dialing in a fender blues jr. amp

I show you how to get some great fender amp tones through this awesome 15 watt amplifier.

[@mikehorton1934]

You nailed it on the cons. "Boxey" is a good description and it varies from chassis/speaker combos. The Jensen can even sound a little "farty" at the bottom end of your mid freqs. My solution for this is to mic the back with a condenser at 3" away from mid-cone and an SM57 on the front at 1" from grill, slightly off axis (10 degrees) pointing to about 1" from egdge of dome. I have an iso closet and sometimes use an AKG C3000 with the sweet spot at level with top of amp, slightly angled so that the plane matches the angle of the cone as closely as possible. Check your phasing with back cab mic. I almost always have to flip it. I was an endentured servant at a studio in Kansas City during the 80s where I spent most of the time in the amp closet moving mics, swapping mics, swapping cabs, swapping heads, sacrificing chickens, etc... It was during this time I really started to get a feel for combo amps. The blues jr was our goto for tracking off the floor, which we did the majority of the time. These little tricks saved me a ton of time, even with some of the pickiest premadonnas on the planet. Keep it up, Sam. You have great chops and lots of knowledge. I'll smack the red button for ya. See you around, dude.

[@louisbelanger8792]

Celestion Alnico blue speaker is the way to go for those low ends on the blues junior!

[@nickefgen9219]

I’ve got the same amp, I’ve done the same thing with the knobs played around with them until I got the sound I was looking for, I’ve got 2 strats and a les paul that I play

[@davebarone506]

You have the Mark Knopfler sound

[@jacobguitar1809]

That bottom end problem is why I threw an eminence swamp thang speaker in it. Tightened it right up and so much more sustain. I guess I got a good deal for paying 250 for mine.

[@pedalheadgeardemos]

I use an Exotic RC booster to dial back the bottom and accentuate the top end. It really works for getting rid of that “farty” bottom end problem.

[@jacobguitar1809]

@@pedalheadgeardemos I use a boss GE-7 at the beginning of my board but at high volume with the master between 8-9 and the volume at 6, the stock speaker just wasn't doing it for me.

[@RogerThat902]

Nice video. It's an amazing amp for what it is especially considering you can find them for about 300 bucks used all the time. The only other thing I don't like it it goes from off to ONNNNNN in a hurry. It's not a fun apartment amp if someone needs it to be played really low--modeling is probably better anyways for that use.

[@ArrogantBaSStard]

Great video, thank you! I’m a beginner and looking for a general setting for overall clean sound on my FBJ. I see you have what looks like a Gibson ES 33X hanging on the wall. I have an ES 335. What Settings would you recommend for this setup? Just looking for a starting point as I learn more. Thanks!

[@pedalheadgeardemos]

I would try to keep it as clean as possible. If you take the master volume and crank it, and back the input volume off to like 1… it will be a very clean signal. Then use reverb to taste.

[@ArrogantBaSStard]

@@pedalheadgeardemos thanks a lot! That’s what I did at first when watching this video, but then saw that you put the master down to 3 or 4 I think so wasn’t sure.

[@pedalheadgeardemos]

@@ArrogantBaSStard you could back the master vol back to 3 and put the input volume at like five or six. That would give you a more growly kind of a tone… but not fully distorted.

[@ArrogantBaSStard]

@@pedalheadgeardemos got it, thanks again!

[@mikehickey6256]

Did somebody sit on a duck? The only thing you can do wrong with this amp is running the mids too high. Keep em around 3 or 4 run the master around 9 and you can control the rest with your guitar volume.

[@Hexonip]

It's so strange on my FSR BJIV.... I can only get "dirt"/"breakup" when I hit max Master Vol and 2 on Volume... Using single coil Strat and Tele.... I have tried all settings shown here and many others. I have pedals and can alter the tone easily with those additions. But, it is leading to major discontent with this amp. The range I see and hear in videos just feels unobtainable and it is frustrating. I genuinely wonder if there is something wrong with my gear due to how much effort I have put into replicating the settings from videos like this. Ugh.

[@pedalheadgeardemos]

I wonder if your master volume and regular volume are wired backwards. The master volume all the way up should give you the cleanest tone possible.

[@NotaFEDjed]

I always keep my mid down to 0 and the amp opens up.

[@MAP448]

Which blues jr are u using?

[@pedalheadgeardemos]

Blues jr. 3

[@kristofernewton422]

Have Ya Played the Fender Blues Jr 4 with the Cannabis Rex Speaker?...Wondering what Your Impressions of it were If Ya have.

[@mikealvarado6868]

What was your guitar settings on volume & tone?

[@pedalheadgeardemos]

Ten… all the way up. Like 99% of everyone does 😂

[@dieterschonfeld9795]

@@pedalheadgeardemos except ppl like John Mayer, Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, any Jazz Player.. 😉😂

[@pedalheadgeardemos]

@@dieterschonfeld9795 I definitely was being sarcastic. the guys from andertons music in the UK say this exact line in almost all their videos. I guess sarcasm works better in live form, not written form.