Gear Review: Add Me To the Super Champ XD Likers

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stevieb

Just another guy, really.
Got one in partial trade for the vintage Pro Reverb. I'd played them before, briefly, and liked them.

PLUSSES:
1. Good tube tone, even before you push the power tubes hard.
2. Modeling does sound pretty good (Example: compared the three "British" settings to my EL-84-equipped Peavey Bravo- pretty close.)
3. Three different settings on each effect (tremolo, delay, etc) PLUS "Effect Level" controls means that the DSP effects actually sound much like what they are supposed to and you can control them.
4. This should make for a good recording amp- Line out is nice feature, quiet idle (main thing I like about the SC over the VC)
5. Light weight.

MINUSES:
1. Yeah, the original 10" speaker is light on bass, but I plugged a Jensen 12 (in an open-backed cab) in it's place and bass was greatly improved.
2. Lack of aux. speaker plug, but that's easily overcome by making your own Y cable.
3. (Biggest hate on this thing) Fender's propriatary foot-switch "program" means I gotta spend another $20 on a foot pedal, instead of using the switch and TRS cable that works on everything else.
 
welcome to the "likers" club.

true, the SCXD has minuses right alongside the pluses, but it has a whole lot of pluses for the money.

Y-cable, you say? how you gonna pair the 8-ohm internal speaker with another 8 ohm to get an 8-ohm load? if you can do it, i'm interested.

don't forget to set the bias - it'll sound even better.
 
Now, working from memory, but if you use a Y cable, it puts the two speakers in parallel, right? 8 = 8 /2 = 8 ohms, right?
 
stevieb said:
Now, working from memory, but if you use a Y cable, it puts the two speakers in parallel, right? 8 = 8 /2 = 8 ohms, right?
Click to expand...

well, if my "R-ithmetic" serves me right 8/2 = 4 and that's one of the two possible results: you can either run two 8's in series and it'll be a 16-ohm load or you can run them in parallel and it'll be a 4-ohm load. And you don't want to have a 4-ohm with SCXD - it wants minimum 8 ohm loads. A 16-ohm is ok - I've played mine through a 16-ohm 2x12 cab - it sounds fine, but probably would sound better if the cab was 8-ohm (this I don't know for a fact).

It would take four 8-ohm speakers in a series/parallel (hybrid) circuit to create an 8-ohm load. And it would probably be cheaper (and better) to just buy/build a 2x12 or even a 1x12 cab and drive it with SCXD (it does sound great driving cabs).

I've explored this and seems there's no easy way to make a simple "plug'n'play" "extension speaker" connection on SCXD - you EITHER use the internal 10" OR you drive a cab, but not both. Me, I've embraced that - I enjoy the portability when going to practice and when it drives a cab - well, I enjoy the projection.
 
UPDATE:

I used the SCXD last night with my too-big guitar group rehersal, and I was very pleased with it. The amp, my music, wah pedal, harmonica case, etc.- everything I needed except guitars and stands, went in the same Pelican case that my Deluxe Reverb usually travels in- the SCXD left room for all the other stuff, where the Deluxe takes all the space. It allowed me to leave almost all my pedals and/or multi-effects pedals at home- all I brought was my wah and a hand-held tuner. The wah went between guitar and amp, and I set the tuner on top of the amp and plugged it into the LINE output. For rehersal, I found voice #4 and #5 respond well to higher gain settings while also having fairly low volumes- I could drive the tubes a bit harder than with any other tube amp I have, and not drown everybody else out. It made for some pretty sweet tone. Even our "other" electric guitarist, who is a SS snob (never would have thought such a person exisited) was impressed by the tones I was getting. He favors a Roland Jazz amp- I let him play thru the SCXD set at voice 15 ("Jazz") with the on-board chorus (his favorite effect) and he was impressed. With a careful selection of guitar- a hollow-body electric- even the "accoustic" voice could make that guitar sound like enough like a dreadnaught.

The "Portable Holy Grail" for me has been a "two handle" rig. It would consist of one handle on the amp, the second one on a guitar case. Everything else I need would tuck into either the bottom of the amp cab or the guitar case. The whole rig would be small enough to fit in any car, or for that matter on a motorcycle or bicycle, and be light enough for me to get it from vehicle to stage in one trip without ever having to stop and take a rest. Although I didn't go "two-handled" last night, I believe I have found the amp that will allow me to do so when I choose.

I tried the Peavey footswitch I have, which has a TRS plug and two footswitches (but no printed circuit board like the Fender ones) and it ALMOST worked- I could turn the effect on and off with it, but it also switched from channel 2 to channel 1 at the same time- and would not switch back. Basically, I had one shot at switching, and then I had to unplug and replug the footswitch to get it to work a second time, etc. etc. I was hoping I could use a single-button switch or plug the TRS in to the first position, but neither worked. Oh, well. I guess I gotta buy a foot switch, too.

I would like to complain about the SCXD not having an effects loop, but the truth is, I don't need one with this amp- I am quite pleased with the on-board effects (I even find the 3 tremolo speeds to be enough) and Wah works just fine, in-line.

I would like more bass, and Gear-Junkie is right- no practical way to drive both the on-board 10 and a 12-cab, too. I think what I might do is build a head cab (he SCXD chassis is not very tall) and a speaker cab. Maybe multiple cabs- a twin 8, a single 12, a twin 12.

If anyone knows of a 10 that has 12-like bass but also mids and highs, I might just put one of those in the original cab and be done.

All in all, I think I have found "the one."

For now.
 
