Time for a New Amp?

Having moved into a new house that is fully detached, with a (mostly) unused and unfinished basement, I've found myself wanting to return to the land of bigger amps.  I have no desire to sell the wee Marshall, but I have wanted something a bit different that would lead me back down the road of pedals.

So does a current piece get moved to fund this little adventure?  Maybe.

The most likely candidate to go?  The Les Paul Studio.  I can hear my brother roll his eyes now.  In a case of "they know you better than you know yourself", he's always been skeptical of my relationship with any Gibson.

In fact, when I mentioned to him that I was probably going to keep this one, he responded:

"For now anyway."

So for the past week or so, I've been scouring Kijiji for amps that might fit the bill.  Some would all but require I sell the Les Paul to fund, others perhaps not so much.  Funny thing about almost all of them is that I've owned each in one version or another in a previous life.

Fender Deluxe Reverb Reissue in Pink Paisley - $1350

I owned a Deluxe Reverb about 10 years ago, having acquired it in a trade for the Maz 38 Senior and the Leyland Audio 2x12 cabinet (along with a Les Paul DC Faded and some cash).  I was a great amp, and took pedals very well.  Unfortunately, that was a time when I was living in an apartment, so even the mere 22 watts of the DRRI were too much to get anything meaningful going.

Aside from that, I always took a dim view of the two channel approach.  The normal channel sounded much better to my ears, but removed the reverb and tremolo from the circuit.  The channel with the 'verb and 'trem was much brighter to my ears, though I'll admit that not getting the amp up to volume probably contributed to a lack of frequency smoothing.

But let's be honest - what really draws me to this amp is the limited edition finish - Fender's Pink Paisley.  No I'm no fool - this "limited edition" is hardly limited, but it is still a superb looking amp and conversation piece.

Still, $1350 for an amp that would regularly be in the $800-$900 range if not for the limited finish is a bit rich for my blood.  At $1,100 though, I'd have to think about it.

Fender Super Sonic 60 1x12 Combo - $600

Another Fender I owned more recently (which was traded for the '85 Fender Contemporary Stratocaster, which lead to this blog...), the Super Sonic is a cool two channel amp with a unique approach to the second channel (labelled "Burn").

Rather than a typical "gain" and "master" setup, this thing has two gain controls.  One focuses on mid to high frequencies, the other on low to mid.  It's a cool setup that allows for some pretty unique gain flavours.  I recall the clean channel (offering two flavours of clean) being just "ok".

Looks like my hunch about the value of these was spot on years back.  I had someone comment to me on a forum that they thought the trade for Contemporary Stratocaster favoured the other guy.  Turns out I sold the Contemporary for more than this is being offered at, so...

Fender Blues Junior - $400

A version 1 or 2 of the ever popular Blues Junior, though I can't tell which without seeing the circuit board.  What strikes me about this offering is the condition and the price.  $400 is about what you would have paid 10 years ago, and with the emphasis lately being on lower powered tube combos, I've seen these listed used as high as $600.

This is a strong contender for "get it and don't sell anything else", but of all the amps listed here it might be the one I'd be least excited about.

Wonder if they'd take $350...

Fender Hot Rod Deville 4x10 - $450

The Blues Junior's Biggest Brother (BJBB?).  At $450 this is certainly a steal for anyone needing a flexible amp with enough power to get you through any situation short of playing a full arena.  the four ten inch speakers put out a wonderful "thud" in the low end, and having owned one of these before, I can tell you that when combined with a Fulltone OCD, the sound is impressive.

Word of warning though - this sucker is heavy.

Mesa Single Rectifier with 2x12 Mesa Cabinet - $1500

Yup, I owned one of these heads as well, though I used it through my brother's Peavey 4x12.  Great sounding amp, especially for hard rock, and certainly more than enough power.  The price here is a bit high if you ask me - My thinking is $800-900 for the head, and $500-$600 for the cab, putting this on the high end of both.

Aside from the price (which might be negotiated down a bit), I'm probably looking for something with a more dynamic clean channel.  Don't get me wrong, the clean on this amp is nice, but it isn't quite the flavour I'm looking for.  What's more, I've always found this amp likes the humbuckers better than single coils, and purchasing this would mean selling the Les Paul, so...

Dr. Z Maz 18 Junior 1x12 - $1750

Last but certainly not least, the Dr. Z Maz 18.  I've often mentioned my love of the Dr. Z Maz 38 I used to own, and funny enough, I funded THAT purchase with the sale of my first Les Paul Studio.

The seller notes that they're taking offers, so this one might be had for as low as $1,500, but there's a catch: the seller is located in northern Ontario, meaning at least a 12 hour drive to make this happen.

At that distance, they'd have to be selling for $500 to get me to make that sort of trip.