I have a fender blues jr amp that i acquired in a trade a few years ago. It sounds reasonably good, but it just doesnt behave quite as. In this video i walk through the schematic of a fender blues junior tube amplifier. Highlighted parts have been modified in some way for this project. Its a good looking little amp, sounds ok, and just about the right size to drag around in one hand with a guitar case in the other. I stopped by guitar center to take another look at amps. It features 15 watts of tube el84 power, and it has a single channel with basic eq as well as a fat switch which pumps up the midrange and gain a bit and onboard reverb as well. I had a tweed blues junior in 1996 and was not particularly impressed with it. Hi, im shot, and ive been away from ug for a while, i recently came back. The biggest issue with the blues junior is that it sounds small and boxy.
Unleash the tone of your blues jr with these modifications from fromel electronics. The guitarist i work with a lot in my band owns two rock combos and after hearing my rig now is a fully paid member of the blues junior owners club. So bring back the power and sparkle to your guitar amplifier. I brought in my 1button footswitch from my mustang, which i had read also works with the blues junior. I analyze the circuit and compare it to other well known tube amps including recommendations for mods. This is the second one ive had and its developed the same fault as the first one.
Vintage makeover to a longtime favorite the blues jr. Fender blues junior service manual free download as pdf file. If you dont believe me, plug an external 8 ohm cab into the output jack of the blues junior its a whole different amp. Blues junior settings with ascending volume values description posted by rever b maste r middl e bas s trebl e fa t vol. Fender groove tubes your new blues junior iii amplifier comes equipped with the highest quality tubes available, sourced from various manufacturers. The blues junior iii amplifier is considered to be field serviceable to the component level. May 22, 2016 on first impressions at least, the fender blues junior iii is perfect. Blues junior schematic and layout pdf newest version uploaded on. Schematics shown with dates above links and a few that arent, such as the pain mod and the combined stock vjr schematic immediately below have been thoroughly scrutinized and are provided courtesy of nomad100.
The owner had sent it to me with a note requesting the usual mods, plus a rather plaintive and maybe you can find out why it hums while youre in there. I had been through a long search for an amp that could give me classic fender tone at a reasonable volume and weight. Buy fromel standby switch mod for fender blues jr musical instruments free delivery possible on eligible. Tubes free delivery possible on eligible purchases. Iii and they work exceptionally well to put the final touches on an amp with our modification kits. Figure 1 is an annotated schematic of the fender blues junior. After the mod, the amp boasts clean, sparkling top en. A replacement fixed that problem, but another arose.
Fender blues junior iii schematic rev d the tube store. Notices specifications theory of operation parts lists. Blues junior top panel functions blues juniortm introduction the fender blues junior is a truly professional, small, tube amplifier. Best mod for a blues jr discussion in ampscabs tech corner. Cup your hands around your mouth and speak or sing. The blues junior is somewhat prone to cold solder joints, especially on the valve sockets. It is disclosed solely for use by qualified technicians for purposes of equipment maintenance and service. Lacquered tweed takes fenders 15w gem and gives it the true vintage treatment with a lacquered tweed covering and a vintagevoiced 12 jensen speaker. The information contained herein is confidential and proprietary to fender musical instruments corp. If youve got a blues junior from this period and youve lost the papers this is a nice find. Compact size, professional tone, and traditional styling make the fender blues junior ideal for rehearsal, backstage warmup, and. Where can i find schematics and the latest valve junior mods. This mark 4 blues junior is night and day different. Fender blues junior iii service manual pdf download.
Jul 19, 2016 i have a fender blues jr amp that i acquired in a trade a few years ago. Fender diagrams, schematics and service manuals download for free. Jan 08, 2015 there used to be a great little website with a database of blues jr settings, but it seems to have gone offline so i uploaded my copy of the pdf file from that site and you can download these blues jr settings any time you want now admittedly i dont like to run my blues jr. Input a high impedance, high sensitivity plug in connection for instruments. Check the continuity at the tank itself by measuring the resistance at each rca jack plug in a jumper cable for ease of access. Didnt realize that new tubes could make such a big difference. Pack of 6 nickelplated steel chassis mounting screws suitable for fender reissue tweed series amps. This is truly a classic, small, loud, alltube fender amplifier. Mounts the chassis to the cabinet on top as well as the sides of the cabinet.
Although still 15w, the pro junior iii only has an 10inch speaker, so it doesnt have the headroom or projection of the blues junior iii and therefore isnt feasible with a full band unless miced. I use a rosewood neck usa 62 reissue strat or a 2005 sg standard, and at the weekly blues jams i run, just about every axe imaginable has been heard through my rig, everybody loves the amp. Firstly the pro junior iii is an even smallersimpler amp than the blues junior iii. The tube amp library of information click the link above for tube amp info, schematics, board building information, projects, mods, transformer diagrams, photos, sound clips. The most important thing with any amplifier is, how its clean channel sounds. The fender drunk junior iii is a combo 15w lamps but make a lot of noise with threechannel preamp 2ax7 and two el84 power. Its not that the blues junior cant get good tones on its own its more than i can change from clean to overdriven tones with the press of a button. Ive had this one about two weeks and its started having. From the factory, this pint size wonder has a lot of potential, but with some select fromel tweaks this amp can stand toetotoe with some of the finest boutique amps on the market.
The input jack is at the top left of this schematic, and from. Fender audio owners manuals current fender audio owners manuals archive this article contains a list of all fender guitar amplifier owners manuals currently available. Added this and the fromel supreme mod kit to my fsr blues junior iii chocolate tweed. A true classic, with that latenight blues tone found nowhere else but in a fender.
