Pro junior to blues junior ?

[dcopper]

I have had my PJ IV Tweed for a couple of years and find it stays surprisingly clean and LOUD before breakup. It is too loud at home to go past 3 on volume but does not break up until about 7. At that volume it is surprisingly LOUD. After 7, there is not a lot of increase in volume, just natural tube amp saturation. Depending on the kind of venues you intend to play, the PJ works great for blues/jazz at small to medium size venues. It depends too if you have a drummer which notches up the overall volume. You could always mic the PJIV.

Another option and very affordable one is the Boss Katana MKII amps. Very affordable and stay clean for your pedals, or even the onboard effects are “okay” if you don’t overdo them. I carry one as a backup in case I have any problems with my PJ (which has not occurred).

For real jazz by the book players, I have an AER Compact 60 II which just has a beautiful transparent jazz tone and good delay and ‘verb built in. These are more pricey but really good for acoustic amplification as well as clean jazz tones.

All of this said, there is magic in tube amps that really shine.
Davidc

[rollypolly]

Well I'm sans amp at the moment. I went ahead and let my PJ go with the Les Paul. At least I can get a fresh start. But I've decided for now to just get a small amp, something capable of small gigs and it doesn't have to be crystal clean. I'm leaning towards an Epiphone Galaxy 25 just because I've heard some good things and I found one under $200. I realize it may not even be as good as the PJ but when and if the time comes I'll step up and invest more into a better amp.

The Vox AC4 with 12" speaker is tempting as well. There are quite a few options in that low watt tube category.

[Mbroady]

Originally Posted by rollypolly

Ok good to hear. I have heard a few say the Blues juniors weren't their favorite. I actually like the Pro Jr, but it's a loud amp (noise floor) and it'd be nice to have built in reverb. I play clean blues and jazz and a little Rock. It seems to do well at these.

Edit….see you let go of the amp so the below is irrelevant. But I left it. Perhaps it would help you or another future tube amp owner.

Do you mean the noise is loud compared to the volume output
Or is it just 2 loud

If its a volume issue that’s an easy and inexpensive fix
Change the 12AX7 V1 preamp tube to a lower gain tube. You get lower volume with more head room. No need to bias the amp for a preamp tube swap. This might also help with noise

For kicks I’ve tried all the tubes in the chart below with my hot rod deluxe, which is known to be unruly with its volume.
The 12AU7, which is the lowest gain tube, gave me a sweet bedroom volume, but I settled on a 12AY7 (for home). I can crank the amp without blowing out my windows and it stays clean all the way up to “10”. At “11” I get some On-The Edge-Of-Break-up

https://blog.thetubestore.com/wp-con...Gain-Graph.jpg

In regards to noise, is it hiss, hum, and or snap-crackle-pop. Are you using single single coil pickups? Do you play close to, and facing your amp? Is your guitar shielded well? Does the amp make noise with nothing plugged in. Are there fluorescent lights in the room (or anywhere in the house)?

As far as reverb, the Pro JR does not have an effects loop but you can still use a reverb peddle in the chain……
Or spend the money for a black face amp with reverb and change the V1 preamp tube for lower gain staging

FWIW: with the preamp swap (and some other maintenance) my old Hot Rod Deluxe which I got used for cheap, has become an amazing sounding amp that far exceeded my expectations.

[rollypolly]

Hi MBroady,
When I said loud, i mean it had a lot of idling noise, hum. Once playing, the amp was fine, nice and clean and plenty of good wall rattling volume. To make a sale on a Les Paul, I included the Pro Jr as a package deal, so its gone.

That also gave me the opportunity to try out a different amp. I always generally liked the Pj so i looked for something similar and finally found a used Epiphone Galaxie 25. All tube, 12” speaker pushing 25 watts. Seems like it could be a good amp and probably close to the Pj but hopefully less hum. Ill try your suggestions if I feel it needs some work.

[davidd]

Originally Posted by rollypolly

Hi MBroady,
When I said loud, i mean it had a lot of idling noise, hum. Once playing, the amp was fine, nice and clean and plenty of good wall rattling volume. To make a sale on a Les Paul, I included the Pro Jr as a package deal, so its gone.

That also gave me the opportunity to try out a different amp. I always generally liked the Pj so i looked for something similar and finally found a used Epiphone Galaxie 25. All tube, 12” speaker pushing 25 watts. Seems like it could be a good amp and probably close to the Pj but hopefully less hum. Ill try your suggestions if I feel it needs some work.

Some idling hum is normal for any tube amp. Hum from bad grounding is different. If you get too much hum with your new amp try moving it to different outlets in your house and see if it lessens. It does for me, sometimes dramatically.

[rollypolly]

Thanks David, I'll make sure to experiment. I definitely have been fooled by bad grounding before. I rebuilt all the parts in my telecaster before realizing I was playing on an ungrounded circuit