Tweed Twin, Tweed Bandmaster tonal differences?

Hello everyone this is my first thread on the Fender forum. I’ve had lots of Fender guitars through the years and I’m just now getting around to buying some great fender amps. I’ve have the opportunity to get either a custom shop Bandmaster tweed or the low powered tweed twin like the one Clapton uses. I couldn’t find anything online but what’s the differences in sound between the two? Which one’s better for an overdriven lead sound? I’ve got a universal audio ox so I’ll be able to crank it full volume without any complaints from the neighbors. I’ve already got a custom shop fender deluxe reverb so will mainly be using that for clean tones. Between the two which one has a smoother overdrive? Thanks for any feedback.

I haven't seen any low power tweed twin reissues for sale in a dog's age. I think NH got allocated 2 of them and we are never to receive another. :biglaugh: I just know that I absolutely love the sound of them and they are a bucket list amp for me.

I have no experience with a tweed bandmaster, though.

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Originally Posted by DanTheBluesMan

I haven't seen any low power tweed twin reissues for sale in a dog's age. I think NH got allocated 2 of them and we are never to receive another. :biglaugh: I just know that I absolutely love the sound of them and they are a bucket list amp for me.

I have no experience with a tweed bandmaster, though.

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this is the twin I’m thinking about getting

Fender '57 Custom Twin 40W
2×12 Tube Guitar Amp lacquer tweed

The Tweed Twin develops a bit more power than the Bandmaster (40 watts vs 28 watts) and its pair of 12-inch drivers will likely deliver a punchier bottom end than the BM's three tens. Controls and inputs are similiar. Both are excellent amps though I would shop for replacement speakers in either case.

Which one is better depends on how you use them. Even the low power Twin really needs to be pretty loud to sound good IMHO. The Bandmaster is will be loud too but you can still coax it into the sweet spot at a fairly reasonable volume.

So, if you're playing bigger venues say, over 200 with in-ears get the Bandmaster and go for it. If it's for home use either is too much and you may want to look at a Princeton or Champ, maybe a DR if you live where you can make some noise. A baffled DR or Bandmaster can make some nice music in a medium or larger club setting, and the baffle can be removed for bigger events.


Chuck

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Originally Posted by Offshore Angler

Which one is better depends on how you use them. Even the low power Twin really needs to be pretty loud to sound good IMHO. The Bandmaster is will be loud too but you can still coax it into the sweet spot at a fairly reasonable volume.

So, if you're playing bigger venues say, over 200 with in-ears get the Bandmaster and go for it. If it's for home use either is too much and you may want to look at a Princeton or Champ, maybe a DR if you live where you can make some noise. A baffled DR or Bandmaster can make some nice music in a medium or larger club setting, and the baffle can be removed for bigger events.


Chuck

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thank you for the response Chuck. How are they different though tonally? Like for example is the Tweed twin brighter sounding? Which one has more overdrive when cranked? Etc,, thanks

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Originally Posted by phantomman

The Tweed Twin develops a bit more power than the Bandmaster (40 watts vs 28 watts) and its pair of 12-inch drivers will likely deliver a punchier bottom end than the BM's three tens. Controls and inputs are similiar. Both are excellent amps though I would shop for replacement speakers in either case.

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thanks for the response! those are the little things I’m curious about. Do you know if the twin sounds similar to a Bluesbreaker Marshall because I’ve already got one of those?

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Originally Posted by RBrown

thanks for the response! those are the little things I’m curious about. Do you know if the twin sounds similar to a Bluesbreaker Marshall because I’ve already got one of those?

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The Twin *can* sound a skosh brighter than the Marshall due to the nuances of its tone stack and different speakers (IIRC the Bluesbreaker is equipped with Celestions). And IMO the Marshall's onset of OD and compression occurs later than the Fender's because its EL84 output tubes are a bit stouter than the Twin's 6L6GC/5881 bottles. Excellent amps both, though there are subtle sonic differences between them.

In either case if your goal is to crank the amp into overdrive just be forewarned they will be really loud. Again, it's all about the venue. One of the things most players agree on (a rare occurrence) with tube amps is that unless you want a lot of clean headroom such as with a Twin - a small one cranked generally sounds a lot better than an oversized one on a low setting.

The Bluesbreaker in my experience will have a more scooped mid sound. As far as the tube breakup - yeah, but it's really all the magic in the output transformer and how the speaker interacts with it that really gives an amp it's mojo to me. And that won' t happen at low volume settings. I'm generally not a fan of overdriven preamp sections. I feel you lose your cut and fullness that way. At one point I used Boogie DC10's but I never really made my peace with the whole overdriven preamp style amps. That was a long time ago and it might be interesting to revisit that style of amp now that I'm more seasoned player. That said, if you're into the blues and like an overdriven amp at club volumes a Boogie MkI is the sland. And I've also grown fond of Ampeg Jets for situations like that too. They have a unique smokey tone that is both Vox-like and Marshall-ish at the same time. A one-trick-pony but it's a pretty nice trick.

If you want to crank it at home or the local watering hole and have some real girth a Tiny Terror with a 12" closed-back can be a whole lot of fun too. I played a borrowed one at the Dinosaur one night and it put a real smile on my face.

