Fender Bassman 300 PRO Head

2008 amp. I play rock, classic rock, and blues on a Fender P-bass with an Original '62 pickup. The other posters have described the capabilities of this amp really well.

Again, I agree with what everyone else said. The thing is super loud and really, really fat. There's something out there called "the paradox of choice," I think--it's where the more options you have, the less sure you are that your choice is the best one. I think this amp has some of that going on, at least for me. You really can get nearly any sound you want out of it, which is great, but it makes it hard to settle on one. I spent a good number of hours tweaking. Finally, I settled on flatting out the EQ and engaging the low boost, mid cut, and high boost switches. Then, on the graphic EQ, I brought the 125 and 250 sliders down just a touch to give a bit more definition to my sound. Added some compression, and called it a day. I think I've found my sound, and it's rich, warm, deep, and defined. I mean really, it sounds amazing. I'm moving from a solid-state Fender Bassman 250 head, which I thought sounded good but was too quiet. In comparison, this one is about eight billion times louder and has--yes, I'll say it--that warm, thick tube sound.

My advice to you is to keep tweaking those knobs until you get the sound you want, because it's in there. And one more odd thing: with the solid-state Bassman, I basically didn't use the tone knob on my bass because it sounded like crap--up high, it sounded thin, and low, it sounded muddy and muffled. I just kept it in the middle. With this amp, my tone knob finally gets used, because I can roll it high for a nice, punchy tone that still has bass, and I can roll it low for something more mellow but that still allows you to hear the individual notes. Amazing.

Seems great, knock on wood. I warmed it up for about three hours and biased/balanced it every hour (I think I read that on here), and then double-checked bias and balance after a few more hours of playing time, and it was solid. As others have noted, it runs hot, but it's not going to burn anything. There's a smell for the first about six or eight hours of use that is kind of like a new woodstove (where the paint is burning in)--it's stinky, but after about eight hours, the smell's not there anymore. I guess I figure it's the paint heating up, just like with a woodstove.

I mailed Fender about my Bassman 250, and they got back to me within a day with an answer.

I've played for 20 years. As for why I picked this head, I wanted to go tube all the way, and I was looking at some others (Ampeg, obviously), but every single review I read of this amp was an unconditional rave. I figured I couldn't go wrong. I also like playing a Fender bass through a Fender amp. Yes, it's heavy and big, but face it, it looks incredible squatting there on your cabinet. And you can look through the grille and see the tubes glowing back there--I mean, c'mon, how sexy is that?

Amazing amp. The user has almost infinite tone-shaping options: The 12-band EQ works very well, it even has separate EQing for the overdrive and compression sections. You can blend in overdrive very neatly to precision, I ended up with an amazing rock tone, sounded big, warm, tight and had a hint of distortion. Adding the low boost really drives out 15+ inch speakers, in my opinion, better than any amp on the market today.

This is one of the most underrated amps there is in my opinion. The sound is crisp yet smooth, the 6550's that come with this amp make the sound H U G E. If you are a rock musician and have a big, beefy cab or two to give this thing justice, jesus h. christ, you will be blown away. Grab a warwick or a stingray, or in fact any half decent bass guitar, add a little distortion and fine tune your perfect tone.

This thing is a beast, there is no doubt about that... The 6550 tubes will need to be replaced if you want to be chucking it about on tour. As it is all-tube you need to be careful to let it warm up before any heavy sessions. Overall, you can trust this thing with your life if you treat it well, have it serviced occasionally.

Very good customer support from Fender UK, even though these things are a rarity in this country. Have phoned them twice about tube issues and theyve pointed me in the right direction both times, excellent.

Overall, very very versatile and POWERFUL. Try and check these things out if you live in the UK, I think a British company called Sunn actually created them for Fender. If you're a touring bassist thinking of buying an Ampeg SVT, this may be the perfect alternative. Try it out, its well worth the money.

all the other reviews describe the features pretty thoroughly. 2 channels, although the 2nd channel gives you a blend with the first (you can set the blend 1 - 10, so plenty of room to play).

this amp has more features than i really need. i like to think that less is more when it comes to amps. less knobs = more straight-forward sound. that said, this amp has tons of compression options, and it took me a while to finally dial in something that gave me the full range of sound i was after.

not sure of the year of manufacture, but mine has the Fender script logo.

again, everyone has already said how awesome this amp sounds. I like my bass crusted out and this amp can deliver.

i play anything from punk rock to doom with this amp and it delivers on all fronts. it does kind of choke on my low A sometimes, but i think that has more to do with the schecter scorpion bass i'm playing than the amp. it loves my musicman basses.

i bought this amp on ebay back in 2006. It has had its fair share of problems since. for instance, it always smells like it is burning.

