Harmonica Amps Vol.65 Fender Bassman vs. Fender Bassman RI

[Jim6123]

new bassman is more bright, maybe that's it (because the sound is captured by the camera - not a good mic) but probably the old bassman is not only more mellow on but also sounds more bluesy (less modern).

[greenfuzz13]

That's a pretty good way to put it. The original sounds warmer. The reissue has more distortion .

[kwarnisplayer]

The reissue sounds better to me, but they are both awesome!

[willwelsh816]

god those things gotta get loud to distort gutiars, I could imagine how loud to distort a freakin harmonica lol. your neighbors must love you,

[celtik74]

@willwelsh816 i rekon the saturation (most of it) comes from the mic... i use a "green bullet" for saturated lo-fi vocals and it works well...

[BrandonSantiniHarp]

what kind of tube configuration do you have in the re-issue?

[Harpsucker]

@BrandonSantiniHarp GZ34, 2x6L6, 12ax,12ax, 12ay

[BrandonSantiniHarp]

@Harpsucker What is your opinion as to the difference in tone / overall sound characteristics of the GZ34 as apposed to a 5AU4?

[Harpsucker]

@BrandonSantiniHarp well i just put in what the tubechart is asking for

[rmachayes]

To my ear, the reissue sounds tinnier or brighter than the original. Otherwise, I could discern no big differences. Nice videol

[mantra3000]

You have an extremely appealing sound, man.

[maxxNProduction]

Your accent sounds like as....you are from germany^^

[Harpsucker]

@maxxNProduction no shit

[MrThunderharp]

@Harpsucker Great answer, T. That was funny! A buddy of mine who's touring in Europe right now, Johnny Mastro And Mama's Boy's, uses a mildly modded 1990 RI Bassman and that thing really screams. Nice and bright, compressed and alot of low end projection. A sound inbetween both of those Bassmans.

[Harpsucker]

@MrThunderharp yes i like the reissues as well, they are very close to the originals, and by the way its the indian not the bow

[Joss060606]

Great "professionnal" test

I wish you could make the same test with a guitar to compare these bassman sounds.

[harmonicajohn]

I like the reissue better IN THIS DEMO.

I would have to do it myself. Reissue had more gain before feedback and a nice break-up.

[SiKxBlAzEr]

can anyone tell me what the knob next to the on/off switch next to the reissue is?

[RubHerSoul1]

of course the reissue is for sale. LOL! couldn't afford the original anyway. who could?

[Harpsucker]

@RubHerSoul1 years ago almost everybody could, in 87 i purchased one for $1000,- and now ???

[RubHerSoul1]

@Harpsucker you're talking many years ago i'm sure. i don't think the reissue quite has it like the original. maybe it's the eminence speakers, but there's probably more to it than that.

[notfoundyet1]

hi harpsucker! I want to ask you what is your favourite harmonica (out of the box)

if I talk about the crossover, M-B deluxe, seydel solist pro, seydel 1847... I also heard that their was not alot of difference between the solist pro and the 1847.. tell me what you think wich is your favourite^^! I really love your playing and I hope you will continu to do your videos!!

[Harpsucker]

@notfoundyet1 Marine Band Deluxe

[jeffcasey1957]

dooooooooooooont sell the original itsworth 11 thousand dollars reissue is shit come pared to the real 12

[Harpsucker]

@jeffcasey1957 you can have it if you give me the 11grands

[cyberpunkbebop]

Reissue gets close, and to the average listener (or audience member) they probably couldn't tell the difference. And for Harp the difference is even smaller. But when a seasoned guitar player plugs a guitar into these two amps and you'd DEFINITELY hear a difference. Reissue is like a modern interpretation of the original amp - More BrownFace than Tweed. The original has the Tweed tone. The reissue doesn't

[spirandeliroba]

muito bom, mas os jensen soaram mais abertos, e vivos. ótima comparação.

[jesse2952]

dammmm...careful with those tube amps...no offence. 59 takes it tho i think!

[XShinjoX]

the old one is lot better

[elsoultero]

Good stuff!

[vitsamutsu]

I preferred the reissue

[gosiawoodman]

Thanks for all your work Mr H....

Where do you get these amps !!!!

