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Post subject: Musicmaaster Bass Amp Upgrades for the 6V6 amps.
Posted: Wed Feb 12, 2014 12:28 am
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Great little amps but they need some help. First of all any old tube amp needs a cap job that is a given. Now when Fender came out with these amps with the 6AQ5 version the power transformer was rated 245-0-245. That was fine for the 6AQ5 tubes. Now when Fender upgraded to the 6v6 tubes they should have put in a heavier power transformer for the 6v6s something in the 300-0-300 to 310-0-310 range. What a other 6v6 amps would use like a Princeton or Deluxe. So the amp with a stock PT and 6v6s is wimpy at the start since the amps power section cannot push the 6v6's like they should be pushed. So for upgrades I put in an Allen TP24 transformer and a heftier output transformer a TO 20 which is a 8 ohm output transformer. Both of these transformers were designed by David Allen of Allen Amplification and Bill Machrone of Billm Audio. I bought them at Allen Amplification. Both these transformer upgrades made a huge difference. Now the speaker could use some work too so I put in a 12 inch 8 ohm Eminence Tonker which Eminence told me they thought would be the best application for this project. What a beast this is now in a small package. Loud on stage when set at 3 and using pedals and a EQ to help with the tone stack. I gig with it now and leave my 100 watt Fender PA 100 at home unless I need a lot of power.


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Post subject: Re: Musicmaaster Bass Amp Upgrades for the 6V6 amps.
Posted: Wed Feb 12, 2014 12:49 am
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Many folks pooh-pooh the smaller class AB 6V6 platforms for 'serious' stage work but I've taken my piggyback Princeton conversion (driving a pair of JBL K120's through a Showman-sized enclosure) to many a gig and open-mic event and received nothing but praise for its tone and its ability to "play nice" with the larger amps that other players invariably insist on bringing. Properly upgraded, the Musicmaster Bass amp is a great grab-and-go rig that's often overlooked as a viable option.

Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY


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Post subject: Re: Musicmaaster Bass Amp Upgrades for the 6V6 amps.
Posted: Wed Feb 12, 2014 3:19 am
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jh45gun wrote:
Now when Fender upgraded to the 6v6 tubes they should have put in a heavier power transformer for the 6v6s something in the 300-0-300 to 310-0-310 range. What a other 6v6 amps would use like a Princeton or Deluxe. So the amp with a stock PT and 6v6s is wimpy at the start since the amps power section cannot push the 6v6's like they should be pushed.


IME the type of rectification and power supply filtering can really boost the bass and transient response of the amp. A GZ34/5AR4 tube rectifier or solid-state rectification reduces sag. And healthy caps with a choke will give the amp good voltage and current reserve.


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Post subject: Re: Musicmaaster Bass Amp Upgrades for the 6V6 amps.
Posted: Wed Feb 12, 2014 5:44 am
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On the RCA Receiving tube manual , 6AQ5 and 6V6 use same current . 6V6 can hold more plate voltage . IMO you can use same power transformer for both .
But if you use a powerfull PT for 6V6 you'll have more power and headroom .


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Post subject: Re: Musicmaaster Bass Amp Upgrades for the 6V6 amps.
Posted: Fri Feb 14, 2014 6:35 pm
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A relatively easy way to help the bass and transient response would be to up those electrolytic caps in the power supply. From 20mfd/300VDC to 20mfd/500VDC. With the solid-state rectifier, you can go to 30 to 40mfd/450 or 500VDC help add some reservoir.

http://www.webphix.com/schematic%20heav ... _schem.pdf


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Post subject: Re: Musicmaaster Bass Amp Upgrades for the 6V6 amps.
Posted: Fri Feb 14, 2014 11:43 pm
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BMW2002Ti wrote:
A relatively easy way to help the bass and transient response would be to up those electrolytic caps in the power supply. From 20mfd/300VDC to 20mfd/500VDC. With the solid-state rectifier, you can go to 30 to 40mfd/450 or 500VDC help add some reservoir.


+1

And once your filter caps are upgraded, adapting the Deluxe Reverb iron (PT and OT) to fit the chassis will put some real muscle under the Musicmaster's hood.

Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY


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Post subject: Re: Musicmaaster Bass Amp Upgrades for the 6V6 amps.
Posted: Wed Feb 19, 2014 1:33 pm
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I forgot to add the new cap job was the first thing I did and all the caps had heavier voltage ratings. The Transformers were next then the speaker and I got to say the speaker made a huge difference. Night and Day. With it being a higher DB gain speaker. 102 DB it really makes come alive. I have the amp on a stand and miked and the stand is right behind me. The amp vol is set on 2.5 or 2.75 and is fine for stage volume. Since the amp does not even come on until the volume knob hits 2 it is just idling. Of course every venue is different but for small to medium gigs this amp is perfect. For larger gigs I can use my 100 watt PA100 which is a great head since it is like a 4 channel 100 watt twin or showman.


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