but hey, for $400 it can't do everything. Could use a second input also. All amps should have two in case your rythmn's breaks, or you have a student, or whatever. To break it in I miked my stereo and plugged the mic into the guitar input (I have a transformer on the mic). Worked OK. Actually I wish I could buy this as a head, and find my own cabinet. I want to try it with Alnico Blue. I also wish I could find a "two tone" which is a BJ in a bigger cab. I'm going to have a cab built for it, someday soon, someday soon...

I reviewed this amp last year after only having it for a week. I sold the amp and this year I bought another one after playing through a borrowed Blues Jr. with my LP Studio. The amp doesn't have any special features, it has a single channel with a boost switch, simple operation with volume and master controls. For my needs the power of the amp is adequate. I do coffee house size gigs and the amp shines in that venue. I don't use effects other than reverb or tremelo. I play classic rock, blues, jazz and country. The amp does well in small venues for all those styles. I would like to see it have a speaker out for recording or running through the PA, but that's a luxury I can do without. I think the amp is a good bargain for it's price.

I play a 96 American Strat Plus Deluxe, a 2004 Les Paul Studio and a Jay Turser Hawk 12 electric 12 string through the amp. The strat has Lace Sensors and the LP and Turser Hawk have humbuckers so there is no noticible noise. I don't like heavy distortion, but I do like to get a bit of a gritty edge on rock soungs, so the amp does well for that. I did some immediate modifcations to the stock set up. I installed JJ tubes and a Jensen 50 Watt C12N speaker. Big improvement in both volume and tone. It's gets a much fuller tone than the stock Eminence Speaker.

I'm on my second one, and I have had this one for about a month. I've owned Fender Amps for over 40 years with little trouble. I don't expect any trouble with this amp. I would like to see tube shields on the 12AX7's though.

Fender has been good to me in the past with support, I see no reason why they would be any different with this amp. They have a good dealer network in my area for warranty service and repairs.

I've been playing for over 40 years. I've owned a Fender Super Reverb, a Fender Bandmaster, a Fender Twin and now my second Blues Jr. All these tube amps have stood up to gigging abuse without problem. I compared this amp to an Ampeg Jet 15 Watt tube amp with reverb and tremelo. The Blues Jr. had a better sound IMO. If you are looking for a simple tube amp at a modest price then what's not to like? If you are looking for modeling, digital effects and other bells and whistles then this amp is not for you.

I have written here before. I have a highly modded BJ with a Weber Alnico BlueDog, NOS tubes and a tone stack mod as per Billm ( makes it more like a classic Princeton Reverb and lets more sound through to make a single 12' speaker really work)) on the fender forum website, together with a Gibson ES 137 with Classic 57 humbuckers I had installed when I bought the axe I'm in jazz/blues heaven...smokey bluesy /jazz sounds, clean jazz,id I use a Keeley modded Ibanez Tubescreamer I get a fat Duane Allman or Santana sound..just remarkable.. but i like the amp without the pedal for the smokey blues/jazz sounds i get.

1994
I give it a 10, because it does what it's suposed to. nothing fancy, just classic tone. The more stuff u add to an amp, efx, etc... the more it takes away. I play classic rock and blues. It's not for heavy metal, but it does what it's suposed to!

I play a 56 Gold top reissue. P90's rock, the only problem i had when i got it was that the tubes were rattling. I replaced them all with JJ's and it rocks! The amp is LOUD, amazing for 15 watts, and it's the tube sound i'm looking for. It breaks up nice, and has a nice growl.

i just got it a week ago, so far so good, it's in mint condition, the guy never used it, he was a novice and couldn't get it. it's 10 years old and still working

i have had many fenders, i havce a concert reverb amp, concert, and never had a problem

i've been playing for about 6 years, i've had marshalls, fenders, peavys. This amp is simple and rocks. i lucked out and ran into someone who needed some cash. i got the deal of the century. i love this amp so far

This is the limited edition tweed model (only 650 were made) and it has a Jensen speaker. This amp doesn't have any gimicks to it, just a 'fat' switch that makes the sound a little fuller. If you want modelling, tricks, and gimmicks, get a line 6. If you want tone, get one of these. I use it primarily for Jazz and blues playing with my Gibson 135 and couldn't be happier with the sound. The 15 watts is loud enough that if I turned it up, I would probably get the cops called to my house.

As I said above, I use this with a gibson 135 and no effects. I can get some great tones out of it. Clean for some nice jazz, or muddy for some rockin blues. For straight rock/metal this probably isn't the best choice, but it is still passible. After 13 years of playing I am finally happy with my guitar sound and play this thing at least a couple of hours each night.

Never had a problem with it. Play it alot. The tubes don't get nearly as hot on it as they do on the Gibson goldtone amp I used for a while. The thing is built very solidly and I don't have any worries about taking it out etc.

Never had to deal with them.

I've been playing for 13 years and play mostly jazz/blues at this point in my life. This amp is perfect for that. If it was stolen I would cry, then go on ebay and buy another tweed model. I don't think there is anything I could really find wrong with this amp. I am using this after using a Gibson goldtone, and a marshall tube amp (and a bunch of low budget solid state practice amps). This has the tone I am looking for and the only thing even close to it's price in an all tube configuration is the Peavey Classic 30 (which would be way to loud for my house).

Mine's a mid 90's in tweed. Looks like a 50's model since I lacquered it, which is cool. Not much in the way of features, but that's not what you buy a Blues Jr for. It's a basic, low cost tube amp with enough features to give you a nice sound in a compact package. I wish the reverb was a little stronger, though.

I use this amp for practice and small gigs. My guitars are a Fender '52 RI Tele and a Gibson ES-335. The band plays 60's - 80's rock and blues, which makes the BJ a perfect fit. Lots of volume from such a compact, lightweight unit with only 15 watts. The Master and Volume controls are interactive and allow you to dial in the ovedrive to fit the song. I use the Fat switch a lot with the Tele, but not the 335. It definitely does thicken the tone noticeably. I use a wah and a chorus pedal and they work well with the BJ. I think it works as well as any amp I've owned, within it's power limitations.

I've used it for 3 years with no problems. I've just changed the power tubes twice and the preamps once. Never so much as a hiccup. It replaced an unbelievably screwed up Vox Cambridge that never worked right from day one.

I got it used and it was already out of warranty. But it's never needed repairs.

This is really a good buy. Easy to carry and reliable. Looks great and sounds like it should. I have nothing but good things to say about it.

Many others have covered this. Like others, other features would be nice but you can't expect too much more for the price.

All of my guitars sound good through this amp. Nice tones with single coils and humbuckers. My styles are primarily jazz but I like to turn it up and play fusion and blues too. The tone this amp produces is great! Its warm and punchy and breaks up nice when you crank it. As others have noted, it is a loud 15 watts. Unlike others have said, The stock speaker isn't that bad (even though I just replaced it with a C12N). Also, as many reviewers have pointed out, this amp probably wouldn't be one you would choose for thrash, metal and other related styles. Its a great amp if your looking for clean, blues and classic tones at moderate volumes.

So far, so good. Again, considering the price, I don't complain too much. That said, it seems like the engineers could have beefed up the little things that get the most abuse...like the input jack, w/ the plastic retaining nut. Why didn't they make the enclosure 1/2 inch larger so a full size reverb tank would fit? Enough of that...I have used this a lot and don't anticipate any problems.

N/A

Good amp for the money. It does everything I need it to do and exceeded my expectations. The tone is improved with a better speaker but acceptable with the stock eminence. Great weight. Since we are talking about what we wished it had... standby switch, I wish that they would put this is larger box.

2003 Blues Junior. Bought "used", but still had tags on it. Giving this an "8" only because the features are limited; e.g., no FX loop, no modeling, etc., doesn't come with a foot switch for the boost (i.e., "Fat" channel). Not a knock, at all. In fact, I didn't want "features", just great straight-ahead tube sound with authority. Tired of lugging my Twin around and my Marshall JTM 130 sounded a little brittle. This little guy delivers.

Warm, (small) room-filling tones. I play Strats and Teles, both with single coil and humbucker pickups with coil tap. My LP Studio sounds good, too. I play in an original "rock"/alt country band. The Jr. is great for straight ahead blues or bluesy/country stuff. Lots of sustain. Lots of expression. Throw away those pedals, my friend. Well, maybe not the OD, chorus and delay. The reverb is a little thin--maybe. I see that some like to crank the master volume and control with the slave, but I like it the other way around to get a slightly rounder sound. Either technique allows you to dial in a nice tone.

N/A. No probs yet, but they all go after a while, don't they? Been playing Fenders for years. Always pretty reliable.

N/A for me. 5 year warranty, which is nice on paper....say no more.

Playing for many years. I love this amp. I'll keep my Twin for studio work and bigger venues but will probably move my Marshall JTM-130 because the Jr. is a perfect small venue amp: easy to carry, easy to set up, easy to control, no tricksy stuff to deal with in the heat of battle. I would replace it---it was only $300!

I reviewed this amp here in Dec 2000 shortly after buying it, search for Cummings if you want to read the original review.

My enthusiasm for this amp, nearly four years down the road, is undiminished.

Since then I've installed NOS Jan/Philips in the power section, NOS Mullards in the preamp. It sounds even better now, very smooth and glassy at high volumes, less midrange honk. I like the sound with the stock tubes but with the better quality tubes in place the tone has improved mayb 35% (if you can quantify tone that way).

I also changed the speaker for a Jensen C12N for the Eminence, just recently. Most of the 3-4 years I've had this amp I was happy with the Eminence but after awhile I wanted to tighter low end and better frequency reponses. I originally was gonna go for some Webers, as I have AF150s in a SF Vibrolux Reverb and have been very happy with those. However i got a great deal on eBay on a slightly used C12N so bought it and find that it has made a difference as well. Let's say that improved tone another 15%. Frankly it was quite acceptable as stock, and I'm not entirely sure anyone else hears the differences I hear with the NOS tubes and Jensen.

In other words if you're hesitating on buying a BJr because you worry it's mandatory to changed tubes and speaker, well in my opinion it's not at all mandatory.

I have one of the older green circuitboard versions. Some folks say the newer cream-CB versions sound better. I haven't heard the newer ones so wouldn't know but I've felt no urge to mod my circuit at all.

I'm still using various strats and teles on this amp and they all go very well with it. My newest acquisition is a Fender Jazzacaster (tele body, strat neck, jazzmaster pups, only 250 of them made in Japan in 1997), and it really sounds incredible through the BJ.

Still primarily using a Route 66 as my only effect, though on certain gigs I also use an RMC Picture Wah. The BJ tone really mates well with Picture Wah, get an incredible growl out of it. The PW is the best wah there is, in case you're wondering!

Now I can say, after nearly four years of constant torture, that this amp is super hardy. It has been all over the place, on trains, in buses, pickup trucks, car trunks. Beer, puke and blood have baptised this thing on several occasions, it seems to love it. Super impressed, I think it's easily the most reliable tube amp I've used in 25 years. I have a lot of trouble with my BF Vibrolux Reverb actually.

I always check to make sure the tubes are well-seated before playing a gig, as my experience playing other tube amps is that letting gaps appear between the pin casings and the pin slots, it can adversely affect the tone, and also leaves those areas open to dirt, etc.

never had to call fender, can't rate it.

See my previous review for this stuff.

They have been listed numerous times already.
Mine is a 2003 model bought new. This mainly a
practice amp that i bought because of its simplicity
and decent tone at less than ear bleeding volumes.
It does what it does very well. If you want features galore
dont buy this amp.