blew a tube pair in fall 2006. took out the main fuse and the pair fuse. replaced all the fuses and did a full re-tube with JJs. Get blowing the 100mA pair fuses on all 3 tube pairs afterwards, so i took it in to a Fender shop. they said they fixed some stuff and it worked fine until september 2008. then it died completely. took it to another shop, they found tons of burned up components! wow! imagine that. replaced a lot of stuff, re-soldered connections, etc. i fired it up and it still smells like it is on fire. no one else ever seems to mention this as an issue so i wonder if mine is a black sheep.

i've gigged it 10 or so times and it was flawless, although after it died at practice in sept 2008, i now think about dragging along my acoustic 370 as a SS back-up.

bought used. no warranty, so no communication with Fender directly.

found an authorized shop who was slow in fixing it. took it to an independent tech who did other grade A work for me. i have the schematics so it seems easy enough to find good people who can fix it.

i love the sound but i am always worried it is going to explode in flames. the burning odor is scary.

i keep dumping $$ into repairs because i love it. the sound is what i've always been after.

if it was stolen, i'd definitely get another all tube bass head, and most likely another fender bassman 300. a warranty would settle my nerves!

MADE IN 2008 ALL TUBE 6-6550 AND 3-12AX7 AND 1-12AT7. TWO CHANNELS, FOOT SWITCHABLE AND BOTH CHANNELS CAN BE BLENDED TOGETHER. HI AND LOW COMPRESSORS WITH INDIVIDUAL GAINS AND BALANCE BETWEEN BOTH. PASSIVE EQ KNOBS AND A GRAPHIC EQ YIELDS MANY GREAT TONES.

I HAVE PLAYED BASS FOR 44 YEARS. OWNED THE SVT WITH BOTH 8-10 CABS NEW IN 72 FOR $1,100.00. THIS IS A BETTER AMP. MUCH MORE VERSATILE.
CHANNEL 2 IS THE DRIVE CHANNEL. BLEND IT ANYWAY YOU WANT WITH CHANNEL 1 (CLEAN CHANNEL). THE LOW END IS STUNNING! I OWNED AN SVT CLASSIC AND SOLD IT. I HAVE DEMO'D THE VR SVT AND IT HAD A DISTORTION IN THE BACKGROUND THAT TURNED ME OFF IMMEDIATELT. I PUT TUNGSOL 12AX7 REISSUES AND A GE 6201 (PHASE INVERTER) 2-SOVTEK KT-88 AND TWO EH 6550 (BIG BOTTLE) AND KEPT ONE PAIR OF THE GT SOVTEK SVETS. BIASED AND BALANCED THE AMP. SOUNDS SUPERB. IT IS ALL THERE!

IT HAS ONE FUSE BEHIND EACH PAIR OF OUTPUT TUBES(3 TOTAL)AND EACH FUSE HAS A PILOT LIGHT SHOWING YOU ALL IS OK WITH EACH PAIR. IF A TUBE BLOWS IT TAKES OUT THE FUSE AND ITS PARTNER TUBE. THE AMP KEEPS RUNNING NOW ON 4-6550'S. VERY WELL THOUGHT OUT. THIS HEAD IS A CLASSIC AND WILL BE THE NEXT COLLECTORS ITEM IN THE FUTURE. TO BAD FENDER MARKETING DOES NOT HAVE A CLUE? I HAVE NEVER SEEN ONE OF THESE HEADS UNTIL IT ARRIVED AT MY DOORSTEP. I BOUGHT BECAUSE OF THE GREAT REVIEWS ON HARMONY CENTRAL. THEY WERE ALL ON THE MONEY!

5 YEAR TRANSFERABLE WARRANTY. IT TAKE ABOUT 8 TO 10 HOURS FOR THE AMP TO BREAK IN. CAPS TONE CAPS TUBES ETC. BUT AFTER A WHILE YOU WON'T BELIEVE HOW GOOD YOUR BASS WILL SOUND. YOU CAN GET A FENDER SERVICED ANY WHERE. BUY A DIGITAL VOLT METER TO BIAS AND BALANCE THE TUBES IN THIS AMP. IT IS SO EASY.

I HAVE OWNED MORE GEAR THAN YOU CAN IMAGINE. TUBE AND S.S. I WOULD REPLACE THIS HEAD IF IT WERE STOLEN AFTER I STOPPED CRYING. BASS AND TUBE AMPS UNFOTUNATELY GO TOGETHER LIKE BREAD AND BUTTER. THE SOUND IS TO DIE FOR. IT SWELLS UP (BLOSSOMS)IN THE BAND MIX, FILLS IN THE VOIDS. SO ROUND AND VERY VERY AUDIBLE. NOT BOOMY OR LOUD, AUDIBLE!IT IS IN THE 70 POUND RANGE. I WISH IT HAD RADIAL TRANSFORMERS TO SAVE ABOUT 15 POUNDS. IN MY OPINION THIS IS THE BEST SOUNDING BASS AMP MADE TODAY. I DARE ANYONE TO A/B THEIR RIG AGAINST THE BASSMAN 300 PRO.

