Fender Hot Rod Deluxe Limited Edition 112 Combo

Not a whole lot of features. They say 3 channels, but really just 2, the normal channel and the drive channel. A button is included to boost the drive evan more (This is supposedly the third channel). Too bad it doesn't have a separate set of tone controls for the drive channel. It does have two inputs which is nice. I have the limited edition sunburst maple cab with the Jensen speaker. This is why I'm giving it a 9. Without the nice finish and speaker, I would rate it 7-8. I love the finish on it. It definitely gives it a vibe even when its just sitting there looking pretty.

This amp produces the best clean tone. It does break up when you crank it. So if you prefer the cleans to stay absolutely clean at high volumes you will have to change tubes. I have played the standard deluxes at the music stores and none of them sound as good. I don't know if its due more to the speaker or the maple cab, but probably both. Its very dynamic and has lots of depth and is very bright. You can get SRV without even trying, providing your guitar has some good single coils. The drive and more drive options are good as is in small doses. But if you rally want to get a good overdrive sound, put a eq in the effects loop and crank the drive. Now I get very good early ZZ top sounds. This amp can get real loud too. I play a few guitars through it, each have their own strengths. My les paul sounds good when played clean - very mellow, but muddies up on the drive channel. I have a Santana SE with a duncan '59 in the neck and a dimebucker in the bridge. The dimebucker is a heavy metal pickup, but really gives the drive channel some bite. My other guitar I play through it is a Fender Heartfield Talon. The Talon was a product of the eighties and early nineties and doesn't look like it should be anywhere near this amp. I use it to play the clean channel with my selector switch set in the 2nd position. This guitar nails SRV. It still is a Fender. It sounds good on the drive channel as well. Like I said, the best thing I ever did was put a Boss GE-7 in the effects loop. Now the drive channel shines just like the clean channel, and I haven't even changed from the stock tubes yet. This is not a metal amp and not marketed as such. It should be critiqued on its ability to make blues, country, and classic rock tones, which mine does very well. Take the Eq out of the effects loop, and it still gets a 10 for blues and country tones. Classic rock in that case would be a 9.

No problems as of yet, but I've only had it for 8 months, and it is a tube amp. This amp is so pretty, it gets babied.

Never dealt with them.

By far the best 112 combo I have played or heard played. The clean tone alone on this amp makes it worth getting. With the proper setup, the drive channel can really growl as well. I am still very happy with this amp and will never get rid of it. I've taken it from my house once, but just didn't like other people being around it. I've become very protective of it. I'm suprised Fender doesn't start making the limited edition, a standard production version. Or at least start putting the Jensen in the standard module.

This is the lacquered tweed "limited" edition w/ Jensen. Features already well described.

Like pretty much everyone else I bought this amp for its amazingly sweet, clear, sparkly, clean channel. I love the breakup you get when pushing the clean channel up to around 7 or so. Still trying to dial-in a good overdrive sound without blowing the windows out. This amp is LOUD. (Anybody having any luck there?)

I like this amp considerably more with SC than w/ HB's. Somebody posted earlier that they felt the HB's got a little brittle or trebly -- I'm finding the opposite. (Might just be my pickups, or the electronics on my guitar. It's a 20+ yo Gibson Firebrand -- belonged to my brother and to his gtr teacher before that. It's been around.) I'm also using it w/ a 2002 American Series Tele.

I'd rate the clean channel at a 10; overall I'm giving it a 9.

Not sure on this yet. Like another poster, I'm getting some odd noises from the amp, even without a gtr plugged in. (I took it into the shop and they tested the crap out of it. They couldn't find anything wrong -- tested perfectly to factory specs.)

I think the amp may just be sensitive to electrical and/or radio interfence. (I've got wireless phones and an 802.11B network in the house.) I tried pluggin my other amp (1992 Crate GT-50 1x12 w/ 10 year old Sovteks in it) in to the same outlet, same guitar, same cords, etc. No interference.

Never had to deal with Fender, but I had a good experience with the local shop that does Fender Warranty service and repairs, so I'm rating based on that.

I really like this amp. Looks great, sounds great. I really love the clean sound, especially with single coils. Not wild about the O/D sounds. A little too much bass response for my taste.

If it were stolen or lost I think I'd try to find something that wasn't so loud.

