Anyone gig with a tweed deluxe? By itself or with other amps?

Hi everyone
Anyone gig with a tweed deluxe and a les Paul? Curious to know if you Jumper the channels, bother to use effects, or like to run it a certain way??? In a multi amp setup? What kind of music are you playing? Thanks

Search for videos by forum member Texas Blues. He posted some very nice stuff here a few years ago, and he gigs solo with a clone.

The amount of tones you can get through them is amazing, but loud drummers tended to sideline them for a while. Now that so many venues want your amp mic'd and through the board, it wouldn't surprise me to see a big resurgence in using them live instead of primarily as go-to studio amps.

I have a jumper, but rarely use it. My favorite setting with a Les Paul is through the low side of the Bright channel to a preferred volume and tone, then bring the Normal side's pot up to 7 or 8 so you get get it to growl with picking dynamics. Something magical happens around there. I do use a little reverb pedal sometimes with it.

Though I think they actually used Tweed Champs, the Derek and the Dominoes "Layla" album stuff sounds great played on a Tweed Deluxe.

I gigged smaller clubs close to home and special gigs where I knew I'd mic'd and mixed FOH properly with my early issue '55 Tremolux, [a Deluxe with tremolo in this first version]. I did not tour with it.

No need to jumper the channels as the volumes are extremely interactive. I tend to run the channel volume I jack into between 9:00 and noon with the unjacked channel dimed up full on as it scoops the mids and gives more clarity with less chaos. I ride my guitars volume as it interacts so well with the amp.

Reducing the full on unplugged channel just a tiny bit is like everything full up Neil Young/Billy Gibbons growl, howl and saggy attack.

Depends on the drummer, if another guitarist is in the equation and any need for clean tones.

I have a 5E3 clone with a loud(ish) Celestion Blue speaker. I can get by if my drummer isn't hitting hard.

Thanks for the good info !!!

Chris from Riftamps is currently building me a Tweed Deluxe that can run 6L6s, and has a switchable negative feedback loop. I hope that both of these mods will enable me to gig this amp in almost any of the smallish settings that I will come across. eace2

I do small club gigs with a Goodsell Super-17, which is built in a tweed Deluxe style cabinet. And my back-up amp is a tweed deluxe. Mic'd and using in-ears either amp works just great for me. With the in-ears, I think I could get away with using a champ if I took a notion to :hmm

Big Al said:

No need to jumper the channels as the volumes are extremely interactive. I tend to run the channel volume I jack into between 9:00 and noon with the unjacked channel dimed up full on as it scoops the mids and gives more clarity with less chaos. I ride my guitars volume as it interacts so well with the amp.

Reducing the full on unplugged channel just a tiny bit is like everything full up Neil Young/Billy Gibbons growl, howl and saggy attack.

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I'm enjoying learning and experimenting with a new Proluxe clone, with a tele and LP. Its been to a couple practices, and about to earn its first gig in a couple weeks. Compared to my Twin with half tubes, its about as loud [and half the weight, yea!].

I've been building amps and gigging for over 20 years. In the current climate, the tweed deluxe is almost the ultimate amp. I say that after building, working on and playing almost every amp out there.

Want it more tweedy, use a vintage Jensen. Want to to sound like the perfect old Marshall, use a nice greenback type speaker (I love a scumback paper voice coil m75).

Can be loud as you want with an efficient speaker and quiet enough to break up at home with an inefficient one (hello vintage Jensen). Takes pedals super well.

How about this trick for more gain (!)- instead of jumpering channels, use a y splitter to go into both.

A tweed deluxe and a tube driver with a les Paul is tone heaven for sure!

If your amp's distortion isn't very smooth and breaks up in a raspy way, make sure it runs on lower vintage voltages. I use Mercury magnetics' lowest voltage power transformer and it sounds amazing. Constant compliments on tone.
Also it's vital for the two 56k resistors to be exactly matched to get the best tone out of this amp.

It can be cool to remove the input mixing resistors on the normal channel to liven that up a hair, that's the two 68k jobbies.

If you want to wring every once of tone out, use PEC Potentiometers you won't believe the difference.

