Fender Champ
Encyclopedia
The Fender Champ was a guitar amplifier
made by Fender. It was introduced in 1948 and discontinued in 1982. An updated version was introduced in 2006 as part of the "Vintage Modified" line.
The Champ had the lowest power output and the simplest circuit for all of the Fender tube amps. The Champ had only one power tube, which meant that the circuit is single-ended
and class A. Five watt
s and the simple toneful circuit allowed the Champ to be used easily and often in recording studios.
dual triode in the preamplifier to provide two stages of voltage amplification, and a single 6V6GT power tube to produce about 5 watts. A Champ from this era can easily be dated by the code stamped on the tube chart, by the code stamped on the speaker or by its serial number.
tube. The current look is the TV-front with two-tone tolex and speaker grille cloth of imitation suede. The same electronics are available with a different look and feel - based on "tweed" Fender amps, despite the branding - as the Gretsch
G5222.
Made in China
made by Fender. It was first introduced in 1964 and discontinued in 1982. The Vibro Champ featured built-in tremolo with controls for speed and intensity. The silverface version served as a basis for the Bronco
student amplifier of 1967.
(DSP) that functions as a pre-amp by modelling 16 different amplifiers. The effect of the volume, gain and tone control knobs varies according to the selected amp model. The digitally modelled signal is fed into a class-A single-ended tube circuit, with a 12AX7
output tube driver, and a 6V6 output tube. The amp also comes equipped with DSP effects, including reverb, delay, chorus, tremolo, and Vibratone (there is no spring reverb tank).
Amplification fame) and ask him to help design amplifiers with a modern sound. Even though he did not personally create the new designs his direction of the engineering team, headed by Mark Wentling, resulted in some legendary amps. The result included the Super Champ, featuring a 10" speaker and new circuitry, including spring reverb, master volume, a switchable extra gain stage for a 'lead' effect, and a mid boost switch. In order to increase gain and cut costs, the Super Champ utilized 1x 12AX7 for the first and second stage preamp, a 1x 12AT7 for spring reverb driver tube, while a triple-triode 6C10 is used for three functions; one as a third stage preamp for even more gain, one as the phase inverter (instead of two for most class-AB circuits), and one as recovery for the spring reverb. When the volume knob is pulled, some signal from the 12AT7 reverb driver is re-routed, resulting in higher gain. An optional two-button footswitch allowed for gain switching and reverb on/off. Two 6V6 power tubes provide it with 18 RMS watts. The cabinet was finished in black Tolex, with a black control panel and silver grille cloth. A more expensive version was available, factory-fitted with a Fender-branded EV Force 10 speaker instead of the usual Fender Blue Label. The Super Champ was sold until 1986.
(DSP) which models 16 different amplifiers and programs the volume, gain, and tone controls accordingly.
It has two channels, channel 1 being a clean channel, and channel 2 having both clean and distortion voices, using modeling technology to provide 15 additional voices. Both the Bass/Treble EQ and Effects (FX) are global settings meaning they affect the sound of both channel 1 and channel 2.
There are two stages of amplification: the first stage is done by solid-state op amps and the DSP, which also provide the desired voicing of the amps. It is then fed into the first triode of the 12AX7, which acts as a second stage preamp, provides the additional tube gain for both channels and acts as an interface between the solid state circuitry and the tube circuitry. The second triode is a phase inverter, which creates mirror images of the signal to drive the output tubes. This arrangement provides the same feel of a complete tube amp while allowing multiple voicing. The DSP chip also provides effects, including reverb, delay, chorus, and tremolo. There is no spring reverb tank.
Guitar amplifier
A guitar amplifier is an electronic amplifier designed to make the signal of an electric or acoustic guitar louder so that it will produce sound through a loudspeaker...
made by Fender. It was introduced in 1948 and discontinued in 1982. An updated version was introduced in 2006 as part of the "Vintage Modified" line.
The Champ had the lowest power output and the simplest circuit for all of the Fender tube amps. The Champ had only one power tube, which meant that the circuit is single-ended
Single-ended signalling
Single-ended signaling is the simplest and most commonly used method of transmitting electrical signals over wires. One wire carries a varying voltage that represents the signal, while the other wire is connected to a reference voltage, usually ground....
and class A. Five watt
Watt
The watt is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units , named after the Scottish engineer James Watt . The unit, defined as one joule per second, measures the rate of energy conversion.-Definition:...
s and the simple toneful circuit allowed the Champ to be used easily and often in recording studios.