Well, I'm glad to see you enjoying it and it's always nice to see reviews by people who own other tube amps. I've never owned a tube amp, although I try to play different ones for reference.

+1 on the "two-handle approach" - that's my goal too.

Re: MORE BASS - the most popular "mod" for the SCXD is the Ragin' Cajun speaker - that's precisely what people report - improved bass - among other things. Me, I thought I'd be happier with an alnico speaker, so I got me Jensen p10r, but I think RC is popular for a reason. Apparently it's very neutral and lets the SCXD's models sound good.

Re: FX LOOP - there is a "mod" to add a "line in" to use with the "line out" as an FX LOOP, but it VOIDS THE WARRANTY.

Since you're already talking about cabs (and departing from the 2-handle paradigm) and since you already have other tube amps - just run the line-out from SCXD into the "line in" (or FX-return) on your other tube amp - you'll get 2 benefits - 1. multiple speakers (I call this a pseudo-stack, although in my case i'm using a cheap 12" solid-state bass amp, but still sounds great - SCXD has a very good line-out signal) AND 2. you get a pseudo FX Loop - just put your modulation effects (chorus, delay, reverb, etc.) between the 2 amps (i.e. SCXD Line-Out -> chorus -> Amp B Line-In) - SCXD will project "dry" signal, while the other amp will have "wet" (so you'll probably want to crank the "mix" knob on the pedals, if they have it). Also, if you put amps on the floor (instead of stacking them) you'll actually get stereo.

Re: FOOTSWITCH - they are now available at online retailers - $20, not a lot for a brand-name footswitch. You get 2 buttons - channel and effect. Not bad.

Re: CABS - yes, SCXD sounds great driving a good cab. But also, if you got money to burn - there's companies that'll make enclosures to turn the SCXD into a 12" combo. That way you can also customize the tolex/grillecloth. IMHO the money is better spent buying a cab and you'll still have some left for the Ragin' Cajun.

And again, don't forget to set the bias - it makes the amp sound even better.
 
Like your suggestion for the psudo effects loop, GJ, but really, I have no need for an effects loop, as the SCXD has all the effects I want (except Wah) on board. But wait a min- are you telling me that the line-out signal from the SCXD is withOUT the effects? What's the point in that? I haven't tried it, (yes, I know it would be absurdly easy to do so...) but really, that can't be right... can it?

Actually, I was looking at a little Fender Frontman 25B bass amp I have, and thinking, "hey, there's a 12" speaker and good bass.. just go from SCXD line out to the 25B..."

If the Ragin Cajun speaker will give me th bass I want, that would be the bee's knees, for sure. Plus, I am from SW Louisiana...

And I have pretty much decided to order the footswitch from Sam Ash.

I think the ultimate, stereo SCXD setup would be two SCXD's, set to the same on-board effect, but the guitar signal going to them both via a y cable or ABY box. I suspect the two SCXD's effects would not be in perfect phase with each other, and would thus give you a great stereo effect. 'Course, you could set one to, say, chorus and the other to tremolo... Man, I wish I could afford a second SCXD!

But wait a minuite- this site:
http://www.guitarplayer.com/article/the-patriots/Jan-05/422

Seems to say that the Copperhead 10 has more bass than the Ragin Cajun?
 
yes, SCXD has all the effects (and yes, they come out through Line Out too), but say you want some vibrato WITH reverb? Can't do it on SCXD. Me, I don't consider reverb an effect (except when cranked), to me a touch of reverb is a necessary part of sound, like the tube amp itself.

and i wouldn't break my head too much over the speaker choice. if you think the speaker description matches your intended sound, go with it, ANY good aftermarket speaker will sound good (and much better).

but MANY people reviewed RC in SCXD, I haven't seen any reviews of the copperhead.

actually, if i was to do it again, i'd get a weber. a signature 10s. half the money of the jensen.
 
Yeah, now that you mention it, you can get 'verb with chorus and verb with delay, and chorus with delay, but no 'verb and tremolo. That IS a irritating thing. Given that the majority of reverb AND the majority of tremolo pedals are either dissapointing or very pricy, I'd think Fender would have covered that.

Oh, well. Gotta be at least ONE fly in the ointment, I guess.

Wow, those Webers Signature 10's are cheap- only about $30 each for the ceramic, $45 for Alnico. But posters here:
http://www.tdpri.com/forum/amp-cent...ramic-alnico-signature-10s-whos-tried-em.html
Said they were lacking on bass... would mag. material make a dif. in bass?
 
if you are that insistent on bass, get the ragin' cajun.

but personally, i think you'd enjoy the sweetness of the Weber Alnico 10s. and leave the bass to an external cab.

the likes of Jensen p10r may be "lacking" bass in comparison to some ceramic speakers, but it doesn't mean they're bass-challenged, it's just a bit smoother. it's certainly a better bass than the stock.

speaking of good-sounding tremolos - i just bought the danelectro "mini" pedal - the "Tuna Melt" - I also bought the "Chicken Salad" vibrato, the "Milkshake" chorus, "Surf & Turf" compressor. They might look a tad dorky (but i like that) and they might seem cheaply made, but you can get them used for $15-20 and they sound GREAT.

It'd be pointless to talk about boutique effects here, but compared to Boss pedals (I used to own many of those) these plain sound better. They also sound better than the SCXD chorus/vib/trem - I really like them. They're not really for "stomping" - I plug in one or two and keep them on top of the amp.

And if you don't like, you can always get your $15-20 back :rolleyes:

But if you read reviews you'll see that a lot of people are impressed.
 
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