Fender '59 Bassman Reissue

Bought it new in 2007, 2 channels that you can combine with a short 1/4" cable (a neat trick!) , Rarely use the mid control, but I guess a lot of players appreciate it being there. I use it in a rehearsal studio, and it's plenty of power. Kinda wish there was tremolo or reverb, which is what fender was trying to do with the Hot Rods, making a "modern interpretation" of the classic amps, but those don't compare in fidelity to this amp. Just wish there was a Bassman 2, same electronics as this one, but with the effects.

The main reason I'm writing this review is to tell the truth that it's not a "clean" amp, like so many people are reviewing it as. It has an excellent clean sound at low volume, but the beauty of this amp is how it breaks up with the volume at only at about 4, giving a really sweet blues tone. Then when you get up to 7 or higher, look out, it's Jack White territory! No wonder this amp failed as a bass amp. If you want a tube amp that has a lot of clean headroom, consider a Deluxe or a Twin. Not much else to say that hasn't been said already; it's versatile, powerful and great-looking. A definite keeper.

No problems so far. I've heard of the fuses going once in a while. Damn, it's a 2 ohm amp! Mine has had no problems at all.

Never had to deal with them in regards to this amp, but I've called them before about other things and they're kinda so-so about addressing problems and getting back to you. But Korg or their other competitors are no better.

Been playing for over twenty years. If it were lost or stolen, I'd probably get another one, can't afford a custom shop version. I own a 410 Deville, Peavey Classic 50 and other Fenders and Marshalls, and nothing compares to this amp as far as tone and playability is concerned. I think the magic really starts in its preamp stage.

'59 Bassman Reissue
If you're reading this you probably know the stats, However the fact that input 2 has 6db of less gain is amazing for me as my Casino is LOUD.

Year is 1993 bought mine in February '08 mine was modified by the original owner. He added an adjustable bias, a tube rectifier, and about five layers of poly over the tweed.

This amp is amazing. I bought a new twin in 2005 for only $700 because it had been sitting for about two years for the first six months I loved it then I had many problems with it, after sending it in twice they replaced it, got it back and was happy for almost a year then I couldn't turn it up to 3 without it rattling to death. I called the store and got a full refund(VERY surprised). I found this amp on craigslist and it is everything everyone says it is and more. I play a variety of music: funk, jazz, rock, ambient, electronic(via a EHX micro synth) The amp handles everything extremely well.

I miss the vibrato and reverb of the twin, however I use my #1 Echo as reverb when I need it,

I play a stock Epiphone Casino usually going straight in, however I often use a Electro-Harmonix LBP-1 boost pedal to get a little more grit when necessary. My old twin had to be too loud to overdrive and this amp is perfect for me. Going into input 2 with my guitar's volume around 7-8 and the amp between 3 and 4 is perfect for me. If i play softly it sounds fender clean but when I really rock out (for lack of a better phrase) it gets the perfect amount of overdrive. I usually keep the treble at 12, Bass 3-4, Mid 6-7, and presence 5. When you crank the amp above 7 the bass gets a little muddy so I just turn it down a bit. There is so much variety with this amp it's incredible. The amp can be fender clean, and with my boost pedal set pretty low and the amp set above 6-7 it can get down and dirty. I hear the original Mesa/Boogie Mark1 was a modified bassman circuit and it makes total sense. Mine is a little noisy but I know it's just the power tubes and I just quit my job so that can wait. other than that. Absolutely amazing is all I can say. Also I NEVER liked the sound of my bridge pickup of my casino through my twin and I tried everything, and this amp makes it sound amazing.

Oh, It also handles pedals very well, I have a EHX boost, #1 Echo, and Micro Synth.

I've only had it for a few weeks now and have drove it around town to friends houses'. I don't gig but if I did I don't have another $700 for a backup. Like all tube amps it needs to be serviced, however with the selectable bias I can replace tubes myself.

Since I've had the amp for such a short time I'll have to say No Opinion on reliability at this time.

I hated dealing with my twin that was a piece and died. However this amp is so nice it makes up for all the unpleasantness I experienced. It's a '93 so it's well out of warranty and its modified. I live in Oregon and there are many good amp technicians in the city.

I've been playing guitar for about 5 years, I've owed a fender mexican strat and telecaster, a blues jr.(avoid them like the plague),a new fender twin(ugh!), I currently play a Casino through the Bassman and I think they were made for each-other. I love the tone, I miss the vibrato and I also dislike the fact that there is no external speaker jack because I would love to try out my friend's vibratone through it. Compared to other amps around a grand I don't think there is any comparison.

Amp has two channels, but no switching between channels. One channel is normal (for lack of better description) and the other is bright. Each channel has 2 inputs.

There are basic tone controls: treble, mid, bass and presense.
Thats it. What else do you need? Nothing. I don't miss the reverb. On a gig you'll either get reverb from the room or it will be added at the PA (or both).

