Hot Rod Deluxe Vs. Blues Jr.

[Rickson Gracie]

Ok, I really wanted a cool tube recording amp after getting fed up with "amp modelling."

I got a nice fairly new Blues Jr used for $250 and really began to injoy the sound of this amp with my Mexican Tele. SO I thought that a Hot Rod Deluxe would be just a bigger and better sounding Blues Jr. so I went and bought one of those.

After a couple of days of messing with it I came to the conclusion that as a recording/home amp the Blues Jr. had a much more inspiring sound. It's sound is way more "spanky." It really brings out the character of the tele and makes me want to play. The Hot Rod Deluxe sounded "bigger" but didnt have the inspiring tone that I had quickly gotten used to.

Is it because the cabinet is smaller that it has that cool "spanky" tone? Anyone else had this experience?

 

[boingoman]

Is it because the cabinet is smaller that it has that cool "spanky" tone? Anyone else had this experience?

That's part of it, for sure. It has a bit less mass, so you get a bit less low end from that, and less acoustic coupling with the floor. It is also lower power, so you reach the sweet spot at lower volume. Probably the biggest difference is el-84 power tubes vs. 6L6s.
Those are great little amps.

 

[AaronK]

and part of it is that the HRD is less than an inspiring amp. very bland tone (crap speaker too), while those blues jr's are a lot warmer. also, given the wattage/volume factor, i'd say the smaller is better for home recording.

jeez. I woulda sold you my HRD for cheep ;-)