GASing for a Bassman

[greatmutah]

So this has been in the back of my mind for a bit but kinda came up recently. I’ve been using my Metro and Orange a lot lately and decided to switch gears and give my Muffs and distortion boxes a workout. I tried them into the cleans/low inputs of all my amps but ultimately the best hard rock sounds from these came from my Vibrolux going into the 4 ohm input of my 1960A with Greenbacks. And to be fair it sounded pretty damn glorious. Normal channel, bright off, volume between 5 and 6 with some decent EQ settings sounded great.

So I started thinking about swapping speakers in the combo and don’t really want to do that for a few reasons. I like the speakers I have for more classic blackface style tones and they work for those. Also, even putting Celestion style 10s into a combo won’t necessarily equate to the amp/cab setup due to a closed back 4x12 being a whole different animal from an open back 2x10. So I started thinking about an amp and here’s where my brain wandered. The best pedal platform head I ever had was a Peavey VTM60. On the low input, it sounded awesome with dirt pedals. I had a Big Muff with Tone Wicker then that sounded perfect with that amp. But VTM asking prices are insane right now. I had no problem with a VTM under $500. Closer to $1K and I have a problem as I can get other amps in that range. Like a Bassman. So it got me thinking that maybe a Silverface Bassman might be the way to go. And I think that’s my next major gear goal. The circuit changes weren’t super crazy from AB165 onward. I’d be looking at a 50 watt amp. Wattage isn’t much more than my Vibrolux but I also know the OT is different and a bit louder. But I’m not really worried about being able to drive the amp by cranking it (Although I’m sure I will at some point or another) because I’ll be using it mainly for pedals. And honestly? I’ve seen 68 - 70 Bassman amps around $1K. Recently serviced, 3 prong cord in place, clean, etc. Given that most folks today are focusing on quieter amps i may be able to benefit here, especially since Covid prices are coming down. I can use my Vibrolux like this as it is for the time but it would be cool to have a late 60s Silverface amp in the stable and one I could possibly dip my toes into doing more than basic maintenance on. Plus there’s at least one good tech local to me who knows old Fender circuits inside and out. I’ve got my main amp tones covered in other gear. Marshall and Orange in spades and clean Fender for American sounds. Why not get a 50 watt Bassman to use for more garage and alt rock sounds?

This is just me spitballing out ideas, as I don’t know when exactly I’m going to do this. But figured I’d ask the group think and see what you guys think? I mean at worst it’s a bad idea, and in the middle it’s still another map.

[Guitarbilly]

I'd do it man. It's not a lot of money and it's an amp for a lifetime. There's no upgrading from a Bassman for what it does.
I

[greatmutah]

That’s kinda how I’m feeling? Plus if I decide the bass channel isn’t something I’m digging i can mod the tone stack to be closer to a Marshall style voicing? I already know I like the Fender Normal channel tone stack and voicing as is. Plus the channels are in phase on anything AB165 or later so blending would be an option too.

[Beef]

Sounds well thought out to me and it’s definitely a classic amp that should do what you’re looking for. Do it!

[I'MAPUNKROCKERDAMNIT]

I think the best fuzz tones come from an amp that was designed to be clean... like a Bassman... or just about any other Fender amp.
I really, really, really, really love the way fuzz pedals sound on my Hi-Tone (Hiwatt DR103 clone)....really!!!

You can't go wrong with a Bassman and it will give your amp collection more versatility.

[greatmutah]

I think the best fuzz tones come from an amp that was designed to be clean... like a Bassman... or just about any other Fender amp.
I really, really, really, really love the way fuzz pedals sound on my Hi-Tone (Hiwatt DR103 clone)....really!!!

You can't go wrong with a Bassman and it will give your amp collection more versatility.

I'm inclined to agree. Partially because I'm GASing for one. I did think about a HiTone or similar but I feel like if I went that route, I'd want to go down the cab and speaker rabbit hole of Fanes and the like. And this is one rabbit hole that's big enough for me as is.

And I agree about the clean amp part. My 1960A has the stereo switch on it and when in mono one input is 4 ohms (all 4 speakers in parallel) and the other is 16 ohms (all four speakers in series/paralell). So I disconnect the combo cab from my Vibrolux and run the amp to that cab for this purpose. The Vibrolux Normal channel just works for smacking it with dirt pedals, especially something like my Astoria or Hizumitas (which I also boost with a SD-1 because mids). I like the Vibrato channel more for cleans. Maybe it's the extra gain stage or something. You would think the opposite but with an A/B box it makes more sense as I can go to cleans and verb that way. I don't play the amp quiet either. It needs to at least be at 4 on the dial, which is loud but not painful. It's where the amp sound fills out more. Between 5 and 6 it stops getting loud and just compresses and breaks up a bit. And it's just a different sound from what I normally play the most. It's just filthy and grimy and fun.

[MikeO]

There's no upgrading from a Bassman for what it does.

This. My 79 Bassman head into a nice 4x12 is the sexiest clean sound I have ever gotten.

[Tortuga]

Will NEVER believe my luck in scoring a very clean, almost completely unmolested 1966 blackface Bassman for $700 back in 2020. Love that thing. It loves my greenback cab.

Got to get that thing back on the bench and finish up the mods I was doing on the bass channel (normal channel is pure Bassman, bass channel is being rewired into a Marshall-type cathode follower tone stack with a switchable extra gain stage, using the extra unused triode on one of the preamp tubes).

That amp will never leave me.

[MikeO]

That’s kinda how I’m feeling? Plus if I decide the bass channel isn’t something I’m digging i can mod the tone stack to be closer to a Marshall style voicing? I already know I like the Fender Normal channel tone stack and voicing as is. Plus the channels are in phase on anything AB165 or later so blending would be an option too.

This is what I do with mine. Either channel on their own sound nice, but when you blend the two together the sound takes on an almost 3D quality. Fap worthy to be sure.

[greatmutah]

That’s kinda how I’m feeling? Plus if I decide the bass channel isn’t something I’m digging i can mod the tone stack to be closer to a Marshall style voicing? I already know I like the Fender Normal channel tone stack and voicing as is. Plus the channels are in phase on anything AB165 or later so blending would be an option too.

This is what I do with mine. Either channel on their own sound nice, but when you blend the two together the sound takes on an almost 3D quality. Fap worthy to be sure.

Yeah that’s the part of the plan. I know I could essentially just chuck my Vibrolux into a headcab and essentially have a Bandmaster that way, but I actually do like to use the Weber 10s for sparkly cleans and Americana type grit. And I’ve always wanted a Bassman of sorts. NMV amps aren’t the most practical things to have but they do what they do well. And a late 60s/early 70s SF Bassman has been on my radar for a bit. Plus I love the SF look and aesthetic.