[hugo]

New to the site, so hello to all.
I'm having a hard time (typical newb), picking an am to go with my tele. I think Fender is the way to go with a tele. I have one problem though. All the salespeople have different opinions as to what I should buy wattage wise. I'm brand new to guitar (obviously). I'm taking my first lesson this week. I have a fender american deluxe series tele. There's the Bluesjunior at 15 watts. Then the Deluxe 40 watts and then the Deville 60 watts. Is the Bluesjunior loud enough for where I'm at? Or should I get the Deluxe @ 40 watts? I could buy the Blues one and then buy another one when I get good. The only thing is...the smaller the amp the less it can do, right? I feel like I'm pulling my hair out! It's a lot of cash to put out so I don't want to make a mistake.

 

[GuitarsCanada]

If you are like many of us and you are going to be a bedroom player.. than you will need to consider what volumes you are going to be playing at. An all tube 50 or 100 watt amp is useless IMO if you can't crank it. There are lots of 15 watt amps that are nice. Since you are just starting out, I recommend not spending a ton of money right now. Try the amps out first, see what kind of features you want. If it sounds good to you, than buy it. Never mind all the salespeople. Tone, amps and guitars are all subject to the person playing them.

 

[Tarbender]

The Blues Jr. is an outstanding amp for the price. And don't let the low wattage number fool you. This amp puts out alot of volume for it's power rating. And has a lot of nice features like the Master volume and reverb.

 

[Scottone]

The Blues Jr. is an outstanding amp for the price. And don't let the low wattage number fool you. This amp puts out alot of volume for it's power rating. And has a lot of nice features like the Master volume and reverb.

The Pro Jr. is also a great amp for the money and IMO sounds great with a tele.

 

[david henman]

...ditto for the pro junior. another great amp in this range is the traynor ycv20wr.

the bigger amps you mention are overkill, in my opinion, unless you plan to be performing on stage real soon.

-dh

 

[Jeff Flowerday]

3rd vote for Pro Jr.

 

[el84]

The Blues Jr. is an outstanding amp for the price. And don't let the low wattage number fool you. This amp puts out alot of volume for it's power rating. And has a lot of nice features like the Master volume and reverb.

I agree DON'T let the low wattage fool ya 15 watts is pretty loud and my even be a little too loud for bedroom use But I would also agree not to let a salesman tell you what amp you need!!!!!!!! Play a few,at all different volumes oh and bring your axe when you try out the amps,I always do this,just seems to be a little more comefortable that way! After you play a few you can tell the salesman what amp you want!:rockon:
D

 

[G.A.S. Man]

I think that we all agree that your opinion is the most important when you are considering buying an amp or guitar. Just make sure that it can produce the type of sounds you like. Guitars and amps all have their own characteristic sounds. You have to experiment and try as many as you can before you make your decision to purchase.

If you are uncertain what type of amp sound you like you may want to pick up something like a Line 6 modelling amp. These amps model a wide range of classic and boutique amplifiers. For practicing in your bedroom one of these amps may do the trick.

If you do decide to go with a Fender Blues Jr. don't worry about it being low wattage. Lots of guitar players prefer the sound of a low wattage amp being pushed to it's limits. And in the event you end up playing in a band or at a gig you (as most guitarists do) could always mic the amp.

One word of caution.... Beware of G.A.S. (Gear Acquisition Syndrome). I've been affected by it as may others have too. Thats how I ended up with a Fender Blues Jr, a Fender Blues Deluxe, a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe, a Fender Band Master, a Peavey Blues Classic, a Marshall JCM 600, a Traynor Bass Master, a Traynor Studio Mate... to mention a few, and don't get me started on guitars.

Good luck! :rockon:

 

[washburned]

consider

Take the fifteen watt Pro jr. Remove the stock "Special Design" Eminence speaker. Invest $100 in an Eminence Ragin Cajun (100dB efficiency) and stand back. Tone heaven and equivalent to most 40 and 50 watters with stock speakers. Funny thing about amp watts vs volume; because volume change is perceived logarithmically, it takes 10 times the power to sound twice as loud.

 

[sesroh]

ive used both fender and marshall amps with my tele. i definately prefer marshall for that awesome crunchy tele sound but a fender is the way to go if you want mostly straight up clean tele

 

[torndownunit]

Another decent choice if you know you are just learning, and might be bedroom playing for awhile is the Epiphone Valve Junior Combo. They are under $200 new, and sound REALLY good for the price.

It's a 5 watt tube amp, which doesn't sound like much but it's plenty for lessons, bedroom playing, and even small jams. Basically, it's perfect for learning.

 

[hoser]

try a peavey classic 30.

 

[Tarbender]

The Epiphone Valve Jr is an excellent choice (as long as it's the ver. 2), but does require a few mods to really excel, but could suit your needs with just a simple tube swap.

 

[torndownunit]

The Epiphone Valve Jr is an excellent choice (as long as it's the ver. 2), but does require a few mods to really excel, but could suit your needs with just a simple tube swap.

Ya I forgot to mention the part about getting a NEW one :smile: . When they first came out, I never would have recommended one after trying it. But the recent ones sound a lot better and are less noisey.

There are some great amps recommended in the thread, but I question if you really even need something as powerful as 15 watts (tube). From your post I get the impression you are just getting into playing. The Epi would be a great way to 'test the waters', and you could get a larger amp down the road. I guarantee you get value for your money out of it.

 

[bRian]

Don't overlook a used amp and don't worry about wattage right now. Your family probably won't be too impressed with a loud amp. A Hotrod Deluxe won't get turned past 3 in your house, trust me. I picked up a Peavey Backstage Plus(older wide aluminum strips) for my son's friend last year, he's 14. I was so impressed by this brute that I bought my son the same amp when he told me he wanted a guitar. I paid $100 for both, found one locally and picked up the other on the net. Check the local buy and sell papers too, as well as the pawn shops, you should end up with twice the amp at half the price of new. Good luck.

 

[Brian G]

My .02 cents here - on the assumption that you'll play at home, a situation I can relate to. I use low to medium volume levels. I think the point is not so much that anything above 15 watts is too loud, but rather that a very low powered tube amp that you can dial up more will sound better than a higher powered amp that is barely "cracked". The dilemna comes up when you want a really exceptional sound quality, which you can enjoy however well you play.

Not recomendations, but for example, a little ZVex Nano head with a small (say, 1 x 12) speaker cab would sound incredible, and is only .5 watts. Another example is the Carr Mercury, which is a high-end 1 x 12 combo, and has power scaling down to very low wattages, allowing the output stage to work in its "sweet zone" at lower volumes.

At more "practical" cost levels, a Valve Jr. is probably a great place to start, but this is going to be a "one or two sounds" solution, so make sure you like the tones with your Tele. Alternatively, something like the smaller Vox ADVT amps also sound great, and model a few different tones pretty convincingly (you can go from a clean channel voiced like a Fender Tweed to Marshall-cooking-hard-like distortion. The 30 watter is a good all-rounder, and includes power scaling for lower volume use. Vox uses a 12AX7 tube with a special output circuit built around it to emulate full tube amp character.

If you wind up looking at something a bit higher quality, look at the Rivera Pubster or Clubster series - very versatile, lots of options to modify the amps tones with pull-switches etc. Beautiful Fender-style cleans and great overdrive. Getting into enough power for smaller venue stages, though.

Whatever you get, you have to really love the tones together with your guitar - it will make you want to play and practice more.

Brian