Wow the tube chart was there.. now you understand why i sold it.. i cant see very well and my hearing getting worse everyday.. im so glad you are happy with it.. i was happy to heave it and play for all the years i had it.. take care of it and now that you found the tube chart you owe me 500 dollars heheheh
@@YeatzeeGuitar Another thing you could do it kindly let an accomplished blues harmonica player play it for a RUclips demo ... that would be really interesting to hear it.
The 45259 Silver Transformer is the tone beast...I have a 59 and have one and my buddy has a 59 with an an off brand replacement -- the sonic difference is really audible.
@@YeatzeeGuitar Hot tip the far less valuable Concert amps from that era use the same 45259 tranny. I think they were used in Concerts until 62 or so...
It was a lot of fun watching you go through the chassis piece by piece. There’s something about looking inside an old amp the first time. Like looking into a time capsule and putting on a detective hat to see what the history of the amp is.
Yeah I love it! Super fun to do, and I love the restoring process as well getting it back up to fighting shape. If you haven't yet, check out the follow up videos I did on the amp. A tech video fixing it and then several playing it :)
Saw a great country/rock band in Houston, Eric Danhiem RIP... was the incredibly good telecaster player in the band (The Hollister's) he was playing a 59' Bass man that was an absolute wreck looker, but...... the TONE!!!! Damn!!!!! 😂😳🤯
I gave up my '63 Fender Super Amp to get one in 1975. Both fantastic in their ways. I wasn't playing in around '88. I put it in the "Dandy Dime" giveaway paper with it for sale. "List until you sell, for 4 weeks . I got one call at four weeks and sold it cheap. I want both amps back. They're legendary because they deserve to be.
I had three '59 Bassman's from 1975 to 1981. One was thrashed (not quite as bad as yours) one that was totally mint and one that had been recovered in black Tolex and had been reworked in some way. After building and designing amps I would know what was done to the amp but at that time I just played it. It sounded great with my original '59 'burst. Also played a blond neck '67 Tele through it which also sounded great. We did a live demo album in Hollywood in 1980 and that recording is the only thing I have to remind me of the sound. The next band I was in I switched to a '64 Vox AC100 and a '70 HiWatt 100. I had the Vox since 1967 and it was fantastic with those 6CA7 tubes. The Fender Bassman is the design that Jim Marshall used to develop the first JTM45's. When I built my amps, I used all vintage parts Astron, Phillips Mustard, Aerovox, Sangamo, Sprague, Allen Bradley, Centralab and many others. I still think the old parts sound better (as long as they don't leak) but I am sure a lot of people would disagree. Good luck on your Bassman.
Don’t understand it all, but I can’t wait to hear it! That amp has Mojo for days. The fact that it’s largely in good shape is fantastic. It’s fun to hear about the effects of different parts on the circuit. I’m not any kind of tech…at all, but I think tube amps are magical.
Wow this is really amazing! I’m so happy you found one, a dream amp for sure! I know the feeling! 😁 Couldn’t have gone to a better home, you deserve it!
Wow, I'm so jelly. It would be awesome if you could find some NOS blue molded caps to replace those Astrons. I'm looking to watch and hear the restoration!!! Congratulations on your Bassman 🎉
That'd be ideal, but man finding .02's is impossible. My super reverb is missing one and I've been on the hunt. Unfortunately it's an odd value that's uncommon
A very nice story without talking about the amplifier which is the TOP, oh imagine if the amplifier could tell us the story of all the gigs and where everything was, for me the most beautiful stories are about old vintage guitars and amplifiers and when they are passed on to another musician who will continue to use them for gigs, that's the most beautiful thing, once again a great story, the old owner is super cool Dude !!!
Nice find! When you put the new power tubes in, if you continue to use those spring type tube retainers, get a couple of the silicone disks that cushion the tube glass from rubbing against the metal part of the tube retainer, which over time could scratch and crack the glass. AES and other vendors sell them. Looking forward to more videos in this series!
Congrats! What a great project! Very exciting! Ive got a Stu Daddy 59 clone w/ the MM 59 transformers. Wonderful amps, 5881’s really capture the character w/ the P10R’s. Running a 5AR4 which is stiffer feeling than a 5U. I found the 5V4 a nice compromise as well for lower volume. Looking forward to your restoration 🤙
Nice! Yeah the 5U4 I think was probably done because of the PT replacement, I believe that's the right rectifier for what Fender used in the amps with that transformer in
So this amp is kinda the grand dad of my 68 50w marshall plxi amp I've priced these and thay go for five to ten grand for a clean one congratulations have fun !!
I remember when I was 15 (1974) using a 58 Bassman a friend’s dad let me use. I didn’t have enough experience with different amps to realize what I was hearing. He offered it to me for $400. I didn’t have that kind of money, and actually didn’t want it bad enough to sacrifice other things I wanted. So I ended up buying a Kustom (the old rolled and pleated cabinet.) bass head and cabinet…..yes, I should be beaten with a rubber hose!…lol. I do own a Victoria 45410. I believe it’s as close to a 59 Bassman as you are ever going to find nowadays .
