Favourite Tweed amp with gigable volume

[teleboli]

Looking at a tweed amp. Loud enough to gig with but not too much volume. Not 'too early' breakup, good headroom. What are YOUR favourites and why?

[morroben]

What's the gig? Madison Square Garden or the local coffee shop? Will you be playing AC/DC type stuff or smooth jazz? Is your drummer a champion power lifter that likes to show his/her strength behind the kit or is he/she a mellow type that likes to caress the skins with his/her brushes?

[TG]

I know what you mean...I've been researching that very thing.
This seems a possibility.

But I'm loath to spend that much on an amp I've not tried out so I dunno...

[teleboli]

Sorry,yes. More info needed. Lets say small to medium size clubs. 12-18 watt 5e3's break up too early. I'd like a Bit more headroom. Maybe in the 18-30 w range, but still tweed. Usual gig is two guitars, bass and a med. volume drummer. Styles involve blues, rock, clean country tele sounds as well.

[teleboli]

Yes TG. That's the issue with the builders, you can't usually play them. It doesn't help that you're in Ireland and I'm in Canada. There's a Victoria dealer nearby but they have nothing in that range in stock and if they order something you get the impression they would like you to be buying it regardless. There's the 20112 but it breaks up too soon and not enough headroom likely. I was also looking at the Clark Beaufort? To be honest, the two I'm considering are the Richter Supra-Luxe and the Tungsten Crema Wheat. Again, neither can be played. Anyway, any thoughts much appreciated.

[Groovey Records]

I like a Tweed Pro or if you want Tweed Dynamite a twin

The Dual pro is really nice

Here is my 55 Pro and on top a 58 Harvard

and my LesQuire Jr

[Del Pickup]

If you want more headroom than a Deluxe can give you then you should seriously look at the 57 Twin.

It's very versatile and doesn't need to be too loud if you don't want it to be.

Pull one of the rectifiers and you get more sag and and break up (I've read somewhere that this drops the output from 40W to about 30W but don't know if that's actually the case).

Having had a Bassman RI which I thought was the ultimate tweed amp, I simply love the Twin which is 100 times better in my opinion.

And FWIW, I've played the Victoria Twin clone and didn't think it sounded as good as the Fender RI.

[Jakedog]

Twin.

About the only Fender amp I would consider owning anymore, new, used or vintage. Note- I have no problem with how or where any of them are built, I own all kinds of amps. I just generally don't like Fender amp tones. But the Tweeds are special, and the Twin is king. My second fave Tweed is the Tweed Tremolux. I have a friend who now owns Buddy Holly's, super sweet amp from top to bottom.

Don't dig the bassman in the least, just sounds terrible to my ears. But the Twin and the Tremolux are high on my "bucket" list.

[BluezyBruce]

Quote:
"My second fave Tweed is the Tweed Tremolux. I have a friend who now owns Buddy Holly's, super sweet amp from top to bottom."


Are you saying that Buddy Holly used a Tremolux? I thought he used a Pro amp. What ever it is it sounds great. Also your friend has his amp or same model?

[gmann]

My '59 tweed Pro does it all. I had a Tweed Twin but it was too much amp for most situations I found myself in. I had a Victoria Bandmaster that was a really good all around amp too but I prefer the Pro.

[Jakedog]

Originally Posted by BluezyBruce

Quote:
"My second fave Tweed is the Tweed Tremolux. I have a friend who now owns Buddy Holly's, super sweet amp from top to bottom."


Are you saying that Buddy Holly used a Tremolux? I thought he used a Pro amp. What ever it is it sounds great. Also your friend has his amp or same model?

Buddy did use a Pro. But shortly before his untimely demise, he also owned an early '59 Tweed Tremolux. It ended up in the hands of a Lubbock local, who passed it on to Waylon, when Waylon passed, it ended up in the possession of a family friend, who eventually gave it to my friend Jerry Bridges, who was Waylon's bassist and road manager for more than 20 years. It now resides in Jerry's studio. It has not been babied through the ages, and in fact, is fairly beat. But when Jerry got it, he sent it to the amp custom shop, where the innards were completely brought back to original spec. It's a way cool amp.

