factory biased at -10.6 volts,compubias reads about 21 watts,a bit hot for the EL84s,shortens tube life,put a bias pot in,run it at -11.7,down to about 16, better tube life,overdrive to a bluesy growl,not tight & biting.Change coupling and tone caps to orange drops,opens up the tone.Add presence on tail of phase inverter,that brings up the frequencies,At any time you can change your bias to how you want to play."HAVE FUN WITH YOUR TONE".Great guitar work,keep doing your videos!
If I'm not mistaken, the tone controls are backwards because many years ago, the jazz, blues and big band players always had their amps in front of them with the rear of the speaker bringing sound back to them while the front went to the audience, they didn't mic amps much back then.....I may be wrong but watch an old movie with music scenes....
Very nice demo, articulate and thanks for not being afraid to show the settings as it helped me to dial in my amp with some personal adjustment for taste on the reverb and gain. I did mod with a Celestion Gold and new caps/resistors. Sounds fantastic now.
I have one of these amps and They are fantastic, this chap talks of putting a peddle through it , i am into the great Rory Gallagher ( This bloke does a couple of good sessions on Lick Library of Rory) and to get Rorys sound i put a Flynn Amps Classic 0c44 booster through it with a 62 vintage Reissue Strat, its just brilliant.If you have one of these amps and like Rory , try it you wont be disappointed. very informative Demo.
make sure your tube are in all the way. When I got mine a few years back the tubes looked like they were in, but just needed a little push. Took me a few to figure it out. Great little amp, so much fun to just crank it.
I've just bought this amp I must say that this was a good straightforward video overview of exactly what this amp delivers. Compared to my other amps it's like a 'lens' that magnifies the unique tonal qualities of each guitar sound and deliver it ...'pure and simple'! ;-R
Great amp! I've had one for years, and love it. Unless you're playing stadiums, 15 watts is plenty. At home I can't run it past 4 on the pre amp and 2 on the master volume because it's such a loud amp for the size
You can unplug the internal speaker from the jack (it's in the back, hidden by the back panel) and use an external 8-ohm speaker, but there's no jack for an extension to use in addition with the internal one. I played mine into an external 1x15 cab for a while.
Hey there, USA blues jr. were the first two years of production. You can usually be sure it's the U.S. version if it has a hum when you turn up the reverb. This was one of the failings of the original amp. The speaker is the same as the newer version, but the board is different. It has a distinctly darker tone (better IMO) than the newer version. Overall, it is about the same as the Mexican counterpart, just early production.
Good review! The Fat Switch on these amps is the difference maker. I used to have a 4x10 Deville, but it doesn't have it, and after playing one in a music store, if it had I never would've sold it
A 4x10 deville is 60 watts with waaaay more bottom with then you would ever need. Not sure what your talking about. It makes a bjr sound like a fisher price toy in terms of bottom end.
@ToddeeTheTeleMan I have a Line6 Spider IV 75W which it's perfect for that kind of stuff. The 75W is incredibly loud and screaming, you could chose to go for something with less power probably but for your kind of music it's excellent. I use the Line6 for every kind of punk/rock music and the Blues Junior for blues and old style rock.
amps watts are based at what the amp distorts at- a solid state amp doesn't distort in normal use, the distoriton is all a program on it- it's not real distortion, so a 10w solid state will be cranked, at 10w- wheras a tube 10w, will still be clean at 10w- and cranked, may be up to 50w in reality.
I A/B'd the BJ with other fender amps like the deluxe VM, Hot Rod Deluxe, Blues Deluxe, and Hot Rod Deville. It was the best sounding one, and the most practical, since the other ones were FAR too loud for home use.
it's rated 15 watt.s but many people underrate that. 'cause it's all-tubes it's way louder than people think. so for small gigs: yes. and you can always use it if you mic' it :)
@PF1964 at lower volumes yes you can do jazz but if you turn it up too high it will start to break-up, so i wouldn't suggest it for playing jazz live with a drummer
Pro Jr. Sounds way more boxey. The 12" speaker makes a huge difference on the blues Jr. Also, the Fat Switch on the Blues Jr. add a great overdriven bite for blues. Just my opinion though.
Fair but tricky. Active pickups? Studio, probably tweaking the highs to damp the trebble. Small gigs... plenty of volume, if you mic it, perfect for a small club if you play screamming overdrive. Jazz, old Blues, Rockabilly and Chicken picking delight at a low volume, not enough headroom in that range for a club, maybe if you play in a church though or a gym.
