I wouldn't take the fender on account of the harshness in the upper mids that it dishes out in significant quantity--even in the clips. The Fillmore sounds like a great old Fender combo, the Blues Junior sounds like a great old Fender mixed with a great old Fender through a bullhorn. Neither amp sounds bad, but I know I could sit in a mix with the Fillmore and not have ear fatigue as a result.
I love my BJr but, at the jam/gig it would go like this… Fender: Hold on guys, have to change my setting for the next song… Mesa: Steps on foot switch and is ready to go (also has effects loop). 💁🏼♂️ I’m getting a Mesa 25 combo today, trading in my Marshall DSL 40cr (too many watts and I hurt my back so too heavy also), and keeping my tweed BJr because I love it.
@@BuddaGuedes so after playing my Fillmore 25 for about 30 min I started taking pictures of my 65 deluxe reverb so I could sell it on Craigslist. As is with everything, except science an math perhaps, tone is subjective and relative to the individual. Much respect man. 🤘🏻😷🤘🏻
That’s the biggest truth of all. All that matters is that the player enjoys the gear. We are all different and that’s the beauty of it all!! Thanks for sharing
@buddaguedes - Hey Budda, just wondering if you picked up on the weird bass note octave with the Boogie. Appears around the 5:50 mark, again around 6:10 and throughout the video... 9:30, 21:15, etc. Any idea what's happening? Might be a funky tube, bad cap, etc.
I was surprised how good the Jr. sounded . That said though I like the boogie better. I also think the boogie would work much better in a band with more pronounced mids. I could see where the Jr. would get lost in a mix. I personally like the fillmore 50 better after going and trying one out myself. It is only a couple pounds more than the 25 to carry around with more clean headroom.
First of all, you should invest in an A/B foot switch. I wish that you compared more of the Boogie features, it has three gain modes which completly change the character of the amp. Same with the Blues Jr fat switch. I appreciate what you've done here but it doesn't help me to make an informed decision
Why choose one over the other? I love my tweed Blues Jr. but agree that it breaks up early which is OK in a small jam session but in a larger live setting the higher clean headroom of the Fillmore would seem to be very useful. Assuming you keep both, wouldn't you agree that the Mesa Boogie's cleaner tone at higher volumes makes it preferable over the Blues Jr. when playing in a louder band mix?
I like both. I babe a Blues Jr. III with a JBLD120F from a ‘72 Twin Reverb. I love it. The speaker adds a lot of bass with no flub. I use a BOSS Bass EQ with most any Fender or Fender style amp. The JBL adds volume too. Consider, what if you did comparable mods to the Fillmore. You may think I’m crazy but my backup amp is an old Crate Powerblock. It weighs nothing but has incredible and sweet clean headroom. I want a Fillmore 25 combo. I have a Mark V combo but I’ve gotten older and don’t want to move it more than 3-4 meters (on wheels) lol. So really, what’s another $1599? Get the amp! Or did you already get it? Put an 12AT7 in it if it’s not clean enough.
I own a modded tweed junior with a Jenson ck12 in it and it sounds great but I would buy a Flimore in a heartbeat! Great cutting tone. Up front like all great amps not distant like most small amps sound..... saying that, the junior is a lot of bang for your buck.
I had a blues jr. Without the mods , it was too thin sounding , I just didn't like it .I have a bassbreaker 15 which is WAY better (just my opinion ) .As for the Mesa , get the 50 watt Fillmore . Not much heavier , not much more money , but a Lot more amp . It has a 25 watt switch , and 6L6 tone . It covers everything !
Yes...you don't have to cut the bass in the blues jr cranked because its firsts two preamp stages already did that highpass filter hardly for you. It is a high gain design so the distortion isn't fuzzy in comparison to the Fillmore. I loved the Fillmore tone. Seems to be more "in front" than bjr, that sounds more distant from the mic... maybe it is the surfy reverb character. To my ears each amp sounds very different from the other. Maybe the Fillmore don't worth 1k more than your current bjr. But without taking into account the price it seems to me that the fillmore offers what you need, at least more than the bjr do.
That’s great, but isn’t a comparison on equipment essentially for the people watching the video? I do think that your videos are very thorough and well executed. Not trying to be negative here - your channel is great. 👍
I now have 2 amp setup Fender tweed blues jnr and Marshall origin 20c perfect for me. Once had Mesa Subway Rocket 40 watts, was to loud could never get the valves cooking, would have had police at my door.
Not fair! Your Blues Jr is modified into a fine work of art and you putting it up against a stock Fillmore 25? in my opinion, the Masa held its own and based on your incredible playing you deserve them both!
