Hi everyone thanks for all the great comments! Check them out online here Check out the Artist TweedTone20R here: Artist TweedTone 20R - snp.link/5a1d93b4 (affiliate links supports the channel) ✅
I just picked up a used Tweedtone 20r in northern CA USA after watching this demo a few times over the last 6 months and trying to decide if I should buy one when i saw one used locally on Reverb. I'm a live music fanatic, but home player only. This amp should be totally capable of playing live with a drummer as Shane demo'd in another video. For my tonal comparison frame of reference, I have owned a Blues Jr NOS (tweed BJ III) and currently own a Blues Jr IV with Celestion A Type speaker, a Fender Tone Master Deluxe Reverb, a '79 Silver Face Vibro Champ, a Peavey Classic 20MH, a Tone King Imperial MK1 and Tone King Falcon Grande. Here's my take on the Artist Tweedtone 20R's tone after 1 week home playing using both a Fender Ash body maple board Strat (USA 57 RI) and a Vintage Brand LP clone with Bare Knuckle Mule A4 humbuckers: First impressions: Clean channel tones remind me of a cross between Vox and Tweed. Blackface is here also, but the other 2 are dominant to me. There is to me enough headroom to play small gigs clean. I also tried a few overdrive pedals and the amp's clean channel takes pedals very well, as well as my Blues Jr, which LOVES them. All controls very useful and the digital reverb sounds better than some reverbs I have heard, but not as wet as a spring reverb. I tried the dirty channel and messed with the controls, but I have not yet bonded with the dirty channel. It gets quite dark, a bit too much gain, and I need to spend more time with it. I did just try it again today with my controls for the dirty channel like Shane shows above - Crank the MV to full blast to give you the most head room, then use the drive channel gain control for breakup and the drive channel volume as the Master Volume. This works better, but I still prefer the dirty tones I get with an OD pedal pushing the clean channel than the drive channel on its own. Besides blues and southern rock I'm also a die hard AC/DC fan and find myself playing my other higher gain amps with those licks, so I'm not shy of gain, but the Tweedtone Dirty channel on its own just isn't doing it for me tone-wise. The Clean Channel is pretty glorious and I love the slightly past edge of breakup tones I was getting for some southern rock style stuff (Black Crowes, Blackberry Smoke), both with and without pedals. This amp sounds more open with more highs to me than my Blues Jr or Tonemaster Deluxe Reverb. This is probably due as much to the overall circuit as it is to the slightly larger cab size than the blues Jr as well as the different speaker. It really reminds me of a beefier sounding current release Vox AC10R combo (hence the tweed leaning tones too). This amp does have bottom end, but to me it's not as much bottom end as a Blues Jr NOS or IV. It does have as much or more bottom end as a Deluxe. It can get pretty loud, but even fully maxed, it did not feel too loud for my 8"x12" practice room, but I typically practice only when everyone else in the house is gone so I can turn it up. My point being, my ears weren't ringing that bad at full volume. The amp can get quieter also, but behaves much like the blues jr in that it sounds best with the Master Volume at 12 O'clock or higher (preferably 2 O'clock to 3 O'clock works really well) with the Clean Channel volume up starting at 8 O'clock as needed to taste as opposed to running the clean volume high and the master volume low. I like just about all the tones I'm getting out of the clean channel. Time will tell if I keep this or offload it since I still love my Blues Jr IV with A type speaker for those punchy overdriven blues tones. I don't know if I would call the Artist Tweedtone 20R a blues Jr killer - it definitely sounds more open, but since i like the somewhat punchier nature of the blues jr IV I will hold onto both for now since they offer different tones. The Tweedtone does feel better playing for light handed stuff since it's a bit brighter and more open. I'm not finding that the Tweedtone 20R is that much (if any) louder than my Blues Jr IV (15W). I haven't measured db, but they seem about the same to me. Maybe the punchier bass in the Blues Jr makes it FEEL as loud? You know what they say that Watts is not a good representation of volume (volume is a log scale and it also depends on the circuit), but sometimes an increase of 5-10W can also just mean an increase in headroom but same overall volume. I also am finding that I'm getting tweed flavor tones that I haven't found in the Blues Jr IV. I was hoping I would get this and then offload one or the other, but I might keep both! I think I'll try running the Blues jr into the Tweedtone cab/speaker and see what happens. One last thing - this amp is slightly larger than the blues jr, but still fairly small and lighter weight. In some videos I thought it was WAY bigger than a blues jr, but not by much, it's just right really. Thanks again to Shane for turning me onto this amp!
I wanted to reduce the overall gain in the pre-amp so I replaced the 12AX7 at V2 (the middle one of the three smaller valves) with a 12AY7 (about 45% the gain of the 12AX7) and it worked a treat! The amp now has a more controllable gain range on both channels with no apparent volume loss. Great little amp!
I am long time subscriber. Each and every video is awesome, informative and entertaining. Video quality and production through the roof. Congrats Shane, this is hard work and you deserve much more views and subs!
Thanks so much man! I appreciate the feedback and I would have assumed the channel would be bigger than it is, but I am not complaining either way. Thanks for the support and if you can help share the channel or videos around with any guitar friends you might have! Cheers mate.
@@intheblues I am sure it will be bigger. Your hard work will pay off. You are in the top 5 best guitar oriented channels on RUclips. And what is even greater achievement, your channel is done just by you. I admire you for that. Cheers!