"[A 1959 Bassman] is god's way of telling you you have too much money". Apologies to Robin Williams for misappropriating what he said about cocaine. But wait: "A [1959 Bassman] made me feel like a new man; and the first thing the New Man wanted was another [1959 Bassman]". 😁
Maybe Fender soon starts putting new tweed amps into a tumble dryer will and sell them with aged look for $1000 extra. I think that business card there adds to the value because adds to the history.
Good score. I love old beat up gear - it ALWAYS sounds better! But not my favorite model at all - the 10s don't seem to have the low end (despite 4x) so the balance leads very midrangey. The tweed Deluxe has a more rich warmth, and tames down some of the strong mids that the Fender single coils put out. Really, one of the underrated amps is the Pro with a 15" speaker. It REALLY has bass. Not a great distortion, but decent and the clean is amazing - plus you can finally hear the low E string the way it was meant to be heard...
Interesting, I feel like it's got low end to spare! I feel like you're either a deluxe guy or a Bassman guy. I've played a 5e5a and it was cool, but not a 15" guy. I honestly feel like they come across as brighter because of the lack of mid range. Definitely more clear low E though for sure
I thought those were supposed to be Jensen P10Q's. I don't know for a fact, but I have a pair of mint P10Q's that I got out of a 59' Lowery Organ. Talk about minty, you would think they were reissue by how clean they are, perfect paint, perfect cones. But I did some poking around and there were definitely Fender's that used these P10Q's I just thought Bassman did too, maybe it was just the Super.
@@YeatzeeGuitar I got you, I got a pair of 59's.P10Q's and I was thinking of building a 5F4 to pair with them. I generally build my own designs but I have built one clone which is for a mid 60's Supro model 24/6424 with the PP pair of RCA 6973's. The only differences I did(which are substantial) is an upgraded output transformer which was taken from a Fischer Hi-Fi stereo amp which had a pair of Telefunken 7189's in each channel. This gave it too much treble so I did things like change coupling caps to allow more bass to pass through. I also just gave it one input and wired it with the two channels in parallel/(permanently jumpered) and I skipped the tremolo. Have you ever used pentodes in the preamp stages?
I built a Marshall plexi 50 watt the transformer was for a 50 watt amp as an experiment I swaped it out for a 100 watt capable transformer and it did improve the sound much sweeter than before and more headroom.
@@YeatzeeGuitar Yes I agree and its down to the the quality of the type of metal used in the lamination and how much attention is paid to the quality of the winding, keeping the winding balanced on each side of the center tap which does help to reduce hum if its balanced correctly.
I hope you have a clean pair of undies handy, because you may need them after this. I bought my own original '59 in 1992 for $30...Canadian. I was in a pawnshop in Moncton, New Brunswick, and couldn't believe what I was seeing. It looks almost as ragged as yours. I looked around back, and saw that it had 3 of the original quartet of Jensen P10Rs, and an opening where the 4th one should have been. I also saw it had only one power tube. So, clearly, potential buyers couldn't try it out. What I was baffled by was that this pawnshop was about 100yds from the biggest and best music equipment store for over 100miles in any direction. How did they miss it? The tag price was actually $40. I guess the guy must have heard me mumbling about having only 3 of 4 speakers, so he did some quick mental math (what's 3/4 of $40?), quoted me $30, and I agreed, trying desperately NOT to look too eager and give the secret away. I plunked down my money, brought it to the car, and drove out of town SO fast, you'd think I sold all purpose flour to the Hells Angels as cocaine. I don't know about where you live, but there is a long-running commercial for IKEA, here in Canada, in which a woman is running out of IKEA, laden with bags. She's yelling to her husband "Start the car! Start the car!", as if she's afraid the store will suddenly discover they set the prices too low and will come after her. That's how I felt. Once I bought a reissue P10R, and got a decent set of 5881 tubes (the first pair of Chinese ones burnt out right away), it worked great. The tube chart indicates it was produced in either September or December, I forget which (I have a Princeton from that same year, built in the "other" month). One thing I have never quite figured out is this. The Presence control on mine works "backwards" from many contemporary amps. Turn it up and you get LESS brightness and bite. I can see no evidence that the amp had been tampered with, so I assume it was always wired up that way. Now, in 1959, no one was yearning for distortion, so the selective negative feedback from the speaker side of the output transformer was for reining in unwanted additional harmonic content, to get the cleanest possible sound. This leads me to assume that the control on my 5F6-A pulled those reins tighter as you turned it up. So I have to ask, does yours work that way as well, or is mine some sort of anomaly that perhaps someone DID rewire over the years? Finally, I see the legending on yours is as gone as it is on mine. I sometimes have to look up pics of the reissues to remind myself which control is which. In any event, besides proof of the divine, congrats to both of us. I hope you get to enjoy yours for many years to come.
