Fender Deluxes?

[GuitarStv]

Does the hotrod deluxe sound significantly different from the '65 deluxe reverb reissue? I'm pretty much sold on the hotrod deluxe, but I can just swing the '65 deluxe reissue if I play my cards right. I'm looking for an amp with a great clean that doesn't break up too much and takes pedals well. Thanks guys!

 

[kmcguitars]

Re: Fender Deluxes?

The DRRI opposed to the HRD in theory would break up sooner. Being rated at 22 watts w/t 2-6V6s. While the HRD has 2-6L6s and is rated at 40 watts.

 

[GuitarStv]

Re: Fender Deluxes?

Thanks, that's exactly what I needed to know!

 

[PUCKBOY99]

Re: Fender Deluxes?

And the DRRI has a tube rectifier as opposed to SS in the HR

 

[Skarekrough]

Re: Fender Deluxes?

Master Volume versus non-Master Volume. VERY different amps.

The DRRI's break up really nicely at a point that makes them great picks for clubs and bars.

 

[PUCKBOY99]

Re: Fender Deluxes?

OOOh, good point!

Skarekrough....I hear the DRRI is pretty close to an original. Have you compared....& do they compare???

 

[jeremy]

Re: Fender Deluxes?

both amps need a new speaker to sound their best, the drri doesnt sound as nice as my bf but probably sounds a little sweeter than the ri. with new tubes and a speaker im sure the ri would sound nice.
an old deluxe reverb is a great amp.

the hot rods are a way different thing. the cleans can be pretty good but i dont like its higher gain tones.

 

[Bludave]

Re: Fender Deluxes?

OOOh, good point!

Skarekrough....I hear the DRRI is pretty close to an original. Have you compared....& do they compare???

I have a 1967 DR (silver) and the other guitar player has the RI. They don't compare!!! The RI is a very nice interpertation of the original, but its a long way from the real deal. This does not mean its a bad amp. By comparison to what else is out there I think it is a very good amp and was considering one myself until I came across my '67. The difference is the originals are more open, they break up better and at the same time stay cleaner. My major complaint aboutthe DR & the RI in general is the lack of headroom. At 22W it can be difficult to keep the amp clean. I find with both once the volume gets to about 5 or so it breaks up to easily. In some rooms they just don't work......... unless you mike them. You have to keep the volume below 5. MAny people change to a V30 to help add some headroom and eliminate the bottom falling out. IMO putting a V30 also sucks a lot of the "Fender" out of these amps. I think a higher wattage Jensen may be a better alternative. Lew has been advising people to go with the V30's for a while. I just haven't heard one with a V30 that I really liked. I am also considering putting a Jensen 15" in mine........ That should keep it nice and clean

The Hot rod series from the very limited exposure I have with these amps (I played thru one a few times) appears to have less headroom than the DRRI does. I have only played thru this amp afew times so take this for what its worth. I just felt at 40W it should have been cleaner. Not a bad sounding amp, but I had a hard time keeping the cleans where I wanted.

 

[jeremy]

Re: Fender Deluxes?

lew uses a g12h-30w in his but it doesnt sound like a jensen.

the hot rods dont have as much headroom as some other 40w amps but its more than the drri. the hot rods have lots of bottom end which can mess up a good clean tone so keeping the bass down will help in getting a louder clean tone. eminence makes some nice replacement speakers for a reasonable price. i have a cannabis rex in my '66 dr and i think it sounds amazing and im sure you could find something in their line that suits your taste. keep an eye on the efficiency rating, a higher rating will give you more volume which will equate to a louder clean tone before breakup.

 

[J.LaGrassa]

Re: Fender Deluxes?

With some tube changes you can get a descent amount of headroom with the DRRI, I use all JJ tubes in mine the JJ6V6 are like little 6L6 tubes they dont break up as fast as regular 6V6 tubes and a a very nice bottom end to them.

For even greater headroom replace V1 or V2 depending on the channel you like with a 12AY7, The Vibrato channel can be a little finicky when it comes to pedals because of the bright cap you can clip that cap or find pedals that work best with it. when you find the right pedal it works great!

Pedals that I used with no Issues are the Barber Direct Drive, LTD, Small Fry, Tonebone Classic and Trimode, MI Audio Crunch Box, Blues Pro!

 

[Skarekrough]

Re: Fender Deluxes?

OOOh, good point!

Skarekrough....I hear the DRRI is pretty close to an original. Have you compared....& do they compare???

I've actually never had the chance to take an original for a real test drive.

My RI came with a 64' speaker and NOS tubes in it. I really didn't take to it until one day I just cranked it up and the entire tone of the thing changed and it just sounded amazing to my ears.

With the ZenDrive it's downright magical.

 

[PUCKBOY99]

Re: Fender Deluxes?

