Fender Stage 112SE

I have no idea what year it is. I picked it up in a Pawn Shop. Best hundred bucks I ever spent. Very Powerful amp. I'm a home studio guy so I use it quite frequently at home to record. The clean is fantistic and it can get quite gritty on the other side. Classic Fender bell tones ringing loudly. As far as features, it has enough. I have other amps to do the rest. What it does it does real well.

I play Strats and LPs. My recording partner plugs his Paul Reed Smith CE22 through it alot and the tones are awsome.

Never had a real problem with it. Foot switch works great. No problems here.

I've never had a problem with their CS, but I never really have used it either.

Playing on and off guitar and percussion for almost 50 years. If it were stolen or lost, I would certainly try to find another. I'm sure there are a few out there. I've owned Fender tube amps that didn't sound this good. Tube amps are nice, but a good sounding ss has it's place in the sun too.

This amp was made in 1994. 150 watts solid state amp from the Stage series. My amp is an anniversary model. The Stage 112 SE is extremely powerful and works well with almost any situation. It's a little loud for around the house but at gigs and rehearsal it's perfect. It can compete with a Marshall half stack easily.

This amp is very versatile and suits rock, blues and jazz quite well. At first I wasn't crazy about the distortion channel but I swapped the speaker out for an Eminence Swamp Thang and it has taken a lot of the shrill highs out and gives a nice tone.

It's very reliable. I'd gig without a backup. The only thing that has cut out on me was the footswitch and this only happened recently! All I had to do though was tighten the screws on the sides and now it's perfect again.

Never had to deal with customer support.

I've been playing for 14 years and this is the only amp I've ever owned. No, it's not tube but if you take some time you can dial in a really great sound. I haven't drifted far from it mostly because the volume and tone are amazing. I can gig in any situation and this amp is loud enough. I enjoy not having to carry a cabinet along because everything I need is in this amp.

If you can find one of these on eBay or Craigslist snag it. You won't be disappointed.

Gear used...

Guitars: Fender American Telecaster, Fender '72 Telecaster Custom (re-issue)
Pedals: Boss TU-2, Analogman DS-1, Analogman TR-2, Phase 90, Analogman DD-6,

130 watts, canal limpio excelente, reverb inmaculada, loops de efectos, shift para medios, etc. etc. Este amplificador es una bestia, el cuerpo que tiene el sonido es increible. Suena desde el mas extremo metal hasta las mas sutiles notas de una obra impresionista. El canal de distorsion lo uso solo en caso de emergencia... tene a mano siempre una buena distorsion.

Hasta ahora lo use con una BC Rich Warlock (2 humbuckers) mayormente, aunque tambien lo utilice con Ibanez (no recuerdo el modelo), fender, epiphone, y Squier, guitarras que pasaron por este lugar. Muy versatil, no es ruidoso para nada. Logra sonidos muy refinados, redondos, llenos. El canal limpio no distorsiona a niveles altos, ademas jamas vas a necesitar tocar a mas de 2 en volumen!. La distorsion evadamosla, te salva en casos de emergencia.

Nunca le sucedio nada, fue usado en vivo, a mucho volumen en recitales de metal brutal, y salio ileso.

No se, lo compre usado y jamas tuve que hacerle nada

Este amplificador es sin duda el mejor de los que escuche a transistores, muy comparables a los de valvulas. Unicamente lo cambiaria por otro Fender pero valvular, pero la cuestion por la que no lo hago es por su tremendo sonido (en canal limpio)y porque me olvido de tener que mantenerlo. Esta siempre listo, siempre suena de la misma forma, nunca se desinfla con el mal tiempo.

This has a date of 2/91 on the inside chasis. It is a very loud and clean amp and sounds really good with a Stratocaster, more than a humbucker type guitar. Cheesy-shimmering-clean sounding. This has 2 channels and 2 inputs. One of the inputs is low impedance for those stages with fluorescent lamps, etc. This amp will blow the doors off any other similiar sized amp. It's extremely LOUD. Not too heavy either, but heavy enough to hurt your back maybe ?