[Dave Hopping]

There really needs to be a medium-powered Fender tweed RI like the Pro or Super,but there isn't.I went with a Bassman LTD,and it does the job OK.

[Del Pickup]

There's a good argument for Fender to put out a tweed amp between the Deluxe at 12W and the Twin at 40. But, as I said before, when one rectifier is removed from the Twin it gives a lot more sag to the overall tone and maybe that gets you to that middle ground tone-wise if not exactly in terms of output figures.

But, to be honest, when I had both a Bassman RI and DRRI there wasn't a major volume difference between the two amps. They were both very loud amps when cranked. So, maybe Fender reckon that in practical terms there's no real need for them to produce an amp in that middle range - other than for those of us who want them to recreate every amp they ever made in the 50's and 60's!

[Groovey Records]

Neither the DRRI or the Bassman RI IMHO are close to being near tweed tone

[JohnnyCrash]

Tweed tone is a misnomer.

There were so many tweed covered amp circuits and all were very different.

A tweed Champ sounds nothing like a tweed Deluxe, which sounds nothing like a tweed Super/Pro/Bandmaster, which sounds nothing like a tweed Twin (early tweed Twins sound nothing like late higher powered tweed Twins), which sounds nothing like a tweed Bassman. Tweed midrange isn't even consistent. 5E3 tweed Deluxes have a fat, thick, syrupy midrange where no other tweed does. Champs have a gnarly, dark, thick overdrive that other tweeds don't. Tweed Bassman have a smooth, woody, overdrive where other tweeds don't.

The word "tweed" can mean so many different sounds it should no longer be used. At least the scooped midrange of blackface Fender's was consistent from Deluxes, to Supers, to Twins.

[Chris S.]

I'm with Johnny, trying to pin down tweed tone is like trying to nail a blob of mercury. That said, based on your description you might want to check out a 5E3x2. I know Victoria makes one called the Double Deluxe, and there are others out there as well. The idea is it sounds like a 5E3, but uses 2x12's and roughly double the wattage to achieve higher volumes. Best of luck, CS

[EdMax]

Might take a serious look at Richters 30W Tweed Deluxe,

Real tweed charm, and not as shy on power as the standard 5E3.
I have the single 12" version and just love it. Truely a masterful amp.

I have been thinking about ordering a 15" baffle for it just to see how the Jensen Neo 15 sounds. I can not imagine it being a huge difference, but it is so much like a Super/Pro that it might be a magic bullet.

[Del Pickup]

Originally Posted by Groovey Records

Neither the DRRI or the Bassman RI IMHO are close to being near tweed tone

I wasn't trying to imply that the DRRI could give you 'tweed tones'. I was trying to comment on the overall volume similarities between a 22W amp and a 40W amp.

And surely the Bassman (whether an RI or otherwise) has to be one of the signature 'tweed tones'?

[Groovey Records]

Originally Posted by Del Pickup

I wasn't trying to imply that the DRRI could give you 'tweed tones'. I was trying to comment on the overall volume similarities between a 22W amp and a 40W amp.

And surely the Bassman (whether an RI or otherwise) has to be one of the signature 'tweed tones'?

Thats the funny thing about the Bassman some have it some don't

That amp is such a loud amp it really needs to be cranked to get the tone "we"
call Tweed Tone. My theory on why some do and some don't was the way they have been played over their life.

The way they were used at what volume, how often, how long since they were used on a regular basis and even what instrument they were used with all contribute to whether an amp has "IT".

This is only conjecture on my part and theory but all of the above I feel contribute to how the Capacitors and other tone shapers are "Formed".

Its just my opinion but I feel it's interesting why so many Bassman Amp, even the fabled 59 don't cut it and then again some are unreal.

No the Bassman RI doesn't fill that niche for me.

[Groovey Records]

Fender Custom Shop 50th Anniversary 1996
1946 Woody Professional

[jedi]

Find a Victoria 35210 Tweed Super or Double Deluxe.

[nosuch]

don't know if you can get them in canada http://www.twinsound.de/index.php?id...090e24a8801e68

maybe the best option would be to have something built by a local vendor who doesn't take a fortune for that simple technology ...