I am somewhat familiar with getting the bias current for a marshall, but am new to bias a fender amp like the bassman. For my purposes, however, it does an excellent job. Marshall would be the first to do so back when they released the jtm45 in 62. The blackface bassman with black tolex covering and black knobs existed basically unchanged until 1967. Fender tweed is a generic name used for the guitar amplifiers made by the american company fender between 1948 and 1960. Of late i have been dabbling in tube guitar amp repairmodding with my good friend kris and discovering how great older tube fender amps can sound.
Red arrows show changes from the original 5f6a bassman schematic. After the deluxe micro turned out so well i thought id take on a more ambitious project and build a micro version of the legendary 1959 fender tweed 5f6a bassman. In 1954, the bassman was upgraded from a 1x15 to a 4x10inch combo. I use heyboer transformers built true to the original specs with paper bobbins and interleave windings. Hes looking for a really clean 50s rockabilly sound. The 3 preamp tube sockets appear to have been replaced. This is exactly what this book gives us, and why its an important addition to the knowledge. Four ten inch speakers in a sealed cabinet with ports in the baffle.
Bassman is a partner in the health sciences department and antitrust and trial and dispute resolution practice groups of pepper hamilton llp, resident in the philadelphia office. Electrolytic recap kit for vintage fender bassman 50. I loved the fat sound of the tweed bassmans reissues and clones that ive had but they are just too heavy, and too loud when cranked up. Many of the mods on this page apply to the bassman reissue. Who knew the bassman could out marshall a marshall. This is a reproduction of the narrow panel tweed bassman head cabinet. Keep in mind throughout this lesson that fender is in business to make money, and the bottom line is a. Transformers should always be installed by a professional electronics technician since there are high voltages involved and may result in serious physical harm to yourself, the transformer andor your equipment if installed incorrectly. Some adhesives require a chemical strip and add a lot of labor cost.
He mentioned that jim marshall had ripped the circuit, for what he believed, from the bassman. The cpc40t is my version of the legendary 5f6a tweed bassman. Can you think of anybody that loves and can bring bassman amps to tone heaven. Premium recap kits for your vintage fender bassman amplifier. Original power and output transformers, choke coil replaced. You are correct a 1965 bf bassman should be the ab165 or aa864 circuit, while the original marshalls were based off the old tweed 5f6a bassman. Nov, 20 my friend and i were talking about some old classic amps and he showed me a video of a bassman sounding pretty gnarly. Tweed mall corner wharf and bay streets, tweed heads, 2485 today 10am 4pm. The jensen p10r speakers are very forward and bright. Armadillos specialty is fender amplifier cabinet restoration.
Bassman concentrates his practice on health care and antitrust litigation and counseling. The bassman micros single channel preamp circuit was inspired by. These are all time classic amps and are destined to become highly priced museum pieces. Fender amplifier cabinet restoration by armadillo amp works. The bassman 10 is a dual 6l6 amp combo amp fender made from about 1972 until the mid 80s. The bassman bias voltage is set as high as possible again. Is it possible to get the tweed bassman sound and clarity in a smaller, lighter amp. My friend and i were talking about some old classic amps and he showed me a video of a bassman sounding pretty gnarly.
The black kitty 40 kemper profile pack captures the tone of the classic boutique pairing. After fixing it, my buddy left it with me, but it just doesnt sound good. Admittedly, they sound great for guitar, but lets back up a little and see as fender makes a bass amplifier. The bassman is a clean amp at low volumes and when cranked boasts a creamy overdrive, its no wonder why its everyones favorite iconic amp. It does has a very limited bandwidth of 10meg, really making it useless for anything but audio work. Im not trying to improve the 5f6a so much as im trying to make the amp more versatile. This circuit is mostly the original 5f6a 59 tweed bassman. It had an unfinished tweed, which ive shellaced, and came with a somewhat goofy, high voltage circuit and a plugin solid state rectifier, 3x12ax7s and 4 eminence jensen repor 10s. Aug 24, 20 ever since i have been involved in electronics i never once built an electronic kit of any sorts. This specific item was photographed by us here in durham, north carolina. I have a 61 bassman, that has some weird anomolies, and when i got it, it sounded terrible.
Bassman vs jtm45 page 1 joes guitars, amps and gear. Starting in mid1957, this map had four inputs instead of two. I have tried countless of boutique takes on bassman, such as a thd bassman, a couple of kendrick clones, and the wonderfully crafted victoria 45410. The tweed covered fender bassman is considered by many to be the epitome of tone, and every current tube amplifier myth revolves around this amplifier.