Wow!! This has to be the Swiss Army knife of amplifiers!!! It sounds great in so many genres of music and at a great price point!!!! The opening jam (which is amazing, great job!) shows the versatility of sounds with different guitars!!! Thanks for sharing another affordable option that sounds great!!! Cheers!🎸🎸🎸🤙🏾🤙🏾
I bought this amp last year and it's so versatile. I use it for gigs and it's plenty loud enough.. the tone is nice and blues dirty even on the clean Chanel.. I compared it with the Blues jr IV and it had a lot more bang for half the price! 🎸
I've been looking at purchasing this particular amp for over a year now, just as a back up amp , i have played it a few times at Artist showroom, couldn't find anything wrong with it, its great sounding amp at a very reasonable price, your video just confirms that i should go down there and purchase the bloody thing!! thanks Shano
Thanks for the excellent high quality demo Shane. I bought one s/hand with replacement valves and am delighted with the tones. I traded in a 40 Year old solid state Peavey Studio Pro 50 + a Kustom 100w amp (which is too heavy now to lug around) and only wish I’d done the trade earlier. Interesting that I’ve gone through acquiring a pedal board of stomp boxes (don't we all!) to achieve a sound that the Artist can produce without any effects. My new mantra is ’minimalism wins’. I highly recommend this Artist Tweed amp too.
Hey David, mine arrived yesterday and I hope you can help with this ... I thought after watching Shane's great review but I'm finding that with the Master Volume all the way off I'm still hearing quite loud sounds coming out, for example with the MV at 0 and the Clean 1 o'clock I'm hearing my guitar. I'm new to all this but must have misunderstood Shane @ 2:30 ?
Bought one of these last year on a whim. Tested a blues Jr but the artist was simply much better regardless of price. Played around with different tubes as well as the ehx work really well in my vox ac10. Have a set of Mullards in the artist and it's fantastic. Nice review Shane !!!
Strong Competition for the Blues Jr. the tone was excellent, the looks are classic, great value and you gotta love what it offers, 20 w, 2 channels, quality amp.
Just bought one of these 20Rs. $650 delivered. JJ tubes already in there. Clean channel is awesome. So loud and still clean. Not too bright. Digital reverb is nice. Gain button is basically gain pedal components wired in, from what I've read. The gain sound is fairly uninspiring and I've got pedals that can do better for my sound. Good buy, all up, I think.
Nice amp. I hope the brand does well. The 12 inch speaker puts it on my radar. A 12 inch speaker just easily makes the sounds I like. While I do like the smooth tones from a 6L6 based amp, the 6BQ5 output tubes always have that punch and bite.
SHANE! That intro was KILLER! Some of your best playing in my opinion. Man, you really blew me away. Nice job! On to the amp, I love it! My biggest beef was the one channel, but then this amp adds a master volume?! I'm sold brother.
Hey Shane! I finally got to order one of these amps here in the States! I can’t wait to try it! Thanks for the review, I’d love to see a comparison vid with the Blue Junior.
That's so cool that you have the poster from the Tommy Castro show at Tivoli in Denver. I was at that show and I'm on the Blue Star committee. This year we have Walter Trout! I'll send you a poster if you want one -Ike
Shane, you look like you're thoroughly enjoying yourself here. Isn't it great when they send you something that ticks all the boxes so well that you can't stop playing it? I don't think that amp has a bad tone in it whatsoever! Good enjoyable demo and terrific Bluesy playing too. That ticks my boxes all round! 🙂
These amps are amazing. I have only owned a mesa son of boogie and a Vox ac30 before I bought this and this sounds better ,is more versatile and is just easier to use than both of them. Your demo's helped me to get one. I already bought the 5 watt which is also great but very simple but I needed to know if this amp would be loud enough for a gig and you proved that just fine. I did have a problem with this amp either going down in volume or surging in volume but this only happened when I played it at around the master volume setting 1. If played at 1.5 or above then the volume is consistent the whole time. I almost had it returned cos of that problem but that same thing used to happen with the AC30 on very low volume as well...it has something to do with low volume. these amps are the best of the best in my opinion!
Great Vid Shane. This Amp is a little Ripper. I bought one last year as an inexpensive back up when My Vox AC15 was being repaired and I was blown away. The only change I made was swapping out the speaker for a 75watt Lorantz Greenback clone(thanks to another vid of Yours) and the result is a totally Awesome Amp at a crazy low price👌👍
@@intheblues Yes indeedy. Although I love My Vox AC15HW1X. This little Artist cost 1/3 the price(including the Lorantz upgrade) and has plenty of tonal variation with the clean and drive channels and also the reverb. It is really compact and much easier to lug around.
I agree the amp is amazing for the price. I bought a 'customer return' which did not work. The fault was a blown fuse in the heater supply. This was most probably caused by the power led connection tags shorting on the big capacitor on the pcb. Easily fixed and insulated. Measuring the DC resistance of the output transformer showed asymmetry which will mean one EL84 will work harder than the other, and make measuring the bias a might difficult. So not perfection, but still amazing (for the price).
Hadn't heard of the brand until seeing it on your channel, the amp looks great, couldn't find it on the UK website, but I did find a TC 59 guitar on there, with a great spec sheet for about £200, got to be worth a look!
I love the sound of the amp & your playing is great, as always. I personally don't ever consider any amp a "pedal platform amp" if it doesn't have a fx loop on it. Blues On.... PS Thanks for a great review Shane.
My Vox AC15 crapped itself (again) at church last Sunday, keeps blowing fuses and making interesting noises so I bought this Artist amp after seeing your facial expressions on how good it sounds and also those of Brett Kingman. I am not disappointed, what a find, this Artist amp sounds great and the first thing that came out of my mouth after playing a few chords was, "wow!" - and without breaking the bank. Just hope it lasts longer than my AC15 did. I think it has a kind of British sounding flavour, perhaps that's why when cranking the gain gives you more gain/overdrive than in a Fender tweed amp??
It sure is nice to have you doing review of things like this. Nice to see how brands sound that not everyone and their mother has already done. Amp sounds great! If I didn't have a Blues jr I'd buy this over the Jr every day of the week. but... if anyone wants to trade me I'd gladly take this Artist Tweed amp over my Plain old Fender Blues Jr!