@saskekun101 fender blues junior is really great man. i have a fender hot rod deville and it is just too freakn loud for my room but i recently ordered this amp and it is a really easy to use compact amp. one of the smallest tube amps in the market, and that great tube sound too. i definently recommend buying it mate. if you ever need it to be loud then it's best to mic it. that's why the microphone was invented =) cheers mate.
notice at 3:19 he taps the trem bar, my guess is he lightly taps the string with his thumb to "pinch" it, and tap the trem at the same time. thats my best guess.
might be raking muted strings. SVR and Hendrix were good at that. Don't know if that's what you mean though. Other than that... it could just be the way the amp breaks up.
@tomleech92 If you read the comment, youll see that I said 5w tube amps can drive. Not it is a 5w amp. I heard 5wat amps can push a cabinet. Can this 15w amp do that? Some aren't pre wired to push to external speakers.
Hallo Michael. How often do you have to chance the tubes of this amp. Can you play this amp with low volume and get nice bluesy sounds. I don't wanna have trouble with my neighbours. I like the Fender blues junior more than the fender superchamp xd.
Well, in that case, now I'm interested in how a Bargsnard Wampledorf Special with Trampletwiddle pickups through a Blablard Woweezer pedal sounds through a Blues Junior.
Fantastic, i would have loved to have met the man, shook his hand, and just have hoped a fraction of his skill on the guitar would have rubbed off. your a luck chap. :-0)
@ Mitch Wild. Please have the decency to let us reply if you're just going to "bag" something. One man's criticism is neither constructive nor able to be validated
Tube amps sound best when the volume is at least half way up. You don't want to buy something so powerful you can't turn up loud enough to sound good. Tube amps seem to be incedibly loud watt for watt compared to solid state. I would say 15 watts of tube could easily be as loud as 30 watts of solid state.
i got one and i hate it. a loud amp but just okay after replacing the stock eminence speaker to a celestion, replacing a preamp tube to a 12at7 for headroom. the reverb is thin and weird. the highs are brittle and the amp has almost no low end. gotta keep the bass cranked to 12 always. for live gigs it works but for recording its crap, can hear the tubes rattling.
It sounds brilliant but is useable for gigs and able to cut above a drummer? I love it but I'm worried it might lack a little bit of headroom. Does anyone have experience using it live?
Learn Guitar With Charlie It's small, and only one speaker so you'll have a hard time projecting in a venue but it's pretty fucking loud, it'll go over a drum set.
Can you plug this puppy into a cabinet? Id really like to get one, but I want to be able to plug into a 4x12. Iv heard 5w tube amps can drive 4x12's so I figure....
I got one of these to learn on soon found out I can't play so it's going on eBay today so check it out if u want a bargain hardly been used mint condition .
Wow, the number of "kind of's" and "sort of's" that were rattled off here will be tough to beat by aspiring amp demo video producers. Good demo of the amp though!
I had one of these amps, dont know why but i just couldn't get on with it.. its a bit 'vacant' ? like a transister amp and i hated the controls upside down, why fender done that god knows.. its ok if your standing behind the amp but who does that ?
When amps came out the players had the amp in front of them. When they went to adjust the amp the writing was right side up. The down side was the player couldn't hear himself play over the drums, horns, etc. Hence, then god made monitors to push the sound back to the band. Later man.
I just got my Blues Junior home after waiting ages for it to arrive. Unpacked it from the box, plugged it in and .........nothing. Back to the music shop ! Where's the quality control these days ? Very disappointed !
A lot of mids. Kinda harsh clean. Great overdive tones, kinda of reminiscent of a Vox. I have had mine since 2002. I love it. But I like my deluxe reverb much better.
Ryan Lewis, I thought my BJ was great, being a beginner and moving up from a cheap transistor Behringer. Then I played a Princeton and the BJ went bye-bye!
I had the pleasure of meeting the late, great Rory Gallagher...great man, great guitar player!
factory biased at -10.6 volts,compubias reads about 21 watts,a bit hot for the EL84s,shortens tube life,put a bias pot in,run it at -11.7,down to about 16, better tube life,overdrive to a bluesy growl,not tight & biting.Change coupling and tone caps to orange drops,opens up the tone.Add presence on tail of phase inverter,that brings up the frequencies,At any time you can change your bias to how you want to play."HAVE FUN WITH YOUR TONE".Great guitar work,keep doing your videos!