The boogie is has that mid range umpf but it’s just hard to beat the clarity and sparkle of the Jr especially with the mods and that tele bite. It’s the most familiar to the ears. Anything you wanna do tonally should come from the Guitar’s controls and with some boost should be able cut right through. For my money I’d stick with the Jr.
If you ever find a Traynor Darkhorse you should try. It is as loud as a blues junior but very light and compact amp with great cleans, 3 voicing preamp and extremely useable eq knobs.
Is Blues jr generally louder than Deluxe 57 with Jensen? The sound on 57 is great when cranked but only on max volume is ok to play with a band, no clean of course. 57 12w bjr 15w.
The watts are different and the Fillmore sounds louder. But watts doesn’t refers to the amp’s loudness but to its power consumption. It gives you an idea but it’s not a volume measure.
BJr is always a beautiful sounding amp. But the Fillmore has more flexibility with multiple channels. Having an effects loops is big for using it in a stereo setup. Some modulation is just better after the preamp tunes Fender drives me crazy with so little effects loop options. (Bassbreaker's not my favorite.) They should have followed Marshall's lead and added it to most all vintage circuits with an on/off switch. I had a Blues Junior, but sold it and bought a Princeton with a 12" speaker. But it's not a useful and my other amps because I often like multiple amps running at the same time.
@@BuddaGuedes True, but in a wet/dry or wet/wet stereo setup, it’s difficult to pair with a Marshall, Mesa, Friedman, etc. with a loop. Especially with a pedalboard with a separate dirt section and a stereo modulation section. Have chorus or reverb, etc. tracking perfectly across amps/speakers.
Way more compression and deeper reverb in the BJ. Are the reverb settings the same? Both sound great but the Fillmore sounds a bit better to me on the cleans and worse when overdriven. The Fillmore, in my opinion, is not by any chance 1000€ better. BTW, have you ever tried the Tone Master Deluxe Reverb? I haven't had the chance and I'm very sceptical about modelling. But if by any chance it comes close to the real one but much lighter it might be a great option for a grab and go amp.
In the Mesa i hear a strange "octave effect" when you play lower stuff, I'm having fun with the tone king falcon grande (not super light but very versatile) if you need more clean headroom you should consider the victory v40
Also I never was really that impressed with the reverb on Mesa, I don't really know why, maby thats why a lot of them have the reverb knob on the back of the amp.
Actually I love Mesa Boogie reverb. My lonestar has one of the best reverb I’ve heard, and so does the Fillmore. To my taste of course. Thanks for your comment
Not a bad review. But in all fairness, you should put every knob at five on both amps so that we can hear them compared. All the tweaking is personal preference, and you really don’t know what each amp is capable of.
All Mesas always have a very high attack which causes hearing fatigue. They should add an attack knob on all their amps. I wonder if mods exist for this. My Express would be petfect with a softer attack.
@Budda - another weird video. Comparing your heavily mod'ed (and unique) BJ against the Fillmore 25. But even with your unique BJ this is no contest. Fillmore is x10 more versatile with 2 channels, loop and more gain on tap. Beats me why you bothered to make this video. It helps no-one to compare anything against a heavily mod'ed amp. And I saw a video from you a few years ago saying you had the same needs that were totally satisfied by the Mesa TA-15. What happened to the TA-15. That's also x100 better than any Blues Junior :)
That’s just you’re approach. My blues Junior only has a different cabinet and a different speaker, so it’s not heavily modded. I was looking for an amp a little more powerful than the blues junior but in the same vibe. The Filmore was an option and I wanted to check out how they compare and if the Filmore was a solid investment. O ended up buying the Fender Deluxe Tone Master, that filled my needs. As for the TA15 it’s not reliable anymore. I goes down in the middle of a show. I have it home for my home playing and recording.
@@BuddaGuedes - you say yourself in your video that the BJ is "heavily mod'ed". And with different cabinet & speaker it certainly is. Will sound very different to any other BJ in existence - it's unique. My TA-15 is rock solid at gigs and I've heard no-one else complaining of reliability issues with this amp. Did you do mod's to that too :)
It doesn’t make any sense how these companies make such expensive amplifiers that all the gearheads love to talk about, but it doesn’t really sound much better than a cheap amp made with plastic components. The mesa is obviously better,The point is the jr will do just fine.With a different speaker than the one he’s using.
I'd recommend trying out amps in person when you can. For as good of a job as these guys do recording them, some of the magic just doesn't come through recordings. At the end of the day, it's an instrument, and, for me, it should inspire me if I'm going to play it. There's a lot of amps that check the boxes for features, but they're not fantastic. The fun is when you get to figure out which one blows you away. If you're lucky, it's the cheaper one!
