You guys nailed the Cherry JR review. It's not often that I read reviews of gear I'm intimately familiar with and IMO the author did an excellent job at conveying what the amp sounds like.
While less affordable than the JR, I can tell you that the Cherry Plus addresses just the issues you have brought up - It's "The World's Most Interesting Man" version of the JR, bringing a level of sophistication and even further at-ease-ness way beyond what the JR brings.
Please do try to check out the monos when they come out, or at least a Plus - With the level of gear used in the review the upgrade would be most interesting.
Mike