Fender Hot Rod Deluxe

The Fender Hot Rod Deluxe is a 40 watt tube amp with three channels, clean, drive, and more drive. It also has the standard Fender reverb, and a two-button footswitch which controls the channel selection. For a bread and butter gigging amp it has pretty much all the features one could need for that function. More high tech features used for recording are not to be found here, but they aren't really what this amp is about.

I should mention that I do not own one of these amps, but I use one extensively as a rehearsal amp, because my drummer has one in his basement. I have gigged with one of these amps a couple of times.

As I stated above, the Hot Rod Deluxe has three channels, clean, drive, and more drive. Unfortunately, none of the channels sound very good. The clean lacks that classic Fender clean found in the blackfaces and silverfaces of old, and the drives sound undistinguished, certainly nothing like an old Bassman cranked or any variety of Marshall. I guess what you get in versatility you give up in quality.

One very positive thing about the HRD is that is an extremely loud amp given its size and weight. It's hard to imagine anyone needed an amp louder than this, so if you are looking for a versatile gigging amp and you want to make sure you will be heard, this is worthy of consideration. I don't think I've ever had it louder than 2 1/2.

I've used a variety of guitars with the amp - Strats, Teles, and Les Pauls mostly. The HRD is very consistent - it sounds decent but not great regardless of the guitar you use.

The band I play in plays originals which run the gamut from country/folk rock to punk-pop. I have little need for high gain or saturated tones, which is why Fenders and Voxes have always been my amps of choice.

For a tube amp (always something of an inherent risk) the HRD is very sturdy. While I would prefer to never gig without a backup for a tube amp, this would certainly one which I'd do that if necessary. The amp is well designed and sturdily built. I have never seen one fail, and I know several people who use them.

Fender is a great company with which to do business. I own and have owned Fender guitars and amps for 30+ years, and have owned some real relics. Fender has always been forthcoming with help in all of my dealings with them.

My overall opinion is that one could do a lot worse in search of a reliable and versatile gigging amp. I wish I could say that tis amp sounded nearly as good as my silverface Bassman or my friend's blackface Deluxe, but it doesn't. It has a generic quality to it that is uncharacteristic of Fender tube amps of old. Still, it's loud, versatile, dependable, portable, and reasonably priced. You can't ask you a lot more than that.

Given this amps size and price point, other amps to consider are the Peavey Classic 30, whatever Crate 33-watt amp is out now (Crates are much better than their rep) or the sadly now discontinued Vox AC30CC1.

you know the features. according to fender its the best selling tube amp ever.

havent checked the serial, but its from the first years of production (made in usa!)

has enough knobs and channels to satisfy me--ive been playing a single channel tube amp with extremely basic controls for the last few years.

i use this amp at home and with any luck, for gigs soon. loud enough for residential use, and ill stick a mic in front of it for gigs.

take the time to mess with the controls. take the time to get some new tubes (i would recommend eurotubes.com). and this amp will do whatever you want.

i'm asked by the review form "How brutal is the distortion?". its brutal, but not in a metal type of way. its crunchy and cutting.

i play rock and roll. i play surf. i do not play 'some jazz' or 'occasional metal'. this amp does the job 100%

its lasted 10 years, id take it wherever. havent owned it long enough to know if its reliable, but it looks to be untampered with so im guessing its built like a tank.

too old for warranties.

ive been playing for about 8 years. i own a few fender and gibson guitars. if it were stolen i would probably get it again, price to feature ratio is nearly unbeatable.

one thing i will probably do is switch the speaker to something warmer. maybe a cannabis rex. i think taking some of the edge off would help it out.

WHEN YOU BUY THIS AMP, OR ANY NON-BOUTIQUE AMP, CHANGE THE TUBES. go to eurotubes.com and have them set you up properly!

I bought my HRD shortly after they first came out, somewhere between '97 and '98, and it says it's an American Hot Rod Deluxe. I play mostly classic rock, some country rock, and some jazzier stuff. It came with exactly the features I wanted: a clean channel and a two-stage overdrive channel, common tone controls and reverb. It also has a presence control that I've never really been able to put to good use. Maybe my hearing is not sharp enough to hear the difference. I use the clean channel for most rhythm parts; I use the first overdrive setting for a fuller, fuzzier rhythm; and I use the second stage overdrive setting, "more drive," for leads. I play mostly in small bars, clubs, private parties.

As I currently have it set up, which I'll explain in a minute, it provides exactly the sound I want, but it took some screwing around with lots of combinations to get there. My main gripes with this amp originally were that (a) in its stock set up it is way too loud for most small venues, and (b) the "more drive" was even louder and very harsh. But in the clean setting and the first overdrive setting, I was very happy with the sound. Too tame the volume problem, I initially played with different power tubes. I first tried a pair of EL84s with the Ruby Tubes Tone Bone adapter, and this did indeed tame the volume some, and I really liked the sound, except for the "more drive" setting, which was still too loud and too harsh. I then tried a pair of JJ 6v6, which also sounded very good - much cleaner than the EL84s, but again the "more drive" didn't improve. I then tried a combination of various preamp tubes. JJ has a series of different tubes (European versions of 12AX7s, 12AT7s, and 12DW7s) which did marginally improve the more drive, but they went microphonic very quicky, and one shorted out making a horrible racket. Eventually, I found that using three EH 12AY7s gives me the clean sound, reduced volume, and a smoother "more drive" setting. But 12AY7's only provide 40 percent of the gain of 12AX7s, so I wound up going back to the orginal 6L6 power tubes. I've also replaced the original Eminence speaker with a Weber, which has mellowed the sound some too. Currently, my main guitar is a Taylor T5, which let's me switch back and forth between an acoustic sound and an electric sound. This is good for doing a number of tunes that use an acoustic on the rhythm and an overdriven sound on the lead. I also use a Fender Toronado (also first edition - I wanna say '97, but I'm not sure any more), an Epiphone Dot Studio, an Epi Les Paul Special (real cheap, but fun to play). This amp sounds fine with all out the guitars. I think for the harder tunes, the Fender Toronado sounds the best, but the Dot Studio with the tone knob turned way down produces a very good Santana sound too. I also have a Fender Esquire with only one humbucker in the bridge position and a volume knob. Since I prefer to play using the neck pickup, I really haven't spent a lot of time on this guitar through this amp; however, for a one-trick pony, it also sounds fine.

