Down sizing and decisions to make

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Jazzmastervsjaguar
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Down sizing and decisions to make

Post by Jazzmastervsjaguar » Fri Jan 04, 2019 6:17 am

Help me OSG.

I am officially an old man now. I have a 1 year old boy that is the light of my life but as things go when something enters your life other things dissipate. As is the case I just don't play guitar nearly as much as I use to. Don't get me wrong if I have a free hour when the boy is down for a nap I grab my guitar. However the days of playing in a band or coming home from work and playing for hours at a time are just not there. I'm OK with this and I'm not complaining but I own some nice amps and as I would like to downsize I have to make a few decisions...

So this is what I have:
1964 Fender Bandmaster Blonde with a 1964 Showman cab (1x15" speaker w/ the tone ring)
- My favorite looking and tied for the best tone of the bunch if it had reverb I would say it's the best of the bunch but there is something about the twin. It's is gorgeous and I'm a sucker for Blonde Fenders.

1967 Fender Drip Edge Bandmaster
-I bought this thing for practically nothing and have played it most of my life it's awesome but is likely the first to be sold.

1971 Fender Twin Reverb
- Maybe the best sounding of all of my amps but you already know its a heavy beast

1070's Univox U45b
- It's a fun amp but it's dark and breaks up early (so awesome!) but I love the classic fender tone

So I do occasionally play with my neighbor who is a drummer. I'd like to have one amp that I could play with her but that means I would have to carry it over there so that's a factor. (Right now the univox is at her place).

My thoughts so far:
Option#1 sell the bunch and buy one of the Fender Princeton Reverb Reissues that is in blonde. I've never owned a PR but I imagine it's somewhere in the range of the BM and TR? It will still match my '64 reverb unit it's light enough to carry if need be and it's a Fender and has the Fender tone (presumably).
Issue #1: I haven't played a modern amp in so long and I love the vintage stuff but should this matter?

Option #2 Sell everything but get a combo cab for the '67 and make it a 1x12. I could get a face plate to go with the blonde cab and it will match my '64 reverb unit
Issue #2 it won't have on board reverb. I would have to put some money into the cab and get a speaker for it

Option#3 Keep either the '64 bandmaster or TR and just play with something I already own
Issue#3 If I keep the BM no onboard reverb/ If I keep the twin it won't match my Reverb unit and eventually drive me crazy (Yep I'm that guy)

Option #4 Get something completely different and sell everything else

Also I have just had all the amps serviced and made "tour ready" for either selling or keeping so that is not a concern

Tell me your thoughts.
Last edited by Jazzmastervsjaguar on Fri Jan 04, 2019 7:35 am, edited 1 time in total.

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marqueemoon
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Re: Down sizing and decisions to make

Post by marqueemoon » Fri Jan 04, 2019 6:46 am

My music-playing dropped off considerably when my son was born, but now that he’s 8 it’s more or less back to previous levels. I get what you want to do in that tube amps need to be played, but I wouldn’t do anything rash.

From your description it sounds like the Univic and SF Bandmaster would be the logical first out.

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Re: Down sizing and decisions to make

Post by Jazzmastervsjaguar » Fri Jan 04, 2019 7:06 am

Agreed I don't want to get rid of everything (That's why I'm still holding on to so many guitars and pedals ;D ) I also understand that playing time will increase as the boy gets older (Hopefully he'll want to play guitar too!) But in the grand scheme of things I would like just one amp. Other than guitar gear I'm a minimalist at heart and of all things to hoard giant amps that take up a bunch of room that don't get played don't seem necessary to me right now.

Also Agree silverface BM and Uni are on the short list to go. Truthfully if I wind up keeping one it would probaly be the '64 BM. But that is the largest and takes up the most space of them all. Plus I would rather carry the twin :wtf:

I just want one amp that does the things I love about the twin and BM in the package of a small combo and with the looks of something awesome...What can I say I like the aesthetics of gear (Probably why the Jaguar is my favorite guitar of all time).

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Re: Down sizing and decisions to make

Post by Larry Mal » Fri Jan 04, 2019 7:15 am

I made my way to a Princeton amp, which happen to be my favorite anyway. It's a great amp but it's not like a smaller Twin or anything, it's a considerably different sound - I mean, within the parameters of the Fender tube amp spectrum and such.

I don't think you would be disappointed with it or anything. Still, can you not just lay your amps up until you are ready to bring them out again? I have a 4.5 year old and a 2.5 year old, and I'm in an apartment, so my playing is pretty much entirely directly into my computer for recording purposes- I totally get you.