I am currently using a Squire Strat with stock everything.
I also use a Zoom 505II for a little compresion, delay, and
to quite down the Squire's noisy pickups. I mainly play jazz,
country and blues. I prefer a clean sound ala Robert Cray or
Chet Atkins. I knew this amp was not capable of the headroom
I wanted, at least not with the 12ax7's in the preamp. But I
also knew this was easily fixed. The stock gain of this amp
is too muddy for my taste. But with 12av7's in the v1 and v3
positions it has headroom for days. And if the volume knob is
cranked it is capable of some nice smooth breakup. Another great
addition is the Celestion Vintage 30. More than made up for the slight loss in overall volume caused by the 12av7's. I should say that with the stock speaker it still sounded good to me after the tube change. I just happen to have the V30 so I put it in.
One other thing I now enjoy about
this little amp with the upgrades is the fat switch.
Which I hated before. Now it just adds some warmth to the overall sound instead of causing everything to fart out. Without the 12av7's
this amp is too muddy for me. But with the upgrades I would definitly
give it a 10. For $365.00 which included 2 new tubes it was definitly
more than what I expected. Almost forgot. I really enjoy the reverb
this amp has. I have not had any problems with it and I think it sounds great. Kind of that get lost in reverb.

Never gig without a backup. I have never had any problems with a fender product.

Never had to deal woth them.

I have been playing for about 12 years, 3 of those semi-pro.
I would probably replace it if stolen. I love it's simplicity
and great tone for the money. I hate the fuzzy/muddy stock gain.
I have tried out and owned a decent amount of equipment. I just cant
seem to get that Fender clean sound out of my head. I also have a 72
Super Reverb which has been blackfaced and is pushing four Jensens.
Its my baby. But it is way too loud for around the house on a regular
basis. And believe me the BJ is nowhere near the Super. In any class.
But it's also about a grand cheaper. The BJ is a fun little amp and
is perfect for practice/rehearsals.

I have two Special edition 2003 namm laquered tweed with the jensons. I play with both on stage for 50's/country and blues. I have 4 custom built guitars, 2 strats one vintage with tex-mex's the other with 57' classic buckers, one tele has lindy fralin's blues specials custom blended, and the other joe bardens..very versatile set of guitars for these amps..running both amps in small rooms...up to 300 peoples or so don't need to mike them..wood be nice to have a standby switch but they do the job. I usually run the master @max, and then control the drive with the vol..depending the axe im usin...then control it wiht the vol on the axe. it definatley works best at full tilt...espcecially with the buckers..or the joe bardens..

i play on the edge clean/sustain and get exactly what i need..i use a mod'd bd-2, mod'd ts-9 (to 808), a dl4, compresser, and dunlop tremolo to split the signals, standing right btween them...with one in each ear, makes my eyes twitch...i think you know what i mean. THe only curiosity i have is to play a 57 twin...i owned a pre-cbs twin w jbl's years a go and i miss that...

u se both so im not concerned about that. i am considering doing the bias mod-and replacing ghe sockets w ceramic, but other than that im not concerned. THese seem to be popular..i bought the cover and footswitch. just for the fun of it. if i bought a 57 twin I may consider selling one but i would keep one around from now on ..great amp for just plugin in and playin'...

not concerned about it

let's see been playin for 48 yrs. my first new gibson was an es125tcd..in 59' i believe...still wish i had it..learned to play like Merle travis then....wish i still could..feel free to be in touch...i luv the tweed..and fenders were my love over the years....

1998 fender blues jr. very versatile amp plenty of nice warm tube tone. single channel of course. really the only thing I wish it had is an effects loop or an amp in input.I mostly use my amp at home but it is very light and easily transportable. it has just enough volume to play with an acoustic drumset if the drummer isn't going crazy.

I mainly us my ibanez pl1770 which has emg sa single coil pickups. it has a variety of sounds within it's own spectrum. I never have a noise problem because of my pickups. and the reverb is quite nice as well. from everything that i have read it seems that alot of people are putting jensen speakers in the amp improving the quality of sound a great deal. that is my next project.

it seems reliable so fari've only had it for 1 month though

overall i rate this amp very highly, for all of the reasons above plus it has a nice classic look being tweed and all of the old fender looking knobs and stuff . very cool

Amp made in '03. Laquered Tweed limited editon. Plug your guitar in & play ( once you learn its proper settings ). I have two custom shop Bassbreakers ( custom shop 59' Bassman's ) & play on this more often or a combination of one Bassbreaker & the Blue's Jr..

Play blues exclusively -1 Strat, 3 Les Pauls, & 335. Sound is amazing!. As others have said you must know how to use this amp properly otherwise you will never discover its richness of tone & harmonics. This amp sounds great with all of my guitars especially my 57',58' custom historic Les Paul's. It has a very smooth drive that only usally comes from an original late 50's Fender tweed.

Has been very reliable in the three months that I've had it. I have put many hours on this in the short time that I have had it. The EL84's get hot because Fender pushes them hard but this is what gives you that sound. If they burn out EL84's are cheap. Expect them to hold up quite well however.

The warranty is for 5 years ( standard for Fender amps ). Never after 40 years have had to use Fender warranty as thier products ( in my experience ) have always proven reliable & dependable. I have however spoke with them on many occasions for general questions. Some of the personal are young & unexperienced but Ray at customer service has been around & knows his stuff. Have every confidence that if needed Fender would be there to my satisfaction.

As i said above- been playing for 40 years. Not only would I replace this if lost or (GASP!) stolen I am busily hunting up another limited edition laquered tweed Blues Jr. as I always play with two amps & I know they would sound great together. There were only 640 of these made according to Ray at Fender.

This amp does not have 2 channels. It does not have DSP. It does not have modeling. It is a very simple amp. Personally, I like those to get my second channel from my Ibenez tube screamer and my effects from other boxes, but I will admit this is a weakness

To use one of these amps, you have to understand how the master and volumen switches work. If you want muddy, turn the volume way up and adjust the "loudness" with the master. If you want clean, turn the master way up and and loudness with small increase on the volume, staring from zero.

I have had one for over a year. Last night, I thought about the possibility of trying something new. I tried a line 6, a marshall AVT and a Peavey classic 30 at the store. With the blues junior, you won't get the gain that you can on these competing amps. But let's face it, there are gain pedals out there to do that for you. The blues junior gain does not produce sustain and distortion. It is all about 1 thing. WARMTH!!!!!!!!!!!

With a tube screamer (49.95 now) added, you can get the crunch and sustain you need. But behind that is a warmth you can never get with a marshall, line 6 or even a Peavey classic 30.

The blues junior is the best sounding small amp I have ever played with. It requires some adjustments to get versatility, but it blows away anything in its class.

So far it has been reliable, but I have not really put it to the test.

I have not contacted Fender about this amp, but my past dealing with Fender support have been great.

I have played guitar for well over 25 years.

I own a gibson les paul and a fender stratocaster . Both sound fantastic on this amp.

As mentioned above, I compared it to

Marshall AVT 20
Peavey Classic 30
Line 6 spider

It sounded way better than any of those three.

I rate it a 9, because what matters most is how its sounds.

The Usual, an update to my last evaluation.

Here is an update to my orginal entry. I kept the JJ -EL84's and EH -12ax7's. Put the orginal speaker back in. Now here is the interestig part. I did the Billm mod's to the tone stack, and reverb. This now sounds much better, even with the stock Emmenence speaker. Warmer and more solid sounding.The reverb sounds much better too. I will probably do the Billm mod to the bias too.

I liked this amp stock for what it is, a nice small tube amp with a 12" and reverb. I have a Laney VC30112, and matching ext cab, both with Vintage 30's, as my main amp.But with the Billm mod's this thing just got better.

2003, bought as an ex-shop demo amp from ebay. It has one channel and only one gimic - the "fat" switch adds a bit of extra sustain and is foot-switchable but does not make enough of a difference to be a lead boost for solos. I use it primarily for jamming at small rehearsals/friends houses/bedroom as its much smaller and lighter than my normal rig.

I am a bit surprised with the naivety of some people who have reviewed this amp. It is a single channel BLUES amp, and is made by Fender. The result is that it is designed to be a blues amp best suited for fender guitars such as a strat. Personally I play a standard strat with all the settings on the amp turned to ten, and the fat switch on.I set the master volume at "boost" levels on the amp and then turn down the gain using the guitars volume pot, also utilising the pickup selection for different sounds. OK this is a bit primitive and old-fashioned however it is EXACTLY what this amp is designed for and makes a refreshing change from my normal pedal board. Every sound the amp has with these settings is decidedly bluesy, but that is what this amp does!!!

Not much to go wrong really - a couple fuses, some simple circuitry, potentiometers and a speaker!

N/A

I have been playing for fifteen years and own quite a few guitars, amps and various effects. I bought this amp specifically to be a blues amp run with a strat. It does this beautifully and for its size the only rival is a Cornford (which kicks-butt but is three times as expensive!). I would never use this as my main amp for cover gigs however this is not what this amp was designed for. All these people who moan about the sound seem to have lost the art and fun of playing guitar - buy a line6 if you want gimics but buy this if you are a musician!!

Do you know what year the amp was made in?
2003

Is the amp versatile enough for you and the styles of music you play?
for what i intended to do with this amp it is perfect.

What are those styles?
country rock

How many channels?
1

Where do you use this amp?
practice, gigs, lessons, rehearsals.

Does it have enough power for you?
yup

What guitar and pickup styles are you using it with?
made in usa telecaster. haven't jammed my lp studio thru it yet.

How does it suit your music style (and what is that style)?
so far so good. outputs a fat spanky twang.

Is it noisy?
not really

What kind of sounds can the amp make?
good springy tube sounds. nice break up also.

Is the clean channel distorted at high volumes?
some, but that is good.

How brutal is the distortion?
brutal distortion is for puberty-aged children and adults who fake anger.

Can you depend on it?
so far so good.

Would you use it on a gig without a backup?
sure

Has the amp ever broken down?
nope.

never dealt w/them

How long have you been playing?
17 years.

What other gear do you own?
2 x marshall jcm 800's (one 1/2 stack and 1 2x12).

If it were stolen or lost, would you buy it again or get something else?
buy it again.

what do you love about it?
the tone and the looks and the weight.

What do you hate?
that i only have one

Did you compare it to other products?
yeah: peavey and some marshalls

Why did you choose this one?
fender has a better resale value that peavey or the marshalls i tried. this fender is no frills simple tone design ...not looking for bells and whistles ala peavey or thin buzzy distortion ala valvestate.
fit my price range.

Bought in 2001 (old pc board with crappy reverb). You probably already know the rest of the features.

I parted with this amp 6 months ago, after owning it almost 3 yrs, and after finally comming to terms with what this amp really is. Basically it's a 1 trick pony. The only good sound I could coax out of it was to turn the pre vol to 2 or 3 and max out the master volume. When playing my tele with these settings it gave a rich dynamic sound that reponded well to different picking attacks (nice chunk when I hit the strings hard). When I used my Les Paul, the amp seemed to be overwhelmed. Turning up the gain past 6 or 7 did NOT produce a warm overdrive despite what some reviewers say. This amp does NOT like it's preamp section to be driven hard (either with the volume control or a pedal - not even to the "just breaking up" stage. It's all-tube and I diluded myself for 3 yrs - "it's not muddy, farty and plasticy-sounding; that's the way tubes are supposed to sound". It will do a great clean sound with the master maxed out, but that's it - and if you guitar's pickups are too powerful, then you may not even get that. I wasn't expecting to play metal on this thing, but I was expecting it to be more versatile than this.
On the plus side:
As others have said, it is very loud for 15 watts.
I found the bass response was very good - I played with the bass on 7.
Once again, the sound you get with a weak single coil pickup and the master set to 10 (with a low preamp setting) is awesome.

Never any problems here. Noisy reverb, but that's the way Fender designed it.