Bought new $740
Florida Discount Music, Melbourne FL
Varnished, yellow tweed with brown grill cloth,
brown "Fender Deluxe" nameplate
It looks like a vintage amp
1 12" Jensen, 40 watts
all tube, 12AX7 in preamp, 6L6s poweramp,
solid state rectifier
Three channels, normal/bright, drive, 'more drive'
Dual color channel indicator(none=normal, yellow=drive, red=more drive)
2 inputs, #1 for guitar, #2 for preamp devices
Reverb control
Preamp out (FXout/lineout), Preamp in (FXin), external speaker jack
Channel select foot switch and Brown amp cover included.

I sort of wish it had tremolo, but I don't use it all that much so that is no biggie.

I use only single coil PUs - Strat and Tele straight into the amp #1 input. I play mostly oldies, blues and country, and this amp is perfect for those styles. I use mostly the normal/bright channel with the bright switch on, and the Treble-Mid-Bass mostly flat (mid-position?). Sometimes I use the Drive channel with a hint of overdrive. I have never used the More Drive channel as I don't use a lot of distortion in my sound.

I am not sure, but I believe this amp is biased for A/B class operation. At moderate volume (3-4) you get that classic Fender sound - clear and clean. The Jensen 12" speaker really handles low notes and barre chords without getting ragged-out. The sound is tight and punchy. With the Drive channel you can get some decent overdriven sound probably better than using a stomp-box. I cannot really rate the distortion qualities as I do not use that feature much, but I will say that the amp offers some great harmonic distortion when cranked even in the normal channel. When playing blues setup for some bass response (Amp setting and/or Strat/Tele neck or mid PU) when you jack up the volume even in normal channel, this thing will wail. The bridge PU on my Tele will really gets that funky twang. It is not a wall of Marshalls but for my style in small gigs, it is all you need. I play in several oldie bands and never have the Volume past 4.

I have been using the amp for about 6 months. The 'On' paint for the Off-On switch has worn off the control panel (but I know what it means anyway). I use the amp cover always and take great care when moving the amp to and from gigs. I gig at least 2 and sometimes 4-5 nights a week and so far it has held up well.

I have heard some noise in the amp, but I believe there are AC voltage fluctuations in my local area, and perhaps some noise interference that may be affecting circuitry to some degree. However, this is VERY SUBTLE, and I have had no problems with the amp either at practice on on gigs.

If you have never had a tube amp, you need to know that it will naturally need more maintenance than a Solid State amp. Some folks replace the tubes every year or so and it ain't cheap. Others change tubes to tweek their sound. (Check out 'The Tube Amp Book' by Aspen Pittman for some interesting reading.

Never contacted them.

I have been gigging off and on since the mid-60s. I have played both guitar and bass. I have been playing only guitar for the last 8 years. I currenly use a '95 Am Strat and '03 HW1 Tele. In the past, I have owned an old Silvertone 12" combo,a '60 Fender Concert, and a '72 Traynor YBA3 (bass).

It is really hard to rate amps without taking account the style you play, the size of the rooms played, etc. If you want to sound like a wall of Marshalls, then buy a wall of Marshalls. I think most guys who have played for quite a while are actually looking for smaller, ligher amps. The HotRod Deluxe weighs bout 45 lbs; mostly speaker and transformer. It is a great little guitar amplifier for small groups and clubs. It has plenty of power. This amp has most features needed in the 30-60 watt/single 10-12" combo class. I believe it is a great amp in that price range and I would highly recommend it. I have not tried the 'regular' HotRod Deluxe w/o the Jensen, but I am sure it would provide about the same quality and sound.

This is the new version with the laquered tweed covering and using a Jensen alnico speaker. After those enhancements, everything is the same. Three channels (actually 2) that share the same eq. satellite footswitch, reverb, presence, bass, middle, treble, single volume for clean channel with master and drive controls for the drive channel. Bright button for clean, and an drive boost that Fender calls their third channel. Powered by two 6L6 Groove Tubes and rated at 40 watts.

For a moderately priced amp, I found this amp to be plenty feature rich. However, I still have a problem with companies calling an amp 2 or 3 channel when everything shares the same eq. So for that, I'll give it an 8.

