Fender Vibro Champ Reverb vs Pro Jr | Why You Need a Small Tube Amp
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- Опубліковано 13 чер 2021
- Today we're checking out the new '68 Vibro Champ Reverb from Fender-- a beautiful low-watt tube amp that packs all the tube-breakup and tube-tremolo into a vintage silverface enclosure. We're comparing that with the low-watt mainstay of Fender's tube amp line, the Pro Jr. Take a listen to these demos and let us know which one you dig more!
Clean comparison starts at 6:23
Hella pushed tube overdrive comparison (dimed to 10) starts at 8:36
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The clean tone riff is the theme song for when I'm trying to get home after work
The day I bought my Pro Jr., I took it home, plugged it in, put the volume on 3 - to see how it sounded clean - and pretty much rattled every book of my shelf, and cracked my windows down the middle. Don't buy it thinking it's a practice amp. It's not. It'll rattle your teeth. Maybe the new version is different - mine is a series iii. Put a Greenback in it - holy smokes it'll blow the roof off. Sounds awesome.
Thanks, this is useful.
I love how Cooper isn’t afraid to give him unfiltered opinion and always gives his reasoning and admits his biases. I feel it always creates a more informative review, and actually helps people form their own opinions better than trying to be overly impartial
I love your reviews, Cooper! Great perspective and super playing to demo the full potential. I was looking for a low wattage tube amp, and in this case, I think you convinced me to pick up the Pro Jr., since I already have a Mr. Black Deluxe Deluxe Plus for verb and trem. Keep up the good work, and I look forward to visiting San Antonio and coming to your shop once travel opens up!
Anytime I see this guy in an Alamo music vid, I must watch.
Always great playing...
Thank you, sir for confirming that I still suck at guitar.
He's just a different style from me, so I don't compare myself. But... Would be nice to be able to play that fast, I can't play fast.
I would probably lean towards the vibro champ for the options and versatility, but that Pro Jr sounded great dimed out!!
You can definitely hear Princeton's presence and reverb, but it's the Pro Jr also sounds good. Add some pedals and it's it can keep up with the big boys for a lot less $.
Got the Pro Jr in tweed, it came with the P10R speaker in it. Changed out to a Celestion G10 Vintage, and turned it into a rock and roll machine!
My Fender Pro Jr. IV. The Jensen P10R needed some break in time. I put a Tung Sol 12AX7 in the first tube socket. Best amp I have ever owned. Great playing from you as always.
Awesome playing , man. Cool demo as usual👍
I put a spring reverb and boost pedal on the pro jnr and it sounds amazing at low volumes.
Great demo, Cooper. My ears are in line with yours and most of the comments. The Vibro Champ has an edge on clean tones but the Pro Junior sounds awesome cranked. Particularly impressive given the lack of effects.
I have both. The rarer (255 worldwide) Pro Junior IV LTD version (fawn covering but more importantly, with the Jensen P10Q...less bright than the more standard P10R) and just got the '68 Custom Vibro Champ last week. The 10" and reverb upgrades are awesome.
Great demo, stunning playing. I am scaling down from my blues deluxe. I love the sound and looks of the pair of them. Thanks . Mark Liverpool UK
That's some crispy playing brother!
I have 2 Pro Juniors. On original from 1994 and a recent IV. Great amps.
A few years ago, I bought a Kustom V15 Defender, all valve, combo. It's switchable from 15 to 4 watts. It has a direct line out. It has a Celestion G10-N, which I swapped out for a 10 inch Celestion Creamback. It's a great little amp. Small enough to take anywhere, but enough punch to gig with. Keep your eyes open for one.
Nice demo. I bought the vibro champ last week and it's perfect for me. It's £800 in the UK which is a lot for a 5 watt amp but it's as good as it gets so I happy enough.
Excellent demo. I have both and love them. Killer playing!
All I’ve used for years is low wattage tube amps. I’ve played places that hold a few thousand, and never over a 22 watt amp. Small amps are easier to get tone out of, easier to haul around and you can keep stage levels low. Just hang a 609 in front and run it through the house.
