Review of The Fender Champ
Arguably the Best Recording Amp of All Time
Why do I say that the Fender Champ is one of the best recording amps of all time? Let’s jump into our full review of the Fender Champ and take a look at the Champ’s resume!
The Fender Champ was championed (see what I did there) by Eric Clapton when Eric & the Dominoes recorded Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs. Clapton’s Champ was featured on Layla, Bell Bottom Blues, I Shot the Sheriff, etc.
Next, if you haven’t heard of Laur Joamets, go look him up. He was Sturgill Simpson’s lead guitarist when Sturgill released his first three records, and what did Laur use to in the studio on these records? A Champ!
Joe Walsh has been quoted saying he uses the Champ. Joe Perry’s used ’em. Slash has used ’em. Greg Allman apparently used it on the Layla and Assorted Love Songs album too. If you are just hearing about the Champ, go find one! Seriously. It’s got some of the best tone you’re going to hear!
A Quick (And I Mean Quick) History
There are a bunch of different Cjamp models with varying circuits. The ones I’m talking about in today’s review are Champs from 1982 and earlier. It was originally introduced in 1948 as the Champion 800; however, the quintessential Champs are the tweed amps that Fender made from 1956 until 1964. As sweet as it would be to a demo of those for you, today’s review is going to feature a 70’s model. I used Guitar Insight to help date the amp, and I believe this is a 1972 or 1973. It features Fender’s F51 circuit. The chassis number is pictured below. If you know of a better way to date these amplifiers, let me know in the comments! I would love to figure out the exact date of this amp.
Is 5W Loud Enough?
The Fender Champ is a small but mighty amp. It is perfect for practicing in your bedroom, If you’re worried about specs like 5W and 8″ speaker, don’t be. If you’re playing in your bedroom, this thing can get loud. I mean really loud! To illustrate what I mean by loud, when I recorded the clips I got nervous about my neighbors when the Champ’s volume was turned up to 6.5.
To help muffle the sound, I grabbed the duvet off my bed and covered the amp. Still too loud…
I grabbed the pillows off my bed and stacked them around the amp. Still too loud…
Then I grabbed a couch cushion and a blanket. The bass was still coming through and shaking the floorboards pretty good, but I thought, “Good enough! ” I was wrong. My condo’s rent-a-security-guards knocked on my door and politely asked me to stop all the raucous. Damn. No love for rock n roll here.
For small venues where you’re only using a microphone with a single speaker, it does just fine. If you get into to larger venues where the amps will need to be mic’d, then the little Champ will not cut it and it’s time to look at a Princeton Reverb or a Deluxe Reverb. Or depending on how big your band is, a Twin Reverb!
How Does it Sound?
The Fender Champ sounds pretty amazing. To highlight the quality of the tone, I’m going to provide a few sound bites using different guitars and let you decide which sounds you like best. We’re going to start out with Fender guitars and listen to the Fender Robert Cray Standard Stratocaster and the Fender Classic Player Baja 60’s Telecaster. Then I’m going to dive into the Gibson sound and demo a Gibson CS 336 Reissue and an Epiphone Dot Deluxe VS. Finally, we will wrap up this post by listening to two Gretsch models, the G2655T Streamliner and the G3140 Historic Series. This should give you an idea of what the amplifier sounds like with some popular guitar manufacturers.
Also, I’m going to play just a couple of the pickups on each guitar so you can get the flavor of each on clean and crunch tones. If you would like to hear more of one guitar or another, feel free to click the links and check out our reviews of the instruments! Each review was recorded on the Champ, so it’s the perfect way to sample this amplifier.
The Champ & Fender Guitars
Starting with the Fender Robert Cray Standard Stratocaster, the Champ instantly delivers the classic, sparkling spank and quack of a Strat. The hardtail bridge on this particular guitar fattens up the sound, and the Champ does a beautiful job of capturing the essence of a Stratocaster.
The Champ excels at making a Telecaster shine, especially the Fender Classic Player Baja 60’s Telecaster. I love the neck and bridge pickups through this amp. The bridge has some serious bite and twang, and the neck pickup is so warm and woody that you melt into the guitar. Nothing like the Champ’s simple circuitry to help you get lost in the sound.
The Champ with Gibson & Epiphone
The Gibson CS 336 is one of my favorite guitars, and the Champ highlights the warmness of the shorter Gibson scale. As you start playing, you’re going to be reminded of John Fogerty’s Creedence sounds, and as you turn up, the Champ breaks up nicely. Your head will fill with classic rock riffs. The champ will inspire you and spark your imagination.
Next, the Epiphone Dot Deluxe VS is a full-body Gibson style guitar. I’ve played the same licks for these recordings so you can hear the difference between the two guitars, but the Champ can get some amazing jazz and early rock n roll tones. It’s inspiring to have an amplifier that brings you back to the days of early rock n roll.
The Champ & Gretsch Guitars
The Gretsch G2655T Streamliner is a fantastic budget guitar and combined with the Champ, it’s so much fun to play! The Champ helps you capture those rock-a-billy tones and reminds you of that Chet Atkins sound. Crank up the volume on the Champ, and now you can experience what Malcolm Young heard when playing those classic AC/DC riffs. Yes, he played with Marshall’s, but the Champ does a great job giving you that crunchy tone!
The G3140 Historic Series is one of Gretsch’s finest achievements, and it’s a shame they were not able to run these guitars for longer. The Champ makes the DeArmond pickups in this guitar come to life. You’ll notice that the G3140 is a bit smoother and brighter than the G2655T. What I love about this comparison is the Champ is sensitive and musical enough to bring out the suttle differences between these two Gretsch models
The Wrap Up
All in all, the Champ is an absolutely legendary amplifier and is prized by guitarists for their great tone, especially when recorded in a studio. The blackface and silverface models seem to run anywhere from $600 to $1,200 depending on the year and condition of the amp. Here at The Smelly Tele, it is the amplifier of choice for our reviews because of it’s simple circuitry and how well it articulates each guitar’s features.
Through a budget amplifier, a lot of guitars will sound similar. The Champ is able to bring each guitar’s subtleties to the surface and articulates what makes each guitar unique. It’s a very musical amplifier and is perfect for recording in the studio or jamming at home. I hope that more guitarists catch on to the purity of the Champ’s sound. It would be great to see Fender rerelease these again and get them into more young player’s hands. I find that bad gear can be really discouraging to new and experienced guitarists, so getting more Champs on the market would be fantastic for guitar players.
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