Been playing 22 years. Please don't be sucked into the whole "it's gotta be all tube" thing like I did. I've plugged into many cheaper solid-state amps and have gotten as good a clean sound, and a much better overdriven sound than the BJ.
I traded it for a Marshall JCM900 combo. The JCM900's are known as the worst sounding JCM's of all time. I find it's clean sound almost as good as the BJ, but it's 10 times more versatile in the amount of overall tones I can coax from it overall (haven't used any pedals in 6 months). And I can drive the preamp as much as I want without it farting out on me. I wanted to like this amp. I'm sorry, but it just wasn't for me. Haven't looked back since...

1996 or 7 Revision "B" chasis.
1 channel, reverb, gain, tonestack, master. No standby.
Celestion V30, V1=Sovtek 12AX7WA, V2/3=12AX7EH, V4/5=GTEL-84s #5,
bubblewrapped reverb tank.

Mud, mud, and more mud until I replaced the V1 cathode cap (C3)
whose original value was 22mF with a 47 microFarad cap.
Now the amp sounds good. Also needs a lower gain V1 pre-amp tube,
which is why I used the Sovtek 12AX7WA (lower gain than the 12AX7EH's.

I haven't had any problems with it.
But the output tubes get REAL HOT!
That worries me a bit. (I think they're over-biased.)
I hang an old 12Volt PC power supply fan behind the open back
adjacent to the EL-84S's, and run it at 4.5v to quietly cool 'em off.
Seems to work. But so far, really, no problems.

Ha Ha Ha Ha!
I fix them myself.

Playing 35 years.

If my amp were stolen, I'd steal yours.

If I lost the amp, wait a second - how the heck does
one lose an amp? "oh gee. I thought I left it in the garden.
Mabey Will and/or Grace know where it is.", or -
"Occifer (burp) - I believe I was drunk at the time."
Gimme a break.

The thing I love most about this amp is that I can warm marshmallows
on the EL-84S's - any time I want.

The thing I hate about this amp is that if it's used as a projectile
it only leaves flesh wounds, because it's so light and compact.
(But it is fashion consious, I mean, I love an open back...)

I wish it had a winning Powerball Lottery ticket instead of the tube chart.

See www.mrgearhead.com fender forum and look for the BluesJr
threads. Lots of real valuable info on mods, problems, etc.

Also see http://mywebpages.comcast.net/machrone/bjr/bjreverb.htm
It's a great site for Blues Jr tech info and mods (where applicable).

I'm reviewing a tweed covered blues jr. (actually 2 of them) not sure of yr. of either. as a stand alone unit it's not versatile, that's why I bought 2. you all know the features.

My first experience with these amps was unpleasent. I really didn't understand the whole volume, master volume thing. If I remember right, I just plugged in, and turned whatever knobs I had to to get it loud enough. It ofcourse sounded like arse. I got to know it when I was stuck alone with only it for a while. My main amp (old blackface bassman) was getting serviced, and I needed to demo some guitar tracks. I was using a 73 deluxe telecaster, the one with 2 humbuckers, and just plugging straight in. After much frustration I figured out that the volume was kind of like gain. So, I cranked the volume to almost ten, and slowly brought the master volume up. It sounded great! After tinkering some more, I was able to get a fantastic clean sound as well. This whole experience convinced me that I needed 2 of them, one dialed in for a shimmering clean tone, and the other set up for a nice vintage type distortion. This combination works really well for me. I need the 2 distinct sounds, and you can get 2 of these for about 500 used. I'm not a blues player that just controls his sound with the volume knob. I dig and play stuff like Pablo Honey and Bends era Radiohead all the way to some Stones type songs. For 15 watts, they seem really loud. I've owned tons of amps, (Bassmans, Twins, Mesas, an Orange AD30TC, Ampeg VT-22, and so on) and tried recording with tons of amps. This little amp records very, very well. I like the recorded guitar sounds with these amps the best after the Orange. I'm not going for any high gain, metal madness. Others have mentioned throwing a Vintage 30 in 'em, and I agree completely, throw one in as soon as you possibly can. That speaker will go down in history as one of the all time greats.

Absolutely dependable. Keeps some spare EL84's and 12AX7's though. There cheap and may come in handy.

have never dealt with

I've only played seven years, but they've been pretty full. I've gone through so many guitars and amps trying to find that sound. I found that sound in an Orange AD30TC combo, so I bought one and realized that I couldn't afford it. These little amps can sound great. You've just got to mess with them, and use common sense. You probably can't get any Pantera type tones out of it, just enjoy hearing them do it. For some nice classic type overdrive and clean tones, this amp will work. I recommend 2

Bought mine in 2003. I play blues and rock, so this amp is great for that. It's small, but plenty loud for playing blues at the bars. You'll have to mike it in the event you play against a bigger amp. I won't get into features since they are covered everywhere. I do dislike the fact that the control labels are upside down, so I'll have to dock a couple points for that. Otherwise, it had plenty of features that are useful.

I play a Strat and a Les Paul. Both sounded good with the Jr. I will have to admit to loving the clean sound of this amp over the distorted sound. Clean was crisp and snappy. Once I got into the distortion, the speaker began to fart on the bass notes or barre chords. I tune to standard pitch, so the farting wasn't because of drop D tuning or anything.

For blues, this amp is pretty good if you want a light weight and portable tube amp for it. However, whenever I used the distortion on the amp with bassy chords it sounded like a fart machine. I have a friend with a Jr. that plays blues and his works well for him. I think it's because I prefer hammering on my bass strings more as well as playing dirtier.

Clean is where this amp is at. I loved to noodle late at night on a low volume with a hint of reverb. This is the best part of the amp for me. This amp holds clean for a good while. Since I play with a dirt sound mostly live, I never really needed much clean headroom.

I'll give it an 8. If I were to rate the clean, I'd give it a 10. For distortion, I'd rate it a 3 or so. I just love a tighter bass.

I bought mine used, and it started vibrating on bass notes. It was mechanical in the chassis. When I took it back to the store, it worked fine. So, I traded it in for a limited edition Jr. new with the Jensen speaker. The Jensen didn't solve the fart problem, so I took the limited edition back and just simply got my money back with some store credit as part of it. It worked fine though. I just don't think an amp for this price should vibrate at all. I owned cheap Peavey's and Crate's that were more solidly built.

Never dealt with Fender.

been playing 22 years. I play an Acoustic G60T and a Dr. Z Maz 38 2-12 combo. I wanted a small tube amp, but I got rid of the Jr. for the reasons stated above.

If lost or stolen, I'd file an insurance report and buy something else.

I think the construction of this amp is cheap. However, it should be better and I don't believe the fact that it's under $300 is an excuse. It' vibrated, farted(probably a cheap output transformer), and I found the tubes moved when I played it loud.

I never heard other amps fart and have loose tubes. I will grant you that this Jr amp is very small and those tubes are right behind the speaker.

So, to some all this is irrelevent and to me it was. I bought something else instead and my buddy at my blues jam love his. I just offered my experiences. Happy jamming!!!

Features have been listed elsewhere. The reverb is just OK. I'm not in a band or anything; just use it in my basement alone. It's LOUD. It's simple with not alot of features but that's what I like.

I play a G&L Legacy with two humbuckers; mainly rock and blues. The guitar and amp combination give me a wide variety of tones. I can get enough distortion for what I need which isn't killer metal.

It just sits pretty much in one place all the time so I'm not very hard on it.

Never needed any.

I haven't played many other amps but this one gives me enough tones and good sound for what I need. I chose it because it was recommended by salesperson and sounded good in the store using a cheap guitar.

N/A

In response to review below after changing speaker and getting good NOS tubes go to the Fender forum:www.fenderforum.com and look up billm mods which take the BJ tone stack to the vintage Princeton Reverb voicing. My BJ is close to a 10 with these mods and a Weber Alnico BlueDog and NOS tubes. Front end is classic Princeton sound perhaps the best Fender tone stack ever for a small speaker and enclosure and then classic Vox AC-15 from power tubes to speaker.
It's real ggod!

The problem with this review board is that everyone who writes a review owns the product,therefore they bought the product-so its not really a real review-this review is on a product I didnt buy-
I thought it to be great to have an all tube lil amp that would be travel friendly-tried it and was very disapointed-

I dont know how fender made an all tube amp sound like a cheap solid-state amp-sound wise it seems like the tubes are in there for show-this is an empty,bassless,lousy doinky reverb,flat sounding 400$ amp

na

na

Ive been playing 15 years-This amp is overated and overpriced,and you can get yourself a cheap no name old amp that will sound more like a tube amp than this one-Id love for it to sound good with its size n all,and who can afford one of the old vintage small fender amps but still Id seroiuly advise to not buy into the hype of these other reviews(they bought it and are stuck with it,so might as well say nice things as to not feel bad)-please trust me n shop around,you can get alot better with that 440 dollars

My Blues jr. was made in 2002 and bought as a replacement for a crapped out hot-rod deluxe. I've made a couple of simple modifications to this amp to make it what I think is my best amp yet. They are simply: retubed entire amp with electro-harmonix tubes and replced the stock speaker with a Weber (www.webervst.com). Most people I know with extensive tube amp experience will tell you that the less features the amp has (ie. channels), the better overall tone your going to get and I would say that in this regard the blues jr is a good solution.

I am a big fan of country, pop-rock, jazz, and everything in between. These are the styles I like to play. I've owned or used many amps (I'm ashamed to admit how many) solid state, tube, boutique, custom. And almost every one (including several fenders, boogies,1 victoria, etc.) has broke down on me at one point or another. I've been a professional guitarist for the last 15 years and am fortunate to have made my living solely off of music, and this is the best amp I've owned yet.I hardly use any pedals and get most of my overdrive from the amp and my volume control. A boss bd-2 is used when I need more overdrive. I receive frequent complements on my tone from other guitar players, which is nice. I would nix the reverb if I was fender...mine broke in the first month so took it in for warranty repair, got it fixed and it broke again within two weeks. I don't mind it that much since the reverb sounds like poo anyway. I also use this as a gigging amp and I never use reverb on live gigs.

Given my prior experience, I'm not sure I would fully trust on any amp to never break down. This amp has served me well over the last two years for well over 100 shows. If it breaks, it's no big deal...I can replace it with the same amp for a fraction of what it would cost to replace a Dr. Z or nice Marshall. The reverb (as I said earlier) is broken because something always has to break on a fender. I should mention that I owned a fender hot rod deluxe that after almost six months in and out of the warranty shop I finally gave up on and sold to a pawn shop. So Fender definatley can have reliability issues, but if you get a good one, they will be very loyal to you.

Customer support with fender is generally a pain in the rear and not too speedy, but they do honor their warranty.

The only other amp I've owned that I liked almost as much as this was a groove tubes soulo-45 that got stolen out of my car. But this is still a better amp (with the mods). 15 watts by the way is loud enough. I've played to several hundred people in some of the biggest sized night clubs in Chicago and many outdoor festivals (as well as a lot more gigs to a only hundred or less) and this amp shone in all environments. If i need more volume I just ask the sound guy to give me more in the monitor. You must change the tubes and speaker to really hear this amps' potential...it gives it a 200% improvement at least.

Features are as described above--limited, but appropriate.

I'd really like to draw attention to the fact that this amp is made for playing blues and classic rock. If you think the sound sucks, don't change your metal pedal, BUY A DIFFERENT AMP! This amp sounds awesome, especially at higher volumes. It rings like a bell through my Strat with a little reverb. Throw a TS-9 in there and you have something special. Click on a CryBaby and leave at full treble and you have a SRV sound.

No problems

n/a

Obviously, I got a great deal on the amp ($200) and I've been playing it for a year without a hitch. Like I said before, the thing rings like bell. If it were stolen or lost, I would track down the theif and beat him with the amp itself.

A balanced view of the popular BJr is what I'd like to give you. It seems people either love 'em or find all the enthusiasm a mystery. Bought mine used for $250. It looked like new. So there's evidence that Someone didn't like it. I think it's a 2000. There's a site for dating them: http://mywebpages.comcast.net/machrone/bjr/bjrevhist.htm.