That just made me want and get both. I dig the pro Jr.’s tone when it’s dimed. The silver face had it on the clean chicken picken though. I have to thank you for the video, since I just nicked a few licks from you. Great playing.
I love my Pro Juniors. I have my original that I bought back in ‘94, and a IV I bought in 2018.
Love your playing on this video Cooper!!
Just a great demo video! You can clearly hear how the two amps sound without other tone elements cluttering things up. Great verbal descriptions of the specs. Great demo playing. Great info for the buying public. Thanks.
What a growl with that pro junior ! Add a Flint in front and you have all you need for a great sound :)
Thanks for the shred, awesome awesome demo
Just bought a Vox AC4 1x12 4- watt tube amp... love it!🙂
Excellent playing!I went with pro jr and I am 100 percent glad I did.This little guy is a monster.Nice cleans with my Mia tele,and a beautiful gritty tone with a les Paul standard.Its so simple in its setup,you just dial in the tone and go for it.
How high do you have to crank the volume on the Jr to get that grit?
@@TracyLanebike played one in the store, started to breakup at 11:30. for a real overdrive though it’s like 2:00. Plenty loud
I have the 68 Deluxe Reverb and use it as my studio amp, but I want a lighter, smaller wattage version for gigging. The Vibro Champ looks perfect.
Absolute fantastic riffs. I have both and find myself leading towards the Pro Jr due to a woodier tone. BUT the reverb and trem are really nice to have also.
great playing and demo of both amps. i just got a vibro champ and can’t stop playing it.
Did you pay full price?
@@dustinarnold79 i got a discounted floor model and the list price was still $750 back then, looks like they’re $800 now
I just bought a Pro Jr tweed used. Dang thing is loud enough for gigging. I absolutely love it. I got it for a great price too. I run my Paisley DLX and a reverb pedal and I'm off to the races.
Great demo. Best guitarist on UA-cam.
My $0.02... The Pro Junior got muddy when turned up and I thought the Pro Junior cleans were thin. I’ve got at ‘68 RI Vibrio Champ Reverb and think it’s fine. I’ve also got a Bassbreaker 007 and love it’s crunch, but the Vibro Champ delivers the vintage Fender tones and handles pedals.
I have a ‘76 Vibro Champ and I love it at the house.
Great playing, to start. I think the Pro is the better sounding amp, I found the vibro to get a bit ice picky on the bridge, I assume it could be tamed with the tone knob, but the Jr. just sounded great. I had a Twin for about 6 months in the 90's, and it was way more amp than I needed. The soundmen at clubs were constantly telling me to turn down, and the amp really sounded it's best loud. I went to the Blues Deluxe, and while it was still a very loud amp, I found it much more usable than the twin. Unfortunately I sold it when I quit gigging, and now I just play through a modeling amp. I would love to get a blues Jr, but I haven't pulled the trigger yet. Thanks for the demo.
Great video and great delivery!!! I’m torn??? I love the 2 amps equally for 2 different reasons. The Champ because of reverb and tremolo. It sounded a lot like an early 70’s Pro Reverb I regret selling 40 years ago. The Jr for its tonal bang it gives for blues. If JR had reverb? Then it would be no question I’d choose it because of the Tweed as a bonus.
HAHA! This is a sign! I've been looking at tube amps for a while 😂!
@Noble Failures yup, such an warm soulful tone!! 🙌🏻🎶🎸
When it was dimed, the Pro Jr wins hands-down...
Great picking, wow!!! Love the Champ amp.
Nice playing man thanks for that
I've had my Pro Junior since 93/94, always gets compliments on it's tone when I take it to a jam night. Taken awhile for a lot of people to cotton on to them as Fender have never really pushed the promotion of it, but I have heard a few high level players mention them lately, especially for recording.
