Which amp to use with an Epi Hollowbody?

[J_Gordon]

What do you think is a great amp to use with an Epi hollowbody for a nice fat Wes or Charlie Christian tone?

I've got a stock Blues Jr. and a '81 Twin Reverb. Haven't tried either of 'em yet with my Joe Pass Epi. See, I live in an apartment so I would really have to turn up the amp so that I could really hear the sound coming through the amp instead of the immediate acoustic sound of the guitar. So far I have only played my Joe Pass unplugged at home. But I'm getting a blues/jazz combo together so I can't wait to hear how the Joe Pass will sound through one of my amps.

[Michael R]

Both amps should be fine... the Twin especially, I use a blues jr w/my hollowbodies (epi and others) sometimes and think the 'tone' is great (a peavey classic sounds pretty good too, but you do have to crank both up to get there imo), my favorite is a Black Cat rev30 then a TSL100... cranked 8) (but I like almost anyguitar through both of those, so thats just my preference).

I also use line 6 heads/amps and though alot of people slam them because they are solid state but they are very versatile and imo sound fine, especially out to a board, and for 'appartment practicing' (through headphones) I don't think you could beat a POD (or some of the other multieffect/sim boxes out there, but lately I can only comment on POD), they have a variety of decent tones/effects and are fun to tweak around with to boot.

I would say you already have what you need though (those 2 amps can cover alot of ground), find a place where you can crank em up and if you are happy then maybe start working on a home rig for practicing with headphones/lower volume.

Have fun !

[Michael R]

PS- Try posting this on the TDPRI Amp forum, alot more people (very good ones at that) post there, cuz after reading my response, though I typed alot I didn't really say much to address your post... sure you will get much more insightful replies there.

[jazzer]

I play my Epi Joe Pass /fitted with Gibson PAF 57 plus at neck position/ through Fender Red Knob Twin. I found that is suitable for nice clean jazz tone.

[KingPussBlues]

I have a Crate V-Series 5112VFX... sounds great with my Casino

John 8)

[G-Man54]

I had a Fender Ultimate Chorus that I considered my 'jazz' amp, but one day while checking out an inexpensive asian-made hollowbody, I plugged into the nearest amp that had a cord near it and was amazed at what I heard... the amp was a Fender '59 Bassman Reissue and 2 days later I bought one... I realized that despite the advantages of quieter solid-state amps for jazz applications, the legendary jazzers of the past really only had tube amps to play through and if it was good enough for Charlie Christian and Johnny Smith, it'd probably work for this living-room Jazz/Rock/Alterna/Folk/Blues guy...

I have 'dirty' power in my 80 year old home, but the Bassman RI is suitably quiet. Although devoid of 'modern' effects, it has a very sweet presence and natural sounding sustain that works very well with hollow/semi-hollow guitars...

my .02,
G-Man54

[DotsRus]

Play my Dot through a Blues Jr sounds great!
Rob

[guitar4him]

This picture says it all.....

http://bigbikeriders.com/photopost/data/500/4612Dot_Palomino.jpg

[cantom]

I use a Fender Blues Deluxe and a Blues Junior for all of my guitars (Sheraton. Joe Pass, Gold Top Reissue, Special, Strat, and Tele).
For a real fat sound I play the Joe Pass and Sheraton through a Peavey 410 Classic.
I did an outdoor jazz gig two weeks ago and I found that the Blues Deluxe really projected over the horn section (Not the beeping car horns.....)

[Wally]

I spent soem of my vacation listening to CC with the Goodman band while driving. Imho, CC's sound was a result of an old Gibson pickup through an old Gibson amp. While I was gonig down the road, I was thinking that my old Gibson BR-4 amp was as close as I have ever heard to that sound. I think that this is one reason why G-man 54 was surprised with the Bassman RI. That amp is actually a big step toward out modern amps, but it still has considerable preamp gain compared to a TR. The Blues Deville's/Deluxes also carry this preamp gain thing.
This said, the old Gibson amps do a certain thing that I have never heard from a Tweed Fender...or any other amp, for that matter. And...the older the amp, the more differentiated the sonics from other amps. If I were looking for that CC sound, I would have to play a very old Gbison....early '50's on back.

[J45]

I love the sound of a Casino through a BF Deluxe reverb. Turn it up with a touch of reverb.

I like them through a Vox but like the Fender tube sound best.

[DanO]

I use a Fender Deluxe...and mine sound great thru this amp
Dan

[charliechitlins]

Everything sounds good through a tweed deluxe.
For my money, it's the ultimate amp.
Anyone who thinks they're all about dirt, hasn't fully explored one.
They get clean toned to die for.
Also...pay attention to Wally.
He's been around the block enough times to dig a furrow, and he's serious about tone.
I have absolutely zero experience with Gibson amps.
I hope to rectify (!) that situation someday.