Fender Hot Rod Deville , twang-able?

[J Lacey]

I bought a new Hot Rod Deville a few years ago in the 4x10 version( that's it in my avatar pic with a matching 4x10 custom cabinet under it). Been playing a MIA deluxe strat through it and it's pretty hot when you want it to be and pretty clean when you need that, (I've never tried to achieve a certain tone with the Strat, only playing basically dirty or clean most the time depending on the set list and never expanding my knowledge to discover anything in between) but with this 52 RI coming I've wondered alot about this amp and what I can expect using the Tele ? Any suggestions or thoughts would be appreciated greatly. Should I expect to be satisfied or disapointed when I venture into the twang search with this amp?
Can it be accomplished or is there additional effects or settings that I should learn about before I even get started?

Thanks for the input !

Jeff

[eryque]

Lotsa twang to be had through this amp. It's voice is kinda moderny vintage, or vintagey modern. Start with the tone controls set to the middle and adjust it to taste.

It's not a BF Twin Reverb, but then again, neither are some actual BF Twin Reverbs. It is in that ballpark, though.

[morroben]

I have a 2x12 Deville and it's my main twangin' amp. I've heard some negative opinions but I love it. One suggestion....I only use the clean channel and get any overdrive I need thru my ZVEX pedal. The lead channel has never been to my liking. Good luck.

[a42]

Played a Deville tonight for the first time. Wasn't going for twang -- trying out an SG Classic. Given how much I *HATED* the HRDlx I had I was very pleasantly surprised by the Deville.

I'm sure that 52RI has enough twang in it to get your Deville on the same sheet.

[Scotland]

I loved my 2x12 when I had it and my Teles twanged just great with it.
I prefer the sound of my Twin but the HRD is a pretty damned close second. I bet it sounds amazing through all that speakers you have !!

[teledude66]

I loved mine, but got rid of it. Too loud and Big ....does that mean I'm getting old?

[Scotland]

Originally Posted by teledude66

I loved mine, but got rid of it. Too loud and Big ....does that mean I'm getting old?

I went from the HRD to a Twin, 30 lbs heavier and 40w more power, does that mean I'm getting younger ?

[teledude66]

Originally Posted by Scotland

I went from the HRD to a Twin, 30 lbs heavier and 40w more power, does that mean I'm getting younger ?

maybe crazier and deafer...lol...I went down to a BDRI from 60W to 40...

[J Lacey]

That's for the advise............

Jeff

[stevedenver]

Originally Posted by eryque

Lotsa twang to be had through this amp. It's voice is kinda moderny vintage, or vintagey modern. Start with the tone controls set to the middle and adjust it to taste.

It's not a BF Twin Reverb, but then again, neither are some actual BF Twin Reverbs. It is in that ballpark, though.

dead on-

something you should also be aware of is that these are biased very cold from the factory-this means a lot of headroom before you get any tube 'browning' of tone-

if you like it clean (and i think HRDs are great for that clean hi-fi modern sound) the cold bias may be ok

i tweaked to run properly biased and it added a lot of warmth and roundness to the sound-hard to describe but the HRD at 6 and above would sort of fart out-now it sings and has a more organinc, musical and 'real' sound - sounds like a pretty good tube amp

-might want to try this as i found it made a big difference (and i actually liked mine stock for the wonderful clean sounds-at high volume you have to adjust the tone controls and for me with my humbucker guitars-this means really dropping the bass-i run a stock 2 x12 so the 4x10s may be less flabby) -biasing just added som warmth , but it does seem to lessen the head room

like all the reviews, i rarely use the overdrive-but, the OD can be ok if you use it below 3-just a hint of grind to color the clean, but not enough to really identify the lousy sound-

i would imaigne these amps would benefit from a plywood cab- but theyre so much amp for the buck why bother?
theres an entire site devoted to tweaking and upgarding the HRDs and its well worth reading

[cliffay]

go here to learn how to bias this amp:

dude explains it in detail

It IS biased too cold from the factory. The devilles have a handy dandy bias pot that make this a breeze. Better tubes help and a speaker upgrade can be a significant advance, too. They're good amps, IMO.

[kiwi blue]

Originally Posted by cliffay

Better tubes help and a speaker upgrade can be a significant advance, too. They're good amps, IMO.

You're dead right. I have the 2 x 12. This amp will give up the country twang and do nice warm and clear cleans, but I found the bass a little flabby and the tops a bit sterile til I replaced the stock speakers and valves.

First I replaced the GT 6L6B power valves (rebranded Sovtek 5881) with a pair of TAD 6L6WGB blackplates. These are excellent valves from Shuguang factory in China (available under various brandings from Lord Valve and Watford among others) and they tightened up the bass nicely while still retaining warmth and ringing clearly. Excellent valve for clean tones, with fairly high headroom. My bass setting lept from 3 to 5 or 6.

At the moment I'm running NOS Sylvanias, and they sound great. They're well worth getting if you can find them - and afford them (I got mine for a lot less than online dealers ask). The TAD/Shuguang is a lot more affordable and right up there in quality.

In the preamp, it's worth investing in a topnotch NOS valve for V1 (the one closest to the sidewall of the cabinet), as this is a significant tone generator at the start of the chain. Even if you only replace one valve, it's worth spending your money here and buying the best you can afford. Almost any good 12AX7 is an improvement on stock IMO. I've settled on a NOS Sylvania there as well, as it gives clarity but with a bit of oomph.

No valve improves the drive channel - it sucks totally. In most venues the amp is too loud to crank up the clean channel til it overdrives, so a pedal is the best option there.

Finally, I replaced my speakers with Jensen C12Ns (I had no choice - one of the stock speakers died on me). The difference was immense - much, much nicer. No more tweaking needed any more - I just play it and enjoy really nice country tones with the Tele bridge pickup, and good warm blues/jazz tones with the neck P-90.

I have no experience of the 4 x 10 version, but I'd say it would be worth checking out replacement speakers there. It's easy enough to plug the amp into various speaker cabinets to hear some alternative speakers and see what you like. You just have to make sure the speaker load matches the amp (2 ohms?). This forum also has plenty of threads on speakers.