The Pro Junior is Fender's best kept secret. I had 2 of the older black ones, but the new tweed version is just a little better-- less hiss. I put an attenuator on mine to tame the volume and still crank it-- I get everything from clean to ZZTop dirty just using the volume on my guitar. Use the attenuator as a master volume. I don't know why more people don't use these.
very nice - what attenuator do you use for the pro junior?
Agree. Got a pro Jr IV (quiet like a mouse) and a tele 2004 am. Std I would like to know what do you use for reverb/ambience/space and which attenuator.
Jeff Beck uses the Pro Junior. That speaks volumes to me… I have a Pro Junior too, but I modded the front-end to sound more like a Marshall 18-watt. I also changed the output transformer and replaced the speaker.
I managed to find a Tweed Pro Junior from the 90s for 300 bucks. I bought a noise gate to solve the hiss and attenuator to use full range of volume. Now I have a fun and capable rig for that classic Fender sound without the weight+real estate investment
Dont know why more people don't use these? Easy because there is better out there.
nice job with this video, I appreciate it!
I have just discovered the way to tame my hot rod deluxe for home use. By using a JHS little black amp box in the fx loop, I can get my vol up to 3.5 and turn the JHS down to home vol.. It perfect for giving a great amp a master vol on the clean channel
They both sound really nice. I'd probably have to have a reverb pedal with the pro just for an effect sometimes. Mighty fine fast pickin by the way.
My first amp in the late 60s was a black face Champ. Awesome playing.
Thanks for the information and I appreciate the sound demos. I love Fender amps and have a few. However, I have a Monoprice 15W tube which actually beats the Blues Jr. for a tiny fraction of the cost. The Monoprice also has great real spring reverb and effects loop.
Great video. Your Telecaster playing is second to none!
Great video as always - thank you!
It's all about dat tone! I've been a Fender amp guy all of my life and still own the 64 Super Reverb I bought used with paper route money at age 14. It sounds fantastic as SRV so aptly demonstrated but it is plenty loud to get kicked out of every bar and roadhouse in town when cranked up these days. (ask me how I know this)
For the last 8 years I have gigged local venues with a Fender SuperChamp XD tube hybrid amp. Real 15w tube output with digital emulation for voices and effects. It really sounds pretty legit and is just loud enough to gig with a drummer who understands dynamics. For large stages or outdoor gigs I may still bring the big dog for glorious stage filling tone but most nights the lil guy gets it done.
Cheers!
That’s great to here. Ya still using it ? Can ya get good low bedroom tones from it ?
I have the "new
Pro Jr IV SE and use a Dan Electro EQ pedal and a Flynt Strymon Trem/Reverb up front. All I can say is Fantastic!
The 57 Custom Champ is amazing.
I use that and a hand wired Gibson GA-5 I got for about $500 before small amps were cool and they were blowing them out.
They’re spectacular in a wet/dry setup too.
Good review, nice playing. And the best of problems - “I have two really great options, how can I ever choose?” And I totally agree about volume. If you’re in a big room, use your big amp but my little Blues Jr at home practicing, the master volume is sitting at a 3. Thanks for your work.
Great video!!! no hesitation for me.... the Vibro Champ sounds way better, I love the fuller sound, just the right amount of bass middle and treble, whereas the Pro Jr didnt have so much middle, giving it a bit more twang, and my personal preference would be to have what I hear as a richer thicker fuller sound in the Vibro. I'm presently using an old Cyber Deluxe which I find cool but not as cool as that Vibro Champ for sure. Hey Great Playing!!!
I have a Blues Junior and I love that amp.
Clean and effortless playing! I want to have your skills!
I’m. Church player, no HRD for me.
I got 5 watt heads with 12” Jensen Alnico’s in VHT cabs . I’m just getting started, I am bass player and pro-sound guy who kept “hearing electric guitars in my head.” I kind of wished I went the small Fender combo direction, esp a Princeton so I like this demo, my VHT special RT (amp 3 is a combo much like a Princeton) does tube trem and spring reverb but it many features bring quirks - I found using pedals in those basic amps seemed almost more organic.
