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"Little Jessie LJ5/LJ10" Retro  Micro Amp

FRENZEL FMLJ10 "LITTLE jESSIE" GUITAR AMP

Features:

  • Model No. FM-LJ5  - Single-Ended EL84  5 Watt Micro  Amp

  • Model No. FM-LJ10 (Upgrade) - Single-Ended EL34  10 Watt Micro  Amp (Upgrade)

  • Dual Channel Deluxe & Plexi Preamps

  • Separate Gains & Master

  • Bright Pull Switches On Gains

  • Deep Pull Switch On Bass

  • 3 Band Tone Stack

  • Triode-Pentode Mode Switch

  • Solid-State Rectifier For Fast Pick Attack

  • Post OT Line Out With Level

  • Custom Upgrade Options

MSRP: $930.00

FACTORY DIRECT PRICE

$697.50

Guitarist Description: I received the amp and it is absolutely wonderful. PBass, acoustic with pickups, and Les Paul! Plenty of volume, various tones for each of the guitars and great as a preamp to my big tube amp. It is light and portable and going to Thailand with me soon. Quite sweet. Thank you! Axel B. (Colorado)

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Overview:

 

The FRENZEL FM-LJ5/LJ10 "Little Jessie" uses the same Fender/Marshall preamp circuits that we use in our FM-DP1 Deluxe Plexi preamp which has rave reviews from around the world. The power amp section uses a Class A single-ended cathode-biased EL84 with a Pentode - Triode mode switch for either 5 watts or 2 watts output. (10 watt upgrade with EL34 available). Perfect for late night practice sessions at home and small venues or you can use the post output transformer DI Line Out jack for recording or to drive higher power solid-state or tube amps or PA's for larger venues!  Little in size....huge in tone! You will be amazed at the tones this amp will produce!  

Standard Features:

  • Normal (Type F) Bright (Type M) inputs with separate preamps and Gain controls for the unique smooth Fender Deluxe warm tones or the Marshall Super Lead Plexi great high mid-tones....or you can use an AB-Y switch and create your own distinct tones.

  • Classic Bassman 5F6A style 3-BAND TONE STACK for extended flexibility in shaping your tone.

  • Master level control so you can crank the GAIN's up and overdrive the preamp without overdriving the output tubes.

  • Triode/Pentode Mode Switch

  • Deep Pull-Switch on Bass

  • Bright Pull-Switch on F and M Gains

  • Line Out - post output transformer LINE OUT with LINE OUT LEVEL control for recording or driving a power amp, Auto switched internal load to simulate speaker if speaker is  not plugged in. Inject great tone directly into a PA system with this speaker simulated direct Interface.

  • Class A Single-Ended Cathode-Biased  for pure warm linear sound reproduction.

  • Ultra fast heavy duty high voltage solid-state rectifiers provide sharp pick attack and dynamic bass.

  • Power Output - FM-LJ5 5 watts @ 8 ohms (Standard) - FM-LJ10 10 watts @ 8 ohms (Upgrade)

  • Preamp tubes are JJ 12AX7's known for low noise and linearity. You may also use 12AT7's or 12AU7's for different tones and less preamp overdrive.

  • Tube Complement:  comes standard with 2 - 12AX7, 1 - EL84, but you can substitute 12AT7's or 12AU7's in the preamp and driver for different tones and overdrive sounds. 

Electrical Specifications: 

  • Input Power  120 VAC 50-60Hz - 100 Watts Standard IEC plug-in three prong grounded power cord. (230 - 240VAC available. See Upgrade Options) 

  • Output Tube - Class A Single-Ended EL84 - Cathode Bias

  • Output Power  - 5 Watts RMS  (Standard ) - 10 Watts RMS  (Upgrade)

  • Speaker Output Impedance - 8 ohms.

  • Line Out Impedance - 10K ohms

  • Instrument Input Impedance - 1 Megohm


Physical Data: 

  • Retro Vintage Cage Mini Head  - heavy duty lightweight steel mesh cage provides protection and excellent ventilation for tubes. Comes with easy carry Fender style strap handle. Overall Dimensions - 10" Wide x  8" Deep x 8" High  - 5 lbs.

  • Rock solid point-to-point hand wiring with military style tie-wrapped wiring harnesses for long life and reliability.

  • DC on filaments to eliminate 60 hz hum.

  • Star ground system to eliminate induced current chassis noise.

  • Input and Output Jacks isolated from chassis for low noise, eddy currents, and hum.