I agree. Try to play them yourself. That’s what I do. It just happens I also share it with all of you. But I was searching for a better amp than the blues junior and tried out the Fillmore 25 and 50. I ended up buying the deluxe Reverb Tone Master
Filmore is a different beast it is better. I'm also curious about the the new Mark V 1x10 Combo sound clips Mesa has up sound pretty good. Two different amps in the end.
Your modified Blues Jr sounds better to my ears and there was no need for massive tweaking of knobs and switches. It produces all the classic rock, blues and country tones I love. Also, aesthetically its beautiful compared to the plain and cheap looking mesa. This being said, The Mesa is a high quality amp.
Both sound good in their way - but I would compare both without reverb - it does it special flavour to the sound. I would prefer the Fillmore - it it wouldn´t be that expensive. But we can´t buy it nowhere here in Germany at this time?
The Fillmore sounds like there a low end distortion that is either a product of the speaker... or something wrong with the amp. I don't think it's supposed to sound that crunchy in the lows on the cleaner stuff. Generally I like the tone of it... I own both a Blues Junior and also a different Mesa Combo. I love both. But something almost sounds like an octaver in the lows in the Fillmore. I have a feeling it's not 100% healthy if it's doing that.
At 9:25-ish when you boost the bass... that low end rumble doesn't sound right to what I believe that amp should sound like. Maybe I'm wrong. I wonder if a Mesa rep would agree.
OMG! From your description it sounds like you need to try a *Boss Katana mk2* sorry to tell you that brother. The truth is I have many Tube amps in many power ranges ( I like an older video you did about the amps you use ) I know you'll keep an open mind to this as you have used solid state amps in recordings. Remember use what it takes to get the results you want/need. I honestly didn't think I needed another amplifier but I just had to get the Katana mk2 for its versatility. I really like it for my acoustic guitars and the clear clean sounds at high volume rather than all the Brown sounds. With the app on my mobile phone which allows for deep editing and saving presets honestly it's the only way to go. I still love my Tube amps but I don't need to worry about taking them out and wishing I'd taken the other one. Please find one and try it out the hype is really true!
@@BuddaGuedes I really hope that you do! I was in a guitar shop the other week and a guy walks in asking for a 100watt acoustic guitar amplifier for his new band (WTF?). All they had in the shop was a little Fender acoustic amplifier £65 and he laughed at it. I told him go get a Boss Katana and thank me later because where can you get a 100watt acoustic amplifier and how much would it cost ? I use the 50watt Katana mainly for my acoustic guitars I find the second acoustic voice is a perfect sound and added effects such a great bonus. To be totally honest with you when playing electric guitar it doesn't have the feeling of a tube amp but because of the variety of sounds I just can't stress enough how useful this amp is for the money it cost. The bottom line is I'll be happy to take my Katana out on the road as my main amplifier. But I would love to try it out as a stereo system with the pedal to change effects and the different types of amps live. But at this present time I don't need to worry about that even though it is an affordable price. Anyway catch up soon Bro!
I tend to agree. The tone dimension of a good tube amp is dreamy BUT now that I have a Boss Katana Artist 100 and Katana 50 MkII amp, I must say the overall tone, headroom, built-in tone shapes and light weight of the Katana amps are hard to beat even when compared to a good tube amp.
You ever play the tone king amps? Imperial or other? They seem somewhat similar to the Fillmore , I’m wondering which one gets more saturated and crunchy. I really like the Fillmore but it’s very skinny sounding if I pull out crunch. I’m wondering how it compares to a tone king, I can’t really get my hands on one to try
@@pedrorm923 em termos de distorção uma 12AY7 no volume 6 equivale a uma 12AX7 no volume 3 ou 4, talvez com um pouco mais de graves por uma questão particular do bright cap do circuito. Efetivamente não aumenta headroom nenhum, o amp vai distorcer aproximadamente na mesma intensidade sonora na saída, mas isso vai ocorrer em posições distintas do knob de volume (ganho). Trocar a válvula não resolve o headroom
@@victorbonilha82 Eu troquei a minha e existe diferença. Com o meu blues jr se alguem precisar de mais volume limpo tendo o master aberto so pode estar surdo ou está a tocar numa arena sem mic.
