Fender Mustang II 40W 1x12 Guitar Combo Amp 

Comments about Fender Mustang II 40W 1x12 Guitar Combo Amp:

So far, so good. It's a good workmen's amp. Light and easy to use. I wanted a Deluxe sound but didn't want to spend a whole lot,so this amp is perfect. It's already paid for itself after using it for a month. I just hope that it lasts more than the year and half thatI had a Vox Valvtronix. The Vox died in the middle of a gig! I'll let you all know if this thing goes ka-put on me within two years.

Comments about Fender Mustang II 40W 1x12 Guitar Combo Amp:

The biggest thing I'd have to say about this amp that amazes me is it's nearly limitless functionality, -especially- if you own a computer to mess around with the effects and settings.

To top that off, it would cost you hundreds ( if not thousands) to get the same amount of effects (be it through pedals or mixers) that are included with the amp, giving it an insane value. It really is the perfect amp for the beginner (or otherwise) on a budget who wants something more than just a regular clean sound.

I was surprised initially by just how much you can adjust the effects to your personal taste. You can go from a perfectly clean tone, to a calm ambient soundspace, to an extremely screamy distortion. It's almost completely necessary for you to own a computer to mess around with the settings if you want or own this amp.

The clean tones are fantastic. Very clear, and can be almost however you want. Bright, soft, warm, dull, aggressive... Whatever is within your imagination and ingenuity to adjust the settings. I could go on forever about just how wonderful it is to adjust the various effects on this amp, and just how many incredibly different sounds you can get out of it.

It's also very surprisingly light, but to me all I had to compare it to was an ancient (or should I say "vintage?") Peavey Basic 40, which was the same size but weighed a ton. I could carry this amp around everywhere with one arm and never get tired.

Not everything I have to say about this amp is it's greatness, however.

I wasn't all that impressed with the distortion effects you could use with this amp. It's either fully screamy, or muddy. No nice middle-ground crunchiness (unless you can perhaps discover what I couldn't through messing around with FUSE). I'd recommend getting a completely separate distortion/overdrive pedal when using this amp if you want that effect (unless you like the ones already included with it).

Another thing that kind of disappointed me was the -lack- of effects you could use at one time. I was confused for quite a while messing around with the FUSE software to adjust the effects, but it seems you can only have 4 effects active, each within their own category, and each category only allows 1 effect to be active. You can't mix both a fuzz/overdrive with a compressor, or a chorus with a tremolo, etc. Even with that in mind, you can still get a nearly limitless range of sounds through effects with what you have available.

Yet another flaw with it is the poor volume input through the USB if you use it for recording. Recording directly from the amp almost -requires- you to own a pair of headphones, either to keep on the side and off of your ears so you don't blow out your eardrums, or a pair with their own volume control, because you need to have the amp at a very high volume in order to record at decent volumes, because the input it gives on its own is incredibly quiet. If you can get past that though, the recording qualities are actually very nice, and -very- clean. The volumes have to be incredibly high to hear much noise, and the amp's built-in gates (that you can also adjust yourself) help alleviate a lot of it on it's own.

All-in-all, this is an amazing amplifier especially for the price. If you're looking into using this for increased functionality, or larger venues, I'd recommend looking at the Mustang III, or IV (or even the V head if you've already got a decent cabinet).

If you get one, make sure you have a computer handy, and take some time to figure out the FUSE software (and also take a look at other user-made presets). It's completely worth it!

Comments about Fender Mustang II 40W 1x12 Guitar Combo Amp:

I bought this Mustang II in late 2012 to use at my holiday house... I wasn't expecting much out of a Solid State CHEAP amplifier... boy was I wrong.. this thing is great value for the $$$ spondoolies and has plenty of features to keep even the worst of tinkerers like me occupied for weeks.... I wrote a review here a while back but it did not get posted so here is an update

I downloaded the Fuse software but really I tinker with the tones myself...

I put a DS-1 Boss pedal in front of this and with the Supersonic setting, gain on 5, a little modulation (setting 1 on the mod switch) and a little reverb (setting 1) plus some distortion from the DS-1 and you get a nice weird psychadelic sound.... push the volume up and it does clip a bit (but hey what do you expect for low $$$$).............