  • Classic Vintage  Control Knobs

  • Components - Only the highest quality parts are used including heavy duty transformers, low noise tubular polypropylenes capacitors, metal film resistors, Micalex sockets, Neutrik jacks. All parts are rated for commercial high use conditions. Wherever possible we use parts made in the USA.

  • Front Panel Controls - F Input Jack, M Input Jack, F Gain/Bright Pull Switch, M Gain/Bright Pull Switch, Bass/Deep Pull Switch, Middle, Treble,  Pilot Lamp, On-Off Power Switch

  • Rear Panel Controls -  Power Cord Connector, Fuse, Line Out Level, Line Out Jack, Speaker Output Jack, Triode/Pentode Mode Switch

Upgrade Options:

These options allow you to  customize your amp to meet your special individual requirements.

FM-LJ10 10 Watt  - Increases power output to 10 watts using a EL34 in place of EL84.  Add $85.00​

EFFECTS LOOP -  pure tube buffered serial effects loop designed to perfectly match the low impedance solid-state pedal levels with high impedance tube levels..  Add $75.00. 

HIGH GAIN JCM800 M CHANNEL PREAMP - Pull switch on M Gain control  changes  M  channel from Marshall Super Lead Plexi to Marshall  JCM800 High-Gain Lead.  Add $95.00​  

230-240 VOLT POWER TRANSFORMER - for operation outside the USA where 230-240VAC line voltage is used. Add $75.00

Review By Featured Artist  Tony Clarke

FRENZEL "Little Jessie LJ5  - My home set up 2-LJ5s,2 Vintage 47 / 12” Webers & a Vintage 47 Ric ( center) a little over kill is enough for me.  Also, my go to amps at work. Thanks Tony C. (Arkansas)

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Video By Featured Artist  Michael Wong:

1. Hello, I am extremely impressed with my Little Jessie. I absolutely love the Class A sound with the EL84. The amount of tone shaping and multiple preamps is outstanding. The line out feature is a welcome feature as I can plug it into my church's PA. My expectations were high - but you exceeded them. Thank you, Mark Knight (Adelaide, South Australia)

2. I received the amp and it is absolutely wonderful. PBass, acoustic with pickups, and Les Paul! Plenty of volume, various tones for each of the guitars and great as a preamp to my big tube amp. It is light and portable and going to Thailand with me soon. Quite sweet. Thank you! Axel B. (Colorado)

3. Demo of the Frenzel Little Jessie LJ5 - 5 watt amp by Michael Wong. - Comparing it to a UAD Friedman Buxom Betty software amp model. Going from amp to Two Notes Torpedo Captor X using a York Audio 2x12 Creamback cab IR.

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Customer Reviews:   

I have a Heritage 335 whose sound I had never been 100% happy with. I think that What was lacking was the perfect "amp partner." For reasons I cannot explain, Lil Jess and the Heritage sound just about perfect together. Bottom line: I am doubly happy, now that my Heritage has met its match.  Robert S. (Illinois)   

 

Hi,  The amp arrived safely today!  Superb packing - thank you :). Loving the amp so far - I'm using it for bass and getting just the kind/amount of saturation I was looking for. Thanks and regards, Ken D. (Canada)

 

Hello, I am extremely impressed with my Little Jessie.  I absolutely love the Class A sound with the EL84.  The amount of tone shaping and multiple preamps is outstanding.  The line out feature is a welcome feature as I can plug it into my church's PA. I did have a scare at the start - the amp had cracking, popping, and intermittent volume.  I reseated the power tube and everything came good - to my relief.  It must have loosened as it traveled to the opposite site of the planet. My expectations were high - but you exceeded them.
Thank you, Mark Knight (Adelaide, South Australia)

Hello Frenzel, Just a note to say how happy I am with the Little Jesse. It has a lot of character. Very nice job on the amp & it does just what your company said it would.  I am still overwhelmed by the sounds that come out of this amp. Doug T.(New York)

Dear Jim - The amp arrived fine (two weeks a go) but i was not able to test it until yesterday…I am very happy! It is a great machine! I plugged to a Marshall 4 cone cabinet as amp (not as a preamp) and it is really great! Mostly, I used the M channel, but this is the sound I was looking for!...I don't need any pedal anymore!  Thanks and it has been a pleasure to make business with you! Roger M. (Hong Kong)

I received the amp and it is absolutely wonderful. PBass, acoustic with pickups, and Les Paul! Plenty of volume, various tones for each of the guitars and great as a preamp to my big tube amp. It is light and portable and going to Thailand with me soon. Quite sweet. Thank you! Axel B. (Colorado)