@@pedrorm923 Veja bem... diferença existirá na equalização, em algum conteúdo harmonico diferente etc... podes estar sendo "enganado" por essas diferenças sutis. Na verdade a troca provocará menor volume/ganho nos dois primeiros estágios do pré com a 12AY7, funciona como se controlasses o ganho de 1-6 de um bjr normal com 12AX7 porém usando todo o giro do knob que vai de 1-12 (por exemplo, não exatamente esses valores). Mas o headroom na saída do falante será o mesmo, permanecerão os mesmos 15W na saída (e com a mesma distorção) que são limitados pela tensão (voltagem) do trafos de força e saída e válvulas de saída, que é o que importa em termos de headroom. Infelizmente é impossível aumentar o headroom total simplesmente trocando a válvula. Teria que se trocar o transformador de força, e o de saída pra se ter alguma diferença. Teus ouvidos também devem estar sendo "enganados" pelos teus olhos, já que seu knob de volume (não o master) no 6 terá menor distorção no pré do que com a 12AX7 na mesma posição 6, e quem sabe a mesma distorção com a 12ax7 por volta do 3. Se tiveres um amigo técnico em eletrônica que saiba usar um osciloscópio, ele conseguirá medir o que estou dizendo se tiver as duas válvulas em mãos. Trocar a válvula não ajudará nosso amigo Budda!
It doesn’t make any sense that these guys can build these quality amplifiers that don’t really sound much better than an amplifier with plastic components.
Don’t mind the components. I’ve seen great musicians getting incredible tone from terrible gear. Jack White plays a plastic guitar a lot, Jimmy page used a danelectro (made of plastic) for all less zeppelin tunes with open tunning.
Plastic components don’t necessarily degrade the sound, nor do circuit boards. The reason people want hand wired amps with old-school components is that, if built properly, they can take a lot more abuse. And when they do break, they are much easier to repair with off-the-shelf components, instead of having to replace a PCB that may be manufacturer-specific. So a cheap amp with cheap components can sound absolutely fantastic if designed properly, and the Blues Jr. is probably one of the best examples of that. But take a Blues Jr. out on the road or back and forth to 100 gigs/rehearsals a year, and at some point it’s going to need repairs that will probably be at least half the price of the amp. The only time I ever put that much wear on an amp, I was playing a Mesa Mark III. In two and a half years of constant gigs, rehearsals and studio time - 3 to 4 nights a week, on average - it never spent a day in the shop.
Based on this video, I thought the Fillmore sounded clearly better, but today I went to an amp store and plugged both in... I think the Blues Jr. might be a little better in person.
I wouldn't take the fender on account of the harshness in the upper mids that it dishes out in significant quantity--even in the clips. The Fillmore sounds like a great old Fender combo, the Blues Junior sounds like a great old Fender mixed with a great old Fender through a bullhorn. Neither amp sounds bad, but I know I could sit in a mix with the Fillmore and not have ear fatigue as a result.
Thanks for sharing
I love my BJr but, at the jam/gig it would go like this…
Fender: Hold on guys, have to change my setting for the next song…
Mesa: Steps on foot switch and is ready to go (also has effects loop). 💁🏼♂️
I’m getting a Mesa 25 combo today, trading in my Marshall DSL 40cr (too many watts and I hurt my back so too heavy also), and keeping my tweed BJr because I love it.
🤟🏻🤟🏻
@@BuddaGuedes so after playing my Fillmore 25 for about 30 min I started taking pictures of my 65 deluxe reverb so I could sell it on Craigslist. As is with everything, except science an math perhaps, tone is subjective and relative to the individual. Much respect man. 🤘🏻😷🤘🏻
That’s the biggest truth of all. All that matters is that the player enjoys the gear. We are all different and that’s the beauty of it all!!
Thanks for sharing
@buddaguedes - Hey Budda, just wondering if you picked up on the weird bass note octave with the Boogie. Appears around the 5:50 mark, again around 6:10 and throughout the video... 9:30, 21:15, etc. Any idea what's happening? Might be a funky tube, bad cap, etc.
Hey there I didn’t hear it in the room, but I definitely hear it in the microphone!!!
I don’t know what it is!!’
@@BuddaGuedes - Swap in a known good set of power tubes and see if that corrects the issue. If not, I'd have a look at the power supply filter caps.
@@BuddaGuedes - Just watching another of your clips and was wondering if you got this sorted after?
Todd Neary thanks
Todd Neary I just bought the Fender Deluxe reverb tone master! Just a great amp!!!
I was surprised how good the Jr. sounded . That said though I like the boogie better. I also think the boogie would work much better in a band with more pronounced mids. I could see where the Jr. would get lost in a mix. I personally like the fillmore 50 better after going and trying one out myself. It is only a couple pounds more than the 25 to carry around with more clean headroom.
Hey that’s my doubt exactly!!!
First of all, you should invest in an A/B foot switch. I wish that you compared more of the Boogie features, it has three gain modes which completly change the character of the amp. Same with the Blues Jr fat switch. I appreciate what you've done here but it doesn't help me to make an informed decision
The idea was to compare the amps, and what their similar
Price wise, what would the JR cost with all the mods? Probably about the same. I would take the Filmore
Not at all!!! The mods cost 400€ more. That’s still way less than the boogie
Why choose one over the other? I love my tweed Blues Jr. but agree that it breaks up early which is OK in a small jam session but in a larger live setting the higher clean headroom of the Fillmore would seem to be very useful. Assuming you keep both, wouldn't you agree that the Mesa Boogie's cleaner tone at higher volumes makes it preferable over the Blues Jr. when playing in a louder band mix?
