My next piece of gear...

So I've been really looking hard for a new amp... I'm in one of those ruts that's not so much a product of my inability to get better... but the inability to better my tone. I've been stuck with the same tone and same gear for so long I feel like I'm locked in a tiny little box and inside of the tiny little box everything is in black and white. I've searched high and low for that piece of gear that jumps out at you... Where the balance between the weight of the price tag far outweighs the amount of gear that you get... Normally you can't find a piece of gear with a main brand name like Gibson, Fender, Mesa, or Marshall that falls in that category... but I think I have... and I'm pretty damn excited about it...

I've been to two different Guitar Centers and a Sam Ash and have played every amp in both facilities with my number one strat in tow and I hadn't found quite what I was looking for in an amp...

I started ruling modeling amps out after I realized that I am passed that stage in my guitar playing career that I know what I want... and I have a GT-8 with an extensive list of amp models... normally I only use 2 or 3 of the 50 some that they offer... But why use a JCM amp model when I have the real thing.... I have a JCM 800.... arguably one of the best amps ever made... doesn't get the clean setting... and that's why I have my trusty Fender Blues Deluxe....... one of the best clean sounds I have ever heard.... You're probably asking why I feel restricted with this gear?? Yeah, it's perfect for a gig... but when I'm at home I don't want to be stuck in a single room with cords running everywhere and having to do a little finger dance with the knobs to dial in perfect tones that compliment each other on two draaaasssstically different amps......... I'm basically looking for an all in one that can replace both of these amps... After searching high and low I've struck gold..... or atleast honey blonde:



http://fender.com/products/search.php?partno=2160500400

It's a new/newer amp from Fender... It's 60W of tube tone with 2 seperate channels... One is a vintage channel with the tones.... You can switch between the voicing of a Vibrolux or a Bassman.... and the other channel is a "Burn" channel with great distortion.... The "burn" channel has two gain knobs... one for the amp gain... and one for tube saturation. The range of tones is amaaaazing. It gets that Fender clean sound I want... and it grinds along with my JCM... I can't decide whether to go for the 1 12 combo or go for the half stack though........ I most likely will sell off my JCM... probably keep my Blues Deluxe since it was my first REAL amp.... But with the money left over from my JCM I can probably afford to change the 1 12 Celestion Vintage 30 out with an Eminence.... It should greatly help the "Burn" Channel........ I'm so f'n excited to get this amp... I've been longing for a simplified setup........ and a simplified setup with the built options of switching between the tube voicing of a Bassman and a Vibrolux on the clean channel... then kicking in a killer distorted or overdriven tube channel is what I want..... and it's what I'm going to get!!! Anyone else checked these amps out?? If you're like me and you appreciate the Vintage tones but want that bitey modern tone... I highly recommend this amp... Best thing to come out of Fender in a looooong time.

I havent owned a combo amp in probably 15 years. I would say go with a half stack. You talk about something grabbing your attention or jumping out at you. That happened to me when I first saw a Crank amp in the store! Have you seen these? They are awesome, and the price is a little out of my ball park at the moment. I have a Marshall half stack and a Crate full stack at the moment. lol....I'll sell you the Crate....the head is a G-600. Pretty dated but still operates fine.

I guess I forgot to mention in my above post that the "half stack" isn't really a "half stack"... but I would get a 2x12 enclosure and the head... So it'd be a "half of a half stack".... haha

I'm not in need of an amp. I have a JCM 800 2x12 and a Fender Blues Deluxe 1x12. But the simplicity of the SuperSonic excites me.

I owned a half stack once... It was a Crate Blue VooDoo... which is a killer amp, Great tone. But I never got to turn it up past 3. 160 Watts of tube tone is just too much. Plain and simple. Anything more than 100 watts of anything is too much. I like to keep my wattage around 50-60 watts in my tune amps since I don't want to lug around large cabs and I certainly want to get the most tone out of the tubes... It's pointless having a tube amp that you can't crank up... I do have an attenuator to help with this since my JCM8 is still waaaaayyy to loud.

I like my little combos. They make a lot more sense to me thank a big half stack... Trust me, I've jammed with plenty of people with solid state half stacks that couldn't hear their guitars because I cranked my JCM8 up past 5. haha. Stacks look cool, but unless you're playing a huge venue you'll never get the most out of them. Small amps are better for recording in my opinion as well...

