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Here we go guys, informative video and silly video...
Will it do jazz?
Who knows, but consumer product for your drawing room it looks good..
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11-01-2013 07:09 AM
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"the volume goes up to 16...that's 5 louder than some other amps".
Gimme a break. Not sure which was the 'informative' video as they both seemed qualified to be the silly one...either one would put me off.
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On paper it has some promise but reading the specs on the Fender site, it appears that it's like the Excelsior: no tone controls so you have no ability to dial in the tone to your liking without using an external EQ. I'm not sure why they do that. Do they really think that everyone wants the amp to sound exactly the same?
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"The volume goes up to 16...that's 5 louder than some other amps"
like wtf??
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mmm
Originally Posted by Jim Soloway
probably.
They're tapping a market - guys who are into funky old amps from the 60s but don't want the hassle of combing through seedy pawn shops or repairing dodgy amps. Lifestyle products. Fender has tried serious jazz amps within the last decade and I don't believe they sold particularly well. The nostalgia items fly out the door. Witness Gibson faithfully re-creating the 52 Gold Top with all its failings.
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I suspect it has little clean headroom. No thanks.
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I'm not so sure about that. What they call the "cool" input should keep the signal fairly low as it hits the preamp. It's powered by a 6L6 so it could have some headroom in the amp stage and the 12 inch speaker again could provide a bit of headroom. But with no way to dial it in I just don;t see how to make it work for much of anything as a self-contained unit. Originally Posted by BigDaddyLoveHandles
I know that Fender doesn't see much market in the jazz world and I'm ok with that. There are lots of non-jazz specific amps that can be useful to a jazz player at moderate volume levels. I just wish that they would put a bit less emphasis on fashion at the expense of function.
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if that thing is already breaking up at 9 o clock in the cool mode with (weak) humbuckers, then it just isn't going to work for me. and i didn't hear much indication the cleans were more than just fine. never mind that everything in those videos demoing the hot side was pure, unadulterated ass. i'd expect more from something that size.
i can certainly appreciate its simplicity (and aesthetic), but a small, bedroom/studio amp that only has one knob to control both volume and breakup (and tone, i guess) isn't for me. not having a separate gain control sort of defeats the purpose of a small "quiet time" amp. one vol, one tone and maybe a third knob or a flippy switch if you insist on a mode for rocking out. even a one vol, bright/dark switch would be plenty for this sort of thing. don't hate the idea, but i'm sticking with the ac4hw1.
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I think they are trying to do a modded supro
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They're obviously tapping into a market, but there are a lot of similar "bedroom" amps out there--Epi Valve Jr., Fender Champ 600, Gretsch and Vox offerings, etc. I think it looks really cool--prob for guys whose wives and girlfriends aren't too keen on them turning the living room or bedroom into a "music room" with a bunch of guitar crap. Or women whose husbands and boyfriends--no it's definitely for guys...
Re' the one knob thing, it's not as big a deal as you might think. The Epi Valve Jr. (5W, 8") is plenty loud and clean up to about 12 o'clock, at which point the overdrive kicks in. It is a 6L6 tube amp too which has a sweet warm jazzy tone. You can control the tone with your guitar knobs, ya know...
On the other hand, I am also perplexed with music companies trying to put out a trendy, gimmicky me-too product instead of either redefining what's out there or coming up with a truly innovative instrument or amp. As positive examples, Godin has updated traditional archtop and thinline offerings with its 5th Ave. and Montreal lines--quality products at decent prices. They have also had great innovations in terms of acoustic ampification and synthesizer connectivity.
The Super Champ XD is a good example of taking a great tube amp design, updating the electronics and making it extremely versatile at a good price.
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I don't think I'm the demographic being targeted by this bit of marketing.
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I don't think I can find strong enough terms to express how strongly I disagree with this. If an amp is way too bright or way too dark, there is noting I can do with the tone controls on my guitar that will adequately correct that. Originally Posted by Doctor Jeff
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Tell us how you really feel Jim... Originally Posted by Jim Soloway
;-)
Seriously, I see what you're saying, but most of these amps are voiced for a certain tone, and if you like that tone, you don't need to do a lot of knob fiddling. My Valve Jr is warm and tubey, definitely not too bright. I guess my point is I almost never change the settings on my other amps. If they came with a "medium" tone setting I would be happy.
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I guess I just remember how incredibly unhappy I was when I bought an Excelsior, another amp Fender built with no tone controls. I tried everything I could with every guitar I owned and could't get a single sound out of it that worked for me unless I put something between me and the amp that had some tone controls. I think that amp may have only stayed with me for one day. I also tried a much more expensive amp last year that had no tone controls. It was beautifully designed, beautifully crafted and I couldn't get a single usable sound from it. Originally Posted by Doctor Jeff
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Looks like a similar (cheap, tiny magnet) speaker too. I had an Excelsior, and went to the trouble of adding a tone control and even spending $$$ putting a Weber Alnico in it... you can't polish a turd. The Excelsior (and this new Ramparte), seem to do 2 things: nice low volume cleans, very tactile and responsive due to the short signal path... and a garage-y ratty overdrive. All things considered, I'll stick to my PRRI for lower-volume stuff. Originally Posted by Jim Soloway
I do love the cloth covering tho- very sharp.Last edited by ruger9; 11-02-2013 at 08:39 AM.