Chuck

I’ll be using a Ox attenuator so volume shouldn’t be a issue

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Originally Posted by Offshore Angler

In either case if your goal is to crank the amp into overdrive just be forewarned they will be really loud. Again, it's all about the venue. One of the things most players agree on (a rare occurrence) with tube amps is that unless you want a lot of clean headroom such as with a Twin - a small one cranked generally sounds a lot better than an oversized one on a low setting.

The Bluesbreaker in my experience will have a more scooped mid sound. As far as the tube breakup - yeah, but it's really all the magic in the output transformer and how the speaker interacts with it that really gives an amp it's mojo to me. And that won' t happen at low volume settings. I'm generally not a fan of overdriven preamp sections. I feel you lose your cut and fullness that way. At one point I used Boogie DC10's but I never really made my peace with the whole overdriven preamp style amps. That was a long time ago and it might be interesting to revisit that style of amp now that I'm more seasoned player. That said, if you're into the blues and like an overdriven amp at club volumes a Boogie MkI is the sland. And I've also grown fond of Ampeg Jets for situations like that too. They have a unique smokey tone that is both Vox-like and Marshall-ish at the same time. A one-trick-pony but it's a pretty nice trick.

If you want to crank it at home or the local watering hole and have some real girth a Tiny Terror with a 12" closed-back can be a whole lot of fun too. I played a borrowed one at the Dinosaur one

night and it put a real smile on my face.

Chuck

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Have you taken a look at Victoria's line of tweed clones based on Leo's designs?

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Originally Posted by phantomman

Have you taken a look at Victoria's line of tweed clones based on Leo's designs?

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back in February there was a Victoria 35310 in my local GC, it was pretty sweet. I just wasn't going to spend the money yet. I kind of want something more Marshall-y to go with my 4x12.

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Originally Posted by phantomman

Have you taken a look at Victoria's line of tweed clones based on Leo's designs?

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I have not. I’ll look into them

Attenuators kill the vibe of the amp. No cone cry or breakup, or any of the other cool things that happens with the speaker. The speakers are the most important part of your signal chain. If you run an attenuator, you just killed the whole reason for having a tube amp, IMHO.

Seems to me if you buy an amp that needs an attenuator, you bought the wrong amp. Why not get something that works in the first place? It depends what the purpose of the amp is. If you just want it for a collection use the amp with an attenuator, but if you're buying it to play and sound good get one that does the job properly in the first place.

Chuck

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Originally Posted by Offshore Angler

One of the things most players agree on (a rare occurrence) with tube amps is that unless you want a lot of clean headroom such as with a Twin - a small one cranked generally sounds a lot better than an oversized one on a low setting.

Chuck

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True!

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Originally Posted by Offshore Angler

Attenuators kill the vibe of the amp. No cone cry or breakup, or any of the other cool things that happens with the speaker. The speakers are the most important part of your signal chain. If you run an attenuator, you just killed the whole reason for having a tube amp, IMHO.

Seems to me if you buy an amp that needs an attenuator, you bought the wrong amp. Why not get something that works in the first place? It depends what the purpose of the amp is. If you just want it for a collection use the amp with an attenuator, but if you're buying it to play and sound good get one that does the job properly in the first place.

Chuck

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I HATE cone cry!! Haha i’m mainly going to be using the twin to record. the ox have features where you can run it directly in to whatever software you’re using. when I go out and play live hopefully I can crank it up if not I’ll either use an overdrive pedal with it or take along the aux as well

There's no crime in using an OD pedal either for recording or live venues. I personally favor Fulltone's OCD.

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Originally Posted by phantomman

There's no crime in using an OD pedal either for recording or live venues. I personally favor Fulltone's OCD.

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I live in Nashville and was over at Carter Vintage yesterday and one of the salesman was saying that the Mosfit Fulltone overdrive works really great into twin tweeds! May have to check that out! 🤘

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Originally Posted by phantomman

There's no crime in using an OD pedal either for recording or live venues. I personally favor Fulltone's OCD.

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I love most everything Mike makes.

OCD is an amazing pedal.

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Originally Posted by Offshore Angler

OCD is an amazing pedal.

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there seems to be a LOT of different versions now. If you never played one, I suppose the latest, current version is probably sufficient, right?

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Originally Posted by DanTheBluesMan

there seems to be a LOT of different versions now. If you never played one, I suppose the latest, current version is probably sufficient, right?

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I've had a few OCDs over the years and my favorite has been a V2 that I bought a few years ago.

Mine is a V.2 as well but to tell the truth, my ears aren't sensitive enough to discern the difference between it and the later versions -- they all sound great to me. Just be sure to power it with the 18 VDC power supply.

I got the tweed twin yesterday and I’ve been messing with it all day. I really like the low to medium gain smooth overdrive I can get from it when I crank it to 12. It’s a nice rhythm tone. Now I need to find a good overdrive or boost pedal to step on for rock style leads if you have any suggestions? Nothing too over-the-top like a Bogner pedal but something that could get me in the Eric Johnson Joe Bonamassa ballpark. I guess a thicker rounder type boost pedal or overdrive. Thanks

You can jumper the channels for some interesting effects.

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Originally Posted by phantomman

You can jumper the channels for some interesting effects.

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Yeah I tried that! Pretty cool! 🤘😎

Sounds like you're on your way then.

:applaudit

If you're just looking for a little extra, you'd probably be looking for a boost or light overdrive, not a high-gain distortion.
Something in the Tube Screamer or Klon / Klone vein would likely work out for you.