Ok, just picked one of these used, but still smelled new. The owner had a handmade Z11 silicon transformer upgrade at 2x the output of the stock tf. So, take that into consideration. This amp is steller. However, the overdrive channel isnt to my taste. I bought a footswitch and could never get 'the sound' from the overdrive channel I was looking for. Being primarily a singer I wanted to leave the guitar pots wide open and just stomp the pedal for clean/dirty. Just don't have time for fiddley bits. But, the only way I can get 'the sound' is to overdive the clean channel and work the volume pot. Once I resigned myself to that it's just a matter of timing and coordination. Today was a breakthrough. Have the tone wide open and just work the volume pot. It's tricky to go back and forth between vocals/rhythm and soloing, but I'm getting a little better every day. This amp is inspiring. Though it would be a solid amp for classic country and rock its home is firmly in the blues. For the money there's nothing that can touch it.
I pre ordered mine from the USA site (I live in Southern California) in February. Original ETA was June 20, today. Last week I emailed them and they said it’s coming next month instead. It’s been a long wait, but I guess I can wait a few weeks longer. I’ll keep you posted.
Looks like a great amp! I liked the tones you pulled out of it for sure. Can't say I've heard of Artist, nor seen them around Canada, but we tend to miss out on a lot over here. good stuff!
Wow sustain city! Absolutely fantastic seeing a salesman who loves what he selling. And either way, I always enjoy seeing a musician enjoying themselves. It's great. That midtone, is so well balanced. Have you happen to try it through a larger cabinet or something. I've got q DLS Echotap, incredibly ambient. Definitely nothing wrong with digital reverb. I love running q boost after the Echotap. To increase the Echoes. That's fun. I mean look at Strymon. Own a Klon, if only. Lol. Definitely nothing wrong with ehx valves Cheers
Amp sounds Great Shane. Like I think it’s already been said they’re about $100 less here in the States and the 1 buttonFootswitch is about $30 extra. They also don’t make a Cover for the Amp. I called them because they do have a US Website but the Amp wasn’t listed. I was told they’re expecting a shipment of more stock including the Amp but have no idea when that might be? They won’t ship direct due to the high shipping costs to the US. Nice Amp though, I really like the dual Channels!! I’d also really to see the comparison with a Tweed Blues Jr. I have the Fender Tweed and I think it’s got a really Good sound. I use a Boss BD-2 or Tube Screamer in front for Dirt. Nice job Shane! Please keep up the Good Work! Cheers!!
Fun mix at the beginning of the video man! Never owned a Blues Jr. because I couldn’t justify the cost (and Peavey’s are so affordable haha). Even used ones at pawn shops are pretty pricey, but this one definitely has me thinking hmmmm..... 🤔🤙🏻🎸
I just bought a used Peavey Valveking v2 50 watt combo used for 178 plus tax. It sounds so good im thinking of unloading all my solid state and modeler amps.
Hey man! Very good demo and information! Quite awhile ago I had a Blues Jr. First, I didn’t like the way it sounded, but a friend who is a true, highly skilled musician came over, and he twisted some knobs and that with his skill made it sound amazing. But to sound like that was too loud, and things like the range of the volume pots, and not having any pedals to help the amp meant I still didn’t enjoy it. The amp in this video sounds awesome at all the settings you used, and that’s great! I could listen to you play all day! I disagree about cost of Fender amps being too much, but do agree about the Blues Jr model. But now, years later and with experience I bought a Princeton RI, and the sound is the true sound that made them so loved. The amp is great looking, solid in quality, sounds like a fender should with great reverb and wide ranging vibrato. I am just fine with its cost. Shane you sound great with any gear!
I bought one of these from Artist Guitars $599, best amp for money ever. I play higher volume and 1/3 gain, love that fat warm vintage sound I get, I do use a V30 though, but the 70/80 is fine.
Nice vid compliments.The Belcat connection is obvious...I've got a 25watt solid state of about 6 years ago and it's got the same tweed,lettering (font)and channel switching.It's my one man band amp.Good choice by Artist industry.Btw Belcat made a BJ clone @ half price released in UK a few years back but got dead-ended due to obvious patent infringement.But I'm glad they've come back fighting $$$$
The Marshal 20W Origin (supposedly Plexi like) sounds pretty good on its own, but listen to it back to back up against the new 20W Marshall Studio Vintage (baby Plexi), well the Origin gets left behind. Would be good to do a back to back comparison with the Blues Jr so we can hear the tonal differences, not just volume/channel wise. Other than that, this little amp sounds awesome. Thks for the demo.
I've played both and agree with your assessment but as with the conclusions in this video one big factor is the $. The Origin is less than half the price of the SV.
Really like the artist brand gear. I have a solid top acoustic guitar from them and absolutely love it. This amp is my next purchase. Thanks for the review, excellent as always.
I'm thinking seriously about getting one of these but I'm a home player and won't play at higher volume. How does this amp perform at the lower volume range? Am I better off with a SS/modelling amp for home use? I really want the warmer tones I understand tube/valve amps have to offer. Thanks.
For a home player who never gigs or jams I'd say a 20w tube amp is overkill and you wouldn't get the best sounds at low volume. Maybe look at a smaller tube amp around 4 or 5 watts. The Laney Cub amps are great and the Cub 12R is 15w but it has a switch to let you run it at reduced power while retaining much of the cranked tone. The Vox AC4 models are also quite nice. At lower volumes some of the solid state amps sound surprisingly good. Orange's CR35rt, for example.
Awesomely super video ...... as usual ...... you very well just sold me on that amp . It is real nice . Great jam there too , bro well done with those nice guitars . Cant get better than this .
Damn, I seriously considered one of these. But I got the tweed Blues Jnr instead. Still, it's a totally decent amp, especially with a Cannabis Rex speaker. Artist keep on kicking goals!
Hey Shane. Dam! I love your video demos. They are much better than Artist guitars ever do. Yeah, they have three different guitars, but, they play the same bloody riff over and over. My God! That gets really annoying. I've decided to purchase this amp nonetheless upon viewing your video. Thank mate much appreciated. Gary from Tasmania.
