Fender Tone Master DELUXE Reverb

[entresz]

I'm on the Tonemaster Deluxe Reverb band-wagon. It's knocked my Quilter off the perch for being my main gigging amp. I play in a quartet with a quiet drummer - the 5 watt setting is perfect. I can turn it up until it just starts to compress a bit. I also updated the firmware to 'bypass' the bright cap on the vibrato channel. This makes it even better.

[Ray175]

Welcome to the growing club of happy TMMDR players

[wanderingwolf1958]

thoughts on my new Fender Tonemaster Deluxe Reverb after the gig yesterday -
Really enjoyed playing through it at a noisy live venue with my 6-piece band.
I had the output attenuation set about halfway up, plugged into output 2 of the reverb side, reverb and tremolo engaged on the foot switch, volume on 5, reverb, tremolo, intensity and speed all at ~2.
Saxes played counter-melodies and guide tones behind my solos, while the bass player played through a new and much louder amp and the drummer was in a brick corner that projected him very well, yet with all of that going on, my lines sounded fuller and more authoritative / less tentative than through my Fender Acoustic 200.
The difference in bass backbone really stands out on this amp - there is so much of it you can almost feel it when playing lines on the lower strings. While comping, it sounds like there is much better string definition, i am guessing in part due to the sparkle from the Jensen speaker.
Only other observation is that on some tunes i use an Ibanez Tube Screamer pedal (for some of the blues tunes we do) and I was able to get as much controllable sustain feedback as I wanted...couldn’t get that very easily out of my old amp.
So, at this point, she is a keeper.

[citizenk74]

thoughts on my new Fender Tonemaster Deluxe Reverb after the gig yesterday -
Really enjoyed playing through it at a noisy live venue with my 6-piece band.
I had the output attenuation set about halfway up, plugged into output 2 of the reverb side, reverb and tremolo engaged on the foot switch, volume on 5, reverb, tremolo, intensity and speed all at ~2.
Saxes played counter-melodies and guide tones behind my solos, while the bass player played through a new and much louder amp and the drummer was in a brick corner that projected him very well, yet with all of that going on, my lines sounded fuller and more authoritative / less tentative than through my Fender Acoustic 200.
The difference in bass backbone really stands out on this amp - there is so much of it you can almost feel it when playing lines on the lower strings. While comping, it sounds like there is much better string definition, i am guessing in part due to the sparkle from the Jensen speaker.
Only other observation is that on some tunes i use an Ibanez Tube Screamer pedal (for some of the blues tunes we do) and I was able to get as much controllable sustain feedback as I wanted...couldn’t get that very easily out of my old amp.
So, at this point, she is a keeper.

[yebdox]

For those who have jumped into the Tonemaster pool, I’m getting the impression that the Deluxe has a bit more headroom than its tube counterpart, is that true? I have a Vintage Sound 1x12 that started as the 22 watt version, but that was not enough headroom for me, even with 6L6’s, so I had Rick transform it into the 35 watt jazz configuration, then when it needed a repair, I had him bump it to 40 watt with a bigger transformer.

For most of what I do (or envision doing, as playing opportunities return) a 40 watt tube head fits the sweet spot for me for archtop headroom and pedalboard use for other styles, but the standard output of a Deluxe is not nearly enough for me and there is nothing worse than trying to get your sound at a gig and not having enough gas to stay clean.

I have a Twin that began life as an early 70’s Dual Showman and it’s lovely, but overkill, and of course, a good workout and reminder of proper body mechanics.

So, Is the Tonemaster Deluxe powerful enough to warrant skipping the Twin version for moderately loud gigs?

[Joeontheguitar]

For those who have jumped into the Tonemaster pool, I’m getting the impression that the Deluxe has a bit more headroom than its tube counterpart, is that true? I have a Vintage Sound 1x12 that started as the 22 watt version, but that was not enough headroom for me, even with 6L6’s, so I had Rick transform it into the 35 watt jazz configuration, then when it needed a repair, I had him bump it to 40 watt with a bigger transformer.

For most of what I do (or envision doing, as playing opportunities return) a 40 watt tube head fits the sweet spot for me for archtop headroom and pedalboard use for other styles, but the standard output of a Deluxe is not nearly enough for me and there is nothing worse than trying to get your sound at a gig and not having enough gas to stay clean.