The cleans on this are surprisingly great.. I went to my local Sam Ash in NYC this week and played a Strat through 10 amps including this and all the higher end Fender tube amps, the excellent Blackstar Stage 60 and Club 40 amps and some Peavey, Marshalls and a Mesa.... at lower volumes this matched the Twin Reverb 65 (RE) for cleans almost to my ears and the distorted simple tones were at a level just below the Mesa etc... simply stunning...

I was considering hefting out nearly a grand for a Blackstar HT Stage 60 or the Fender Hot Rod Deville 410 but why bother.. I may just add a speaker cabinet to this and get a Voodoo Lab Proctavia Pedal to simulate all the sounds I want....

I will add that if you are looking to gig WITHOUT being miked this will split/break up at high volumes on the clean settings, especially the British 60s and the high gain settings didgital clip and level out with the Master and direct Volumes above 7 or 8.. but it is REALLY LOUD for small venue use....

Note, I own other amps and I go to this most of the time because it is so much fun. In my apt in the city I have a Fender Frontman 10G which is very noisy and after only a month is next to useless as the noise from headphones is crazy bad.. I may just bring this bad boy to the city and try a Mustang IV for the house.. I have had old Yamaha amps, an original 65 Twin reverb and tried Marshalls and amps costing 10 times this... unless you are a pro there is no need to spend that much money to get SOUNDS...

I also read a few reviews poo-pooing the in built tones in the presets.. seriously wrong.. just mess with the settings, gain, bass, treble a little and the modulation etc and with an effects pedal anything is possible.

I intend putting this in front of my reverb as a digital front end preamp to see what tones I can get.

In the age of fake/manipulated music these solid state amps at low $$$ are here to stay and I suspect like other "analog" dinosaurs the tube age of guitar amps will meld into the SS age (sadly for many).

I will also add that I use the Metal setting to get a nice screaming kind of phoney HM output and the British 80's setting is great for Duran Duran and some Tears for Fears etc

Comments about Fender Mustang II 40W 1x12 Guitar Combo Amp:

Bought this recently to experiment with. I having never owned a modeling amp this seemed very interesting. Easy to setup, numerous sound patches, and small size make this, in my opinion, a excellent small practice amp. Fit and finish are usual Fender quality, and software (gui) is very easy. Still exploring.

Comments about Fender Mustang II 40W 1x12 Guitar Combo Amp:

Great amp,with good sound and lots of fun and flexibility.

Comments about Fender Mustang II 40W 1x12 Guitar Combo Amp:

weak effects but light and portable.aux input is great

Comments about Fender Mustang II 40W 1x12 Guitar Combo Amp:

I have a music room upstairs with a Fender Amp and a PRS Custom 22 / 10 where I do the bulk of my playing, however, I work at home downstairs in my office. When I have free time I wanted something standing in the corner downstairs that I could use to practice with. This Fender Amp more than meets the challenge with 24 presets and the ability to change the parameters for each. Clean or down and distorted Metal the 12" speaker and electronics does the job. I'm totally satisfied. Fender delivers whether it is an expensive amp or an amp that fits the smaller budget. I've been playing for nearly 50 years and Fender has always been there to support my efforts. You can't go wrong with this little amp which is great for practice and even smaller venue gigs.

Comments about Fender Mustang II 40W 1x12 Guitar Combo Amp:

Fender Mustang II is a really cool amp that is the perfect balance between cost and performance. It is great for jamming and light recording. The preset and downloadable effects are great and a lot of fun to play with. If you are not sure what tone you want to go with it gives you a chance to mess around and find what you are looking for.

Comments about Fender Mustang II 40W 1x12 Guitar Combo Amp:

Mustang II and two Squier Bullet Strats purchased for two 10-year-old internet-savvy youngsters. I am the teacher. Outboard Win XP laptop has GP6 software & runs FUSE. Outboard CD player is Tascam CD Guitar trainer. The sound, power, & capabilities motivate us all. Very pleased.

Comments about Fender Mustang II 40W 1x12 Guitar Combo Amp:

If you're looking for a new amp for home or small gigs this is it.
I tried different brands and nothing compare to this one. For the price you really can't go wrong, the amp comes loaded with sounds (and really good ones) other brands had something similar but the price was really high and the watts were also too high making it impractical for home practice. I had a difficult time getting this amp in the beginning of December all the music stores were sold out and some told me that I would have to wait until February that is how popular this amp is.