Ive got yet another blues junior on the bench with bad filter caps. What could possibly harm them other than use or rough. Fender blues junior modifications fromel electronics. A a hi jeff, i own a fender blues junior and recently had to replace a fuse because it blew and the amp wasnt powering up. Dated from the approval signature on the schematic. If you remove r51 and r52 and put in the pot the way billm has it in the video, what happens to or at c33. Fender blues junior service manual download, schematics.
That said the ts sounds great with the blues junior. Fender blues junior service manual electrical engineering. This includes the more recent blues junior iii and blues junior iv amplifiers. Modifying a fender blues jr university of illinois. Make four 4 cuts on the tube pcb as shown, disconnecting v1 pin 1 ands v2 pins 1, 2, and 3 from their original connections. If you have a copy of an old fender guitar amplifier owners manual not shown in this archive, wed love to have a copy to post here. View and download fender blues junior service manual online. Fender blues junior schematic free download as pdf file. Playing live mid song i cant be going back and fiddling with knobs on my amp. The included 1button footswitch is used to remotely activate the fat switch, boosting the midrange for pronounced tonal thickness when soloing. Anyone got recommendations for a decent low cost attenuator for blues junior. Selling fender blues junior because i barely use in top top condition a great amp there are better if youre got about 2 k spare it comes with a flight case included in the sale fully pointtopoint handwired including all new alpha pots, orange drop caps and metal film power resistors. The fender blues junior is like a smaller version of the famed hot rod deluxe and deville amps, right down to the cosmetics. Order your valves today and hear the difference they make.
Pcb assembly chassis assembly cabinet assembly miscellaneous schematicsservice diagram fender musical instruments corp. The export model has a dual voltage i just need to know what the purple wire is doing on cp4. When i max all the controls i can barely get any volume out of the amp. Hi guys, i am looking for a schematic for my export model, white pcb fender blues junior. I bought this blues junior in december 2007 and it immediately became one of my favorite amps. I own a fender blues junior and recently had to replace a fuse because it blew and the amp wasnt powering up.
Any fender authorized service center in need of a warranty replacement pcb assembly for this unit should contact fmic tech support by phone at 866 3453642, or by email sent to. From the schematic r51 and r52 are in series and putting a pot on r51 allows for adjusting bios. Note, these valves are the correct valves for all fender blues junior amplifiers. Hoffman amplifiers tube amp forum, hoffman fender blues junior. Blues junior transformer upgrades fromel electronics. The reverb tank is definitely a weak spot, but its most common problem is fixable if you have the time and patience. Schematic for the original usabuilt blues junior amplifiers. View and download fender blues junior iii service manual online.
Apr 10, 2016 this is the second one ive had and its developed the same fault as the first one. Mercury magnetics transformers are the highest quality transformer upgrades for the blues junior all versions, including the new blues jr. Some users resolder them first thing, when they get a new bj. I sold it and bought a blues deville which i really liked. Fits the fender hot rod deluxe, hot rod deville, blues deluxe, blues junior, pro junior, and blues deville, 59 bassman reissue. Treat yourself to a new set of valves today and hear the difference. Fender blues junior will do, and i really mean it, nothing less then very good job when playing hard rock, blues rock and other genres. Im thinking that, if that were the case, it would not be a fault of the blues junior amp, as every tube amp in existence would suffer the same problem. The pins are numbered clockwise from top right as you look at the pcb.
Lately ive been using my bassman more, but thats because i was unhappy with the darkness of my particular blues jr. Problem with fender blues jr amp by wheelisb tue may 21, 20 1. Need an attenuator for a blues junior ultimate guitar. The kit will work for international market amps, but you will have to know how to read a schematic and how a standby switch works. As such stuffed pcb assemblies are not readily available for this unit. There used to be a great little website with a database of blues jr settings, but it seems to have gone offline so i uploaded my copy of the pdf file from that site and you can download these blues jr settings any time you want now admittedly i dont like to run my blues jr. I recently installed the fromel mods in my 1995 blues junior. Pcb assembly schematics diagrams fender musical instruments corp.
The tone is open, clear and articulate and sounds like taking a heavy blanket off of your amp. Jan 30, 2018 in this video i walk through the schematic of a fender blues junior tube amplifier. It seemed the issue wasnt the tubes but could quite possibly be the design itself, so i began to consider which of the billm audio blues junior mods would be worth trying. Fender blues junior for sale in uk view 24 bargains. Schematic for export white pcb fender blues junior gearslutz. Its been my main gigging amp for years because its just so ridiculously easy to grab and go. Celestion speakers are acclaimed worldwide for their distinctly rock n roll flavor, with a more modern sound and utterly classic roar when pushed. Buy replacement valve kit for fender blues junior amplifier 2 x ecc83 1 x balanced ecc83 2. It only has a two controls, volume and master tone. Note s texas blues ramon 4 2 5 10 11 in 3 blues 2 doug 4 5 5 7 6 in 3 roadhouse clean jesper hansen 4 7 5 7 10 out 3 am. First one lasted about a month before a valve went bad. Im really curious, too, how your tubes went bad just from sitting around. Replacement valve kit for fender blues junior amplifier 2.
If your amp just doesnt have that clean sound that you are looking for, give these tubes a try. The problem with the blues junior is first the tone stack and secondly, the overly hot output tubes. Whether you need to speak to consumer relations or simply want to drop us a line, this is your source. The blues junior iv features the classic fender look of sparkling silver grille cloth, lightly aged to give it even more mojo. Fender guitar amplifier owners manuals current fender.
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