Let"s wait and see if they could hold-up like the Fender BJ.... The USA site for Artist doesn't even have it listed yet... I like the sound 4 sure but don't want to get taken again like myself and MANY others that bought the Egnater Tweaker series.... You didn't mention what country is making it or did I miss it ? Inexpensive usually means cheap components that don't hold up.
It’s built well. There’s plenty of photos of the inside of the head online. It’s built in China using EHX tubes (quality ones) and comes with a decent speaker. I’ll give it a few thrashings live and see how it goes.
I love that amp I had a hot rod deville and it sounds much better than that actually I have a katana 100 amp and it sounds really Krispy clean all right thanks a lot for your videos
great review shane,,i often wondered how theses amps sounded ,until now i couldnt find a decent review,,i might have bought one sooner ,but got a little blackstar artisan10 just recently(which i am very happy with) and if this post had been up earlier i might have got this one as it sounds great,,especially with the grungemaster ,,,glad this one fired up lol
Hi Shane, thanks for demo. At that price, it's very good tones, from clean to drive. Larger cabinet is a plus for the tones, especially if made from good rigid woods. Wander where they are built, and whether there are Harley Benton equivalent ? About speaker, I had that seventy80 in an Ibanez TSA15H that I disliked at all, too boomy, but here it sounds pretty good. I replaced it with a Celestion G12H and got the highs and more balanced frequencies I wanted. As the name says it seventy80 is modern hard rock tones focussed. Edit: this Artist amp seems like a Bugera V22 at €289
Digging the film strip guitar strap. That’s awesome. Also, that Chelee sounds almost as good as the Royal Flush but could be just that combination of the pedal and amp.
FINALLY... a product with a great manufacturer's warranty and return policy being reviewed. This company has a chance at my wallet unlike the grab and run types.
Great video! Unfortunately they don't have these amps listed on the USA site right now....and a lot of stuff is sold out. I'll keep checking though The amp sounds good and one of those P90 guitars fills a need. Gotta love budget gear! Thanks Shane!!! : )
Between this, and a few of your other reviews, you sold me on this amp. However I cannot get it to sound anywhere near as good as you have(probably me). Is there any presets you can recommend? I'm finding the tone changes as I up the master volume for a live show, then end up with ice picking. Did you or anyone else reading this end up changing speakers? Tia
Great amp. Wonder what it would sound like w/ a Swamp Thang in it? Also at the higher volume of the vid there is some fizz, are you hearing the same in the room w/ this amp or is it perhaps clipping on the recording? Thanks!
Many thanks Shane for all your very informative independent reviews. I am seriously contemplating buying this amp but could you please tell me, in your opinion, is there enough clean headroom to play gigs and jam with maybe a loud drummer with no microphones. Many thanks Garry in UK.
It would be interesting to swap out the speaker with something more American sounding - like a Jenson or eminence swamp thing. Not that the 70/80 sounded bad but I'm sure it will distort when the amps cranked. It's definitely is on the wish list for me.
Sounds killer and at $500AUS, sounds like a killer deal too. I'm guessing they won't be coming to the US since taxes and shipping will probably make it cost as much or higher than a Blues Jr.
Has anyone tried an Eminence GA-SC 64 40 Watt Speaker as an upgrade in the TweedTone 20R yet? Or is the consensus that the Lorantz Greenback 75 watt is a better choice?
I took a look at that white Jazz Master on the Artist website, and the guitar is cute, despite the toilet seat inlays on the fingerboard, but what the fug is "eco-rosewood"?
Hi everyone thanks for all the great comments! Check them out online here Check out the Artist TweedTone20R here:
Artist TweedTone 20R - snp.link/5a1d93b4
(affiliate links supports the channel) ✅
I just picked up a used Tweedtone 20r in northern CA USA after watching this demo a few times over the last 6 months and trying to decide if I should buy one when i saw one used locally on Reverb. I'm a live music fanatic, but home player only. This amp should be totally capable of playing live with a drummer as Shane demo'd in another video.
For my tonal comparison frame of reference, I have owned a Blues Jr NOS (tweed BJ III) and currently own a Blues Jr IV with Celestion A Type speaker, a Fender Tone Master Deluxe Reverb, a '79 Silver Face Vibro Champ, a Peavey Classic 20MH, a Tone King Imperial MK1 and Tone King Falcon Grande.
Here's my take on the Artist Tweedtone 20R's tone after 1 week home playing using both a Fender Ash body maple board Strat (USA 57 RI) and a Vintage Brand LP clone with Bare Knuckle Mule A4 humbuckers:
First impressions: Clean channel tones remind me of a cross between Vox and Tweed. Blackface is here also, but the other 2 are dominant to me. There is to me enough headroom to play small gigs clean. I also tried a few overdrive pedals and the amp's clean channel takes pedals very well, as well as my Blues Jr, which LOVES them. All controls very useful and the digital reverb sounds better than some reverbs I have heard, but not as wet as a spring reverb. I tried the dirty channel and messed with the controls, but I have not yet bonded with the dirty channel. It gets quite dark, a bit too much gain, and I need to spend more time with it. I did just try it again today with my controls for the dirty channel like Shane shows above - Crank the MV to full blast to give you the most head room, then use the drive channel gain control for breakup and the drive channel volume as the Master Volume. This works better, but I still prefer the dirty tones I get with an OD pedal pushing the clean channel than the drive channel on its own. Besides blues and southern rock I'm also a die hard AC/DC fan and find myself playing my other higher gain amps with those licks, so I'm not shy of gain, but the Tweedtone Dirty channel on its own just isn't doing it for me tone-wise. The Clean Channel is pretty glorious and I love the slightly past edge of breakup tones I was getting for some southern rock style stuff (Black Crowes, Blackberry Smoke), both with and without pedals. This amp sounds more open with more highs to me than my Blues Jr or Tonemaster Deluxe Reverb. This is probably due as much to the overall circuit as it is to the slightly larger cab size than the blues Jr as well as the different speaker. It really reminds me of a beefier sounding current release Vox AC10R combo (hence the tweed leaning tones too).
