Please school me in 5E3 amps/similar amps (discussion thread)

TwilightOdyssey

TwilightOdyssey

Darkness on the edge of Tone
After experiencing the Swart STR-Tweed last week, I am very keen on it. Keen enough to want to learn more about these types of amplifiers and see what my current options are before spending some hard-earned green.

I have read that 5E3 is a type of circuit developed (if not invented) and used by old Fender amplifiers. It is characterised by a moderately early break up and has a great rock tone when pushed.

Are there any amps out there using this circuit, or a circuit inspired by it, that are worth checking out? My personal preference list:

- Head or a combo with speaker output
- sub-15W
- no interested in EL84 based amps

And if you could link me to any clips of what you consider classic, reference 5E3 tones (both clean and overdriven), I would really appreciate it.
 
Re: Please school me in 5E3 amps/similar amps (discussion thread)

5E3 is the latest narrow panel tweed Deluxe amp and they have been used on tons of classic recordings over the years however the Swart you liked so much is based on a tweed Champ and the tone of a 5E3 tweed Deluxe and a tweed Champ are not the same.

There are loads of 5E3 clone amps out there...it is likely the most cloned tube amp period and there are lots of amps that are based on the 5E3.

5E3's if built correctly are about 12 watts and have almost no headroom and can easily be tweaked for even more gain simply by replacing the 12AY7 in V1 with a 12AX7.

They also have a sort of loose and farty low end when cranked that can be mostly corrected with careful speaker choice in most cases.

Many of the amps based on them up the power, filtering, etc to make them louder, bolder, tighter, etc but IMHO once you do that you've lost the essence of the 5E3

Here is a clip I found of a 5E3 built by Clark and he's using a G12 Celestion Blue in it:

 
Re: Please school me in 5E3 amps/similar amps (discussion thread)

You asked about classic tones Neil Young is a BIG tweed Deluxe user and he's used a 5E3 on almost everything he's ever done but to be blunt most of the time I think he tone is pretty bad however if you listen to any NY chances are you are hearing a 5E3.

Also, Mike Campbell used one as his only amp on the first Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers album...lots of tones from clean to overdriven on that stuff.

Rich Robinson also uses 5E3's quite a bit

Here is Rich with a 57 Esquire and a pair of 5E3's...

This is the type of tone you get in the middle of the volume control...they will get a little cleaner than this and will get a lot nastier than this if you crank 'em

 
Re: Please school me in 5E3 amps/similar amps (discussion thread)

Thanks for the info! That is the kind of stuff I need to know.
 
Re: Please school me in 5E3 amps/similar amps (discussion thread)

I'm digging through the old Roladex for more info and it's coming up here and there...

Frank Zappa also used a late 50's tweed Deluxe on his earliest stuff (Freak Out, etc)

Don Felder used a 1959 5E3 all over the old Eagles stuff...Hotel California, etc most often driven by a 1959 Les Paul plugged straight in.

Larry Carlton used one on most, maybe all of the old Steely Dan stuff that he was on driven by his late 60's ES-335.

I have never seen pics but it is reported that Billy F. Gibbons uses them all the time and has been for years
 
Re: Please school me in 5E3 amps/similar amps (discussion thread)

This is one of my favorite demos of an amp based on the 5E3 circuit.



 
Re: Please school me in 5E3 amps/similar amps (discussion thread)

For a more modern take, check out the 65 amps Tupelo...i cannot post links.on this stoopid NOOK..but they have a couple.of killer demos up on youtube. I have been GASing for that amp.for years.

Christian, is the early 60s Brown Deluxe a different circuit than the 5e3? I was under the impression it was.
 
Re: Please school me in 5E3 amps/similar amps (discussion thread)

The Tupelo sounds amazing ... maybe a bit TOO smooth for me!!
 
Re: Please school me in 5E3 amps/similar amps (discussion thread)

TwilightOdyssey said:
The Tupelo sounds amazing ... maybe a bit TOO smooth for me!!
Click to expand...


V30 will edge it up a bit and provide more midrange complexity over the h30 they traditionally use in the combo...h30s are a bit smooth for my tastes too. GB would be a tad more crunchy than the H30 and a good choice I bet.
 
Re: Please school me in 5E3 amps/similar amps (discussion thread)

Just checked the price; it's out of the running in any event @ $2k.
 
Re: Please school me in 5E3 amps/similar amps (discussion thread)

I used to play through a pair of late 50's 5E3 Deluxes. Not much clean headroom playing through just one but playing through two was nice!

I could get a clean enough tone using my Strat or Tele but a guitar with humbuckers overpowered them and getting a genuinely clean tone was tough at any kind of volume.

Amps like the 5E3 are better suited for home use or recording use, IMO.

The circuit for a brown Deluxe is quite different from a tweed Deluxe - and the two amps sounds quite different from each other. Both are killer amps for playing at home, for recording or for playing gigs where you want an overdriven tone most or all of the time but don't want a lot of volume.

To me, they excel at getting a funky, overdriven tone for blues and roots music, but with a drummer and loud bass player the 5E3 might not be enough.

I used to play mine at church, where getting a natural sounding slightly overdriven tone at a low, low volume is usually difficult. Playing through a pair of 5E3's gave me the best tone I've ever had at church.
 
Last edited:
Re: Please school me in 5E3 amps/similar amps (discussion thread)

JeffB said:
Christian, is the early 60s Brown Deluxe a different circuit than the 5e3? I was under the impression it was.
Click to expand...

Yes it is...the 6G3 brown Deluxe amps are louder, more aggressive have a more pronounced midrange and bark like what most folks expect to hear from a late 60's lead circuit Marshall
 
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