Did Fender FINALLY Improve the Hot Rod Deluxe Crappy Distortion?

[SavageRiffer]

Obviously the A-Type speaker is an upgrade, though still falls kind of under the budget Celestion category, but they're saying they've improved the distortion circuit. I'm starting to think the HRD4 might be good little amp to kick around the garage.

https://shop.fender.com/en-US/guitar-amplifiers/vintage-pro-tube/hot-rod-deluxe-iv/2231200000.html

 

[shupe13]

Re: Did Fender FINALLY Improve the Hot Rod Deluxe Crappy Distortion?

Loved my HRD 2x12 but my HRD 4x10 was like an ice pick.


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[treyhaislip]

Re: Did Fender FINALLY Improve the Hot Rod Deluxe Crappy Distortion?

I had an original Hot Rod Deluxe, best thing for the Drive channel was taking it to Acorn Amps at having them mod it to sound and feel like a Mesa Rectifier.

 

[Little Pigbacon]

Re: Did Fender FINALLY Improve the Hot Rod Deluxe Crappy Distortion?

I have an HRDIII, and while I didn’t buy it for the gain channel, I find it occasionally useful and fun. That said, it’s nice if they’ve improved it, but I use pedals most of the time. It’s a great pedal platform, and I have a lot of good dirt boxes.

 

[treyhaislip]

Re: Did Fender FINALLY Improve the Hot Rod Deluxe Crappy Distortion?

I have an HRDIII, and while I didn’t buy it for the gain channel, I find it occasionally useful and fun. That said, it’s nice if they’ve improved it, but I use pedals most of the time. It’s a great pedal platform, and I have a lot of good dirt boxes.

Definitely a great pedal platform!

 

[PFDarkside]

Re: Did Fender FINALLY Improve the Hot Rod Deluxe Crappy Distortion?

Isn’t some of the issue that when you setup a nice sparkly clean tone, then add gain its harsh and grating? If you setup a decent gain sound the clean is dull? I wonder how they changed the Preamp circuit.

 

[SavageRiffer]

Re: Did Fender FINALLY Improve the Hot Rod Deluxe Crappy Distortion?

Isn’t some of the issue that when you setup a nice sparkly clean tone, then add gain its harsh and grating? If you setup a decent gain sound the clean is dull? I wonder how they changed the Preamp circuit.

Well I've listened to the video demonstrations and a comparison of the Blues Junior III vs IV, and I'm starting to think the old one is better. First of all, a speaker upgrade makes a big difference for the Hot Rod amps. People who complain about the low end, blah, blah can probably adjust their sound quite a bit with the right speaker. The new ones come with Celestion A-Types which are still budget Celestions. They're like V30's, but like half of the price. They're actually pretty good speakers, and better than the Jensens they come with, but not exactly like Fender isn't still greedy as always.

They've reduced the brilliance of the high end, and to me sounds a bit duller. The distortion sounds a bit like there's a blanket covering the speaker. When Fender came out with the 68 Custom Deluxe Reverb and Princeton, I thought they sounded kind of cool at first, but after getting to sit down with the 65's and 68's together, I found a definite preference for the 65's. I'm getting the same sense from the new HRD's.

 

[dr0]

Re: Did Fender FINALLY Improve the Hot Rod Deluxe Crappy Distortion?

If you aren't going to use the high gain channel what advantage would it have over a Bassman LTD or Super Reverb? Price is only 2/3 the price of those amps, which is interesting. Why are the reissues more expensive?

The spec for the Deville HotRod III 4x10 says "7-Ply 3/4" Birch/Maple Plywood". It sure looks dimensionally identical to the Bassman LTD cab.

The "Hot Rod" series are not uniformly all plywood:

The Pro Junior IV is particle board.
The Pro Junior III is plywood (same description as above).
The Hot Rod Deluxe III is "lightweight pine".
The Hot Rod Deliuxe IV is lightweight pine.
The Blues Jr. Laquered Tweed is plywood.
The Blues Jr. IV is particle board.
The Blues Deluxe re-issue is plywood.
The Hot Rod Deville III 2x12 is plywood
The Hot Rod Deville 2x12 IV is lightweight pine.

One thing that comes through is that a lot of the IV series have cheaper material in the cabs. Pro Junior went from plywood to particle board. The Blues Jr. IV is now particle board. And Hotrod Deville 2x12 went from plywood to pine. There is a trend there.