This amp does have bottom end, but to me it's not as much bottom end as a Blues Jr NOS or IV. It does have as much or more bottom end as a Deluxe. It can get pretty loud, but even fully maxed, it did not feel too loud for my 8"x12" practice room, but I typically practice only when everyone else in the house is gone so I can turn it up. My point being, my ears weren't ringing that bad at full volume. The amp can get quieter also, but behaves much like the blues jr in that it sounds best with the Master Volume at 12 O'clock or higher (preferably 2 O'clock to 3 O'clock works really well) with the Clean Channel volume up starting at 8 O'clock as needed to taste as opposed to running the clean volume high and the master volume low.
I like just about all the tones I'm getting out of the clean channel. Time will tell if I keep this or offload it since I still love my Blues Jr IV with A type speaker for those punchy overdriven blues tones. I don't know if I would call the Artist Tweedtone 20R a blues Jr killer - it definitely sounds more open, but since i like the somewhat punchier nature of the blues jr IV I will hold onto both for now since they offer different tones. The Tweedtone does feel better playing for light handed stuff since it's a bit brighter and more open. I'm not finding that the Tweedtone 20R is that much (if any) louder than my Blues Jr IV (15W). I haven't measured db, but they seem about the same to me. Maybe the punchier bass in the Blues Jr makes it FEEL as loud? You know what they say that Watts is not a good representation of volume (volume is a log scale and it also depends on the circuit), but sometimes an increase of 5-10W can also just mean an increase in headroom but same overall volume. I also am finding that I'm getting tweed flavor tones that I haven't found in the Blues Jr IV. I was hoping I would get this and then offload one or the other, but I might keep both! I think I'll try running the Blues jr into the Tweedtone cab/speaker and see what happens.
One last thing - this amp is slightly larger than the blues jr, but still fairly small and lighter weight. In some videos I thought it was WAY bigger than a blues jr, but not by much, it's just right really.
Thanks again to Shane for turning me onto this amp!
A big thank you for your very helpful mini- review!
The drive is solid state I think
I wanted to reduce the overall gain in the pre-amp so I replaced the 12AX7 at V2 (the middle one of the three smaller valves) with a 12AY7 (about 45% the gain of the 12AX7) and it worked a treat! The amp now has a more controllable gain range on both channels with no apparent volume loss. Great little amp!
Cool
I am long time subscriber. Each and every video is awesome, informative and entertaining. Video quality and production through the roof. Congrats Shane, this is hard work and you deserve much more views and subs!
Thanks so much man! I appreciate the feedback and I would have assumed the channel would be bigger than it is, but I am not complaining either way. Thanks for the support and if you can help share the channel or videos around with any guitar friends you might have! Cheers mate.
@@intheblues I am sure it will be bigger. Your hard work will pay off. You are in the top 5 best guitar oriented channels on RUclips. And what is even greater achievement, your channel is done just by you. I admire you for that. Cheers!
I totally agree sir !
Totally agree. Great reviews and playing Shane! Thanks and keep 'm sharing 👍
This thing sounds incredible. At that price point, too.
Wow!! This has to be the Swiss Army knife of amplifiers!!! It sounds great in so many genres of music and at a great price point!!!! The opening jam (which is amazing, great job!) shows the versatility of sounds with different guitars!!! Thanks for sharing another affordable option that sounds great!!! Cheers!🎸🎸🎸🤙🏾🤙🏾
I bought this amp last year and it's so versatile. I use it for gigs and it's plenty loud enough.. the tone is nice and blues dirty even on the clean Chanel.. I compared it with the Blues jr IV and it had a lot more bang for half the price! 🎸
I have one of these, it sings! Good enough to gig with. Not my favourite speaker, but that is easily replaced. Very reliable and versatile.
I've been looking at purchasing this particular amp for over a year now, just as a back up amp , i have played it a few times at Artist showroom, couldn't find anything wrong with it, its great sounding amp at a very reasonable price, your video just confirms that i should go down there and purchase the bloody thing!! thanks Shano
This amp rocks. I took it out live the other night it was amazing with no overdrive pedals! 😀
Thanks for the excellent high quality demo Shane. I bought one s/hand with replacement valves and am delighted with the tones. I traded in a 40 Year old solid state Peavey Studio Pro 50 + a Kustom 100w amp (which is too heavy now to lug around) and only wish I’d done the trade earlier. Interesting that I’ve gone through acquiring a pedal board of stomp boxes (don't we all!) to achieve a sound that the Artist can produce without any effects. My new mantra is ’minimalism wins’. I highly recommend this Artist Tweed amp too.
Hey David, mine arrived yesterday and I hope you can help with this ... I thought after watching Shane's great review but I'm finding that with the Master Volume all the way off I'm still hearing quite loud sounds coming out, for example with the MV at 0 and the Clean 1 o'clock I'm hearing my guitar. I'm new to all this but must have misunderstood Shane @ 2:30 ?
Fantastic Shane. Thank you so much my friend. Cheers, Peace.
Bought one of these last year on a whim. Tested a blues Jr but the artist was simply much better regardless of price. Played around with different tubes as well as the ehx work really well in my vox ac10. Have a set of Mullards in the artist and it's fantastic. Nice review Shane !!!
Strong Competition for the Blues Jr.
the tone was excellent, the looks are classic, great value and you gotta love what it offers, 20 w, 2 channels, quality amp.
Just bought one of these 20Rs. $650 delivered. JJ tubes already in there. Clean channel is awesome. So loud and still clean. Not too bright. Digital reverb is nice. Gain button is basically gain pedal components wired in, from what I've read. The gain sound is fairly uninspiring and I've got pedals that can do better for my sound. Good buy, all up, I think.