I have a Twin that began life as an early 70’s Dual Showman and it’s lovely, but overkill, and of course, a good workout and reminder of proper body mechanics.

So, Is the Tonemaster Deluxe powerful enough to warrant skipping the Twin version for moderately loud gigs?

I would say it is. I used a TMDR in a Beatles cover band and we played loud, while I needed a clean sound for the early Beatles stuff. I never had any problem with that. And if you'd get really loud, you could also use its DI. On the other hand, the TM Twin is only a bit heavier (though bigger and therefore harder to carry) and slightly more expensive.

[entresz]

For those who have jumped into the Tonemaster pool, I’m getting the impression that the Deluxe has a bit more headroom than its tube counterpart, is that true? I have a Vintage Sound 1x12 that started as the 22 watt version, but that was not enough headroom for me, even with 6L6’s, so I had Rick transform it into the 35 watt jazz configuration, then when it needed a repair, I had him bump it to 40 watt with a bigger transformer.

For most of what I do (or envision doing, as playing opportunities return) a 40 watt tube head fits the sweet spot for me for archtop headroom and pedalboard use for other styles, but the standard output of a Deluxe is not nearly enough for me and there is nothing worse than trying to get your sound at a gig and not having enough gas to stay clean.

I have a Twin that began life as an early 70’s Dual Showman and it’s lovely, but overkill, and of course, a good workout and reminder of proper body mechanics.

So, Is the Tonemaster Deluxe powerful enough to warrant skipping the Twin version for moderately loud gigs?

It's been a while since I've used a tube deluxe but the Tonemaster has a decent amount of headroom - if my memory serves me correctly I think might have a little bit more headroom than the tube version. It has its limits though. I had a gig in a hammond trio and even with the amp on full power, I was starting to run out of juice when the Leslie was floored. It sounded terrific but if I played chords, there was a fair bit of break up.

[yebdox]

It's been a while since I've used a tube deluxe but the Tonemaster has a decent amount of headroom - if my memory serves me correctly I think might have a little bit more headroom than the tube version. It has its limits though. I had a gig in a hammond trio and even with the amp on full power, I was starting to run out of juice when the Leslie was floored. It sounded terrific but if I played chords, there was a fair bit of break up.

Thanks, guess I would lean towards the Twin, then, if I ever went that route. I have lots of pedals available, and a 2 x12 always sounds better to me than a single.

[yebdox]

It's been a while since I've used a tube deluxe but the Tonemaster has a decent amount of headroom - if my memory serves me correctly I think might have a little bit more headroom than the tube version. It has its limits though. I had a gig in a hammond trio and even with the amp on full power, I was starting to run out of juice when the Leslie was floored. It sounded terrific but if I played chords, there was a fair bit of break up.

Thanks!

[Mark Fowler]

Thanks, guess I would lean towards the Twin, then, if I ever went that route. I have lots of pedals available, and a 2 x12 always sounds better to me than a single.

In my opinion, that is the right decision if you are looking for headroom. I have a Deluxe Reverb Tonemaster but don't currently have an Actual DR. But, it is important to keep in mind that the designers of the DR TM were striving to make it as close to the real DR so to expect it to have MORE headroom than the real one is unrealistic. There are LOTS of posts here and elsewhere from MANY people saying how close the DR TM is to an actual DR, so that supports that the designers were successful in making it mimic the real DR. So... if you want a TM that has headroom, then you should get the TR version. I think it will give you exactly what you want.

[Dave93]

I love this amp so much!

I love how simple it is to record something with a good sound without all the problems related with miking.
And I also love how it sounds in live situations with my two beautiful guitars!

I would like to share with you one little live video recorded with an iPhone and another one recorded directly into my focusrite (with some reverb and a little echo added with my DAW).

[Danm777]

Thanks for sharing. I was here to check out opinion on the TM amps but stayed to enjoy your playing. Great rework of Days of Wine with some great chord choices.

[Dave93]

Thanks for sharing. I was here to check out opinion on the TM amps but stayed to enjoy your playing. Great rework of Days of Wine with some great chord choices.

Thank you so much, I really love this amp!