Use mine mostly for jamming as well as small-time, low-key gigging. For me there's just enough volume. I worried about the volume factor when I gave up my beloved Hot Rod Deluxe.

It is Not versatile.

My number one is a Peavey Odyssey with alnico humbuckers. These pickups have sharp-edged clarity with a wallop of electromagnetic power. They work very well with the amp.

My territory is the psychedelic / jam band mountains and valleys.

Love the sound of the BJr at full tilt. But it Is noisy. Remember, this an amp of considerable variation, unit to unit. Mine has none of the reverb problems I've read about. But mine produces a lot of hum at high gain. This problem Can be obviated by the use of FX pedals.

By itself the BJr has two sounds: a shimmering clean and a blooming distortion. That's really all you need for an evening of rock 'n roll, IMHO.

Problems: when I first got mine I was disappointed that it didn't have more bottom. Today I don't notice it. I've also felt a bit of untoward intermodulation, if I may say so, when playing certain double-stops at certain volumes. Overall, it doesn't bug me. The big picture is good. I'm not a picky gear hound. Once I worried that it wouldn't have enough clean volume; Nah. When I need more volume I hang an SM-57 over the speaker and run it throught the PA.

One thing about the BJr; it has inspired a vast amount of discussion and brotherhood. Here's one of the several BJr sound pages: http://members.aol.com/_ht_a/lgreville/Zoteman.html

Hugely important: the mods developed and convincingly described by BillM, a godfather of the Fender Forum's BJr Mafia: http://mywebpages.comcast.net/machrone/bluesjunior.htm

You'll find a lively and copious discussion of the little amp at the Fender Forum under "Fender Amps, 1985 - Present" http://fenderforum.com/forum.html?db=&message_area_number=15&lastpost=2003-12-2321:34:28

Also, you might also enjoy this site: http://webpages.charter.net/mcarlyle/bjsounds.htm

Have schlepped it around for over a year with no problems. But I'm old enough to be aware that a tube amp needs care. Sometimes I wish I had a slam-bang solid state amp. But some of us have Got to have the slight extra fatness of tube tone.

If I were a gigging musician I'd always have a back-up amp of some kind. Been there; learned that.

Haven't had problems. But I remember when I discovered that my HRD sometimes produced annoying squeal at high volume. My local dealer said "We can't make it squeal. So we dunno what to try to fix!" Weasels! But there was truth to what they said. So I learned to live with it and luckily it wasn't too frequent.

The sounds of the Zombies, Yardbirds, Rolling Stones and Beatles made me grab a Silvertone 6-string and bloody my fingers. Have been playing since, therefore I have been through so much gear I can't remember it all. All-time favorite: a Super Reverb. Fender tube amps left an imprint on my psyche.

Bought the BJr because I can get a whole lot of the Fender sound in a light weight (listed at 31 lbs.), portable package. At my price.

Comparison: while I've always liked Peavey products I don't like the sound or weight of the 15 and 30-watt models. If I had a big budget? Ha. I'd upgrade to a Gibson Goldtone 15.

The BJr fits sweetly, inexpensively, between those popular poles.

This is an all Tube Amp with A Volume,Master Volume,Reverb,Bass/Treble/Middle Knob and a switch for Fat tone.
15 Watt but LOUD!! There is a Jack input for the 12"Speaker and it lets you use a cabinet at 8ohm that way.

When i bought this Amp i was looking for an Amp without lots of Effects, just a pure warm tone. That`s all i was looking for.

I use this amp for everything (Practice or Gig)

I use this Amp with an American Series Tele and it is the perfect Match. When i went to the Store i was looking for an Amp without Effects and so i found the Blues Junior. I am some kind of Tone-Fanatic and was looking for the one Tone i had in my Head. When i plugged in a Santana SE (in the Store) into this Amp for the first time and i started playing... i fell in LOVE!! That was excactly the Tone i had in my Head. Warm ,Natural and perfect for Blues. I did only Play a few secounds and went to the salesperson to buy it.
I went home and finally plugged in the Tele and what a surprise...
much better then before in the Shop. The only thing was that i felt like it was better to use it in a larger Room and so i went to use it in a big cellar with my hughes&kettner cabinet. I was right! So the only thing left were my stomp boxes. They were useless and i sold them. Only distortion is missing and i use a Boss BD-2 that`s it.If you are looking for a perfect clean tone out of a Tupe Amp this is it! Of course there is more out there and why not using Soldano or a Skrydstrup R&D ? Simply because i`m not Donald Trump Okey?!
I would say the price range between 400$(Fender BJ) or 3000$ for high end Amps is that big and if you compare it with the Tone it doesn`t make sense at all.

As i have just bought it i only can say that the Knobs look and feels good to me and everthing else is perfect. I am taking care at my Equipment so i think this little Amp will last a while.

Had no contact yet

There are many reviews and many bad ones saying the Tone is weak or the distortion. I can not understand as this is a matter of taste and this Amp just fit perfect to my Taste. Of course there could be better tubes or a better Speaker or better.... but the Price would be higher of course and there is a lot of expensive music Stuff around so i am okey with this category.
THIS AMP IS PERFECT IN ITS CATEGORY

I bought this amp 10/1/2003 and thought it would be a nice gig amp for small venues playing styles like Herb Ellis, Jonny Smith, Wes Montgomery.

It seems to have lots of volume for 15 watts. The bass is a little weak. I use a Gibson ES-175 as my main guitar through this amp. I also use an Ibanez George Benson model. The sound was clean for the first month and gradually developed a crackle.

Okay...this is the second month of owning the amp and it is giving me problems. The sound breaks up at any volume. It sounds distorted on the low strings. It didn't do this when I first started using it. I am going to send it back.

Guitar Center is handling the issues. They are being responsive.

I would not buy this amp if I had to do it over again. The bottom end is too weak for chord melody jazz and the reliability is not so good

specs,- fender.com
this thang is pobably the loudest ever listed at 15 watts.
it is great for home practice or live.
i use it for live stuff all the time with church youth group stuff and i also use it when i go to my drummers house. We play metallica stuff alot (which i use an rp-100 for the distortion) and it is loud enough to be heard over heavy drumming and a bass. The volume is usually only on like 4 and it is plenty loud
i also play a lot of blues, funk, jazz, rock, classic rock, etc.

i use an epi lp. standard through a dan-o-wah, then chorus (sometimes for cleans) and then an rp-100 for metal type distortion.
it works well with my styles, i play alot of lead guitar stuff especially at church which it really works great with. This thing is friggin awesome for blues.Duh. I can get an awesome stevie ray vaughan tone with just the guitar and amp. even with humbuckers.
the distortion is not really that high which it's not intended to be.
it is really good however for blues,classic rock (think AC/DC and led zepplin) and nice leads (i can even get some carlos Santana tones)
The clean channel is the best part though. Clear as i want it to be. at really high of volumes it does get a little overdrive but in a good way.

Yes, it is dependable. i have been using this thing for like 7 months now and it's still doin awesome(with gigging on a regular basis). I have not needed service yet

i have been playing for about 2-3 years but play like an hour or more a day. epi les paul std, dan-o-wah, dan-electro chorus, digitech rp-100. i also have the squier strat that i started out on (the amp that came with that broke (AAAHHH, cheap korean labor, i love it.)

Read below for all the details.

Nice clean tones with a strat of course. Not much gain to speak of. You need a pedal like a Blues Driver or Tube Screamer to get that with this amp. The fat switch is a joke.

All the knobs feel like they have too much slop. Just compare the controls on this to a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe and you will notice a big difference in quality. I am sure it doen`t end there. The cabinet feels heavy enough but the guts are crap.

Decent warranty.

Overpriced made in Mexico small tube combo.This and the Pro Junior are junk. Spend your $350 elsewhere like Traynor, Carvin or Ampeg or save a few more bucks and buy the Fender Hot Rod Deluxe which is a very nice combo for around $450- $500.00 new.

Look at the other entries for specifics. Mine came late 2000. Black tolex cover. Made in US. I give it a seven as it's not really a do-it-all amp.

I use three guitars with this amp together with a Tech21 XXL pedal. I have a Fender Tele, a 60s ReIssue Strat with a JB Jr. in the bridge and a Les Paul with Alnico II. All seem to work well the amp and the pedal, I just have to do some tweaking everytime I change guitars. Bottomline, this amp packs a lot of tone in such a small package. For small clubs, just send it thru the PA and you'll be fine. With the mods mentioned in the forums, the tone will probably get more awesome but I'm pretty much contented with it all stock at the moment. I've been using it for a less a than a year now.

One time, I was playing in a poorly ventilated place and the amp went pffft! It played normal again when I let in some air in the place.

N/A

it's a decent 8 all stock.

This amp was made in 2001/2002. It has one channel, three equilizer knobs, a "fat" switch, and reverb. No special features to write home about. It is all-tube, but I don't know enough about tube brands, biasing, to make statements on their quality based on brand or specifications. At 15W, it can get quite loud and provides plenty of power as a practice amp. I would say that it is best suited for blues (suprise), country, and rootsier rock material.

This is a controversial amp, mainly because it is so popular and has the Fender name stamped on it. If you believe the hype from the company, its a vintage tweed sound in a budget package. Of course, who ever believed company hype? This amp delivers the goods if you have realistic expectations.

First of all, its not a big amp. Therefore, you're not going to get a deep, booming sound. With such a small cabinet and tiny speaker, the sound is going to have a nasal quality to it no matter what. You're also not going to be able to get enough volume out of it to play in an arena without running into a PA, so don't even try. It has a small reverb tank, so what you get is not going to the big-money Fender reverb we all know and love.

At 300 bucks for the unit, the tubes are not going to be the best things on the planet. I don't know much about tubes, but I do know that these don't sound as good as the Mesa/Boogie tubes in my Rect-O-Verb 50. They break up decently at high volumes, but this really isn't a rich, warm tube sound...it's more raw and bratty.

The "fat" knob is garbage, in my humble opinion. It makes the tone sound flabby...if you're going to play a puny little fender tweed amp, you're probably not expecting a fat tone anyways. This is a thin, sharp tone. Why fight it? Just hook up your telecaster and twang away.

The tone knobs are a mixed bag. The bass control is not worth bothering with. Pushing it to higher levels just makes the tone flabby. I usually cut out the bass completely when I play, particularly with my Tele. The mid is also a waste--I leave it at 6. The treble knob is the only one that has much of a point, and flavors the sound quite a bit.

The speaker isn't much to write home about either. Of course, it's so cheap that I wasn't expecting much. I don't know a lot about speaker brands, but this little thing doesn't give me half the tones that the Celestion Black Widow does in my Mesa...then again, the amp is about a fifth of the price of the Mesa. It's got a squawk to it, but does manage to break up at high volumes, giving the tone a raw edge. Again, more bratty than anything else. I may or may not replace it...I suppose putting an extra 50 bucks into this amp won't break the bank, but I wouldn't spend hundreds of dollars on new tubes. If you want to spend 600 bucks on an amp, why would you buy this one?

For 300 bucks, this is a nice little practice amp is you like raw tones. It's got a raunchy sound that I like, but I wouldn't use it to play pure, clean tones. It also doesn't have the power or depth to give you big distortion. It's not a one-trick pony, but it dosn't deliver a huge amount of tones. I would say that it sounds best with Teles and single-coil pickups rather than humbuckers.

It's worked fine so far. As a practice amp, it's not going to be moved around a lot. With tubes, you always have to be more careful than with solid-state amps.

