Tweed Champ replicas/clones ?

matone

Often think about buying a Tweed Champ replica but wonder how good they are, as they`re
not the cheapest of things to acquire.
 
Any owners care to offer their thoughts ?

Babones

Awesome little tone boxes. Full of soul, even at low/clean levels. I have a Fender '57 Champ. It sounds much bigger than it looks.

knuckleberryfinn

My first amp build was an ampmaker champ thing. It was easy, and it sounds great in the 1x12 cab I put it in. The smaller speakers and cabs really don't do the Champ justice.

matone

Mmm,noticed that a few makers do them with 12" speakers.Tbh already have a BJ and a DRRI,so don`t need a `bigger` sound.

hotpickups

Do you run them together as a dual set up @matone ?

matone;1138228" said:

Mmm,noticed that a few makers do them with 12" speakers.Tbh already have a BJ and a DRRI,so don`t need a `bigger` sound.

matone

No,tbh rarely use the DRRI at all,it`s an ornament !lol.

Winny_Pooh

Get a 10" speaker at least unless you specifically like the 8" sound (its good for home and makes for a tiny combo but also also sounds smaller).
They drive very easily in a Stonesey fashion and you can build a Weber or Ceriatone kit inexpensively, Ampmaker kits are even cheaper if you can fashion a cab.

kreggs

Modulusamplification are also uk based and offer champ, deluxe and bassman kits with option to buy a cabinet i believe.

RiftAmps

A 10" speaker is possibly the worst upgrade for a Champ. It doesn't have either the fast attack of an 8" (which is a huge part of the Champ's tone) or the depth and body of a 12". A single 10"  just sits there failing to be anything other than huge waste of time for a Champ.

The answer of course is a 2x8". You get that immediate punch of a quick moving speaker, plus a massive sound spread with lots of detail including a tight bottom end. The cabinet is 19" x 13-1/2" x 8-1/2" - roughly proportioned to a High Powered Tweed Twin so it looks right and sounds big and resonant too.

I offer these with a mix of both Ceramic and Alnico speakers, to really get the best of out the amp.

ICBM

RiftAmps said:

A 10" speaker is possibly the worst upgrade for a Champ. It doesn't have either the fast attack of an 8" (which is a huge part of the Champ's tone) or the depth and body of a 12". A single 10"  just sits there failing to be anything other than huge waste of time for a Champ.

Although strangely, it's great in a Tweed Princeton - it must be the size of the cabinet. I had a '59 Champ and a '58 Princeton at the same time once, and the Princeton was much bigger-sounding. (Although admittedly the Princeton was stripped to the wood, which I think makes a difference too.)

RiftAmps

ICBM said:

RiftAmps said:

A 10" speaker is possibly the worst upgrade for a Champ. It doesn't have either the fast attack of an 8" (which is a huge part of the Champ's tone) or the depth and body of a 12". A single 10"  just sits there failing to be anything other than huge waste of time for a Champ.

Although strangely, it's great in a Tweed Princeton - it must be the size of the cabinet. I had a '59 Champ and a '58 Princeton at the same time once, and the Princeton was much bigger-sounding. (Although admittedly the Princeton was stripped to the wood, which I think makes a difference too.)

Agreed, those cabinets are really oversized (hence why lots of 10" upgrades). I suspect that the choke (if 5E2 or 5F2, not 5F2-A) really helps to beef up the sound compared to a 5F1.

Speaking of stripped Princetons, here's one at GV - https://guitarvillage.co.uk/products/fender-princeton-stripped-natural-pre-owned-1957-vg

matone

All good info and food for thought ! Thanks for the input folks.

earwighoney

RiftAmps said:

A 10" speaker is possibly the worst upgrade for a Champ. It doesn't have either the fast attack of an 8" (which is a huge part of the Champ's tone) or the depth and body of a 12". A single 10"  just sits there failing to be anything other than huge waste of time for a Champ.

I've noticed the amps you've listed on your website seem a bit short on 10" speakers (single configuration,Vibro has 2).  The Princeton's always had a single 10" as far as I know.  Any particular reason for this? 

RiftAmps

earwighoney said:

RiftAmps said:

A 10" speaker is possibly the worst upgrade for a Champ. It doesn't have either the fast attack of an 8" (which is a huge part of the Champ's tone) or the depth and body of a 12". A single 10"  just sits there failing to be anything other than huge waste of time for a Champ.

I've noticed the amps you've listed on your website seem a bit short on 10" speakers (single configuration,Vibro has 2).  The Princeton's always had a single 10" as far as I know.  Any particular reason for this? 

Yes, I think 10" speakers work best in multiples, quite simply. A 1x10" amp can be vastly improved with a 1x12" whereas upgrading a 1x8" to a 1x10" isn't always going to give you what you want, hence my 2x8" solution.

earwighoney

RiftAmps said:

Yes, I think 10" speakers work best in multiples, quite simply. A 1x10" amp can be vastly improved with a 1x12" whereas upgrading a 1x8" to a 1x10" isn't always going to give you what you want, hence my 2x8" solution.

Ah fair dos.  I always have liked single 10" combos.  

matone

Did once have a Pro Junior and didn`t think much of it at all ! Would a Champ sound different to that?

ICBM

RiftAmps said:

Agreed, those cabinets are really oversized (hence why lots of 10" upgrades). I suspect that the choke (if 5E2 or 5F2, not 5F2-A) really helps to beef up the sound compared to a 5F1.

I can't remember if mine had a choke or not - it was a long time ago and I didn't really pay that much attention. I'm not even 100% certain it was a '58, it might have been a '57 - it was older than my '59 Champ though. I got it for £90 I think. I can't even remember when or why I sold it unfortunately .

earwighoney said:

The Princeton's always had a single 10" as far as I know.

Tweed Princetons were 1x8", although a large number of them have been converted simply because there is so much room in the cabinet. Mine had been before I got it, but I didn't realise that until later - it seemed natural that it would have one because the cab is so much bigger than the Champ's.

matone said:

Did once have a Pro Junior and didn`t think much of it at all ! Would a Champ sound different to that?

In my opinion yes. I know a lot of people like the Pro Junior, but I don't really. Unless you're comparing it to a Blues Junior .

matone

There you go,I much prefer the Blues Junior lol ! Different sounds in the head ,and that sort of thing.The BJ is a Ltd Ed job with a V30 in tho`.

ICBM

If you like the BJ, you probably won't like a Tweed Champ/Princeton.

Although the only way to be sure is to try one, sometimes things work differently for different people. Totally agreed about the different sounds in the head thing .

matone

I find the BJ gets less likeable the louder it gets tbh.Still have an itch for a Tweed Champ or Swart type thing.

ICBM

matone said:

I find the BJ gets less likeable the louder it gets tbh.Still have an itch for a Tweed Champ or Swart type thing.

I agree about the BJ getting worse the louder it is, but I absolutely hated the Swart AST I tried if it matters! It sounded nothing like a proper Tweed amp at all, to me.