I've had this amp for 8 or 9 years and never had it serviced. I should probably get someone to rebias it, but so far I'm leaving well enough alone.

I've never needed customer support, but I've read that Fender is not the most helpful. However, I've used their spec manuals to set up my guitars and following their specs, they play fine.

I got my first guitar in 1965. I started playing in garage bands in the early 70's. I've been playing regular gigs for about 18 years. I've listed my electric guitars in the sound quality section. I also have several acoustic guitars. Besides the HRDX, I have a Fender Blues Junior (works great with pedals, and I gig with it too), a Fender Frontman 25R (mostly for practice, but in a pinch it can handle a small gig too), a Fender Acoustisoncic 30, a Peavey Basic 50 Bass amp (also for practice) and a Fender Rumble 100 Bass amp, and a Squire Precision Bass. If it were lost or stolen I probably try to find another one (American made), or I might see if I could find a Fender Prosonic 210 (and swap out the preamp tubes). So, I'm not hopelessly in love with this amp, but I'm happy with it.

Bought from only owner, the chassis is stamped 1997. It has clean, drive and more drive channels with a bright switch and presence control to add highs and sparkle. Solid state spring reverb and effects loop. 12 inch speaker with extension speaker jack. Footswitch to control overdrives. I play blues in small, medium and large clubs and the 40 watts is sufficient.

Bought stock, the amp sounded very good clean, but began to distort once I turned the volume up past 3.5 so I went to using the lower impedence second imput to gain headroom. I bought the amp to have a warm, clean sound for playing blues so I have modded the amp a bit. First mod I do to all my amps, large rubber feet to stabilize the bass and cushion the amp when placing it on hard floors and cement. Second was to change out the speaker to a Jensen Reissue P12N. I was going to put a Jensen C12N in it but loved the sound of the alnico speaker, tight but rich bass and smoother highs. Finally I have tried a large number of preamp tubes, NOS and current production. I want to maximize clean headroom (the ceramic C12N would add headroom, but the P12N sounds incredible) so I have gone to a Jan Philips 12AT7 in the phase inverter and Jan Philips 5751's in V1 and V2 to cut the gain. The Philips/Sylvania tubes sound rich and very warm, a perfect compliment to my 1986 MIJ 57RI Strat, 1983 MIJ Tele with Lindy Fralin Vintage Hots, 2006 Agile AL-3000 with P90's and 2000 Les Paul Deluxe. All four guitars are bright and the Philips 5751's provide great clean sounds that are very warm, harmonic and perfect for playing blues. When I play my 1979 Samick 335 clone with Gibson 57 Classic pickups I change out the V1 for a GE 12AX7. This tube adds some gain, but also emphasizes the highs giving the darker humbuckers a warm clean sound that sparkles. The 5751's in V1 and V2 and the 12AT7 in the V3 position also tame the overdrive channels and produce a very useable distortion (12AT7's in all three preamp positions really change the sound of the overdrive channels and make them very creamy sounding, but the clean channel loses some sparkle). I usually use my own pedals for overdrive (Analogman modded Maxon OD-9 tubescreamer and Analogman modded Boss DS-1), delay and reverb (Digitech RP50) but have gigged only using the HRD's drive channels and reverb. This amp tends to take time to really be able to tweak the settings and sounds but the 40 watts put out a great sound once you get it right. I use the Jensen C12N in a 1X12 sealed cabinet with the HRD when I play in medium to larger clubs to provide more clean volume. With the mods the sound is clean and bright without the overdrive pedals and it really screams when you use the overdrive channels or pedals. The final mod that I will do is to change out the Groove Tubes/Sovtek power tubes. I haven't decided which to put in yet but have Fender/Sylvanias, SED Winged C's and GE's to choose from. Without the mods this amp sounds very good, I would rate it at about an eight as the bass gets flabby and the highs can be shrill. With the mods that I have done, it has an incredible vintage sound when clean and it can really scream when cranked.

The previous owner said that he rarely played the amp for about nine years before selling it. I believe it based on the condition it was in when I bought it. I have had no problems whatsoever in the year in which I have owned it. I use this amp frequently to play sets in blues jams around town (average about once a week/45 minute sets)and have spent a great deal of time playing very loud while testing speakers, tubes, pedals, etc.

Never had to deal with Fender and from what I have heard from others, I hope that I never do.

I have been playing for around 40 years, on and off. I have five Fender amps: Frontman 25R, Blues Jr., Hot Rod Deluxe, Blues DeVille and 1972 Twin Reverb (all modded). This is the amp that I usually use when I jam with friends and in clubs. It is loud enough, has incredible tone and is small/light enough to transport easily in the backseat of my car. With the mods it seems to handle all of my guitars well. I have read about putting two 10 inch speakers instead of the one twelve. It might sound good (think Vibrolux), but I am happy with what I have. Those who want more gain, get a Marshall. If you play blues or classic crank it up rock, this amp will do the job. If it were lost or stolen, I'd get another one or a Blues Deluxe.

do not know the year. made in mexico. this amp is very versatile. nice looking, not to big, not to heavy. all kinds of rock, hard rock, punk, surf, blues and country. wish the reveb was footswitchable. 3 channel amp, 1 EQ. i dont use the fx loop. this is an all tube amp with ss rectifier. i gig this amp in bars. plenty of power. Gibson LP standard, America deluxe strat.

you can acheive vintage and modern tones with this amp.sounds great. clean channel breaks up after vol 3 and good blues grind there after. love the linear volume pot.input 1 for larger places and input 2 for smaller. volume 2 is my stage volume for clean and drive. i use stomp boxes too. these amps drive channels seem to differ with amp to amp so try it first. my drive and more drive sound fantastic. crunchy, crisp and clear. good bottom and clear highs. clean has a lot of bass when the amp sits on the floor and sometimes i use an amp stand to help with this if needed. ice pick sound goes away after full break in or turn the reverb off and use a reverb pedal.it helps. ive owned several of these and sold them for whatever reason but it was never because of sound or reliability issues and would wait till i saved the money again a buy another. $400 used is easy on the wallet. IMHO these amps sound great and dont care where its made. its still a fender amp and i love it. the stock speaker is fine.

well these amps are known for problems but many have had none. ive had a few problems in the past but the warranty worked fine. ive even had to repair USA Fender amps before so dont blame Mexico production. most new cars have to go back for warranty work, sometimes the next day or so. some dont. ALWAYS BRING A BACK UP AMP NO MATTER WHAT AMP YOU USE. it makes good sense.