I use an ASAT Classic, Music Man Axis Super Sport, Heritage H-150 with Rio Grande Humbuckers and a Hamer Newport Pro with Seth Lovers. I also have a Music Man Albert Lee on the way, but it's not here yet.

For blues and country, this amp simply cannot be beat. Regardless of price, this has all the balls of a vintage fender. Sure the extra drive and too much of it on the second channel is a bit cheesy and in my opinion unuseable, but the clean and when used with a bit of breakup, this sounds every bit as good as Clapton's "From the Craddle". This amp loves single coils and you can tear off James Burton, Albert Lee and SRV until you are blue in the face. Even humbuckers aren't treated too harshly, however on a mid-biased amp with a lot of natural highs, a hot humbucker might be a bit brittle. The drive is a bit thin, but is often called a "working man's distortion" where you could absolutely get away with it on a gig. A pedal might balance out the highs some, but I've found it kind of funny to be playing really hard rock out of a tweed amp anyway. Jazz will work, but for me, I prefer smoother mids as found on a blackface twin or delux reverb. You can most certainly play jazz, but with my humbuckers, it's a bit bright. Very articulate, but even with cutting back on the mids and treble and presence, you still don't get that jazzy warm you do from a delux.

With a slight bit of distortion, this amp sounds as good as the best modeling amps emulating their '50s tweed amps. This amp, in my opinion, sounds as good as the Bassman reissue in the clean, yet adds versatility with the distortion, has reverb and is a heck of a lot easier to carry around with you. They did a nice thing putting the Jensen Alnico, which will most certainly get better with age, in this amplifier.

I will say it again, for the money, this amp sounds great. But at any price, this amp still sounds great! It's a bit noisy when you use the footswitch, but in a live setting, it's not a huge deal. The reverb is good, but a little bit goes a long way. This amp, even with the presence and treble turned down, is very bright. Your tele will love it, and your muddy humbuckers might sound a little more balance too. For an all around score, this amp deserves a 7 as the drive, once past 2, is not completely useable. Forget the extra drive too.....ehhhhhk! However, used in clean, cranked on clean with power amp distortion, or with a bit of preamp distortion, this amp is a solid 10 for country and blues. I wish I could specify my ratings, but since some of you will get this amp in hopes to copy your favorite Nu Metal band, you should know, this amp won't be what you're hoping it to be, and thus, the amp will be docked a few points for versatility.

Kind of concerend about that noise coming from the amp when using the footswitch to change from drive to clean. I know this isn't Fender's most expensive tube amp, but still, for $700.00, it probably shouldn't be that noisy. Everything else seems solidly built. I'm sure they don't use the best pots or circuit boards, but again, this isn't a +$1,000.00 amp, so it's hard to complain too much. I did have a blues delux (the predecessor to the hot rod) that went everywhere with me and never farted out once, but it also didn't have that clean channel hum, so I'll just have to wait and see.

Never had to use Fender once. Some people have complained about their response time, but I can't comment on that.

20 years of playing (mostly by myself), and like many, I go through a lot of gear and will sell and buy when I get a wild hair of something better being out there. I had a Rivera Quianna that souded good, but was a bit heavy, and a little too mellow for country picking. I got this amp because I originally caught the eye candy of the limited blued jr. with the old tweed cover. After playing through both, I was so impressed with the new delux, that I had to get it. It sounds great and is a heck of a lot more portable than the quianna.

I must say this though. If you play blues or country, get this amp. There currently is none finer for the money. If you play a wide variety of music, are in a cover band who plays a multiple array of styles and can't afford more than one amp, you might want to keep shopping. Don't get me wrong, this is a great amp, but in spite of the drive and more drive, I've found this amp to excell at the previously mentioned types. If you're wanting to get a workhorse for all types, you can use pedals and be okay, but you're probably better off getting something cleaner and then adding pedals to suit. Want Fender and Marshall? Well, the Rivera's are hard to beat, and on ebay the prices aren't too bad. Also, the new Fender Pro Tube series amps are great, but very heavy.

