Fender Hot Rod Deluxe Combo Amplifier - Is The World's Number One Tube Amp Really THIS Bad?

Support my channel: / maxrossellmusic
Fender Hot Rod Deluxe Combo Amplifier - In this video review we find out why Fender's mega-selling flagship valve amp leaves a lot to be desired.
Do you agree or disagree? Share your own impressions and experiences in the comments.
If you disagree and you want to prove me wrong by buying a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe (MkIV), you can do so here (affiliate link):
tinyurl.com/343emzuk
00:00 Introduction
00:32 Is it the most popular?
01:12 Cost and specs
02:14 Pedal platform?
02:40 Demo setup
03:34 Clean sounds (playing)
04:45 Clean sounds verdict
05:29 Reverb sound (playing)
06:42 Tweed sound - passive volume pot
07:15 Tweed sounds (playing)
08:22 Tweed sounds verdict
08:52 Gain sounds (playing & verdict)
11:17 More Gain sounds (playing & verdict)
12:16 Hot Rod Generations
12:44 Why so popular?
14:18 Outro
#Fender #Hotrod #deluxe

[@russellesimonetta3835]

New electrolytic caps and the hot resisters raised off the board. If you don't it wiil go to shit. It needs more but the minimum must be done. Look at the fromel mod package. About a $150 with fromel mod, new F+T caps and getting those 5 watt resisters off the board and you will have a much better amp.

[@MaxRossellMusic]

I hear you. I'm just not keeping it as I don't really have much of a use for it, so the next owner will have all that modding to look forward to.

[@lucy5668]

@@MaxRossellMusic which one are you using?

[@MaxRossellMusic]

@@lucy5668 Which amp? At the moment I'm using a Marshall JMP-1 preamp into an ADA Microtube 100. Bit of a weird setup but I'm using a Helix Floor for live (I'm in a proggy alt-metal band) so the MIDI switching works really well. Money (and band) no object it would probably be something like a 65Amps or a /13 halfstack with a small handful of pedals front-end only. For recording I use all kinds of stuff from Neural Plugins to little combos, currently my favourite is an old Trace Speed-Twin head into a Marshall SE100 reactive load box.

[@lucy5668]

@@MaxRossellMusic for recording what’s the best amp for a really nice clear fender clean, that takes pedals well, and overdrives decently? Bassbreaker?

[@MaxRossellMusic]

@@lucy5668 I'll be honest, I've not been blown away by the Bassbreaker range either. The best Fender amp I've played in the last few years was the '68 Vibrolux reissue. Beautiful cleans, breaks up early enough but still has decent headroom for anything you want to put in front of it.

[@ianzickler2121]

I'm positive this guy means the opposite of everything he's saying. The amp sounds fantastic.

[@TxAcoustics]

I think it sounds pretty bad about 90% of the video. Not his playing, but the amp just doesn't hit the ear right. I have a tweed HRD4, and it's not as inspiring as I think it should be.

[@UltrafineDeluxe]

@@TxAcoustics I had the original HRD. It was a very generic sounding/bland amp (even after swapping speakers/tubes) to me & I always had technical issues with it. Replaced with 65 Deluxe Reverb, worlds better, gorgeous inspiring tone.

[@mikmadpro]

Getting a used HR Deluxe, I personally recommend the following… Fromel Supreme Mod, use a 12AT7 on the preamp, quality 6L6 tubes (I switched from GT to JJ) and replacement speaker of your choice/flavor. I play country, rock and pop around the Lone Star State (aka Texas USA) as a working musician and my HRD has been quite the ‘working girl’ for over 12 years.

[@Shell4520]

Like most brits, whiney and overly falsely critical.

[@suzannemiller507]

I don’t believe his review is fair using an out dated model as times have changed and so have peoples preferences.should have used the latest model the mk4 for a more up to date review.

[@johnny2thomas494]

This is one of the best amps for playing jazz and blues without a doubt the price is right and very good for playing small to medium venues

[@stephenkeddy6849]

It’s super clean and loud. That’s what your paying for. Not some feature loaded saturation machine. Plug your pedal board into #1 input on clean turn it up and walk away. That’s what makes this amp great

[@MaxRossellMusic]

That's kind of the point of the video. It's a super-clean, loud combo. The clean isn't that interesting so you need pedals to make it work. BUT it also has two extra gain stages that suck and presumably increase the amp's cost. Either the amp's just a bland clean platform for pedals in which case it's too expensive, or it's an amp with three switchable gain stages in which case it doesn't sound good.

[@MaxRossellMusic]

So what's more likely: A: I went out of my way to make the amp sound bad B: The amp was broken and I didn't notice C: It's not a very good amp It's cool that you amp sounds better than the one in this video. You should make your own video of it to demonstrate that.

[@MaxRossellMusic]

@Far Stox Like I said, go make your own video. Post the link here when you've made it and everyone can make their own minds up. I'll pin your post so it'll be right under my video.

[@goodear1540]

With a different tube set , speaker and rebias this amp can be a boutique level beast.

[@Baghdadbatterymusic]

True, it's just annoying how a nearly $1000 amp needs hundreds of more dollars in tube and speaker upgrades. I get that being the case with the blues junior or some other budget amp, but if i'm dropping that kind of money on an amp I definitely don't want to spend more just to get it sounding good.

[@yaniv-nos-tubes]

mine has a celestion alnico cream 90w v1 vintage mullard high gain i63 v2 vintage brimar cv 4004 v3 vintage brimar high gain balanced cv 4004 power : stock russian sovtek 6l6 gc (rca's are too expensive for me) biased by ear breakup starts at volume 1.5 with a les paul..... it eats kempers for breakfast enjoy!

[@yaniv-nos-tubes]

@@Baghdadbatterymusic i can upgrade a 150k dumbell with better speakers and tubes but i can't say the same about trainwreck...ken was the master of picking the best parts, dumbell was the master tweaker for your style and taste. anyway don't spend too much a used creamback speaker is 100$ a used vintage 60's-70's mullard/ge/rca shortplates tube for v1 is under 100$ those are world class upgrades for almost any amp. don't bother with nos matched power tubes unless it's a cost no object mission or a vintage amp . enjoy!