Fender has top notch service IMO. you can call them and speak to a real tech. they are very nice and knowledgable and eager to help unlike Marshall with no email address or phone # on their site. nothing. although ive never had a problem with a Marshall, but the over all performance of Fender amps keeps me bringing a Fender tube amp to a gig.

im now 42yo been playing since 11yo. I currently use depending on the venue and mood; Hot Rod Deluxe, 59 Bassman LTD RI, Twin amp, Marshall JCM2000 DSL 100 with a 1960A cab, Marshall Lead100 Mosfet head with a 1960A cab. i'll buy again and again if needed. i love this amp and hate nothing about it. i like what i hear with this, hope you will too. some folks hate these amps and the tone but they are the ones that are never happy with any amp. nothing is perfect, trust me. good luck!

i have an american made one bought in the late 90s i think....the linear volume pot sucks its a marketing gimmick....you turn it up to #1 and omg its so loud in the store you would think oh boy ill really be able to cut through the band with this thing.. but after 2 on the volume ,it doesnt get much louder at all .if it had an audio taper pot then the volume would be even as it should be all the way up to 10..

it has an ok clean sound and nice reverb but heres the thing...i bought an old bassman head from the late 60s with the ab165 circuit.for 175 bucks . I replaced all resistors and capacitors with a kit from torres engineering ,for about 80 bucks. And i rebiult the circuit to aa864 specs....then i A Bd them through the stock speaker in the HRD and wow, theres night and day difference.. no comarison the bassman has such beautiful tone compared to the Hot rod deluxe .its the kind of sound where i just dont want to put my guitar down .

never play it much play bassman head instead

im gonna sell it and but anouther bassman head i think

Features are fine: Golden Fender Reverb and notoriously bad Fender distortion. But everyone already knows what Fender's strengths are, so this isn't a problem.

Again, good clean base sound, that you can dress up with your favorite pedals. Or just bask in the springy reverb goodness.

TERRIBLE!

The new string of HRD are AWFUL. I ordered a blonde on from Musicians Friend, and had to return it almost immediately because of an electrical problem.

It took a month to get a replacment, an it had a broken reverb unit. A Fender with no reverb? It's a CRIME!

MF sent me a 3rd one overnight so I could have it for a gig--but it was even worse. The piece of junk would barely turn on, and made the worst racket you've ever heard--even with the volume OFF.

These models were all Made in Mexico, so maybe Fender is just really cutting corners on cheap parts and poor assembly.

They should be ashamed to sell this kind of junk--and have the nerve to charge $600 for it!

I won't make this mistake again. I might buy an old used American Fender. Maybe. I'm so disappointed I don't know if I can spend my money on another Fender.

Disgusting.

Fender doesn't respond to customer service inquiries.

I've been playing for well over 10 years and have owned other Fender amps in the past, and they were great. That's why I wanted to upgrade to this bigger model. Several friends own the same model and adore it--but theirs were American made.

Fender should be embarrassed. The name doesn't mean anything anymore.

DO NOT waste your money on this piece of junk. I got 3 broken ones in a row (what are the odds?!?!)--it seems likely that they're all pretty poorly made.

This is for a blonde tolex, oxblood HRD, which I think was made for Musician's Friend only. You guys know the features.

I had one of these when they first came out in the mid 90s, used it for several years. I bought my current one on ebay, without a speaker. I installed a Reverend speaker, and it sounds really good with the amp, better than the stock speaker Fender uses. I have always loved the clean channel on these amps, especially the fat low end. Reverb is good, too. I use the channel switching, but only the first gain stage; the more drive function totally sucks. I set the drive very low, no higher than 3, with the master (for gigging) at 4. This setting, with single coils, serves basically as another clean channel, with just a little dirt. I use a VooDoo Lab Sparkle Drive and a TubeScreamer for distortion, the SD for a little, the TS for a really overdriven sound. I use an Eric Johnson Strat, a Reverend Slingshot, and a Reverend Charger HB. I use the amp's bright switch only when playing the Charger, due to the darker humbucker sounds. I run my tremelo, chorus, and delay through the effects loop, and the other pedals between guitar and amp. This works really well.

The first one never crapped out, and I gigged with it a lot. I'm assuming this one will be as good.

Owned a ton of Fender gear, but never dealt with the company.

Been at it since 1964, still gigging at almost 57. Obviously, I like these amps, or I would not have bought one again. It's probably as good as anything in the same price range. I just wish they would do something about the more drive function........eliminating it would be a good idea!

I have a 2005 Fender hot Rod Deluxe. I use this amp predominantly for rock and dirty blues. It isn't the most versatile amp ever, but it does exactly what I want it to. The clean tone is good, but better if you use extra pedals.

There are three channels; clean, drive and more drive. Although really it's just two as the difference is rather slight. I tend to mainly use the more drive channel and the clean. It would be better if there were separate tone controls for the drive channels, but it is fine as it is.

I use this amp for jamming with my band and playing pubs and clubs in my local area.

The amp's main strength is in my opinion the sound it gives on the drive channels. The more drive channel really helps to give your solos that extra impact. If you turn the presence up and have a bit of reverb then it sounds very aggressive and cuts through very well.

I have had no problems at all. Obviously it's a tube amp so I am careful with it. I would have no hesitation in using for those big occasions.

I have never had to deal with Fender regarding my amp, so I don't know about there customer service. I bought it form Peter Cook's Guitar World in Hanwell just outside of London. They were very helpful, delivery was prompt and the price was as good as I could find.