It could be but it’s not that louder
I like both. I babe a Blues Jr. III with a JBLD120F from a ‘72 Twin Reverb. I love it. The speaker adds a lot of bass with no flub. I use a BOSS Bass EQ with most any Fender or Fender style amp. The JBL adds volume too. Consider, what if you did comparable mods to the Fillmore. You may think I’m crazy but my backup amp is an old Crate Powerblock. It weighs nothing but has incredible and sweet clean headroom. I want a Fillmore 25 combo. I have a Mark V combo but I’ve gotten older and don’t want to move it more than 3-4 meters (on wheels) lol. So really, what’s another $1599? Get the amp! Or did you already get it? Put an 12AT7 in it if it’s not clean enough.
Eh eh! Thanks! I ended up getting the tone master deluxe reverb
I own a modded tweed junior with a Jenson ck12 in it and it sounds great but I would buy a Flimore in a heartbeat! Great cutting tone. Up front like all great amps not distant like most small amps sound..... saying that, the junior is a lot of bang for your buck.
Thanks a lot for your comment!!!
I had a blues jr. Without the mods , it was too thin sounding , I just didn't like it .I have a bassbreaker 15 which is WAY better (just my opinion ) .As for the Mesa , get the 50 watt Fillmore . Not much heavier , not much more money , but a Lot more amp . It has a 25 watt switch , and 6L6 tone . It covers everything !
🤘🏻🤘🏻
Is it live now? And why chat dont work...
It’s not live. It was just a premier
@@BuddaGuedes ok but it was cool
Yes...you don't have to cut the bass in the blues jr cranked because its firsts two preamp stages already did that highpass filter hardly for you. It is a high gain design so the distortion isn't fuzzy in comparison to the Fillmore.
I loved the Fillmore tone. Seems to be more "in front" than bjr, that sounds more distant from the mic... maybe it is the surfy reverb character. To my ears each amp sounds very different from the other.
Maybe the Fillmore don't worth 1k more than your current bjr. But without taking into account the price it seems to me that the fillmore offers what you need, at least more than the bjr do.
Thanks for your comment and support
Should turn off the reverb on both amps to really get a feel for the sound
The reverb has an extra tube and I Altair’s use it like that. It’s a very important aspect of an amp to me
That’s great, but isn’t a comparison on equipment essentially for the people watching the video?
I do think that your videos are very thorough and well executed. Not trying to be negative here - your channel is great. 👍
Mesa all day long. No contest.
👍🏻
I now have 2 amp setup Fender tweed blues jnr and Marshall origin 20c perfect for me. Once had Mesa Subway Rocket 40 watts, was to loud could never get the valves cooking, would have had police at my door.
Eh! Eh! It looks like a great combination
Not fair! Your Blues Jr is modified into a fine work of art and you putting it up against a stock Fillmore 25? in my opinion, the Masa held its own and based on your incredible playing you deserve them both!
My blues junior only had a new speaker and a better cabinet. But even with those mods it’s costs half the Mesa boogie
Have you tried the new Fender Tone Master amps? I think you might like them.
I’m testing one tomorrow. I played it for 2 minutes and I’m guessing it will be the one
Thanks for the tip
Can’t wait
It’s really great and mind blowing. Hope you can help me decide!
The boogie is has that mid range umpf but it’s just hard to beat the clarity and sparkle of the Jr especially with the mods and that tele bite. It’s the most familiar to the ears. Anything you wanna do tonally should come from the Guitar’s controls and with some boost should be able cut right through. For my money I’d stick with the Jr.
If you ever find a Traynor Darkhorse you should try. It is as loud as a blues junior but very light and compact amp with great cleans, 3 voicing preamp and extremely useable eq knobs.
Great. Thanks for the tip
Is Blues jr generally louder than Deluxe 57 with Jensen? The sound on 57 is great when cranked but only on max volume is ok to play with a band, no clean of course. 57 12w bjr 15w.
I’m not really sure!! But I need clean tone!!!
Isn't the watts different ? Which has more head room?
The watts are different and the Fillmore sounds louder. But watts doesn’t refers to the amp’s loudness but to its power consumption. It gives you an idea but it’s not a volume measure.
BJr is always a beautiful sounding amp. But the Fillmore has more flexibility with multiple channels. Having an effects loops is big for using it in a stereo setup. Some modulation is just better after the preamp tunes Fender drives me crazy with so little effects loop options. (Bassbreaker's not my favorite.) They should have followed Marshall's lead and added it to most all vintage circuits with an on/off switch. I had a Blues Junior, but sold it and bought a Princeton with a 12" speaker. But it's not a useful and my other amps because I often like multiple amps running at the same time.
