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I am very frustrated. I just received this amp via Black Friday sale for $999. I play an Eastman AR403CE-SB which is a neck pickup only semi-hollow body guitar and I replaced the factory pickup with a Gibson '57 Classic. I had and sold a Fender Princeton Tweed reissue with the 12 inch speaker but I wanted to downsize but still have quality amp hence this purchase. I have spent about 5 hours making all kind of adjustments to the EQ settings and it still has this aggravating "muted" sound. Give all the "this is the best amp in the world" for jazz style playing (I play primarily chord melody arrangements on this guitar) I assumed when I bought it that it was going to sound crystal clear with every note clearly discernible but that's not what I'm getting so before I return it I just wanted to see if anybody had any ideas on this situation.
I have to add that I have a Bose S 1 Pro PA system and the guitar sounds much clearer through that $600 system than it does through this amplifier which has a regular price of about $1200. Makes no sense.
So I don't know what everybody else is doing that's making this amp sound so fantastic according to what I've read but it's not working for me. I prefer to have a separate amplifier for this guitar and I'm wondering if I should try the Fender 68 custom Vibro Champ reissue or maybe a Quilter amp since I've heard good things about them.
I'm sure there will be differing opinions about my situation but I certainly will consider any suggestions. I do not play anywhere but in my music room at home so any issues about playing with a band are not applicable to my needs.
This whole amp buying thing is so frustrating since I live in a small town that does not have easy access to a variety of amplifiers to try. I get sick of the buy and return buy and return process for musical stuff but I just have to accept that that is the way it is given my location.
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11-26-2025 11:41 AM
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Did you hear some playing through that amp that sounded like the tone you want? I loved my Henrikson, that amount of tweeking shouldn't be necessary. Wrong tool for the job?
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Do you have the tweeter on or off? (Switch on the back)
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If one likes the somewhat bright sound of a Blackface Fender tube amp, I do not think the somewhat dark sound of a Henriksen will please. For the Fender amp sound, I would suggest a Fender or Quilter amp.
I love the Henriksen sound and have two of them (Bud 6 and Blu 10). But I also love the Fender sound and my other two amps deliver that sound (Quilter Mach 3 Combo and Milkman The Amp 100).
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I just built a home 1x12 cab for a Quilter US. I have a load of tinkering left to do with adjustments but its a beautiful sounding amp and you can almost put it in your coat pocket (not the speaker).
I think its hard buying gear that other people sound good on. Its easy to get wrapped up in their vibe and have it not really be your sound. I love listening to players on humbuckers but most guitars I pickup with a humbucker I put down. Its a bummer but if you cant dial in something you like get it back to the shop and find what works for you.
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Not really but thanks for asking
Originally Posted by joe2758
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Tried it both ways. Did not make a difference. Originally Posted by Doug B
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The only Quilter I saw on their website that seemed like it would work is the Aviator Cub but I don't understand why someone would buy an amplifier that has an input for 3 different fender guitar sounds. I don't want to have to select between these choices I just want to have a quality amp I can plug my guitar into, maybe add a pedal or two if necessary like a chorus pedal and then play. The Aviator strikes me as a one size fits all type of amp. Pick the one you want even though you paid for all three. Originally Posted by Stringswinger
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Is that because you use a different guitar with the Henriksen than with the Fender type amp? Originally Posted by Stringswinger
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I have to agree. It really depends on the sound you want to hear. My good friend recently sold his Twin Reverb to make room for his Henriksen. He's not regretted it. He is getting great tones from that amp. It compliments his style. Personally I wouldn't go there, because I love the sound Fender amps. Which is why I have a Quilter (with three iconic Fenders on board). Originally Posted by Stringswinger
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+1 Originally Posted by Stringswinger
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I don’t think anyone says this is the best sounding amp. It is very very good but people choose it for convenience. Having said that, I think you need to do the following things.
1. put it on a wedge or elevate it. Part of what is happening is that since the speaker is so close to the floor you’re just not optimally dispersing the sound in the room.
2. Lets see if this works on the Blu which has different frequency centers on the EQ but my setting for the bud 6 is as follows (I’m a fender guy):
bass: 2 o clock
low mid: 3 o clock
high mid: 7 o clock (yes, that’s almost OFF. These are the offending frequencies of the bud)
treble: 2 o clock
presence: 2 o clock
If you don’t find that you like it after trying these settings then return or sell it.
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I gigged quite a bit with a Quilter Cub and found it to be a great amp, however at the low volumes my duo performs at, it didn't really have room to stretch it legs. I sold it to a friend to does classic rock/blues material in a 4 piece band and he absolutely loves it. I found the 'tweed" channel worked best for me, however to answer your question about the 3 inputs, some guys are using a Y cord into two of the channels with happy results. I never tried it. Originally Posted by John H. Power
Have you tried to line out the Blu to your Bose?
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Sorry to hear about your disappointing experience.
If you play at home, and if you like tweaking stuff, and have time to do so. I'd suggest getting a knock-off Fender Blues Jnr kind of amp and mod it to your liking. It's (to me) great therapy, and feels Awesome when you finally play it.
I rebuilt an old Blues Jnr, over a period of 2 months or so, did a full recap, and modded the whole thing for just a fraction of what I'd spent on a new amp. I put quality caps etc.. and it delivers all I want to hear for now. You can find those things dirt cheap 2nd hand. The pcb is great for modding away.