I have been playing about four years, but only seriously or two years. I have used a very wide range of equipment in this time. I use a slightly modified Eastwood Airline DLX, this guitar sounds excellent with the fender amp. It sounds amazing with the drive channel, and also very good on the clean channel. I found that if you turn th middle up when using it on the clean channel it sounds a lot better. I did a great deal of research before buying it and I don't think there is anything to match it in it's range for the price. As i said before I wish it had separate tone controls for the drive channel, but this really issn't a major problem.

I love this amp, It goes extremely well with my guitar, and was exactly what I was looking for. I would gladly reccomend it to anyone.

I bought this amp brand new in the summer of 1998. It is USA made and must have been manufactured around late 1997 or early 1998. It was bought in Sioux Falls, SD at a fender dealer. Defining the "channels" is somewhat difficult depending on what your idea of a channel is. Basically you have your "clean" channel and a "driven" channel. Both utilize the same "Middle" "Bass" and "Treble" controls so you can't really say you have two "independant" channels, although both have their own "Volume" control, the "Master Volume" knob being the actual volume of the "drive" channel. If you dialed back the "drive" to zero on the "drive" channel then you DO basically have a 2nd channel. There are two input's for your guitar. The 1st one is a little "hotter", nice for your humbucker guitars. The 2nd is somewhat "mello-er" for a single coil guitar. I, however, rarely use the 2nd input, unless somebody else wants to plug-in and play along with me. The "Presence" knob adds a little more top end and there is a "brightness" switch to again add just a tweek more. So let's be completely honest. This amp isn't that versatile. If it's just you, your guitar, and the amp, there aren't going to be many "different" sounds to get out of this amp. But sound versatility isn't what this amp is designed for.
I am going to rate this as a seven as far as features are concerned. The reason being that it should be looked at as a way to introduce the distinct sound of a "Lower" wattage tube amp at a reasonable price to a consumer who probably hasn't read Aspen Pittman's "The Tube Amp Book" from cover to cover.

Ok, this is the catagory I've been wanting to add to for 8 years now. If you are reading other peoples Hot Rod Deluxe reviews in trying to make up your own mind as to whether it's the correct amp for you then you need to take others opinion with somewhat of an objective grain of salt. I was in a large-chain guitar store and a mom-and-pop guitar shop, both were selling these amps nowadays for about $600-$700. Now to me that's a pretty cheap price for a 40W tube amp. This is NOT a boutique amp. It is made on an assembly line, and if you're only able to find a non-USA made one then it was probablably made by people that put as much love into making these things as the people that make my burrito at Taco Bell. Now that's not saying it's a bad burrito but these people have a quota to fill and it shouldn't come to anybodies surprise that there just isn't the kind of quality in these amps as say that $3,000 Matchless Cheiftan you've been eyeing at the pawn shop. But you know what? This little guy costs about 1/5th the price. I can't believe anybody on this forum would post a review saying they plugged in their '57 gibson Les Paul and can't find a good sound. Dude, why are you playing your $2,500.00 guitar in a $600 amp?
I don't believe you could ask for better sound quality from a $600 40W tube amp. Let's all be completely honest for what we're asking this little amp to do. Assuming you're playing guitar in a band, you wouldn't bring this guy into anything bigger than a normal sized club (lets say about 100 audience members) without any kind of sound reinforcement. It's not designed to be a Marshall or Mesa Stack. Why would anybody buy this amp if their intentions where to be in a Slip Knot/Lamb of God cover band.
I have two main guitars that I use with this amp. The 1st is a mid 90's American Standard Strat (notice I did not say "American Series") The 2nd is a newer Gibson SG Standard, so I believe I have both ends covered as far as Humbucker vs. Single Coil sounds.
That being said, both guitars distinct voices carry through this amp.

So, from now on, in this forum, can we dispence with the critics of this amp who plug in their Jackson Soloist, or B.C. Rich Slipknot endorsed shredder and then find the lack of bottom end disheartening?

I have never experienced any negative issue regarding this amp. Just to see what it would be like, I replaced the 2 stock power amp tubes with a pair of Groove Tubes without rebiasing. I noticed a deep, low, hum at higher volumes. I'm not sure what the issue was so I put the original tubes back in (nothing was wrong with them anyway) and haven't had any issues since, just $50 blown on unneeded tubes.

It's fender, it's a factory so no, they aren't going to give you detailed print-outs on all of the MODs you want to do to this amp. Bottom line, if you are pushing this amp to do what it wasn't intended to do than don't be mad if you can't get any customer support from Fender. I, myself, have never needed to call them.

About a year ago I thought I would take my Tube Amp collection to the next level by buying a new Fender Twin Amp that was missing it's foot pedal so Guitar Center sold it to me for $800. What a mistake. Yes, it's louder than the HRD, but that's because it's 100 Watts, it also weighed more than twice as much. And in what gigging context would I need to use all 100 watts, eventually the other members of my band would be drowned out.
Like I said above, this is NOT a boutique amp. It's a $600 40W amp. Based on that fact alone, this is an incredible value for such a portable, powerful combo.

2006 Hot Rod Deluxe Blonde version 40 watt tube amp. This is a very versatile amp (using the clean and some pedals). I play all styles of music from jazz, blues to metal and this amp does it all big and bold, but dont plan on using the distortion channels for your heavier stuff, your gonna want to use your pedals (which the amp has an effects loop too). There aren't any features I wish it had, actually I wish it didn't have the distortion channel, although when using the drive at low levels is ok for some blues. It has a pedal for channel switching but I haven't even taken it out of the plastic, I've been able to get all the sounds I want out of the clean with effects. This amp has plenty of power at 40 watts, might even be too much for the hobby player in their music room, pretty stout sounding amp. It has all the features I need.