Hi Jim and and the good folks at Frenzel. I’ve been playing with this little jewel of an amp for a week or so now and have tried different speaker arrangements and I just Love it !  My favorite set up so far is with an old JBL stereo speaker and running the line out into an old outboard reverb unit that, to my knowledge isn’t even made anymore. I gotta tell you …I haven’t had a more touch sensitive amp since I sold my ’66 Blackface Bassman but I have it now…in spades ! All the tone I could ever want and in Triode mode…fuggetaboutit ! Your company and products are the real deal and as someone who isn’t made of money,(who is) it is refreshing to get a product that does what you said it would and then some…and at an affordable price !  I saved up for this amp and now I want another one even larger for playing out in larger venues. I speak highly of your company to my pals and everyone was impressed at practice Thursday night. It was packed well enough to withstand a hurricane and the manual was an unexpected bonus. Many,many thanks,Daniel E. Crook…The Café Racers (Maine)

Hi Frenzel, I don`t know if a customer is allowed to write two reviews on your equipment but I have enjoyed this amp so much I couldn`t help telling you about it. First off,the tubes are getting broken in a little now and since I don`t play live as much as I used to,this was and is the perfect recording amp for me. I changed the speaker for an even older Magnavox cab that is smaller than the JBL I was using and it was a match right from the get go! The tone I get is anything from Wes Montgomery smooth to the biting sound of Albert Collins Tele and this speaker breaks up so well wth just a touch more gain added. I appreciate the bargain on this amp and playing live I just use the liine out into a stand alone Fender P.A. 160 with six vocal channels and bass,treble,volume and reverb on each of these.I get tone that is so clear, even loud, that other guitarists ask what is that little box on top there? Your amps are also more affordable than most others are regardless of the brand name...I am loviing it ! I am saving up for the Super Deluxe but I am very pleased with my first custom amp.Thanks again,Daniel E.Crook...The Cafe Racers   

 

 "Little Jessie LJ5" - Dear Jim & Frenzel Amp Team, I received the LJ5 amp about a month ago and have really loved playing it. Since I live in apartment housing, I needed an amp that would have a great tone at bedroom volumes and cranked at jam sessions (I’m using an oversized 1x12 cab with an Eminence Governor speaker). This fit the bill perfectly, as the 2w setting can provide some great clean and rock tones at low volume and the 5w setting can keep up with a drummer when cranked. The Fender Deluxe style channels sound great, from sparkly cleans and blues tones, to even the chimey tones on the bright channel. It also takes reverb/delay effects very well. For classic rock, the Marshall Plexi style channel sounds fantastic and is very true to the plexi sound from the renowned albums of the late 60’s and 70’s. The amp also has the JCM800 high gain mod installed, which gives me some great classic 80’s rock tones. Using a treble boost, or any fairly transparent overdrive, I can even get 70’s to early 90’s metal tones, (from Kiss to early Tool) out of it as well. The deep switch is also a great addition and allows me to adjust the very low frequencies, which can make the amp sound bigger at low volumes or tighten it up at high volumes. This amp sounds amazing and is truly versatile. Thank You, Ryan (D.) North Carolina    

Featured Artist Carlos Guillen - Greetings to Frenzel Amps!!I just wanted to send some feedback on my Little Jessie order.  After a short delay I was finally able to sit down with this amp and put it through some tests.  I also had a chance to perform with it last week and I am extremely happy with the Little Jessie!! After testing the amp out with a Gibson Les Paul and custom Telecaster, I can say this is one of the finest most toneful amps I've ever owned.  All options functioned perfectly, the pentode/triode switch and line outputs and custom preamp voices I requested give me a very wide range of tones out of a single device.  The treble & bass boost on the tone stack really add to this versatility.  The F input is warm and deep with a great overdrive, giving me some great jazz & blues tones.  The M input is outstanding - bright and punchy, with a more aggressive crunch, very much the tone of early 80's punk and metal.  I have tried this amp with all manner of pedals, and in every test I was able to get a huge range of excellent recognizable tones with very little noise and a stunning 3-dimensional presence.  The amp was everything that was promised and so much more, a real awesome addition to my studio that will be my main amp from now on - at least until I can buy a higher wattage Frenzel!! Thanks very much for all your work.  This amp is fantastic and I am very happy!!   Carlos G. (New Jersey)

For more reviews please check our REVIEWS page.

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