• JBSRV
  • JBSRV
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  • From: Colorado Springs-Colorado
  • Registered: 2008-07-04
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Topic: Hot Rod Deville

Just played one today at the local guitar shop and I'm contemplating buying it. just wondering if it's worth it to buy a channel switch or if rolling back the volume on the guitar and changing playing style to get a cleaner tone will do the job.

I hope you can understand my phrasing tongue

"It makes it sound like the amp is about ready to explode, that's because it IS about ready to explode." -Joe

"I've come all the way from Colorado... Long way from my home. Give me the hammer that killed John Henry..." The Ballad Of John Henry
  • From: Sandy Eggo
  • Registered: 2007-04-29
  • Posts: 1,369

Re: Hot Rod Deville

It depends on the guitar. Some do well with rolling back the volume. Les Pauls for example do this well. Get the switch pedal though, those sparkly Fender cleans are worth it.

"Music is the only thing that you can share with a million million people and you don't lose, you gain. It helps you to get energy and to live long, because when your soul is very happy then you don't want to die." - Ali Akbar Khan
  • JBSRV
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Re: Hot Rod Deville

cool thanks

"It makes it sound like the amp is about ready to explode, that's because it IS about ready to explode." -Joe

"I've come all the way from Colorado... Long way from my home. Give me the hammer that killed John Henry..." The Ballad Of John Henry
  • From: Oklahoma
  • Registered: 2008-03-28
  • Posts: 263

Re: Hot Rod Deville

which shop in the springs?  I used to do quite a bit of outside work for Pro-Sound and Guitar Center.  That GC is actually pretty good.  Found some cool gear there pretty cheap.

Don't play leapfrog with a unicorn
  • From: East Tennessee
  • Registered: 2006-04-25
  • Posts: 240

Re: Hot Rod Deville

I've been playing a Strat and a 56 Les Paul Special through a 4x10 Deville for 6 years. The only issue that's come up for me is EQ. The settings (treble 4, mid 6, bass 8 or 9) that work best for me through the 1st overdrive channel (which is what I use all the time) don't work for the clean channel. Frender really should have provided separate EQ for clean and overdrive. If you work with your guitar's tone control you can sort of spilt the difference between the two with one guitar, but it'll drive you crazy trying to balance EQ for two really different guitars for clean and overdrive. Also, IMHO, the 2nd overdrive stage is really too staturated and the low end is way too flabby to be useful.

That said, I love the amp now that I know how to make it work for me. I strongly recommend taking your main guitar to the music store and spending a lot of time playing the amp. If you get funny looks from the guys who work there, go somewhere else--they obviously don't get it.

Blessings,
Larry

"...play skillfully and shout for joy." Psalm 33:3b (honest, it really says that)
  • JBSRV
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Re: Hot Rod Deville

Beerdog80 wrote:

which shop in the springs?  I used to do quite a bit of outside work for Pro-Sound and Guitar Center.  That GC is actually pretty good.  Found some cool gear there pretty cheap.

Music Exchange

"It makes it sound like the amp is about ready to explode, that's because it IS about ready to explode." -Joe

"I've come all the way from Colorado... Long way from my home. Give me the hammer that killed John Henry..." The Ballad Of John Henry
  • From: Lancashire
  • Registered: 2008-02-26
  • Posts: 700

Re: Hot Rod Deville

larryt wrote:

I've been playing a Strat and a 56 Les Paul Special through a 4x10 Deville for 6 years. The only issue that's come up for me is EQ. The settings (treble 4, mid 6, bass 8 or 9) that work best for me through the 1st overdrive channel (which is what I use all the time) don't work for the clean channel. Frender really should have provided separate EQ for clean and overdrive. If you work with your guitar's tone control you can sort of spilt the difference between the two with one guitar, but it'll drive you crazy trying to balance EQ for two really different guitars for clean and overdrive. Also, IMHO, the 2nd overdrive stage is really too staturated and the low end is way too flabby to be useful.

That said, I love the amp now that I know how to make it work for me. I strongly recommend taking your main guitar to the music store and spending a lot of time playing the amp. If you get funny looks from the guys who work there, go somewhere else--they obviously don't get it.

Blessings,
Larry

Same with the Blues deluxe im constantly faffing with the EQ especially when chaning volumes.... However once I got the volume and the EQ right for the venue rolling the strat up and down can usually get me from clean to a bit of grit I only use the clean channel though... Drive channel I just cant stand, btw do those amps not come with a foot switch?

  • From: East Tennessee
  • Registered: 2006-04-25
  • Posts: 240

Re: Hot Rod Deville

Affirmative on the footswitch.

"...play skillfully and shout for joy." Psalm 33:3b (honest, it really says that)
  • From: The Gates of Delerium
  • Registered: 2008-05-07
  • Posts: 1,412

Re: Hot Rod Deville

My Blues Deluxe reissue came with a footswitch.  Only gripe I have is to get that overdriven bluesy tone I have to crank the gain up pretty high, and it gets quite loud.
I'll be shopping soon for a 15 watt or so tube amp - maybe try out the VOX AC-15 next time I'm up at GC.

Major Tom to ground control...
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Re: Hot Rod Deville

RICjunkie wrote:

My Blues Deluxe reissue came with a footswitch.  Only gripe I have is to get that overdriven bluesy tone I have to crank the gain up pretty high, and it gets quite loud.
I'll be shopping soon for a 15 watt or so tube amp - maybe try out the VOX AC-15 next time I'm up at GC.

