Review: Fender Frontman 212R 100W 2×12 Guitar Combo Amp |
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April 9th, 2008 | Amplifier |
Here is a quick look at one of the most trusted names in guitars (an amps!) with their very popular Frontman 212R 100W 2x12 Guitar Combo Amp.
Intro and Likes:
The Fender Frontman 212R 100W 2x12 Combo Amp weights roughly 48 lbs which I found to be on the smaller scale for Fender amps. The reason for this is because this is a solid state amp, meaning it is not a true Tube amplifier, which is composed of much heavier analogue pieces which ultimately do give better sound. (review continued below...)
Live eBay Results:
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XCase Fender Frontman 212R 2x12 Amp ATA Flight Case 1 4 |  |
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US $256.00 | 1d 21h 54m |
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Brand New Fender Frontman 212r never played Fender | |
17 Bids | US $255.00 | 2d 15h 39m |
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Fender frontman 212r combo amp very cheap | |
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US $220.00 | 8d 13h 43m |
The good news is that this amp only costs a fraction of the price of say, a Fender Twin Tube amp. I am impressed with the fact that this amp is 100 watts. When I cranked the amp up in clean mode it did have extremely clean gains which were also very warm and useful in any rhythm section. The amp is composed of 2-12 inch speakers which are well balanced and sound pretty sweet.
My biggest concern with this amp initially was whether or not it would have characteristic Fender tones. I am happy to say that the characteristic clean warm "tube-like" tones are present. I also enjoy the good and convincing amount of bass that this amp can produce. The low end adds to the good clean tone.
Dislikes:
As usual, the Fender Amp's biggest disadvantage is probably the crunch channel. I find that non-tube distortion often times sounds thin and noisy. While the Frontman gives better than expected distortion, I found better results by chaining up some good distortion pedals to this bad boy.
Conclusions:
If you are looking for a budget amp that can produce loud sounds, has above average clean tone due to the low end sound, then the Fender Frontman 212R may be your amp. Again, the onboard distortion is certainly nothing to write home about, but for a beginner, you certainly cannot beat this amp.
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Specs:
26"W x 19-1/2"H x 9-1/2"D
48 lbs.
Fender Frontman 212R 100W 2x12 Guitar Combo Amp Features:
100 watts
2 Special Design 12" drivers
2 channels: Clean and Drive/More Drive
Drive/More Drive channel has a quick tone-shaping mid contour switch
Spring reverb
Blackface-style control panel
Chrome hardware