Champion 800/600
First introduced in 1948, it sported the name "Champion 800" (with 8" speaker), changing a year later to "Champion 600" (6" speaker) with circuit designation 5B1. It was rated at about 3 watts, featuring a "T.V. Front" style cabinet with two-tone blonde and brown vinyl covering. This style lasted until 1953, when Fender's cabinet style changed to the "Wide Panel" design with a tweed cloth covering. Fender also renamed the circuit the "5C1", "5" standing for the decade (1950s), "C" for the third circuit revision, and "1" was the Champ's circuit designation. The 5C1 circuit was extraordinarily simple, using one 6SJ7 pentode in the preamplifier section to provide a single stage of voltage amplification, one 6V6 beam power tetrode in the power amplifier section, and a single volume knob and no tone controls.The Champ
By 1955 Fender started putting its amps in the "Narrow Panel" tweed cabinet with a plastic oxblood color grill cloth, and by this time the Champ was officially named the Champ (model 5E1). Through 1957, Champs only had a six inch speaker, but the 1958 model 5F1 featured an 8". The 5E1 and 5F1 circuits used a 12AX712AX7
12AX7 is a miniature dual triode vacuum tube with high voltage gain. It was developed around 1946 by RCA engineers in Harrison, New Jersey, under developmental number A-4522. It was released for public sale under the 12AX7 identifier on September 15, 1947. The 12AX7 was originally intended as...
dual triode in the preamplifier to provide two stages of voltage amplification, and a single 6V6GT power tube to produce about 5 watts. A Champ from this era can easily be dated by the code stamped on the tube chart, by the code stamped on the speaker or by its serial number.
Blackface/Silverface
The 5F1 lasted until 1964, when the Champ finally made the transition to the "Blackface" style of circuit and cabinet. A small number of the last 5F1 style cabinets were covered with the "Blackface" amp cosmetics around this transition, as the factory most likely ran out of the tweed cloth covering. In 1964, a Champ with tremolo was also introduced. It was called the Vibro Champ. The Champ switched to Blackface and Silverface four years later. Fender brought back the blackface cosmetics for a short time in 1981 before discontinuing the Champ the following year.Champion 600 reissue
In 2006, Fender "reissued" the Champion 600. Cosmetically similar to the original Champion 600, internally it features a modified blackface Champ circuit (with the settings of the tone-stack being hard-wired rather than adjustable via Treble and Bass controls, and a couple of additional resistors reducing input-stage gain) and a switch to solid-state rectification from the original 5Y35Y3
The 5Y3 is a medium-power directly heated rectifier vacuum tube introduced by RCA in 1935. It has found wide use in tube radios and early guitar amplifiers It is virtually identical, electrically, to the four-pin type 80 tube, but with an octal base.The success of the 80 and 5Y3 led to the...
tube. The current look is the TV-front with two-tone tolex and speaker grille cloth of imitation suede. The same electronics are available with a different look and feel - based on "tweed" Fender amps, despite the branding - as the Gretsch
Gretsch
The Gretsch Company was founded in 1883 by Friedrich Gretsch, a twenty-seven year old German immigrant recently arrived in the US. Friedrich Gretsch manufactured banjos, tambourines, and drums, until his death in 1895. His son, Fred, moved operations to Brooklyn, New York in 1916...
G5222.
Specifications
- Available as a 6" Combo, features an internal 4 ohm speaker output jack
- 5 Watts RMS
- Volume Control
- Power Switch
- 2 Input (high, low), 1 Channel
- 1x 12AX712AX712AX7 is a miniature dual triode vacuum tube with high voltage gain. It was developed around 1946 by RCA engineers in Harrison, New Jersey, under developmental number A-4522. It was released for public sale under the 12AX7 identifier on September 15, 1947. The 12AX7 was originally intended as...
and a 6V66V6The 6V6 is a beam-power tetrode, introduced by Radio Corporation of America RCA United States in late 1937, and still in use in niche applications.Similar to its predecessor the 6L6, the 6V6 was far more widely used... - Solid State Diode Rectified
- Class A, Single Ended
Made in China
Vibro Champ
The Fender Vibro Champ was a guitar amplifierGuitar amplifier
A guitar amplifier is an electronic amplifier designed to make the signal of an electric or acoustic guitar louder so that it will produce sound through a loudspeaker...
made by Fender. It was first introduced in 1964 and discontinued in 1982. The Vibro Champ featured built-in tremolo with controls for speed and intensity. The silverface version served as a basis for the Bronco
Fender Bronco Amp
For the guitar see, Fender BroncoThe Fender Bronco was a guitar amplifier made by Fender. It was the first silverfaced amplifier introduced in 1967 to sport the modern-looking "tailless" Fender amp decal, which became a standard feature on other Fender amplifiers in the early 1970s. The Bronco was...
student amplifier of 1967.
