NAD!! Blues Junior NOS!!

[jalguitarman]

I took back the Bugera to GC today. One guys wasn't surprised that I wasn't thrilled with it and expected I would be bringing it back.

Well I tried the Blues Junior and was much more pleasd with the sound than the Bugera right off the bat! Both amps have a warm tonality. With the Blues Junior I get warmth but with a note definition I was not going to be able to get out of the Bugera without some modifications. I am guessing the Blues Jnior NOS is supposed to be a down sized version of the Blues Deluxe I tried my Purple PRS through the day I picked it up. I noticed how the amp felt right away! as if the amp was aiding me instead of fighting me. At least at those settings. I took the Purple PRS with me to try it out as I wanted that to be my reference point. I played with the controls a bit as I noodled and decided it was coming home with me, very quickly!!

Now after gettting it home and playing about with the controls I am LOVING this amp!!!!! I notice much more distiction in the tonal differences between my Black Cherry burst Strat and my Carvin CS-6 (my 2 comparision guitars tonight), that in my Mesa, and thats even the clean channels on the Mesa. I noticed the CS-6 sounds much fatter through that amp when I push the pre-amp. More like a classic Les Paul sound. The Bridge pick up of my Black Cherry Burst Strat sounded AMAZING!! Note: I wired the electronics up EJ style so the tone control rolls down the bridge pick up instead of the middle , but even wide open it has a nice "classic" crunch to it!! I am betting that putting my Tele through that distortion will easily get me That Tommy TuTone "Jenny 867-5309" tone. The Neck pick up on the Strat is classic blues with just a little bit of gain added. Not added for break up but for tonal shaping. As I figured htis thing does great at very low volumes but can get loud! No suprise. I pushed the master to about 4 with the volume cranked and was met with quite an amount of air movement.

Overall this is just a sweet amp. I am likely gonna try runing it in stereo with the Roadking via a Chorus pedal. Given the warmth of this amp I may get a T.C. electronic "Corona" Chorus to add some sheen to the sound. I think at some point I will experiment with different tube brands. I think the speaker is a Ceramic Jensen so perhaps an Alnico Jensen in the future. As is, this is a great amp!!!

 

[Aceman]

Re: NAD!! Blues Junior NOS!!

Gotta love little Tube Fenders: Pro & Blues are a couple of great little amps!

Enjoy!!!!

 

[jalguitarman]

Re: NAD!! Blues Junior NOS!!

I really dig the looks of the tweed as well!

 

[Gearjoneser]

Re: NAD!! Blues Junior NOS!!

I'm still kicking myself for passing on a laquered tweed NOS Blues Jr. for $400.
It really did sound better than I had expected it to.

 

[UberMetalDood]

Re: NAD!! Blues Junior NOS!!

Nice amp for sure. The 50w Jensen speaker that comes with it is really good. Congratulations. I swapped mine with a Texas Heat and haven't looked back, but I still keep the Jensen around.

 

[jalguitarman]

Re: NAD!! Blues Junior NOS!!

Nice amp for sure. The 50w Jensen speaker that comes with it is really good. Congratulations. I swapped mine with a Texas Heat and haven't looked back, but I still keep the Jensen around.

How did the Texas Heat alter the sound? I am guessing it's an Emeinence speaker?

 

[Chickenwings]

Re: NAD!! Blues Junior NOS!!

How did the Texas Heat alter the sound? I am guessing it's an Emeinence speaker?