[@musicmatty67]

I think of speakers just like guitar strings…most player switch them out for their own preference. However, regardless of the stock speaker it may come with, I think you can get a basic feel for what Any amp is going to sound like and how responsive the EQ works. A speaker swap of your choice will only enhance that sound. It’s been my experience, that any speaker swap in a bad amp will make no difference. I have both the blues deluxe and hot Rod Deville 212 and both have the same speaker upgrades with the Jensen C12k 100 watts. For me personally, I actually enjoy the blues deluxe more for its tone. I’m guessing there’s a little something different with the tone circuit and perhaps that it’s just a single 12 inch speaker as well. I have a KZbin channel with videos of these amps. A friend of mine who’s really good on guitar did some videos for me with both these amps… You can easily recognize him because he’s heavyset build… Feel free to check it out 🤗

[@stevep1941]

I recently got a HRD mk4 and it sounds very nice, and much better than the early version I toured with for a couple of years without any issue apart from the odd dud valve. I've seen so many HRDs on stages everywhere as backline, and as a sound tech, some touring guys using these amps pulled great tones.

[@vintageleon76]

great video. my master volume, and mid pots went out, got some new pots to replace them. this amp is a work horse, got it used for next to nothing, small fix and its still rocking hard. the fingers are the first chain in this amp. Great video. enjoyed it!!

[@MaxRossellMusic]

Hi Leon, thanks for you comment!

[@thadlogan51]

It's always good to see honest opinions about gear online since most reviews are sponsored... and the reviewer can't give their true opinion. I don't own a hot rod deluxe or any fender amp currently. I was a professional musician...played guitar for 30 years... and collect high end guitars and gear... and have played most amps over the years, including a hot rod deluxe. I think the model you have just has bad tubes or a terrible speaker. As others have mentioned the speaker makes a huge difference with any amp and the speakers in the newer models are better. I've considered buying a hot rod deluxe because every time I go into a guitar store and play several amps side by side the Hot rod is one of the only ones that had a decent clean tone. Vox, Marshalls, blackstar, etc. just sound thin and lifeless in comparison clean. I have been thinking of buying a twin reverb or deluxe reverb... which sounds good clean but they lack fullness and bass response compared to the Hot rod deluxe probably because they have smaller cabinets... though less bassy amps can be good for cutting through the mix... but for anything else I don't care for them as much. It's interesting to hear your opinion about how terrible these amps are... but then amazing musicians like Danish Pete, The Captain, Johan segeborn, etc. say they absolutely love these amps even over the more expensive deluxe reverb amp... and even over boutique amps. I haven't played them with gain to form an opinion... but I find that once you get above the $1k point with amps you take aren't getting much more for your money in terms of tone. Hell of take a Peavey classic 50 over 90 percent of the boutique amps out there and they are inexpensive. Again sounds like you need a speaker swap with the one you have... but just my opinion.

[@Da_Publick]

No, Hot Rods are infamous for having the worst High Gain sounds, and to have the temerity to call a channel 'More Drive.' Various people have done speaker upgrades but it's the circuit that makes it sound this way.

[@thadlogan51]

@@Da_Publick Hmmm... again I don't own one... but I've only played them through the clean channel. To be honest few fender amps sound very good to me... the twin reverb, deluxe reverb, Princeton sound very thin, sterile, and too bright. The hot rod at least sounds fuller clean... but as you said I've heard the drive channel isn't great. They don't have much low/mid punch either compared to some other amps I prefer...none of the fender amps do... except maybe the bassman. They have their place for lead tones though... just not great for rhythm in my opinion...

[@gitarman666]

What’s interesting to me regarding tone purists especially Fender amp purists is that they will buy a great sounding plug and play twin or blues deluxe then throw in a swamp thing speaker and cover the floor with stomp boxes some costing as much as the combo?? I have never had an amp I couldn’t make sound good with the right pedals So but the HRD it’s cheap it’s loud and spend the difference on stomps and you can make it sound however you want Pedal platform!

[@MaxRossellMusic]

Yeah, totally agreed. A lot of the comments here are "It's supposed to be used with pedals", or even weirder "It's supposed to be played with a strat", as if there's an amp manufacturer on the planet that would deliberately make a combo that doesn't sound good unless it's got a tubescreamer and one of their own brand's guitars into it. Every amp should work well with pedals. Most amps also sound pretty good without. Most amps work pretty well with whatever guitar you put into them.

[@mmaatt2k]

Killer video again dude. Great to hear/see some of those riffs.

[@MaxRossellMusic]

Thanks man!

[@user-wq1mp8fr8f]

Just had new caps and power tubes put in mine after 14 years of use. Took some time to get used to. Powerhouse workhorse. Love it!

[@pb12661]

The Strokes (not my favorite band, btw) recorded one of the most heralded albums in the last 25 years with Hot Rod Deluxe/Deville amps. I think their tones on that album sounded pretty good. I'm not going to argue and say it's the greatest amp in the world but a lot bands/players get good results with them.

[@MaxRossellMusic]

Well, I think album tones are a quite specific thing, and The Strokes have a very distinct, spiky, scrappy guitar sound that I wouldn't necessarily describe as being representative of "good tone", although it certainly works for their aesthetic. For the record I've owned a HR Deville which I far preferred to the HRDlx.

[@pb12661]

@@MaxRossellMusic I hear you, man. 👍

[@imannonymous7707]

I love that band man

[@charlied8055]

Had one a few years ago. Sold it. Got a Marshall DSL40CR. Nice amp but you know what? I missed the HRD. Got another one. The HRD sounds like broken glass by itself. With the band, it cuts! Smooth it out w a TS9 and run another dirt pedal through it for solos. I love it, imperfections and all. For me, it’s the perfect gig amp.

[@jordanmay3372]

With respect, Max, I don't think you've fully explored the HRD amp settings. If you are looking for "classic" 60s Blackface cleans, try this: Clean channel Brightness button in, Volume on 6 Treble on 6 Bass on 2 Mids on 3 Reverb on 3

[@nigelcreighton2411]

I’ve got a 1996 Deluxe and a 1998 DeVille 4x10, and they’re both awesome amps, I’ve never had any issue with getting the sound I need out of them without any pedals or effects.

[@MaxRossellMusic]

I had a 4x10 Blues Deville that was great. I've also owned a 4x10 HRDeville that was not. All sounded bad compared to the '59 Bassman RI I had for a while.

[@chriswallace9387]

I will have to say when this guy begins to sum up. He is spot on. And is honest in his opinions. And if you’re wondering, yes I own one- FSR mark 4. Love it.

[@ElmerFerrer]

That amp’s clean channel is great with pedals! Had one for 14 years, was stolen and thanks God I found another V2 almost new.

