Bought my first one for $400, bought my second one with a matching cabinet for $800. Still have both - they can't be killed. Such a tank of an amp. I only wish I'd had it sooner.
I recently came across a a bassman 70 head and a dual showman 2x12 cab for 50 bucks at a garage sale. Everything works great nothing wrong and I love it
Something peculiar about it is that you can jump both channels in parallel with a simple guitar cable from one input 2 to the other channel input 1. Setting up the treble in the normal channel while setting up the bass in the bass channel gives a way fat tone.
It started life as a Bell Telephone Labs PA! Leo used their copyrighted design, had them add a tone stack guitar input. All the 1950s vintage amps had copyright Bell Telephone Labs. I love history.
I have a handwired aa864 running at around 26-28 watts with 2 6v6 output section. It's kind of a Trainwreck Express and it is beyond versatile. Friedman makes some wonderful Bassman copies as well. Love my Pink Taco!!
Bassman heads from 1965 on (both BF & SF) have an extra gain stage not found in the combo amps. Lead players like the crunchy breakup of the additional gain stage. Of course there are tons of nice reversible mods for bassmans that can really dial in the sound.
Got my first bassman when I was 17 that was back in like 1977 .had no idea it was what vanhalln was using .it was one of many I have owned Don't have one now wish I did
Very different circuit from the marshalls..that was the late 50s 5F6A bassman and its 80 watt sister..the twin. I always thought these were a killer mod platform since stock they had some weirdness going on with negative feedback..sort of an early ultra-linear attempt. 20 years ago ppl hated these and you could get em cheap. I rewired my own 65 ab165 to 6g6b specs and its lotsa fun to play. Those have an even cooler (and even worse for bass) bass channel.
I bought a Blackface version, 65 or 66, not sure because I joined band that needed a bass player. Paid about $150 for it and sold it a few years later for about the same. Obviously a mistake.
If you are not familiar with the Fender Bassman, Fender tube amps or tube amps in general, I would suggest finding additional info than what this gent provides. He provides some info that lacks context and points that are not necessarily accurate.
they are not all the same though. The silverface ones are really good but have more headroom and kind of cleaner. Good firm sound though, better than the pro reverbs etc of the same period imv. The blackface ones break up earlier, like 3 and are much growlier. Awesome rock tone but sometimes you wish there was more headroom. The blonde ones are different again, early breakup too but brighter?
There are many, many versions of this amplifier that are rightly called "classic"; each with different sounds. Tweed, blackface, brownface, silverface--which version do you consider "the classic"?
Tbfh running a bass through the normal channel sounds way better than the bass channel.. has a hell of a lot more lowend. Especially if youre using the bassman 135.
yes, it's generally ok to match a speaker with higher impedance, just not lower. Speaker efficiency will figure into the volume as much as impedance, so it really depends on the speaker.
@@JOAQUINARMIJO yes this model is a bit shorter.. Depends on the era, but not enough to make a difference maybe 2 inches, just as heavy, Fender had about 4 chassis sizes for these style of amp, all where identical except for length. The bandmaster reverb was also taller to accommodate the reverb
Actually, it says 4ohm "total" load. That's two 8ohm speakers in parallel, if you're using the main output plus an extension speaker. My 2x15 silverface bassman cab from 1970 is an 8ohm cab.
It's a Bassman 50. Judging from the Fender logo without the Fender underlined on the front, I believe it's a late '73 to '75, maybe '76. Mine's a very late '74 or early '75 with the same non-underlined logo. The early '73 and earlier Silverface and Blackface amps had the Fender logo with a line under it, and the '68 (late '67) and '69 Silverface amps had the drip edge. The very early Silverface rip Edge amps had black lines on the faceplate, which indicated they had the earlier Blackface AB165 circuit.
the video was titled "a Talk" not "a Demo," or "A dude showing off pentatonic scales throw a great amp but with a phone microphone and compression and RUclips compression added." That's a video on another channel. :-)
@@GarysGuitarsUSA I have a '71 super bassman that I play bass through...in the guitar channel but with a powerful bass cabinet, just like yourself...and yes it has a gigantic transformer
I have have a '66 Bassman and a '73 Marshall Super Lead 100, and I'll tell you that my Bassman has 95% of the gain/drive of my Marshall. They sound almost identical. So close, that you'd just be guessing unless you'd a/b them back to back. Both of them are unmodified original circuits. The Marshall just has more midrange punch that fattens up the gain a little bit more.
