New Amp Day: Fender '57 Custom Champ Handwired Series

[SpruceTop]

Okay, so a week ago, I received my order of a Fender '59 Bassman LTD. My usual inspection of the shipping carton revealed no visible damage. Upon removing the Bassman from its box, however, revealed a ding in the tweed covering and underlying right-side pine upright. Also, tilting the cabinet front to back I heard a clunking sound. The top chassis screws were loose! Also, the power cord was out of its protective envelope and loose within the cabinet. I returned the Bassman to the vendor.

After mulling over whether to order another Bassman (HEAVY!), I decided to go for the diminutive Fender '57 Custom Champ which is part of the Handwired Series of vintage reissue Fender amps. This amp arrived in perfect condition complete with its rear panel 75-Year Anniversary Fender badge . I plugged in my Gretsch 5420TG-59 and cranked the amp's Volume knob, its only control, to 12, and proceeded to hear what this half-pint Fender could do. If you're older, as I am, back in 1964 the sound that can come from this Fender '57 Custom Champ when driven LOUD is probably not what you wanted to hear back then as distortion was thought of as the tone of an inferior, low-powered amp! Fast forward to the late-1960s and beyond, and this tube amp's overdriven distortion was now in vogue! This little Fender '57 Custom Champ will deliver all the delicious tube-tone, rounded output-stage distortion anyone could want at a moderate volume while giving cleaner tones at lower volumes. The amp is very touch sensitive to picking dynamics from easy does it clean to warm double-stop and full-chord distortion with a little bit more picking force, and the amp responds well with the guitar's volume control positioning.

With its 5-watt, straight-up, no tone-stack/no effects output into its 8" Weber alnico 4-ohm speaker, the Fender '57 Custom Champ is a fine at-home/recording studio tube amp and could be used in clubs if mic'ed into a FOH PA--smokey Chicago blues club, anyone? This little guy is a keeper!

FEATURES
5-watt hand-wired all-tube guitar combo amplifier
Single 8” 4-ohm Weber Special Design alnico speaker
Original 5F1 circuit with Fender Pure Vintage yellow capacitors and Schumacher transformers
Single 12AY7 preamp tube, single 6V6 power amp tube, single 5Y3GT rectifier tube
Dual ¼” inputs accommodate a variety of instruments
Includes a protective cover

https://www.fender.com/en-US/guitar-...160500100.html

[Song]

Congratulations on your new Champ day!
Rockin' at the Tweed of sound!

[Bluside]

Congratulations on a very sweet amp.

Years ago, I had an original '57 Champ. Sometimes I can't believe my stupidity for selling it. Enjoy.

[jonfields45]

Is there noticable class-A hum?

The output transformer of a push/pull amp acts as a power supply hum-canceling coil as the windings to the two output tubes are out of phase. Also the cheaper amps did not have chokes (inductors) as part of the high voltage power supply. All fixable with enough capacitance (or resistance in the case of the preamp tubes).

I'm giving some thought to building one of the many kits (adding capacitance is easy if needed).

[Dru Edwards]

What a sweet pickup! Congrats on the '57 Custom Champ.

Did you get a chance to play the Bassman? Any chance you'll reorder?

[SpruceTop]

Originally Posted by Dru Edwards

What a sweet pickup! Congrats on the '57 Custom Champ.

Did you get a chance to play the Bassman? Any chance you'll reorder?

Thanks, Dru! No, after being somewhat heartbroken at the condition of the new Bassman, all I did was flip the main power switch to ON to see if the jewel light illuminated, which it did, and then turned it off, and repacked the amp in its shipping carton. I then contacted the vendor who sent a return shipping label to me to print and I sent the amp back. I'm thinking that the Bassman being heavy and awkward within its shipping carton was perhaps subjected to some rough handling during shipping. The amp was new and had the 75 Year Fender Anniversay Badge on the rear panel and all shipping carton bottom-sealing and top-sealing staples were in place prior to my opening the box. The vendor said that they don't inspect the amps that come from Fender as long as the shipping cartons appear undamaged when they receive them. The Fender '57 Custom Champ Handwired came double-boxed and was in perfect condition when I removed it from its containers.

I'd still like to order another Fender '59 Bassman LTD just to have an amp that delivers guitar tones super LOUD! & clean, and I love that retro, real tweed look.

[SpruceTop]

Originally Posted by jonfields45

Is there noticable class-A hum?

The output transformer of a push/pull amp acts as a power supply hum-canceling coil as the windings to the two output tubes are out of phase. Also the cheaper amps did not have chokes (inductors) as part of the high voltage power supply. All fixable with enough capacitance (or resistance in the case of the preamp tubes).

I'm giving some thought to building one of the many kits (adding capacitance is easy if needed).

Hi Jon, yesterday, when playing the Fender '57 Custom Champ, I didn't notice any annoying 60-cycle hum with the amp and guitar turned up fully. Today, I'll be sure to listen for it as it's likely there. By the way, my family room has six fluorescent light fixtures that don't affect any of the electronic devices I've used in the room with any electrical noise. I plug all my stuff into a power conditioner and that likely helps suppress most potential electrical noise. More to come ...