Very nice!
Nice amp. I hope the brand does well. The 12 inch speaker puts it on my radar. A 12 inch speaker just easily makes the sounds I like. While I do like the smooth tones from a 6L6 based amp, the 6BQ5 output tubes always have that punch and bite.
This is one of the best sounding amp I’ve heard you demo!!! I’ll have to try one when I can...
Are you left-handed or does it just look that way because you are upside down?
I think he might be upside down
Nahhh he is a lefty... but we can forgive him for that... lol
SHANE! That intro was KILLER! Some of your best playing in my opinion. Man, you really blew me away. Nice job! On to the amp, I love it! My biggest beef was the one channel, but then this amp adds a master volume?! I'm sold brother.
Those P90s sound magical with that amp! Nice range of tones from that little beast!
I love my grungemaster and twin p90s
Hey Shane! I finally got to order one of these amps here in the States! I can’t wait to try it! Thanks for the review, I’d love to see a comparison vid with the Blue Junior.
Love the cuts in this video. They're perfect when you switch guitars. Love the channel. Keep up the great work!
That's so cool that you have the poster from the Tommy Castro show at Tivoli in Denver. I was at that show and I'm on the Blue Star committee. This year we have Walter Trout! I'll send you a poster if you want one -Ike
Shane, you look like you're thoroughly enjoying yourself here. Isn't it great when they send you something that ticks all the boxes so well that you can't stop playing it? I don't think that amp has a bad tone in it whatsoever! Good enjoyable demo and terrific Bluesy playing too. That ticks my boxes all round! 🙂
These amps are amazing. I have only owned a mesa son of boogie and a Vox ac30 before I bought this and this sounds better ,is more versatile and is just easier to use than both of them. Your demo's helped me to get one. I already bought the 5 watt which is also great but very simple but I needed to know if this amp would be loud enough for a gig and you proved that just fine. I did have a problem with this amp either going down in volume or surging in volume but this only happened when I played it at around the master volume setting 1. If played at 1.5 or above then the volume is consistent the whole time. I almost had it returned cos of that problem but that same thing used to happen with the AC30 on very low volume as well...it has something to do with low volume. these amps are the best of the best in my opinion!
Great Vid Shane. This Amp is a little Ripper. I bought one last year as an inexpensive back up when My Vox AC15 was being repaired and I was blown away. The only change I made was swapping out the speaker for a 75watt Lorantz Greenback clone(thanks to another vid of Yours) and the result is a totally Awesome Amp at a crazy low price👌👍
Nice mate! This is probably a more versatile amp than the Vox too hey?! 😀
@@intheblues Yes indeedy. Although I love My Vox AC15HW1X. This little Artist cost 1/3 the price(including the Lorantz upgrade) and has plenty of tonal variation with the clean and drive channels and also the reverb. It is really compact and much easier to lug around.
buska100 v
I agree the amp is amazing for the price. I bought a 'customer return' which did not work. The fault was a blown fuse in the heater supply. This was most probably caused by the power led connection tags shorting on the big capacitor on the pcb. Easily fixed and insulated. Measuring the DC resistance of the output transformer showed asymmetry which will mean one EL84 will work harder than the other, and make measuring the bias a might difficult. So not perfection, but still amazing (for the price).
Hadn't heard of the brand until seeing it on your channel, the amp looks great, couldn't find it on the UK website, but I did find a TC 59 guitar on there, with a great spec sheet for about £200, got to be worth a look!
I love the sound of the amp & your playing is great, as always. I personally don't ever consider any amp a "pedal platform amp" if it doesn't have a fx loop on it. Blues On....
PS Thanks for a great review Shane.
I don’t use the FX Loop, too many cables, so I love a ton of headroom and drive pedals upfront for dirt. 😏
My Vox AC15 crapped itself (again) at church last Sunday, keeps blowing fuses and making interesting noises so I bought this Artist amp after seeing your facial expressions on how good it sounds and also those of Brett Kingman. I am not disappointed, what a find, this Artist amp sounds great and the first thing that came out of my mouth after playing a few chords was, "wow!" - and without breaking the bank. Just hope it lasts longer than my AC15 did. I think it has a kind of British sounding flavour, perhaps that's why when cranking the gain gives you more gain/overdrive than in a Fender tweed amp??
It sure is nice to have you doing review of things like this. Nice to see how brands sound that not everyone and their mother has already done. Amp sounds great! If I didn't have a Blues jr I'd buy this over the Jr every day of the week. but... if anyone wants to trade me I'd gladly take this Artist Tweed amp over my Plain old Fender Blues Jr!
Ok, just picked one of these used, but still smelled new. The owner had a handmade Z11 silicon transformer upgrade at 2x the output of the stock tf. So, take that into consideration.
This amp is steller. However, the overdrive channel isnt to my taste. I bought a footswitch and could never get 'the sound' from the overdrive channel I was looking for. Being primarily a singer I wanted to leave the guitar pots wide open and just stomp the pedal for clean/dirty. Just don't have time for fiddley bits. But, the only way I can get 'the sound' is to overdive the clean channel and work the volume pot. Once I resigned myself to that it's just a matter of timing and coordination.
Today was a breakthrough. Have the tone wide open and just work the volume pot. It's tricky to go back and forth between vocals/rhythm and soloing, but I'm getting a little better every day. This amp is inspiring. Though it would be a solid amp for classic country and rock its home is firmly in the blues. For the money there's nothing that can touch it.
I pre ordered mine from the USA site (I live in Southern California) in February. Original ETA was June 20, today. Last week I emailed them and they said it’s coming next month instead. It’s been a long wait, but I guess I can wait a few weeks longer. I’ll keep you posted.
Artist guitars have been great to deal with ...great products at great price, Bravo !