[SteveTheJazzMan]

Original seems more mellow and less up in your face

[Guitarjosii]

wow, ein echter alter bassman... was kostet so 'ne kiste heutzutage etwa? :)

[Harpsucker]

@Guitarjosii je nach Zustand von ca. 5000-10.000

Dollar, in Europa so ca 5000€uro je nach Zustand

[Guitarjosii]

oha... dann wird das wohl nur ein Traum bleiben...

[geridg]

I agree: I think the reissue siounds a bit clearer and brighter, but who the hell knows. Can use use any mic to plug into an amp or do you need to get a special chord with an amp jack, because my sm57 only came with a typical mic jack?

[Harpsucker]

@geridg SM57 will not sound right you need a high impedance mic, SM57 is low impedance, for further questions ask goldenbug he is selling good mics

[dgblues11]

Great job with the side by side comparison! Just wondering if the reissue has the original pre amp, power , and rectifier tube set up. Thanks!!

[Harpsucker]

@dgblues11 well i put in a rectifier tube and in the first preamp stage a 12AY7,so the setup is

GZ34,2x6L6,2x12AX,1x12AY

[1952Telecaster]

reissue is brittle sounding while the vintage Bassman is smooth and warm

[johnnyleetone]

The original sounds much warmer and more broken in. I figure the reissue will sound as great when it's had some 40 years of break in time too, sounds great already anyway! Nice playing btw, I've been trying to learn harmonica for awhile.

[alimonkey]

What setting shave you got on the reissue there mate?- sounds great

[Harpsucker]

@alimonkey Bass 12, Presence 12, Volume 3,5, Treble and Middle 0, normal channel

[cjh444]

I reckon the older ones got the edge !!

[ohrofax]

ist der bassman schon verkauft

[Harpsucker]

ja der ist weg

[ohrofax]

welche reglerpositionen u. vol. sind bei beiden amps. übrigens

muß es zum harp spielen ein bassman sein. ich spiele harp mit

gibson falcon rtv 19 od. blackface princeton.

[Harpsucker]

muß nicht, hat aber ordenlich power, da kommst du mit deinen kisten schnell an die Grenze

[xxxxharp]

I liked the Delta blues amp 'till I took it to a gig. Not near enough volume but some great tone !!!

[zimmy81]

definately great info and playing

[bluesdog88]

Awesome comparison, thank you Harpsucker...I have a Bassman RI LTD and play mostly guitar through it, I have a loudbark wooden harp mic (Australian) and i get really bad feedback even with the volume only on 3, I didnt want to spend $300+ on a Kinder Anti feed Back Box, any ideas on my feedback problem?

[Harpsucker]

since i dont know the mic its hard to tell if its you or the mic or the amp, but 3 with a Bassman is pretty loud, i know many pro players switch from the tube setting 12AY-12AX-12AX to 12 AU-12 AU-12AT, i did try this setting several times and it works pretty good for harp

[bluesdog88]

Thanks for the reply harpsucker, theres a little trick with the bassmans, ypu put a patch cable between the normal and bright channels, and you can use both volume controls, I took this off and now feedback is gone....hurrah ;)

[Harpsucker]

great, kind regards thomas

[strawwoodclaw]

bluesdog88 i think the 90's Bassman ri works better for Blues Harp than a RI LTD

[pobas]

Settings that have tubes placed in the Fender Bassman RI ..

12AY7 - 12AX7 - 12AX7?

Regards.

Pobas.

[Harpsucker]

yes sir

[JGZerbe]

how does one even start to begin how to learn how to play like that?

[Harpsucker]

ask a local player to give you lessons

[sergeimolinov]

The old one sounds much better. Warm !!!

[PopExpo]

the RI can sound just as good if you do the right things to it...like play the shit out of it and where it in. a lot of amp snobs suffer from a placebo effect...... and to get a really good vibe from an instrument you gotta spend at least a week with it. I know i got both.

[Harpsucker]

yeap

[Maysey1]

The vintage bassman has a lot more warmth and soul. I have an old 65 Deluxe reverb, maybe I should get me a nice mic like that and try blowing some harmonica through my amps.

[jkterrell]

Finally someone reviews the Bassman RI. I've used an RI since 1992 with a great response. Both from the amp & my audiences. I just retubed it with Cyroset Tubes & it is smokin. Love ya'lls videos in Dixie. The Bassman RI is a wonderful harp amp.

[spec20]

You can change out the recitifier in two minutes and replace it with the power tube. Look for used RI's, it takes 'em about three years to soften up and give you THAT sound!