The sounds in the amp go from shimmering clean to in-your-face distorted arena rock tones. I add a Boss Metal Zone and Wah and it sounds GREAT. I've also used it for small venues and even with the gain off, it gives you a nice mid-boost type tone.

This is built very durable. It could fall off a stage and still work given the way it's been built. I've been using it for 4 years about 3-4 times each week (between gigs, jams and practice) and I've NEVER had a problem with it.

FMIC is very helpful. Morgan Ringwald is one of the public relations guys and knows how to make things happen. I met him at a NAMM Show.

I've been playing for 22 years and I've used many amps, but this one has been my favorite for it's tone and versatility.

do not know the exact age of the amp.,bought used.i play old and new country,50s&60s,and classic rock.features are the same as everyone elses,etc.etc.etc. the amp has went from back-up to(according to my wife)a life partner.its used for practice and gigging,due to sound,weight and dependability.

i play a roadhouse strat and a pan es-335 jap. copy mostly through the amp.(if you have not heard of,nor played a pan guitar,you gotta read harmony centrals reviews and find one to play)the roadhouse has the wonderful texas specials and the pan,dual humbuckers from?.this amp goes from great to greater for any application of sound

i waited awhile after obtaining the amp. to write a review as i usually do.i,we (everyone i know that plays guitar has been through it)has decided it will not break down,its been discssed soberly and even after our lead guitar player had a few and went in search of the "hidden tubes"we all decided this IS the greatest damn ss amp ever made.....in the u.s.a. you can find the casterated mexican version known as the ultimate chrous but it is nowhere near as versitale and you will know (as will everyone listening) your playing through a ss amp.if you can find one of these buy it.

if you have a lot of time on your hands..... and free long distance on your phone,you may be lucky enough to get a human who can tell you want to hear,or they want to tell you,but most of the time they are busy out buying up other companys,or building manufacturing facilites in other countries.

i have been playing for many years at every level,i collect,play and really enjoy guitars and percussion instruments. i have owned alot of tube amps.(my favorite was my peavey classic 50-410)but..... as i get older carrying gear gets heavier,i would have never imagined getting this sound quality out of a ss amp.and the weight difference,maitaining tubes,biasing,heat issues...fans etc. gone! if it were stolen,i would check my other band members houses,cars and my number one suspect would be.......the lead guitar player.

1990 amp versatile enough for any styles of music..100 watts solid state but if you PLUG another speaker 160 Watts RMS At 4 ohms

best gig amp solid state ............SOUND FANTASTIC

Has the amp ever broken down Nooooooooooooooo I Trust this AMP MORE THAN ANY TUBE AMP THAT I HAVE..................

hummmmmmmmmmmm NOT SO BAD

ALL agree with ((((( Slowhand (literally) at 09/29/2005 11:17 ))))below me .....except the STAGE SE 112 and FENDER STAGE 185 for me are the same quality and the best solid state you CAN BUY FROM FENDER (and used only).......with another Cab IT S 160 WATTS RMS........ONLY BETTER SOUND OF THAT GET A TWIN..( WITH CASTER )......AGAIN WHAT SLOWHAND BELOW ME,HAVE READ I M FULL AGREE WITH HIM....................IF YOU NOT HAPPY WITH THAT GET A TWIN + CASHHHHH + TUBES FOR CHANGE + ROAD CASE ETCCCCC.

Made early 90's. 2 Channels, clean and drive. 100 watts solid state. I play rock, blues and jazz. I use this amp at home and for gigs. Like another review mentioned- a tremelo would have been nice.

I simply love the tone of this amp. Just as nice as any of the tube amps I've since gotten rid of.I play a Fender Strat and a Gibson ES335 and it sounds great with both. The tone is pure Fender. I also tried the drive channel with the drive set to 1, the contour set to 10, the bass to about 7 and the treble at 5, and it really does nail a driven Deluxe Reverb tone-amazing! The clean channel is beautiful, and can get very loud and compresses nicely without sounding "hard" or shrill, as Fender's newer SS amps do.