But I've got stuff that I just put away until they can be brought out again, and if I had a house, and a Twin, that's what I would do with it. And actually, I would like a Twin again- love those things.

My Fender Princeton is a Princeton Recording, which is a re-issue Princeton with an attenuator built into it, so I can crank the main volume until the amp starts to break up, and then roll the volume way back with the attenuator. I am not really recommending this amp or anything, just throwing the idea of an attenuator out there.

I still never use that, though, because the second anything with knobs appears then little hands are all over those and there's just no point.
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Re: Down sizing and decisions to make

Post by Jazzmastervsjaguar » Fri Jan 04, 2019 7:34 am

Well I have space for them but that's not really what I'm looking to do. I just want one amp that does all of the things I need it to do. I'm less concerned with collecting amps I just want an amp that sounds good clean, takes pedals well, and preferably would have on board reverb as I like to put the TR' reverb at say 2-3 to just add a little dimension to my clean sound.

The PR seems to tic a lot of the boxes but maybe there is something I'm overlooking. I really am just trying to gather info on amps that are in the sound range of a TR/BM (not necessarily sound clones just sound alike)

I was also looking into Benson but would love to try before buying and that doesn't seem like an option.

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Re: Down sizing and decisions to make

Post by shoule79 » Fri Jan 04, 2019 7:45 am

I sold all my big amps when my now 7 year old was about 1 too, eventually settling on a 70’s PR and a Mesa 1x12 combo.

As they get older you will get more chances to play. I fully realize that I don’t need the volume any more, but do miss my 69 Twin and AC30 from time to time.

I’d suggest keeping the Twin and 64 in case you can use them later. With kids you tend to not have the disposable income anymore to just go out and buy a vintage amp.

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Re: Down sizing and decisions to make

Post by Paul-T » Fri Jan 04, 2019 8:30 am

I can relate to this; in fact I've downsized from a Twin, Bandmaster combo and Concert, to a Park 20W (practically my first amp) plus a 54 Champ. Although I'm still working out how to rework this so I get reverb etc.

Did I misunderstand you, or do you have the 6K6 reverb already? But presumably you don't want to carry that around too.

I think being brutal, and downsizing, is good for us... but you need to have something nice as part of that deal, too. If it were me, I'd sell the bunch, or at least a couple, and switch to a nice 1971-ish Princeton combo with reverb and tremolo, ie a vintage amp rather than the reissue. It might be smaller, but you can actually have it in the living room or somewhere more immediate, and you'll get more use out of it.
Last edited by Paul-T on Fri Jan 04, 2019 8:43 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Down sizing and decisions to make

Post by Jazzmastervsjaguar » Fri Jan 04, 2019 8:37 am

Yes I do have a '64 Fender reverb unit. I use it for the "surf Sound" I use the onboard reverb in my twin as barley on (between 2-3) to add a little dimension. My thinking is I could still do this with the PR and keep the Fender clean I love. I wouldn't mind a vintage amp but I would probably get it rehoused to match my '64 reverb in blonde. As Fender has a what I'm looking for as a reissue I figured why bother with vintage:

Image

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Re: Down sizing and decisions to make

Post by Paul-T » Fri Jan 04, 2019 8:45 am

that does make sense. My recollection is the reissue has a pcb, but a wood cabinet with ply baffle; if you were going to get the resulting amp recovered then you're right, it makes sense to go for that.
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Re: Down sizing and decisions to make

Post by Singlebladepickup » Fri Jan 04, 2019 8:54 am

Get the Princeton and keep only your favorite big amp for playing out. I think you'll probably find the Princeton is good enough for playing out, but it's nice to have something that can get incredibly loud and still stay clean (Princeton won't stay clean).

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Re: Down sizing and decisions to make

Post by marqueemoon » Fri Jan 04, 2019 8:58 am

shoule79 wrote:
Fri Jan 04, 2019 7:45 am
I sold all my big amps when my now 7 year old was about 1 too, eventually settling on a 70’s PR and a Mesa 1x12 combo.

As they get older you will get more chances to play. I fully realize that I don’t need the volume any more, but do miss my 69 Twin and AC30 from time to time.

I’d suggest keeping the Twin and 64 in case you can use them later. With kids you tend to not have the disposable income anymore to just go out and buy a vintage amp.
I agree with all of this. My gear buying has been greatly reduced since breeding.

I’ve continued to hoard a few things I don’t really play for no other reason than that they’re appreciating in value, so if down the road I see something I must have I’ll be able to flip them and not dip into the family finances.

