Which way to go.. Vintage Fender or Boutique?

[opiate]

Hey Everyone,

Looking for a little guidance here and some good opinions.. Here's the story.

I haven't been a Fender-tone guy for many years, playing many boutique EL-34 and EL-84 amps instead. However, lately my tastes have shifted and I have really come to appreciate a nice, full, lush Fender clean. I can't deny it anymore, this tone needs to be in my arsenal.

Being a boutique snob, my first instinct was to look at high end-boutique... However unlike the world of guitars, with amps you can have the real-deal 50's . 60's Fender for less then a modern boutique clone. So immediately i realized I need to consult some of you guys and find out the pros and cons... So here are my options:

-Vintage Fender - Right now I'm thinking a Blackface Pro Reverb or Vibrolux, but am open to really anything. I was going to take some time soon and go out to play pretty much anything I can find.. from a tweed bassman to a SF Super. However, my question is this... Even if I find a mint example, does it need any sort of overhaul, other then basic maintainance? Is it worthwhile finding someone to go over it with a fine tooth comb and optimize it? Are there any universally accepted mods.

-Boutique - Originally I thought about Victoria (I've been using a Victoria Reverberato tank for a while and LOVE IT), maybe a Bruno Cow Tipper. What else is worth taking a look at? What advantages does this ofer over a vintage Fender?

I really appreciate all feedback on this issue. I know I'm going to get a lot of opposing opiinions, but I'm more then willing to listen.

Thanx in advance!
Ian

[LPMojoGL]

I say get the real deal. Those old Fenders can be found for a good price, are easy to work on, and usually need nothing more than tubes, maybe a cap job and/or some resistors. My .02.

[doublee]

One word: 'Clone', honestly, I have tried old fenders against clones, clone wins not by much but it does win in the end soundwise and you dont have to fuss about your 2k + amp anymore, win + win to quote our favorite actor.

[pfflam]

It just doesn't feel right unless its a Fender.

[straightblues]

First you need to figure out which "Fender" sound you want. They all sound a little bit different. A few questions to consider:

1. How big of an amp do you need?
2. What size places are you going to play it at? Will you be mic'ed or not?
3. Are you going to rely on pedals for overdrive, or do you want to push the amp into overdrive?

In my experience, Fender amps sound better the more you can crank them. I like the amp to be on 8 and then I turn down my guitar volume to get big fat juicy clean tones. So if I get too big of an amp, it doesn't work for me unless I play an outdoor festival.

There are lots of great boutique clones of all the Fender classic models. Figure out the model you are interested and then start the hunt.

In general, I like to go vintage with Fenders, but there are some great boutique stuff. Check out the RedPlate amps. They get vintage BF, and Tweed sounds plus have a Dumble style overdrive. They allow you to capture big cleans at various volume levels.

[Sean French]

Fender.

[Shiny McShine]

Originally Posted by pfflam

It just doesn't feel right unless its a Fender.

I've played the Fender 57 Deluxe hand wired and my Clark Beaufort and while the Fender was good, the Clark was a little better.

It's too bad that opportunities to test this sort of statement don't come very often because I suspect that in a blindfolded test, people would be shocked at what they really liked best.

So back to the original post, Check out a Clark Beaufort (premium not the Deluxe version) if you like 5E3 amps.

[Stratobuc]

Silverface Fender is the best deal in amps.

[opiate]

Well, Straightblues, those are some good questions...
I really need this amp mostly for use in my project studio. I have a need for that BIG, clear, shimmering clean, not interested in a boutiqque version with a drive channel.. I've got that covered with other amps. I'm still not absolutely sure if I want the amp to be all headroom or have a little breakup going on when I dig in.
I think a BF Pro Reverb may be what I'm looking for, but I really need to go out and play a bunch of older Fenders back to back to get a feel for it. I also like that solid-state rectifier tight thumpness of a Twin, but it may be a bit too much of an ampp for studio use.

[kingsxman]

Sounds like you want that blackface clean. That leaves out the tweeds you were talking about. Different clean sounds.

Personally, I think you'll like a Super Reverb. 10's are tight. Super clean.

[Marcus71]

Originally Posted by Stratobuc

Silverface Fender is the best deal in amps.

For Fender sounds, yes.

I would get an old Fender.

[matchless]

vintage fenders are a decent buy in this market-they will go up in value over time
clones(unless it's a dumble) may/may not sound better,they generally are not made better than a blackface era fender and will loss money over time-to me not a hard choice

[ProToneThinline]

Go with the real deal. My '72 Vibrolux is a keeper. I've been through several "semi-boutique" amps (a few Mesas and an Egnater). None of them could touch the VR.

[opiate]

Whats the general character difference between Tweed, Blackface and Silverface ampps? Just looking for some general guidelines on what to expect and listen for.
thanx!

[willhutch]

One thing with old amps is that each specimen can sound vastly different from the next. Due to a variety of factors, two BF Supers are apt to sound quite different. So be careful about buying sight unseen....you just can't be sure what you are getting. That said, it usually isn't hard to get an old fender sounding great for under $300 in parts and labor.

Boutique stuff is going to be more consistent....that is, the specimen you buy from TGP is probably gonna sound like the one you played at the store.

I've had my share of Fenders and boutique clones. The Fenders have stayed.