Advice needed

jmac

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I'm looking into buying a Fender DeVille 2x12 60 Watts, tubes.

But...some guy on craigslist is looking for a good technician to work on his DeVille because he says he doesn't often play it loud, and (he says) at low volumes the tone on the DeVille is poor.

My band isn't very loud, so I'd like to know if the guy's comments are valid.

What are your thoughts? I may be buying an amp by thursday, so I'm a little anxious about making the right purchase.

Thanks

Jake
 
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Others will be able to guide you better than I can, but tube amps sound best when they are pushed somewhat. They all have a "sweet spot" that can be found by driving them out of the comfort zone a little. 60W is actually a pretty hefty amp. I have a 30W 2x12 that (I think) is plenty loud for about any small R&R band. 60W might be too much for your application if you are going to have it just at practice or at gigs where the amp can be mic'ed. The sound guy (or the neighbors) may want you to turn it down, and you may end up wishing you'd invested in a 20-30W amp that sounds awesome more often. There is a great section on this in the Guitar Amp Handbook.

But, I don't know how much headroom you think you need or how loud your drummer is. I just like the smaller stuff. High wattage amps were developed because PA equipment was poor when bands started playing larger venues. By now, it has caught up.
 

Walter Broes

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jmac said:
I'm looking into buying a Fender DeVille 2x12 60 Watts, tubes.


My band isn't very loud, so I'd like to know if the guy's comments are valid.

What are your thoughts? I may be buying an amp by thursday, so I'm a little anxious about making the right purchase.
I wouldn't buy it if I were you.....

My drummer is pretty loud, and I'm not exactly known for playing ultra-quiet, and I don't like those amps because they're just too loud. I'm used to twin 6L6 amps with 10's (I have a 2X10, 3X10, and 4X10), and the promotor-provided Deville's I've played occasionally when circumstances kept me from taking my own amp were cleaner, louder, and "stiffer-feeling" than my own amps.

Also, the overdrive channel is pretty useless unless you like full-on buzzsaw grind, and isn't exactly voiced for bright single coil pickups, the IC driven (instead of tube-driven) reverb is weak and undynamic and tends to dissappear in the band mix, ànd the Deville series isn't exactly known for reliability, great design or serviceability, and I'm being mild saying that. I think the main succes of those amps is that they look kind of like a bassman or tweed twin, have the Fender badge, are cheap for a tube amp, and seem like a great deal on paper.

I think you'd be much better off with a 65 Deluxe reverb reissue and a nice overdrive pedal, or even a Blues Junior amp if you're not a loud player at all.
Don't be put off by the Deluxe Reverb's 22 Watts - the reissues are plenty loud, have that classic blackface Fender amp tone, great classic Fender reverb and tremolo, and they're a whole lot easier to shlep around than the big and heavy 2X12 Deville.

I'd shop around a little more, read up all you can on the www, and try before you buy - but I wouldn't recommend the Devilles or even Blues Deluxes, I just don't like those amps at all.
 

jmac

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GB, WB, and Krysh,

Thanks for the advice. I think you may have saved me from making a big mistake. I'm going to pass on the DeVille. I saw a blues junior for sale so I'll check out that instead.

Jake
 

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Walter Broes said:
Also, the overdrive channel is pretty useless unless you like full-on buzzsaw grind, and isn't exactly voiced for bright single coil pickups, the IC driven (instead of tube-driven) reverb is weak and undynamic and tends to dissappear in the band mix, ànd the Deville series isn't exactly known for reliability, great design or serviceability, and I'm being mild saying that. I think the main succes of those amps is that they look kind of like a bassman or tweed twin, have the Fender badge, are cheap for a tube amp, and seem like a great deal on paper.

I'd shop around a little more, read up all you can on the www, and try before you buy - but I wouldn't recommend the Devilles or even Blues Deluxes, I just don't like those amps at all.

Jeez Walter, would you stop being so coy and tell us what you really think? :lol:

I'm not a gigging muscian by any stretch of the imagination, but +1 on 6v6's and +1 on the play before pay.
 

Walter Broes

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:lol:

Open one up Steve, and try to repair it, and see how nicely it's made, I'm sure you'll agree then! :lol:
 

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The overdrive channel on my Princeton was useless too. Not that I care, I have no interest in that sound, but even for an overdrive sound, it was pretty ugly.
 

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Walter Broes said:
:lol:

Open one up Steve, and try to repair it, and see how nicely it's made, I'm sure you'll agree then! :lol:

I'll pass! I've got way too many good sounding amps to bother!
 

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Yeah, I think you're much better looking at Blues Juniors or Pro Juniors, especially if your band isn't really loud. Pro Juniors (my favorite modern era amp offering from Fender) can often be found for under $350 used.
 

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I love the pro junior. Only two control pots...volume and tone. I'm a minimalist, so I think its brilliant. BUT...I wish there was an auxiliary out, because I'm worried that the ten inch speaker isn't going to move enough air. Why doesn't it come with a twelve inch speaker?
 

Walter Broes

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Jeez Walter, would you stop being so coy and tell us what you really think? :lol:
Hmmmgrmbll.....just got home from a flight back from Frankfurt, where I filled in on guitar with Mike Sanchez' band (http://www.mikesanchez.co.uk/ ), and I got stuck with a "Hotrod Deville 4X10" amp....I really, really, seriously dislike those amps... :evil: :twisted: :twisted: :evil: :|
 

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One of the guys at work plays through one. Of course, he's got one of those all-in-one guitar effects things that sucks volume and tone out of whatever you're playing. What's his guitar?

A early to mid sixties Fender Stratocaster. :roll:
 

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steve,
and you only sit and watch/listen (have to listen/suffer/want ot kill somebody/whatever/)??? :shock:
 

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I loved my Blues Junior (12" speaker)... the spkr that came with it was adequate, but with a vintage alnico it sounded great. Sadly, I had to sell it to finance another project but it's one piece of gear I really miss. The combination of size, weight and sound made it a great working tool. I even put a mic on it and used it with a 6 pc dance band a few times and it worked great.
 

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krysh said:
steve,
and you only sit and watch/listen (have to listen/suffer/want ot kill somebody/whatever/)??? :shock:

Pretty much, Mike! The guy has been gigging for years and he plays far better drunk than I'll ever play sober. His rig can approximate a ton of different tones at the gig and that's what he cares about. Last time his Blues Deville died, I tried to talk him into a RI Deluxe, but he stuck with what he knew.
 

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Default said:
krysh said:
steve,
and you only sit and watch/listen (have to listen/suffer/want ot kill somebody/whatever/)??? :shock:

Pretty much, Mike! The guy has been gigging for years and he plays far better drunk than I'll ever play sober. His rig can approximate a ton of different tones at the gig and that's what he cares about. Last time his Blues Deville died, I tried to talk him into a RI Deluxe, but he stuck with what he knew.

I am with you steve, this s*x. but since it is a free country, everybody has the right o be wrong. :?
 

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As I continue to work on my magnum opus Legend In My Basement, Buck is supposed to come over one night. Think I'll let him play through the GA20T. That'll knock his socks off.
 

jmac

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I read all the comments and I couldn't find a "Steve", who's Steve?
 
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