Texas heats have a less strident top end than the C12N Jensen, and a much chunkier, thicker low end. C12N's are really more of a speaker from an era when it was all about being heard and cutting through - they are clear, present and defined but not sweet. Texan Heats are not super efficient and their high end is rounder so you can run your amp maybe 1 notch higher on its volume knob without things getting too present or loud so the power section of the amp can run warmer. This i think is generally a better thing in higher wattage amps rather than a blues junior, but it depends if you are after a fat clean sound, or a fatter overdriven tone.. They can handle any low end you throw at them because they are rated at 150watts. Really cool speakers for adding muscle to amps without making them piercing on top or flabby in the low end. If you want to push your power tubes harder in a BJ then go for a TH. If you want you amp to sound cleaner, and maybe a little louder for its wattage, read on.
The other speaker that is cool as heck in low wattage fenders is the cannabis rex. Its a little more efficient (within its 50 power rating) than the texas heat, so youll get a touch more volume out of your fifteen watts from the BJ - meaning you can run your master knob a little lower and keeping some headroom in the power tubes. It also has a nice fat low end and really sweet highs. At 50 watts, it can handle anything the BJ can output also. Speakers are a little like guitar pickups in that the more powerful they are, the more their voice becomes darker and middier. The cannabis rex is generally considered a dark speaker, but i think it does have a wider frequency response than the TH due to their relative power handling abilities.
In general, id say use texas heats for higher wattage amps to add lower mid muscle and smooth off the tops, and use cannabis rex to low wattage amps to give extra lower end. Both sound killer clean or overdriven. Neither sound modern, hard, defined or too present. Which is better for a BJ is really a choice for the individual player and what they prefer.
While jensens are competent speakers and much better than the stock fender/eminence special design speaker, when compared to either of the TH or CR, they are somewhat bright and hard.

 

[dr. ad]

Re: NAD!! Blues Junior NOS!!

If you want to push your power tubes harder in a BJ

:naughty:

 

[Chickenwings]

Re: NAD!! Blues Junior NOS!!

i sent some capacitors to a friend so he could do the Bill M mods to his blues junior. He sent me a message on facebook.
"Dude, you rock. Im gonna pop those caps in my BJ's ass"
I dunno, i got an giggle from that too. Mebbe us aussies are just immature.

 

[Sprinter]

Re: NAD!! Blues Junior NOS!!

Gotta love little Tube Fenders: Pro & Blues are a couple of great little amps!

Enjoy!!!!

+1 Those are two of my favorite current model Fender amps! I wish I still had my Blues Jr.

 

[Maynardo]

Re: NAD!! Blues Junior NOS!!

no pics?

 

[UberMetalDood]

Re: NAD!! Blues Junior NOS!!

How did the Texas Heat alter the sound? I am guessing it's an Emeinence speaker?

Yes it's an Eminence. Well the Jensen is a nice speaker in my opinion. It handles 50 watts and has a quicker, softer breakup than the Texas Heat. It's not as focused as the Texas Heat. It has a nice soft response. It sounds like a vintage speaker. The way it was described above could be due to not being broken in because when mine broke in, it got a bit sweeter. It has a nice midrange.

The Texas Heat is a real compliment to Fender amps. Somehow it seems to fit the typical Fender EQ profile. It has strong lows, but not overpowering. It has nice chunky low mids what balance out towards the middle of the EQ spectrum and then emphasis resumes in the upper mids and rounds out over the treble. What you have a is a deep, warm sound that has midrange presence. It's not really mid scooped and could be compared to the Pearly Gates in that respect. It has a sharp, accurate response which makes it great for all kinds of chording and soloing.

It's described as having a bit of top end sparkle, and I would say that's fairly accurate. It's not as bright as a G12T75. I would go as far as to even say that I wouldn't place it in the "bright" speaker category. On the fringe perhaps, but balanced enough with ample bass and low end to keep it in check.

Where I find the "sizzle" part play the biggest role is when a lot of gain is applied. It's weird because it sounds, to me, almost as if the top end separates a bit from the rest of the sound. It's weird and hard to describe, but that's kind of how I perceive it. All I have to do is take the treble on my amp down a little and move up the midrange and I'm back to a great sound. In that way it's probably not ideal for metal if you want to achieve a scooped sound.