Many of you know the '58-'60 circuit, 5F6A, is different from the '57 circuit, 5F6. It's just a few things. For some reason, they share the same serial number sequence. That is, the '58-'60 5F6A circuit didn't start with a new serial number sequence. I have a 1957 Bassman, Production 1, serial number BM00027. It's been reversibly modified to the 5F6A circuit and has the original P10Rs, reconed by Orange County. It was recovered by Larry Rodgers before I bought it. He told me it was a mercy job, rescuing it from Naugahyde.
Super busy, not only with this but getting through a number of friends PCB amps which are a drag. That plus recording and traveling. This was worth filming though!
Congratulations! Quick question - did you want extra V1 gain from 12AX7 substitute for 12AY7 original? I have had good luck with exchanging 5751's for 12AX7's in the preamp gain sections. I'm really looking forward to more videos around this amp.
@@MY-qx3gd I always thought theyd be too low wattage for gigging, not enough volume on tap. I might be misremembering but aren't they closer to 30w? Similar to a tweed pro, I played a few of those and they were not loud enough to gig definitely.
@@YeatzeeGuitar Yeah... no hate from me. The old school amp sound is special... and I've found that Alnico vintage style speakers are preferred in most of my amp builds.
I have a mid 1990s reissued 59 Bassman 4x10 amp I let someone else to work on it. Now it has a loud humming noise when I turn up the volume and presence
@YeatzeeGuitar The amp didn't need a Bias. He replaced a capacitor, ever since then it started to make this loud humming noise. When I confronted him about it. He denied that it made any noise. NOT many great guitar amp techs in Colorado. They always want to make a quick profit Then do a very shotty repair work
What brands of those YELLOW Capacitors? Mostly Fender used AJAX Blue color Capacitors which I think they used the AJAX Blue color caps in the 50's tweed amplifiers
@@YeatzeeGuitar Some 50's tweed amplifiers use those AJAX Blue Color Capacitors which were either from the fender factory or someone from the 60's changed out the Astrons Yellow Capacitors replaced them with the AJAX blue color capacitors in tweed 50s fender amplifiers?
@@waynegram8907 Yeah people swap the blue moldeds in all the time. If you look at the tweed deluxe I worked on for the guy in the beginning of the video you can see he did exactly that. Swapped the astrons for the later blues.
@YeatzeeGuitar Right, that's why I asked. I've seen a lot of rectifier tubes swapped in used Fenders, especially with newer power trannies. I hope that MM upgrade is pleasing for what you needed too.
not the. same but i. sold my showroom condition 1965 Super reverb 6 years ago. i replaced the caps, hardly used it. wife said i had too many toys. big regrets. left with 2 Matchless, one Traynor bass head, one 1964 deluxe reverb.(caps replaced)
I always wonder what kind of life amps like these really lived. Were they tossed in and out of a pickup truck? Did they sit in a musty garage or shed for 40 years? Did a dog chew on them? Do they really have thousands of hours of hard actual play wear or just moved around a lot?? I have a '66 Super Reverb that looks like it was babied and I have a '70 Twin that looks similar to this!
I worked on a 57 Bassman that came up from Mexico; I spent several hours picking and scraping baked red clay dust out of it with a dental pick and popsicle stick!
I'm not sure you could ever get this level of wear without the amp being moved an absolute ton. Sitting in a garage moving a foot at a time every once in a while aint gonna do it!
@@joshigh you should have seen buddy guy earlier this year. Two completely stripped to the bone tweed obviously original bassmen and he cranks both! I remember hearing that one had all the controls frozen in place from all the crap that would get spilled on over the decades, and he said it didn’t matter because that was his favorite setting anyways!
@@mohamedtlass3842 , lucky you; When I saw Buddy Guy play some years ago he was using a pair of Cybertwins and a roadie would adjust the amps for him inbetween songs. His tone was terrible that night.
@@davidbaise5137 I said in the first couple minutes it's not healthy but had output. I've been working on it every night since this video, and tonight I'll be firing it up so fingers crossed it's all good! New video coming shortly assuming we're golden
@@YeatzeeGuitar Does it makes U change ur opinion about a 68 Super Reverb ? Don't U like small amp whom U can crank full volume to enjoy a pure fuzzy-overdriven sound? keep on rockin'. peace from France
Would you please explain? Had 66 super bassman, they seem to be the same tone, got bass channel and normal channel, i ise both together like did with 66
I have a 66 Super Reverb in need of a quad of correct speakers. I'm on Instagram under same name as here so if you or anyone else for that matter has these either as a complete set or in pairs hit me up.
my uncle gave me one like a decade ago, i had to remove the tweed and grill cloth because it was covered in rodent piss so i call it my "tweedless tweed" 😂 its not worth as much because of it but i wouldnt sell it anyways
Wow that's like having a Ferrari but instead of driving you take out the wheels put it on blocks pop the hood look at the engine then go back in the house and eat a bologna sandwich
Got it from Manny’s in NYC. My bandmate got another one at the same time for even less because it had been sprayed brown and had a handle off a refrigerator. The mojo in those two amps would curdle milk!