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Re: Down sizing and decisions to make

Post by Jazzmastervsjaguar » Fri Jan 04, 2019 11:02 am

I have thought about the keep vs sell thing due to having a kid and future funds. The thought of not having guitar funds has played into another decision on one of my guitars. Its a 1980 Les Paul Silverburst that plays amazing with super low action. It is a birth year guitar, my favorite shade of silver burst (Yellowed clear coat into a green hue) and was once owned by my guitar hero Tim Sult of Clutch. I go back and forth on holding onto it is a good thing or not.

It's sort of funny as guitar players we tend to hold on to (aka hoard gear ;D ) I've been struggling with this so much as I get older. The LP is a perfect example it's something that means a lot to me was at one time my "ultimate guitar" and has the added value of having once belonged to my guitar hero. But it rarely gets played. Shouldn't it be enjoyed by someone as opposed to spending most of the time sitting in a case? That being said I don't think I'm ready to sell it yet.

In every other aspect of my life I consider myself a minimalist. I am constantly shedding things. I donated or gave away almost all my books, extra clothing, etc. I have a record collection but try to only buy things I know I am going to listen to repeatedly. I almost always feel like I'm going to regret letting something go until I do. Once it's gone I usually feel better and never think about the items. Sure there are a few pedals I would like to experiment with if I still had them but for the most part I don't regret letting them go and at least with pedals if I really want something back I can afford to buy another (My taste lean towards vintage Boss stuff so prices aren't hurtful).

I really feel comfortable about letting these amps go. The twin and silver face BM were in a closet for years and I've held onto them long enough. The univox has been un-played at my neighbors for at least 7 months. The 64 Bandmaster is awesome and sounds great but if I swapped it for something a bit more manageable to carry I don't think I would miss it. I read an artical with Omar Rodriguez Lopez about how he downsized his rig (If you ever saw the Mars Volta you understood he had a heel of a set up). He was explaining that when he started out he would get so much out a few pedals and it just built up from there. But as he started shedding gear he started getting more creative and coming up with new ideas like he did when he had limited options. I like the idea of this. Obviously I'm not anywhere near the talent of ORL but I feel the same thing in the more I shed the more I think about new ideas.

Don't get me wrong I have a ton of gear and struggle with letting things go on a daily basis. But as for my amps I'm good to get down to one amp. It's the logical thing to do and it's something I want to do. Plus the added benefit is once I sell everything I can probably get an amp and have some funds for more gear :fp: :fp: :fp:

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Re: Down sizing and decisions to make

Post by s_mcsleazy » Fri Jan 04, 2019 11:14 am

ok, im not a parent. luckily for me, few women are dumb enough to get that far. but i do have a few friends who went from being touring musicians with big rigs to dads noodling in their office. in the case of all of my friends who have been here. they sold all their gig rigs and just brought 1 really good amp. now you got a lot of high ticket amps, so sell all of them and the world is your oyster. if it was my money, i'd buy one of the princeton RI or the deluxe RI.
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Re: Down sizing and decisions to make

Post by PJazzmaster » Fri Jan 04, 2019 12:43 pm

Do you need money and/or space: sell the ones you use the least or you are not using at all.
In case you aren't planning to sell them for any of the above reasons: keep them all if you play them all, to avoid that in 5 or in 15 years you will hate yourself for selling them all. These are vintage items and for sure not easier to get in the future, and who knows, maybe your son will start playing guitar.

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Re: Down sizing and decisions to make

Post by MayTheFuzzBeWithYou » Fri Jan 04, 2019 2:26 pm

Hmmm. A difficult decision to make!

As another owner of a SF Dripedge Bandmaster: it's a lovely and great sounding amp for sure! but with your collection/situation I'd understand if it would have to go. I also do understand your obsession for blonde amps (it's a super sonic and various cabs for it in my case - most sexy amp colour ever!) ;)

I clearly prefer the head & cab option myself due to variability (trying different speaker/amp configurations) flexibility (playing any cab around when playing out, and only habing to carry my head) and last but not least aesthetically - especially with Fenders!

So my decision would be:
sell the Twin Reverb, sell one of the two Bandmaster (keep the one you want play for the next 30 years or so), keep the cab and get either the blonde 65' Reissue Deluxe Reverb Head (22 watts, Reverb and Tremolo) or the blonde Princeton Reissue. The Princeton is one of the most recommended amps on OSG and I think this has a reason! But I only played one once so I can't really say much about them. Also I don't know the Univox amp so do whatever feels right with this fellow. :)

Also playing time will increase again! No worries!

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