I think a part 2 with some basic pedals: I use TC HOF, Mooer Trelicopter, an OD that has bass knob, like a TC Mojo Mojo. Maybe do Boss TR2, RV-5 and BD2-W, maybe add an EQ. To me the goal is to get tube distortion at a low a volume as possible, and mic’ to house. Then take they basic platform so settle on (like this demo supports) and then extend their genre range with pedals. A church band is a cover band, covering hymns to classic rock and lots of ambient, we need flexible low volume rigs - and it helps I’d the tone evoke classic rock that people have good memories of, Fender maybe?
Cool playing for sure, sounds really good
Nice picking Coop. Pro JR with a Fender outboard spring reverb!
Just bought a 15 watt orange that is absolutely amazing for about 700. Fabulous amp
I have both, the only amps I own. Although my Pro Junior is the rare (1 of 255) Fawn IV. It comes with a P10Q, vs. the brighter P10R. My Vibro Champ Reverb, with its lower wattage, is the one I use at home. Playing out it is the Pro Junior IV. Both are killer amps.
Hi, I’m looking at buying both too. Would you say the pro junior is heaps louder?
@@stratslinger3921 A fair bit louder. Played out with it easily...four-piece classic rock band.
These amps would probably be a perfect pair for an A/B-Y splitter - with both amps simultaneously, in wet/dry fashion!
That is what I use the in. The Champ is slightly on the edge (cleans up wonderfully when turning down the volume on the guitar) and the Princeton is my wet amp. Works like a charm.
I have a Blues Junior, and I took your volume soggestion using the guitar volume backed off and the amp volume turned up. With the spring reverb, it sounded amazing! If you haven't already, you might try one
I love em both but the Pro Jr. i found was a little restrictive without an EQ pedal and reverb. I also think its got too much wattage but i figure they don’t want it to compete with the ‘57 Champ.
Brilliant playing..I have the pro junior..amazing amp
A great video.
The same theory works if you want to "bring the heavy." The little Mesa Boogie Mark V 25 heads are amazing amps - everything from that Metallica "black album" sound to a cool driven Fender tweed and to a pristine shimmering clean, all in a 25 watt package.
I think people should really give more consideration to how big of an amp they should buy. If Queen could sell out stadiums and Brian May used Vox AC30's and Michael Schenker conquered the world of heavy metal lead guitar at the end of the 70's on UFO's live album Strangers in the Night with a 50 watt Marshall, why do people that play at home or smaller clubs have 100+ watt heads? Mo' biggerer is Mo' betterer? Crank the volume on a 50 watt JCM 800 and the neighbors for blocks around will be calling the cops. 50 watts is big enough for small club use, even for heavy music and 5 watts is overkill for home. Even the 1 watt Marshall DSL1HR tube head can get stupid loud for home use. 1 watt.
couldn't agree more the mesa mark V25 us one if my favourite amps
50 watts is still overkill for small clubs
@@nicholasantonis
It is. You just need something that can keep up with the drums.
I find myself torn between the 25 and 35 Mesa Mark V. The 35 has the Solo alternate Master Volume but the 25 is just right sized. Keeps up with a hard hitting drummer and when cranked for leads, the power section is so nicely saturated for sustain.
It's a hard amp on a player. It amplifies what you play in a clarity that other amps don't do and this makes it a task master. You have to play hard and play well otherwise you sound like ass.
I have a silverface Champ and a Pro Jr IV. Love both. I rehoused the PJ in a deluxe sized cab with a P12Q and it sounds absolutely amazing. I attenuate it and use the volume knob on my guitar to go from clean to nearly fuzz-tones.
What kind f attenuator are ya using ?
I was using a weber mass 100 at the time with a adjustable ohms from 2 to 16. Now I use a Two Notes Captor X 8 ohm.@@benallmark9671
If had a ton of amps and only one 'tiny' amp is still in my collection. The DSL1C. Because it has all the features of a big amp in a tiny package. Not counting the distinct Fender Champ voice and classic recordings... It's pretty limited. No fx loop, no master volume (5 and even 1 watt for that matter is still loud), lack of tone controls. Etc. Speaker out. The DSL1C has 2 channel, footswitch included, digital reverb, silent out, full tonestack and a pretty diverse gain range. Speaker out 16 ohm (and 8 internally not connected) and a FX loop. Plus the price point. Winner.
