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Fender Super Champ XD Vintage Modified Guitar Combo Amplifier (15 Watts, 1x10 In.)

The Super-Champ XD amplifier takes the vintage formula into a new era by combining a real tube amp with up-to-date “extras” like versatile amp voicing and quality DSP effects. Learn More...

    • New $299.95
    • free ground shipping
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Overall User Ratings

Overall:
* * * * * * * . . . 7 out of 10
Features:
* * * * * * * * * . 9 out of 10
Quality:
* * * * * * * * . . 8 out of 10
Value:
* * * * * * * * * * 10 out of 10
I Want It:
* * * * * * * * * . 9 out of 10
Sound:
* * * * * * * * * . 9 out of 10
Ease of Use:
* * * * * * * * * * 10 out of 10
Support:
* * * * * * * . . . 7 out of 10

Individual User Ratings

Overall:
* * * * * * * * * * 10 out of 10
Features:
* * * * * * * * * * 10 out of 10
Quality:
* * * * * * * * . . 8 out of 10
Value:
* * * * * * * * * * 10 out of 10
I Want It:
* * * * * * * * * * 10 out of 10
Sound:
* * * * * * * * * * 10 out of 10
Ease of Use:
* * * * * * * * * * 10 out of 10
Support:
* * * * * . . . . . 5 out of 10

Feature:
if you hate pedal wire muck and only use effects sparingly then the dsp effects are cool. They are presets but have varying settings. If they were footswitchable they would be more useful. The manual says they are but you might need the specific footswitch for that. the line out I havent tried yet but it seems like the way to go if this is all you have and you have to play a big place or record. The speaker out is accesible so you can unplug the internal speaker and connect a cab that isnt lower than 8 ohms. I tried it with a closed back carvin 2x12 with carvin g70 speakers. Once again it brought the amp to life, much louder, more responsive lows and everything I love about tube amps. But the reason I bought this amp was so I wouldnt have to lug the cab around. Thats why you'll want to change the speaker.

Quality:
This one I only give an 8 because the grill. If you have an unruly kid or dog they could poke through it easily and ruin the speaker. The fit and finish of mine was immaculate. The cheap speaker reflects the cost so that was ok. The back panels on the amp are seriously thin, like pop-tart thin, but all should be ok if your careful. I plan on changing the red light for giggles one day.

Value:
This should be anyones first amp if its within their budget. It has enough sounds to help a beginner find a tone they are comfy with so they can focus on practicing. Its tone and versatility make it a lifetime investment. At this price I would replace it immediately if it broke after warranty.

Desirability:
I wanted a combo that was loud enough to keep up with a hooligan drummer(Bonzo and Bill Ward) and a line6 lowdown 1x12 which is what my bass player uses(if you've ever heard one you know they are pretty loud for their size) and this works but barely without the speaker change and the boss superoverdrive. As is it was hardly loud enough on clean channel with it maxed. And channel 2 was only a little better. After the speaker swap and the overdrive pedal,however, my bass player was turning up his amp. That was a first.

Sound:
the sound of this amp was good out of the box. But once I swapped in a celestion tube 10 speaker it truly came to life. Ive only played (obsessively) for 3 years and Ive only heard 3 tube amps (carvin mts 2x12,vintage marshall 100watt thru 1960a cab, and epi. valve junior head thru marshall 1x10 with celestion tube 10,the latter of the 3 the only one Ive played through) in my life, so I dont know jack about jack but I know a beginner would be better of saving the bones to get this amp over any other solid state beginner amp, because if you have an overdrive or clean boost pedal you will be able to jam or possibly handle small gigs with it. I swapped in the celestion because the fender speaker farts at bassy high volumes and turns muddy. A few changes and the amp's a keeper, tube change will be next.

Ease of Use:
any one who can play a chord can work this amp, I cant get into much here because if your considering buying it pat yourself on the back. If you cant figure this amp out then seek help(with the amp or with your self). Seriously though, I sorted through the effects and amp voices in one day.

Support:
who knows? I hope I never have to find out. I just filled out the card for warranty and mailed it in.

Overall:
This is all I need for now. I will be replacing the fender 12ax7 with a groove tubes or tungsol and the power tubes with the same brand. Possibly the light. And this will hopefully be my main amp for many years to come.

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Overall:
* * * * * * * * * . 9 out of 10
Features:
* * * * * * * * . . 8 out of 10
Quality:
* * * * * * * * * * 10 out of 10
Value:
* * * * * * * * * * 10 out of 10
I Want It:
* * * * * * * * . . 8 out of 10
Sound:
* * * * * * * * * * 10 out of 10
Ease of Use:
* * * * * * * * * . 9 out of 10
Support:
* * * * * * * * * . 9 out of 10

Feature:
Nice throw in feature. My only suggestion would be an independant reverb.