If you want to hear how it sounds cranked with a strat.... ruclips.net/video/PHzFzrgrwQo/видео.html
Wow the tube chart was there.. now you understand why i sold it.. i cant see very well and my hearing getting worse everyday.. im so glad you are happy with it.. i was happy to heave it and play for all the years i had it.. take care of it and now that you found the tube chart you owe me 500 dollars heheheh
Stoked to be the next custodian Ron, thanks again! I'll get it healthy again, and try to find a gig up your way!
@@ronshalita HAHAHA!!!
@@YeatzeeGuitar Another thing you could do it kindly let an accomplished blues harmonica player play it for a RUclips demo ... that would be really interesting to hear it.
I've been working on the amp for several days, and it's ready to be heard! Stay tuned for the pt2 video coming very soon 🤙
The 45259 Silver Transformer is the tone beast...I have a 59 and have one and my buddy has a 59 with an an off brand replacement -- the sonic difference is really audible.
I've heard a few people say the same thing
@@YeatzeeGuitar Hot tip the far less valuable Concert amps from that era use the same 45259 tranny. I think they were used in Concerts until 62 or so...
It was a lot of fun watching you go through the chassis piece by piece. There’s something about looking inside an old amp the first time. Like looking into a time capsule and putting on a detective hat to see what the history of the amp is.
Yeah I love it! Super fun to do, and I love the restoring process as well getting it back up to fighting shape. If you haven't yet, check out the follow up videos I did on the amp. A tech video fixing it and then several playing it :)
Saw a great country/rock band in Houston, Eric Danhiem RIP... was the incredibly good telecaster player in the band (The Hollister's) he was playing a 59' Bass man that was an absolute wreck looker, but...... the TONE!!!! Damn!!!!! 😂😳🤯
I gave up my '63 Fender Super Amp to get one in 1975.
Both fantastic in their ways.
I wasn't playing in around '88.
I put it in the "Dandy Dime" giveaway paper with it for sale. "List until you sell, for 4 weeks .
I got one call at four weeks and sold it cheap.
I want both amps back. They're legendary because they deserve to be.
I had a bunch of them back in the day along with the tweed Twins. Those tweed Bassmans sound great.
Wow!
I had three '59 Bassman's from 1975 to 1981. One was thrashed (not quite as bad as yours) one that was totally mint and one that had been recovered in black Tolex and had been reworked in some way. After building and designing amps I would know what was done to the amp but at that time I just played it. It sounded great with my original '59 'burst. Also played a blond neck '67 Tele through it which also sounded great. We did a live demo album in Hollywood in 1980 and that recording is the only thing I have to remind me of the sound. The next band I was in I switched to a '64 Vox AC100 and a '70 HiWatt 100. I had the Vox since 1967 and it was fantastic with those 6CA7 tubes. The Fender Bassman is the design that Jim Marshall used to develop the first JTM45's. When I built my amps, I used all vintage parts Astron, Phillips Mustard, Aerovox, Sangamo, Sprague, Allen Bradley, Centralab and many others. I still think the old parts sound better (as long as they don't leak) but I am sure a lot of people would disagree. Good luck on your Bassman.
The condition of the amp cabinet is priceless ... that's some heavy wear & tear. Reminds me of Rory Gallagher's Bassman.
Don’t understand it all, but I can’t wait to hear it! That amp has Mojo for days. The fact that it’s largely in good shape is fantastic. It’s fun to hear about the effects of different parts on the circuit. I’m not any kind of tech…at all, but I think tube amps are magical.
Clicked this video so fast!! Wow, another killer amp.. I'm TUNED in, can't wait for the next videos on this one!!
Haha thanks!
that's cool af you fixed the switch for the old school gentleman
OOOH BOY! Congratiolations Tanner 👍🏼 had the chance to buy one a couple of years ago but here in Denmark vintage fenders are damn expensive.
Thanks man!!
Unbelievably awesome! I really need to come down again!
Congrats Brother, gonna be cool to see and hear it come back to life!
it's great that you've got place(s) to play that thing out!
Wow this is really amazing! I’m so happy you found one, a dream amp for sure! I know the feeling! 😁 Couldn’t have gone to a better home, you deserve it!
@@Tonefiend super kind of you to say, thank you!