Awesome little amps for sure
I have an 18 watt '62 Sulvertone that works for me. The burgundy and silver refrigerator shaped whatever it's called.
I have read a couple blogs by guitarists using Pro Jr in their home studio because it is small and portable, plus it has quality tube amp sound and takes pedals well. If you crank it it gets real power tube overdrive. I like Marshalls or Blackstar better for gain but these little Fender amps are great clean or with pedals. If you put a nice overdrive in front of that 68 I bet it would sound 100% better
ProJunior is a bit uneasy to tame ... imho. Got one ... with a RamRod speaker it does do the bass much better. Added a booster to get this open single coil sound. DONE!
But this Champ is amazing just out of the box.
Great demo. Thanks a lot for sharing.
The Pro Jr is one of the best amps Fender has come out with in the past 30 years (IMO of course). Those little guys just crush in tone, and they get really loud!
love the playing!
Dude! 🌞 some fine pickin by you 💥
Both of these amps sound great when dimed! Add in just a few select effects pedals and it just might be the perfect setup for playing at home or a small venue.
The 5w mono price tube amp, is really nice. My friend who is actually good at playing., came over, I had the amp at full settings, and he got 80s metal levels of distortion out of it. I’m saving up for a 1w amp so I can be less loud with the same amount of distortion.
1 watt won’t be any less loud than 5.
Love my lil 1946 Magnatone…. Great tone😎👍
Geez, I sure do love new old new new old stuff.
I have a Vox ac4c1 with a 12 inch Greenback cab. Amongst other pedals I have a 6 band eq for increased bass. Playing a single coil stratocaster. Couldn't be more content for home use.
I have two Pro Juniors with consecutive serial numbers. They both have the stock Eminence Speakers. If I ever change the speakers I’m going to put Weber speakers in. I have a 20 watt Marshall AVT and I put 10 inch Eminence Redcoat in that amp which was a big improvement. That amp’s clean channel is great for Rock a Billy or Surf music. It has one tube which is a blessing considering most tubes are made in Russia.
What’s wrong with Russian made tubes?
My trick with a Champ is to put a shure green bullet in the back, wedged up against the speaker with an old t-shirt, and run it into just about any larger amps input. Sounds like a bigger champ.
I've owned a Laney Cub 8 - great amp. I now have a Blackstar HT5-R. Great amp - 2 channel, 4 voices, reverb, several outputs, 0.5 watt mode. Either are hundred less than $750, so unless you're fixated on the Fender logo on the amp, check out alternatives.
Nah, I started with blackstar ht5 but after I switched to afender blues jr, I hardly use the black star. Ever since then I've been obsessed with trying fenders high range stuff.
I'm thinking either this or the champ, also tone king gremlin looks sick
Great playing
You've got serious chops ! 🎸
I agree that everyone should have a small tube Amp, esp for studio work. Just got my first one, its Harley Benton 15 watt. After a ten minute warm up , the amp is amazing as it uses the spring type reverb but after a little bit of volume, the speaker can't keep up, its a 12" celestion . I have a Fender H.O.T. amp and its my old solid state one , it has a 12" speaker and a spring reverb, i am seriously thinking about putting the Fender speaker & reverb box in it. It has been done and i can't see why not? I'm never going back to solid state amps again. Nice Jamming Btw.
The Hot Rod IV...has an excellent over drive and you can replace the tube for the volume problem
Great demo.
Have a larger selection of different amplifiers is much more important than having different guitars to chose from.
The greatest small wattage tube amp ever is the AC10. They are absolutely glorious! They pack an incredible punch for their size as well and you can get them for less than $400. Vox is basically begging you to rob them. I've got an AC10 and an AC30 and I absolutely adore them both. I've got a Strat, 2 Teles, and a 335 and they all sound phenomenal through the AC10. I HIIIIIIGHLY recommend them!
