Hot Rod Deluxe downgrade - sad times

thecolourbox

The time has come, the walrus said, to speak of sad things.
I cleared a lot of stuff out to fund decent gear, including my Fender Hot Rod Deluxe, in order to gig which sadly has never worked out as i had planned. I start studying in 6 months time so the time has come for me to give up trying to join a band as it isn't likely to happen in that time. So I'm considering the sad decision to "downgrade" the amp, ie sell it on and get something smaller and more "home appropriate". I may still get the chance to solo gig (which would also benefit from a smaller amp) but it seems other than that my gigging potential is gone fir now and I'll be home playing, writing and recording mostly.
So, where to next? The following are currently on my radar, but others may also be interest (yessss it's another "what amp thread"!) if tall have any tips. I liked the clean channel on the HRD, used it with a tube screamer and ds1 for drive, chorus for cleaner strummy moments, reverb to varying degrees. I like to have a nice verb or a loop for it, master volume also (HRD had a volume box in loop). I lean towards the Fender end of things, maybe a little bit Vox but no Marshall
Fender Super Champ XD or X2 - sounds like a lovely clean, then the bonus of seemingly including a Mustang section on channel 2.
Fender Champion 40 - seemingly a solid state version of the super champ above, and can be had for cheaps in my local Crack Generators
Line 6 amplifi - bit more expensive but has the added bonus that it would be allowed on display when i move in with my girlfriend. Not sure i want all digital though, and if i did there may be better
So, what am i missing? I'm not keen on those Bugera things, cheap as they are. No yamaha thr either (don't kill me please)
Thanks

Richardj

I know there are mixed feelings here but I like the H&K Tubemeister 18 combo.  It was a little too clean when I first got it but it seems the speaker needs to break in a bit to give it some more warmth.  It is small, light weight and actually very well made.

ICBM

Keep the HRD, if you have a volume box for it. Unless you physically can't fit it in your house, which I find hard to believe. There is no amp which is "too big" too be "home appropriate" otherwise. (I use a 100W 2x12" combo at home, it's fine.)

Nothing smaller will really give you that beautiful big Fender clean sound in the same way.

You'll also get a pittance for the HRD compared to what it's worth as an amp, really - they're one of the best bargains second hand if you're buying.

The only thing I might think of doing is replacing the speaker with a less 'shouty' one, if it has the original - one that will give you a better tone and slightly less volume.

p90fool

Yep, keep it. The HRD is actually the cheapest way by far to get that sound, if you want it in a smaller, lighter package you're looking at 750 quid minimum.

If you absolutely need some money and you intend to downgrade your amp to get it, you'll probably only clear about £100 anyway. Do yourself a favour and find another way to lay your hands on it.

ThePrettyDamned

Normally, I'd say get a bandit or transtube studio

But keep the hrdx. It's SUCH a good sounding amp, at any volume, you'd be mad to sell. It's not huge, and is easy to dial in.

And it takes pedals really, really well. Plus, get an ad up and start gigging!

Something I should do...

bertie

thecolourbox said:

So, what am i missing? 

common sense ?

keep the HRD

fretmeister

Keep it.

At the moment you could struggle to get £350 for it, which is a travesty but the nature of the market.

It's a brilliant amp that takes pedals much better than 90% of the other amps in the same price range and you get that wonderful Fender clean tone.

Get a simple volume box for it or a proper attenuator (my personal experience is that the Weber Mini-Mass works best with Fenders, but ICBM will disagree in a moment!).

And if you are going away to study then you have the perfect chance to play some solo gigs at the popular student places and perhaps even make a couple of quid from doing it.

menamestom

The only downgrade if you've got used to good Fender cleans is a PRRI.  Assuming you're just talking about size and not cost, in which case it would be an upgrade I suppose.

But you can get them for around £500, they have great cleans, verb and trem and can fit in your wardrobe when not is use.
Just think by the time you've been through various shitty modelling things and cheap fender solid state combos from crack convertors you could have bought one anyway!

I had a Vibro Champ XD for a while, actually that was very nice. 

Fretwired

fretmeister said:

Keep it.

At the moment you could struggle to get £350 for it, which is a travesty but the nature of the market.

It's a brilliant amp that takes pedals much better than 90% of the other amps in the same price range and you get that wonderful Fender clean tone.

Get a simple volume box for it or a proper attenuator (my personal experience is that the Weber Mini-Mass works best with Fenders, but ICBM will disagree in a moment!).

And if you are going away to study then you have the perfect chance to play some solo gigs at the popular student places and perhaps even make a couple of quid from doing it.

