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Based on what I'd read here, I bought a Fender Champion 40 a couple months ago. It's a wonderful amp at a ludicrous price. Yesterday I picked up the little brother, the Fender Champion 20. It was used (very lightly) and the price was $100 CDN (that's $77 US at today's rate). It's fabulous. It's about the size of an old Silverface Champ and is able to get me into the same general tonal area. It's loud enough to enjoy playing in my home office and could probably cover a small restaurant or coffee house for a quiet background gig. Someone else here referred to the Champion 20 as the best $100 he'd ever spent on gear. I have to agree.
Here's the pair ...The big brother Champion 40 is 19 lbs with a 12" speaker and the little Champion 20 is 12 lbs with an 8" speaker.
And as I sit here playing through the 20 with a PAF equipped guitar, I am remembering why I got rid of the Silverface Champ: because it sounded great with a Tele but couldn't handle the output from a humbucker. This one handles it without a hitch.
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08-20-2022 10:11 AM
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Good for you Jim! Congratulations on that fine pair!
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The red knob Champ 12 also sounds nice for low volume Jazz.
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I've tried something similar, SuperChamp X2 maybe, thought it was an amazing value for people who like Fenders.
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Jim, can you describe the differences between the 20 and 40 (other than "20", needless to say)?
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Originally Posted by John A.
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Originally Posted by Jim Soloway
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Originally Posted by John A.
When I first picked up the Twenty I set it up as close as I could to the way I use the 40. Yesterday I spent some time going back and forth with the two amps and experimenting a bit. What I found is that the blackface model is still my favorite with the 40 but with the 20 and the smaller speaker it sounds a bit thin. So I tried the tweed model and it made it much thicker and warmer. It's a very different sound than what I'm getting from the 40 but by definition playing through the 20 is a more intimate experience and the warmth that comes from the stronger mid range works very well for that smaller sound. So the 20 no longer just sounds like a smaller of the 40 but rather a different but equally pleasing alternative.
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Originally Posted by Jim Soloway
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Originally Posted by John A.
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played a Champion 40 at a jam
yes it was great
It warm I had to run the Bass control
on 2/10 and Treble on 5 or 6
plenty of omph , nice and light to pickup
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Based on Jim's recommendation I picked up a NOS Champion 20 for $82 ($111 in the door with S/H and tax.) A perfectly usable grab and go jazz amp for solo/duo use. Thanks Jim!
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I played my Champ 40 for two weeks at band practice and it hung in there (rock band) with another guitar, bass, keys, and drums. It was the reason I stepped up to the TM Twin. 12" speaker, and only 19 pounds. VERY loud if you need it to be. (And I also bought it on Jim's recommendation.)
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Originally Posted by buduranus2
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I have (and enjoy very much) one too!
My son uses it most of the time (because of all the effects and amp models).
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I don't think they make the Super Champ XD/X2 anymore. The 40 looks pretty similar, though not so many voicings. (The XD had a 10" speaker though, the 40 has a 12".)
I agree these are great amps for the money.
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For these amps, can anyone comment on the general noise-floor level? Like, if you don't plug in a guitar and just have the amp on is there appreciable hum/hiss coming from it. I'm a bit sensitive to this
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Originally Posted by chris32895
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Originally Posted by John A.
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Just picked my Fender Champ 20 today and this is a nice little amp! I particularly like the tweed setting with my humbucker equipped Telecaster. It has less of a noise-floor than my Quilter 101 (which I sold), is less bright, and certainly way less expensive. Maybe it's just the acoustics of the small room I play in but it doesn't boom nearly as much as my Quilter BlockDock 10 ever did. The cleans are nice and pleasant, but nothing to really write home about. It's just a very even, maybe even sterile, amp that I can practice with. I forget it's there and only worry about practicing, which is just what I need.
Oh, but the thing makes a really loud POP when shutting off. I may try to rig something up to get rid of that but for now sticking something in the headphone jack just before shutoff does the trick. I hear these all do that.
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Playing with this amp some more the '65 Princeton voice is really incredible. Plus basically no noise coming from the amp (there is a little but playing whisper quiet with my head essentially a foot away from the speaker I can't tell). Granted I am using a humbucker. Using a P90 I got some noise.
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Originally Posted by chris32895
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Can these amps be likened to the discontinued Fender G Dec 3 30 but without the backing tracks?
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Originally Posted by John A.
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Originally Posted by garybaldy
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