[PaulJay]

Hey, Will a e-120 fit in a Blues Jr. and would it be able to even sound good? Have any of you done this ? Would it give the amp more clean head room? Thanks Paul

[RiseandFall]

I've done it and it fits and sounds amazing.
Putting it in is a trick. Look online for how to swap a speaker out in that amp. It is tight in there and you have to pull the chassis...that is the only way to make an E-120 fit.
But it is easier than it sounds to install.
You will be very happy with the results. It is Jerry like.
Make sure the boost button is depressed. It helps you get closer to the sound you seek.

[PaulJay]

I was thinking it would be fun to put the amp into a homemade head cabinet and plug it into my 1x12 homemade speaker cab w/E -120. I am just trying to have something light untill I am able to purchase an Sms Pre amp. Thanks Paul

[RiseandFall]

Paul,
That is just what I did. The E-120 in the Blues junior really showed me what the 120 added as opposed to the stock speaker.
But eventually I got an MC40 and an SMS. I also changed over to K-120's.
I like the track you are on.

[PaulJay]

Thanks for letting me know I am not too off base. I have a few other amps that are just alittle too heavy to lug around.There is a guy that makes a head cab for a blues jr. Carlscustomguitars.com for about $125. But I might try to do it myself.

[brbadg]

You can just disconnect the speaker out (inside behind the chassis) and plug it into your cab. Since you are going to do something else with it,it'll save you 125.00

[Jon S.]

I owned a BJ for a year. Sold it and never looked back. To me, putting and E120 in a BJ would be like putting a necklace on a swine but I respect others' choices. This being said, I think it would sound much better running the BJ into a larger cab w/an E120 (I've long thought Fender should offer at least a limited run of BJ heads for this reason but those Fender dudes, they just don't listen to me ).

[RiseandFall]

I owned a BJ for a year. Sold it and never looked back. To me, putting and E120 in a BJ would be like putting a necklace on a swine but I respect others' choices.

I too never looked back, but I think the BJ is hardly a swine. It can get a much closer Jerry sound than the vast majority of Fender amps.
Especially with that boost button pushed on.

[Jon S.]

I owned a BJ for a year. Sold it and never looked back. To me, putting and E120 in a BJ would be like putting a necklace on a swine but I respect others' choices.

I too never looked back, but I think the BJ is hardly a swine. It can get a much closer Jerry sound than the vast majority of Fender amps.
Especially with that boost button pushed on.

The boost button, to my ears, isn't a true boost, it's a mid-boost.

I don't know what volumes you were using yours at. Mine had limited headroom. Of course, it's all in the application and comparisons. I replaced mine with a 40W Reverend Hellhound 1X12 (which I replaced the speaker in with a Jensen Neo 12-100). The Hellhound, to me, is 5X the BJ at around the same footprint, weight, and (at the time) price. Just one example.

[PaulJay]

I hear what your saying Jon, I got this amp for real good deal, and I just want to do something different with it. I am going to put the chassis and reverb in a head cab or rack case and run it thru a 1x12 cab w/ E-120. I am going to check into some Bill M. mods that wil clean it up give it some head room.

[RiseandFall]

Per the Blues Junior boost button, here is Brad's take, which through experience I concur with.
The BJ can get you somewhat close.


To give a more practical answer, the Fender Blues Junior actually has the same tone-stack voicing/values as the Jerry modded Twin preamp. It's the only stock amp I know of that right out of the box has the correct "Jerry" tone section values. Not that the component materials are ideal, but at least the actual voicing is right. In theory, if you have the "fat" button turned on, turn the bass way down or off, crank the treble nearly or all the way up, and use the mid knob for fullness, that's gonna be in the ballpark. Granted the small cabinet won't give the body that Jerry's cab's had, but still, we're in the ballpark, kind of.

Brad

[Jon S.]

Per the Blues Junior boost button, here is Brad's take, which through experience I concur with.
The BJ can get you somewhat close.


To give a more practical answer, the Fender Blues Junior actually has the same tone-stack voicing/values as the Jerry modded Twin preamp. It's the only stock amp I know of that right out of the box has the correct "Jerry" tone section values. Not that the component materials are ideal, but at least the actual voicing is right. In theory, if you have the "fat" button turned on, turn the bass way down or off, crank the treble nearly or all the way up, and use the mid knob for fullness, that's gonna be in the ballpark. Granted the small cabinet won't give the body that Jerry's cab's had, but still, we're in the ballpark, kind of.

Brad

That's really interesting. I makes me even more hope Fender sees fit one day to issue a BJ head. I'm going to share this with the other guitarist in my band who brings his BJ to practices. Thanks for sharing now and also thanks to Brad.

[PaulJay]

From what I have been reading this amp is highly under rated due to some design flaws but with some mods it really excels, and can get closer to blackface tones. I was wondering if it is possible to add an effects loop and use the pre amp out to a power amp when needed.Then it might become a Mini-Jerry Rig. thanks Paul

[Sparechaynge]

PaulJay Wrote:
this amp is highly under rated due to some design flaws

If I may ask, what are the design flaws you are referencing? The Blues Junior is my main amp, although my style isn't quite as Jerry-ish and as lot of the folks here.

[Jon S.]

Whether they're true "flaws" is debatable but some (if not many) believe they are:

http://billmaudio.com/wp/?page_id=2