@ It’s going to be a mind blowingly sick live stereo rig with the vox!!! 🤯
Wow, I'm so jelly. It would be awesome if you could find some NOS blue molded caps to replace those Astrons. I'm looking to watch and hear the restoration!!! Congratulations on your Bassman 🎉
That'd be ideal, but man finding .02's is impossible. My super reverb is missing one and I've been on the hunt. Unfortunately it's an odd value that's uncommon
A very nice story without talking about the amplifier which is the TOP, oh imagine if the amplifier could tell us the story of all the gigs and where everything was, for me the most beautiful stories are about old vintage guitars and amplifiers and when they are passed on to another musician who will continue to use them for gigs, that's the most beautiful thing, once again a great story, the old owner is super cool Dude !!!
I know that look. Holding your head because your mind just got blown. Max envy x1000
Congratulations! It’s the holy grail but I want the head a cab “piggyback” type!
Nice find! When you put the new power tubes in, if you continue to use those spring type tube retainers, get a couple of the silicone disks that cushion the tube glass from rubbing against the metal part of the tube retainer, which over time could scratch and crack the glass. AES and other vendors sell them. Looking forward to more videos in this series!
Super cool amp, that Mercury transformer is a great idea! Makes these amps way more practical!
Yeatzee....for a minute there you had the "why did I just do that." look. It doesn't get any better...congrats.
Thanks!
Congrats! What a great project! Very exciting! Ive got a Stu Daddy 59 clone w/ the MM 59 transformers. Wonderful amps, 5881’s really capture the character w/ the P10R’s. Running a 5AR4 which is stiffer feeling than a 5U. I found the 5V4 a nice compromise as well for lower volume. Looking forward to your restoration 🤙
Nice! Yeah the 5U4 I think was probably done because of the PT replacement, I believe that's the right rectifier for what Fender used in the amps with that transformer in
So this amp is kinda the grand dad of my 68 50w marshall plxi amp I've priced these and thay go for five to ten grand for a clean one congratulations have fun !!
Yep! Bet that plexi sounds insane!
Best amp Fender ever built IMO. Glad you got it.
Thanks! Legendary for sure
you need 2 of them...dual mono sounds killer with these!! the pros do it.....
🤣 I'll get right on that brotha!
Can’t wait to hear it!
Nice score, looking forward to the series!
🤘
I remember when I was 15 (1974) using a 58 Bassman a friend’s dad let me use. I didn’t have enough experience with different amps to realize what I was hearing. He offered it to me for $400. I didn’t have that kind of money, and actually didn’t want it bad enough to sacrifice other things I wanted. So I ended up buying a Kustom (the old rolled and pleated cabinet.) bass head and cabinet…..yes, I should be beaten with a rubber hose!…lol. I do own a Victoria 45410. I believe it’s as close to a 59 Bassman as you are ever going to find nowadays .
That's a great story! Many similar experiences I'm sure from that era. Those Victoria's are cool amps
Incredible looking bassman! Congrats 🎉
Thanks!
Now you got 4 tweed Princeton's, basically Bassically!
🤣 I like the way you think!
What a drag, modern tubes. I'm sorry for your loss.
@@skullheadwater9839 😂
@YeatzeeGuitar Well, there was a red label Sylvania 5U4. Just meant it would be fantastic if it had original tubes or even some late 60s RCAs.
I can’t wait for the live gig crank fest! Huge congrats. Anyone have dibs on the guy’s tweed deluxe yet?!?!
Heck ya! And no haha he loves that thing, I think that'll go to the grave with him. Super cool amp!
"[A 1959 Bassman] is god's way of telling you you have too much money". Apologies to Robin Williams for misappropriating what he said about cocaine. But wait: "A [1959 Bassman] made me feel like a new man; and the first thing the New Man wanted was another [1959 Bassman]". 😁
🤣
😄
🍚
Nice stack of $$$ at around 6:00! Good find on the amp😃
Maybe Fender soon starts putting new tweed amps into a tumble dryer will and sell them with aged look for $1000 extra. I think that business card there adds to the value because adds to the history.
@@McSlobo they did relic versions of the reissue Bassman back in like 04, I have one here. It's hilarious, looks brand new next to this one lol
Good score. I love old beat up gear - it ALWAYS sounds better! But not my favorite model at all - the 10s don't seem to have the low end (despite 4x) so the balance leads very midrangey. The tweed Deluxe has a more rich warmth, and tames down some of the strong mids that the Fender single coils put out. Really, one of the underrated amps is the Pro with a 15" speaker. It REALLY has bass. Not a great distortion, but decent and the clean is amazing - plus you can finally hear the low E string the way it was meant to be heard...
Interesting, I feel like it's got low end to spare! I feel like you're either a deluxe guy or a Bassman guy. I've played a 5e5a and it was cool, but not a 15" guy. I honestly feel like they come across as brighter because of the lack of mid range. Definitely more clear low E though for sure
I thought those were supposed to be Jensen P10Q's. I don't know for a fact, but I have a pair of mint P10Q's that I got out of a 59' Lowery Organ. Talk about minty, you would think they were reissue by how clean they are, perfect paint, perfect cones. But I did some poking around and there were definitely Fender's that used these P10Q's I just thought Bassman did too, maybe it was just the Super.