It's a bass amp. Bass amps are designed to get the cleanest possible output. Bass players want the opposite of what a guitarist wants (unless you like fuzzy bass). They want a clean punchy sound. Obviously when you push it, it's going to do what every valve amp does (saturate the signal) but you won't get high gain overdrive out of it. It wasn't designed for that. I would get myself a decent overdrive pedal if I were you. Using a pedal with the Bassman with a decent overdrive pedal is a killer combo.
Bought my first one for $400, bought my second one with a matching cabinet for $800. Still have both - they can't be killed. Such a tank of an amp. I only wish I'd had it sooner.
I recently came across a a bassman 70 head and a dual showman 2x12 cab for 50 bucks at a garage sale. Everything works great nothing wrong and I love it
I have been looking for deals like that for 30 plus years
I just paid 650euros for a pretty worn looking Bassman 100 that needs some work and that was a great deal over here lol
You need to return my aunt.My mom's soda by accident, I would really appreciate it.I will return your fifty bucks!
I bet you do. You Scored 😂
Something peculiar about it is that you can jump both channels in parallel with a simple guitar cable from one input 2 to the other channel input 1. Setting up the treble in the normal channel while setting up the bass in the bass channel gives a way fat tone.
I was wondering why I saw a guy unplug a patch cable from both channels. Thanks for the info. Picking up a bassman 70 with cab on Friday
It started life as a Bell Telephone Labs PA!
Leo used their copyrighted design, had them add a tone stack guitar input.
All the 1950s vintage amps had copyright Bell Telephone Labs.
I love history.
Very down to earth overview of this brilliant amp. They have one where I went to university. Been seeking a 50w bassman out since.
I have a handwired aa864 running at around 26-28 watts with 2 6v6 output section. It's kind of a Trainwreck Express and it is beyond versatile. Friedman makes some wonderful Bassman copies as well. Love my Pink Taco!!
Nice vid! Love my ‘68 bassman. Modded the left channel to a Marshall JTM45 circuit
I have a 1990 4x10 Bassman Reissue and it's the only amp I keep at the studio. It sounds incredible and it's an amazing pedal platform.
Bassman heads from 1965 on (both BF & SF) have an extra gain stage not found in the combo amps. Lead players like the crunchy breakup of the additional gain stage.
Of course there are tons of nice reversible mods for bassmans that can really dial in the sound.
Friend in college had one. We weren't good enough players to recognize is greatness though....
Got my first bassman when I was 17 that was back in like 1977 .had no idea it was what vanhalln was using .it was one of many I have owned
Don't have one now wish I did
Thanks for taking the time to make this. Well done sir!
got a original owner 67 Blackface last year. Its awesome.
The huge output transformer is what makes all Bassman amps great for guitar.
The great Fender sound.
'64 6g6B here. Love it. Use it for Clavinet, guitar, and synths.
Best amp I ever owned!
Very different circuit from the marshalls..that was the late 50s 5F6A bassman and its 80 watt sister..the twin. I always thought these were a killer mod platform since stock they had some weirdness going on with negative feedback..sort of an early ultra-linear attempt. 20 years ago ppl hated these and you could get em cheap. I rewired my own 65 ab165 to 6g6b specs and its lotsa fun to play. Those have an even cooler (and even worse for bass) bass channel.
Thank you! Another interesting video...Keep them coming!
Awesome
You can always add digital reverb
Great review
Interesting
I bought a Blackface version, 65 or 66, not sure because I joined band that needed a bass player. Paid about $150 for it and sold it a few years later for about the same. Obviously a mistake.
I was always under the impression channel 1 is bass hence the boom switch and channel 2 was the guitar channel hence the bright switch.
Another great video
thanks!