It's a good little amp for a low price. If you're going to double your investment by making a bunch of modifications, you should probably save yourself the trouble and buy a better amp in the first place. I bought this to replace an even cheaper solid-state practice amp and it suits my needs quite well. My other amp is a Mesa Rect-O-Verb 50 which is expensive, heavy, and has a wonderful tone. The Fender is certainly no substitute, but it has its uses. If you want a real tube amp at an affordable price, this will suit your needs. But be aware that you still get what you pay for. You can probably get a perfectly good solid-state amp for the same price that will have more flexibility and be less delicate to work with.

See below

Individual opinion is extremely important in a western democracy, without it we are nothing. Most people who have reviewed this amp seem to like/love it. Their opinions are as valid as anyone elses. However, I bought one of these amps last year and I have to say it was truly awfull! I tried several in the shop, they all sounded similar so it wasn't a dodgy unit .. and like most people I couldn't really tell what it sounded like in the shop so I tried it at home (Cranes of Cardiff let me do this a lot .. thanks guys!)

There are several problems with this amp, most of which can be fixed. However, once you have bought the amp and made the mods it becomes cost prohibitive. The problems are these: The tubes that Fender put in this amp are garbage .. pure and simple. They strangle the sound of a reasonable pre and power stage. This is bourne out by the fact that so many reviewers here change them. Why can't Fender put decent tubes in in the first place? Secondly, the speaker is the worst I have ever heard. When the whole world has acknowledged that the Celestion Vinatge 30 is a work of pure genius, why do Fender insist on using Eminence? They are sub-standard at best. Thirdly, the cabinet is too small to do justice to a 12" speaker (whatever the make) .. would it hurt to make the amp a little bigger to release some of the tone? It needn't be much heavier or awkward to carry and the improvement would justify the mod. Fourthly, the reverb tank is hideous ... it would be better not to bother, frankly.

Fender can, and do, make much, much better amps than this (Bassman, Twin etc.) so why are they continuing to make this amp? It is because they sell them in droves. Why? Because it says Fender on it. This is a classic case of the emporer's new clothes. Just because you know the name doesn't mean the product is any good .. and that goes for most walks of life.

I think that the amount of reviewers on this seem to be on number two or three amp speaks volumes.

Always deal with the dealer who is extremely helpful

It's worth saying that I don't have a downer on Fender. I have a US Strat which is just amazing and I have owned Fender Champs which were superb. I just think that they are trying too hard to make a tube amp at a reasonable price and have failed miserably.

I took this amp back and swapped it for an Orange AD15/12. A bit more expensive but in a completely different league (see the reviews).

I don't dismiss all those who have bought this amp and love it, if we all liked the same things the world would be a very dull place. All I would say is if you are in the market for a small amp, shop around and maybe be prepared to spend a little extra to get a way better tone (after all, after you buy this amp and replace the tubes and speaker, you may as well have just bought a better amp in the first place and not completely trashed the warranty with the first turn of a screw-driver!)

Pretty simple features. 1 plug for a guitar, bass, mid, treble, volume, master volume and a fat switch. Oh, don't forget the reverb. This amp has all the features I need. Just to say that it has one great sound. How many more do you need. The amp is 15 watts which is great for trio work. If it's not enough power I would just through a mic in front of it and send it out through the mains.

I just got this amp yesterday and used it for the first time last night for a club gig. Great sound without blowing the rest of the band off the stage. My Hotrod DeVille had a habbit of needing to be turned up past confortible to get to the sweet spot.

What can I say. For me, this amp sounded better than any other tube amp I have played. Mostly because I could turn it up enough to get it to break up naturally. If we were playing a slow song I just backed off the guitar pickup volume and the amp cleaned right up. Boy, it was fun using this amp last night.

Well, I have had the amp for less than 24 hrs and it is working great so far. (grin) My Hotrod DeVille went about a year and then needed a total retube after which it sounded great. I went with all JJ's and don't regret it.

I expect I will need to replace the tubes on this one as well eventually. The rest of the amp has a 5 year warrenty so if anything does go wrong short of tubes or speaker, it's covered.

Can't say, have never had anything sent back to Fender.

Played for 32 years. I use a Roadhouse strat, a Ratt pedal, Boss Sterio chorus, Boss Digital Delay, Boss tuner. If it were stolen I would replace it in a minute. I love the weight (or lack of), great sound, portability.

By the way I do not work for Fender, have any relatives that work for Fender or owe them any aliegance because the president of Fender saved my life in the war. I am just really impressed with this little amp and what it can do with the type of music I am playing (current radio covers, classic Rock, country, blues) This amp may not work for you and that's ok. Just check it out before you dismiss it for something eles. If you are looking for a very affordible amp and a great tube sound and are a player that can make this amp sing, go get one now. You won't regret it. (Now, if the little bugger blows up in the next few weeks I will probably have to update this but I doubt I will need to do that.)

Bought this amp new as overstock at a super price.
Basic tube amp w/reverb. FAT switch for that added drive is nice. Footswitch is optional. Great loud tube sound for such a little 15W amp. Use it for small venues and practice, but has ample power for blues, jazz, classic rock etc.

Sounds good with any Fender guitar. I also use it with a PRS Custom 24, and GB100. Clean channel is clean enough. Little bit of a hum at higher volume thresholds, but not terrible. Reverb is okay. Distortion can be brutal at max. drive, volume, and master settings. I can't see anyone using it that way.

It's a Fender.

I own a Princeton, Twin Reverb, HotRod Deluxe, and Blues Jr. No problems with any of them, so no support has been needed.

Playing guitar since the late 1960's continuosly. I would replace it if needed. The amp is surprisingly loud at 15W and light weight. Wish it had a send out jack for recording, but not essential. I like Fender amps, and am impressed with the HotRod models. I've owned Marshalls, Line 6, and Crates. Fender's work best for me.

After reading most Blues Junior reviews I have one concern.

Some of the tech tips here are downright dreadful.

quote:
...turn all controls to "0" for at least an hour before playing and at least a half hour before shutting down.
This works like a standby and saves the tubes.[quote]

quote:
Wrm it up for at least 2 hors and use master at maximum, ALWAYS. Switch it on 2-3 hours BEFORE
the concert.[quote]


What the crap are you guys talking about?
If you don't have a clue about amps, electronics, current etc.
it's OK but PLEASE KEEP YOUR MAGIC SECRETS FOR YOURSELF.

At least it's been a good laugh.

Same as other reviews but I didnt notice anyone else mentioning the speaker jack can be pulled and an 8ohm marshall cabinet can be plugged in.

I dont care for the distortion at all. I play clean and progressive speed metal. With an eq pedal and distortion pedal I've dialed in some respectable sounds. The clean sound is decent. Reverb seems useless. With a Marshall 4X12 cabinet this amp is loud.

I bought this amp as a cheap beater intended to get knocked around. I've played it hard for many hours over the past year and it has worked flawlessly. I did replace all the tubes once to see if there was a niticeable difference in tone (couldnt tell). I do turn all controls to "0" for at least an hour before playing and at least a half hour before shutting down. This works like a standby and saves the tubes.

5 years warranty. No need to use it yet.

I actually was looking into this amp because of the style of metal I play most people said this amp would never be good for it. When I realized it's clean sound was good and that an 8ohm cabinet could be plugged in I knew it was worth a try. Right now I'm playing a strat with hot rails in middle and neck position and a super distortion in the bridge. ProCo rat two distortion, boss metal zone, boss eq, and a morley wah. All this through a marshall speaker. With a preamp on 10 and the master on 6, mid and bass on 9 or 10, treble about 5 and reverb on 0. Good power tube compression. Sweeps are clear and rhythms have punch. Plenty loud enough with a deathmetal drummer. I would replace it with another blues Jr, after looking around to see if something new came out.

Blonde Fender Blues Junior from Musian's Friend. Bought in 2003 new. One input channel, an ON/OFF Control, Master Control, Volume Control, Treble, Mid, and Bass Controls and a Reverb Control. Reverb is from a spring TANK mounted in the bottom of the cabinet (huge thing!). Also has a "FAT" button you can engage for a "warmer" sound (helps some with a higher pitched guitar). No effects loops. Does have an input for a footswich that can be used to turn the "fat" switch function on and off so you don't have to walk over and hit the button on the top of the amp. THIS IS TUBE AMP. Preamp section is 3 12AX7's (although the manual says 4). The power section is two EL84's (6BQ5). Power supply is SOLID STATE and there is one cream colored circuit card with most of the SS electronics mounted to it. A 15 watt unit -- but sounds much louder. It gets a "5" in the features department because it doesn't have a lot of features. Simplicity was the goal here when Fender designed it -- and vintage TONE in a modern reliable Tube Amp was the overriding concern they had.

I bought this amp because I wanted a completely tube preamp/power section designed amplifier capable of doing justice to my telecaster. The guitar / amp match was my overriding concern. I also bought it because it's cheap. A PRO JUNIOR is cheaper -- but there are NO features on a PRO JUNIOR other than Volume. So I was looking for a tube design that had a few a features on it -- this one has just enough. I like the vintage styling -- especially the blonde cabinet.

I use this with an American Tele and it's just a perfect match. I don't think I'd plug a Les Paul into this thing. I use only single coil pickups and the noise is acceptable. This amp is great for blues, jass, country, and surf type music. The REVERB -- some may not like -- but I LOVE IT! Very strong robust REVERB. Peg that thing at "12" on the chicken head reverb control and you have some unbelievable surf music tones!

You get clean tones at low volumes and you start breaking up noticably the louder you get. In a small room, it's hard to get the full distortion but you can play with the Volume and Master Controls to produce some pretty good distorted tone at acceptable volume levels. Not brutal Marshall-type distortion -- this is sweet warm stuff only. I love it!

It gets an "8" in reliability. One good thing here -- Fender is now producing these things with an all "Groove Tube" Preamp section. However, they're still 12AX7WA's -- which is my least favorite 12AX7 tube. These are SOVTEKS but screened by GT so they're reliable, if not tonally perfect. I replaced the stock tubes with a Groove Tubes 7025 in the V1 socket -- which gives the amp the 60's Fender Sound. I also put a special Groove Tubes SAG-AX7-Y in the V3 position. This is the power phase of the preamp section and both sections of the triode in V3 work together to produce the preamp output. The SAG-AX7-Y is a BALANCED triode -- both of the sections of the tube are MATCHED -- very similar to "matching" power amp duets. This is an overlooked, yet important thing to do in preamps. If you don't do it, you don't get a balanced output out of the preamp section and your tone is going to suffer. I left the stock 12AX7WA in the V2 socket of the preamp, but I'm looking for a tube for that spot also.

For the power section of the amp, I replaced the stock EL84's (these were NOT Groove Tubes and had absolutely no markings)with a MATCHED Groove Tubes EL84S Duet. The sound out of the amp is great. You may think I have a little too much time on my hands in playing around with tubes like this but I have an excuse -- one of the EL84's that was shipped in the unit was BUSTED during shipping! Amp came completely unusable due to that fact. If you order one of these puppies -- just plan on one or more of the tubes getting broken in transit! And it will probably be one of the matched EL84's -- if one of them breaks, you gotta chunk 'em both. Fender is using some kind of metal spring harness that's wrapped around the top of both tubes and, it might reduce some rattle but it is unforgiving on those two tubes when the unit is being bounced around. Do yourself a favor, get online with Groove Tubes, and order the tubes you want from them. If your Blue's Junior comes without any cracked tubes -- great! You're still gonna want to replace the stock tubes though with Groove Tubes because the amp is gonna sound better. You can completely "customize" the sound of this amp to your tastes by simply going to Groove Tubes for special tubes.

Ordered from Musician's Friend and they are always GREAT. I don't blame them for the broken power tube -- this is the first thing I've ever received from them that came with anything damaged on it. I didn't deal with Fender directly -- so no opinion there. GROOVE TUBES was great though -- No I don't work for them, or own stock in their company -- but they really helped me out here with the new tubes. I have a great sounding amp.