[@dontuckerjr]

I’m glad I found this video. I have an older HRD and I’ve done so many modifications without keeping a a starting point recording. Trying to compare my HRD tone with yours I realized I needed to find a guitar with humbuckers to have a fair comparison. Mine sounds beautiful with single coils including p90s. Pretty nice with low output humbuckers. But gain channel is absolute crap with higher output humbuckers. Some of my changes include EVM 12L speaker, Hammond output transformer, short reverb tank, 12AT7 for v1 tube and reliability mods to the circuit boards. I think it may have been Keith Richards who said that Fender amps were designed to make Fender guitars sound their best. Pretty sure he meant single coil models and I think I agree. Doesn’t mean I won’t keep messing with it. That’s what one does with a hot rod, right.😊 Thanks again.👍 ***I have to amend what I wrote here. I have a Mesa Boogie Mark 5:25 and when I switch off the EQ on the gain channel it sounds similar to my HRD. So I added a cheap Behringer EQ700 into the effects loop of my HRD. Setting the inverted V style of slider settings like one might use on a Mesa amp makes my HRD sound exactly the same as my Mesa when using more drive on a setting of Drive at 9. Now my humbucker guitars sounds awesome though the HRD.

[@cwang6951]

I have one of these and used an American strat and a GT8 in front of it for years, loved it.

[@stringedaz]

I just got an mk1 HRDLX today with a weber ferromax speaker for 200 bucks. It is awesome. Super loud and clean with a fatty distortion channel.

[@javajack-1]

Good review. I’m subscribed now. It’s obvious you know what you’re talking about. I own the MarkIV as one of my amps but have never been impressed with the overdrive character. I use pedals in front of this amp to achieve the sounds I’m looking for.

[@MaxRossellMusic]

Thanks for subscribing, and of course for watching and commenting. Yeah, I've heard that the Mk IV of these is way way better than its predecessors, although still not "there" in terms of the gain channel. Pedal platform seems to be the preferred use for them.

[@georgebaldwin]

I love the vibe you get into at 10:30. I know you describe it as rattling, but it sounds like a rockin’ foo fighters style jam

[@castrucciocastracani0]

It reminds me of The Pretender

[@jolkraeremeark6949]

Thoroughly enjoy that part even though I don't agree with the review.

[@KordTaylor]

A A really great blatant review here. Thank you! 👍🏻

[@MaxRossellMusic]

Thank you man, and thanks for watching!

[@HamzaVLOGs]

HRD hack #1: EQ - mids on 12, bass and treble on 0, bright switch if needed, presence if you still want more tops. Want breakup on clean channel earlier? Dime the bass. Even on 0, there’s tons of bass, but the knob actually increases saturation of the tubes. There’s a resistor you can clip if you want to be able to cop more deep and warm reverb tones. The compromise is that it’s supposed to sound good, stock, with the drive. I use about 2.5-3 clean and 7 for drive. After selling mine and trying several other amps, I kind of miss mine. It was a beautiful beast with the Jensen P12Q AlNiCo speaker.

[@DaveWalshMusic]

I gig in myrtle beach SC and you see these things on every stage around town at hundreds of venues. I use them because 8 out of 10 gigs are outside a stone's throw away from the beach. Salt air and humidity don't take kindly to gear. I have a DeVille completely rusted top panel and it still works like new.

[@celestelongway7315]

Greetings from Los Angeles. From Mike T Wyman jam night player 2013-2019. Strats and Ibanez super Strat modded. Cheers!

[@DerekPaulGuitar]

I run mine at 5 or 6 through the captor x and use the nobels ODR-1 as an overdrive, it's an awesome sounding thing (in my opinion) cheers

[@GuitarPancakes]

is it easy to access the cable that goes into the speaker to put an attenuator in the middle? thanks :D

[@DerekPaulGuitar]

@@GuitarPancakes absolutely! Really easy, cheers

[@Mikem-mq2hh]

Different strokes for different folks...

[@NORMIES_GET_OUT]

I have the 4x10 version and absolutely love it. Gotta crank it up past 5 at least for it to really come to life. I rarely use the gain channel at all. Usually just run it clean and push the front end a bit with a low gain/ slight clean boost settings on a tube screamer. Honestly, my amp sounds way better than what you're getting. I think you may have a tube failing as this is kind of what mine sounded like when I had a power tube red plating on me. I really think you have a tube/bias issue here because I agree with your tone analysis, but that's not what it should sound like.

[@darrencole1387]

I think a lot of people who don’t like the HRD quite possibly just needed the right speaker with it. I have an HRD III from 2012 with a Celestion V30. It’s a great sounding amp.

[@NORMIES_GET_OUT]

@@darrencole1387 I have an older DeVille III with the eminence speakers and not the new celestions they're using now, so that could be a contributing factor as well.

[@MaxRossellMusic]

I see what you're saying but I had the amp checked over and the valves were okay. I also used to own the 4x10 DeVille version of this one which was better, as well as the Blues DeVille which was far superior to both. I think whatever those 10" speakers were (Jensen?) work way better than the stock 12" in the one I'm demoing.

[@UltrafineDeluxe]

@@darrencole1387 I had the HRD with a Vintage 30 (& another cab with a V30 helping it + premium tubes) & I still found it to be a bland generic sounding amp, also plagued with annoying technical issues. I wonder if HRD lovers have tried a blackface Fender or Bassman to see the difference.

[@KyleSchwanz]

One of the best sounding amps ever produced. I do like a vintage 30 celestial in them for distorted tones better. These are hard to beat.

[@davidwellman7080]

I have a mark 3 I tried every amp in the store and no of them compared to the hotrod iiii. However im not a high gain type of guy. Thank you for the review.

[@uselessoldman7964]

I have seen a lot of musicians use these live and I can understand why, its small light and you don't need a roadie crew to lump it about for you. After all, how many people in the audience really care or knowledgeable enough to know and hear the difference between various types of amps/cabs? For many musicians the only real thing that matters, its a valve amp !! Live music has changed significantly over the years, no longer do bands fill that backs of stages with stacks of Amps and Cabs blasting their ears out, those days are over, now musicians care about their own hearing and their band mates so they use small powered amps and just mic them into the venue PA system. There lies the problem, most venues sound systems are so bad no matter how good the cabs sounds, its wasted on the audience since all they get is the PA system, your rig could sound amazing but that is not what the audience will hear. Personally I would stick with the JMP-1 and just cable it up to a decent power amp like QSC Crown and use a 2x12 with my choice of speakers G12T V30 Greenbacks, cost about the same and sound a million times better.

[@ratedepth]

Enjoyed how you play!

[@MaxRossellMusic]

Thanks!

[@scootersage]

I put a Fromel upgrade in my Texas Red made a world of difference. Power transformer went out in mine. Replaced it with a Hammond 290UX.