Thanks for the in depth review of this combo Shane. I loved it so much I just bought one.
Outstanding tones ! But without a effects loop, hardly a real base for pedals. Great video as always.
Looks like a great amp! I liked the tones you pulled out of it for sure. Can't say I've heard of Artist, nor seen them around Canada, but we tend to miss out on a lot over here. good stuff!
Man that sounds amazing!! Tasty playing as always!! Thanks for a great demo.
I've been playing the clean channel on my Bugera V55 and V22 and this amp is in that vein.
Wow sustain city! Absolutely fantastic seeing a salesman who loves what he selling. And either way, I always enjoy seeing a musician enjoying themselves. It's great. That midtone, is so well balanced. Have you happen to try it through a larger cabinet or something. I've got q DLS Echotap, incredibly ambient. Definitely nothing wrong with digital reverb. I love running q boost after the Echotap. To increase the Echoes. That's fun. I mean look at Strymon. Own a Klon, if only. Lol. Definitely nothing wrong with ehx valves Cheers
Amp sounds Great Shane. Like I think it’s already been said they’re about $100 less here in the States and the 1 buttonFootswitch is about $30 extra. They also don’t make a Cover for the Amp. I called them because they do have a US Website but the Amp wasn’t listed. I was told they’re expecting a shipment of more stock including the Amp but have no idea when that might be? They won’t ship direct due to the high shipping costs to the US. Nice Amp though, I really like the dual Channels!! I’d also really to see the comparison with a Tweed Blues Jr. I have the Fender Tweed and I think it’s got a really Good sound. I use a Boss BD-2 or Tube Screamer in front for Dirt. Nice job Shane! Please keep up the Good Work! Cheers!!
Fun mix at the beginning of the video man! Never owned a Blues Jr. because I couldn’t justify the cost (and Peavey’s are so affordable haha). Even used ones at pawn shops are pretty pricey, but this one definitely has me thinking hmmmm..... 🤔🤙🏻🎸
I just bought a used Peavey Valveking v2 50 watt combo used for 178 plus tax. It sounds so good im thinking of unloading all my solid state and modeler amps.
Hey man! Very good demo and information! Quite awhile ago I had a Blues Jr. First, I didn’t like the way it sounded, but a friend who is a true, highly skilled musician came over, and he twisted some knobs and that with his skill made it sound amazing. But to sound like that was too loud, and things like the range of the volume pots, and not having any pedals to help the amp meant I still didn’t enjoy it. The amp in this video sounds awesome at all the settings you used, and that’s great! I could listen to you play all day! I disagree about cost of Fender amps being too much, but do agree about the Blues Jr model. But now, years later and with experience I bought a Princeton RI, and the sound is the true sound that made them so loved. The amp is great looking, solid in quality, sounds like a fender should with great reverb and wide ranging vibrato. I am just fine with its cost. Shane you sound great with any gear!
I bought one of these from Artist Guitars $599, best amp for money ever. I play higher volume and 1/3 gain, love that fat warm vintage sound I get, I do use a V30 though, but the 70/80 is fine.
Nothing can kill a Blues Junior !
Nice vid compliments.The Belcat connection is obvious...I've got a 25watt solid state of about 6 years ago and it's got the same tweed,lettering (font)and channel switching.It's my one man band amp.Good choice by Artist industry.Btw Belcat made a BJ clone @ half price released in UK a few years back but got dead-ended due to obvious patent infringement.But I'm glad they've come back fighting $$$$
We need the head to head comparison. 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
Now that's a nicely featured and great sounding amp!
The Marshal 20W Origin (supposedly Plexi like) sounds pretty good on its own, but listen to it back to back up against the new 20W Marshall Studio Vintage (baby Plexi), well the Origin gets left behind. Would be good to do a back to back comparison with the Blues Jr so we can hear the tonal differences, not just volume/channel wise. Other than that, this little amp sounds awesome. Thks for the demo.
I've played both and agree with your assessment but as with the conclusions in this video one big factor is the $. The Origin is less than half the price of the SV.
The Marshall origin isn't modelled on a plexi. It's modelled after the jtm45.
Really like the artist brand gear. I have a solid top acoustic guitar from them and absolutely love it. This amp is my next purchase. Thanks for the review, excellent as always.
Sounds great and very affordable.
This almost reminds me of a Peavey classic 30
Just ordered one
I'm thinking seriously about getting one of these but I'm a home player and won't play at higher volume. How does this amp perform at the lower volume range? Am I better off with a SS/modelling amp for home use? I really want the warmer tones I understand tube/valve amps have to offer. Thanks.
For a home player who never gigs or jams I'd say a 20w tube amp is overkill and you wouldn't get the best sounds at low volume. Maybe look at a smaller tube amp around 4 or 5 watts. The Laney Cub amps are great and the Cub 12R is 15w but it has a switch to let you run it at reduced power while retaining much of the cranked tone.
The Vox AC4 models are also quite nice.
At lower volumes some of the solid state amps sound surprisingly good. Orange's CR35rt, for example.
Damn ! That thing sounds fantastic ! Great demo as always ! Cheers mate ! :-)
Nowhere to be find in the US.... great video as always. Cheers
Such a great video, Shane. Makes me want one! Cheers.
That jam was totally sweet!
Awesomely super video ...... as usual ...... you very well just sold me on that amp . It is real nice . Great jam there too , bro well done with those nice guitars . Cant get better than this .
Damn, I seriously considered one of these. But I got the tweed Blues Jnr instead. Still, it's a totally decent amp, especially with a Cannabis Rex speaker.
Artist keep on kicking goals!
There's nothing wrong with that blues jr tweed amp mate! This is a friendly budget alternative to that. :-)
Hey Shane, Given this is in the same wattage range as a DR, can you gig (classic rock, Eagles, Clapton, etc...), with it?
Love this amp for the blues tone.... Way to make the camera shake with the Artist Grunge....