[ghostnote]

That's a nice amp. I wouldn't necessarily want it to be my only amp, but a nice Champ scratches an itch that can't be scratched any other way. I have a hand-wired EC Vibro Champ (modified 5F11 circuit) that I just love. I play it frequently with both single coils and humbuckers and it likes them both. What really makes it sound killer is putting a low-gain OD pedal in front of it, preferably one with some type of clean boost or treble boosting function in it. I have several pedals that do that kind of thing, and it makes that amp way more sparkly and chimey, which aren't words you usually hear describing a Champ. Here are two clones I use regularly: a Caline Highwayman and a Joyo Sweet Baby. Both cheap, both excellent.
Edited to add that mine is very quiet - I can barely hear any hum at all coming from it.

[SpruceTop]

Originally Posted by jonfields45

Is there noticable class-A hum?

The output transformer of a push/pull amp acts as a power supply hum-canceling coil as the windings to the two output tubes are out of phase. Also the cheaper amps did not have chokes (inductors) as part of the high voltage power supply. All fixable with enough capacitance (or resistance in the case of the preamp tubes).

I'm giving some thought to building one of the many kits (adding capacitance is easy if needed).

Hi Jon, I just fired up the '57 Champ for today's session and there is, as expected, some 60-cycle hum but even when standing right on top of the amp it's hardly noticeable even with the amp's Volume control at "0" or pinned at "12". With the Gretsch's Filter'Tron humbucker volume controls wide open before starting to feedback when not playing the guitar, there's very little 60-cycle hum. In short, as far as internal and external electrical noise generation affecting the amp, this is a very quiet amp even with two of six fluorescent light fixtures within about 7 feet.

[jonfields45]

Originally Posted by SpruceTop

Hi Jon, I just fired up the '57 Champ for today's session and there is, as expected, some 60-cycle hum but even when standing right on top of the amp it's hardly noticeable even with the amp pinned at 12 and the Gretsch's Filter'Tron humbucker volume controls wide open before starting to feedback. In short, as far as internal and external electrical noise generation affecting the amp, this is a very quiet amp even with two of six fluorescent light fixtures within about 7 feet.

The class-A 60/50 Hz hum is only the output stage and not impacted by the volume control setting. You would only be able to hear it if you're not playing. The light fixtures and power conditioning are not part of this equation. Just a fact of life with simpler circuits delivering audible power. The preamp is also all class A but it won't hum because they use a second (6V6 control grid voltage) and third stage of filtering for their power supply (two cascaded RC filters in total). The preamp tubes run at a lower voltage and need less power. This much RC filtering is as good as and cheaper than the inductor Fender used on more expensive amps (at least for the preamp triodes).

[SpruceTop]

Originally Posted by jonfields45

The class-A 60/50 Hz hum is only the output stage and not impacted by the volume control setting. You would only be able to hear it if you're not playing. The light fixtures and power conditioning are not part of this equation. Just a fact of life with simpler circuits delivering audible power. The preamp is also all class A but it won't hum because they use a second (6V6 control grid voltage) and third stage of filtering for their power supply (two cascaded RC filters in total). The preamp tubes run at a lower voltage and need less power. This much RC filtering is as good as and cheaper than the inductor Fender used on more expensive amps (at least for the preamp triodes).

To be clear (I've altered my previous post), with the amp's Volume control at "0" or "12", the 60-cycle hum from the '57 Champ is non-intrusive on the ears even with the low-level ambient room noise. Being only a 5-watt amp most likely contributes to the Champ's quiet 60/50 Hz hum?

[Steve DeRosa]

Originally Posted by SpruceTop

...I'd still like to order another Fender '59 Bassman LTD just to have an amp that delivers guitar tones super LOUD! & clean, and I love that retro, real tweed look.

It's not just about volume - both Filter'Trons and Dynasonics have a wide dynamic range and, just as with audio equipment playing back a complex orchestral piece (I used a digital recording of Saint-Saens Third Symphony to audition all my gear), the more reserve power you have on tap the better; give the Bassman another try - I doubt you'll be disappointed...

[SpruceTop]

Originally Posted by Steve DeRosa

It's not just about volume - both Filter'Trons and Dynasonics have a wide dynamic range and, just as with audio equipment playing back a complex orchestral piece (I used a digital recording of Saint-Saens Third Symphony to audition all my gear), the more reserve power you have on tap the better; give the Bassman another try - I doubt you'll be disappointed...

Steve, you haven't steered me wrong yet, Bro! More to come, I hope, on the Fender '59 Bassman LTD ...

[Bob Womack]

I've been wanting to build one of those. Instant "Rocky Mountain Way" (Joe Walsh). They tell me that the sweet spot is like 10 o'clock to 12 o'clock on the dial but I don't own one so what do I know?

Bob

[rockabilly69]

Originally Posted by SpruceTop

Steve, you haven't steered me wrong yet, Bro! More to come, I hope, on the Fender '59 Bassman LTD ...

If you think the Fender Bassman is nice, you REALLY need to audition one of these...

https://www.victoriaamplifier.com/am...ictoria-45410/

take a look at who's on their Artist page, and Victoria doesn't give away amps!