Quality:
At this price point- NO ISSUES !

Value:
I'll be picking up another one soon.

Sound:
Killer Strat tone. Pre-amp selections offer a wide variety of the real deal.

Ease of Use:
It took all of about 2 minutes to tweak the sound I was after.

Overall:
For recording, jamming and small venue gigs, I have found THE amp.

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Overall:
* * * * * * * * . . 8 out of 10
Features:
* * * * * * * * . . 8 out of 10
Quality:
* * * * * * * . . . 7 out of 10
Value:
* * * * * * * * * . 9 out of 10
I Want It:
* * * * * * * * . . 8 out of 10
Sound:
* * * * * * * . . . 7 out of 10
Ease of Use:
* * * * * * * * * * 10 out of 10

Feature:
At $300, with a tube amp you're not expecting any fancy features. Surprisingly, the Super Champ XD has a decent list of features. Though limited in scope, the effects sound quite good. The amp also has a line out jack.

Quality:
Very cleanly assembled. Buy hey; it's cheap amp, so I'm not comparing the fit and finish to something costing 8 or 10 times as much. I think that such an amp is too inexpensively constructed to be expected to survive the rigors of the road. It's a practice/home recording amp.

Value:
Pretty tough to beat at the price.

Desirability:
Anything this cool for this price is definitely worth checking out.

Sound:
I was skeptical as to whether a $300 tube amp could be any good. I've owned lots of great tube amps, '69 plexi Super Lead, '62 Fender Bassman, '73 Super Reverb, JCM800 2203, Suhr Badger and many others. My other fave cheapie Fender is an early '90s tweed Pro Junior, which was also around $300 when I bought it. I went to the local music store to try out the Super Champ XD, plugged in a Telecaster, and I was floored at what a great sounding amp it was - especially at that price point. I immediately bought that amp and ordered a second for my brother. It's an ideal practice amp if you're into more of an old-school Fender sound. The preamp digitally models Fender tweed and blackface tone very convincingly. I guess Fender should know better than anyone how their amps are supposed to sound. As far as the other Voicings (channel 2) go, well, they're good but not excellent. Buy it for the Fender sounds. The effects are relatively few, but they all sound good. I really like the "slap" (short) delay and the tremolo effects. Another reviewer said that the amp's clean channel reminds him of a blackface Princeton. Couldn't agree more; I owned a '64 Princeton. This amp definitely gets you in the general ballpark of the Princeton clean tone. The stock speaker sounds quite good; but I'd probably upgrade before recording with this amp. It would be fine as is for gigs. And it sounds really impressive through a decent extension speaker cabinet. I was amazed at how much more punch and detail I got with the amp plugged in to a closed cabinet with a Celestion Vintage 30 12" speaker.

Ease of Use:
Getting a good tone with this amp is a no-brainer due to the simplicty of the amp's design concept. It's best to avoid extreme settings, though. The manual itself reminds users that particular settings work best with particular types of guitars, and that volume levels are vastly different from one voicing to the next in some cases. The manual is easy to read, but you could figure this amp out in a few minutes even without it.

Overall:
It was the fact that Fender had issued another $300 tube amp (I have a PJ) that inclined me to check this one out. At this price and with this much flexibility I'll probably hold onto it for a good while.

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Overall:
* * * * * * * * * . 9 out of 10
Features:
* * * * * * * * . . 8 out of 10
Quality:
* * * * * * * . . . 7 out of 10
Value:
* * * * * * * * * * 10 out of 10
I Want It:
* * * * * * * * * * 10 out of 10
Sound:
* * * * * * * * * . 9 out of 10
Ease of Use:
* * * * * * * * * * 10 out of 10
Support:
* * * * * * * * . . 8 out of 10

Feature:
Great combination of features but Fender cuts corners in the effects department. All effects are presets whose parameters can't be adjusted. Even the cheapest VOX Valvetronix lets you adjust every effect setting. Point off for that, otherwise an amazing amp for the money.

Quality:
Chinese PCB manufacturing scares me, but Fender has a good reputation. Time will tell how reliable this thing is.

Value:
Excellent value! Buy one!

Desirability:
Great sex appeal. I bought it after 10 minutes of running through the presets.

Sound:
Amazing variety of tones. All very good. This amp shines when plugged into an external cab. Try a Celestion loaded 1x12 and you'll be impressed! I bought it for session work. Very convenient to have a good sounding tube amo with a variety of amp models. Sounds far better than the new Line6 Spidervalve tube modeling amps. They sound like they have a blanket over them!

Ease of Use:
Couldn't be easier. No manual needed. No menus or screens, just turn the knobs and listen!

Support:
Fender is a sales organization first and foremost. If you're persistant, you'll get service.

Overall:
Great for what it is.

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