If you are not familiar with the Fender Bassman, Fender tube amps or tube amps in general, I would suggest finding additional info than what this gent provides. He provides some info that lacks context and points that are not necessarily accurate.
Great Amp
If I want to play guitar and bass, what kind of cabinet do you recommend? a guitar o a bass cab?
they are not all the same though. The silverface ones are really good but have more headroom and kind of cleaner. Good firm sound though, better than the pro reverbs etc of the same period imv. The blackface ones break up earlier, like 3 and are much growlier. Awesome rock tone but sometimes you wish there was more headroom. The blonde ones are different again, early breakup too but brighter?
There are many, many versions of this amplifier that are rightly called "classic"; each with different sounds. Tweed, blackface, brownface, silverface--which version do you consider "the classic"?
Traded mine . I got a Gibson ripper a Fender strat and bunch of cables
I may be purchasing a Bassman 70. Is that just 20 more watts than yours, or a different model all together. Thx
Yes to both questions.
Tbfh running a bass through the normal channel sounds way better than the bass channel.. has a hell of a lot more lowend. Especially if youre using the bassman 135.
Noticed it says 4ohm minimum. I assume a 1x12 8ohm is ok? Does the reduce anything like volume or EQ? Thx
yes, it's generally ok to match a speaker with higher impedance, just not lower. Speaker efficiency will figure into the volume as much as impedance, so it really depends on the speaker.
@@GarysGuitarsUSA Thx, is the bassman also smaller in size than say a Band Master?
@@JOAQUINARMIJO yes this model is a bit shorter.. Depends on the era, but not enough to make a difference maybe 2 inches, just as heavy, Fender had about 4 chassis sizes for these style of amp, all where identical except for length. The bandmaster reverb was also taller to accommodate the reverb
Actually, it says 4ohm "total" load. That's two 8ohm speakers in parallel, if you're using the main output plus an extension speaker. My 2x15 silverface bassman cab from 1970 is an 8ohm cab.
@@twosistersstudio I know a Twin Reverb says 4 ohms and the 2x12 is wired in
Parallel to use two 8ohm’s, maybe it’s the same for the bassman.
What model is this exactly?
It's a Bassman 50. Judging from the Fender logo without the Fender underlined on the front, I believe it's a late '73 to '75, maybe '76. Mine's a very late '74 or early '75 with the same non-underlined logo.
The early '73 and earlier Silverface and Blackface amps had the Fender logo with a line under it, and the '68 (late '67) and '69 Silverface amps had the drip edge. The very early Silverface rip Edge amps had black lines on the faceplate, which indicated they had the earlier Blackface AB165 circuit.
So you're not even going to play one note through it so we can hear what it sounds like?
sorry, that's another video by another person.
the video was titled "a Talk" not "a Demo," or "A dude showing off pentatonic scales throw a great amp but with a phone microphone and compression and RUclips compression added." That's a video on another channel. :-)
@@GarysGuitarsUSA I have a '71 super bassman that I play bass through...in the guitar channel but with a powerful bass cabinet, just like yourself...and yes it has a gigantic transformer
I can never get enough drive out of my bassman for guitar, not even looking for high gain obviously it just sounds like loud clean.
turn it up!! or Try a "EHX Soul Food" on the way in.
I have have a '66 Bassman and a '73 Marshall Super Lead 100, and I'll tell you that my Bassman has 95% of the gain/drive of my Marshall. They sound almost identical. So close, that you'd just be guessing unless you'd a/b them back to back. Both of them are unmodified original circuits. The Marshall just has more midrange punch that fattens up the gain a little bit more.
Mod your left channel to a Marshall circuit
Same here...Wonder if had someone messed with it ...I,ve heard ...blackface and silverface difference is mínimal inside
It's a bass amp. Bass amps are designed to get the cleanest possible output. Bass players want the opposite of what a guitarist wants (unless you like fuzzy bass). They want a clean punchy sound. Obviously when you push it, it's going to do what every valve amp does (saturate the signal) but you won't get high gain overdrive out of it. It wasn't designed for that. I would get myself a decent overdrive pedal if I were you. Using a pedal with the Bassman with a decent overdrive pedal is a killer combo.