If I'm not mistaken, the tone controls are backwards because many years ago, the jazz, blues and big band players always had their amps in front of them with the rear of the speaker bringing sound back to them while the front went to the audience, they didn't mic amps much back then.....I may be wrong but watch an old movie with music scenes....
Jack Sparrow's reviews are superb, real smart and soulful guy.
Very nice demo, articulate and thanks for not being afraid to show the settings as it helped me to dial in my amp with some personal adjustment for taste on the reverb and gain. I did mod with a Celestion Gold and new caps/resistors. Sounds fantastic now.
I have one of these amps and They are fantastic, this chap talks of putting a peddle through it , i am into the great Rory Gallagher
( This bloke does a couple of good sessions on Lick Library of Rory) and to get Rorys sound i put a Flynn Amps Classic 0c44 booster through it with a 62 vintage Reissue Strat, its just brilliant.If you have one of these amps and like Rory , try it you wont be disappointed.
very informative Demo.
make sure your tube are in all the way. When I got mine a few years back the tubes looked like they were in, but just needed a little push. Took me a few to figure it out. Great little amp, so much fun to just crank it.
I've just bought this amp I must say that this was a good straightforward video overview of exactly what this amp delivers. Compared to my other amps it's like a 'lens' that magnifies the unique tonal qualities of each guitar sound and deliver it ...'pure and simple'! ;-R
Michael has such a cool distinct sound!
Great amp! I've had one for years, and love it. Unless you're playing stadiums, 15 watts is plenty. At home I can't run it past 4 on the pre amp and 2 on the master volume because it's such a loud amp for the size
With mallards it totally kicks ass unbelievable tone and distortion
You can unplug the internal speaker from the jack (it's in the back, hidden by the back panel) and use an external 8-ohm speaker, but there's no jack for an extension to use in addition with the internal one. I played mine into an external 1x15 cab for a while.
@Aerosmitty77 theres no direct output / input but u can obviously mic it
Hey there,
USA blues jr. were the first two years of production. You can usually be sure it's the U.S. version if it has a hum when you turn up the reverb. This was one of the failings of the original amp. The speaker is the same as the newer version, but the board is different. It has a distinctly darker tone (better IMO) than the newer version. Overall, it is about the same as the Mexican counterpart, just early production.
It doesn't come with one, but you can use one to actuate the FAT switch. The jack for it is behind the rear panel, right next to the speaker jack.
Good review! The Fat Switch on these amps is the difference maker. I used to have a 4x10 Deville, but it doesn't have it, and after playing one in a music store, if it had I never would've sold it
A 4x10 deville is 60 watts with waaaay more bottom with then you would ever need.
Not sure what your talking about.
It makes a bjr sound like a fisher price toy in terms of bottom end.
great video made me go out and buy one . your videos are well made and full with info keep up the good work
Your noodle-ing is more musical and compelling than most. Nice.
Depends on music style and if you still have factory speaker... I installed a mod kit and an eminence texas heat and its loud enough for bluesy rock
@ToddeeTheTeleMan I have a Line6 Spider IV 75W which it's perfect for that kind of stuff. The 75W is incredibly loud and screaming, you could chose to go for something with less power probably but for your kind of music it's excellent. I use the Line6 for every kind of punk/rock music and the Blues Junior for blues and old style rock.
amps watts are based at what the amp distorts at- a solid state amp doesn't distort in normal use, the distoriton is all a program on it- it's not real distortion, so a 10w solid state will be cranked, at 10w- wheras a tube 10w, will still be clean at 10w- and cranked, may be up to 50w in reality.
@biekanez1 you should change the tubes every 6-8 months, and it has a master volume so you can overdrive it at low volumes.
This dude is so chill
I A/B'd the BJ with other fender amps like the deluxe VM, Hot Rod Deluxe, Blues Deluxe, and Hot Rod Deville.
It was the best sounding one, and the most practical, since the other ones were FAR too loud for home use.
it's rated 15 watt.s but many people underrate that. 'cause it's all-tubes it's way louder than people think. so for small gigs: yes. and you can always use it if you mic' it :)
Nice video's as allways. I do have a question for you. Why don't I ever see les pauls used when fender amps are demo'd? Thanks.