There is a fancy marketing launch film for the new "HotRod" series and it doesn't include the Deville 4x10. So, maybe that one is going away?
It does include:
Pro Junior iV (15 watts, 1x10)
BLues Junior IV (15 watts, 1x12)
Hot Rod Deluxe IV (40 watts, 1x12)
Hot Rod Deville 2x12 IV (40 watts, 2x12) (55 lbs)

 

[Rex_Rocker]

Re: Did Fender FINALLY Improve the Hot Rod Deluxe Crappy Distortion?

The new ones come with Celestion A-Types which are still budget Celestions. They're like V30's, but like half of the price. They're actually pretty good speakers, and better than the Jensens they come with, but not exactly like Fender isn't still greedy as always.

Those are the V-Types you're talking about. The A-Types are different. They use a slightly heftier magnet. The A-Types are full-on Classic series Celestions in the same league as Lynchbacks, T-75's, Greenbacks, and the other Chinese-made Classic series.

 

[allbutromeo]

Re: Did Fender FINALLY Improve the Hot Rod Deluxe Crappy Distortion?

I see that they couldn't be bothered to fix the taper of the volume pot

 

[Little Pigbacon]

Re: Did Fender FINALLY Improve the Hot Rod Deluxe Crappy Distortion?

I see that they couldn't be bothered to fix the taper of the volume pot

If they ever fix that, I’ll sue them.

 

[SavageRiffer]

Re: Did Fender FINALLY Improve the Hot Rod Deluxe Crappy Distortion?

Those are the V-Types you're talking about. The A-Types are different. They use a slightly heftier magnet. The A-Types are full-on Classic series Celestions in the same league as Lynchbacks, T-75's, Greenbacks, and the other Chinese-made Classic series.

Fender's Website Lists the HRD4 specs:

40 watts; Normal, Drive, and More Drive channels
Celestion 12" A-Type speaker
Modified preamp circuitry for increased overdriven note definition
Spring reverb modified for improved smoothness
Lightweight pine cabinet
Includes 2-button footswitch and cover

The A-Type speaker retails for $99 compared to the Vintage 30 which retails for $149. In fact, the A-type and V-type were $79 retail until they raised the price fairly recently. The Vintage 30 during that time was around $129. I guarantee you they aren't in the same league or price range as the Lynchback.

 

[Powdered Toast Man]

Re: Did Fender FINALLY Improve the Hot Rod Deluxe Crappy Distortion?

I see that they couldn't be bothered to fix the taper of the volume pot

They fixed that in the III series.

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[Red_Label]

Re: Did Fender FINALLY Improve the Hot Rod Deluxe Crappy Distortion?

Loved my HRD 2x12 but my HRD 4x10 was like an ice pick.


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Dooooood... the HRD 4x10 was the most brutal amp I've ever had. Actually, it was a friend's amp. But it sat in my basement for two years and was mine for the taking. I didn't even want it. I played it twice and it was unusable. And the volume taper from 0 to 1 was insane. It would go from "I can't even hear it" to rip your face off. I was going to use it at an outdoor gig and decided that it was even unusable for that. And I used to haul a pair of 100 watt half stacks to outdoor gigs!!!!

And yeah... in general Fender distortion is horrible. As crazy as it sounds, Marshall actually does a better clean than Fender does distortion (there are a few exceptions of course).

 

[Red_Label]

Re: Did Fender FINALLY Improve the Hot Rod Deluxe Crappy Distortion?

If you aren't going to use the high gain channel what advantage would it have over a Bassman LTD or Super Reverb? Price is only 2/3 the price of those amps, which is interesting. Why are the reissues more expensive?

The spec for the Deville HotRod III 4x10 says "7-Ply 3/4" Birch/Maple Plywood". It sure looks dimensionally identical to the Bassman LTD cab.

The "Hot Rod" series are not uniformly all plywood:

The Pro Junior IV is particle board.
The Pro Junior III is plywood (same description as above).
The Hot Rod Deluxe III is "lightweight pine".
The Hot Rod Deliuxe IV is lightweight pine.
The Blues Jr. Laquered Tweed is plywood.
The Blues Jr. IV is particle board.
The Blues Deluxe re-issue is plywood.
The Hot Rod Deville III 2x12 is plywood
The Hot Rod Deville 2x12 IV is lightweight pine.

One thing that comes through is that a lot of the IV series have cheaper material in the cabs. Pro Junior went from plywood to particle board. The Blues Jr. IV is now particle board. And Hotrod Deville 2x12 went from plywood to pine. There is a trend there.

