1978 Fender Studio Bass, Bassman on Steroids

[forevertobeginning]

I just put one of these on lay away until the end of the month. Its a chop job, I will need to replace the head cabinet. Also there is an switch right next to the line/recording out on the back that didn't do anything while I played through the amp. Any ideas? Also, do you have the chassis measurements and/or cabinet measurements? Thanks

[bulletman100]

this was the predecessor of the Fender Rumble bass 300 watt SVT copy. Fender got embarrassed by not having a legit bass amp in their line. all their 'bassmans' were used by blues guitarists! they finally tried to enter the modern era of bass amps with this one. then they hired the guy from the Linden era of Ampeg (from Knoxville.. cant remember his name) to design the rumble bass. a lot of guys cut that weird cabinet off the bottom of these and used them with legit cabinets for great tone.

[Bellina70786]

Here's the trick. You can convert this video to an audio mp3 file at a website called audofier daht cahm. (This wouldnt post here unless I misspelled daht cahm).

[pece33]

I posted a link on TB about this sound.

I recently bought some Eminence BP102 speakers which are voiced LOW !!!

BFM says its impossible to get a sound like this out of them but i do get this if not exact its very close.That warm vintage sound its great.BTW the BP102 are very warm sounding. The bass response is mind blowing.They do lack a little bit of high-end treble but i replace it with more mids & it brings the high notes up but not the level of ear piercing highs.

Good sound here.

[beninjamin]

does anyone knows what this combo is worth now?

i can buy this for 500 euro

[beninjamin]

tubes baby!

[masterofthesky101]

How many inches is the speeker

[danerectal]

What kind of footswitch does this use?

[three95basser]

A studiobass amp is the best tube amp that i ever heard!!

sry for the shitt english im from germany xDD

Das is der geilste Amp ever ich kenne einen... sowas geiles....xDDD

[wisesatyr72]

Peavey sounds better and its solid state it'll last forever

[BassDude50000]

r u a bass player for jazz band or something? i know all the same licks. nice job

[brewtronics]

wow.. nice growl

bit jaleous actually...

hope i have the schematics on this one at home :P

[brewtronics]

schematics are in the tube amp book...

[pwhoriskey]

beautiful. I had one that was cut apart, but the guy put the original speaker in the new cab he had made for it (go figure). He built uprights on his own too, so it was no amaure-hour kind of thing at all. Anyway, I lost that beauty in a fire a million years ago. I tried out a flip-top b15 re-issue and that just couldn't match the dag-nasty growl of this amp. Man do I miss that thing.

[youlookgoodtome]

Thanks, I just retubed it this week and wow, what a difference! I'm just beginning to figure out the vast spectrum of tones, now that the amp is really singing. With the right settings I can even get a respectable modern "scooped" tone. Who knew? Did you buy your amp from John Styklunas? He is a bass builder, he once owned this amp and did the same mods you spoke of.

[pwhoriskey]

Holy needle in a a haystack, batman! Yes, I got it from John Stylklunas. I think he was just getting into bass building at the time. That guys got a great sense and appreciation of detail. He was telling me some of his ideas on how he wanted to mic uprights internally, what kind of mics, where they would pick up various parts of the sound, etc. Most of it went right over my head but it did sound cool as could be.

[youlookgoodtome]

It's a small world after all. It's Phil, right? I spoke with John and he woes the day he got rid of the amp. I may have him build a separate head and speaker cabinet so the thing will be a bit more gig-friendly. But I won't cut up the existing cabinet. You never know; Les Claypool may start using a Studio Bass amp and it'll become and instant collectible!

[pwhoriskey]

Yep. This is Phil. Do I know you, or did you get the name from John, (or both)? That thing was beautiful. I never heard it as a true combo and it's hard to hear the cab well through the speakers on my laptop. It's the growl that I remember. I never went for a real scooped tone but tended to push the low-mids up. Savin' the cab in case it becomes collectible is sound thinking. Have you tried trowing a modern 15 next to it and just plugging the speaker in to hear what the difference might be?

[youlookgoodtome]

Yes, I got your name from John.And yeah, this amp growls, barks and bites like a pit bull. I do not feel the need to plug into a modern speaker. But I have biamped it with two 18 subs (!!!!). Whoever designed this amp knew exactly what he was doing. The custom EV totally integrates with the amplifier. When I do the head/cabinet conversion, I'll use that driver and recreate the cabinet right down to the 2 x 4 bracing, MDF baffle, trademark pine back and sides and cheesy postal tube port!

[hotdawgfish]

lovely ,,i want one

[Eriogonum]

Now, if you REALLY care about your tone, you'll pull the guts out and make that a "head only" amp with a good, external, modern speaker enclosure. Like mine with my 4x10 Eden! Muhahahahaha! Un. Beat. Able. Tone. It's been called the "Super Bassman". Google it.

[youlookgoodtome]

I will eventually pull the guts and put them in a head cabinet, but for now I still enjoy the sound of the stock speaker; it is not modern, but is perfect for the ocassional blues or classic country gig. You ever load the amp down to 4 Ohms? No problems?

[punzi101]

yeah thats a good question. Don't you get problems load the amp down to 4 ohms?

i've also got a studio bass :) and i got to ask myself a question: that 15 inch speaker, does it handle the massive 200 watt all valve power? and if, does the speaker lose its punchy sound, when the amp is fully cranked up. i would try it on my own, but not in this flat

[voodoojeepee]

simply beautyfull !

[radcam69]

Sounds as close to my B-15 as I've ever heard.

[youlookgoodtome]

Thanks for the encouragement. It really is the best amp you never heard of! I'm fairly certain it is a 1978 model. The transformer codes don't lie.

[pompomposity]

I have one ! I think this one is a '81 or 82 cuz the '78s had the silver grill cloth.

This is the best sounding bass amp. I have an '71 SVT and an Eden Traveler. This has more head room and sharper attack than any transistor amp I've heard.

These are super rare and this one is in the best cosmetic shape I've ever seen.

Good luck!