Product: Johnson Blueline 30R 1-10 combo
Price Paid: USD 149.95
Submitted
04/23/2008
at
12:51pm
by
Edward Sousa
Email: esousa<at>sbcglobal dot net
Features
:
8
The Johnson Blueline 30R is fairly large for a 30 watt rms 1-10" combo.The dimensions are 20" w x 11" d x 16.5" t,and it weighs in at 30 lbs.Also,the MDF cabinet also wedges in an inch or two from back to front,giving it a rather unique look.The control panel is on the top/back and angled forward for convenience,I guess.The pilot light is a cool blue and the jacks,knobs and pots look and feel of good quality for this amp's class.A nice surprise was the inclusion a modest slip/dust cover at no extra charge.In my opinion,a speaker out jack would have been a nice addition.
The top mounted control panel features a channel footswitch jack,a series effects loop,line out,reverb,presence,bass,mid,treble,volume/gain [overdrive mode],channel switch button,volume/gain [clean mode],and high/low input jacks.The speaker is an Alphatone 10",rated to handle 30 watts.
Sound Quality
:
8
The Blueline 30R is capable of some serious volume for a small solid state combo.Even though the stock Alphatone speaker features a fairly small magnet structure,it is capable of some rather deep bass response and overall solid tonal response.In my opinion,the amp sounds much better with both the presence and treble turned way down.In fact,I like both controls to be set at close to 0,with the bass and mids set to around noon...especially on the rather aggressively voiced overdrive mode.
The high gain channel can give up a good amount of metal type distortion,though tweaking the EQ [especially the presence and treble] and backing off the gain can get it into solid classic rock and grinding blues tone territory.
I feel that the clean side is the star of this show.The tones can go from nice and sparkling to fat and warm,with a tweak of the EQ and adjusting the gain to taste.Also,with the clean mode's gain cranked,the amp can give up some convincing Texas blues and classic rock tones.The combo also takes to overdrive and distortion pedals quite well.
The reverb is overall pretty good and can get rather deep,though a little tends to go a long way.Meanwhile,the series effects loop works very well with both my Boss DD-20 and Onerr DGD-1 delay pedals.And as I stated before,the 30R can get quite loud.I give the sound quality rating a solid 8 for it's intended class in the small solid state amp market.
Reliability
:
No Opinion
The Blueline 30R seems well built and feels sturdy.Plus it comes with a 5 year warranty to the original owner.But really,who knows?
Customer Support
:
No Opinion
Never had to deal with the Johnson people.
Overall Rating
:
8
The Johnson Blueline 30R offers a lot of amp for the money,and a rather versatile one,at that.While it's solid for it's class clean and overdrive tones will probably not have you putting your prized Bogner on Craig's List anytime soon,it does have much to offer for a small combo that can be had for well under $200.00.
Other gear I own include several nice tube amps [Mesa/Boogie,Bedrock,Crate,etc...] and sweet American built guitars [Hamer,Fender and Washburn].Btw,I've been playing blues,classic rock and old school metal for well over 30 years now,and I am still on the lookout for anything new [or old] to add to my tone arsenal.Thanks for taking the time to read my humble amp review...Peace!