Other than the 1 broken tube that was busted by the Postal Service in transit -- this unit is reliable and I have experienced NO problems. It's just a great tone machine and the tube stacks make it an organic part of the guitar. Very good looking, very simple, VERY Fender. I Love it and wouldn't trade it for anything. This is a great tube amplifier that can be had for under $500. It gets plenty loud and sounds awesome. However, one caveot -- this is not a HEAVY METAL amplifier. Don't even think about plugging METALICA into this box! Go buy a Marshall or something like that. But if you're into Chuck Berry type ROCK; or Country; or Surf Music from the 60's -- THIS IS THE TICKET.

2003 blues jr 1 channel tube amp with reverb. This is not a creature feature amp. If you need more, stomp on a pedal or two.

This amp sounds good for a small cabinet lower wattage amp. Nice thing about this amp, it can be modded for a different sound. This is a cream colored board which sounds different from the older green boards.If you mod the tone stack, the amp comes to life alittle more. I am thinking of putting the chasis in a bigger cabinet to give the speaker more breathing room. A good blues/rock sound and pedals for heavier sounds. After hearing other bj's in larger cabs, it will receive a 9 for sound.

So far so good but it's a tube amp and with the amp biased at a hotter setting from Fender, the tubes will go sooner or later at some point then if you go with a lower resistor.

Have not used customer support and if Fender is like most product companies, the least talented people will usually be put there.

This is the first new master volume tube fender that I have ever bought. I have older fender amps but bought this for the good sound it can get at lower volumes. If it were stolen, it would be worth buying again. For the price it's a winner. If I had a wish list, it would be point to point wired,tube reverb and tremolo with a better cabinet but then it would be $1k+ This amp is what it is and it's a keeper. If you want this Fender to sound like a Marshall use a pedal or buy a freakin Marshall.

Bought this amp on a whim in 1999 for $349 with no sound check and I though it would come back to haunt me. Soon became disinterested in its watered down reverb and overt clean sound. No gain and no pop, somewhat muffled sound on certain settings but the FAT is useful and it is a loud general tube amp for 15 watts. Good for Blues and is greatly respected from reviews and guitar shops around. I thought I made a big mistake until now. The Blues Junior is a sucess and is a staple now for Fender, good!

I put this amp in a corner to gather dust for about 3 years and ended up playing my practice amp Epiphone as it had gain and was acceptable for my training. So debating wheather to sell or upgrade I recently saw a forum that someone hooked up a Zoom PD-01 up to their Blues Junior and instant magic. So after finding out that Zoom discontinued the PD-01 I researched and bought a Digitech Heavy Metal Distortion XXM and a DOD YJM308 and whew my opionion has changed about the potential of this amp. Wow It now has big sound and is a real distinctive sound value. What a huge reverse of my opinion !

Tubes are OK. Sovtek EL84 and or EL84M are a staple of Fender, Boogie, Crate, Peavey, but many users complain they are hollow sounding with no punch. But no problems from me yet but I heard raving reccomendations for a English military supplier has replament tubes NOS Mullard CV4004 (12AX7) $50 But they may be discontinued or in limited supply. Another option are the Mullard ECC83/12AX7 but they are not as powerful and don't have the punch. Keep an eye out as they are being purchased up in a hurry now that the word is out that they really upgrade the Blues Junior.

Good warranty when I got it.

I have been playing for 4 years and I have a Les Paul Standard Guitar.

I practice almost everynight for 2 -3 hours . I was debating selling this amp as I was not using it and its not worth keeping it around as a $349 dust collector, but now with the added performance of the Digitech Metal Distortion pedal (and somewhat with the DOD YJM 308) I am not parting this amp and will keep it until it conks out. I am not a metal demon but the Digitech pedal gives an overt heavy heavy distortion that is easily handled and balanced out by the Blues Junior .

My amp some teeth now for distortion and gain playing. Very heavy tone now and my master is on high and volume settings are on low. I live in a condo so thats all I can do without alot of knocks on my door.

I may chain the Heavy Metal Distortion with the YJM308 for added magic.

If stolen or lost I would go for the Tech 21 Trademark 60 or Peavey 5150II for my next amp. That Tech 21 for a 60 watt amp is a big versatle blaster for many guitar styles for the $500 dollar mark. Les Paul plays on them but he has a larger version.

Fender Blues Jr Vintage 2002.

Really good, out of the box - when the one in the box ain't damaged.
Fabulous with a couple of easy (non-warranty threatening) mods.

I'm happy to have a tube amp with a master volume. Really.

Clean Fender, Brown Fender. those are the choices.

Distortion? Use a distortion box. That's how we made music
when rock was young.

Dependable amp.
Use a low-voltage low-air movement fan to pull some of the
heat off of the EL-84's. Components'll last longer.

Support is provided by contracted independent techs.
Fender pays them at highly discounted rates.
Kudos to the techs - not Fender.

The rating of "10" is for the techs - not for Fender.

Playing for over 50,000 years.

I mentioned some easy mods, above.
Amp became louder, sweeter, ballsier, heavier (larger speaker magnet).
They are:
Retube:
12AX7EH Pre-amp(V1, V2)and Phase Inverter(V3);
Groove Tubes EL-84 strength 8 (probably are JJ's).
Speaker Swap:
Celestion Vintage 30 8 ohm. SPL=100 SPL (F'er stock spkr SPL=97)
(SPL is a measure of speaker efficency.)
Reverb Tank:
Homemade cover installed.

Features the famous all Fender reverb and tone, master and regular volume, mid, treble, and bass. As the name indicates it can handle any form of blues and rock, and provide a sound that is impossible to immitate by any modern modeling amps. However, it does not feature any built in distortion which may be a good thing for all you musicians who want a Bassman but don't want to shell out a grand.
In my opinion it is the finest all-tube amp for the money.

The Blues Jr. is an excellant amp with a LOUD speaker. It may be 15 watts but it is blistering loud for its size. The reverb is excellent and sounds great with a effects chain or stompbox (or if you prefer clean)! It a sweet little amp with a lot of soul. You can get that SRV sound to a tee.

The tubes on mine need to be replaced but I play it religiously and it hasn't given me any problems.

The warranty is 5 years and that is plenty long for a $360 amp. Fender is a good company and have given me no problems.

This amp is all I ever wanted and the only complaint I have is that it is only a 1x12 and not a 2x12 or 4x10. But for jamming in your room and small performances, it's the perfect tube amp with enough guts to jam with the big boys!

2003 Blues Jr. Has all the features I need-3 band eq, master volume, reverb. I wish it had a jewel light and the knobs being "upside down" confuses me. Just cosmetic stuff, though. Aside from that it's a very attractive amp.

**L-O-V-E** this amp! The sound is PERFECT for me. Grit factor is very natural and I can control it very easily. When I play quiet, it's rich and clean but when I pick louder, it starts to get gritty. I have the volume on 6-7 and control the volume with the master knob.
I play a Strat, w/ hotrails in bridge and sc's in other two positions and an Epiphone Les Paul Special, stock. I play in a duo with my singer and a drum machine. Amp handles both guitars very well, and very differently. I'm still shopping for a good dist. pedal that won't degrade the sound of the bare amp.
Power is ample, but I haven't used it live yet, so I don't know what to expect. We won't be using very high volumes, though.
Overall, this has a very nice warm sound. I hear the circuit is based on the old Bassman amps. Makes sense, because it's just so damn nice. I really think these amps will be highly sought after when they're discontinued. Some day I'm going to buy a Pro Jr, too, because I think the sound is even better, but for me it's not as versatile.

I hear the tubes don't need biasing (meaning I could change them myself!) Only had it for a few days, but I've read they last a long time and are realtively easy to (have) service(d).

5 Year warranty, and haven't dealt with Fender, but I hear if you know what you're doing, you can get a repair done pretty easily. They are a great company.

toss up between the Bues Jr. and the Hot Rod Deluxe. Bought the HRDx first, then traded it in after 12 hrs for a new Blues Jr. I always liked the sound of the Jr when I played it, and I didn't always like the sound of the Deluxe. I tried everything to make it sound the way I wanted it to. It is a really great amp, though.

If the Jr was lost or stolen I would get serious male p.m.s. and try to recover it. If I couldn't, there is absolutely no doubt I would buy the excact same amp.

This is a 2003 Limited edition Tweed Blues Jr. Fender finally changed the speaker to a Jensen vintage. Well glory hallaluya. How many reviews have stated how it turns the amp into a 10 after you make the modification. Well it just screems tone from minute one.
Clean as a ugly virgin to raunchy as a drunk whore at 4.

The tone is the fender clean when you max out the master volume and control volume with the volume knob. It turns into a marshall when you reverse the process( saturation of the EL 84s). Man, I couldnt believe how my 63 strat sounded. I immediately started playing little wing and it nailed the sound. My main guitar, a 2003 52 Tele reissue sounds absolutely full and can cover any of the cover tunes that I perform. I have a stock 61 Fender Pro amp that does a great clean sound but won't overdrive without a tube driver. This amp does it all...

I just bring one amp to a gig. If it quits I'll run into the PA to get thru the night. I have never had a problem with a Fender amp in the past.

Fender is hard to contact. They don't have there # on there web site. I have my amps serviced by a local fender repair shop. I don't anticipate any ptoblems.

I am so happy they make this amp. Its Tweed and looks like a 50's amp but sounds like a soldano mod. It is very loud!.I thought they wouldnt ever make the tweed again,so I am lucky...

Bought mine new in 1998 or so, on super sale. I'm a harp player and was looking for a mid-sized amp with a little cutting power. This 15 watt amp with its 12" speaker, Volume/Master controls, together with bass, mid and treb controls seemed to be the answer I was looking for. I was looking for decent tube tone and had heard that the BJ could deliver. For its small size this amp has some big cajones.

Okay, as I mentioned, I'm using this amp exclusively for harp. I've used several mics with it including an older, very hot Sure Green Bullet (no volume pot) with CM element, a '95 Astatic JT-30 with crystal element (and added volume pot), and a custom chrome bullet with CM element. Stock, the amp's tone is pretty harsh and edgy and seemed to be ~very~ feedback sensitive with the stock tubes, so I threw out those awful Groove Tubes and put in some JJs, replacing one of the preamp tubes with one with less gain. This helped smooth things out alot and helped some with feedback issues. Better, but not what I was really looking for tonewise. Okay, I'm a harp player and will never be happy until I have that "tweed" tone that comes out of an original 50's tweed deluxe, or original '59 Bassman.
Recently someone turned me onto the notion of replacing the stock Eminence ceramic speaker with an AlNiCo speaker. I just made this mod a couple of weeks ago and, lemme tell ya... WHAT A HUGE DIFFERENCE!
If Fender had installed an AlNiCo P12R speaker (or, as I did, the Weber equivilent, a model 12A100) this amp would simply COOK out of the box. With this speaker mod the BJ just drips with tweed harp tone, breaking up smoothly at low volumes, with plenty of bark and cut. It even posseses that lovely chimey quality that harp players drool over when listening to harp through a vintage Champ.
Ted Weber built my speaker with an "H" dust cap which pretty much eliminated feedback issues, and used a little bit heavier voice coil to boost the 15-watt rating of his speaker to 25 watts, leaving me plenty of headroom. With the new speaker I'd give this amp a rating of 10 or more.

Never had a lick of problems with this amp, other than a bit of hum when idling at high volumes. I regularly gig with this amp and it has never failed me.

I think my warranty was voided when I first replaced the tubes, and certainly now that I've put in a 3rd party speaker.

Overall, I'd have to rate the Blues Jr. as pretty damned good, but with the caveat that, if you're a harp player, you'll definately want to replace the stock Eminence with a good-qualilty AlNiCo. I'd highly recommend the Weber speaker for harp players using this amp. You will be VERY happy with the results.