Vibro Champ XD
In 2007, Fender reintroduced the Vibro Champ as the Vibro Champ XD, part of their "Vintage Modified" series. Aesthetically, the XD is based on the Champ from the blackface era. Unlike the Champion 600, which has a straightly all-tube audio signal path, the Vibro Champ XD's tube circuitry is complemented by a digital signal processorDigital signal processor
A digital signal processor is a specialized microprocessor with an architecture optimized for the fast operational needs of digital signal processing.-Typical characteristics:...
(DSP) that functions as a pre-amp by modelling 16 different amplifiers. The effect of the volume, gain and tone control knobs varies according to the selected amp model. The digitally modelled signal is fed into a class-A single-ended tube circuit, with a 12AX7
12AX7
12AX7 is a miniature dual triode vacuum tube with high voltage gain. It was developed around 1946 by RCA engineers in Harrison, New Jersey, under developmental number A-4522. It was released for public sale under the 12AX7 identifier on September 15, 1947. The 12AX7 was originally intended as...
output tube driver, and a 6V6 output tube. The amp also comes equipped with DSP effects, including reverb, delay, chorus, tremolo, and Vibratone (there is no spring reverb tank).
Specifications
- Available as a 8" Combo, 4ohm output
- 5 Watts RMS Class A, Single Ended
- Controls: Volume, Voicing, Treble, Bass, FX level, FX select
- 1 Input, 1 Channel
- 1x Sovtek 12AX7 and 6V6
- Solid State Diode Rectified
- DSP provides 16 effects, including chorus, delay, tremolo, reverb, and Vibratone
- Made in China
Super Champ
In 1982, in order to combat its decreasing amp sales, which at that time was around 10,000 units per year, Fender hired Paul Rivera (of RiveraRivera
Rivera is the capital of Rivera Department of Uruguay. It is located at the north end of Route 5, on the border with Brazil. The Brazilian city of Santana do Livramento is right across the border, only a street away of it...
Amplification fame) and ask him to help design amplifiers with a modern sound. Even though he did not personally create the new designs his direction of the engineering team, headed by Mark Wentling, resulted in some legendary amps. The result included the Super Champ, featuring a 10" speaker and new circuitry, including spring reverb, master volume, a switchable extra gain stage for a 'lead' effect, and a mid boost switch. In order to increase gain and cut costs, the Super Champ utilized 1x 12AX7 for the first and second stage preamp, a 1x 12AT7 for spring reverb driver tube, while a triple-triode 6C10 is used for three functions; one as a third stage preamp for even more gain, one as the phase inverter (instead of two for most class-AB circuits), and one as recovery for the spring reverb. When the volume knob is pulled, some signal from the 12AT7 reverb driver is re-routed, resulting in higher gain. An optional two-button footswitch allowed for gain switching and reverb on/off. Two 6V6 power tubes provide it with 18 RMS watts. The cabinet was finished in black Tolex, with a black control panel and silver grille cloth. A more expensive version was available, factory-fitted with a Fender-branded EV Force 10 speaker instead of the usual Fender Blue Label. The Super Champ was sold until 1986.
Specifications
- Available as a 10" Combo, features an internal 8 ohm speaker; some with output jack, some hardwired
- 18 Watts RMS
- Controls: Volume (pull for lead), treble (pull for mid boost), bass, reverb, lead level, master.
- 1 Input, 2 Channel (Clean with Reverb; overdrive with no reverb)
- 1x 702512AX712AX7 is a miniature dual triode vacuum tube with high voltage gain. It was developed around 1946 by RCA engineers in Harrison, New Jersey, under developmental number A-4522. It was released for public sale under the 12AX7 identifier on September 15, 1947. The 12AX7 was originally intended as...
, 1x 12AT712AT712AT7 is a miniature 9-pin medium-gain dual triode vacuum tube popular in guitar amplifiers. It belongs to a large family of dual triode vacuum tubes which share the same pinout and of which 12AX7 is the most prolific type....