I also must apologize to everyone on harmony central. When I first started making reviews, I would get someting and get a hard on and rate everything a 10. And while I recognize every person has their own taste and style, I can't let my emotions get in the way of what something actually is. So, I will say in closing, this amp is a 10 for blues, country and 50's - 60's rock. For everything else, it will work, and to an audience at a club, I don't think they'll care regardless. And an amp shouldn't be penalized because it doesn't do every kind of music, but Fender advertises the Hot Rod series as being a do all amp, and if that is the category Fender has placed this amp in, then it really only deserves an 8. The laquered tweed and the jensen alnico are a marked improvement over the standard Hot Rod Delux in the looks and the tone. I wish they could have taken away the extra drive switch and the distortion channel and just employed a volume and master like the blues jr. to make this amp more vintage in function as well as looks, but all in all, this is a great amp, and if you're looking for a blues machine, then this amp will work out nicely for you. It also might be worth something down the road since these are a limited run.

This is a new offering for this year. I play jazz and rock and this amp does it for me in a big way. More on that later. The amp is duel channel with two modes of overdrive. I never use overdrive channels on any of may amps as I mainly go for the "Clean" sound. The layout for the controls is very simple and easy to us and I really like the fact that the controls are on top of the amp rather then in the back or in the front. Just a cleaner look and easier to get to. I wanted a smaller amp as I play out sometimes, but I play alot at home. I wanted enough power for small situations, and even for big situations, this amp has more than enough power to be heard.

I mainly play a 1968 Gibson ES-335 and a Yamaha AES-1500 jazz guitar for playing. I will also play Strats as well as a Les Paul and an SG. With all guitars, this amp sounds great. There is something about 12" speakers that have a "Roundness" that you can't get on a 10". For soft single not picking, the amp is very musical. And it stays musical for full chords, finger picking, and hard strumming. I love the sound and I really love the reverb in this thing. I am really into a clean sound as I believe you can get any overdrive from pedals if you want them. But basically the amp has to sound good right out of the box. When the volume goes up, the tube begin to break up alittle. My trick for that one came from Rick Bensen at Groove Tubes, whom I had met last year. He told me to replace my 6L6's with their premium KT-66's for super clean tones at even high volumes. I made the switch, and just like Rick said, this thing is crystal clear. As for quiet, this is REALLY QUIET! The only hum I hear is when I plug in a Strat, but that is any amp with a Strat. For my jazz stuff, this amp has the best tone and I compare it to my '65 Twin Reverb. And finally, as this does have a maple cabinet being the Limited Edition, I think this adds to the overall sound of the amp. In an amp, everything vibrates and you need a frame that will be super solid and put out the sound to the front of the amp. Mesa Boogie knew this from day one, and to this day their wood cabinets and amps are the most sought after by players and collectors. Fender did there cab in a honey gold maple and it looks fantastic and it sounds great. I have toured the Mexico Fender facility, and the people in Mexico making the Mexican Strats and the amps are craftsmen all the way. There is such a pride in every single piece of gear that they put out. You are talking about a nationality that has a history of making guitars and everything else under the sun, by hand. It is no wonder that there are so many people that feel the Mexican Strats are better than the U.S. made production Strats. It is no wonder that the cabinet on the HotRod deluxe is so well made. Every joint is perfectly matched, and I even took off the back wood cover to install my KT-66's. When I did so, there was not a rough mark, or a not stained piece of wood. Even though you will never see the back of your amp, it is nice to know that it is a flawless as the front and the sides. This amp is very well made.

I have never had a Fender amp break down on me. Not ever in twenty-five years of playing electric guitars. Most Fender amps, at least the ones I have owned, are built like tanks!

The warrenty is for five years, but I know that if I ever have a problem with the amp, the guys at Guitar Trader in San Diego will fix me up. Yes, you can go order online, but where is the customer support and the "Take care of it now" guys? My musicians tip for the year is go to Guitar Trader for your gear.

This amp is great. People forget that the amplifier is the other half of your music if you are playing electric guitar. The Hot Rod Deluxe is light enough to take with me if I choose to do so, but big on sound. You could go for the regular Hot Rod Deluxe, but for another $150.00, why not get yourself an amp that has this incredible cabinet that contributes to the sound of your music? I am a collector as well as a player, and having an amp that Fender will only be making 200 units of (and not 300 as stated in an earlier press report) makes this a plus. This amp has great sound abd great looks. What more could a musician ask for?