[@rockingirish]

Had my Deville over 20 years. Strat bass 2-4, mid past half and treble high and it still sounds great. Had a Deluxe and it would blow out candles with the bottom also.

[@michaelpasmore116]

Nice playing. I have the Hot Rod Deluxe III which I’ve owned for 12 years and only play it on the clean settings. My Ibanez ts808 tube screamer doesn’t help the sound either in my opinion.

[@CameraLaw]

Really amusing comments. The love:hate ratio is about even. I’m on the love side with a George Benson model. Has a tube and speaker mod (to increase headroom) with an all pine cab. Works well for jazz on a hollow body. Sparkles.

[@FLdb-wj4wc]

When you played at 8:52 to show how the gain channel sucked, it sounded great. Lol. The strokes have great tone! I saw the Josh Gracin Band at the South FL Fair and their guitar player had a small pedalboard and a Hot Rod Deluxe. His sound was soo good (monster player) I considered buying another one. I've had two and sold them because they sucked. I don't like my deluxe reverb either. It does one thing pretty good but usually sounds mid range and honky and hurts my ears.

[@MaxRossellMusic]

Hey, thanks for your comment! I think the reason these amps are so mid-forward is so they stand out in a band mix. That's great of course but makes them harder to manage on their own.

[@topwatertrl]

Love your channel! I have the HRD III and it has served me well at home at at small gigs. Question please... what is the brand and name of the passive volume pot you plugged into the effects loop? I need that for home practice. Thanks!

[@MaxRossellMusic]

Hi Mike, thanks for your comment. The volume pot doesn't have a brand, I just picked it up on eBay, there are loads of sellers who make this kind of thing on there.

[@wuaripiu]

hi , serch dr watson lion timer . they made it . made in uk

[@Hotitalianman]

I have a 96 HRD. I love it. It takes pedals like no other. I just got new Russian tubes and it purrs. So smooth with OCd OR bluesdriver. I love it.

[@MaxRossellMusic]

You know, I think I might have gotten something better out of this amp if I'd revalved it but honestly the time and expense was more than I was prepared to put into it. Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@jonnybeck6723]

I have a MIM mark 1 and it sounds great... it's no vintage blackface but I've been playing a long time as well. Amps aren't just tools, they're instruments

[@kangaroofoot]

Great point!

[@deaddiver3768]

Other than the 5W resistors overheating and the board mounted pots and jacks with bad solder joints, it and ones sharing similar boards are good amps.

[@mdjohn104]

I used one for years but had to let it go due to it being too loud! Couldn’t even mic the thing up due to the loudness of it. I now use a boss katana 100 watt, I’m not a solid state snob, the boss Katana is a superb amp, it cuts through my other guitar players amp, he uses a hot rod deluxe.

[@Skyne_E_Vader]

Did the Fromel mod on my HRD and volume is great and reverb is better. Worth the $100

[@gustomundo]

Like your playing... good review

[@MaxRossellMusic]

Thanks man, and thanks for watching!

[@gregmock6808]

I have a 2002 cream colored reissue that's been modded with Sovtek and Svetlana tubes and rebiased, the reverb tank and presence switch never worked but I use an old late 70s analog delay and a Dispatch Master pedal for reverb anyway. I put a GE7 eq pedal in the effects loop and found it's the best way to smooth out the volume and gain jumps in the amp ..highly recommend doing that

[@keithfranzen9209]

I remember trading mine even up for a Peavey Classic 30 which at the time was worth 60% of what these were going for, and I was still overjoyed to be rid of it. Thinking back, I didn’t know how to properly dial in this amp and it probably would have been better for what I was trying to do with it, than the Peavey classic 30.

[@pacrat90]

I did exactly the same thing.

[@johngastaldo6419]

Me too, did it twice once to a Blues Deluxe then a HRDL, both noisy IMHO, right out of the box. Made me think it’s too much circuit board instead of point to point.

[@lprb302]

Thanks Max - The clean channel is actually quite nice for pure cleans but I reckon it’s called a pedal platform amp because it REALLY needs pedals to sound any good with any gain tones 😂

[@lprb302]

ps Do I hear a hint of an Australian accent there?

[@MaxRossellMusic]

I agree with you, I guess my point is, why would you get an amp that only sounds good with pedals when there are amps available that sound good both with pedals and also without.

[@MaxRossellMusic]

Also no Australian :)

[@pahwraith]

@@MaxRossellMusic because I can get one used for 300-400 dollars in the usa. And go on a world tour with it. Its a working mans amp. Its not much but its honest work, type amp.

[@MaxRossellMusic]

@@pahwraith I accept that, but why would anyone who could afford to go on a World Tour take 300 bucks' worth of mediocre amp?

[@nestorrojas9284]

where did you buy the attenuator? nice video.

[@StringTension]

I agree with everything you're saying here and I've never owned one of these amps because I hate their sound - but let me play devils advocate, what if that trashy sound is what Fender was going for with the label "Hot Rod" because to me al, the HR amps suffer the same tonal issues.

[@larryjohnson9737]

As an owner of a HRD IV, save your money. this amp is total crap. I did the Fromel upgrade, save your money!! Get a good tube amp. Nothing has changed on it in a good way in 20yrs. Your vid points out very nicely, everthing I absolutely abhor about this amp. 5 stars for the vid and you are much kinder than I would have been

[@DonaldMerrit]

The only complaint I have after 25 years of gigging and recording with this amp is the slightly Soggy Bottom end from the open-back cab during live performances. I solved that problem by adding a closed-back one by 12 cab.

[@abelincoln78]

Put the middle knob on 2, bass on like 3 and treble on 5-6 and try for chime again. Presence to taste.

[@ekostopoulos]

Horses for courses, but I hear some lovely sounds coming out of this amp. The clean channel is awesome, it sits between a Blackface and a Tweed and I much prefer it to the sterile harshness of a DRRI. Cuts through the mix very well too, without ice-pick highs. I even like the drive channel sometimes (when cranked!) for its gritty dirty snarl. But with a TS and a RAT, the clean channel can do everything.

[@MaxRossellMusic]

Do you find the DRRI to be sterile and harsh? I find them to be warmer and more characterful than the HRDlx.

[@ekostopoulos]

@@MaxRossellMusic I never bonded with the DRRI. I find the cleans too “hi-fi”, it gets fizzy with pedals and its natural breakup at higher volumes can be shrill. (The Twin Reverb on the other hand is one of my all time favourite amps). Tweeds sound lovely but they can be very hard to tame, they are great for bluesy tones, but everything else can be a challenge. To my ears, the HRDL sits somewhere in between, offering the best of both worlds (or something close anyway).