, 1x 6C10 Triple triode and 2x 6V66V6The 6V6 is a beam-power tetrode, introduced by Radio Corporation of America RCA United States in late 1937, and still in use in niche applications.Similar to its predecessor the 6L6, the 6V6 was far more widely used... - Solid State Diode Rectified
- Accutronics 3-spring reverb
- Class AB, push pull
Champ II
Introduced along with the Super Champ described above, the Champ II was the most basic of the tube amps in the "Rivera-era" range of Fenders, having no reverb or extra gain switching. It was discontinued in 1983, along with the Bassman 20 (with which it shared the same metal chassis design), three years before the rest of the range, perhaps because its dearth of features was unfashionable at the time. It had the same colour scheme, power supply, output stage and stock speaker as the Super Champ but the preamp and phase inverter consisted of two 12AX7 tubes.Specifications
- Available as a 10" Combo, features an internal 8 ohm speaker output jack
- 18 Watts RMS
- Controls: Volume, treble (pull for mid boost), bass, master.
- 1 Input
- 2x 702512AX712AX7 is a miniature dual triode vacuum tube with high voltage gain. It was developed around 1946 by RCA engineers in Harrison, New Jersey, under developmental number A-4522. It was released for public sale under the 12AX7 identifier on September 15, 1947. The 12AX7 was originally intended as...
, 2x 6V66V6The 6V6 is a beam-power tetrode, introduced by Radio Corporation of America RCA United States in late 1937, and still in use in niche applications.Similar to its predecessor the 6L6, the 6V6 was far more widely used... - Solid State Diode Rectified
- Class AB, push pull
Super Champ XD
In 2007, Fender resurrected the Super Champ name with the Super Champ XD, part of "Vintage modified" series. The look is based on the blackface model. Although for a limited period of time a special addition Blonde version was produced that was hard to find and no longer available. In fact Fenders official web page never listed the Blonde amp as even being available. Unlike the Champion 600 (all tube circuitry) and Vibro Champ XD (class A circuitry complemented with modeling), the Super Champ XD is a hybrid. Aside from one dual-triode 12AX7 and two 6V6 output tubes, it also has a digital signal processorDigital signal processor
A digital signal processor is a specialized microprocessor with an architecture optimized for the fast operational needs of digital signal processing.-Typical characteristics:...
(DSP) which models 16 different amplifiers and programs the volume, gain, and tone controls accordingly.
It has two channels, channel 1 being a clean channel, and channel 2 having both clean and distortion voices, using modeling technology to provide 15 additional voices. Both the Bass/Treble EQ and Effects (FX) are global settings meaning they affect the sound of both channel 1 and channel 2.
There are two stages of amplification: the first stage is done by solid-state op amps and the DSP, which also provide the desired voicing of the amps. It is then fed into the first triode of the 12AX7, which acts as a second stage preamp, provides the additional tube gain for both channels and acts as an interface between the solid state circuitry and the tube circuitry. The second triode is a phase inverter, which creates mirror images of the signal to drive the output tubes. This arrangement provides the same feel of a complete tube amp while allowing multiple voicing. The DSP chip also provides effects, including reverb, delay, chorus, and tremolo. There is no spring reverb tank.
Specifications
- Available as a 10" Combo, features an internal 8 ohm speaker output jack
- 15 Watts RMS
- Controls: Volume 1, channel select, gain, Volume 2, Voicing, Treble, Bass, FX level, FX select
- 1 Input, 2 Channel (Clean and voicing)
- 1x 12AX712AX712AX7 is a miniature dual triode vacuum tube with high voltage gain. It was developed around 1946 by RCA engineers in Harrison, New Jersey, under developmental number A-4522. It was released for public sale under the 12AX7 identifier on September 15, 1947. The 12AX7 was originally intended as...
and 2x 6V66V6The 6V6 is a beam-power tetrode, introduced by Radio Corporation of America RCA United States in late 1937, and still in use in niche applications.Similar to its predecessor the 6L6, the 6V6 was far more widely used... - Solid State Diode Rectified
- Class AB, push pull
Models
- Champion "800" (1948–1949) - First version of the Champ.
- Champion "600" (1949–1955, 2006–Present) - Replaced the Champion "800", modified/reissued in 2006
- Vibro Champ (1964–1982; 2007–Present) - A Champ with tremolo; reissued in 2007, with modified tube circuit, and utilization of DSP for 16 effects
- Champ II (1982–1983) - 18 watts/10" speaker.
- Super Champ (1982–1985; 2007–Present) - channel switching and reverb; reissued in 2007, with modified tube circuit, and utilization of DSP for 16 effects
- Champ 12 (1987–1992) - 12 watts/12" speaker
- Champ 25/25SE (1992–1994) - tube/solid state amp