The Fx loop is more usable when you have your preamp distortion and fender amps usually don’t distort on the preamp
@@BuddaGuedes True, but in a wet/dry or wet/wet stereo setup, it’s difficult to pair with a Marshall, Mesa, Friedman, etc. with a loop. Especially with a pedalboard with a separate dirt section and a stereo modulation section. Have chorus or reverb, etc. tracking perfectly across amps/speakers.
Ah! Ok!!
Way more compression and deeper reverb in the BJ. Are the reverb settings the same? Both sound great but the Fillmore sounds a bit better to me on the cleans and worse when overdriven. The Fillmore, in my opinion, is not by any chance 1000€ better. BTW, have you ever tried the Tone Master Deluxe Reverb? I haven't had the chance and I'm very sceptical about modelling. But if by any chance it comes close to the real one but much lighter it might be a great option for a grab and go amp.
I haven’t tried the tone master but I will have to try it for sure!
@@BuddaGuedes that is great we would love to hear your opinion on the Tonemaster, Peace !
Hey there. I bought the tone master and I actually have an episode on it. It’s super great!
@@BuddaGuedes OH Great I will look for your video looking forward to it, Peace !
@@jixxxxer17 You're welcome!!
Fender breakup sounds better to me, but the reverb feels almost "in front" of the amp, or as though the amp is somewhat lost behind it.
I was using it very wet because o love it. But I like the reverb on the Fillmore way more
In the Mesa i hear a strange "octave effect" when you play lower stuff, I'm having fun with the tone king falcon grande (not super light but very versatile) if you need more clean headroom you should consider the victory v40
I bought the deluxe reverb tone master! Great option.
Also I never was really that impressed with the reverb on Mesa, I don't really know why, maby thats why a lot of them have the reverb knob on the back of the amp.
Actually I love Mesa Boogie reverb. My lonestar has one of the best reverb I’ve heard, and so does the Fillmore. To my taste of course.
Thanks for your comment
Vox AC10 is purty good
I'd take it over the blues jr.
🤘🏻
Which speaker did you install in the Blues Junior?
I used the wgs ET65 speaker
Not a bad review. But in all fairness, you should put every knob at five on both amps so that we can hear them compared. All the tweaking is personal preference, and you really don’t know what each amp is capable of.
5 on Different amps doesn’t mean the same amount!!!
100% agree
I like the Mesa better and I'm a fender guy. For the money it would be a tough call. The fender sounds good.
That’s right. Thanks for your help
All Mesas always have a very high attack which causes hearing fatigue. They should add an attack knob on all their amps. I wonder if mods exist for this. My Express would be petfect with a softer attack.
It’s all about the gain and the bass knob. If you want less attack crank the bass
It's like night and day.......no comparison .....
Thanks
Sell me your Junior I love the enclosure.
It was made by Da Ribeira Cabinets. Look him up and he can make you one
Another amp that you might consider is one of the lower powered Vox amps, like the AC15 with the celestion creamback.
I’m not really a vox fan!!
@@BuddaGuedes Your not in the BeatlesThe Rolling Stones,U2 or the Jam or even Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers?
@Budda - another weird video. Comparing your heavily mod'ed (and unique) BJ against the Fillmore 25. But even with your unique BJ this is no contest. Fillmore is x10 more versatile with 2 channels, loop and more gain on tap. Beats me why you bothered to make this video. It helps no-one to compare anything against a heavily mod'ed amp. And I saw a video from you a few years ago saying you had the same needs that were totally satisfied by the Mesa TA-15. What happened to the TA-15. That's also x100 better than any Blues Junior :)
That’s just you’re approach. My blues Junior only has a different cabinet and a different speaker, so it’s not heavily modded.
I was looking for an amp a little more powerful than the blues junior but in the same vibe. The Filmore was an option and I wanted to check out how they compare and if the Filmore was a solid investment. O ended up buying the Fender Deluxe Tone Master, that filled my needs.
As for the TA15 it’s not reliable anymore. I goes down in the middle of a show. I have it home for my home playing and recording.
@@BuddaGuedes - you say yourself in your video that the BJ is "heavily mod'ed". And with different cabinet & speaker it certainly is. Will sound very different to any other BJ in existence - it's unique. My TA-15 is rock solid at gigs and I've heard no-one else complaining of reliability issues with this amp. Did you do mod's to that too :)
No I didn’t mod my TA15. I also have a tA30 and it has the same problem. After playing for a while it starts to overdrive more and fart out the bass.