[@piotrwasylik8950]

Pls I need some help. Where I can find this passive volume plug with 2 jacks? i cannot find it online

[@MaxRossellMusic]

It depends on where you are - I can find them on eBay in the UK, but even if you can't find one to buy it should be fairly easy to make one up. As you say it's just a passive volume pot in line with mono jacks.

[@VintageRadius]

I agree with the main points of your review. I had a HRDX and sold it. Overall was never a huge fan either. Quick story - A couple of years after selling it I saw a really talented blues band in Greenwich Village NY. This older gentleman was playing his Gibson custom ES 355 through a HRDX. These guys were playing at a pretty decent volume, the amp was definitely “working a bit” but not cranked up. Anyway this guy blew me away. Mostly it was his mastery of the instrument but I can tell you his tone was excellent. He sat perfectly in the mix with dynamics, clarity, sustain and a very mid forward tone, not harsh at all. I couldn’t believe what he was getting from the same amp that I couldn’t get along with. It was a small enough venue that after the show I went up and spoke with him and I could see he only had a single OD pedal which was a Zendrive set fairly clean, mostly as a boost. Remember he had the bass dialed way down on the amp and mids up around 1-2 o’clock. Believe treble backed off a bit. Anyway, just thought I’d share.

[@pb12661]

yeah man it's usually the player unless the amp really sucks. Honestly, some of the best guitar tone I ever heard was a guy ripping an old Digitech GSP preamp thru a P.A. lol And I've seen many famous players. It's crazy. But it taught me a valuable lesson. For the most part, great tone is gained thru talent, experience, your fingers, and good ears.

[@pugforce8315]

playing mine i use the same settings loud, so much bass you gotta roll it down, crank the presence and set the midrange and treble by ear

[@co7013]

For the music I play (mostly jazz) this amp is way louder than what i need, but I do like the sound, clean but still warm enough. My semi-hollow sounds great on it. I wouldn't mind having one at home. It's not too big either, which is nice. But I actually would have more use for a much smaller amp that can be easily carried. Even the Roland Cube 30 I mostly use, which can be transported if need be, is bigger than what I actually need. I am not looking for an amp that 'breaks up'. I want it to stay clean and warm.

[@MaxRossellMusic]

I agree the HRDlx is a pretty good candidate for Jazz because it has a lot of clean headroom and is not inherently characterful so the guitar tone can remain very clear and natural. But then you've got a set of features you're not using. I also have a Roland Cube 30 as it happens and I enjoy using it more than I enjoyed using the HRDlx.

[@GuitarPancakes]

is it easy to access the cable that goes into the speaker to put an attenuator in the middle? thanks :D

[@elrondmcbong8184]

Yes

[@monkeyfinger7949]

I can't say I agree with the review. Some of the tones coming out of your Les Paul with this amp were pretty great, and would sound very good and usable in a band mix. I bought a Deluxe III (today), and I really like it. Having said that, the speaker it comes with has a very particular spiky sound, which I'm not saying is bad. It's a thing you can use when you want that. But IMO, the amp sounds much better with a different speaker (I have a selection of them to try). Also in my opinion, 40 watt is the perfect size. The one thing I can say I don't like about my amp specifically is, on the clean channel, with standard humbuckers, into the high gain input, I can't get the volume above 2 without break up. I would prefer more headroom.

[@MaxRossellMusic]

I agree that a 40-50watt amp is the sweet spot for live - probably still too loud for studio but depends on the space. A lot of people have said they like the tones I'm getting, and that's opinion so I can't disagree, all I can say is that it doesn't sound good to me. It's possible the MkIII is way better than the MkI but as you say it should really come with a better speaker. From listening to what a lot of people have said about this amp, it seems the speaker is well -suited to either the clean tones or the distorted tones, but not both. It's interesting that you can't get enough headroom on the clean channel with yours. Mine had way to much headroom.

[@comunidadeclimax3809]

I have a Hot Rod Deluxe and also a Marshall DSL and they sound different. In fact they have to sound different and I love them both. I think it's pretty much your preference!

[@leonlowery3389]

i don't play much of the super overdriven stuff that you seem to play. I've got an HRD and i love the clean tones, I also love the overdrive tones using a pedal (TS 808). It's great amp.

[@MaxRossellMusic]

It's true I do like to push the gain - I guess my point would be that the gain staging on this amp is terrible, so even if it's good as a clean platform it's got unusable features that you've paid for.

[@angusorvid8840]

Good video. I happen to dig this amp, but I must point out the critique of the gain channel. Yes, it doesn't compress, which is what you'd want with most tube amps as you turn up the gain. But most tube amps are designed with humbuckers in mind. Most Fender amps are designed to work with the characteristics of single coils which do not take as well to compression, unless perhaps you want compression for a lead boost. But for rhythm it will sound big, snappy and robust with single coils including P-90s. I played in the L.A. metal scene of the 80s, in which the JCM 800 was king, followed by plexis, the Laney AOR Pro Tube Lead, Randall RG series, and the odd Mesa Boogie. I gigged with most of these amps and owned most of them. I also gigged with a number of Fender amps. When I got tired of lugging around my plexi I started using a series of combos that I'd borrow, like old tube Peaveys which sounded great, my Randall RG75, or my Boogie. But there were some Fender combos I really enjoyed using. I'd boost them with a Boss or Tube Screamer and use an EQ pedal if necessary. I got some amazing tones. As one who prefers using a pedal rather than an ultra-high gain amp this is the way to go. I get tired of high gain amps real fast. After a while it's just a bunch of static. I like to change things up with pedals. A good Fender amp that takes pedals well is worth its weight in gold. I used a number of Deluxe Reverbs, Princetons and Bassmans. I discovered that it was easier to retain a big, fat tone without getting brittle than it was with a Marshall or British style EL-34 amp. I still love Marshalls and own a DSL. It's a fine amp. But I think a good Fender combo is just easier to work with in most situations than a Marshall, or even a Boogie with its myriad of knobs and built in five band graphic EQ. I don't care if an amp has a simple EQ like a Blues Jr. I care how effectively the EQ works when I dial in settings. I find these amps work great with pedals. An overdrive pedal can be like the ultimate extended EQ. I love big, popping chords, clean or dirty, and I like the solos to really punch out there. In my experience Fenders are more satisfying. I think the issue many have with the Hot Rod series is that it's Fender's desire to make a sort of jack of all trades everything amp that's good at some things but not really great at anything. I can work with an amp like this, using it as a pedal platform. But I can understand if it's not your cup of tea. I would recommend trying the Supersonic series if you want a very different type of gain.