There is a fancy marketing launch film for the new "HotRod" series and it doesn't include the Deville 4x10. So, maybe that one is going away?
It does include:
Pro Junior iV (15 watts, 1x10)
BLues Junior IV (15 watts, 1x12)
Hot Rod Deluxe IV (40 watts, 1x12)
Hot Rod Deville 2x12 IV (40 watts, 2x12) (55 lbs)

Because the Reissues sound better? I've had two Twins and a Deluxe and the HRD series isn't even in the universe. Though I'm more of a Marshall circuit guy, it's almost impossible to beat the glassy cleans of a Twin or Deluxe. Though Dave Friedman is challenging my notion of that worth the cleans of his Buxom Betty and BE50 amps.

 

[Powdered Toast Man]

Re: Did Fender FINALLY Improve the Hot Rod Deluxe Crappy Distortion?

If you aren't going to use the high gain channel what advantage would it have over a Bassman LTD or Super Reverb? Price is only 2/3 the price of those amps, which is interesting. Why are the reissues more expensive?

The spec for the Deville HotRod III 4x10 says "7-Ply 3/4" Birch/Maple Plywood". It sure looks dimensionally identical to the Bassman LTD cab.

The "Hot Rod" series are not uniformly all plywood:

The Pro Junior IV is particle board.
The Pro Junior III is plywood (same description as above).
The Hot Rod Deluxe III is "lightweight pine".
The Hot Rod Deliuxe IV is lightweight pine.
The Blues Jr. Laquered Tweed is plywood.
The Blues Jr. IV is particle board.
The Blues Deluxe re-issue is plywood.
The Hot Rod Deville III 2x12 is plywood
The Hot Rod Deville 2x12 IV is lightweight pine.

One thing that comes through is that a lot of the IV series have cheaper material in the cabs. Pro Junior went from plywood to particle board. The Blues Jr. IV is now particle board. And Hotrod Deville 2x12 went from plywood to pine. There is a trend there.

There is a fancy marketing launch film for the new "HotRod" series and it doesn't include the Deville 4x10. So, maybe that one is going away?
It does include:
Pro Junior iV (15 watts, 1x10)
BLues Junior IV (15 watts, 1x12)
Hot Rod Deluxe IV (40 watts, 1x12)
Hot Rod Deville 2x12 IV (40 watts, 2x12) (55 lbs)

The cost comes down to:
Hot Rods: made outside the USA (they were made in Mexico but I had heard they moved production to China but I don't know for sure)
Reissues: made in USA (except Silverface 68 series which are Mexico)

Also there's different speakers and overall construction and design elements.

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[Little Pigbacon]

Re: Did Fender FINALLY Improve the Hot Rod Deluxe Crappy Distortion?

They fixed that in the III series.

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The III is better than previous versions, but I think it still leaves something to be desired, at least for a veteran bedroom player.

 

[dr0]

Re: Did Fender FINALLY Improve the Hot Rod Deluxe Crappy Distortion?

Dooooood... the HRD 4x10 was the most brutal amp I've ever had. Actually, it was a friend's amp. But it sat in my basement for two years and was mine for the taking. I didn't even want it. I played it twice and it was unusable. And the volume taper from 0 to 1 was insane. It would go from "I can't even hear it" to rip your face off. I was going to use it at an outdoor gig and decided that it was even unusable for that. And I used to haul a pair of 100 watt half stacks to outdoor gigs!!!!

And yeah... in general Fender distortion is horrible. As crazy as it sounds, Marshall actually does a better clean than Fender does distortion (there are a few exceptions of course).

Yeah, well that's what this term "pedal platform" that everyone uses, meaans, right? = Fender, mostly single channel. For distortion either turn it up or add fuzz boxes.

 

[dr0]

Re: Did Fender FINALLY Improve the Hot Rod Deluxe Crappy Distortion?

Because the Reissues sound better? I've had two Twins and a Deluxe and the HRD series isn't even in the universe. Though I'm more of a Marshall circuit guy, it's almost impossible to beat the glassy cleans of a Twin or Deluxe. Though Dave Friedman is challenging my notion of that worth the cleans of his Buxom Betty and BE50 amps.

Yes, I think that's right. I went and played a bunch of Fenders about 10 years ago at a shop that actually stocked a lot of the high end amps and ended up buying a Bassman LTD and it's been my most played amp, among the six I have. It's a good size for band practice, matches nicely with the bass and drums in our smallish practice space.

 

[LLL]

Re: Did Fender FINALLY Improve the Hot Rod Deluxe Crappy Distortion?

I see that they couldn't be bothered to fix the taper of the volume pot

Most likely the bright cap is too much... a smaller value would bring a smoother taper.