It doesn’t make any sense how these companies make such expensive amplifiers that all the gearheads love to talk about, but it doesn’t really sound much better than a cheap amp made with plastic components. The mesa is obviously better,The point is the jr will do just fine.With a different speaker than the one he’s using.
I'd recommend trying out amps in person when you can. For as good of a job as these guys do recording them, some of the magic just doesn't come through recordings. At the end of the day, it's an instrument, and, for me, it should inspire me if I'm going to play it. There's a lot of amps that check the boxes for features, but they're not fantastic. The fun is when you get to figure out which one blows you away. If you're lucky, it's the cheaper one!
I agree. Try to play them yourself. That’s what I do. It just happens I also share it with all of you. But I was searching for a better amp than the blues junior and tried out the Fillmore 25 and 50.
I ended up buying the deluxe Reverb Tone Master
It’s all a matter of feeling. I happen to love this speaker on the blues junior.
@@BuddaGuedes you ended up buying a digital modelling amp? 😳
Yes I did but this one only models 1 amp. So all the processing, cabinet and speaker is being used to model one specific amp
bugera ! sell those 2 amps. buy a bugera and you can be in journey
I won’t sell but I’ll look into that bugera
Filmore is a different beast it is better. I'm also curious about the the new Mark V 1x10 Combo sound clips Mesa has up sound pretty good. Two different amps in the end.
Thanks
That drive channel on fillmore is sick !!
It’s a great amp
Both amps sound great, but the Boogie seems to have more Balls. Fender sounds a little thin.
Thanks for your comment
Fillmore, 7 ways to Sunday🤟🤟
Eh eh. Thanks for sharing
Your modified Blues Jr sounds better to my ears and there was no need for massive tweaking of knobs and switches. It produces all the classic rock, blues and country tones I love. Also, aesthetically its beautiful compared to the plain and cheap looking mesa. This being said, The Mesa is a high quality amp.
My words exactly
Helloo Sir 👲💖
Hey there
Hello doctor "G", I have a problem ... both are very good ... but I would buy the blues Junior!🎸💥😎
That’s what I’m thinking. Except I already have the blues junior so I would have to buy it
Both sound good in their way - but I would compare both without reverb - it does it special flavour to the sound. I would prefer the Fillmore - it it wouldn´t be that expensive. But we can´t buy it nowhere here in Germany at this time?
🤟🏻🤟🏻
Dave from Nebraska waitin!!
Hey Save. It wasn’t like, though. I’m sorry
The Fillmore sounds like there a low end distortion that is either a product of the speaker... or something wrong with the amp. I don't think it's supposed to sound that crunchy in the lows on the cleaner stuff. Generally I like the tone of it... I own both a Blues Junior and also a different Mesa Combo. I love both. But something almost sounds like an octaver in the lows in the Fillmore. I have a feeling it's not 100% healthy if it's doing that.
At 9:25-ish when you boost the bass... that low end rumble doesn't sound right to what I believe that amp should sound like. Maybe I'm wrong. I wonder if a Mesa rep would agree.
to my old ears, the Fender sounded like a solid state amp trying to be a tube amp,,The mesa sounded all tube!
🤘🏻🤘🏻
Hi, excellent. IMO, the Fillmore has more to explore in the review, and came direct from the box, the fender is modified. Great video.
Thanks s lot! The only mods the fender had was the cabinet and the speaker.
OMG! From your description it sounds like you need to try a *Boss Katana mk2* sorry to tell you that brother.
The truth is I have many Tube amps in many power ranges ( I like an older video you did about the amps you use ) I know you'll keep an open mind to this as you have used solid state amps in recordings. Remember use what it takes to get the results you want/need.
I honestly didn't think I needed another amplifier but I just had to get the Katana mk2 for its versatility. I really like it for my acoustic guitars and the clear clean sounds at high volume rather than all the Brown sounds.
With the app on my mobile phone which allows for deep editing and saving presets honestly it's the only way to go.
I still love my Tube amps but I don't need to worry about taking them out and wishing I'd taken the other one.
Please find one and try it out the hype is really true!
That’s a really great idea! I will try to play one!
@@BuddaGuedes I really hope that you do!
I was in a guitar shop the other week and a guy walks in asking for a 100watt acoustic guitar amplifier for his new band (WTF?). All they had in the shop was a little Fender acoustic amplifier £65 and he laughed at it.
I told him go get a Boss Katana and thank me later because where can you get a 100watt acoustic amplifier and how much would it cost ? I use the 50watt Katana mainly for my acoustic guitars I find the second acoustic voice is a perfect sound and added effects such a great bonus.
To be totally honest with you when playing electric guitar it doesn't have the feeling of a tube amp but because of the variety of sounds I just can't stress enough how useful this amp is for the money it cost.