You can easily adjust the B+ voltage (and thereby change the distortion character and headroom) by swapping out different brands of rectifier tubes. Here's a hint: all modern makes will kick out higher than vintage voltages.

Also, that amp is worth the NOS tubes!

Play with the volume on the unused channel for sure. I normally plug my lp into the bright channel, but it can be a little thin sometimes. So I just dial in a few numbers on the normal channel and it thickens right up.

Is a properly tuned tweed deluxe the greatest amp ever? Might just be.

I used to have a Lazy J 20 (5E3 clone). Incredible amp on it's own. The Variac (attenuator) works well. Never needed to jumper the channels, just plugged into Channel I. Problem I had was the amp got too flubby with my band. We were relatively loud (hard rock), and after about 7-8, the amp would get too saturated and my guitar (Les Paul) didn't sound as good. I ended up selling it and now use a Tone King Imperial II (lead channel gives me a nice tweed tone). I get a lot of compliments on the tone of the Imperial, not so much with the Lazy J, even tho the Lazy J was more $$.

Thanks for taking the time for such thoughtful replies. I just put a re-coned Jensen p12 q in my 60 deluxe and what an amazing tone!!!! I’m still experimenting with jumpers and multi amp setups but I’m glad I put in the reconed speaker. I’ve come to believe that I like to play the vintage amps, and if that requires blowing up speakers so be it. I’ll recone them any day, there’s something about those vintage speakers. I’m starting to believe that the old alnico magnates play a big role

I use an old 1959 Deluxe with a Celestion Blue in place of the Jensen (blew 2 original cone ones, they were kind toasted). Hogy from Komet Amps suggested the Blue, which gives the amp tighter bass and a cool vocal quality when turned up to @3 1/2 to 4 with a PAF guitar. The Blue is also more efficient than a Jensen, so it can keep up with a drummer.

Really love the tone with a vintage Fender Reverb Tank in front of the amp...it's all the effects that I need. A few more tubes in the circuit makes it sound bigger and sweeter. Clean to mean all controlled by the guitar's volume dial. No need for a boost, gain or distortion pedal.

I used a nice Tweed Deluxe clone for a while and loved it. As mentioned earlier, these days it's close to perfect as you can get. You can get real amp overdrive at a reasonable level in most decent clubs without pissing off the sound worker or club owner--even audiences don't want too loud. I played mine with a Celestion Blue for the reasons mentioned here as well. They are far more efficient than the old (even vintage) Jensens which gets you a far more dynamic experience at low volumes, plus more actual volume from the amp (several dBs being that the Blue is rated over 100 dB effficiency vs low 90s for Jensen.

FWIW, My current main gigging amps are similar 'cause I like to have reverb on tap. #1 go-to is a '72 Princeton Reverb with a 12" Celestion Blue!

Wilko said:

I used a nice Tweed Deluxe clone for a while and loved it. As mentioned earlier, these days it's close to perfect as you can get. You can get real amp overdrive at a reasonable level in most decent clubs without pissing off the sound worker or club owner--even audiences don't want too loud. I played mine with a Celestion Blue for the reasons mentioned here as well. They are far more efficient than the old (even vintage) Jensens which gets you a far more dynamic experience at low volumes, plus more actual volume from the amp (several dBs being that the Blue is rated over 100 dB effficiency vs low 90s for Jensen.

FWIW, My current main gigging amps are similar 'cause I like to have reverb on tap. #1 go-to is a '72 Princeton Reverb with a 12" Celestion Blue!

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I also use use a PR (clone) with a 12” as my main band amp. With a low profile Deluxe style output transformer (Allen TO22) Stokes mod and an Eminence Red Fang I’m close to Deluxe Reverb volume, yet still with the bounce and fun of a PR. It’s a tad brighter and louder than my 5E3 with Celestion Blue. The 5E3 overdrive is sweeter, but the PR cuts better with a drummer.

I have used my Fender Reissue '57 Deluxe for a few moderate volume gigs in smaller venues, with a small band, and it holds up quite well. However, upon review of this thread I sure am enticed by what I'm hearing about the Celestion Blue. My amp could use a touch more brightness, especially with my humbucking-equipped Les Pauls. It really likes P90's, too!

Time to start saving for the Blue!