There are four features that set this apart from the SVT in terms of sonic flexibility, and make it the absolute best non-boutique bass amp in the world.

1) The dirty channel and channel mix feature adds another dimension to this amp. The distortion has a great tone, and with the right blend, it's top notch. No need for high-end pedals if you're looking for the guitar-like bass tone.

2) The graphic EQ makes a world of difference. If you boost the mids on the graphic EQ, you can great a great sound that mimics the SVT-CL. The graphic EQ can also be bypassed through a toggle on the face of the amp or footswitch button.

3) The compressor, like the second channel, provides a high-quality, flexible way to alter your sound without having to invest more money into pedals.

4) The footswitch is highly useful for those who need one.

The only issue with this amp is that it is EXTREMELY heavy and the handles are pull-out straps instead of springloaded ones like the Ampeg cabinets feature. This makes it very difficult to carry.

It's used with a Fender American Vintage '57 P-Bass reissue. The thing absolutely smokes. It's versatile, it's got the "tube" sound that you simply don't get out of most amps in production, and it is LOUD. We are an extremely loud band that plays music in the vein of Dinosaur Jr., and it never goes above 4 on the master volume. Ever. The thing is simply monstrous. I see a lot of kids wheel their 170 lbs 8x10 cab in with a dinky little solid state amp just for the look. This amp is used with an Ampeg 410HLF which is all we'd ever need. Simply a fantastic sounding amp. At 300W, it has all the headroom you'd ever need. Stays very clean on Channel 1 at high volumes.

The cable that came with the footswitch gave out after a couple shows. The very tip of the jack got stuck in the footswitch input, so the amp thought that it was being controlled by the footswitch and we had to bring it in to get serviced. Not completely certain that it was a jack problem and not an amp problem, but otherwise, no problems.

Don't bother with an SVT unless you absolutely want the SVT sound. This amp can do the SVT sound, and then some, for 3/4 the price. If you're a weekend warrior playing little clubs without access to a large vehicle, it may be too big and loud for you. I simply have not heard a better bass amp currently in production.

Fantastic, only the DI is strange 'cause is switchable between pre post, pre is direct sound of the bass like tuner output and post is the preamplified sound but is influenced by the master pot! Why this thing? Anyway, for the rest is very good, 2 channel, with drive one, mixable with clean channel, eq, graphic eq, compressor, that's all right!

I use it with a SVT 810e, nothing to say, the best sound ever heard! Specially if you use a Rick one!

all ready covered.

I am using a Fender Jazz Bass and a pair of Avatar 4x10 and 2X12 cabinets with a combined 2 ohm load. With this set up I have finally got the bass tone i have always dreamed of but failed to obtain with countless other heads. Rich, thick tube tone that you can feel in your chest. LOUD, LOUD, LOUD. I keep the volume at around 3 and I still drown out my guitarist at times (he uses an orange stack!!) You would need a couple of 8x10 cabinets to really maximize this heads power, but who needs to be that loud -really?

I have had it about a year with no problems so far.

I have not needed it so i don't know.

Overall, i give this head a 10 because I have owned or tried out dozens of heads over my 20 year career and with no question, this has been my favorite. I am a TONE-FREAK and this thing does the trick. my last head was an Ampeg 300 watt tube head and it's tone only shadowed what this head can sound like. Yes, it weighs more than a baby hippo but the tone is worth the future back problems it may cause.

300 watts all tube power.2 channels clean and dirty.Plenty of volume under all circumstances.In fact this thing needs two big cabs.Very versatile and much more than the svt-cl

This amp should be one of the best ever made!
Amazing sound and plenty of volume that can ruin any cab you have!!I have an SVT-215 and every time i push the volume at 3 (out of 10) it is begging for mercy.So you better combine it with an SVT-810 or two of them!It is that powerful.
Another positive is the fact that you can change the sound any time you want.The EQ is fantastic...
You can't get a bad sound out of this amp.Just give it some time to warm it's tubes and it will blow you away.
Before i bought it, i tested the SVT-4 pro and it was nothing compared to the 300 pro.
Give it a try and you'll see what this monster is capable for.

i don't know yet cause i bought it a few weeks ago but i guess i won't have problems.So far so good

Local dealer very helpful.It comes with 5 year warranty

If it was stolen or lost i would not buy the same one cause i would like to try a different amp maybe an svt-cl.But that doesn't mean i don't like this amp.Actually i love it!!!

Alright.This thing is a monster.2 channels 300 watts all tube power.The eq is very helpful in order to find the sound you're looking for.