Covers the basics well. nothing more. 1 channel / 2 modes (regular & fat), Mid/Bass/Treble EQ, Volume (gain), Master volume & Reverb.
I've been playing for 2 years (Blues, Rock & Jazz) and this amp is versatile enough for me. The Fat switch give you a little more gain that doesn't change your sound enough to switch from rhythm to lead.
Anothe channel would be nice but for what I payed for this amp I don't expect another channel/tube reverb/tremolo/vibrato.
A standby switch would be nice, but this amp warm up/cool down quickly.

Guitar: American Stratocaster (stock pickups), I also played an Ibanez Prestige (don't remmeber the model) through th BJ.

Effects: Zoom PD-01 PowerDrive

This amp sounds AWESOME!!! once you go tube, you can't go back.
This is my 2nd amp. My old one is a Fender 15G SS, just a little box that makes noise. The big problem with all SS amps I've played (Fender 15G, Marshall, Crate, Fender Dyna-Touch series) is that the clean sound is dry and boaring. I guess thats a problem all SS have.
Back to the BJ...
This is a low-medium gain amp. You can't really get a great rock lead tone out of it even when the volume knob is all the way up. That's the only problem with this amp (and the reason I gave it a 7), but this problem is easy to solve using the PD-01 overdrive/booster pedal.

My Amp settings are usualy:
Mid: 9-10
Bass: 6-8
Treble: 6-8
Reverb: 1-3
Master: 2-4
Volume: 8-12 For blues & Rock & 5 - 8 for Jazz.
To get a great lead tone I use the PD-01 as a booster with following settings:
Low: 1-2 O'clock
High: 1-2 O'clock
Gain: 10-11 O'clock
Level: 2-3 O'clock
With the PD-01 on Junior can produce great lead tones.

BJ alone: 7
BJ + PD-01 + American Strat: 10

For rhythm work, this amp is great for all the stiyles I've mentioned.

Don;tknow yet

Never used them

Probably the best tube you can get for under 500$.
I compared with with the Fender Princton 65 & Champion 30.
The Champ & Princton have much more distortion & effects and stuff but Junior is an all tube. If you want tube tone and don't care about all the other stuff, BUY yourself a BJ.

Mine is a blonde tolex 2003 model from Musician's Friend. I like the retro look, which is a little like a narrow panel tweed from the 50s. I have to confess that this is my SECOND Blues Jr. I had a black tolex BJ that I sold a couple of years ago. I missed it, and this is my return to the BJ fold. Same features as the earlier one, except that the new BJs are now made in Mexico and Fender has redesigned the reverb circuit. My other amp is a Fender Vibrolux Reverb for larger clubs.

I use this for practice and small gigs. My guitars are a Fender '57 Reissue Strat and a Gibson Les Paul Studio. The BJ works perfectly for blues and classic rock, which is what my band performs. 60s, 70s, and 80s stuff like Van Halen, Cream, Hendrix, and Springsteen. For some songs, I use a Boss DS-1 pedal because this amp (like most Fenders) will overdrive, but it doesn't really distort. It works well with this pedal. While no one will mistake the BJ for a Dr Z or other "botique" amp, it sounds great for such a low price item. Enough volume for small clubs. The reverb is definitely better than on the earlier models, too. It still isn't in Dick Dale territory, but it's plenty usable now. The earlier versions of the BJ were known for weak reverb. No longer a problem.

I've only used this particular BJ for a few months, but based on how well the earlier one held up, I have total confidence in this amp.

I think the warranty is two years. I really don't know and it's not a concern. I've never had a piece of Fender gear go back for warranty work.

I've been playing since the early 80s and gigging off and on for the past ten years. I've played through a lot of amps with a lot of different guitars. I keep coming back to Fender for both amps and guitars. I don't know what that says about me, but it's the sound I like best, obviously. I've owned other small tube amps like Vox AC-15TB and Marshall DSL-201 and in my opinion, the BJ beats them both. It's just about the perfect amp for smaller venues. Compact, light, reliable, and sounds great.

I wanted a smaller tube combo because I was tired of lugging around big amps to friendly practice sessions. I tried to get my hands on an epiphone galaxie 10 and a Crate V1512, but they were all sold out all over So Cal. There really aren't that many small tube combo options (I think this vintage trend is still growing) unless you want to lose your mind and spend big $$$. Blues Junior Features: No effects loop, but yes, a speaker out. I tried a Pro Junior and the inner workings of the tubes rattled against the glass at low volumes. Are the tubes to blame or the amp? A little of both. Both amps have "rattle potential". Pro Junior has more "rattle potential". I decided that I could live with the Blues Junior's, however.

I play made in Mexico Fenders (3 of them) and an '81 Gibson Firebrand, and an Ibanez artcore. (nothing fancy, but I love them all) This amp completely suits my style of folk, blues, and jazz, and a little alternative. Back to the tube rattle: It rattles more when sitting on a hard surface. Carpet seems to help. The clean channel on this one distorts a little bit at medium and high volumes, which sounds crankin' (power amp distortion) and I like it. A final word on tube rattle: I can play at a sweet perfect volume and get no rattle, that is why I am keeping this thing and not returning it. I have not tried changing the tubes. I suspect it will help for awhile, but when the inner workings of the vacuum tubes start loosening up again, it will be back to the same old rattle. Correct me if I am wrong. I will most likely be changing the speaker to a 12" Weber (ribbed,with a ceramic magnet) in the near future.

I wouldn't gig with it because it isn't loud enough. You can mic it, I guess, but I'd just as soon bring a bigger amp. So, I don't know.

Never had to deal with Fender. Many say that they suck in these forums, so I don't doubt it. Just never had anything break.

If I lost it, yeah, I'd buy it again, why not. It is good enough. I wish it had an effects loop. I traded in a Champion 30 (solid state). I was really impressed by the full sound of the Champion 30, but, what do you know, I never plugged it in. Blues Junior begs to be plugged in. Tubes have me spoiled. Now the only solid state I own is a Roland JC120 (talk about bark!), which I have used at larger outdoor gigs. But I don't know if I will ever buy a solid state amp again.

Made in USA, not sure what year.
All the standard features of the Blues Junior.
Would be nice to have a standby swt.

Use with 73 Strat, Godin LGX, FX, Tech 21 double Drive.
I like the master on full, mid on full, bass on 5, treble on 9.
This amp sounded ok stock but much better after my mods.
Re-tubed with EH-12AX7 and JJ EL84's.
Installed an old 12" alnico speaker, not sure but think its a Emmence Part number-12GPGA8FX. This now sounds much better for my music, Rock, Pop and Blues. Breaks up nice and has a nice grindy overdrive sound with better punch than stock.A little short in the bottem and lower mids but is to be expected ia a cabnet of this size.

Fender, they work or they don't. This works fine. Fender are usually pretty much road worthy.

Only needed Fender warrenty once and had no problems.

Been playing for 35 yrs. Also have a Laney VC30, which I also changed tubes and speaker, much to the better.I wanted a portiable small amp for small gigs. This does the job very well. Looks cool, sounds very good with the changes and is easy to move around. I traded a Laney LC15R for this amp plus $120.00 bucks. The Laney was every bit as good or even better but I really missed having a 12' speaker.
I would look for another if lost because it is a good bang for the buck, plus it is a nice size for moving around.

Probably built in 1999 - 2000. Has all the features I need for the music I play, which includes R&B, Jazz, Christian contemporary, etc.

Currently using a Gibson Les Paul Custom, a Fender EC Strat with the "vintage noiseless" pickups, and a Gibson Flying V98.

The "8" is for the "stock out of the box" sound. I looked around for a good small all tube amp to use at home or to easily take to practice. Since my wife had just bought me some "new toys" - the Les Paul and the Marshall DSL 100 with the 1960AV stereo cab with the Celestion Vintage 30's - I didn't want to push my financial luck much further. Turns out I'm using the Blues Jr more than the Marshall in most situations. I love the sound I get with all three guitars through the Marshall, and the Junior doesn't hold a candle to the Marshall for certain types of music.
However, the opposite is also true. I've retubed the BJr, ran the amp out through an attenuator so I can crank the main power section tubes at living room levels, and plugged the output of the attenuator into a Fender Custom Shop Tone Master 2X12 cab with the Celestion Vintage 30's. The Bjr is the blonde tolex like the Tone Master cab, so they look the perfect match.
The sound I get with the Les Paul is that sweet Gibson sound BB King gets. The strat has that gorgeous throaty Fender sound and sounds great in all pickup positions. The Flying V has a combination of the above two sounds - throaty and distinctly Gibson.
If you're looking for the grinding, crackling, toneless scream that you can get through strapping some strings on a log, dropping in the loudest pickups on the market, and running it through an amp with lots of distortion and no character whatsoever, this won't be your pick of amps.
I'm looking at an amp that won't stand in the way of the tone a good guitar can produce. Getting that "full tone", with a violin like edge on it, is what I can get from the BJr. When I want crunch, the Marshall DSL will cover that end - with great tone - as well as or better than any amp out there. With good pickups that will soak the tone from the guitar, the BJr will give you a great tone.
With the attenuator, and running it through the Tone Master cab, the sound is a "10".

I bought this amp in early 2000 while living in England - not long after purchasing the Marshall Stereo 1960AV cab at "Music Ground" in Leeds. I've used it a LOT, and I've had NO trouble with this work horse at all.

Never had to deal with Fender customer support.

I've been playing since 1972. I've played lots of Johnny Winter, Clapton, Zepplin, Aerosmith, etc. I've loved playing Blues, R&B, and Boogie - no escaping roots, you know? If It was stolen I'd replace it, and retube the new one. I've no longer any desire to get a "Boutique" amp. I've heard them, and the BJr sounds better than most.

Not a whole lot. Look at Fender.com for complete specs. I don't need a lot of fancy specs. It's just enough for what I wanted.

Ok, the obligatory rig description:

- Guitars: Ibanez S540 w/ Dimarzio P/Us or Epi LP w/ Dimarzios (love the Dimarzio P/Us!)
- Effects: Boss ME-50

That's it: Guitar, effects, straight in.

The Junior has to be the best small amp around. It's way louder than 15W would seem, but it still sounds great. I bought it to give me a smaller version of my Hotrod Deluxe for smaller places and so as not to overpower the vocalists at church. It totally fits the bill. Put a mic on it, and you'll be just fine. You could even use for small club or coffee house gigs. Obviously, you won't fill a stadium with this, but it's much louder than you'll expect.

I can make it sound Fender clean or grind it up with the ME-50 out front. If you play around with the Volume and Master settings, you can go from pristine to Angus. It won't get much heavier on its own. All in all, it's a great little amp.

Don't know yet.

Never delt with Fender directly. It can't be all that easy. Large corporate tech support isn't usually that good.

I can't imagine finding a much better little amp. It's definitely enough to get over a drummer for practice or small gigs. You'll have plenty of clean headroom for its intented use. If you need bigger, the HRD is a great choice. If you're looking for a small amp with tube tone and some "cajones" when needed, the Junior will do it.

I just purchased the amp in August, 2003. I guess I will need to look at the manufacture date and where it was assembled after reading previous reviews.

I own an American Strat with the bridge pick-up being a Seymour Duncan Lil 59. I also have an Ibenez lower grade acoustic with electronic package.

It is a very new amp and I don't plan on hauling it around much anyway. I also have a Fender Princeton 112 and have had no problems. I tend to trust the quality Fender has delivered for so many years.

I haven't had the need for their assistance.