[Harpsucker]

the RI does have the rectifier tube and a 12 AY7 in the first stage

[SianReynolds]

It's funny - a lot of amp snobs turn up their noses at the 59 RI, but for the money it's a damn fine amp.

[Harpsucker]

damn right

[arnenym]

Thank you and welcome back.

The speakers and caps from 59 make the amp very warm and nice, But i believe i like the 90 RI better. It cut true a modern loud band better and its feels a lot safer to haul around on gigs.

Okey, the 58 handles was hotter but i have to warn you for the handles from the 70-s. They are bright , harsch and trebly.

[Harpsucker]

haha, great comment, thx

[ppkbond]

Thanks very much for the comparison.

Can you have a guitar player use a Strat

and / or a Les Paul for tonal differances ?

Best Regards from USA !

[Harpsucker]

well i cant play guitar, only 3 chords, i got to ask somebody

[mikefugazzi]

If the reissue is using all 12ax7 preamp tubes and the original has the 12ay7 in V1, than the comparison isn't very accurate. That would take out some of the highs and harhness of the RI.

[Harpsucker]

The RI got a GE 12AY7 in the first stage and a GZ34 rectifier, same as the 1959

[mikefugazzi]

Thanks for the info! I should have known you'd have caught such an issue! Love your vids!!!

[ceilidhe]

Excellent video, thanks. Great to have a side by side comparison like this and great to have you back in front of the camera with commentary. Thanks again.

[danielvalentino]

the trick to making the RI sound good, try changing the preamp tube that is closest to the power tubes to a 12AU7 instead of the 12AX7, leave the other preamp tubes. then you can turn it up to to about 5 and get a more saturated tone.

thanks for posting...yourr vids are great!

[Harpsucker]

are you sure ,i think they all change the very first one, not the one next to the power tubes, anyway its the same effect

[spec20]

I own the '90 RI and absolutely love it. If he's sellin' it, buy it. A little tube switchin' and yer on your way. But Gawd, to own that original! If I were a rich man, deedle deedle dum...

[Harpsucker]

i own this 59 so long, i payed back in 87 $1000 which was a lot of money for an amp

[redmeatheart]

original is slightly warmer, although i think the reissue sounds better to me, more present, aggressive.

[Harpsucker]

and its much louder too, the original need some new caps and resisters, nothing has been changed since 1959 stock original only the handle is newer, but i think that doesnt change the sound , doesnt it?

[redmeatheart]

haha no your right, i've played through a huge amount of amps as i'm a guitar player and to this day the best i played was a 90's bassman reissue in a store. I've also played through the new LTD bassman amps and they arent anywere near the 90's reissues, apparently the 90's reissue have a solid state rectifier amongst other things and fender got pissed about people moaning that it wasnt the same as the original so they brought out the ltd version. the early 90's reissues are my fave bassmans.

[Ev630]

Depends, what year handle? Some of the 1959s had the handle from the 1958 run and those are way hotter.

;)

[12gagedan]

You can really hear the difference.  Both tones are good, but the 1959 sounds more like it's in the room. The RI sounds far away. The warm (1959) vs. treble-y (1990) observation is definitely right on. Most people in the audience wouldn't notice, so it comes down to whether you have $3500 or $800 to spend. I love these videos.

[trottleskeeze]

Nice to hear you talk again! I definitly prefer to the 1959 version. The sound is more warmer. The 1990 version is more trebbly and cuts. Did you try the BBE sonic maximizer stomp? I think the old basseman would have a killer tone with it. These pedal keeps the natural tone of the amp but it's less muddy.

[bluesplayer94]

THESE SOUND AWESOME!!!

[Ev630]

The new one is way brighter but I agree, who cares? The Reissue Bassman is a terrific harp amp. Just pop out the first tube and put in a 12AY7, and use a cool mic. Va-va-voom, baby!

[strawwoodclaw]

good stuff!

[samhinrichsen]

59 for sure

[fabzoundfactory]

the original older are very moore pretty good and cryspy nice harp sound ....

[harpin191]

Finally someone made a comparison with some solidarity!

[samhinrichsen]

the vintage sounds alot warmer

new ri brighter trebley

i prefer the older one 59 ROCKS!!!

so does the new one

either way im a guitar player who is crazy over bassmans