I don't use it real high gain so I'm very happy with it. Between the BJ and my Maxon OD820, I get enough gain to do the kind of soloing I like doing. The Texas Heat is powerful enough to give my amp just a bit more headroom and a slight increase in volume. It could be the best speaker out there for the Blues Junior.

In response to the Cannabis Rex post above, I agree that it's a great speaker. However, it dampens the sparkle that I love to hear in my BJ. It's kind of dark. However, there are so many other great things going on with that speaker that it makes a great choice for many Fenders. It's very musical sounding with great clarity. It does a lot of things really well so it can suit many musical styles.

I've thought about replacing my Texas Heat and the only speaker I'd consider at this point is the Red White and Blues. I had one for a short time and didn't think it was all that great so I traded it with a buddy. A few months later, I plugged my same amp back into it and it sounded phenomenal. He said that it took a while to break in and I think that was the problem. I regret not keeping that speaker now.

 

[jalguitarman]

Re: NAD!! Blues Junior NOS!!

Texas heats have a less strident top end than the C12N Jensen, and a much chunkier, thicker low end. C12N's are really more of a speaker from an era when it was all about being heard and cutting through - they are clear, present and defined but not sweet. Texan Heats are not super efficient and their high end is rounder so you can run your amp maybe 1 notch higher on its volume knob without things getting too present or loud so the power section of the amp can run warmer. This i think is generally a better thing in higher wattage amps rather than a blues junior, but it depends if you are after a fat clean sound, or a fatter overdriven tone.. They can handle any low end you throw at them because they are rated at 150watts. Really cool speakers for adding muscle to amps without making them piercing on top or flabby in the low end. If you want to push your power tubes harder in a BJ then go for a TH. If you want you amp to sound cleaner, and maybe a little louder for its wattage, read on.
The other speaker that is cool as heck in low wattage fenders is the cannabis rex. Its a little more efficient (within its 50 power rating) than the texas heat, so youll get a touch more volume out of your fifteen watts from the BJ - meaning you can run your master knob a little lower and keeping some headroom in the power tubes. It also has a nice fat low end and really sweet highs. At 50 watts, it can handle anything the BJ can output also. Speakers are a little like guitar pickups in that the more powerful they are, the more their voice becomes darker and middier. The cannabis rex is generally considered a dark speaker, but i think it does have a wider frequency response than the TH due to their relative power handling abilities.
In general, id say use texas heats for higher wattage amps to add lower mid muscle and smooth off the tops, and use cannabis rex to low wattage amps to give extra lower end. Both sound killer clean or overdriven. Neither sound modern, hard, defined or too present. Which is better for a BJ is really a choice for the individual player and what they prefer.
While jensens are competent speakers and much better than the stock fender/eminence special design speaker, when compared to either of the TH or CR, they are somewhat bright and hard.

The Cannabis Rex sounds promising! I do like the Jensen so far but I think I have an easily modible platform to work with that could really lead to greater things tonewise. Thanks for the info guys!!

 

[jalguitarman]

Re: NAD!! Blues Junior NOS!!

If it helps any, I do love the sound of this amp "Cranked". However, I will most likely use my Golden cello distortion for distorted tones since it's only a one channel amp. I wanted it mostly for clean tones. For jazz tones and for clean tones in a Rock based praise and worship environment and then getting the distortion tones I need from pedals. The idea being to run the amp at a very low volume and mike it, as I am trying to get away from amp modeling altogether. Even as is, this amp gives me clean tones that I couldn't quite pull from the Roadking. I guess it's also fair to say I want to keep this amp to where it does well in any musical context,(other than metal) like jazzy tones from my hollow bodies to luther perkins style "twang" from my tele. I wouldn't mind improving an already wonderfull amp but, at the end of the day I still want it sound like a "Fender". I like warmth but I also want to keep some sense of clarity.

 

[jalguitarman]

Re: NAD!! Blues Junior NOS!!

no pics?

No, as it looks like any fender tweed covered blues junior, I didn't see much point in it.