The bottom line is I'll be happy to take my Katana out on the road as my main amplifier. But I would love to try it out as a stereo system with the pedal to change effects and the different types of amps live. But at this present time I don't need to worry about that even though it is an affordable price. Anyway catch up soon Bro!
I tend to agree. The tone dimension of a good tube amp is dreamy BUT now that I have a Boss Katana Artist 100 and Katana 50 MkII amp, I must say the overall tone, headroom, built-in tone shapes and light weight of the Katana amps are hard to beat even when compared to a good tube amp.
It’s Great it works for you
You ever play the tone king amps? Imperial or other? They seem somewhat similar to the Fillmore , I’m wondering which one gets more saturated and crunchy.
I really like the Fillmore but it’s very skinny sounding if I pull out crunch. I’m wondering how it compares to a tone king, I can’t really get my hands on one to try
I’ve never came across Tone King Amps but they look great. Too expensive for me.
Muda a AX7 da V1 para uma AY7 e ta feito.
O que é que está feito? Em que amp
@@BuddaGuedes clean headroom no blues jr
@@pedrorm923 em termos de distorção uma 12AY7 no volume 6 equivale a uma 12AX7 no volume 3 ou 4, talvez com um pouco mais de graves por uma questão particular do bright cap do circuito. Efetivamente não aumenta headroom nenhum, o amp vai distorcer aproximadamente na mesma intensidade sonora na saída, mas isso vai ocorrer em posições distintas do knob de volume (ganho). Trocar a válvula não resolve o headroom
@@victorbonilha82 Eu troquei a minha e existe diferença. Com o meu blues jr se alguem precisar de mais volume limpo tendo o master aberto so pode estar surdo ou está a tocar numa arena sem mic.
@@pedrorm923 Veja bem... diferença existirá na equalização, em algum conteúdo harmonico diferente etc... podes estar sendo "enganado" por essas diferenças sutis. Na verdade a troca provocará menor volume/ganho nos dois primeiros estágios do pré com a 12AY7, funciona como se controlasses o ganho de 1-6 de um bjr normal com 12AX7 porém usando todo o giro do knob que vai de 1-12 (por exemplo, não exatamente esses valores). Mas o headroom na saída do falante será o mesmo, permanecerão os mesmos 15W na saída (e com a mesma distorção) que são limitados pela tensão (voltagem) do trafos de força e saída e válvulas de saída, que é o que importa em termos de headroom. Infelizmente é impossível aumentar o headroom total simplesmente trocando a válvula. Teria que se trocar o transformador de força, e o de saída pra se ter alguma diferença. Teus ouvidos também devem estar sendo "enganados" pelos teus olhos, já que seu knob de volume (não o master) no 6 terá menor distorção no pré do que com a 12AX7 na mesma posição 6, e quem sabe a mesma distorção com a 12ax7 por volta do 3. Se tiveres um amigo técnico em eletrônica que saiba usar um osciloscópio, ele conseguirá medir o que estou dizendo se tiver as duas válvulas em mãos. Trocar a válvula não ajudará nosso amigo Budda!
I keep hearing it. It's not just me.
You’re right!! It’s there
It doesn’t make any sense that these guys can build these quality amplifiers that don’t really sound much better than an amplifier with plastic components.
Don’t mind the components. I’ve seen great musicians getting incredible tone from terrible gear. Jack White plays a plastic guitar a lot, Jimmy page used a danelectro (made of plastic) for all less zeppelin tunes with open tunning.
It's going to sound like a tube amp no matter how much it cost.
Plastic components don’t necessarily degrade the sound, nor do circuit boards. The reason people want hand wired amps with old-school components is that, if built properly, they can take a lot more abuse. And when they do break, they are much easier to repair with off-the-shelf components, instead of having to replace a PCB that may be manufacturer-specific. So a cheap amp with cheap components can sound absolutely fantastic if designed properly, and the Blues Jr. is probably one of the best examples of that. But take a Blues Jr. out on the road or back and forth to 100 gigs/rehearsals a year, and at some point it’s going to need repairs that will probably be at least half the price of the amp. The only time I ever put that much wear on an amp, I was playing a Mesa Mark III. In two and a half years of constant gigs, rehearsals and studio time - 3 to 4 nights a week, on average - it never spent a day in the shop.
My blues junior is now more than 20 years old and never broke never needed repair
On the boogie there seems to be a weird low octave artifact on the low E string. WTH?
It was an artifact by a defect ribbon mic
@@BuddaGuedes Ah, good. I was thinking about getting that amp. Thanks for getting back to me.
You’re welcome
Based on this video, I thought the Fillmore sounded clearly better, but today I went to an amp store and plugged both in... I think the Blues Jr. might be a little better in person.
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