[@Radi0Racc00n]

Do you think it will sound better with my electro harmonix compressor pedal?

[@TheWhiteLetters]

Most tube amps are designed with humbuckers in mind? Tube amps predate humbuckers. Even now, how does one design an amp to tailor to one pickup type or another?

[@ayodawg1]

@@TheWhiteLetters id say his point still stands, most amps these days have overpowered pre amp sections for distortion and don't really focus on articulate cleans

[@ericjam6346]

I have the amp. Clean tones dialed in straight from the amp can be outstanding.. However useable gain tones can be dialed in. It's a #1 amp for a couple reasons. A huge amount of headroom, a good EQ, and a clean channel that is a perfect foundation for pedals. So if your tone comes from pedals, you'll be hard pressed to do better. If you come from the EVH school of thought, tone chasing the brown sound with a plexi and a variac straight from the amp, you will be very disappointed trying to dial in any metal tones.

[@MaxRossellMusic]

I don't think anyone's trying to dial in metal tones with this (well maybe they are but nobody serious). A lot of people in the comments have said "you CAN get a good sound out of this amp by doing XYZ and using pedals". I accept that but my contention is that this is a fully-featured amp and few of the features are good. I don't want to pay for an amp with three gain stages if I can only use the clean tone with pedals.

[@msgesus4518]

@@MaxRossellMusic King Gizzard use these and have done thrash metal album which sounds pretty damn good live with these amps... I would consider them serious.

[@MaxRossellMusic]

@Far Stox I mean, just a matter of taste obviously but I just checked out that record and I think the gain guitar tones on there are pretty bad.

[@jonathanplanner3270]

This is always interesting to me I own a bunch of AC30s that I use most of the time, however I have this exact amp and the pedal platform thing is where I find it really works, after all it's only £800 or so, so I guess you get what you pay for... I find the drive channel works really really well if you are running treble boosters or pedals that just add a little boost like a Klon clone or Way Huge Overrated Special, then it sings! Also works brilliantly with the Origin Effects pedals for clean trem sounds or full out rock stuff, It's not my fav amp but I do find I get the classic Fender clean sounds and a good range of full gain sounds from it with help from pedals... and for £800 all valve I guess that's not bad

[@aliengtr]

Played a version iv hotrod deluxe and thought the clean ch was great but quite loud, I dont use overdrive

[@serranodavid3247]

What's the difference between this amp and the Blues DeVille?

[@PipeCat1965]

I have passed on this amp maybe 10 times when out shopping for tone. I like clean headroom, but the tone of this thing never really grabbed me. I have gone with three Peavey Classics, a Bogner Alchemist, and some old Dean Markley hybrids instead. My gigging amp is a Vox VT100X, which is a modeling amp (I know) but actually pulls off the models quite well.

[@tmo7734]

I like the Hot Rod Deluxe for its clean sound. Many reviews immediately turn to overdrive, which can be done on $100 amp. Who needs that?

[@Da_Publick]

I think Fender should stop trying to make a 'Marshall style overdrive circuit,' as Rick Hines referred to it. And they managed to make the solid state Champion 20 and 40 sound _exactly the same,_ somehow.

[@jazzalta716]

The Hot Rod IV is a HUGE improvement.

[@MaxRossellMusic]

I've heard this. I look forward to trying one.

[@DonaldMerrit]

Playing pedals through amplifiers for 50 years I can tell you from my own experience, some amplifiers are more pedal-friendly than others. Some amplifiers are not pedal friendly at all. So making the claim that it's a great pedal platform isn't really just an unnecessary statement. I have many amplifiers in my possession right now and one of them is the original 1995 USA Fender Hot Rod Deluxe and I can say having owned it all these years did it is one of the best Pedal platforms out there. My second pick is the VHT 12/20 special.

[@Baghdadbatterymusic]

Great demo, You do a good job at showing the dynamics ( or lack thereof with this amp) of amps by changing your pick attack which is something I find lacking in many demoes. This amp sounds like garbage lol.

[@robertobrien2903]

I think itis more of a single coil friendly amp. Consider the old saying "Fender with Fender always sound's good." I bet a Les Paul with P90s would sound better as well but it seems to me that the demo is designed to point out all the ways you can set up and dial this amp in to sound bad. To my ears a Vox AC30 doesn't sound it's best with humbuckers either. Maybe a video on things that work well/things that don't work well together would be a great video for you to make...and learn from.

[@MaxRossellMusic]

I've never heard that saying. That being said, you're like the 100th person to say that I'm not supposed to put a Les Paul into this amp, so I guess there's some kind of consensus. It's possible that this amp would sound better paired with a Fender, however in my book that makes it a bad amp. Oh, and for the record I've also played a Tele through this amp and it sucked too. Are you going to tell me that what I really needed was a Strat?

[@garywise1378]

Interesting review, and the first real negative one I've heard. It's good to have some balance. Your "More Drive" demo did sound particularly rough! However, as a relatively inexperienced player who'd not had the opportunity to try lots of different kit, I went to the local music store looking to buy my first gigging amp, and a tube one in particular. I already had Blackstar in mind as a couple of friends had them and were raving about them. I tried a Blackstar, thought it sounded reasonable, but before I slapped my money down I thought I ought to compare it with something else. They plugged me into a Hot Rod Mk III and from the first few riffs I though, yeah, this is the amp for me! I was playing a strat and that amp was feeding me the bluesy tones that I love, which I just didn't get from the Blackstar. Having had it a while, I still love the clean tone. And in a jamming situation when I go to the Drive channel it can be quite pleasing. I do agree with you about the reverb saturating after about 2 on the dial.

[@haydenb9074]

I'd have to agree with some stuff you said and disagree with some. The cleans are fantastic but I'd have to agree that the gain is lackluster

[@jensenjames7444]

I absolutely hated this amp until I replaced the preamp tubes. 12au7/12ay7. 12ax7 is simply garbage in the HRD

[@meldeer6253]

cork sniffing in your last demonstration i notested you slowed you strumming down for it to keep up and it didnot respond well at all your second to last demo it was worse its was not holding up to well thank you very much i was looking at one of them but ill pass how about the princeton fender ??? im not looking for crunch or heavy mettal just a low down deep blues amp somthing thet dose well with the low & high notes im a beginner dont play well but im realy focused on my sound iv been at this for yr's thank you again

[@MaxRossellMusic]

No worries man, thanks for watching and commenting. I think the Princeton 64 reissues are great if that's the one you mean. Maybe a bit pricey for what it is, but that's Fender for you. If you think of yourself as a beginner I wouldn't worry so much about guitar tone yet. Tone-chasing can get in the way of playing, and if you're not happy with your playing yet then now is not the time to start trying to develop your sound. Just get a cheap amp that isn't too bad and play until you start to progress.