P10Q's were used in the 1960 Bassman's!
@@YeatzeeGuitar I got you, I got a pair of 59's.P10Q's and I was thinking of building a 5F4 to pair with them. I generally build my own designs but I have built one clone which is for a mid 60's Supro model 24/6424 with the PP pair of RCA 6973's. The only differences I did(which are substantial) is an upgraded output transformer which was taken from a Fischer Hi-Fi stereo amp which had a pair of Telefunken 7189's in each channel. This gave it too much treble so I did things like change coupling caps to allow more bass to pass through. I also just gave it one input and wired it with the two channels in parallel/(permanently jumpered) and I skipped the tremolo. Have you ever used pentodes in the preamp stages?
@@skullheadwater9839 I believe my GA40 uses pentode preamps
I built a Marshall plexi 50 watt the transformer was for a 50 watt amp as an experiment I swaped it out for a 100 watt capable transformer and it did improve the sound much sweeter than before and more headroom.
@@itsonlyme9938 output transformer will definitely change the sound
@@YeatzeeGuitar Yes I agree and its down to the the quality of the type of metal used in the lamination and how much attention is paid to the quality of the winding, keeping the winding balanced on each side of the center tap which does help to reduce hum if its balanced correctly.
very cool man! whos yer favorite Bassman player?
I hope you have a clean pair of undies handy, because you may need them after this.
I bought my own original '59 in 1992 for $30...Canadian. I was in a pawnshop in Moncton, New Brunswick, and couldn't believe what I was seeing. It looks almost as ragged as yours. I looked around back, and saw that it had 3 of the original quartet of Jensen P10Rs, and an opening where the 4th one should have been. I also saw it had only one power tube. So, clearly, potential buyers couldn't try it out. What I was baffled by was that this pawnshop was about 100yds from the biggest and best music equipment store for over 100miles in any direction. How did they miss it?
The tag price was actually $40. I guess the guy must have heard me mumbling about having only 3 of 4 speakers, so he did some quick mental math (what's 3/4 of $40?), quoted me $30, and I agreed, trying desperately NOT to look too eager and give the secret away. I plunked down my money, brought it to the car, and drove out of town SO fast, you'd think I sold all purpose flour to the Hells Angels as cocaine. I don't know about where you live, but there is a long-running commercial for IKEA, here in Canada, in which a woman is running out of IKEA, laden with bags. She's yelling to her husband "Start the car! Start the car!", as if she's afraid the store will suddenly discover they set the prices too low and will come after her. That's how I felt.
Once I bought a reissue P10R, and got a decent set of 5881 tubes (the first pair of Chinese ones burnt out right away), it worked great. The tube chart indicates it was produced in either September or December, I forget which (I have a Princeton from that same year, built in the "other" month). One thing I have never quite figured out is this. The Presence control on mine works "backwards" from many contemporary amps. Turn it up and you get LESS brightness and bite. I can see no evidence that the amp had been tampered with, so I assume it was always wired up that way. Now, in 1959, no one was yearning for distortion, so the selective negative feedback from the speaker side of the output transformer was for reining in unwanted additional harmonic content, to get the cleanest possible sound. This leads me to assume that the control on my 5F6-A pulled those reins tighter as you turned it up. So I have to ask, does yours work that way as well, or is mine some sort of anomaly that perhaps someone DID rewire over the years?
Finally, I see the legending on yours is as gone as it is on mine. I sometimes have to look up pics of the reissues to remind myself which control is which.
In any event, besides proof of the divine, congrats to both of us. I hope you get to enjoy yours for many years to come.
What an amazing story!! It needs some work before I can fire it up so we'll see!
Someone applied shellac to the amp after it was originally purchased.
The top is the giveaway.
Many of you know the '58-'60 circuit, 5F6A, is different from the '57 circuit, 5F6. It's just a few things. For some reason, they share the same serial number sequence. That is, the '58-'60 5F6A circuit didn't start with a new serial number sequence.
I have a 1957 Bassman, Production 1, serial number BM00027. It's been reversibly modified to the 5F6A circuit and has the original P10Rs, reconed by Orange County. It was recovered by Larry Rodgers before I bought it. He told me it was a mercy job, rescuing it from Naugahyde.
So sweet. It's a good thing I'm not a jealous guy lol.
The controls will be the same as your plexi.
Looks super clean inside. Great score !
I know whos videos may help..."Millstap" the Bass-man guru. He got his bass-man combos to sing with his love of Hendtix and his Strats.
In 1987 I bought 1 1956 2 rectifier 4x10 bassman for $300. I think the dual rectifier models were better than the later singles.