Me too. I have an AC15, but I love using the ac10 whenever I'm at Guitar Center. I'm gonna buy one once I get all the other stuff I want first.
I think they just sound different that's all. Not all Vox speaks to me, it's hard to dial those glassy highs on most of them without being a bit harsh. Ive not played an AC10 before, how does it compare to the hand-wired (non vintage) versions of AC30?
@@MintStiles An AC10C1 is a modern reissue and it really packs a punch for a 10 watt amp. With a Tele it can go from twang to early Zeppelin and with a 335 it can sound like Clapton era Cream and Paul Kossoff. My buddy was AMAZED at how well it sounded and for less than $400 for a tube amp is insane. It also takes pedals well but honestly it's such great plug and play tone it's totally a tossup whether pedals are necessary at all. They definitely aren't as "trebley" as an AC30 is prone to be though. I think of them as a Bassman with only one speaker since they have 10's and 10's are just naturally warmer to my ears.
@@MintStiles I'm not a fan of Vox. Never could understand why they are favored other than if maybe ya like the Beatles?
@@SimpleManGuitars1973 the Blues Jr., and Pro Jr., both are louder, and side by side, if tweed, it will be likely a Jensen speaker, which will dust the Vox crap reissue Celestion Chinese versions. CCV's I call em'. Look same, but they are in no way same fullness and loudness. Jensen is amazing, by comparison. It has a natural sound in the warmth that isn't in any Celestion speaker. To each their own.
Thanks, I made the same experience
Could put something like the Hydra trem/reverb pedal in front of the Pro Jr. to get those fx if wanted. Love the tone of the Pro Jr, but Vibro Champ is winner for me. Want the tone control option.
Which one is better?
I think it depends on what you want to do with the amp. If you look for an amp for gigging, I think the 15 Watt Pro Junior is the better option. But if you want to use your amp mainly for use at home in an small appartment with thin walls and noise-sensitive neighbours, 15 Watt is to much. In this case the 5 Watt champ is the better choise.
Had one of the first Pro Juniors and it was LOUD!
I'd take it to pub jams and mount it on an amp stand angled up aimed at my mic.
When I'm singin' my torso blocks the spill.
Come solos and tags I'd just step aside and lift the guitar volume and let it bleed into the FOH
The Pro Junior was dimed...
that vibro champ at edge of breakup , wow ...
That's some sweet pickin'! And I'm a grinnin'. 🖒
I like the Pro Jr. in theory but I'm not often able to dime it (or any other amp for that matter). Vibro would be more practical since I'm sadly playing at a low volume most nights.
The pro Jr. is actually loud enough for gigging in a small club with the 15 watts. I gigged a 15 watt Blues Jr for years . A raggin Cajun is a great upgrade for the pro Jr. I don't think the 5 watt would be enough with a drummer.
I have always used small tube amps. Better tone, easier to haul, less space, lower stage volume etc….and when I played bigger places, I always had a 609 to hang in front of it.
The pro junior sounds amazing!
Hello From Ireland
Do you have any idea how these two amps would be if they were paired up with an AB/Y pedal? I have the 57, love it but id like a bit of crunch and reverb sometimes. I like two amps together, but I could just get as reverb pedal and a tube screamer???
Thank you
There is a guy I know that does jam nights with a 50’s 5watt champ. The power of modern microphones and sound equipment allows ypu to do that now just fine haha
I surprisingly like the Pro Jr. better. But I think a better shoot out would have been the 57' Champ reissue vs. the Vibrochamp. The Pro Jr. has more wattage, but no reverb and tremolo. I have a Princeton Reverb reissue with a 12" speaker that replaced a Blues Jr. 3 that came with a Celestion Greenback. I like the Blues Jr. but the Princeton Reverb is a large upgrade. I still have the Blues Jr. as a backup for now.