@PF1964 at lower volumes yes you can do jazz but if you turn it up too high it will start to break-up, so i wouldn't suggest it for playing jazz live with a drummer
I just got one; it was on sale. I am planning on putting a Jensen P12R, C12N or an Eminence Cannabis Rex in my Blues Junior III.
When I bought my BJr, it replaced a 65-watt solid-state amp (Fender Princeton 65 DSP). Volume output levels between the two were about the same.
Pro Jr. Sounds way more boxey. The 12" speaker makes a huge difference on the blues Jr. Also, the Fat Switch on the Blues Jr. add a great overdriven bite for blues. Just my opinion though.
Man i love the playing! Ala Jeff Beck. Love this amp, might get the hot rod deluxe!
Fair but tricky. Active pickups? Studio, probably tweaking the highs to damp the trebble. Small gigs... plenty of volume, if you mic it, perfect for a small club if you play screamming overdrive. Jazz, old Blues, Rockabilly and Chicken picking delight at a low volume, not enough headroom in that range for a club, maybe if you play in a church though or a gym.
Thank you for your time and great info! Very informative as I am looking for an amp and love Fender.
@saskekun101 fender blues junior is really great man. i have a fender hot rod deville and it is just too freakn loud for my room but i recently ordered this amp and it is a really easy to use compact amp. one of the smallest tube amps in the market, and that great tube sound too. i definently recommend buying it mate. if you ever need it to be loud then it's best to mic it. that's why the microphone was invented =) cheers mate.
notice at 3:19 he taps the trem bar, my guess is he lightly taps the string with his thumb to "pinch" it, and tap the trem at the same time.
thats my best guess.
Thanks!! I will definitely check that out!
# tip for Blues Junior buying guide.. buy a used, mint, original unmodded USA model.. ie..where it doesnt say "made in mexico".. an appreciating asset
There's a Bagsnard on Craigslist; don't know about the pickups, but they're easy enough to find.
might be raking muted strings. SVR and Hendrix were good at that. Don't know if that's what you mean though. Other than that... it could just be the way the amp breaks up.
Would this amp be loud enough to sound over a drum set and singer in a small basement?
It depends how loud the drummer and singer is
@tomleech92 If you read the comment, youll see that I said 5w tube amps can drive. Not it is a 5w amp. I heard 5wat amps can push a cabinet. Can this 15w amp do that? Some aren't pre wired to push to external speakers.
@Carlovfx Oh yup sweet as thanks man
Hallo Michael.
How often do you have to chance the tubes of this amp. Can you play this amp with low volume and get nice bluesy sounds. I don't wanna have trouble with my neighbours. I like the Fender blues junior more than the fender superchamp xd.
Some great advice in this vid, really enjoyed, Thanks
Lovley playing, and tone, inspired by Guthrie Govan at all??
great demo
Friends do not mistake you ... the hands of the artist are quite
great reverb from fenders, i never need it to go past 3 though
@Account091027 I prefer Fender's take on the Triple Rectifier tone.
Compared to other 15 watt amps, this one is really loud since it's tube power pushes the output. For a jam, you won't need a mic.
it's an aww chewb amp!
thanks for the video!
Well, in that case, now I'm interested in how a Bargsnard Wampledorf Special with Trampletwiddle pickups through a Blablard Woweezer pedal sounds through a Blues Junior.
Are all 5 Groove tubes?
Fantastic, i would have loved to have met the man, shook his hand, and just have hoped a fraction of his skill on the guitar would have rubbed off. your a luck chap. :-0)
@ Mitch Wild. Please have the decency to let us reply if you're just going to "bag" something. One man's criticism is neither constructive nor able to be validated
@ToddeeTheTeleMan you are welcome :)
By the way I am about to buy a Brand New Mexican Blues Junior for $550 - $600 U.S. dlls, is this a good deal?
This is much more larger and louder than what it may look on this video. It's good enough for stadium gigs, when it has a PA with it. Seriously.
Tube amps sound best when the volume is at least half way up. You don't want to buy something so powerful you can't turn up loud enough to sound good. Tube amps seem to be incedibly loud watt for watt compared to solid state. I would say 15 watts of tube could easily be as loud as 30 watts of solid state.
Does the sound stay clean with playin with drums?
Is the Blues jr iii good for more jazzy sounds?
i got one and i hate it. a loud amp but just okay after replacing the stock eminence speaker to a celestion, replacing a preamp tube to a 12at7 for headroom. the reverb is thin and weird. the highs are brittle and the amp has almost no low end. gotta keep the bass cranked to 12 always. for live gigs it works but for recording its crap, can hear the tubes rattling.