The AC-15 is a great amp but the clean tone doesn't blow me away. Oh well I'm not an expert smile

"It makes it sound like the amp is about ready to explode, that's because it IS about ready to explode." -Joe

"I've come all the way from Colorado... Long way from my home. Give me the hammer that killed John Henry..." The Ballad Of John Henry
  • Ocean
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  • From: south of Dallas
  • Registered: 2008-06-13
  • Posts: 60

Re: Hot Rod Deville

My two cents?   
Fender cleans = great. 
Fender OD = not so great.

If it were me, I'd get that clean sound happenin' just how you like it, scrap the channel switcher idea, and let a good overdrive pedal handle your dirty tones.  For me, the Fender Hot Rod series never quite captured a very good overdriven sound at all.  Too brittle and loose.

Maybe another idea, if you've got to have your amp's overdrive, would be to retrofit a set of Yellowjackets in place of those stock 6L6s.  That'll bring your 60 watts down to around 35 or so and give you a little smoother breakup at a little less than ear-splitting volume.  Of course, you're messing with your big-bottle cleans and moving to an EL-84 type sound, but it might help you come to a compromise...

Ocean's Website

  • From: Sandy Eggo
  • Registered: 2007-04-29
  • Posts: 1,369

Re: Hot Rod Deville

Ocean wrote:

Fender OD = not so great.

+1 except for on one occasion when I nailed Clapton's "I'm Torn Down" tone with a wee bit of overdrive on the second channel of my Blues Deville.

"Music is the only thing that you can share with a million million people and you don't lose, you gain. It helps you to get energy and to live long, because when your soul is very happy then you don't want to die." - Ali Akbar Khan
  • From: Florida, USA
  • Registered: 2008-06-04
  • Posts: 1,420

Re: Hot Rod Deville

IMHO the Hot Rod series amps OD is not really that great.  Kinda buzzy and flabby with poor note definition and articulation. However, the clean on those amps are VERY usable, tons of headroom and are warmer than a lot of the more expensive RI amps like the twins/supers.  If you are dead set on buying it, i say slap a nice OD like a tubescreamer in front of it and wail.  It should still clean up well as long as you don't set the gain too high on the OD pedal.

'67 and '74 Fender Twin Reverbs, '74 Marshall 1987 lead mkII, Metro Superlead 100. Pedals from TC Electronic, Ibanez, Dunlop, BK Butler, Electro-Harmonix, Fulltone, Maestro/Gibson, Loopmaster switching, VoodooLab, Boss. Gibson and Fender guitars, Dimarzio pickups.

14 Reply by JohnTB (edited by JohnTB 2008-07-26 14:02:10)

  • From: Lancashire
  • Registered: 2008-02-26
  • Posts: 700

Re: Hot Rod Deville

Well I pulled my back at a gig last nite humping the amp into a van, so today I decided to go buy a small Fender Champ XD (a pal in band uses one too) I have to say for £200 its probably one of the finest 15w small gig / practise amps I've played through and its so light I was a bit worried because of the all voice settings etc but its just a simple nice amp even on its basic 1 channel 1 volume control setting..

My pal gigs it along side my Blues Deluxe and it keeps up even with the drummer blurting out so I dont think I'll have a prob at gigs.. I'll let you guys know...

  • From: Lancashire
  • Registered: 2008-02-26
  • Posts: 700

Re: Hot Rod Deville

K this little amp is awesome played great at the gig was loud enough had awesome tone really pleased with it, If your in a local music shop give it a shot

  • From: Boston
  • Registered: 2008-08-25
  • Posts: 10

Re: Hot Rod Deville

My main amp over the past 9 years has been a Fender Hot Rod Deville 4x10 model.

Here are my thoughts about the amp:

The clean channel is very bluesy. Not that "Fender clean" sound you think of. Listen to it carefully. Crank it up to 6 (The knobs all go to 12) about 1/2 way up you get a nice bluesy sound from the clean channel, but with your pickups all the way open you'll get some breakup from it.

The overdrive channel sounds very nice... if you like the Fender sound. Just don't try to make it sound like a Marshall, because it won't. This is a blues amp, not a rock amp.

The "more drive" boost thing just adds so much saturation that only a heavy rock player would want it. It also loses tone on this setting, and I would not recommend it for anything other than bedroom level playing.

It's a reliable amp. Mine has served me well.

Biasing the amp is easy. I set mine at 80 mV, even though Fender sets them around 60 mV from the factory, and some guys recommend 68 mV. Play around to get the setting you liike. I have to add that a buddy of mine bought one and it was set to 115+ mV for several years, and the amp incurred no damage from this abuse.

The foot switch is horribly cheap. The cord plugs into a jack that's soldered directly to the PC board, so any stress will break the solder connections. (easy to fix though)

The input jacks are *PLASTIC* and will break from any stress. I had mine changed to metal.

Other than all that... it's a great BLUES amp.

'78 Gibson Les Paul Goldtop (custom)
'79 Gibson 'The V'

slambango's Website

  • JBSRV
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Re: Hot Rod Deville

thanks for the info

"It makes it sound like the amp is about ready to explode, that's because it IS about ready to explode." -Joe

"I've come all the way from Colorado... Long way from my home. Give me the hammer that killed John Henry..." The Ballad Of John Henry