WTB Tweed Deluxe

ToneControl

strat84 said:

To be honest I don't. I've never even played a tweed amp :-D.. I have a couple of old silverface Fenders which I love but want something a bit different. I've tried Marshall style amps but much prefer Fenders. Just after something that could potentially be gigged with (mic'd up probably) and could be turned up at home for some thicker cleans than the Blackface style amps give. Don't really need it to be clean at gigs as I was thinking of running it with my DR and have that for cleans

Be aware of the 5E3 character - one of the most popular amps ever, and the 5X3 - same amp upgraded to  6L6 valves, and so more powerful with a tighter bass
5E3/5X3 has "Cathode bias", which means  you don't need to get the amp recalibrated when you replace valves, and that there is a natural compression that is highly musical, and can be quite addictive

many boutique brands do these, but if you want a cheap one to try first,  look at used Ceriatone amps, and sometimes Wienbrock ones go for less than they are worth

As amps, they are very mid-heavy, so they are normally paired with very scooped speakers (less mids), traditionally the Jensens and other Alnicos   - they sound poor with speakers that would be fine with a Marshall

Gassage

Wiz for @ToneControl  I couldn't 'just' have a deluxe. They don't do cleans like a BF or Hiwatt style amp.

but they do do Tweed sag like no other, obviously.

ToneControl

Gassage said:

Wiz for @ToneControl  I couldn't 'just' have a deluxe. They don't do cleans like a BF or Hiwatt style amp.

but they do do Tweed sag like no other, obviously.

yes,  BF has  more flexibility

I had quite a few 5E3/5X3 amps, but now have a low-power Victoria Tweed Twin  as a compromise - still a bit tweedy, but cleaner, and adding a  Cali76 compressor, you can cover a lot of tweedy ground

shaunm

It's true regarding the characteristics of the tweeds. They are amazing amps when you want overdrive and the cleans are good but you would not be able to get a clean sound at a gig volumes. 

But..... sod all that and get one anyhow as they are brilliant amps. The most responsive amp I've played is my tweed MJW. I just wish I'd gone for a 40 watt version.

hotpickups

shaunm said:

It's true regarding the characteristics of the tweeds. They are amazing amps when you want overdrive and the cleans are good but you would not be able to get a clean sound at a gig volumes. 

But..... sod all that and get one anyhow as they are brilliant amps. The most responsive amp I've played is my tweed MJW. I just wish I'd gone for a 40 watt version.

Does Martin do a 40 watt version? I didn't know that

shaunm

He can do one @hotpickups I had a word and because he is a wizard he said he can make them. I have the 18 watt version. I wish I had the 40. 

hotpickups

shaunm said:

He can do one @hotpickups I had a word and because he is a wizard he said he can make them. I have the 18 watt version. I wish I had the 40. 

I bet he could add power scaling too @shaunm ; 

pluckbuddy

strat84 said:

Looking for a tweed deluxe type amp. Would consider something a bit bigger, perhaps a tweed super or even a brown princeton clone. Cheers

I have a Ceriatone 5e3 clone I was considering moving on. Its in a tweed cab made by a guy on ebay by the name of doublenickels (or something similar). It was wired by ceriatone and not a kit and is stock, although i did do a couple of mods, which were adding a couple of Russian NOS paper in oil caps (made no difference to my ears!) and replacing the stock crappy power light with a proper Fender jewel assembly, which is much nicer, and doesn't fall apart. The speaker is an alnico Eminence Legend which has a nice vintage vibe. I'd be willing to sell it for £400. Might be a good choice if its your first tweed.