This is a basic brisket rub recipe which leaves a tangy and flavorful crust on the brisket. The advantage of a comparison video is that you can listen to the amps in an a similar environment with a similar setup. Specimen tweed bassman tweed tube amps specimen products. As with all the tweed amps we build, the bassman embodies authentic 1950s construction all the way down to the fiberboard motherboard for superior structural integrity, just like the original. This is my original 59 bassman amp, and im playing a custom shop reissue telecasterno pedals, into the normal channel. Narrow panel tweed bassman guitar amplifier combo speaker cabinet. We believe in the quality of a hand built cabinet using the same construction methods as used in the 1950s. I have a pretty accurate boutique tweed bassman copy. Including tweed covered solid pine narrow panel cabinet, carbon composition and metal oxide resisters, high quality tubes, tad electrolytics and o. The amplifiers are named for the cloth covering, which consists of varnished cotton twill, incorrectly called tweed because of its feel and appearance.
Narrow panel tweed bassman guitar amplifier head cabinet. My other son plays a mexican fender telecaster through a fender bassman 59 reissue amp. Legendary fender bassman the tweed covered fender bassman is considered by many to be the epitome of tone, and every current tube amplifier myth revolves around this amplifier. While there are schematics for fender tweedera bassmans, bassman 10s, bassman 70s, bassman 100s, bassman 5s, 12watt bass amps, 200watt bass amps, and even fenders behemoth 300watt bass ampsa schematic specifically labeled bassman 50 is simply nowhere to be found. Channel 1 features two modes of bassman tones, blonde and tweed.
The telequipment d61a is a good, basic oscilloscope. Every serious guitarist should have some sort of 50s bassman in their arsenal. New this page relates to the original 5f6a tweed bassman, but after several years of playing with this amp, i extended its capabilities, and after you finish viewing this page you may be interested in the new version i call the bassman redux. I dont expect anyone to mod their original 5f6a bassman but if you have a bassman reissue or home build like me then adding some switchable mods can be beneficial.
This listing is for a full replacement set of premium electrolytic capacitors for your ab165 bassman blackface or silverface and bassman 50 silverface amplifier. The specimen tweed bassman is a beautiful guitar amp that produces a massive wavefront of air. Can you think of anybody who can make it sound good. I use an unshakably strong glass fiber turret board that maintains point to point wiring. Her condition is excellent there are no marks or tears anywhere on the amp, the control panel is also exellent and it was just checked out by voodoo amps and in perfect working order. Fender bassman 59 reissue settings gretschtalk forum.
It started rated at 50 wrms and was eventually advertized at 70 wrms. Mod your bassman reissue for vintage tone singlecoil. A reproduction of the original fender narrow panel tweed bassman cabinet. Tweed bassman the bassman design of the late 50s is right up there with other icons of the era such as the les paul and strat. Page 1 joes guitars, amps and gear joe bonamassa forum the official forum for all things joe bonamassa, guitars and blues music. Need help in dating a fender 59 bassman 410 reissue my. We believe in the quality of a hand built cabinet using the same construction methods as. The fender has been reissuing the 5f8a 4x 10 tweed bassman for quite some time now and its one of fender better amps but it does not sound that much like a original bassman. Fender tweed bassman style transformers by classictone.
Need help in dating a fender 59 bassman 410 reissue i need help in dating my fender amp and if anyone can attach a value to her that would be great. The bassman micro tube guitar amplifier is a compact practice amp thats moderately easy to build, uses three 12a7 tubes and puts out 2 to 4 watts of output power. A multi turn 50k trim pot and a 33k resistor in series, replacing the fixed bias resistor on the bassman circuit board. It has all of its original componentscaps, transformers and speakers. All 4 p10r speakers are date coded 1959 and the tubes are old stock. Mods for fender reissue tweed bassman carls custom amps.
Our victoria capacitors were designed specifically to sound like a slightly degraded, 40 yearold cap. We believe in the quality of a hand built cabinet using the same. The tweed 59 bassman influenced many amp builders to replicate or to improve the circuit in there own way. The bassman channel sounds like a bassman through a 12inch along with the drawbacks of the current drri type amps they generally lack the warmth of the hand wired ones. I recently swapped in a fresh set of tubes and put a 12ay7 in the first stage, added a. Narrow panel tweed bassman guitar amplifier combo speaker. Heres the schematic and layout to locate the components.