This amp should be one of the best ever made!
Amazing sound and plenty of volume that can ruin any cab you have!!I have an SVT-215 and every time i push the volume at 3 (out of 10) it is begging for mercy.So you better combine it with an SVT-810 or two of them!It is that powerful.
Another positive is the fact that you can change the sound any time you want.The EQ is fantastic...
You can't get a bad sound out of this amp.Just give it some time to warm it's tubes and it will blow you away.
Before i bought it, i tested the SVT-4 pro and it was nothing compared to the 300 pro.
Give it a try and you'll see what this monster is capable for.
Last but not least is the classic good looking and the excellent quality it has.Very good construction.
As regards the SVT-CL/VR i haven't tried them so any comparison it would be wrong.The only thing i know is that 300 pro is an excellent amp despite it's weight, it's price(2100 euros) it's huge size and the fact that doesn't have speakon ouputs.
Well, overall an amazing amp.

I bought it two weeks ago but i guess that will work fine as all fender products.

5 year warranty

I bought it two weeks ago but i guess that will work fine as all fender products.

5 year warranty

This is a great amp.It truly is.Just give it a try and you'll see.
I think that is as good as an Ampeg SVT-CL or even better at lower price!

Previous reviews have nailed down the numerous features this amp offers quite well. The only thing that I wish this amp had was reverb, but there are certainly ways around that -- outboard reverb, tape echo with reverb, etc etc.

When experiementing with this amp, I tried out 10's, 12's, 15's and 18's as well...I have found that mesa boogie 15's are the best for me, though 10's can work well too. I use mesa boogie 15's, which sound by far better than the fenders that were manufactured to be used with this amp. That said, my needs of this amp are different than most reading this review. I am a live keyboard player, and I run all my analog synths thru this amp: korg ms 20, moog prodigy, roland jupiter 6, yamaha cs 60, yamaha cs 40m. My fender rhodes is NOT a good match for this amp. Effects I use have varied in the last few years, but between all these synths I have used everything from Boss analog delay, korg tape delay, big muff original, 70's morley flanger (for guitar type leads), korg octaver, etc etc. This amp eats all that stuff up. The amp drive suits my needs well, so I don't use any drive pedals with it anymore. I have not found an amp that can rival this for all purpose synth playing. It is such a smooth tube compressed sound, and I love it more every day. For bass lines and anything low, it will KILL anything out there right now. The mesa 15s will not add life to your sound, it will just give you a CLEAN sound coming out, and with this head and those speakers I get a great smooth response at any frequency range. That said for guitar like leads (AKA jan hammer style), it does the trick, but this is the one thing that a guitar tube head would be preferable for, like a jcm 800 or something along those lines. I tried out all the tube heads out there and this was by far my favorite overall, and it surprised me that it was 2/3 the price of everything else, sounds better and does more. For some reason the effects loop is a little noisy for me, but in live situations you don't notice it much at all. Extremely versatile, the EQ is awesome and very responsive. Adding just a tiny bit of gain at a 3/10 ratio can will thicken up poly synths with only 1 osc per voice. For me the compression on the amp is not anything special, but I don't use compression much in general so its not a deal breaker -- just fairly useless for my needs.

I think I can speak with authority in this category. I bought this amp new. I used this amp for 300 shows in two years time, WITHOUT a road case, clunking in and out of our tour vehicle each night and it NEVER gave me one problem. NEVER. I've had it now for 4 years or so, and i still haven't had to change the tubes, it sounds like the day I bought it! This said, the bassist in my band liked my head so much he bought a used one on ebay, and it did screw up while we were on the road. We brought it to a repair guy, he opened it up and found that there was some arching going on in one of the quick sauter points, so he sautered it himself, costed 13 bucks to repair. No more problems since. Not bad. That is something to think about...anyone that owns one of these should open it up cut the quick sauter points and re sauter it themselves to avoid this problem.

Never dealt with...

I've been playing pro and in rough bar night club situations for a long time, and this amp has ALWAYS been consistent and my friend. If these amps weren't so darn heavy I'd probably buy more of them, they are CHEAP used on ebay sometimes. I know I'm not a bass player so take all of what I said for what it is, but honestly I've tried the ampeg tube heads that have come out in the last 20 years, and the mesa boogie 400+, and any other major brand that has tube or tube hybrid, and I really just didn't like how they sounded with my analog synths as much as this one. The ampeg svt classic sounded the worst by far, I remember vividly being dissapointed when I tried it out, because until that point I guess I believed the hype. But, everyone's ears and needs are different. This amp really does it all for me, except for reverb, but I don't think ANY bass head in the last 20 years has had reverb, so I get around it using my korg tape echo. I hope people start using these more, it would improve the sound of rock music 10 fold.