Versatile Acoustic/Jazz Amp Quest (Henriksen Bud or ... ?)

**Tom Karol** · 05-13-2019, 11:23 AM

I’ve decided to sell all of my amps except my Henriksen Jazz Amp 112. It’s great for everything I do, but overkill for some things.

So, for my second amp, I want the following:

Under 20 pounds;
Good with both acoustic (guitar, uke) and electric (archtop) instruments, and vocals, too;
2 channels with flexible EQ and separate reverb. No other effects wanted or needed;
Loud enough for rock-band (2 guitars, bass, drums, hand percussion, small PA for vocals) rehearsals at living room volume – doesn’t have to sound great in this context, just be loud enough to be heard;
Mostly to be used for solo and small-group jazz/pop guitar performance as well as acoustic/electric uke or guitar plus vocal;
The Henriksen Bud seems perfect – and I’m a big Henriksen fanboy – but is there anything less expensive that might make me happy?

**Alter** · 05-13-2019, 11:54 AM

The Bugera acoustic amp, a copy of the aer compact 60 at less than a 6th of the price?

**Klatu** · 05-13-2019, 12:00 PM

Originally Posted by Alter

The Bugera acoustic amp, a copy of the aer compact 60 at less than a 6th of the price?

First I hear of this one . . . looks promising. How does it compare to the AER?

**coolvinny** · 05-13-2019, 12:12 PM

Sounds like the Bud is perfect. Buying the right item the first time around is much cheaper in the long term.

**Alter** · 05-13-2019, 02:54 PM

Originally Posted by Klatu

First I hear of this one . . . looks promising. How does it compare to the AER?

The sound is excellent. I have two friends that have it, and use it with archtops and acoustics. We don't know about reliability of course, I've had an aer for almost 20 years now and it still plays fine. But it costs 1100 euros, and the bugera 175!

**marcwhy** · 05-13-2019, 06:47 PM

Has anyone here played a Bud/Blu with a "loud rock band?" I've played with a loud big band, and used an extension cab, but not sure how it would hang with loud rock ...

**Hep To The Jive** · 05-13-2019, 11:24 PM

AER of course! It's an industry standard, nothing I've heard is better or more reliable and lightweight. It's great with all kinds of acoustic instruments, and with archtops and telecasters as well. With some preamp pedals it's an excellent all around guitar amp.

**Hep To The Jive** · 05-13-2019, 11:28 PM

Originally Posted by Alter

The Bugera acoustic amp, a copy of the aer compact 60 at less than a 6th of the price?

Ha, would you really trust something like that as a gigging musician? I mean, 6th of the price of the most reliable amp will give you exactly the sixth of its reliability. I wouldn't.

**Spook410** · 05-14-2019, 12:36 AM

One of the Schertler Jam models or an Acus.

**dconeill** · 05-14-2019, 04:07 AM

One thing about the Bud - the OP would already be familiar with the controls. Thus no learning curve for using a new amp. (I own a Bud.)

**Tom Karol** · 05-14-2019, 09:15 AM

Originally Posted by marcwhy

Has anyone here played a Bud/Blu with a "loud rock band?" I've played with a loud big band, and used an extension cab, but not sure how it would hang with loud rock ...

Not for live performance in a rock context - just for in-home rehearsals. Louder than most jazz contexts (I'm not in a big band), but not a "loud rock band." (My Jazz Amp 112 goes as loud as I'll ever play without the volume going past 12 o'clock, and I rarely need to turn it up that high.)

**Tom Karol** · 05-25-2019, 08:33 AM

Pulled the trigger on The Bud. It arrives Wednesday afternoon, but I have 3 lessons that night, so I might not get to put it through its paces until Thursday night. Watch this thread for a mini review on Friday.

**dconeill** · 05-26-2019, 10:52 AM

[QUOTE=Tom Karol;956275]Pulled the trigger on The Bud. .../QUOTE]

Keep in mind that the Bud works best on a hard surface, because of the design of the speaker cabinet (bottom-ported).

