Fender Champ Reissue Review - I Hate It

Ditto.
Hate 'em.

 

I believe the 57 Custom Champ is hand wired point to point -- no PCB. It also has a pine cabinet, not particle board.

I'm with you on the Grote Jazz Hollow Body, though. Mine is real nice.

 

Yes, the original poster said he also has a Pro Jr so i concurred with that amp. I was a little vague.

 

Yeah, no, but it's true, just like the words you used or not so much. Allow them time to burn-in and they'll be a part of your mind too.

 

A couple of months ago I bought a 57 Custom Deluxe. When I went out to shop, I went with the intention of buying the 57 Champ. The store I went to had both on the floor. I can't remember which guitar I used, I pulled one off the wall, either a LP or a Strat and started with the Champ.

The appeal for the Champ is evident, but I also saw the limitations. Yes, 5 watts is loud. I realized almost immediately that I'd want a little more flexibility so I plugged into the 57 Custom Deluxe and that's what I walked out with.

I have a 2019 R9 and a 2011 CS Strat. Both guitars work beautifully with that amp, but the volume controls on the guitar have to be radically adjusted between the two of them. I tend to leave the R9 plugged into a Custom 64 PR. It's a perfect match, and I leave the Strat plugged into the 57 most of the time. With the R9 plugged into the 57, I have to really dial down the volume from what I leave it on for the PR. They're a very interesting combination of amps and guitars. All in all, I love the 57 Deluxe. I get why it so revered. You might want to check it out. It's a big step up from the Champ, but in the same line, with more tonal options.

 

200 bucks per watt?
No chance.

 

You can get 15% off pretty easily if it's anyplace you've dealt with before. I did. $862 out the door. That brings it down to $172.40 per watt.

But they're really glorious watts!

 

I guess we all hear differently. I had a 1960 tweed champ that I loved. Ended up trading it for another guitar. I was jonesing for a champ 6 years ago, and got a Fender Clapton vibro champ. I love that amp. It has great cleans to edge of breakup sounds, and fantastic overdriven sounds.

 

I should add that I also have a treble booster bought from someone on another forum. Even without it, though, the amp sounds great.

Also, don't set it on the floor. Raise it at least 2' off the ground, 3' even better.

 

Try running the volume down on the guitar if you're using humbuckers. And play harder.

Also, speakers always sound like crud until they're broken in. They are so overly tight that they actually sound mushy and compressed. A speaker that seems muddy at first can really come into its own once it gets the chance to breathe a bit.

 

The speaker won't "break in" to be clearer or treblier. Could try a different speaker. New Jensens are trebly.

I'd return it.

 

About new Jensens, question?

Over the Summer I bought a Jensen Mod 10" ( I forget 35 or 50 watt) for my Frontman amp ( I know a SS amp, and I know the Jensen Mods are a budget line) - wanted to see if this may sound better than the Celestion 10" that was in there ( so, not the original Fender).
But the Mod speaker was very trebly- not edgy or annoying, just missing mids.
So after 2 gigs, I yanked it out and put in an Eminence Legend and it's fantastic!- balance and body like I was hoping. So I'm happy.

Would the Jensen ( stil have).get some more body with more playing time ? ( and maybe louder volume than this particular regular gig we do) Thanks.

 

Thanks! Good song (solo) selection!

 

I don't have that Champ, but I have a '70s Vibro Champ with the tone controls bypassed, which I think makes it similar to a tweed champ in a bit bigger cab, bigger transformer, and with tremolo. I really love that amp, but not for everything. It gets more use than my '66 Bassman these days, but mostly because I haven't had a club gig since early March.

A Champ may not be your thing, but I'd give it some more play time to see if it opens up or if you get more of a feel for it. It's worth a try anyway.