# Do you gig with a Blues Junior?



## keefsdad (Feb 7, 2006)

And will it hang with drums? What's the clean headroom like?
I have a HRDLX but my ability to carry it is decreasing with my increasing age. I'm thinking about downgrading. 
Has anyone added an extension speaker jack?
I don't play clean all the time, but enough to make it a concern.


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## hollowbody (Jan 15, 2008)

When I still had my BJ I used to rehearse with it, and while it can hang with drums, the clean headroom is pretty much non-existent. It got loud enough to be heard, but it wasn't clean at those levels.


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## JeS89 (Aug 23, 2009)

well i dont have a blues jr but I have a 10w amp. Its my main amp for everything really. Most places where its to small to be able to hear over things im able to mic the amp anyway. My amp hangs with a drummer unless he starts smashing it like nuts lol.


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## Stevo (Apr 3, 2008)

For awhile, I did a Meters-type funk trio with organ and drums. I had a Blues Junior at the time and it was fine with drums, though we weren't overly loud. Just a bit of breakup at gig levels but I like a hint of grit with my clean. I think the headroom is largely influenced the tubes you are running in it.


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## Fader (Mar 10, 2009)

There are tons of mods you can do on the BJ. 

You can get lots of helpful information here;
http://billmaudio.com/wp/

I played mine into a number of extension cabs and it sounded better, but never great. Stiffening up the B+ with some extra caps helped, but not enough. Maybe the output transformer mod?

I sold it a while back. My back really misses that little thing. Now I lug a 2x12 cab and a fifty watt head. I have to make an extra trip to the car, but it's worth it.


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## marcos (Jan 13, 2009)

*Blues Junior*

I used to own one and played a lot of gigs with a duo and a sequenced music trio.Small gigs were o.k but as soon as you pushed it it started to growl a bit too much four our type of music.I would have loved to try it out with an extension cabinet bur i suspect it would have been the same.Great little amp and i should never have sold it.:smilie_flagge17:


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## PaulS (Feb 27, 2006)

I've gigged with one a few times but it was miced through the PA so I didn't have to push it too hard. Worked out great. I have a laquered tweed version that had the Bill M mods done to it and it sounds pretty sweet.


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## keefsdad (Feb 7, 2006)

Great to hear all these opinions.
I'm thinking miking it might be the solution to the clean headroom problem, but I'm thinking I might have to put a bit of gtr in the monitors too, and I've never liked doing that. That doesn't mean I shouldn't try it, though.


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## PaulS (Feb 27, 2006)

When I mic it I have the amp in front of me actually pointing back, so it acts like a monitor for the guitar signal. This works really well when you have a sound guy out front.


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## david henman (Feb 3, 2006)

...good luck getting anything resembling low end out of that thing.

if you can get your hands on traynor ycv15blue, you'll be a cappy hamper.

i just installed a neodymium speaker in a tech 21 trademark 60 - now that is a lightweight combo!

-dh


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## CocoTone (Jan 22, 2006)

Had two BJ's over the years. One was an early tweed, and the other the black tolex. Went the whole route on the tweed. Good glass, speaker, etc. Never could get decent tone fronm either one. Just small boxy tone. To my ear, the Superchamp XD has just as much power, volume, and way more headroom on the clean channel. They take pedals great, and are way more versastile as a grab and go. With a good 12" speaker, they'd kill. I am toying with the idea of going with a custom 12" Newel cab for mine. 

CT.


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## High/Deaf (Aug 19, 2009)

I gig with a 15W amp (NightTrain) regularly - just last Saturday, as a matter of fact. And I'm standing beside the drummer who plays a John Bonham Ludwig plexi-kit, so no small traps. The amp, through a Mesa Thiele (very directional cab) works fine, but it doesn't have much headroom. 

So I footswitch between it and a 50W Fender, when I need crystal cleans. But for anything besides those crystal cleans, I'm playing through 15W and it works great. From slightly grindy blues to classic rock. The nice thing is, I'm getting nicely into power tube distortion at the level I'm playing at. I'm very happy with the setup. I've got bigger amps, but only use them when I know I'll really need the power.

HD


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## Swervin55 (Oct 30, 2009)

You have to be careful if you are considering testimonials about different brands and wattages. There are so many other variables than the power output, such as the transformer. For example, I have a 15W BadCat that has less headroom than my toilet. It won't keep up to even the quietest of drummers. By contrast, I have a '66 Deluxe Reverb (admittedly a few more watts) that I can use at a small venue all day long without being mic'd. So in keeping with your original question, I suppose it really depends on what size of venues you play most and whether you plan on mic'g your amp or not. JMHO.


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## Barty (Nov 5, 2009)

*Hello Everyone*

Hello,

I am new to the forum. Bass player from Western Canada. Look forward to reading and hearing from other Cdn. Musicians.


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## anchor (Mar 22, 2009)

I had a Blues jr with a Eminence Swamp Thang.
My amp got twice louder so, pretty much double headroom.
Yes, it was loud enough to keep up with drummer. for gain, I used pedals.
Also, Eminence says this speaker is cleanest and loudest they have.
It's got lots of bass and very clear sounding, not muddy at all.
It also makes the amp heavier too...


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