[@mr1bienvenu1]

I have this amplifier and I love the tone but I'm selling it because it's the most unreliable amp I've ever owned.

[@xBelastianx]

From 10:27 till 20:54 it sounds really great to me. Reminds me of Gossip's guitar tone.

[@noahchasinguitar5831]

It’s my favorite amp… I’ve sold my twin reverb, Marshall TSL and Mesa Boogie Lonestar because I prefer the HRD

[@blackie75]

I've used it for years for cleans on stage, it's a beast (MK III though) but always use pedals to round it out. I consider the Vox AC30 to be a better amp in the same price bracket though and if I was buying again now, that's what I'd get. For gain, I use a Marshall DSL40C.

[@thederrymackinnon6838]

I have a Traynor guitar mate ygl2 (Canadian amp) but I’m torn between this amp and that Marshall funny enough for a secondary. I’m looking for definition, do you have an opinion?

[@blackie75]

@@thederrymackinnon6838 I can't really comment as I'm completely unfamiliar with the Traynor line of amps.

[@Dooodrhino]

I got one and it is the best amp I've ever had

[@gustomundo]

what amps of that category/price do you like/recommend?

[@MaxRossellMusic]

It really depends, what country do you live in?

[@gustomundo]

@@MaxRossellMusic canada

[@paulsmashupchannel1442]

Maybe try a strat? Mine, purchased in 1998, sounds amazing.

[@johnladdsmusic]

I had the Blues Deville 4x10 in tweed…I lacquered it up to give it that vintage look…and it was beautiful…BUT I rarely had occasion where I could really open it up…even with an au-7 (I think) in position 1…the volume taper is ridiculous on these amps, not to mention the verb(unusable past 3)…and don’t get me started on the gain channel…just awful…after selling the tweed I got a 90’s USA-made HRD…same issues…tho the 4x10 was better sounding…I ended up selling the HRD too…I bought the Bassbreaker 30r which is soooo much better…I’ll never understand why these amps are the best selling…they’re too heavy, loud and uncontrollable

[@darklight4815]

This is strange, every other video I've seen of this amp has it sounding sweet

[@nubfishin9152]

I think you are spot on with your thoughts. Its widely available and its got features at a price point that makes it attractive. Its not a bad amp but it won't be the choice for those looking too maximize their tone. I know a lot of folks say it sucks but never follow up with an amp in this price range new that they would recommend.

[@balvenie55]

I've done it all to these amps...Fromel mod, all new valve sockets, Celestion Gold speaker high quality speaker cable, high quality valve set sounds much better than factory but definitely not the magic of a deluxe reverb or Princetown As you say easily affordable valve amp with a Fender badge. I fear when I want to sell they'll buy it for the Celestion Gold.... probably worth more than the amp....

[@heinofauch]

There is a „Mark V“. Well, this is not completely the truth but … I agree what you said and had the same impression. Got a used one for a few bucks and was not so happy with the sounds. So I started to tweak the circuit ( e.g. shifted the tone stack to another position of the circuit, modified caps, inserted a Vox tone control etc.), exchanged the speaker. Good thing is I can do this on my own otherwise it would be to expensive to pay a guitar tech to do it. I am very happy with the result but as you stated it is always a personal opinion and the next guy maybe rolls his eyes. This is how a „Mark V“ could look like 😀

[@MaxRossellMusic]

Hi man, thanks for your comment. I definitely agree with you that the amp has potential to be good if like you someone is prepared to modify the electronics and speaker etc. Because they're quite affordable used that could even be a good option for people who have the skill set and are setting out to customise something to their tastes. I do think however that for what they cost new they should be good enough off-the-shelf. There are a few Limited Editions of these that Fender released with upgraded speakers that a lot of people say are more usable than this one, and it does seem that a lot of the fizziness especially with gain seems to come from the stock speaker. What speaker did you put in yours?

[@heinofauch]

@@MaxRossellMusic I had a Celestion Vintage 30 at hand and installed it. I guess it has only 30W but I never cranked it up to max (damn loud) and had no problem so far. A word to the fizziness. As I said I installed a Tone control (basically it is just a cap and potentiometer) especially for the drive channel and this solved this issue for me. I can dial in a good blackface clean tone (it just take a small mod on the tone stack circuit) with the clean channel and can align the highs of the drive channel with the tone control. Very simple but this alters tone of the amp in a way I like it. However it is true it does not make sense to buy a new amp and modify it then to get a good sound. Then I would rather spend a few bucks more and get one which is fine for you.

[@yaniv-nos-tubes]

for blackface cleans - ge 12ax7wa at v1 for american tweedy crunch- rca 12ax7a at v1 for smooth overdrive when the breakup starts at 1.5 -a high gain mullard i63

[@ald7248]

I think it's worth mentioning that you are testing a MK 1 HLDR. Fender did make some pretty big changes to the tone stack for the MK 3. And the two amps do sound different. The MK 3 is definitely a big improvement. The OD is still not very good overall, but it's better than every 6L6 112 amp that I can name in it's price range and better than most of the inexpensive EL-84 amps, too. I'm not a huge fan of EL-84 OD in general and I think it's a major failing of the marketplace that most of the relatively inexpensive amps being introduced use an EL-84 power section.

[@MaxRossellMusic]

I do refer to the generations in the video and the improvements they've made since the MkI. I would hope they've substantially improved the HRDlx in later iterations, considering the abundance of customer feedback and especially the price they go for now (in Europe at least, where new they cost only just a bit less than a good condition used Deluxe Reverb, which is I think an amp rightly known for its exceptional tones).

[@jarrodottinger3]

I realize I’m late to the game, but I have a Jet City JCA22H (non-custom). It’s a two channel head with 5 x 12AX7 in the preamp and 2 x EL84 in the power amp. It sounds FANTASTIC at all gain levels, and I only paid $360 for it brand new. And even though it’s only 20 watts, it absolutely screams. It’s actually hard to get a bad tone out of it.

[@garymattischannel6207]

I thought it was also until I found out about The Hot Rod DeVille Amplifier. , I was thinking that 40 watts might not be enough for A large room so I bought The Hot Rod DeVille 60 Watt Amplifier instead. Both are good Amplifiers and both sound great. But My Personal favorite Guitar Amplifier was A Ultra Linear 75 Watt with two EL34 tubes and A copied Sun Model T preamp section. The output transformer went out and it was not available anymore. So I junked it and I have been looking for another guitar amplifier to replace it with And The Hot Rod Deluxe was the first one that I liked and later on I found out that The DeVille Amplifier was about as close as I could get to it. The Fenders have a lot more options than The Frankenstein that I had but Frankenstein was a powerful 75 Watt amplifier.