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I had a Chinese Fender transistor "champ" style too. I don't know why the Fender marketing people even bother
putting Leo's good name on these pieces of crap! They break up and clip easily and the crappy chinese speaker
with the tiny magnet is...well I've already said it. Pressboard cabinet with 4 screws to hold the speaker baffle in.
I got it for a young kid starting off at a pawn shop..yes a real pawn shop.
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Well let's just say that IF I was the one accused of having too much "guitar crap"....I'd be keeping my guitars and amps and giving the "wife or gf" ...the boot! Originally Posted by Doctor Jeff
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Careful now.....somebody might give YOU the boot.....
Actually there is at least one woman on the forum who decorates with "guitar crap".......she play's em too.
Here's how I spent a delightful evening just recently....would you believe candlelight and incense too?
I think these look quite good with the decor don't you?
Di (aka zizala)
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zizala..I don't care. I'm trying to give an opinion and interjected sometimes with a bit of levity (humour) and Originally Posted by zizala
I get someone out of the blue (woman or whomever they choose to be with that internet Id) and they give
me a lambasting calling me names. I will not take that lying down or whatever. If someone directs what I
would call "forumn abuse" at me personally, I WILL fight back in kind. I did not start this with whatever
her name is...but I will finish it if he/she persists in attacking me again personally.
They can skip over my reply. If a forum member disagrees with my opinion (such as it is) then address the
issue that is causing the disagreement..don't attack me personally.
Fine, but she (if that who is was) had no business attacking me personally just because she got annoyedActually there is at least one woman on the forum who decorates with "guitar crap".......she play's em too.
with my reply. This a PUBLIC forum..and everyone is entitled to an opinion. I was polite in my reply to "her"
but I won't be next time she attacks me again. I have been to other forums and it always seems to
be this way..
Very nice vintage Gibson amps you have there. Describe them to me. Is that an E-125?Here's how I spent a delightful evening just recently....would you believe candlelight and incense too?
I think these look quite good with the decor don't you?
Di (aka zizala)
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I just love those amps you have there, real nice. Have you tried a Trace Elliot Vellocette? They ended up as the Gibson GA 15. Originally Posted by zizala
Here's how I spent a delightful evening just recently.
Di (aka zizala)
As for the Ramparte (amp~art?).....
I think that marketing plays a big part on manufacturers decision to pitch 'product' to different wage earners. Fender is certainly king of this.
Now I'm not knocking Fender, they are in business to make money and I'm grateful for their buy out from CBS and their massive turnaround to make great musical instruments, furthermore I guess they aced the low cost small valve amp side with their Super Champ XD/X2. So for me this amp is just 'fluff' for consumers. I'll just wait a few years until they become unfashionable and end up in garbage/rubbish dumps for me to find and then it'll be awesome!
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A very clean/warm sounding Excelsior
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These amps do stir quite a stew in the pot don't they ?
I didn't frequent forums back when Epiphone came out with the Valve Jr. To those who did, was there such negativity as we are seeing with the Pawnshop amps ? Just because the Valve Jr had no tone control ?
I admit I spent about 2 minutes at most the first time I plugged into an Excelsior. I rejected it as having too much mid-range. But after thinking about it, I thought I might be a bit too comfy with my "scooped mids" settings on my amps that I tend to favor in my little practice space. I also recalled a video I had recently watched, where Jeff McErlain talked about adjusting an amp for the neck pup and then using the guitar controls for changes in tone. I also realized I already owned a Barber Barb EQ which had worked so well with other one and two knob amps I had owned.
Sure enough, after actually taking time to learn how to use the Excelsior, I found it to be a decent amp. Even stock. While it's true I still don't care for the Excelsior without using the Barb EQ, with the pedal in line I can get some quite usable sounds out of the amp. And once I set the amp and pedal to the neck pup of my Tele or my Melody Maker, I can get a fairly wide range of tones with guitar's controls.
Anyhow, my point in all of this is that amps like these that don't have two or three knob eq controls just have to be approached differently than amps that do. Imo, the common mods such as speaker changes and replacing the tone switch with a pot is the wrong approach to making the Excelsior sound better.
Again, jmo, feel free to disagree.
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I don't doubt that adding a Barber Barb EQ would make these amps much more useful but the need to add a $150 pedal to a $300 or $400 amp changes the terms of the discussion substantially.
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Originally Posted by Hugh Walter Jennings
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A very clean/warm sounding Excelsior
I remember the Sylvania brand of 12au7. Medium Mu Triode. Is this the tube out of
the Excelsior amp?
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Hi Daniel, that's just a photo I got from a google search.
I have an Amperex Holland 12AU7 in my Excelsior's V1 spot. And I actually salvaged that tube out of an old Motorola console stereo. Sounds great, but I'd guess a NOS one would sound even better.
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