Sound wise this is very versatile to me. You need an excellent clean sound to build the rest of your sound from and this amp definately has a great clean Fender tone. It takes to pedals very well, which gives you a limitless possibility of styles in which it can tackle. The distortion channel on the other hand leaves something to be desired. I didn't buy the amp for the distortion anyway so it makes no difference to me. I play this with several guitars, Ibanez, Fender and Gibson. One thing I did notice is the more expensive your guitar the beter the amp sounds. I played it with my Mexican Tele and I thought wow this thing sounds great, then I plugged in my American Strat Plus and WOW, I never heard my Strat sound so beautiful, it just sang! Not saying that a guitar with cheaper pickups in it won't sound good, but a great guitar will definately show it's true colors through this amp. I have been able to create all the sounds I need with this amp for all my music styles so I am very satisfied. On the noise side of things it is very quiet when I plug in my Strat and Tele, I was very pleased with this after getting hummed out of town with my Blues Junior.

So far no issues for me, I have noticed people commenting on the plastic input jacks and having issues but I dont beat the crap out of my music equipment so I am not worried.

Havent needed them.

I have been playing guitar for 25 years and have owned alot of different amps and guitars. For its price point you cant go wrong with this amp, as long as your not planning on using the distortion channel as your main rock sound. I havent played too much with the distortion channel, but I would imagine with a little tweaking you could get some decent sounds out of it for certain styles of music. That is the main thing with this amp, people complain because out of the box it doesnt go from clean jazz to acid metal. They want an amp with 6L6 and EL84 tubes and a kitchen sink too. If you want a pure Fender tone get this amp, it loves pedals and you can make it sing in any music genre. If you want Vox British tones then buy a Vox (which to me are real tinny sounding amps that cost twice as much) just my opinion. For the money you aren't going to find a nicer tube sound. If there were anything I wish it had, it would be "not" to have the distortion channel, build it just like the majority of the other fender amps, clean and vibrato channel at the same price point. If this amp were stolen I would get another, it is a great little 40 watt tube amp.

1997 USA made hrd(I wrote a review earlier this year on a "FENDER DEALER" made in Mexico deluxe limited POS)this american version is like rating a whole different amp.I still am NOT going to admit that this amp. has 3 channels though and if fender had any pride in themselves they would'nt either.Notice that I am giving this amp.a 10,Due to the fact it does have the features I was looking for and this is the proper "tool" for the job/style I need it for{blues,country,southern/classic rock.

This amp.is a great marriage with my american deluxe strat.w/s-1 system.Of course I use pedals with this amp.(blues driver,ch-1 super chorus)But,THAT'S ALL,I some times use ch.2 to get a little more "break-up",But after playing for about 45 years I have enough knowledge to know what I need for the sound I am trying to accomplish.Rating this amp.based on a hardrock or british tone or anything that requires a lot of distortion,IMHO you picked the wrong tool,not that the tool is bad.I wear a size 13w shoe,and have enough sense not to try on a size 10m,and bitch that it don't fit!!!.with that being said,the mexican verzion don't fit,and feel this site should have the usa and mexican split into different catagories.

So far so good,but I always carry a back-up,never heard of a usa model dying on stage,But I have personnally had issues with the shitty mexican one,AND IT WAS A DIAMOND DEALERS ISSUE,fmic must sure love their dealers,eh?

YOUR KIDDING,RIGHT?,as stated above I have enough gray whiskers to know that if you spend any time with the frontline people who answer the phone first,HELL...YOU JUST INFORMED THEM THAT FMIC...IS FENDER guitars!!!

I've owned a lot of different gear,and collected a lot of gear over the years,I know that it's hard to afford to keep-up 2 or 3 amps. or guitars.But,one thing I know,if you like different styles of music,and want to play the different varities,you need a varitey of tools and equipment,and cannot expect this basic amp.to do it all,and by the way this thing weighs about 45lbs.,which late at night(at my age)looks far more appealing than my 75lb Peavey classic 50410,or my 77lb.CrateVC50310,or that wonderfull 100 lb.TWin

This amp does an alright job for those who are trying to get into the tube amp scene without paying an arm and a leg. You'll need your pedals with this one. The only real effect this amp has is reverb. It has a second channel but it's not a true second channel; it doesn't have its own tone controls. So, in reality it's a one channel amp. It comes with a foot switch to change between the channels. I has an preamp in, high and low input jacks. It does have enough power for most gigs. It has a linear pot in the master volume spot which is a bit annoying for me. It makes the amp super load at vol. 0-2 but it doesn't give you much after about 5. I've made quite a few mods to my amp replacing the master volume pot with an 250K audio pot was the first one. I also replaced those cheap plastic input jacks. Mine broke on me within the first year. (Fender should really no better then to make a part out of plastic that is threaded to receive a metal nut!)I put in the old standard metal ones that cost about $1.00.

The amp sounds fine clean but you really can't get a good distroted sound without an effects pedal. If you're playing blues this is fine, but if you like anything with a more brokenup distortion than blues get a distrotion pedal. The stock speak isn't too bad. I wish the would just charge an additional $80 and put in a good quality speaker. I replaced mine and it made a huge difference in sound. Also I've replaced the tubes with TAD 6L6GC-STR tubes. This gave this amp a cleaner high end but they still distort nicely. I was able to live with the original setup until I started using this amp to play with people with nicer amps and I got jealous. So I modified my amp.

This amp has given me a few problems with a few bad resistors that I've had to replace and of course the cheap plastic jacks they use on this amp. But over all, it's been a pretty reliable amp.

I've never dealt with Fender for customer support. I figured it would cost a buttload to ship this thing to have it looked at and fixed tha's why I've always done my own repairs. I've had it long enough that it's not under warranty any more. (I was lucky enough to have purchased this when they were still made in the good old USA). Guys buy a used American made model if you must get one. The new ones are made South of the border.

I've been playing for about 16 years. I also have an old 80's peavey amp that's actually not half bad. I mainly play my deluxe strat, but I do have a les paul studio for metal, and my old Ibanez blazer series from when I was 12. If this amp were to get stolen I wouldn't buy it again. It took a few hundred dollars more than I paid for the amp plus some time trouble shotting it to make it soudn the way I wanted it. Not that it hasn't been fun moding it but I would like an amp with a little more power, nicer stock sound, and better quality parts.

You all know the features.......... basic clean and MUD and MORE MUD.