I've dabbled with guitar much of my life. I've played more with drums and bass in a couple groups. I have a Pearl drum kit, Yamaha 5 string fretless bass, Hartke bass rig, Mackey mix board, mains and numerous condensor and analog mics. My computer is loaded with Steinberg Q-Bass software for recording.
The one tube amp I own is a 60's Ampeg with a 15" driver. I wanted to have a low wattage tube amp with newer electronics. I heard the BJ at Guitar Center with the salesman playing some Stevie Ray style licks.
I liked the simplicity of the unit and the sound was and is very sweet, at the store and at home.
As for a lack of a stand by switch, why does it need one? It's a low power tube application and I'm sure those little plates don't mind. Power up is quick anyway.
As for comparison shopping, not really. I wanted something small, low power (like for recording), no bells and whistles and a good sound. Oh, and I didn't want to spend a ton of cash either. Other tube amps are much bigger, heavy and more money. Sure a Mesa would be nice to own, but I'm not a real guitar player and I wouldn't get the true use out of it. If I want distortion, I have a couple pedals to put in the front end of the BJ which is all I really need.
If I had to replace the BJ, I suppose I would.
I've read various tips on volume and master settings. So far I've found good results with all pots generally between 4 and 7. It's only a small amp. Trying to push it into anything it isn't is only going to give bad results. I knew that when I purchased it. I think it has a great sound and the only thing I have thought about doing, though not necessary, would be to change the driver to a possible Celestion for better power management. It did wonders for the Princeton. I would think it would do the same for the Blues Junior.
I've given all 9's for ratings as I only know what I hear. I don't consider myself a good guitarist and this amp is for my personal enjoyment, whether with a group of other players, or in recording.
I would recommend this amplifier for those who can appreciate what amplification is. Fender did a good job of maintaning its character in sound re-enforcement.
One other thing. I've noticed many sound possibilities by experimenting with the tonal controls of your guitar. The amp is a true to life tube performer.

The features that it does have do not provide enough tonal flexability IMHO. You need a tubescreamer type of device added to the front end to get a good variation. The reverb is good. And the overall basic tone is also good.

I checked this unit out at a music store with 3 guitars. A Robert Cray Srat, A Nashville Tele, & and a Smartwood Les Paul. All guitars sounded great but the Fenders are definetly more suited for this amp than the Gibson and rightfully so. For home and studio this amp coupled with an external device is fine but if your looking for more "headroom" you`ll need bigger. I tried to get some bluesy type of distortion driving the master volume all the way with the drive at 3 and vice a versa with no real difference in the tone. The fat switch is a joke. This amp has one tone only which is good but needs help.

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I am looking to step up from my Behringer GX212 which by the way sounds way better to me than the Blues Junior. Honestly though this amp is good choice if all you are looking for the classic small tube amp Fender Clean tone.I also tried out the Fender Hot Rod Deluxe 1x12 which is by far a better choice amplifier to replace, or better yet add to my collection of gear.IMHO

it's all been said befor but this is an ALL TUBE amp. Chicken head knobs and spring reverb. I love the fact that it doesn't have 6 million presets and amp models that sound nothing like what they really do. This is a straight forward no BS all tube amp eith simplw easy controls.

This amp has that sweet, mellow, full bodied sound that only comes with a tube amp. The sound is destinctley Fender and if your looking for a "crunchier" tube sound you need to buy a Marshall because this amp is destinctley the Fender sound of sweet midrange and mellow low end. It is what I love. The sound is truly awesome, don't let the 15W fool you this amp has BALLS !!

It's a tube so a little more care is required also a little lighte touch. Not as durable as solid state but sounds soooo much sweeter!

Had 13 fenders (guitars and amps in the last 20 years and never used em.

I believe that this is the best easily portable ampp made, and Not just for the money it is a sweet, mellow singing Beast of an amp with incredible power for it's size and absolutely incredible tone. I can't recomend it enough

PRICE PAID: US $300-something, too long ago to remember but it was bought new around 1995.

Features: 6

This amp has the features I needed for the applications I've used it for. No effects loop, stand-by switch, headphone jack or the like - it's a no frills tube amp at a nice price. If you need a ton of features and versatility, look elsewhere.

Sound Quality: 8

Let me begin by saying I am a Jazz musician first and foremost and have used this amp on at least 400 low to medium volume level gigs over the past decade. When playing larger rooms or excessively loud clubs (or with drummers than really bash) or when I do any rock gigs, I leave this one at home. Not a huge fan of the BJ's natural overdrive; if I need to do a rock or R&B gig I'll bring an amp with more wattage and some stomp boxes. I don't know what everybody else is looking for in terms of sound; there have been a handful of negative reviews here - I think these folks need to save their money and buy a twin reverb or the like. In other words, don't have unrealistic expectations.

I have brought this one out on countless gigs at small and medium sized clubs, restaurants and bars, most often using a 1966 Gibson ES-175 (or, less commonly, a 62 reissue telecaster). With the Gibson I get a beautifully clean, warm sound that fits the mainstream jazz - bebop bag perfectly. It's traditional but you can also get a bit of edge when you need it. The reverb is so so but if you're a real player with real tone - you know, the kind that comes from your fingers and your technique, not your gadgets, you'll most likely enjoy this one and won't need to submerge yourself in excessive reverb anyway. With the Gibson I get that real jazz sound I need to play in a bebop or Blue Note vein; if I was playing with, say, the Chick Corea Electric Band, I'd look for something else (not loud or modern enough sounding). Some of the places I've used this one include it's maiden voyage at Augies (now Smoke) on Broadway here in NYC on a new year's eve gig - a very small room packed to the gills with screaming drunken people. That gig was a mix of jazz, blues and James Brown covers and the BJ, placed atop a chair, screamed beautifully and had more than enough oopmmh. Lately I play the Park Avalon a lot, a cavernous restaurant/bar with very high ceilings and seating for about 400 people - the amp more than delivers for that, retaining a crystalline tone at a fairly high volume (you will have to fool with the knobs a fair amount to get the sound that's right for you).

To reiterate: Great Jazz amp for small and medium sized clubs. Not so good for rock gigs above a fairly low volume. If you play with a loud drummer, this one probably won't cut it. Dont buy this thinking you're getting a low cost version of a Mesa Boogie, Fender Twin or boutique amp. I wouldn't use this for many contemporary styles in performance - when I play with a Luther Vandross/Anita Baker style band, I use a JC120; love the BJ tone for blues playing with my tele (distortion from a stomp box, not the amp). Not gonna cut it for metal or hard rock.

Reliability: 7

Like I said before, mine is nearly 10 years old and has been on over 400 gigs. Have replaced the power tubes only once; I need to change the preamp tubes now. Never quit on a gig. I don't know what some folks do to their amps - if you play this one at top volume all the time, spill beer on it, kick it, and generally act like a schmuck, I imagine it won't like it that much or last so long.

My problem is the reverb - I'm on my third reverb tank now; these things break very, very easily. I get replacement tanks from ampparts.com for 29 bucks, no real hardship. Simple to install. For all the use I put this one through and all the car trunks and taxis it's rode in, jumping into NYC's lovely crater-like potholes, it's stayed together fairly well. Those reverbs break very easily in transit, though.

Haven't had or tried to deal with Fender.

Overall rating: 8

The 8 is for my particular experience. It fits the bill perfectly for a Jazz guitarist. If you wanna be Joe Rock Star and can't afford a Marshall Stack, you won't be happy with this. If you're the kind of player who gets together with his band, rents a van, and drives around playing brutal rock gigs in really loud clubs for 20 bucks and beer, this won't be a good choice. You get what you pay for with this one - a very nice sounding clean tone with the potential for a little warm overdrive. No massive tube distortion. If you don't have a sound to begin with - unplugged, no effects, just you and the guitar - this one (or any other) won't give you one. It's amusing to read complaints of guys who can't really play buying all kinds of expensive high end tube and boutique amps who are still unsatisfied, constantly swap out tubes, speakers, etc. It wont help, fellas. Get in the woodshed and build your sound and technique from the ground floor up. Don't go in there and play all your blues licks as fast as you can. Work on your playing - the stuff you CAN'T do, not what you can. It doesn't matter if you've "been playing for thirty years." There's plenty of people that have been playing like shit for thirty years. Time doesn't really matter. How hard and how seriously you work is what matters.

Pretty basic amp. Trebble, bass, and mid knobs. Fat switch and reverb. Really no frills, but that's ok I don't want any. The only thing missing to get that complete Fender package is vibrato.

I use a Fender American Strat, and an Epiphone Les Paul. I add a hot cake distortion petal for the distorted sound. W/the strat and pedal I get the early Summer Babe Pavement tone. I can also get a lot of classic rock tones as well. With the Epiphone I can get a really deep John Lee Hooker Blues type tone. The fat channel makes everything thicker and louder. One problem about my review is that I live in a small apartment so I haven't been able to play this thing at high volumes. Once I get to 2 the neighbors start complaining. My friend out in Las Angeles has one to, and he said that at 3 the neighbors start complaining that it's too loud. Also, I played a coffee shop w/it and at 3 it was too loud for the shop. I also saw the band (Smog) using one of these at the Bowery ballroom and it sounded great at louder volumes and hooked up to a PA.

So far so good. All of my Fender equipment has held up well. I have a Pro Reverb from the early 70's and it's awesome. I have no reason to doubt that this one is of the same quality..

I guess it's such a common amp that un-like say a Vox amp or something like a Hiwatt you're going to find plenty of places to have the amp serviced. Fortunately I haven't had to yet.

For the price you pay you can't beat this amp. I tell all my poor musician friends that can't afford a Twin or Pro Reverd to go this route. The other advantage to this amp is its size. It fits easily in a car and is easy to carry around. I bought mine because I live in Queens and I needed an amp that wouldn't take up too much room and still sound great. Also, I wanted something that I could take on the trains with me. Sure it would still be cumbersome but I could pull it off if I really had to. It's a lot better than schlepping any twin speaker Fender amp. Also, I hit the road and played a one man gig around the mid-west and this amp was just perfect for the small venues with no PA. It was easy for me to get this thing from the stage to the car and back again without any problems. Ranges of music this amp would be good for: rock, indie rock, blues, blue grass, country, early british invasion sound, surf music, and so on. I don't think this could really handle metal or 80's band hair metal rock.

made in 2002 even though i got it new in early June 2003. It fits my style well, i play music along the lines of Oasis and Coldplay but i also play a lot of blues (BB King style). It has one channel, which is fine with me cos it doesnt have other channels to take away any tone. What really let me down was the lack of tremolo on it. I really wanted it. The 15watts are perfect for playing at home and when i get another band going, ill bring it to practice and maybe even small gigs. Considering this has everything i wanted (one channel, reverb) except tremolo, i give it the appropriate score.

I use a Gibson Les Paul and a Fender MIJ Telecaster. It fits what i play perfectly. I just throw a Boss DS-1 in front of it for my dirty sounds and i'm set to go. The reverb is fantastic if you ask me, i've heard some people say its not up to par with the other fender amps, but to me its great. The clean is superb. Its that classic fender clean that everybody loves. I dont bother pushing the tubes to get its overdrive because to me, its horrible. It has no sustain or anything, so i dont even bother. But, i don't care really. I bought the amp for its clean sound and portability. If i want drive i'll turn on my DS-1 or fire up my Marshall.

dealt with fender before. had a good experience and a bad one.

I've owned several amps. Fender roc pro, Soldano Astroverb (which i a friggin retard for selling), Marshall JCM2000, Peavey Delta Blues, and a few others. I actually sold my Delta Blues for this. Despite the fact the Peavey had decent drive, 30 watts, and tremolo, its tone didn't put up a fight with the fender blues jr. plus, i wanted something ultra light to carry around. If it were stolen, i wouldnt get another cos i'm too poor. I'd just be pissed off i guess. Then when i got money to get a new amp, i'd get a different fender one channel amp. Not because i dislike the blues jr at all, but because i'd like something that i could gig with in places other than small bars. something 30-40 watts. And maybe even tremolo. but the blues jr kicks ass. I took it over the classic 30, vintage 30, and sold my delta blues for it. Its truly the best in its class. Just wish it had that friggin tremolo