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Post subject: Am Vintage '64 Jazz Bass Demo : played through a Bassman
Posted: Fri Apr 12, 2013 5:50 pm
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I just love what I hear in this demo:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hHX-0sfP ... ploademail

He plays through a bassman it seems... And when you look at the bass amplifiers on Fender.com, you won't find the Bassman.

Yeah I know all about the bassman but not finding the bassman in the bass amp section
is kind of strange I would say.


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Post subject: Re: Am Vintage '64 Jazz Bass Demo : played through a Bassman
Posted: Sat Apr 13, 2013 10:21 pm
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The 59 Bassman Vintage Reissue is in the VINTAGE REISSUE SERIES section of the amps page.

While the best bass amp of the day in 1959, at about 45 watts a 59 Bassman isn't considered powerful enough to actually be a bass amp today and is mostly used by Spanish electric guitarists and professional harp players.

You of course can use them for bass as the video demonstrates, but in a live band they lack power and the low end boom generally associated with modern bass amps. I would not recommend that a bassist buy one except for very low power applications. They would be fine in a Jazz trio or for some recording tones for example but start to fall short in anything much larger. They are very heavy and very expensive. Frankly there are better options today that are lighter, more powerful and much less costly for bassists. Let's not forget the maintenance headaches inherent with all tube amps.

In the video you linked to it does seem to compliment the Jazz Bass soloist playing along with a controlled recorded track quite well and it sounds very sweet. It isn't the quality of mids and upper mids that are lacking, it is actually quite good at those and that is in fact what is being showcased in the video. I think the 59 Bassman RI would be inadequate if the drummer on the track was there playing live though. It is more a finesse than brute force amp for electric bass. Works great for guitar and harp live though. The 59 Bassman (especially the REAL 1959 one with the blue Jensen speakers) is probably the best live harp amp ever made. I just love hearing a good harp player using one of these amps with a Shure Green Bullet and consider that the sound standard by which you can measure harp amps.


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Post subject: Re: Am Vintage '64 Jazz Bass Demo : played through a Bassman
Posted: Sun Apr 14, 2013 12:15 am
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Not to confuse with the Bassman Pro series amplifiers

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Post subject: Re: Am Vintage '64 Jazz Bass Demo : played through a Bassman
Posted: Tue Apr 16, 2013 6:33 am
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He's also a studio musician so I think the Bassman would be a fine amp in that setting.
Makes me want one of those bases though.


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