This amp is perfcet for clean.........to a point......but the gain is MUD.........crappy mud that only gets worse. Fender tricked everyone by putting in linear pots instead of audio taper. This makes you think what a loud amp it is even on 1.......theres not much more past about 5 except...........MORE MUD.

Well.............who knows........all the new ones are NOT MADE IN MEXICO...........but asian sweatshops........ so you take your risk.

Um............fender........well dont expect any help without an argument.

Ive been playing for over 30 years........own a swag of vintag collectable guitars including a 68 335, 5 Les Pauls form 72 to 77, a 62 strat and a few re issues. Fender has not made a good amp or guitar for that matter since the early 60's. It only now relies on its name to sell cheap and nasty overpriced asian muck. This sis the worst amp I have ever used or heard in over 30 years. One to be avoided.

This amp doesn't have a wide variety of features. There is one tone setting for all the channels on the amp, but it serves it's purpose... at least in my case anyways. I bought the amp because it is, in my opinion, the best tone for your buck. I only use the clean channel and use stompboxes for OD and Distortion.

I give this a 8 based on the tone you get for the $$$. I use a PRS Custom 24 with HFS and Vintage Bass pickups. I run through a Crybaby wah, Ibanez tube king, fulldrive 2, dl4, and an EH pulsar, I use true bypass loops so my whole signal is True bypass. I play a wide variety of styles with this amp ranging from Worship music to hard rock. The Cleans are very nice on this amp, but the gain channels arent the greatest, which is why I use pedals. This amp sounds good with just about any gain type pedals I have used with it.

I've had it for a year and gigged 2-3 times a week with it and have never had a problem.

Haven't had to deal with fender

I've been playing for 6 years. I've gigged without a backup for a long time until recently so I guess i still would if i counldnt afford a second amp. It would be nice if it had a better gain channel, but for the money its the best out there.

To the person named JEF who did a review just a few down from here.....your a total dork mate and OBVIOUSLY HAVE NO IDEA about pots.
A linear taper pot gives you heaps between 0 and 3 a tad more from 3 to 5 and NOTHING much after that.
An audio taper pot gives you GRADUALLY INCREASING VOLUME FROM O TO 10..........
Fender did it with linear pots to give idiots like you the false impression of "WOW THIS THING IS POWERFUL JUST LIKE A 100 WATT AMP" TRAIN OF THOUGHT.
Id suggest you kept YOUR ignorant opinions out of places like this so that other not so savvy people can NOT learn the same ignorance from you.

AS FOR THE FEATURES? Theres enough info in other listings.....but its got enough for everyday use excpet for the shitty linear volume pots. AND..............the pathetic idea of making the control panel chrome which goes all rusty and is so hard to see on stage that you need glasses and a torch.....some other idiots bright idea no doubt. WHATEVER HAPPENED TO A BLACK FACE WITH WHITE NUMBERS???

Sound is pretty poor overall.........though not bad down low and clean. Distortion is a mess with a capitol M. Just unusable slush likt a blowfly in a jam jar.
A great clean sound can be found which improves after you change the pots as above and run it through the second chanell. If you need to distort......use a TS9 or similar.

Well its got a PCB.......modern technology so its going to give you a hard time......if its not abused then you get a reasonable serive from it. JJ's run better and last well but if you want more grunt get the hotted up GT's........BUT I cant see why youd want to make it sound like its on steroids.
Avoid fluro lights and mobile phones.
Im lucky as this one is USA made in the early 90's

FORGET IT.......... dont know why they are still in business really with all the cheap and nasty OVERPRICED crap they make these days in ASIAN countries.

Ive been playing for over 30 years, Blues and classic rock mainly. I own Fenders from the early days, Gibsons from as far back as 68 and a host of Martins and Gibson acoustics. I have owned so many amps over the years that I forget them......If you want tone, class and volume......go for something older. If you want NOISE.....and a brand name on the front to pose with.......then I guess this is a good start. Blows the pants off many out there today that are US made or Pretending to be British made......(like the indian made marshall or the tunesian made Orange)......... For average sized gigs this amp is not too bad for the $$......if it was lost or stolen Id buy something else. If you MUST have one of these DO NOT BUY THE NEWER MEXICAN MADE ONES........they are crap like the tacocasters. Hunt down a made in usa one at least.

Amp was made in 2000

I bought this amp on the sounds, ease of transport and overall volume for its size. A very good sounding amp.

This amp went faulty in July this year. It wouldn't change channels at all and was stuck on the "more drive" position. I took it to my local musical instrument repair shop who informed me 2 diodes and an op-amp ic were faulty. The diodes were replaced immediatly but the ic could not be found "off the shelf" by any supplier. Some even said the part was obsolete! My repair man approached Fender who were reluctant to supply him directly and gave him the address of an authorised supplier. These were contacted and have failed to be of any assistance whatsoever. It is now November and I am still without the amp. As a professional musician I have of course other amps to use and will stick to Marshall or Vox amps in future and hope Fender get their act together soon.

Please read above

hame that a good sounding amp has such rubbish reliabily and factory support.

This is a straightforward tube amp with a little bit of xtra overdrive and reverb, which is perfect! Nothing else too fancy, therefore a good rate of 8.

It's my 1st tube amp, but it just sounds so much better. The tubes really give off a smooth vibe. It sounds better than a line 6 spider 1 12" or a Vox AD50VT. I had both those amps before and was not happy with the sound at all. The HRD is real. There's no recorded sounds or presets with this sucker. Just a few knobs to get some different flavors while working with a smooth od/tube sound. Plus, it is loud! 40 watts is more than enough. Also, I have an SG Standard with stock pup's.

It's new to me, but I can tell that if handled properly, it is tough and will last for many years.

Never talked to Fender.

Well, it's great because it is simple. A 40 watt tube amp with a little bit of overdrive that sounds great and it has a real reverb spring/coil. I like it better than the vox or line 6 because the sound is true! It is not a simulated/modeled sound that you get! What you hear is what it is! This amp ain't no pretender. Try one at the store and if you like it and think it has potential for you, go for it!