I read another review here and some guy complained that the amps volume control was too touchy and too loud at low volumes. Gee professor, here's a solution-try the volume knob on your guitar. It's the little round thing with the "V" on it. No matter what amp he uses, no matter where he is, BB King always sets his amps volume on 10 and controls everything else on his guitar. Many pros do this. It allows you to use dynamics (look it up) in your playing. I typically set my guitars volume and tone controls at around 6 or 7, then adjust the amp so that the volume will be the average for the room I'm playing (which has never been higher than 5 on the amp), then control the rest from my guitar. It's amazing what range of tone and volume you have when you play this way- and you can turn down the volume of your guitar and play in the house at night with no problems.

Very solid. Never a problem. I gig with this amp exclusively with no backup (if I had a problem I'd go through the PA).

I've dealt with Fender before and they can be very helpful if you bug them enough (call constantly, send letters and emails to management, etc).

I'm another one of those old timers (53) that's been playing well over 40 years. I believe this amp is Fender's best kept secret. It's a shame they discontinued this line for the far inferior (in my opinion)Dyna Touch line. I've seen these Stage 112SE's in Vegas, on Cruise ships, at outdoor events, almost every venue imaginable. Why? Because they sound great, there light weight, they take a beating and they ALWAYS work! Since buying this I've sold all of my other amps. If lost or stolen I'd buy another immediately- in fact I plan to get one more anyway as a backup. You can always find these on ebay for around $200. The one I got was in MINT condition. Like others who've tried this amp, I never thought I'd go back to Solid State, but I'm here to stay. Really a fantastic amp.

Made in USA 1994. Two channel model.Wish it had tremelo.

I play mainly blues and classic rock. I use a 1996 American Standard Strat and a 2003 Epiphone Riviera. Both guitars sound great through this amp. The clean channel is typical Fender all the way. For blues I use the drive channel with the bass turned all the way up and the drive between 1-3, and can get a Bassman Reissue sound very close to the one I get with my Deville 410. For everything else I use the clean channel with pedals. Here's what I love most about the clean channel on this amp as opposed to newer Fender SS amps. On the new Fender solid states (Dyna Touch), the clean channel never compresses. It just stays clean all the way up- but not a good clean-more like a sharp,shrill, piercing icepick through the brain clean. The Stage 112 has a very subtle, natural crunch as you go up the volume knob. It's a shame Fender no longer uses this same tube emulation circuitry. A guy who works at Fender once told me the employees there felt this series of SS amps were the best they ever made, and I agree. The best solid state amp I have ever owned.

I bought this amp used on ebay around 5 years ago for 180 bucks and have no idea how hard the original owner played it. I bought this as a backup for my Deville 410, but it sounds so good and is so much lighter, it became my main amp for both practice and gigging. I can't remember the last time I even plugged in my Deville. This amp sounds as good if not better than my Deville (which I always thought sounded a little brittle). I've used this amp for literally hundreds of gigs and practices and it has never had a single problem with the exception of one replaced input jack, and that was my fault. Much more reliable than ANY production Fender amp made today. (I have a nightmare story about the 3 Deluxe Reverb Reissues I went through- but I'll save that for another revue). I use it without a backup all the time.

This amp is long out of warranty, but I've had to deal with Fender on other amp issues, and their customer service is absolutely horrid.Period.

I've been playing guitar for over 40 years and needless to say have gone through many, many amps, both tube and solid state, of almost every make including Fender, Marshall, Hiwatt, Sunn, etc. At 50 years old I'm just not into hauling heavy tube stuff around anymore, so I'm back to SS. I mentioned the guitars I use earlier. As for effects, I use a Crybaby Wah, Uni-Vibe, DOD Supra Distortion, Boss FZ-3 Fuzz, and an Ibanez DE-7 Delay/Echo. I bought this amp as a backup but fell in love with it. I love the tone, weight, size , power, and reliability of it. If something happened to it I'd buy another in a minute. Many of my tube snob friends (and I use that term lovingly, as I used to be one)have been amazed at the tone I get through this amp. If you can find one, buy it. You'll be amazed to!