The following is my understanding, and could well be incorrect; but here goes:
By somebody's rule of thumb from a paper on ported speaker cabinets, the hard surface should be at least half-a-wavelength of the lowest frequency you care about. Half a wavelength of 80 Hz at sea level is 7 ft; so for best bass response you would want the hard surface to be a circle and to have a radius of 3.5 feet with the Bud at its center. Bigger is OK, and circular is not a requirement - this is a rule of thumb, after all. A smaller hard surface will attenuate low frequencies somewhat.

The Bud will work fine on other surfaces, too; it just won't have quite the bass response. I keep mine on a wooden stool most of the time, for ease of access to the controls.

**Tom Karol** · 05-31-2019, 10:19 AM

The quest:

Under 20 pounds;
Good with both acoustic (guitar, uke) and electric (archtop, semi-hollow) instruments, as well as vocals;
Prefer a switchable tweeter to a single dual-cone speaker.
2 channels each with flexible EQ and separate reverb – no other effects needed;
Loud enough for rock-band rehearsals (not gigs) at high living room volume;
Mostly to be used for solo and small-group jazz/pop guitar performance as well as acoustic/electric uke and/or guitar plus vocal.

The verdict:

First of all, I’m definitely keeping my 10-year-old Jazz Amp 112 for when effortless volume, perfect jazz tone, and/or grand-piano bass is required. (I sold the 110; it always paled in comparison to the 112 to my ears.) But I’m pretty sure I’ll now be using the Bud most of the time. It’s simply the most versatile amplifier I’ve ever owned. I’ve had no trouble dialing in excellent sounds with all of my instruments – Archtop, semi-hollow, piezo-equipped acoustics (both active and passive), Godin Multi Uke, and a Beyer M69 vocal mic. I need 2 channels, because I will sometimes use it with 2 instruments or 1 instrument plus vocals. I’ve owned and sold many very small amps. The Bud sounds better and can generate higher SPL than any of them and has the requisite 2 channels plus switchable tweeter. It’s that simple.

Random notes:

When you first turn it on and the Henriksen logo lights up brighter than the sun, it’s quite thrilling!
The new EQ midpoints are well chosen.
The input gain control will take some getting used to, but I appreciate its function.
The reverb is improved, though I still just turn it to 9 O’clock. I plan to use no outboard effects.
The bright switch on channel 2 is a hidden gem – it gives my semi-hollow a really nice alternative voicing option.
It's dead quiet and surprisingly feedback resistant.
The bright switch and the instrument/line switches are a bit hard to manipulate with stubby fingers and no discernable fingernails, but a guitar pick does the trick (and I won’t be switching them while playing).
It looks funny in my music room sitting next to my 112 where the 110 used to be.
I bought it from SoundPure: No tax, free shipping, and a $100 credit for registering as a 1^st time customer; they were a pleasure to deal with and are highly recommended.

**Greentone** · 05-31-2019, 11:55 AM

TomKarol,

Nice purchase. Been wanting a Bud for a couple of years, but none of my Polytones seems to want to bite the dust.

**Tom Karol** · 06-01-2019, 04:35 PM

I just got back from a rock band rehearsal:

Medium size living room
Bass, Drums (hotrods, not sticks), hand percussion, 3 vocals, and another guitarist playing a Strat through a Hot Rod Deluxe
I set the gain and volume at noon on channel 2 with the bright switch on and the tweeter off. I lied and told them that was as loud as I could go. In reality that was as loud as I was willing to go. I still wore ear plugs.
The Bud was flat on a hardwood floor a few feet away from a back wall.
EQ was at (analog clock numbers) 11, 11, 1, 1, 12 with reverb at 9 O'Clock.
Volume on my Godin Montreal Premiere (moderate output humbuckers and roundwound 11's) was at 10 for leads and 8 for rhythm; tone at 10. I used all 3 pickup switch positions.
I brought an XLR cable in case I had to line out into the PA. I didn't need it.

The Bud worked great, albeit just barely!