I got this recently and was pleased to see Fender seems to be using more linear pots...meaning the volume is more evenly spread over the range. I use an LP into channel two for more headroom. I use a nice overdrive pedal in front for the distortion and touch of boost for solos. You can bias this amp easily if you're super careful not to put both hands in the PCB. PCB wiring/soldering appears pretty robust to me - looks like it could withstand some severe shocks. Oh yeah but folks still whine that the tube sockets are mounted on the PCB instead of the chassis...but take a look at how they did it: Reinforcement screws around all tube sockets mounted to the chassis - you'll NOT break the PCB by inserting a new tube. Believe me - they aren't all built this way. Other amps don't have this and when you insert a new tube, you're flexing the PCB alot - smart move on part of Fender. The input jacks are plastic and will break if you are rough on them - so you need to show reasonable care - not anal, but reasonable. The baffle board is ply (where it counts) with the cab being MDF. I had an old Fender silverface with an MDF baffle board - very frumpy sounding - this really makes a difference - more crisp tone. Very light to carry, Very loud, full and lively. I think the internal speaker is just fine for vintage ripping tones and clean. If you need more darkness, or pristine clean - yes swap out the speaker. But I wouldn't say the internal speaker by default needs to go - depends on what you need. Right - get pedals for your dirt - the onboard boosts off of the single channel are not very defined - too fuzzy for my tastes. I play cover band stuff and when I mic this amp, I set it, then forget it and really enjoy the tone. I haven't modded it and it works just dandy. For EQ, I noticed if you scoop the mids, the trebles become more strident. For me, the Mid at 12 o' clock, treble at 9:30-10:00, and Bass at 10:00-12:00 works great - nice broad and rich tone. I would say the only downside to sound quality is the onboard overdrive but this doesn't concern me.

If you like a versatile combo tube amp and have pedals already, this amp is worth it for its clean alone. I think this amp is a very good deal and stands up to most similar boutique amps for its clean alone, maybe not its overdrive. I like how Fender has done smart design to make it affordable, yet high quality at the same time. I've had a boutique 50 watt 1X12" combo that couldn't compare to the tones generated by this amp.

My deluxe was made in 2004, but I just bought it three months ago. I play blues/rock, usually using only the regular gain channel, and never passing 4 on gain. However, tonight I was invited to join a hardcore/metal band, which i despise, but i gave it a shot. I hooked my amp up to a peavey 4x12 tweed cab and it sounded outstanding. I guess this is where I move on to the sound quality section.

Outstanding. I can't even begin to describe how good my amp sounds. Until tonight I never used the high gain channel, or did i ever really get any gain out of the amp, being that i play clean/mildly overdrive blues. But when I hooked my deluxe up to the peavey cab, switched to the high gain channel and set the gain at 8, it sounded better than any marshall, mesa or vox i've ever played though. My solos were on fire, and it was such a perfect distortion. I don't even use any pedals (I was thinking about getting an Ibanez Tube Screamer, but I don't even need it). Anyone who tells you that you can't get high gain out of a hot rod deluxe is wrong.

Sometimes I get some strange sounds, but only at very low volumes. I think it might be time for some new tubes, but it sounds so good I'm not even gonna bother with that until I have to. In three months it hasn't failed me, and it's about two years old with the original tubes. I can't afford a backup amp so I have no choice but to use this without backup, but I'm also comfortable doing so.

Never dealt with fender for my guitars or amp.

I've been playing for four years, mostly blues. As lead guitarist in the hardcore band I joined tonight, my solos are almost all basic pentatonic, nothing too difficult. If my amp were stolen or lost I would replace it with a deville instead of a deluxe, just for the extra 20 watts and extra speaker. I wouldn't even consider a marshall or mesa after truly pushing my hot rod.

05,this amp broke down on me at a gig..twice

well this amp seems to have a mind of its own. ice pick sound oneday gone the next and comes back. jj tubes help the drive channel a little. pretty good amp if you keep it fixed. 5 yr warranty. youll need it. good clean tone if you like ice picks. i had enough of fender amps really and sold it with my blues jr and supersonic cab and got a Marshall dsl 401. I COULDNT BE HAPPIER. NO ICE PICK PERIOD. ALL TONE HEAVEN I SWEAR AND OVERDRIVE TO DIE FOR I PROMISE. i tried to defend the hot rod deluxe amp before for the price vs. features. now i know why the Marshall costs $1079.00 . i bought a 6$ fan at wal mart too..

UNRELIABLE PERIOD

IVE ALWAYS HAD GOOD FENDER SUPPORT THOUGH. THE WARRANTY DOES WORK.

HAVE YOUR TECH RESOLDER EVERYTHING AND CHECK EVERYTHING BEFORE YOU GIG WITH IT EVEN IF YOU PAY HIM. DONT WAIT FOR A BREAK DOWN FOR WARRANTY REPAIR. after all soldering is done, eventually a resistor will blow out too as well as the light bulb. some sooner than others but it will happen to you. you'll see. if you can make it through the first year than keep it. you'll be one of the few trust me. the tone of this amp isnt good enough to live with the problems and annoyances . it does look good but an all tube Marshall looks better and sounds much better.

features have already been stated
this amp has plenty of power easily be gigged with doesnt need to be mic'd
the only thing it needs is a master volume so that you can control overdrive at lower levels, otherwise it gets pretty damn loud

I purchased this amp primarily for its clean channel genuine fender tone, sounds crisp and warm, clear, bright and has plenty of low end everything you would expect from a fender. you can play funk, blues, classic rock, alternative, even metal with a pedal. their is plenty of headroom on the clean channel so you have to crank to get tube overdrive but that is to loud for in home use. the drive channel is lacking distortion, and despite what others have said about the drive and more drive be useless i find the more drive great. be putting the drive between 3-4 and selecting more drive while using my Boss Ds-1 i adjust the volume and tone controls and can get santana like tone and sustain and creamy distortion best described as eric claptons early solos with cream.

i actually purchased one which sounded great but as i played can across two problems first their was a rattling as if something was loose in the amp and then volume loss while playing. then later while i was practicing with my band the hotrod lost all volume and would not function. i returned it and had it replaced the new hotrod i recieved works fine and also sounds amazing. but that did piss me off, especially since this seems to be a common occurence with these line of fender amps.