Nice Shano, but now you have talked them up they will jack up the price on 'em and we will end up paying Fender prices!😥🤔😀🤘
Hey Shane. Dam! I love your video demos. They are much better than Artist guitars ever do. Yeah, they have three different guitars, but, they play the same bloody riff over and over. My God! That gets really annoying. I've decided to purchase this amp nonetheless upon viewing your video. Thank mate much appreciated. Gary from Tasmania.
I hope it's really good. Today is August 27. I ordered and paid for it July 20th, so that's a month and 7 days and counting
Let"s wait and see if they could hold-up like the Fender BJ....
The USA site for Artist doesn't even have it listed yet...
I like the sound 4 sure but don't want to get taken again like myself and MANY
others that bought the Egnater Tweaker series....
You didn't mention what country is making it or did I miss it ? Inexpensive usually means cheap components that don't hold up.
It’s built well. There’s plenty of photos of the inside of the head online. It’s built in China using EHX tubes (quality ones) and comes with a decent speaker. I’ll give it a few thrashings live and see how it goes.
Got one, the drive channel looks like it has a solid state boost built in
I love that amp I had a hot rod deville and it sounds much better than that actually I have a katana 100 amp and it sounds really Krispy clean all right thanks a lot for your videos
great review shane,,i often wondered how theses amps sounded ,until now i couldnt find a decent review,,i might have bought one sooner ,but got a little blackstar artisan10 just recently(which i am very happy with) and if this post had been up earlier i might have got this one as it sounds great,,especially with the grungemaster ,,,glad this one fired up lol
Great demo as always, but I think I still prefer the tones from my Blues Jr III tweed (which I upgraded with a V30 speaker). Keep up the great work!
lol what a terrible speaker for that amp. I bet its a muddy farty mess.
With those strat tones at that price, I've taken the dive! £329 here in the UK with free shipping. I'll let you know how it sounds.
Thanks Shane, I have been looking at these amps for a while now and have been wondering what they are like. Time for another amp. Regards
Thanks Mark and Cheddar. If you find any get 2 and let me know!
I think this is a considerable alternative as you interested in this. Good sound.
Hi Shane, thanks for demo. At that price, it's very good tones, from clean to drive. Larger cabinet is a plus for the tones, especially if made from good rigid woods. Wander where they are built, and whether there are Harley Benton equivalent ? About speaker, I had that seventy80 in an Ibanez TSA15H that I disliked at all, too boomy, but here it sounds pretty good. I replaced it with a Celestion G12H and got the highs and more balanced frequencies I wanted. As the name says it seventy80 is modern hard rock tones focussed.
Edit: this Artist amp seems like a Bugera V22 at €289
Digging the film strip guitar strap. That’s awesome. Also, that Chelee sounds almost as good as the Royal Flush but could be just that combination of the pedal and amp.
FINALLY... a product with a great manufacturer's warranty and return policy being reviewed. This company has a chance at my wallet unlike the grab and run types.
Hey shane, just wondering what other speakers you tried in this, and what (if any) difference you noticed?
Yeah that amp definately sounds awesome !!
Great video!
Unfortunately they don't have these amps listed on the USA site right now....and a lot of stuff is sold out. I'll keep checking though
The amp sounds good and one of those P90 guitars fills a need. Gotta love budget gear! Thanks Shane!!! : )
Is this Amp cathode bias I could not find the bias pot and it does have el84s, so looking to confirm. Very happy with the Amp.
I think the tone was VERY good I like the fact of having a master Volume
The amps sounds awesome. They should make the channel changing footswitchable.
It already is.
The Artist company better get ready for an influx of orders for that amp.
Looks good mate. Blues junior does have a master volume tho!
Yep it does but it only has that one channel. :-)
Between this, and a few of your other reviews, you sold me on this amp.
However I cannot get it to sound anywhere near as good as you have(probably me).
Is there any presets you can recommend? I'm finding the tone changes as I up the master volume for a live show, then end up with ice picking. Did you or anyone else reading this end up changing speakers? Tia
Great amp. Wonder what it would sound like w/ a Swamp Thang in it? Also at the higher volume of the vid there is some fizz, are you hearing the same in the room w/ this amp or is it perhaps clipping on the recording? Thanks!
Many thanks Shane for all your very informative independent reviews. I am seriously contemplating buying this amp but could you please tell me, in your opinion, is there enough clean headroom to play gigs and jam with maybe a loud drummer with no microphones. Many thanks Garry in UK.
Was that the grungemaster you was using Shane?
Sounds killer Shane. the price is great too.
Can't seem to find them anywhere in Europe
It would be interesting to swap out the speaker with something more American sounding - like a Jenson or eminence swamp thing. Not that the 70/80 sounded bad but I'm sure it will distort when the amps cranked.
It's definitely is on the wish list for me.
Sounds killer and at $500AUS, sounds like a killer deal too. I'm guessing they won't be coming to the US since taxes and shipping will probably make it cost as much or higher than a Blues Jr.
Is the tweed tone available for Italian voltage? 220 volts
How does this compare to a 5E3? Seems like this has more gain?
How would this fare with fuzz pedals and baritone guitars?
Has anyone tried an Eminence GA-SC 64 40 Watt Speaker as an upgrade in the TweedTone 20R yet? Or is the consensus that the Lorantz Greenback 75 watt is a better choice?
Just a quick question why does everyone mic up the amp shouldn’t the sound just come out the amp ?
This is the most common way to hear the amp when doing professional recordings. Otherwise, it will distort the camera mics and sound like crap.
Trying to find out how their UK wing is doing - they have some amazing stuff!
Any chance of A/B-ing this against the competition? I guess that means the Blues Junior, primarily?
Strauss also have a Blues Jr killer
I took a look at that white Jazz Master on the Artist website, and the guitar is cute, despite the toilet seat inlays on the fingerboard, but what the fug is "eco-rosewood"?