[@ace-rob71]

I use my HRD3 with MXR Badass Super Distorsion and Electro Harmonics Big Muff and it's great. However his distorsion channel is not that bad. it needs to be cranked to be acceptable. Anyway I prefer the clean as pedal platform.

[@daverenick5830]

First channel was OK. I hated the drive channel which is finally why I sold mine...that and some tube issues. But I bought it for volume and sold it for it's harshness, which I basically thought just sounded ugly. They really screwed that up on this series. I'm basically a clean player but I like a little reverb which Fender is justifiably famous for. I think the best sounding Fender amp is the deluxe reverb hands down but at 22 watts at many gigs you have to mike it and if you can't........well.......you decide. The only reasonable answer is the twin reverb which requires a crane and truck to move around. If they made something that sounded like a VINTAGE deluxe reverb with 40 watts and one 12" speaker, and a good one, not an eminence, but with the gigantically better circuitry of the DR, with it's portability, that would be a good thing. The super reverb sort of does it but I'd rather have one or two 12's then 4 tens's anyday. If you can mike the DR it's maybe the best amp I ever used, and I am a fender player going way back, but I keep getting hung up on the meagre 22 watts.

[@DonaldMerrit]

Why the Reverb on this Hot Rod Deluxe doesn't sound anything like the one on My Hot Rod Deluxe

[@jamecke3216]

is it possible to use it at home ?

[@MaxRossellMusic]

Personally it wouldn't be my choice for a home amp as it's not really possible to run it at a low enough volume. It's really an amp for playing live, it's plenty loud enough to play with a full band and backline a small club with no PA. If I was looking for an amp for playing at home I wouldn't get anything more powerful than a Blues Jr., and even that's quite a loud amplifier.

[@user-ck8pb2np5w]

It does not need credits for beeing a pedalplattform, but you have to know if your Amp is capable of beeing a pedalplattform or not because there are a lot of amps who are no pedalplattforms at all. Someone searching for a pedalplattform it is the most important to know about an Amp. The Hod Rod got an effects loop, so it is hard say if it is a pedalplattform, you need to know if the Amp can be a pedalplatt as long as you do not use the effect loop at all. The Hod Rod is special because it is a pedalplattform which has also an EFX Loop most Amps you can use as a pedalplattform do not have an EFX Loop at all. There was a time when you did read that your Amp has an EFX Loop you know that this is not a pedalplattform at all and you can still say this by over 90% of all Amps until today with a very few exceptions like the hod rod deluxe for exsample. An Amp which is a pedalplattform you mostly have problems to get good gain from the Amp itself and when you get some kind of gain then only by a lot of volume because a pedalplattform has always a lot of headroom on the clean, you can also say the other way around when you got an Amp with a lot of gain or good sounding gain chanel its mostly by 95% not pedalplattform and you can never really use it as a pedalplattform. To build an AMP which is a full pedalplattform and has a good gain chanel is very rare to find , I do not know even one Amp at all where you have both, the hot rod deluxe is a full pedalplattform , where you can have a gain stage which is acceptional the only problem is you will need a lot of volume for the gain and some extra gain pedals to combine it with the gain stage to get a "good" or "lovely" gain sound, but what is also of course taste related to call a gain good. There are also Amps which are not a pedalplattform at all but used as one, like all VOX Amps for exsample, mostly every pedal does not work with an VOX Amp, it is just they do accept that the pedal they hooked up sound different and call it then I use the VOX as a pedalplattform. A pedalplattform does say that you can plug in every pedal you want it will sound athentic and mostly uneffected by the Amp in respect you can of course change Mids, Highs, Tone ect.... A pedalplattform is not only used to create mostly every pedal , it is also important to some music genres like ambient guitar .. but also when some do by purpuse break this rule and do not want a pedalplattform at all, but then they are always limited in their use of pedals or they have deal or live how the Amp does shape or influence the sound of the pedal.

[@MaxRossellMusic]

Thanks for watching and commenting. With respect I disagree with a lot of what you're saying. The concept of "pedal platform" is subjective and really it all depends on what the individual guitarist is trying to achieve. For one guitarist what works well with pedals might be lots of clean headroom and an fx loop, for another it might be a hot combo that behaves well when pushed with their drive pedals. The HRDlx might be a good pedal platform for some players, but other might find it unusable and prefer completely different amplifiers including the ones you think aren't pedal platforms at all. The reason I'm saying that the HRDlx doesn't deserve credit for taking pedals well is not only that amps should sound good on their own, but also that ALL amps take some pedals well and some less well, depending on the pedals you're using and what you're trying to do.

[@Bluesbreaker-uf8ti]

Good vid, totally agree it's a mediocre amp. Trying to decide on mid price amp just to leave at rehearsal space, and the Hot Rod's are readily available used for around $400 USD, not sure there's anything better in that price range. I think buying one of these new for $1K would be a pretty poor purchase.

[@MaxRossellMusic]

Totally. There MUST be something around in the $400 used range that's halfway good. Maybe a Peavey Classic?

[@ChrsGuit]

Unpopular opinion, but I have NEVER liked the way a Hot Rod Deluxe sounds... Matter of fact, I've never cared for any of the hot rod series, as the gain channels kinda sound like shit... I once owned a Fender Blues Deville, and the clean channel was AMAZING. The drive channel wasn't very good on its own, but ran stereo with my Marshall JCM, it was awesome... It certainly made a very full and hi-fi crunch and lead tone that neither amp could accomplish individually

[@MaxRossellMusic]

I had a Blues Deville too for a while, really liked it. Way back before then I owned a '59 Bassman and that was an absolute killer amp. Both of them had an actual tweed sound when pushed, nothing like this.

[@rjb7260]

Tone make this in the top list of lifetime amps. Of course Im a bit older.. lol ... HRD just sounds right

[@giulioluzzardi7632]

Some of the reverb tanks were labelled wrong where in was out and out was in, check it. Input should be low impedance and out high. The speaker is making the sound 1 dimensional..remove and put in anything else that fits. The pre-amp valves are horrid too. Took me 2 years to get it sounding usable but I ended up wi5h the tweed version(blues Deluxe) which also needs a better speaker but is warmer and clearer.

[@gregggyf]

Good Afternoon, If the reverb tank has the wrong orientation what are the sonic consequences? And I guess as I have heard from many that the speaker from the first version is "not too good?" Thank you.