I have that same shirt!
How does he get his guitar to sound all gargly like that?
Holy crap that fat switch does ALOT to the sound!!! .......Well I'm sold.....
@Account091027 arent fender older than peavey
peaveys gets fender sound not the other way around
Love the jeff beck playing. But, I already have the amp
Can this amp do alt/punk rock? like Foo Fighters, or Green Day. Or would i need to use my DS-1?
It sounds brilliant but is useable for gigs and able to cut above a drummer? I love it but I'm worried it might lack a little bit of headroom. Does anyone have experience using it live?
Learn Guitar With Charlie It's small, and only one speaker so you'll have a hard time projecting in a venue but it's pretty fucking loud, it'll go over a drum set.
But is it loud enough to jam with non mic'd? Thanks so much
@tomleech92 It sure is....but what do you mean by that?
@Account091027 fender were established way before peavey.
this guy was my teacher for a year at music college. very good player but wasn't very popular with students
Can you plug this puppy into a cabinet? Id really like to get one, but I want to be able to plug into a 4x12. Iv heard 5w tube amps can drive 4x12's so I figure....
can you hook up an external cab to this thing
@Jst0911 ok thanks man. you got any suggestions of other amps i could use? i play a tele btw :)
I just bought one and wonder how much buzz should I hear from the amp?
Blues Junior or Hotroad?
I got one of these to learn on soon found out I can't play so it's going on eBay today so check it out if u want a bargain hardly been used mint condition .
You know you're not good at it because you haven't had time to practice, right? lol
oh i had plenty of time to practice but if im not really good at something i dont see the point in keeping it up.
Paul Roadz Well, I didn't become "good" until after 2 years of playing. Musical instruments take time, and it all depends on the person playing.
Can this amp do alt/punk rock? like Foo Fighters, Green Day kind-of tone?
Fender Blues Jr. Vs Fender Pro Jr.???
Wow, the number of "kind of's" and "sort of's" that were rattled off here will be tough to beat by aspiring amp demo video producers.
Good demo of the amp though!
would this be louder than drums?
Does it matter if I don't run a fender guitar through a fender amp?
yes it will explode
+bob hamburg hahahaha
+bob hamburg omigorf lololololololz
does it come with a footswitch?
noel gallagher uses this live even on the big arena gigs
I certainly hope this dude still has his long locks after all this time! Believe me the chicks love it!
B435393 serial # is what year? DOes anyone know?
this one or hot rod deluxe ?
When somebody does a demo, why don't they use a guitar somebody else has?
i think that guitar helps a lot.
I had one of these amps, dont know why but i just couldn't get on with it.. its a bit 'vacant' ? like a transister amp and
i hated the controls upside down, why fender done that god knows.. its ok if your standing behind the amp but who does that ?
My blues junior don't sound nothing like that what volume master or what volume??????
+Jeff Hartmann My thoughts exactly and I'm using a humbucker - Seymour Duncan PAFs -59s
He could be using guitar pedals which will alter the sound
I wish he'd let us in on the secret then
+Jeff Hartmann Actually, I rewinded to beginning and the vol is on full and the master is on two - bass is at 5 oclock.
He's using different pickups than you probably
When amps came out the players had the amp in front of them. When they went to adjust the amp the writing was right side up. The down side was the player couldn't hear himself play over the drums, horns, etc. Hence, then god made monitors to push the sound back to the band. Later man.
@sgbigsby1989 yeah thanks, though i allready know that
rip mike
I just got my Blues Junior home after waiting ages for it to arrive. Unpacked it from the box, plugged it in and .........nothing. Back to the music shop ! Where's the quality control these days ? Very disappointed !
A lot of mids. Kinda harsh clean. Great overdive tones, kinda of reminiscent of a Vox.
I have had mine since 2002.
I love it. But I like my deluxe reverb much better.
Ryan Lewis, I thought my BJ was great, being a beginner and moving up from a cheap transistor Behringer. Then I played a Princeton and the BJ went bye-bye!
This guy plays with active pick-ups. That is the secret why it sounds different, more powerfull.
As a rule, I give RUclips review videos about 1.30secs to convince me of anything. I gave this guy 1:39secs, stopped the video, wrote this and....