If you’ve had your ear to the ground about the oncoming Fender price hike well, it’s real, and it’s here. I was in a shop today, and a brand new Fender Hot Rod Deluxe – the exact same amp I own that I got for $599, for a whopping $839, with a list of $1200! For cryin’ out loud! This amp is NOT a boutique amp. While a tube amp, it has a solid state well, everything. All the electronics are on PCB boards, and the damn thing’s not even assembled in the USA!
If I was looking for my first tube amp, at these prices, I’d ignore Fender, and get something like an Orange Tiny Terror, or an Aracom RoxBox. The Tiny Terror costs $550 new, and RoxBox head is $895. I’ve played both, and they both sound way better (at least to my ears) right out of the box than the Hot Rod, which I had to spend even more money on mods and better tubes than the stock GrooveTubes that come with it.
Make no bones about it: Fender amps at this level ain’t boutique, not in the slightest, but they’re approaching boutique amp prices. Well, I guess it’s the sign of the economic times.
Guitar Gear 
I don’t think Fender was hurt at all by the recession (or isn’t hurting anyway. I guess the recession is trucking on). Perhaps this is them pushing the envelope of supply and demand? Because if your stuff is selling when people are losing their jobs, maybe it’ll sell for even MORE….
Well, they’re tying to sell Mexican Strats and Teles for a grand. It seems the logical next step.
This just stregnthens the botique manufacturers share in the market IMO.
@Tweed Demon – I think they’re pretty much there already, selling the MIM Road Worn Series at about $950.00…
This price hike on the Fender Hot Rod Deluxe is disappointing, it was such a good little tube amp for the price and now it looks they’ve moved it out of reach for a lot of players.
Couldn’t agree more! That used to be an amp that I’d recommend to anyone who was starting out with tubes. It was the best gear advice I ever got!
With this price hike, I’d have to recommend others, but there are some pretty nice ones to start out with; among them are:
Blackheart BH5, or Handsome Devil. You can get the HD 1/2 stack for under $500.
Peavey Windsor Studio – At $399, and with the ability to swap tubes, it’s a great way to discover how different power tubes sound.