I have a 1967 DR (silver) and the other guitar player has the RI. They don't compare!!! The RI is a very nice interpertation of the original, but its a long way from the real deal. This does not mean its a bad amp. By comparison to what else is out there I think it is a very good amp and was considering one myself until I came across my '67. The difference is the originals are more open, they break up better and at the same time stay cleaner. My major complaint aboutthe DR & the RI in general is the lack of headroom. At 22W it can be difficult to keep the amp clean. I find with both once the volume gets to about 5 or so it breaks up to easily. In some rooms they just don't work......... unless you mike them. You have to keep the volume below 5. MAny people change to a V30 to help add some headroom and eliminate the bottom falling out. IMO putting a V30 also sucks a lot of the "Fender" out of these amps. I think a higher wattage Jensen may be a better alternative. Lew has been advising people to go with the V30's for a while. I just haven't heard one with a V30 that I really liked. I am also considering putting a Jensen 15" in mine........ That should keep it nice and clean

The Hot rod series from the very limited exposure I have with these amps (I played thru one a few times) appears to have less headroom than the DRRI does. I have only played thru this amp afew times so take this for what its worth. I just felt at 40W it should have been cleaner. Not a bad sounding amp, but I had a hard time keeping the cleans where I wanted.

I've been running my Pro thru a 4x10 right now as I haven't had the time to rewire it...tomorrow ! .....I have a pair of Eminence V-12 Legends that are rated at 120w. It should stay plenty clean with those :bigok:

Skarekrough: when you're done with that Zendrive, lemme know

 

[GuitarStv]

Re: Fender Deluxes?

lew uses a g12h-30w in his but it doesnt sound like a jensen.

the hot rods dont have as much headroom as some other 40w amps but its more than the drri. the hot rods have lots of bottom end which can mess up a good clean tone so keeping the bass down will help in getting a louder clean tone. eminence makes some nice replacement speakers for a reasonable price. i have a cannabis rex in my '66 dr and i think it sounds amazing and im sure you could find something in their line that suits your taste. keep an eye on the efficiency rating, a higher rating will give you more volume which will equate to a louder clean tone before breakup.

I think that I'm pretty much settled on the hot rod deluxe at this point . . . and I'm scared to go about removing the speaker, there's a kind of sparkle on the clean channel that I love. The boomy bass problem can probably be tamed by tilting the amp back or raising it up off the ground I figure. I usually play with the bass rolled way off (mids and highs up) anyway, so I figure that I should be fine as far as cleans go at the volumes I can play at. Can anyone else recommend an amp that has similar sound to the hot rod deluxe that I should try before making my purchase?

 

[kmcguitars]

Re: Fender Deluxes?

I think that I'm pretty much settled on the hot rod deluxe at this point . . . and I'm scared to go about removing the speaker, there's a kind of sparkle on the clean channel that I love. The boomy bass problem can probably be tamed by tilting the amp back or raising it up off the ground I figure. I usually play with the bass rolled way off (mids and highs up) anyway, so I figure that I should be fine as far as cleans go at the volumes I can play at.

There's one more Beautiful thing about the HRD. The OT has a 4 ohm parallel tap on it. So you can run a 2nd 8 ohm load.:banana: BlueDave is right, A V-30 will suck all the Fendery Chime from the amp,BUT! I run a V-30 in a 1x12 cab along with the stock speaker and get the best of both worlds. I also have a 2x12 cab w/t a Private Jack & Texas Heat that's wired for 8 ohms.

 

[GuitarStv]

Re: Fender Deluxes?

That's a cool idea . . . I wonder if I could build myself a matching extension cab for the deluxe.

 

[drew_half_empty]

Re: Fender Deluxes?

I think that I'm pretty much settled on the hot rod deluxe at this point . . . and I'm scared to go about removing the speaker, there's a kind of sparkle on the clean channel that I love. The boomy bass problem can probably be tamed by tilting the amp back or raising it up off the ground I figure. I usually play with the bass rolled way off (mids and highs up) anyway, so I figure that I should be fine as far as cleans go at the volumes I can play at. Can anyone else recommend an amp that has similar sound to the hot rod deluxe that I should try before making my purchase?

hot rod deville 2x12

and actually silverface bassmans have pretty much the same clean tone, except without the presence knob & reverb & usually mid knob

 

[WhoFan]

Re: Fender Deluxes?

My 65 non-reverb Fender Deluxe is OK...... i had a tech work on it and at least get it running but it is not the best sounding clean amp i own.... I think when i run my jcm800 in to a better tech for repair i may have him also look at my 65 deluxe... My 65 has the original speaker in it still....

 

[jeremy]

Re: Fender Deluxes?

the non rev dlx is a different beast. the vibrato channel has an extra gain stage on the rev models.
you can mod it to be a really nice sounding amp. one of webers books talks about it.

 

[Quencho092]

Re: Fender Deluxes?

I put JJ's (6v6)and an SS rectifier in my DRRI, and have put over 50 very loud jams/gigs on it, so the speaker is nicely broken in.

Cleans chime forever, with the TS9 it wails amazingly, keeps its clean well up to 5 (treble 5, bass 3). I put a mullard 12AT7 for the phase inverter as well. Hardly any fart when playing past 5 thanks to the tightness of the SS rectifier, the amp is awesome.

My last upgrades would be an Allen PT, OT, choke, and reverb tranny...that would make this amp a monster

My only slight woe is that after putting the SS rectifier on and the JJ's, for it to be biased warm, i had to wind up the bias pot almost all the way. It sounds great like this, and the JJ 6V6's could handle insane amounts of plate voltage without a problem.