The fdp is made possible by the following companies and individual members like you. Ever since i have been involved in electronics i never once built an electronic kit of any sorts. If you plan on working on, or building a tweed bassman, there are a few things that you might want to know. Weve yet to use the amp at a gig, but hes worried about breakup at higher volumes. This victoria 45410 is our loving recreation of the 59 bassman and no detail is left undone. Its loud enough to play at most clubs and it great for a player for which touch sensitivity and awesome 50s tone is key. Many offer various other brands besides classictone. The early era of fender bassman amps laid the groundwork for virtually all rock combos to follow, so much so that it was the 4x10 bassman that inspired the very first marshallbranded amp in 1962. Mod your bassman reissue for vintage tone to start i. It is brighter and harsher sounding and the overdrive is not the same. Apr 19, 2011 while there are schematics for fender tweedera bassmans, bassman 10s, bassman 70s, bassman 100s, bassman 5s, 12watt bass amps, 200watt bass amps, and even fenders behemoth 300watt bass ampsa schematic specifically labeled bassman 50 is simply nowhere to be found. I wanted to compared the sound of my rig with that sound. During this time i have discovered that one of the holy grail of amps is the 1959 tweed bassman. They effectively copied an amp fender didnt kmake anymore the tweed bassman.
Sep 08, 2009 to understand the motivation behind the book you need to understand what the tweed bassman means to guitar players. I should note that i have been using thd yellow jacket converters to use el84 tubes in class a in place of the stock 6l6gcs, and this is a nice way of getting earlier breakup at low volumes, and a slightly warmer sound. The build quality, the sounds and the response of these amps are extremely good. Mojo amp guitar straps are fret cloth straps representing a new pinnacle in. However, an early tweed bassman is somewhat akin to a jtm45, while the later bfs especially when modded are more like a hot plexi and honestly better sounding than one. If you have an original tweed bassman, dont touch it unless its broken. Bassman vs jtm45 page 1 joes guitars, amps and gear joe bonamassa forum the official forum for all things joe bonamassa, guitars and blues music. We are a very small team dedicated to providing you the most accurate photos possible, through our obsessive focus. I understand they break in after awhile, but can be annoying at first. The history of the fender bassman amplifier fender. The fender bassman is a bass amplifier introduced by fender during 1952. Our product photos are the actual, specific serial number for sale. Fender style choke, 90ma dc, 4 hy, 125c1a, 022699, 036468. Therefore, you shouldnt be paying outrageous prices for this unit.
I purchased at a pawnshop a fender bassman 50 head and cab for a really good price. Its loud enough to play at most clubs and it great for a player for which touch. Narrow panel tweed bassman style guitar amplifier head cabinet. If youve ever wondered why expensive new reissue amps often sound cold and chiseled compared to their vintage counterparts, now you know. Rub mixture onto brisket then let set in plastic wrap overnight. I had a tweed bandmaster clone that sounded great, but its circuit just didnt have the clarity of the bassman circuit.
And man, how i wish id had that particular knowledge a little sooner in life, when an original tweed bassman still cost a lot less than a new highgain amp with a fourmonth waiting list. Tweed bassman sound and clarity in a smaller, lighter amp. Narrow panel tweed bassman style guitar amplifier combo. Unfollow fender bassman to stop getting updates on your ebay feed. To generations of professional musicians the bassman s mix of harmonic overtones is the holy grail of tone, the perfect balance between clean reproduction and distortiondriven tonal ecstasy. The tweed brown guitar strap introduceg a strap inspired by classic amp design. May 04, 2010 this is my original 59 bassman amp, and im playing a custom shop reissue telecasterno pedals, into the normal channel. They are ges i might be wrong about those being the original ones, and now i am thinking of changing the tubes. This is a reproduction of the narrow panel tweed bassman cabinet. Second search the amps forum for bassman 10 because thereve been quite a few threads over the years about these. I love bassman amps wooohhooo here are my two lovers soorry for over posting this pictures, it was a very good time in the studio before i say anything i gotta say there is a caveat speaker and cab makes a big difference and i do not use posttweed fender bassmanbandmastertremolux amps in open back cabs. After i got it i decided it didnt sound much like any real tweed bassman id ever experienced, but had its own rather cool vibe and has generally been a good performer. One thought on fender blonde bassman wayne crabtree. At 40 watts its great mid powered amp for blues, rockabilly, rock and roll and classic rock players.