@@shasba nice! Different beasts, the 5e6 couldn't hang with what I do not loud enough
Yup. Yeehaaww!! ; )
(was wondering what you were up to)
Super busy, not only with this but getting through a number of friends PCB amps which are a drag. That plus recording and traveling. This was worth filming though!
I want one!!!
The name on the masking tape in my '52 Princeton says " Lupe", so I'm guessing it's the same woman.
@@thebenefactor6744 there are a few names that show up. My 59 Princeton was a Rachel
Congratulations! Quick question - did you want extra V1 gain from 12AX7 substitute for 12AY7 original? I have had good luck with exchanging 5751's for 12AX7's in the preamp gain sections. I'm really looking forward to more videos around this amp.
@@IL2TXGunslinger gonna try it all! And thanks, I'm excited myself haha
1,2,3 - we're all jealous! 😄
😆
Bad ASS man!!!!
@@JoshRoberts-fo5gq🤘🤘
Love the pile of cash in front of the owner while he tells the story!
@@michaeldavis4969 that story cost a pretty penny! 😆
I have a 55 bassman, and as good as it is, I want a 57-60 bassman also now!
Nice! Those '55 bassman's are super cool as well, raucous!
@ they are a bit easier to control at lower volumes, and you can pull one of the rectifier tubes to get more sag and less output, without danger
I have both. ‘55 is hands down better! That sag from dual rectifiers is so sweet.
@@MY-qx3gd I always thought theyd be too low wattage for gigging, not enough volume on tap. I might be misremembering but aren't they closer to 30w? Similar to a tweed pro, I played a few of those and they were not loud enough to gig definitely.
Old lady, in love for life! Like!
Beautiful, damn!!
It's own kind of beauty!
Neat find.... for economics sake, I'd likely build myself a clone, since building things is half the fun. You like what you like though.
If you just want sound, absolutely! I love the historical aspect, piece of history. Pay a price for it though!
@@YeatzeeGuitar Yeah... no hate from me. The old school amp sound is special... and I've found that Alnico vintage style speakers are preferred in most of my amp builds.
I have a mid 1990s reissued 59 Bassman 4x10 amp I let someone else to work on it. Now it has a loud humming noise when I turn up the volume and presence
@@davidallen346 that's not great! The tech should fix it
@YeatzeeGuitar The amp didn't need a Bias. He replaced a capacitor, ever since then it started to make this loud humming noise. When I confronted him about it. He denied that it made any noise. NOT many great guitar amp techs in Colorado. They always want to make a quick profit Then do a very shotty repair work
:/ sorry to hear that man, unfortunately not uncommon
What brands of those YELLOW Capacitors? Mostly Fender used AJAX Blue color Capacitors which I think they used the AJAX Blue color caps in the 50's tweed amplifiers
Astrons! Tweeds used the yellow astrons, the blue moldeds are fantastic but didn't come into play into the early '60's
@@YeatzeeGuitar Some 50's tweed amplifiers use those AJAX Blue Color Capacitors which were either from the fender factory or someone from the 60's changed out the Astrons Yellow Capacitors replaced them with the AJAX blue color capacitors in tweed 50s fender amplifiers?
@@waynegram8907 Yeah people swap the blue moldeds in all the time. If you look at the tweed deluxe I worked on for the guy in the beginning of the video you can see he did exactly that. Swapped the astrons for the later blues.
@YeatzeeGuitar did the blue AJAX capacitors come out of the fender factory in the 50s? Or by 61-62 fender started using them?
@@waynegram8907 60's. I think it might be '62
Congratulations 🎉
Did the tube chart state 5U4G for the rectifier tube or etc?
I couldn't make it out.
@@MojoMedicineMan these want a GZ34, the 5u4G was probably done when the previous tech did the PT swap
@YeatzeeGuitar
Right, that's why I asked.
I've seen a lot of rectifier tubes swapped in used Fenders, especially with newer power trannies.
I hope that MM upgrade is pleasing for what you needed too.
@MojoMedicineMan check the 2nd video in the series, it goes over it + the install and final voltages 💪
@YeatzeeGuitar
I couldn't find that link for the amp work? Just the sound demo.
The playlist is linked in the description 🤔 here's the direct link ruclips.net/video/CFb3auAiqO4/видео.htmlsi=KiWY3ZQxCuO4xs6j
What the HELL happened in 1959 with Guitars & Amps ? Why was it the BEST YEAR EVER ? I was 11 years old I got my First Fender v Strat when I was 15 !
@@MrPinkStrat it's insane, something in the water!
1959 the year everything came together
@@qlyde seriously!
not the. same but i. sold my showroom condition 1965 Super reverb 6 years ago. i replaced the caps, hardly used it. wife said i had too many toys. big regrets. left with 2 Matchless, one Traynor bass head, one 1964 deluxe reverb.(caps replaced)
I always wonder what kind of life amps like these really lived. Were they tossed in and out of a pickup truck? Did they sit in a musty garage or shed for 40 years? Did a dog chew on them? Do they really have thousands of hours of hard actual play wear or just moved around a lot?? I have a '66 Super Reverb that looks like it was babied and I have a '70 Twin that looks similar to this!