Never dealt with

i have been playing for two years i own a fender mustang which is my current main guitar and had strat copys. i have played many guitars and know good tone and how to create it this amp is versatile and efficient, i compared it to the blues jr. the hotrod deville and blues deluxe this was the best for the price and sound, because the deville is similiar and only has more watts their was no point in it and the other two where limited in sound. this amp looks great plays great, and allows you to bias the power tubes which allows for you to shape the sound to what you would like.

No sunshine to blow here, here's the straight scoop. "2nd Channel" is a waste, throwaway, yuck. Tried all the tube swapping, etc., it's hopelessly nasty and nasally. Fender has known this for years, why not fix it? Oh...I know why, it's still selling in droves. I would rather they lose the overdrive channel on this and put more money into the reverb which is also lacking. Yes, it's BIG reverb, but lacks warmth and character. Fender could use those wasted tubes on channel 2 to warm up the reverb and give depth, mix controls. 99 percent of users of this amp use pedals because the OVERDRIVE CHANNEL BLOWS!!! ARE YOU LISTENING FENDER?!?!?!?!?!

Read above. Clean channel is...per usual for Fender....very good. O/D channel useless and amateur. I give it halfway rating here for the fact that the amp is only half useable. ANOTHER MAJOR GRIPE....just as countless others below have mentioned, volume from 0-1-2 jumps dramatically! I found this lessens with the use of a 12AT7 (versus 12AX7) in slot V1 (first preamp tube, furthest away from the large power tubes). But then you lose sparkle and shimmer due to weaker preamp tube. Fender could EASILY fix this PROBLEM by fixing that pot with a better quality one. COME ONE FENDER. At average street price of $600 on this item, it should work right without having to mod it right away. Ridiculous.

Don't know about this yet. Haven't heard of any major problems with these amps except those problems that are fresh with the amp right out the box from the factory. Again, ridiculous. "Here, buy this brand new Fender amp, and get it fixed immediately. We are Fender, so screw you." People, voice your concerns to Fender, this is criminal behavior in my opinion to knowingly put out a defective product.

Takes a few days. International corporate entity of this nature, what do you expect. When I have been in touch with Fender lately, cool people who know what they are talking about. Let's hope they listen to feedback on this amp (like they did with the new 2006 Highway One series instruments) and fix the Hot Rod Deluxe!

Wish I could give it higher marks. Concept is there, it sells more on looks than playability. People buy it because it says "Fender" on the tag, which should mean something. I love my old Fender amps, which were made with pride and quality. The company seems to have made some strides as of late with new innovations, and some customer support based response in their product lines. Wish they would take it to the next level and truly reclaim the throne they truly held. This is EXACTLY why all of these boutique amp makers are doing what they do. They are all simply mimicing the Fender of days gone by, and people are willing to pay for the quality. Come one Fender, get back in the game. People already love your stuff, don't kick them in the back simply because they are too ignorant to know the difference. Alot of us see it, and we are bowing out of a majority of your product line. Leo deserves a better heritage than what this amp represents in quality.

2 Channels: Clean, Drive (w/?More Drive? feature). Treble, Mid, Bass, Presence, Reverb, Bright Switch, Effects Loop, Footswitch (included) for switching between channels, 2 input jacks (input 1 is higher gain than input 2). Knobs all go to 12 for some silly reason. Three 12AX7 preamp tubes, two 6L6 power amp tubes.

As previous reviewers have commented, there is only one set of tone controls for both channels, which is the main reason I only give the amp a 7 in the features category. Some have called this a three channel amp, but it?s really only two channels, with the ?more drive? feature as part of the drive channel.

2006 model. 3 channels: clean, drive and more drive. One set on tone controls for all channels, but offers a bright switch for the clean channel. Has reverb, bu lacks a master volume... this would be very useful as the channel volumes go from silent (on "0") to very loud (on "1") and super loud (on "2"). They should really do a better job with the volume controls, but I'll give it an 8 for features because it is an all tube amp with 3 channels and reverb for $599!

I play a Fender American Deluxe HSS strat and a Fender Custom Shop Showmaster Elite with two Seymour Duncan humbuckers. This amp is made for the strat. While the Showmaster sounds good in the clean channel, the drive channels are too flabby/loose sounding. I guess the pick ups are just too hot in the Showmaster. However, the strat sounds great in all channels. I have heard people complain about the drive channels. I had the same problem, but give this a try... set the drive channel gain to 1.5, treble at 3 o'clock, presence at 3 o'clock, bass all the way, and mid between 12 - 3 o'clock. Using your strat's middle pick up (and make sure your guitar volume and tone controls are all the way up) you will get is a nice crunch tone. Not heavy distortion, but good crunch. Then when you hit the "more drive" button, switch to your bridge pick up and you'll have a pretty smooth overdrive that sounds great for a lot of rock songs. I have used this at two gigs now and it sounds great... full, cuts through the mix, and sounds great mic'ed (I use the Sennheiser guitar cabinet microphone).

Don't know how realiable it is. I've only had it for two weeks.

Fender is hard to get in touch with. They really want you to talk to their dealers. Plus, I can not find a toll-free customer support telephone number.

I have a Line 6 Flextone III XL 2x12 with the FBV Shortboard. I has all the modelling features, is loud, in stereo, every built-in effect I could need, plus great control of patches, effects, stage volume, etc. via the foot controller. All these features are great. However, the tone of the Line 6 is under-whelming. It is lifeless. I even let my wife listen as I compared the Line 6 to the Hot Rod. She immediately commented that the Hot Rod seems so much more alive. The Line 6 just doesn't cut it. It sounds good playing by yourself, but not compared to the Hot Rod, and it definitely doesn't cut through the mix when playing in a band. I really like the Hot Rod, however if I were a Fender marketing guy I would make the following product changes to increase my customer base:

1. Improve the volume controls... way too sensitive
2. Create a "smoother" drive channel. Not like a Marshall, just a little more smoother than what it currently is.
3. Add a volume boost button on the footswitch

I would have gladly paid an additional $150 more for the amp if it had these improvments!