Totally agree with the meister's comments above. Just get something like this to play at a girlfriend friendly volume .. http://www.jetcityamplification.com/#!jettenuator/c12ve

McToot

Nah.  I don't dig what the fellers are saying:

Sell it [ahem, to me for about £325]

Fender Excelsior, Blues Jnr? Or go for something like the Roland Cube range, which I really liked for its clean and some of the FX.  The 40XL would be neat and plenty loud enough to do small solo gigs, I'd have thunk.   

menamestom

McToot said:

Nah.  I don't dig what the fellers are saying:

Sell it [ahem, to me for about £325]

Fender Excelsior, Blues Jnr? Or go for something like the Roland Cube range, which I really liked for its clean and some of the FX.  The 40XL would be neat and plenty loud enough to do small solo gigs, I'd have thunk.   

I like Blue's Junior's.  Once you upgrade the valves, speaker, cabinet and apply enough mods to completely change the circuit for something good, they sound.....good. 

bertie

McToot said:

, Blues Jnr? 

apart from it being shit  over rated,   you're no better off with 15w than 40

McToot

I must admit, that part of the recommendation was just a space filler.  I've only ever played one and I didn't like it at all.  It was like a little amp that needed its adenoids seeing to. 

p90fool

Neither Blues Juniors nor Fender Excelsiors have Fender cleans (ironically).

Also, I couldn't find a PRRI for less than 750 used when I was looking, which is why I bought a new 68 Custom Princeton for the same amount.

noisepolluter

thecolourbox said:

The time has come, the walrus said, to speak of sad things.
I cleared a lot of stuff out to fund decent gear, including my Fender Hot Rod Deluxe, in order to gig which sadly has never worked out as i had planned. I start studying in 6 months time so the time has come for me to give up trying to join a band as it isn't likely to happen in that time. So I'm considering the sad decision to "downgrade" the amp, ie sell it on and get something smaller and more "home appropriate". I may still get the chance to solo gig (which would also benefit from a smaller amp) but it seems other than that my gigging potential is gone fir now and I'll be home playing, writing and recording mostly.
So, where to next? The following are currently on my radar, but others may also be interest (yessss it's another "what amp thread"!) if tall have any tips. I liked the clean channel on the HRD, used it with a tube screamer and ds1 for drive, chorus for cleaner strummy moments, reverb to varying degrees. I like to have a nice verb or a loop for it, master volume also (HRD had a volume box in loop). 

Keep the HRD - nothing else in the price range will give you the same cleans or reverb, you say you've already got a volume box for it, and any other amp won't be all *that* much smaller unless you go for something tiny - which after the HRD will be deeply unsatisfying, you'll get sod all for it used, and you will ultimately regret it. I traded one in for similar reasons years ago and it's only recently that I've been able to afford something that banished the regret.

The only smaller amps I can think of that have the same awesome cleans and reverb are actually more expensive - PRRI and DRRI (the DRRI is a few inches smaller and a couple of lbs lighter - not a vast amount in it)

jonnyburgo

I love my Superchamp XD, lots of useable amp models on channel 2 and a lovely sounding Channel 1. Nice reverb too. Pretty perfect for me as a home player. However if you are gigging - keep the Hot Rod

MDKV

Yeah, just keep the Hot Rod. As others have said, you'll not get what you want with what you'd get from selling.

thecolourbox

Thanks all for your input, i know what you mean, it was partly money related and my doubt that i would actually notice/miss any difference/compromise if i went down to a superchamp. Its also sentiment i suppose as it reminds me of my inability to use it to its potential!
The studying is a work based masters, I'm not a proper student, so basically that's why it signifies the end of my gigging potential because i just wont have the time to commit the work to ut with day job and masters.
Maybe i need to try the super champ to assure myself i can feel the benefit of the hrd, i suppose i would be pushed to get any decent money for it anyways
thanks all

p90fool

Well if you don't need cash immediately I'd still hang on to it. If someone asks you to join a band in two years' time you'll be equipped to start immediately, rather than be one of those guys who never gets around to it because they have to find 400 quid for an amp before they can even rehearse.

DrJazzTap

Sorry to echo everyone else, but just keep it. You'll basically finance the Line6 gimmick amp/stereo thing, and lets be honest in a year or so that Line6 will be £150-200.
You won't find anything that matches the quality of that amp for that price brand new, I thought about flogging my Blues deluxe and downgrading like you. I paid £570, I doubt that I'd get more than £350 for it now. So to me, in case I start gigging again it saves me hunting around.
I would suggest just getting a small home practice amp a THR, a cube or a tiny valve amp. Even a micro terror.

57Deluxe

take up Ukulele - can keep it in cupboard under the sink even...