I worked on a 57 Bassman that came up from Mexico; I spent several hours picking and scraping baked red clay dust out of it with a dental pick and popsicle stick!
I'm not sure you could ever get this level of wear without the amp being moved an absolute ton. Sitting in a garage moving a foot at a time every once in a while aint gonna do it!
@@joshigh you should have seen buddy guy earlier this year. Two completely stripped to the bone tweed obviously original bassmen and he cranks both! I remember hearing that one had all the controls frozen in place from all the crap that would get spilled on over the decades, and he said it didn’t matter because that was his favorite setting anyways!
If that wasn’t enough, there was a Twinolux as well, I think it was the « clean » channel for his less wild songs like Skin Deep!
@@mohamedtlass3842 , lucky you; When I saw Buddy Guy play some years ago he was using a pair of Cybertwins and a roadie would adjust the amps for him inbetween songs. His tone was terrible that night.
😮😮😮😮 wow
That amp was painted black at one time. Don't know if you mentioned it, I haven't watched the whole video yet.
@@robertbogdan7058 nope definitely wasn't. This is what old tweed lacquered tweed will do
Ok. Time to get to work.
@@sgt.grinch3299 🫡
Rather have a modeller. Genuinely.
@@sillysausage4549 to each their own! 🙂🤙
Suhweeeet!!
Ever have a Mary White? I have a 66 Bandmaster MW.
@@richdonn Mary white?
@YeatzeeGuitar yeah, inside the Chassis there is a piece of masking tape signed "Mary White"
@@richdonn oh that's cool, not heard of that so late into the 60s
Waiting for 30 minutes for you to turn it on…. Does it work?
@@davidbaise5137 I said in the first couple minutes it's not healthy but had output. I've been working on it every night since this video, and tonight I'll be firing it up so fingers crossed it's all good! New video coming shortly assuming we're golden
Dude!
💪
Didn’t Buddy holly play through one of those
I believe so!
lucky you
Very lucky
@@YeatzeeGuitar Does it makes U change ur opinion about a 68 Super Reverb ? Don't U like small amp whom U can crank full volume to enjoy a pure fuzzy-overdriven sound? keep on rockin'. peace from France
@@howltrigger7713 I think this thing trounces the super honestly, and I love my super. I like big amps personally
Congratulations with a Capital C!
🙏
EHX Mig 50?
?
Supposed to be same circiut design@@YeatzeeGuitar
@@andrewmuelleranantababaji8073 a la Jtm45, which is actually different in a number of ways?
Would you please explain?
Had 66 super bassman, they seem to be the same tone, got bass channel and normal channel, i ise both together like did with 66
@@andrewmuelleranantababaji8073 a 60's bassman is a completely different amp than the 50's bassmans. They share very little in common.
*wow it's like marry very used very old woman!*
😂 What?
How much did you pay for it?
Between me and the previous owner 😉 but prices for these have definitely dropped in the past 6 months
I have a 66 Super Reverb in need of a quad of correct speakers. I'm on Instagram under same name as here so if you or anyone else for that matter has these either as a complete set or in pairs hit me up.
@@richfiryn good luck!
my uncle gave me one like a decade ago, i had to remove the tweed and grill cloth because it was covered in rodent piss so i call it my "tweedless tweed" 😂 its not worth as much because of it but i wouldnt sell it anyways
@@1-eye-willy some say they sound better without the tweed!
I wanted to hear it growl.....too bad.
Stay tuned I've been working on it non-stop since this video. It's almost ready!
Wow that's like having a Ferrari but instead of driving you take out the wheels put it on blocks pop the hood look at the engine then go back in the house and eat a bologna sandwich
@@william7108 🤣 alrighty
If I told you I got one in 1966 for $125 would you block me? 😂
@@jerrymcgeorge4117 I'd give you an applause! Hope you still got it!
Got it from Manny’s in NYC. My bandmate got another one at the same time for even less because it had been sprayed brown and had a handle off a refrigerator. The mojo in those two amps would curdle milk!
You are rubbing the top of your head, I hope you are OK!!
Build your own amp and get over it. But then that isn't click bait.
What part of this video is clickbait? "I bought a 1959 Fender Bassman".... which I did... and showed on video... 🤔
Whf!
Пздц, как можно показать его и не сыграть на нём?
ruclips.net/video/OBpGmOStF0U/видео.htmlsi=GMY6oobK-ylhdys6
It wasn't ready yet, needed work.
I have a 61 oxblood cream Bassman. 6g6a circuit. Is it the same circuit as a 59.
Nice! No very different amps, but still great! I had a 6G6 on the channel not long ago