Originally Posted by: aschleman... So it'd be a "half of a half stack".... haha

lol....guess you got a quarter stack there!

You are right about the troubles of lugging a big amp, cabs around etc. But I still like the looks and the sound better personally.

Does the "Burn" channel sound like a modern distortion channel, or is it more of an highly overdriven crunch sound?

Ah, tonequest! :D

If you plan to use this for a gig-rig, go with the 1/4 stack. Loading in and out of a club is so much easier with the amp and speakers separate. And if you have other cabs, you can mix & match for more tonal versatility.

Quest on!

Originally Posted by: alucard0941Does the "Burn" channel sound like a modern distortion channel, or is it more of an highly overdriven crunch sound?

If you go here http://fender.com/products/search.php?partno=2160500400 they have sound files that you can listen to.

IT can get a good "modern" distortion sound... but it's still a tad bit on the weak side. With an overdrive pedal I'm sure it will sound amazing though. The Burn channel sounds pretty good by itself... It doesn't hold up to the JCM8 that I have but it gets close enough that I can use a pedal or two to put the tone where it needs to be. I don't use a lot of heavy tones when I play so it's not that big of a deal to me... This amp is more for players that play a lot of clean stuff or overdriven stuff like SRV... and also classic rock and sutff like that. It can do the heavy rock thing but you'll need a few pedals... I personally can play a whole set with just this amp... granted I'll have to tweak a few knobs here and there between a few songs but mostly it gets so many different tones it almost seems like it's a modeling amp... but it's not. The Vibrolux/Bassman feature is killer for vintage tones.

Have you tried Line 6 amps?
I really like the flextone III 2x12's, it has built in fx like multiple delays, chorus, flanger and a wide variety of reverb types...
It also stores presets with your fx and amp settings :)
Best of all, you can connect it to your pc and download updates 'n presets hehe...
The one thing I love the most is the fact that its overall awesome for vintage and modern sounds alike!
Let me know :p

Originally Posted by: x_vince_xHave you tried Line 6 amps?
I really like the flextone III 2x12's, it has built in fx like multiple delays, chorus, flanger and a wide variety of reverb types...
It also stores presets with your fx and amp settings :)
Best of all, you can connect it to your pc and download updates 'n presets hehe...
The one thing I love the most is the fact that its overall awesome for vintage and modern sounds alike!
Let me know :p

We have a Flextone 2 halfstack in our studio with an FB4 pedal... It's a nice amp but The tone isn't genuine. I've played tons of modeling amps and I've been impressed with many of them... But no matter how hard a solid state amp tries... it just can't duplicate tube tone in all aspects. Most (99.9%) of modeling amps are designed on the basis of a mic'd version of whatever amp is being modeled... You hear whatever the amp sounds like at a certain saturation level and nothing else... You don't get the reaction of a real tube amp to different saturation levels and so on...

My motto is: If you want the real thing, play the real thing. Anything else is just an imposter.

Modeling amps are very very nifty, don't get me wrong. They pack more bang for your buck than any other amp out there... giving a lot of tonal possibilites... But the SuperSonic gives you the circuitry of a tube amp with vintage and modern settings... Something that you can't find anywhere else. The Line 6 amps are awesome for players looking for a great amp on a low budget... But if you got the cash, there's no substitute for the real thing.

Originally Posted by: aschleman... The Line 6 amps are awesome for players looking for a great amp on a low budget... But if you got the cash, there's no substitute for the real thing.

+1,000,000 :D

ive spent a few minutes listening to the audio samples they have....i really love the clean tone. im really picky when it comes to what kind of clean tones i use (mainly becuase i use them alot) but i really liked the bassman's overall feel. that amp has a good vibe, for sure.

Originally Posted by: quickfingersive spent a few minutes listening to the audio samples they have....i really love the clean tone. im really picky when it comes to what kind of clean tones i use (mainly becuase i use them alot) but i really liked the bassman's overall feel. that amp has a good vibe, for sure.

The one thing that Fender amps do very very well... better than almost any other amp... is getting good clean tone. Fender's clean tone is like Marshalls JCM tone... it's pretty much the trademark of their amp line. That's why I like the SuperSonic... It would allow me to have my modern distorted tones with my Fender clean tones in one amp... Rather than lugging my JCM AND my Blues Deluxe around everywhere.

Fender clean tones are my favorite.