Fender '57 Champ

**tomems** · 03-12-2019, 10:58 AM

Does anyone have a reissued Fender '57 Champ? Is it worth the price? Or did you buy one and end up selling it later?

I am thinking about getting one in 2020 b/c I dig Julian Lage’s sound on his (vintage) one, and the YouTubes sound good. But curious what this group thinks...

**omphalopsychos** · 03-12-2019, 04:03 PM

I would absolutely purchase a clone over the fender reissue. A 5f1 for $1000?

I got one on reverb, hand-made by some dude. He did an amazing job, changed the output transformer and put in a 10" speaker and used a bigger cabinet. It's a Champ++. I play it in a relatively loud group with a drummer, bass, vibes, and trumpet with a telecaster.

Try to get a photo of the inside of the chassis for this one (link below; no affiliation). If the soldering and components are good, this would be an excellent Champ++. Ragin Cajun is a great speaker in a Champ, definitely loud enough to play in a combo. You could probably gig with this setup without being miced.

Hand Crafted Fender Champ 5F1 - New and Classy with 10" | Reverb

**omphalopsychos** · 03-12-2019, 04:08 PM

See the following discussion:
Poor man's Fender tweed amps

**bananafist** · 03-14-2019, 11:34 AM

I bought an absolutely as new 57 reissue champ with exactly the same idea! BAD idea. OK, I'm not JL (which I knew

) but this amp sounds NOTHING like an old champ. I sold it on, at a loss, after 3 weeks. I'd go for a clone in your place with a bigger speaker, and try it first. The reissue 57 should carry a disappointment warning!! I've used Fender amps, twins, deluxe reverbs vibrolux, vibroverb,BF champ, Princetons all my life and all through my gigging, but this one is a dud.

**tomems** · 03-14-2019, 11:40 AM

I am learning there are several highly rated Tweed pedals, might be a better value...?

**bananafist** · 03-14-2019, 11:41 AM

Same thing applies, TRY them first. Good luck.

**omphalopsychos** · 03-14-2019, 12:02 PM

It's a way to save money, but definitely not a better value, in my opinion. It's never going to sound quite the same and a good champ clone shouldn't cost you much and you're just going to keep chasing that dragon blowing more money.

For what it's worth, when Julian Lage isn't playing through a champ, he plugs into a JHS Morning Glory. Honestly, this won't get you to play like him though.

And yes, go try out some pedals through your own gear, or take a guitar to the music store and try some amps.

**Tal_175** · 03-14-2019, 12:41 PM

I have one. I like it very much. I never tried a vintage one but 57 Champ is everything I hoped it would be. I even gigged with it once. There was even a drummer but it was a small venue (50'sh people). I got several complements fo the tone. It's a great practice and small gig amp.

Disclaimer: Champ is not for everybody. Especially in it's original 8 inch speaker version. It's really it's own thing. Very raw cleans. Always a bit dirty. Extremely dynamic, it'll start barking the moment you dig in. Despite it's size, it has a lot of lows and low mids, but still boxy in a charming way. When you play even and legato with an archtop it sounds much bigger than it's size. Boxiness comes in when you attack more but it's a very vocal sound.

**Ken Olmstead** · 03-14-2019, 03:01 PM

I built a Torres kit back when they were in business. Best thing I have ever done...amp-wise anyway. I stuffed a 10" speaker in the original cab and that was a huge difference! Also, I eventually went to an ALNICO Jensen and that is were it all came together for me. It does exactly as you would hope and drifts from clean to smooth overdrive and back. I play it 90% of the time and my BF Deluxe 10%. It is gigable with a mic but will distort really early. At home it is easily my favorite! I played a '57 reissue once. It was not all I hoped it would be, but this amp is so simple EVERTHING matters! They improve greatly with vintage NOS tubes and ALNICO speakers. My experience/opinion.

Good luck, I'm a BIG fan of tweed amps!

**tomems** · 03-14-2019, 03:24 PM

Long story short: I miss my Peavey Classic 50. It was too big, heavy, and loud, and after it sat around unused for a decade, I decided to let it go. But I've yet find anything that has that tweed sound... I tried a Peavey Classic 30 in the store once and it wasn't the same. Now I'm into low-wattage things... JL's tone is a little dirty but only like the Edge on Joshua Tree, just a tinge of breakup... I love my 5W Ampeg GVT5-110... So I'm OK with clean 5W; looking into dirtier 5W with the Champ...

**339 in june** · 03-14-2019, 04:40 PM

Tweed Champ circuit is so simple, build your own by yourself.
That's what I did and I don't regret.
All that has been told above is true : touch sensitive, clean to dirt, plenty of lows.
Really nice for home practice, useable for rehearsals (with gentle drummer !)
Fender '57 Champ-img_0286-jpg