Fender Blues Junior NOS Amplifier
For the none of you who have been following with interest and concern my hunt for that tube amp sound, I did eventually purchase an actual tube amp - the Fender Blues Junior NOS. It has been a pleasure to play so far.
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I plugged into several combos at the local Guitar Center, but kept returning to Junior’s crunchy tone, the simplicity of its controls and the nostagia of its tweed wrap. I eventually toted its 31-lb. frame to the sound-proof room to crank it without self-consciousness. The single coils in the house strat popped and twanged on Junior’s clean setting, and produced some grizzly but unmuddled fuzz when I turned down the Master and turned up the Volume. I took it home and haven’t looked back.
The Blues Junior NOS uses three 12AX7 preamp tubes and two EL84 Groove Tube power tubes, generating sound through a Jensen C12N ceramic speaker which - along with the tweed - constitutes the primary upgrade from the stock Blues Junior. Black chicken-head knobs for Master, Volume, Middle, Bass, Treble and Reverb don a shiny silver plate on top of the amp. A small “Fat” toggle allows for a noticeable volume boost.
The lack of indepenent channels initially concerned me, but I was comforted in the knowledge that my Twin Tube Classic pedal would provide me with the flexibility to set a mostly-clean amp sound, and then stomp between by-pass, dirty Rhythm and dirty Lead. I have since come to enjoy tweaking Junior’s Master-to-Volume knob ratio in search of the overdrive that suits my mood.
Junior’s 15 watts are enough to satisfy my bedroom-playing needs. (More than enough, actually, but I cling to the notion that I might one day emerge from my musical cocoon to entertain the latte-craving masses unfortunate enough to time their caffeination excursion with open mic afternoon at the local java hut. 15 watts’ll learn ‘em!).
It’s got the look, too. Next to the cold, black cabinet on my workhorse Peavey Bandit 65, Junior’s yellow-orange texture and brown leather handle is a breath of fresh, vintage air.
The Harmony Central and Guitar Center reviews on the Blues Junior, especially with the NOS (”New Old Stock”) upgrade, have been overwhelmingly positive.
Sphere: Related Contentguitarblog @ June 19, 2007
Rich,
Thanks for stopping by to comment. Appreciate the dead link head’s up too!
This NOS thing is interesting marketing. It’s gonna confuse people. I recently ran into a Strat on eBay described as a 19__ somthing,Relic-RI-NOS, which had me scratching my head.
Ultimately, every Strat’s gotta be a classic.
Good parody material here– Fender just keeps shoveling it out there!!
Thanks for dropping by, JP. And good point. “New Old Stock” seems to mean different things to different people. Technically, wouldn’t it mean “I’ve had this in the closet for years, but never opened it.” Frankly, until a couple weeks ago, I thought it was a Guitar Center model-tracking SKU or something. Anyway, the tweed sure looks purty.
The Blues Jr. is a great amp. I borrowed one from a friend for a summer and i really loved it! It has a great tube tone and it is a great buy for the price. It isn’t the loudest thing in the world, but if you mic it you’ll be fine. I really like the tweed as well.
I currently have a peavy classic 50 (another great amp), but i am moving and it may be too big. I think i may switch to the Blues Junior.
Nice post!
Hi
Great book. I just want to say what a fantastic thing you are doing! Good luck!
Bye