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Alternatives to a Blues Junior

11K views 66 replies 27 participants last post by  cboutilier 
#1 ·
I bought a tweed Blues Junior a few months ago, and have tried to love it but keep on coming back to the fact that it's not that good an amp. I have a SFDR to compare it with and it's nowhere near that in sound quality. I hadn't played it for a few weeks and today turned it on and it sounded like a blanket was covering it, muffled and lacking in dynamics of any kind. At louder volume ti's ok, but at home, ugh. I put in a Cannabis Rex when I bought it and a better preamp tube. It was shrill before that. I love the Fender sound...Is there an alternative at even twice the price? Is it worth it to buy a PR?
 
#4 ·
Is that Jensen a P12R? If so it's Alnico, low Watt (15W), and will not take dirt well at all. I switched mine with a 90's G12T75 and it made a big difference for my style. RE: Alternative, I can't say much about that other than I took mine into a local Amp guy and he did some Mods that completely and effectively changed the BJ into a pretty nice amp that sounds entirely different than the original. If you haven't yet, check out BillM's BJ mods online. Mine are C4 mods but similar to BillM's.... a few different specs and brands involved.
 
#7 ·
Is it worth it to buy a PR
You could modify your SFDR to sound similar to a PR...study the schematics and data sheets for both models and determine the changes that have the greatest change towards a PR...implement each mod, one at a time, then test the tone, allowing plenty of warm-up time for the power tubes. It may appear time consuming but it is the most accurate method...your ears are your prime discriminator.
 
#16 ·
What are you not getting out of your DR that you’re trying to find elsewhere? I picked up a PRRI (65) as a smaller alternative to my late 60s 40-watt Fenders. I just find it feels weak compared to what I’m used to. I’ve modded it so it’s working as good as it can. Sounds way better through a 1x12 cab and I play it clean, so basically I’m better off with a DR or my big Bandmaster Reverb through a 1x12 cab.

Now, I did pick up a 15 watt Dr Z and it gave me something totally different that complements my Fenders really well.

But if you really want a PRRI, I’ll be moving mine along, but I don’t see how it would really help someone who already has a DR.
 
#34 ·
Makes me laugh that every thread on the Blues Junior is filled with awe as how good an amp it is. But it is also filled with as many post, if not more, about how there's always something that needs to be modified for it to sound good.

Not what I'd call a good amp. A good kit maybe ...
 
#39 ·
I ended up doing some of the Billm mods on my blues junior when I had one and it helped the sound quite a bit. I had a Jenson speaker in it and switched to a 70/80, either speaker sounded good with the mods. If your half decent with a soldering iron they're not too difficult but I will say Billm's website has been down for a bit now. It was active for a bit after he passed away but it looks like his son stopped running it because the site is down now.
 
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