Fender says this amp has two channels, Normal and Drive, but the Normal channel has a bright switch which gives the clean tone a little "shimmer", and the Drive channel has a "More Drive" switch which seems to kick the gain up another notch. So, it's more like a four channel amp. Has two instrument inputs, one for guitars with passive pickups, the other for those with active electronics. Also has Bass, Mid and Treble knobs, Reverb and Presence. Comes with two-button footswitch and cover. I have the maple finish version (it also comes in sunburst, which to me looks a bit odd for an amp - almost like it had been in a fire and was scorched) and the finish is very nice! It looks great with the oxblood grill cloth.

The Jensen speaker (which replaces the standard Hot Rod Deluxe's Eminence 12") has a much "throatier" sound. If you like the sound of the standard unit, you're going to love this one! The reverb can produce great depth (it is an Accutronics tank), the normal channel produces a bell-like clean tone (in both normal and bright modes), and the drive/more drive channel produces creamy, warm sustain. With the button in the drive position, you get mild crunch (more if you play hard; there is great string sensitivity here). In the "more drive" position, you get a range from slight overdrive (with single coils) to excellent harmonious OD (with a higher output humbucker like a Gretsch Filter'Tron). You're not going to get metal shredding tones, but that's not what this amp is for. Blues, classic rock and maybe even jazz are what this combo is all about

The cabinet seems to be quite solid, the finish a durable gloss polyurethane and the chassis, the standard Fender Made in Mexico unit. I am bothered by one thing, though...the reverb tank has been inserted into a vinyl "sleeve" along with a thin cardboard "base". The tank is not attached to the cardboard in any way, and the whole thing is attached to the floor of the amp cabinet by two wood screws through the vinyl and cardboard, one at each end (which were not even driven all the way in). I am going to "mod" this setup by replacing the cardboard with a piece of particle board, attaching the tank to the board via some double-sided foam tape (to acoustically "isolate" the tank from the board, put that assembly back into the vinyl sleeve and make sure the wood screws at each end hold the particle board tightly down to the amp floor.

After I got the amp home, I realized that the footswitch and cover (which are supposed to be included with the amp) were not present - only the power cord and manual were tucked inside the back. The dealer was very kind and pulled the cover and footswitch from the new sunburst model they had received into stock the day after I bought mine. They were going to contact Fender for replacements for that amp. I hope Fender is as kind to them (Jackson Music) as Jackson was to me!

When I tried out my Gretsch 6120N, I played it through a standard Hot Rod Deluxe and loved the tone - that's why I bought that guitar in the first place. That led me to two more Gretsches. Instead of buying the Deluxe amp, I opted for a Cyber Twin, thinking that the Deluxe amp sound was in there along with a whole bunch of other useful tones. Well, I was right. But when I saw this limited edition with its beautiful cabinet, heard it with the Jensen speaker and tried it with the same 6120N, I was in heaven! Gretsch guitars and this amp were made for one another! If you play blues, classic rock and/or rockabilly, and want an amp that looks as great as it sounds, this just might be the one for you!

New 2003 model made in Mexico but with beautiful Maple Sunburst cab and Jensen C12n speaker.Two channels with more drive boost and all just like standard model.Plenty of tube power and same weight as chipboard model so easy to carry.

I am using two Gibson SG's,one with stock hums and the other with P90's.It was a little noisy so I pulled tubes and replaced withh JJ's and that cleaned things up and made the bottom end tighter.The cab has no rattles even at loud levels and the Jensen is a big improvement over the stock Eminence these amps come with though I had the standard model with a Vintage 30 in it and that was a little sweeter to my ears.This is a great Blues,Jazz or retro Rock amp but not for modern hi gain music unless a stomp box is used in front of it.I love that Fender clean and this does it as well as the DRRI with this Jensen and you get the added bonus of an overdrive channel and better tone shape controls.

AS good as anybody out there today.I had a Blues Jr that didn't last a week but took it back to the store and they gave me another and it ran for years until I sold it.

Not as good as Peavey but good enough!

I have been playing for 25 yrs and this is a great easy to move powerful tube combo that sounds great and looks even better!It better not get stolen 'cause I can't afford another but would replace with same if I could.I have or have owned Marshall DSL's,Mesa Boogie and Peavey Classics and this is a keeper for me.