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If one of those three delivers what I want I'd use it and ignore the other two. I love the sound of my guitars through AI Clarus and Fenders. I also have a Quilter Superblock (which emulates 3 amps) that I use when going direct to a mixer or PA. Most of those amps have effects I don't use, but I dial them the ones I like to get the sound I want and don't see the presence of those effects as a deterrent. Originally Posted by John H. Power
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You don't really pay for all three. Quilter has a long history of developing analog modelling for Fender style amps. When they introduced Aviator Cub they had already figured out the modeling, it was just a matter of adding the preamp circuitry for all three to the preamp. I assume it doesn't add much to the production cost whether they have one type of fender or three in the amp. Most SS modeling amps come with a lot more than three amp types. Originally Posted by John H. Power
In this case, you may like having all three because even if you only use the clean sounds at the very least they give you three different base EQ's, going from mid forward (tweed) to scooped (Blackface). I think that comes in handy in different rooms or when used with different pickups/guitars.
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Have you tried turning your guitar’s volume up to the max and setting the amp volume to where you want the overall volume to be? If you aren’t pushing enough signal volume you might not get a good reflection of what the amp can do. Originally Posted by John H. Power
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Not necessarily. Sometimes I like to get a different sound out of the same guitar by using a different amp. Originally Posted by Mick-7
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I have an Aviator Cub. The different inputs are intended to emulate the three basic flavors of Fender amp. Lots of people like having that choice. You can also use a y-cord or ABY switch to plug into more than 1 input, which yields slightly different color options. I find this all quite useful, in part because I play different styles of music with different guitars. Originally Posted by John H. Power
Regarding your reaction to the Henriksen, I suspect that what you perceive to be its lack of clarity is actually clarity and a relatively uncolored sound, and the aspect of a fender that you perceive as clarity in a Fender is actually color and maybe a degree of distortion. It turns out that (like a very large portion of other guitarists), you like that. If you want to stay with the Fender sound, but downsized, something like the '68 Vibro Champ custom is probably a better bet than the Henriksen, or a Quilter AC (which is about the same footprint as a Princeton Reverb, but much lighter.
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Have you tried turning your guitar’s volume up to the max and setting the amp volume to where you want the overall volume to be? If you aren’t pushing enough signal volume you might not get a good reflection of what the amp can do.
I, on the other hand, prefer to set the amp very loud, and the guitar volume lowered to the desired volume. Good sound is completely subjective, and there is no 'best sounding amp', nor best sounding settings on any amp. There is only what sounds best to whoever is playing at the time. If the OP doesn't like the Henriksen, then there are other amps on the market. Finding the ideal amp is not a simple process, especially if it's not possible to try the amps in person. We can all say which amps, with which settings, we prefer, but not what anyone else might prefer. To the OP, I can only suggest returning the Henriksen and trying other amps until you find one you like. It's a process, and not a short one.
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As one who's been praising the Blu 6 since I got mine maybe 3 years ago, I'm truly sorry that you don't like it (especially if my positivity had anything to do with your choice). I've used it on many gigs - solo, trio, and backing a vocalist - and my archtops seem to come through well and clearly. I'm quite famiiar with many amps over many years - my first Fender was a BF 15" Pro I bought new in 1963 (when I was playing a 175). After about a dozen Fender amps in the ensuing years, I still have both a Twin and a Princeton. I regularly play the same guitars (a 16" Ibanez laminated achtop and 3 Eastman carved archtops - a 14, a 16, and a 17) through the Blu and the Fenders at home. The Blu is clear, clean, and very well balanced - and all my guitars have 7 strings.
Maybe the Blu just isn't for you. But it does a great job for me even with a solid body and a Zen clone pedal on fusion gigs. Because of the bottom port, they're position sensitive. Have you tried putting it on a stool or table? Keeping it on the floor really reinforces the bass. If it's close to a wall, add another 3 dB to the bottom and throw in at least 3 more if it's in a corner. Because of its design, it's very sensitive to what's called boundary reinforcement of the bass, and that can muddy up the tone if it's not positioned well. Depending on where I have to put it on a gig, I even have to cut bass EQ by a significant amount.
Another trick to reduce bass in the balance is to elevate the front legs 2 or 3". Do not use a wedge to do this, since that maintains the spacing between the port and the reflecting surface beneath it. Widening the space between the bottom of the amp and the floor reduces bass. I carry a few little wooden blocks in the gig bag (1", 2", 3") in case I'm stuck on a tiny stage or playing area in a corner. I also carry a wedge to raise the front with the port spacing intact. This points the speaker more directly at me, and it does increase the high end that I hear - but it probably doesn't change what the audience hears at all.
The tweeter works well and audibly in mine. it's possible that your example is defective, but the failure rate on Henriksen is extremely low and it's almost certainly fine. If you've truly tried all combinations and permutations of EQ settings on guitar and amp and you can't find a sound you like, the above are really last resort suggestions. I hope you can find a sound you like, even if it means returning the Blu.
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Same guitar Originally Posted by Mick-7
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Hmmm... if you don't hear any difference from switching the tweeter on/off, it may be defective.
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Thanks to everyone for the suggestions and information. I will take all these contributions into account and see where I end up.
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Take your time to choose well whichever way you go. Originally Posted by John H. Power
At home, I enjoy playing unplugged these days.
Good luck!
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