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Amp recommendations ~ something for shimmering Fender type cleans
So I am back in newbie mode here.
My only real experience of playing Fender amps (that I recall) was with Twin Reverbs a long time ago, and yes my ears bled. The clean tone was shimmering and beautiful, tons of headroom, but trying to get a non MV Twin to crunch was a life threatening experience, buildings were demolished in the attempt Yes, I know better now.
Several guitarists who I have great respect for, have used both Fender and Marshall in the same rig, such as Jan Akkerman and Andy Timmons.
I am not even sure about the descriptive words to use for my impression of the archetypal Fender clean tone in my head. Shimmering, chimey, glassy (as in clear and crystalline, *not* sharp or spiky) come to mind. “Sterile” is a word to be avoided, which is how I felt about many British amp cleans. So a little help with the words to better communicate the sounds may be helpful too.
I don’t even know the difference between Tweeds and Black/Silver Faced Fenders, so please educate me, and be gentle.
What is out there, what recommendations do you have ?
• Ideally I am thinking 20 to 50 Watt (100 at a push), maybe dual channel, reverb is not essential though, crunch and gain are nice but not essential, especially if it works well with pedals.
• Doesn’t have to be Fender, and whilst simple is good, flexible is nice, reliable is a must. I do like the way Mesa give loads of tonal options with just a few switches.
• How much difference do the power valves make to this, i.e. 6L6 vs EL84 in the lower wattage options ?
• It needs to be able to take pedals (I think), but I assume that most good clean amps do that well anyway.
• As an aside, do any pedals get you close to this Fender clean sound when put into a British style amp ?
• Secondhand availability is a bonus, as it makes most things accessible, so maybe a few different budget options would be good too.
So with an open mind, what do you suggest goes on the shortlist ?
Links or YouTube videos would be great too.
Thanks for your help.
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Comments
Chris, you could do much worse than to go into pretty much any guitar shop and just play a few fender amps - they're mostly very good sounding, and even the small pro junior has a really nice fender clean. I suspect you'll like the already mentioned reissues.
There are other great clean, fendery amps, too. If you want hand built, ask @martinw and @jpf - boutique is all well and good, but I doubt they do anything a British builder can't, and these guys consistently show their knowledge. Easy access support, too, being based in the same country and all that
I would really recommend a Ceriatone HRM Bluesmaster 50 dumble clone, with Celestion Golds
Basic sounds is a refined Blackface clean. I have often played this amp in preference to at least 5 high-end brand amps
in addition, this amp has a large number of very flexible and effective switching options, low boost, mid boost, OD with 3 pots to control sound (one is effectively a separate master volume for OD - extremely useful). You can do slightly gritty OD up to Santana OD, it will not do Marshall tones- best to use it clean with a pedal for that
The head is about £1200 new, you might see some used for £800
Good UK builders can make this circuit too of course - MJW for example
valves: for me, 6L6 is the gold standard for Fender tones, solid bottom end and a lot of percussive power in the notes. 6v6s always seem softer to me. You can design sparkly clean El34 amps with this, in a non-Marshall style, Matchless and Carr have done this well, but not the budget you are looking at. I've never been happy with EL84 amps trying to do Fender sounds really. Most break up very early, I think you can use them in a way to avoid this, but even then, their is a lot missing to my ears
I think British sound pedals into an ultra clean 6L6 amp works well - but I have never got a satisfying clean sound from a British style (Marshall I assume you mean) amp, other than a JTM45 clone - these can be bought cheap if you shop around. KT66s sound very nice
The other amp I have that does a stunning shimmery tone is a tremolux 6G9-A (with power tube bias-tremolo) with a 2x12 Jensen cab. This is just the right volume, and may even be in your price range if you can find one
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein