hey guys!
So basically at present my amp is a Tech 21 TM60, which is a really decent solid state amp if you're at all familiar with them (they make the SansAmp modelling pedals too). I've been using it for a good 4 years and have always been satisfied with it, but i'm feeling it might be time for a change. The problem is that it's a two channel amp; channel 1 based on fender amp tones and channel two more designed to emulate marshall/mesa tones. The thing is, for about 3 years i've only been using channel one, and then using my trusty Ibanez Tube King to provide valve overdrive. The amp also has some really dodgy EQ layout, with 'drive' 'punch' and a 'bite' button, so i've started to feel like i might want to just go over to a more conventional setup.
The blues junior seems like a good shout, because it's a 1 channel amp, which is basically what i need as i already have a good overdrive pedal. It's also got a more standard 3 band EQ which i like the idea of.
I was wondering if anyone had any experience with the blues junior, in terms of what sort of tones you can get out of it and what guitars it's suited to (at the moment i've got a strat and a les paul). One thing which i kinda want would be the ability of the amp to generate a really good crunch tone, because that's not really something my pedal can acheive very well.
Any opinions on the blues junior would be good, or comparisons to similar amps, or even suggestions of any other amps which might be worth a look! I'm just really trying to decide what direction i want to go in at the moment
In terms of value i'm really looking for a like for like swap. I think used i could get around £250-300 for the TM60, and that's similar to what the valve juniors seem to be after a cheeky look on ebay and gumtree - so anything around that spectrum used.
Cheers!
Comments
Different drive pedals sound different with different amps.
EG the Bad monkey sounds great into a valve amp (Marshall DSL), as a boost, but into a SSamp (Marshall valvestate) it sounds dull and lifeless (IMO), conversely some pedals sound great into a SS amp, but lacklustre into valve amps.
As for what guitars suit what amps?
Any guitar (Strat/LP/Tele etc) can be played through any guitar amp. They will sound different, some will sound better than others. I'd advise trying a few, with your guitars (or a similar as you can get).
Ringleader of the Cambridge cartel, pedal champ and king of the dirt boxes (down to 21)
But maybe that's just me because everyone else loves them!
The Blues Junior is a long way from what we think of as a classic Fender clean sound, which is not to say it doesn't have its uses, if you like the sound of a broken, underpowered Vox.
So, after 4 years of being satisfied with it, you're feeling that it might be time for a change ...
Sounds like a recipe for doing something that you might just regret ...
I say that as a very happy TM60 owner. It's an incredibly versatile amp, everything from cleany-clean to dirty-dirt. I put an M9 pedal in front of mine for all the (not many) fx that I use. I've also found that different guitars/p'ups change the sound quite a lot, or even the setting of the vol pot on a guitar.
You should try to get hold of a Blues Jr for an extended test before you commit.
Ive got a Traynor YCV20, which I brought off the old MR forum and was cheaper than a blues jr, and it leaves the blues jr for dead in terms of features and sounds. 2 channel, great fendery / jangly clean sound, nice overdriven and with boost goes fuzzy in a nice way.
I would try and hunt one of these down, should be cheaper too.
just because you do, doesn't mean you should.
What drive pedal is it?
And have you tried a noise gate between the drive pedal and the amp?
Ringleader of the Cambridge cartel, pedal champ and king of the dirt boxes (down to 21)
I’m so bored I might as well be listening to Pink Floyd
It's very possible there's too much gain (I haven't tried this pedal) and the pedal is quite noisy anyway.
A noise gate reduces any "background noise", EG any electrical hum from the pedals. The downside is it can, and does reduce sustain. However in a high-gain situation they're pretty much compulsory. Personally I use an MXR smartgate, set fairly low, enough to reduce the back-ground noise, but not so high as to kill any sustain.
It might be worth trying (esp if you can try before you buy) a few different drive pedals.
I'd recommend trying the Boss SD-1, Boss SD-2, Digitech Bad Monkey, as these are all around at cheap prices, and all have good sounds.
Ringleader of the Cambridge cartel, pedal champ and king of the dirt boxes (down to 21)
I found the blues junior didn't like anything with high gain, and that ibby pedal is definitely at the higher gain side of things. It just sounds.. Wrong and broken.
The hot rod deluxe has much better bass and treble, much sweeter. Takes pedals brilliantly - possibly one of the best pedal platform amps there is, and I've heard of them being used for metal through to jazz to funk to pop.
Another one (already mentioned) is traynor amps. Riviera had some cracking amps too, but may be out of budget.
I really like the peavey classic 50 but it might be too big for you. Worth looking into if you did find one, though.
Noise, randomness, ballistic uncertainty.