Fender Blues Jr or Vox AC15C1?

pietersaayman

I want to get a valve amp. At the moment I am thinking about either a Fender Blues Jr or a Vox AC15C1. It will be for blues and old school rock. What do you guys think? Which one of the 2 or is there anything else in the same price range you might suggest?

Jacquesg4j

Well I have no opinion on the Fender so I won't go into this one or that one is better, I have no experience with the Fender, but you will not go wrong with the vox... I just got the ac30, did 2 gigs this weekend and I can not be happier!

MikeM

Tough question. Choc or vanilla? I prefer Vox, and it has a greenback which is pretty awesome.

Norman86

at that price, check out my new favourite amp...
albion tct35! seriously! gonna be testing one out for myself in the week and will report back on it!
or the ibanez TSA15H and cab!

Cheaper than the fender by far! not sure of the vox though!

but the blues junior wasnt my cup of tea!

Garren

Yeah i think its a matter of opinion,
Both are great amps and i must say Vox's just look too cool ?
For bluesy stuff fenders cant be beat,
But for classic rock theres nothing quite like a cranked Vox

Also for a pretty 'cheap' valve amp check out the laney cub series,
I have the 5 watt, it sounds really awesome through an extension cab ( the little speaker it comes with does it no justice)
and I've played the 10w version numerous times which I must say is really really nice

Heres a pretty good demo of the fender:

AlanRatcliffe

Both great amps, so mostly it boils down to taste. The Fender does cleans a little better, but gets a bit grittier at higher drive settings. The AC15C1 doesn't clean up as much, but handles drive better. My money would be on the Vox for Blues to Rock.

Here's a good vid on the Vox:

[deleted]

Garren wrote: For bluesy stuff fenders cant be beat,

Who told you that? ???

MIKA-the-better-one

I would say its really up to you.... both are great little mid weight tube amps.... you will get more breakup with the Vox, also with the master volume, it helps with lower level breakup. Plus the El84s are smooth sounding (in my opinion) Bad side of the Vox they sometimes suck at taking pedals, overdrives and all ☹ But that again is not a sentiment shared by all players. Solid state rectifier in the Vox as opposed to the GZ34 tube rectifier, so its a bit of a different in its response and pick attack.
The Blues JNR, maybe a bit louder, less breakup but super lush cleans for a 15watt..... great for gigging, and reliable.....

I prefer vox ish sounds but a fender is not bad by any means....

Just test them out at music connection if you are in jhb they have both....

Dinosaur-Snr

Best will be to test them out for yourself. The two amps are worlds apart tone wise. The AC15 is a very nice amp, well built and sounds great. It also has built in Reverb and tremolo effects where as the Blues Jnr i think only has Reverb. Blues Jnr has a great clean sound that cant be beat and also takes pedals well. The only "problem" is it does tend to sound "boxy" at higher volumes due to its cab size, but then again it all depends on your application. Blues jnr comes with an eminence where as the Vox comes with the Celestion Greenback, which IMO slays alot of speakers with high end crunch and tight bottom end.

Good luck in your quest. ?

pietersaayman

Thanks for all the advice, it is much appreciated!

Jacquesg4j

Pieter Saayman wrote: Thanks for all the advice, it is much appreciated!

Okay now we are on the right track... I see you have the Parker P-36 as well... Me too... And since it is the same P'Up configuration as the Tele, the Vox and Teles are proven partners! I know another formite @CDee has both an ac15 and a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe... I also know that he prefers the Fender to the Vox but also said that THEY SOUND VERY SIMILAR! But then again the Deluxe is another beast that the Blues Jr.

Is your Parker still stock? Post some pics!!!!!!!

aja

Brentcgp wrote:
Garren wrote: For bluesy stuff fenders cant be beat,
Who told you that? ???

Blues is a genre of music, not a type of sound.

Some people play blues on an amp so clean it could be used for jazz. Some people play blues on an amp with overdrive and add a fuzz as well.

So there is no way to really say an amp is better or worse for blues IMO

pietersaayman

Jacquesg4j wrote:
Okay now we are on the right track... I see you have the Parker P-36 as well... Me too... And since it is the same P'Up configuration as the Tele, the Vox and Teles are proven partners! I know another formite @CDee has both an ac15 and a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe... I also know that he prefers the Fender to the Vox but also said that THEY SOUND VERY SIMILAR! But then again the Deluxe is another beast that the Blues Jr.

Is your Parker still stock? Post some pics!!!!!!!

My Parker is still stock, but I'm considering either Texas Special Tele pickups or Tonerider Hot Classics as a pickup replacement. But I first want to get a valve amp, get use the the sound of the stock pickups, and then I'll decide what to do with them.

Jacquesg4j

Pieter Saayman wrote:
Jacquesg4j wrote:
Okay now we are on the right track... I see you have the Parker P-36 as well... Me too... And since it is the same P'Up configuration as the Tele, the Vox and Teles are proven partners! I know another formite @CDee has both an ac15 and a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe... I also know that he prefers the Fender to the Vox but also said that THEY SOUND VERY SIMILAR! But then again the Deluxe is another beast that the Blues Jr.

Is your Parker still stock? Post some pics!!!!!!!
My Parker is still stock, but I'm considering either Texas Special Tele pickups or Tonerider Hot Classics as a pickup replacement. But I first want to get a valve amp, get use the the sound of the stock pickups, and then I'll decide what to do with them.

I have the Hot Classics in mine and I can really vote for them... No exp with the Texas Specials! Depends on what you want really... But yeah still, go and listen to both those amps and decide! I use a Parker P-36 into an ac30 and it works for me... I play a lot of U2 type of sounds... Rock, pop rock, some hard rock, blues... Works for all of that!

Garren

Sorry too much of a generalisation,
I know exactly what you guys are saying, tone is opinionated
and there isnt a 'best' tone, haha sorry ?

Lol what i meant to say is :
Fender amps have been frequently used in the blues genre
and are generally held in high regard? :-[