57 Tweed Champ Reissue--opinions?

[ch willie]

My brother-bud has always longed for a Tweed Champ and has again mentioned buying one of the 1x8 reissues. Anyone had experience with those?

He's a Clapton nut and has always thought of the Champ as the pinnacle tone. Layla is one of my Top 10 favorite albums, but I'm not so sure the Champ will give him what he wants. If you listen carefully to the production of the song Layla, you hear that Dowd has layered the guitars together and used lots of reverb to make the licks thicker, more epic.

I stand on the side of the fence that says it's futile to try to mimic the sound of your fave album when so much of it is in the production anyway. I dunno. Maybe the Champ is the bee's knees and delivers a lot more than I give it credit for.

[blackonblack]

Is he playing out or at home ?

[Bill Moore]

I never owned a Champ, some friends had them, and love the breakup at low volume. I do have a mostly built "Tweed" Princeton, (Champ with a tone control), but I will use a 12" speaker.
I do have an old 6V6 SE Airline that really sings, I contacted Ted for a recommended speaker when I went through it years ago, and I installed the 12A125A, "well broken in by them". Dime the amp, and control the grit with the guitar volume!

[phantomman]

A quality-built non-Fender clone will cost about one third that of the FMIC re-issue and will be assembled with real solder, no failure-prone ribbon connectors, and a decent array of tone caps. You'll find them on Ebay all the time. That little Fender badge does not justify their price.

[ch willie]

I agree with you on the Fender tag, PM. I'm not sure my bud bro would listen to reason about it. He'll say the label means nothing, but at the end of the day, I think it does.

He lives in Germany, so I'm not sure how good eBay is there any longer. I used it when I lived there, but that was two decades ago.

He plays at home mostly. He's just gone through a pretty bad experience with cancer and chemo. The chemo has given him neuropathy in his hands. He is struggling to play.

Part of me wants to warn him off it; another part wants to say, true or not, Get that Champ and enjoy it. He's talked about it for years, and if it makes him happy, I'm all for it. I am hoping he's totally cured, but the odds are challenging.

We've talked over the years about the sound on the Layla album. I admire it to, layers or not. What Dowd does with Clapton and Duane's guitars going through those Champs is wonderful.

[phantomman]

Be helpful to the extent that you can while humoring him.

I know where he's coming from.

[Offshore Angler]

He he, if there was a perfect amp there would only be one at the music store. Seems that everyone's tastes or beleifs are different. And even when we have a great amp like a DR, there are arguments over what speaker, tubes or transformers it needs.

So I say let the guy buy whatever makes him happy.

[Don]

I built a Mojotone clone several years ago. Once I got through with it with a great speaker and all, It cost more than a used '57 Champ Reissue (I see them regularly for about $800, though a used kit amp is even cheaper than that).

I like the amp a lot, but find it's usefulness to be limited. It sounds great in a small group with no drums. It sounds okay alone, better if the amp is raised high off the floor.
But, it's loud for home use when it's set dirty. Some of my larger amps with post phase inverter master volume controls do a better job at lower volume levels.

In the end, if he has a hankering for a tweed Champ, he should get one just for the experience. It's a fun amp.

[ch willie]

Be helpful to the extent that you can while humoring him.

I know where he's coming from.

I'm glad you've survived to keep rawkin'.

[ch willie]

The consensus is pretty much what I think too. Though it's not a matter of deciding for him, it's a matter of NOT dissuading him. And even encouraging him to get it. He's the best friend I've ever had, and I just want him to be happy no matter what piece of gear does it for him. I met him in 93, during my first year in Germany, and we bonded over Strats and Clapton, played in a band together, and remained close all these years. He's the greatest of guys, a true and loyal friend through good times and bad. I worry about him. It's been a tough time for him. He's a Brit and has kept that stiff upper lip, but he's open with me, and I know how sick and angry he's been.

[tugboat]

I love champs. My only amp for years has been a Weber 5F1 kit in a Princeton sized cabinet with a 10” speaker. I can get a nice fat, sweet clean sound at house friendly volumes that plays well with pedals and it’s not so loud that my ears hurt when I crank it when my wife and kids are out. I think I upgraded the transformers in mine as well as some of the capacitors and resistors in the preamp section, and after enjoying the stock Sig 10S for years, I ended up swapping it out with a Weber 10A125P (basically their 10A125 with a Blue Pup/Celestion style cone). Fendery/Tweedy enough with less low end so it doesn’t fart out. Love it. I ended up preferring 5751 preamp tubes, it gives the amp more clean headroom, which may sound like it defeats the purpose of owning a Tweed Champ, but the OD sounds much better to my ears. Fatter and thicker with less fuzz.

Sorry your friend had to go through that, #cuckfancer. There are much less wasteful “congrats on graduating from Chemo” gifts than a Tweed Champ! No guidance on the actual Fender version but lots seem to enjoy it. I’d personally think a clone with a bigger cab and 10” speaker does the circuit more justice but different strokes for different folks. Julian Lage apparently disagrees with me!

[phantomman]

I ended up preferring 5751 preamp tubes, it gives the amp more clean headroom, which may sound like it defeats the purpose of owning a Tweed Champ, but the OD sounds much better to my ears. Fatter and thicker with less fuzz.

I found the same with a 5E3 clone that I had built a couple of years ago, specifically the first-stage V1. The 12AX7 sounded fine but a vintage 5751 just sounded more appropriate, more "tweedy".

[Bill Moore]

I like 5751 for V1 in my DR clone, but didn't like it in the 5E3 V1, I think the stock 12AY7 sounds better.
(I've been wearing hearing aids for a while now, so my opinion is just that!)

[tugboat]

I found the same with a 5E3 clone that I had built a couple of years ago, specifically the first-stage V1. The 12AX7 sounded fine but a vintage 5751 just sounded more appropriate, more "tweedy".

Totally agree! A 5751 and a speaker of the Celestion vein makes me happy. Seems like there are mods that people make to the 5F1 circuit but I honestly can’t think of anything I’d change in my amp. It sounds good for everything I like to play or would like to play to my ears.

[tugboat]

I like 5751 for V1 in my DR clone, but didn't like it in the 5E3 V1, I think the stock 12AY7 sounds better.
(I've been wearing hearing aids for a while now, so my opinion is just that!)

The 12AY7 is lower gain than a 5751, isn’t it? Wouldn’t surprise me that it would sound really good.