Year: 1994
This amp is very versatile because you can play blues or metal and it will give you the sound you want!
There are two channels on the Stage 112 SE: clean (treble,middle,bass and the very good midshift option) and distortion (treble,middle,bass,gain,contour). This amp has an exceptionnal reverb and the channels are footswitchable

Other features: 2 plugin, preamp, pre out, footswitch, 1/4 line out, headphones and a jack for an external speaker on the back.

Specifications: -160 W RMS (with or without an external speaker??)
-speaker:1 fender instruments 12''
-resistance: 8 ohm
-distortion: transistor

My guitar is an old Ovation 1978. This guitar has a blues sound but the Stage 112 SE helps to give to it a great loud rock sound for Indie Rock! Like I said before, this amp is so versatile that you can play Jazz, Blues, country, punk rock or agressive metal (with good settings) I don't use any effect pedal because I believe that Fender has the greatest transistor distortion effect on Earth. I had a Deluxe Plus 90 watts before (that I kept) and I thought that I would need it to help the Stage 112 SE to have the better sound as possible and it's not necessary at all because it makes the job very well with its two channels (very powerfull and a good sound quality for the price you'll pay for it) But I agree that if I use the two amps, I don't need to put the volume very high(1 for each and I can play with my band without problems!)

I depend on my amp definitely! I'm able to play with my band with the Stage 112 SE very easily but I have the put the volume higher than with two amps (maybe 2 or 2,5). This amp has 10 years and I didn't have problems yet and it did a lot of road. This is a unbreakable amp if you are not too hard with it. Like the others said, I'm sure it would play again even if I threw it in the stairs but I won't try it at all!

I didn't use the customer support because I bought it used.

I have been playing guitar for 6 years and I just bought this very hot but under rated amp. If someone tried to stole my Stage, I would probably use my Deluxe Plus to beat him :P I like the rock sound of this amp, the versatility, the simplicity, the midshift option on the clean, the agressive but well configured distortion and of course, the power of this amp!!! Maybe I would like an overdrive on the distortion to add some possibilities of sound on this amp.

This is an update to an earlier review. I have done a simple modification that swaps out the internal clipping LEDs for germanium diodes. I chose to do this because there was a certain 'icepick' sound to the distortion that I just couldn't dial out. Anyway, anyone tempted to do this mod should heed caution, because there are stray voltages laying around inside the amp chassis, as well as some extremely sharp edges that could pull a Ginsue on your arse if you're not careful.

In the stock configuration I gave this amp an 8, however, after having changed the diodes out to germaniums, it is like a different amp. I always liked the stock distortion sound of the amp, but felt (especially in a live setting) as though there was a high-end, icepick sound (not the typical SS crap either) that is apparent in every LED clipping circuit I've ever heard, spare the Keeley mods which have a lot of high-end filtering to reduce it. Anyay, I had to pair several diodes in series to get the distortion to a reasonably versatile level and tame the compression that happens at high saturation. I ended up with two diodes on one side and three on the other. I think three and four would work fine, as there is tons of gain on hand. Remember that the fewer diodes you use, the more distortion and lower level you'll get. With more, the higher a point at which the diodes clip, and the louder the amp will sound before topping off in saturation land. Now, the amp does a great impersonation of a Bassman on 'roids with the gain set at about 10:30. It cleans up nicely and has a great tube-esque crunch when the volume is full up and you're hitting the strings prety hard. BTW, I play a MIM strat with upgraded PU's and 10-52 strings, so the low end chunk is substantial, to say the least. I think the only thing left to do to this amp is drop an Eminence V12 in place of the stock speaker to round the package out. I'm thinking the pair will go together nicely, as that speaker is known for warming the sound of SS amps. There's plenty of treble on tap in both channels, as I generally set the treble on 3 or less... I'll post again once I've swapped the speakers.

Considering that a person could probably pick one of these models up for peanuts, it can be an invaluable tool in helping a regular guy get good tone consistently and reliably. I think it's a pretty good amp in it's stock configuration, but believe that there's a rock monster laying in wait if one goes to the trouble to beef it up.