This amp to my ears brings out the truest sound of me and my guitar (a custom telecaster copy). The tube tone does what it should: bring out the sweet overtones. The voicing isn't heavy (like a Mesa I played thru), or honky midrange (like most Peaveys and my Polytone) or artificial sounding (like my reissue Super Reverb c.1992). If you want unadulterated pure clean tube tone, this is the amp.

I've played thru lots of amps as both a musician and former music store employee. Far and away the Bassman reissue is the best combo I've played in the < $1000 price range. Not suprisingly, last time I was in Paradise Studios in Sacramento, CA, they had replaced their Mesa with a Bassman reissue. I recorded with the Bassman and it sounded awesome.

The amp sings from volume settings from about 4-7. You'll find yourself rolling back on the bass setting as you increase volume.

If I need overdrive I use a pedal in front.

I cannot comment on the amps reliability as I just acquired it (used). My previous reissue Fender from about the same era lasted from 1994-2007 in real-world gig use. The gig doesn't do the damage, its the travel that wears out your amp. Being shoved and dropped and rattled.

No comment. Never needed any.

I've played since 1984 or so, professionally since about 1994. All my guitars are custom built these days (Warmoth, Fender custom shop).

I like the amps purity of tone. I don't know much that could be done to improve upon it.

The only other amp I'd consider would be something by Custom Audio Electronics. I have the SE 3+ preamp by CAE, and it kills. But I'd rather haul a combo to a gig these days than a rack of gear. Although, I must say I did obtain a very special "mean" clean tone with my SE 3+, a VHT 2150 and a 4x12 cabinet that the Bassman cannot duplicate. It was mean, but not harsh, and way too loud for any of the gigs I'm doing!

I compared the amp to other Fenders (Hot Rod series) and a Mesa 1x12 combo (dual caliber?) both of which sucked compared to the Bassman when it comes to pure clean tone.

Mine was built on 5-25-1998. Rectifier has been replaced with a GZ34 tube, and the power tubes are upgraded.

The Re-issue has the same features as the original. Normal and bright high / low impedance inputs, tone stack, and volume controls. I use pedals a lot so the most important feature for me is clean tone, and this amp delivers in spades.

I use this amp for small club gigs playing primarily blues and rock. With the channels jumped this amp has a lot of tonal control and can go from smoky blues to mid-range rock very easily.

I don't need anything else from this amp for my purposes, but if you don't use or like pedals you probably want to look at the 65 Super Reverb instead.

I bought this amp looking for primarily clean tones, and it really delivers. While some other users like to put hotter tubes in these and overdrive them, I'm actually going for a 12AY7 in V1 for lower gain and lots of clean headroom.

I use it solely for tone and have found that this amp can easily go from smokey blues to twangy country and over to mid-range classic rock (60's style, NOT 80's).

It also takes pedals extremely well. In fact, pedals that sounded bad with other amps sound amazing with this one. It really lets the entire circuit breath and gives you plenty of headroom. For me it's like every other amp I've played had a blanket over it.

It's important to point out that this amp was never meant to be a swiss army knife, or a Marshall stack (wasn't even meant to be a guitar amp). It does what it does better than any other amp, and does nothing else. If versatility is more important to you than tone, or if what you really want is a Marshall, you need to look at something else. Take YOUR guitar to the store and play the amp for a while before deciding; you'll be happy you did.

There's not much here to break. If something goes wrong it's most likely a $20 tube or a $4 potentiometer. Historically speaking, this is considered the most reliable amp you can buy.

Fender is very responsive to me. YMMV.

I've been playing for 28 years now and this amp completely nails the tone that I hear in my head when I'm thinking about new riffs or songs.

If this amp walks off I'll have to buy another. I may buy a point to point wired one as a backup, or just to have.

I compared it to a lot of other blues style amps and it completely crushes everything for punch, headroom, tone, and responsiveness to the player.

Check out the Fender Website and you can see the features. Frankly not that much. No Reverb. No Crunch. Not even an effects loop. Just basic EQ and Presence with 2 channels, Bright and Normal.

I'm reviewing this because I am concerned some of the other reviews might make someone hesitate to buy this amp.

I think it is a matter of taste. If you are a heavy distortion metal head then this amp is not for you. It could do that but a Marshall JCM 2000 and a Guitar Workstation does it so much better.

For what it's worth I have a collections of Marshalls, Peaveys, and other Fender amps and a truckload of effects. I love them all.

I have been playing for 40+ years. I have found no amp or guitar does everything. I have about 20 guitars and 10 amps because I have found some mate better than others. For example when I really want the guitar to scream ala Jimmy Page I use a Les Paul Standard and a ValveKing100 but when I want "Hot Rod Lincoln" I use a Telecster and a Blues Deluxe with some delay and tremelo pedals.

If you are into cleanest possible telecaster type sounds and want to hear every note ring out while you are singing a Dylan tune to 100 to 500 people then this is it.

There is a niche market for blues purists and this amp fills that need. I give this amp a solid 10

Have not had the need

Have not had the need

Again-

I've been playing for 40+ years. I have enough equipment to start my own superstore. I've played every guitar and amp known to man. I count as one of my friends on of the 10 best guitarist in the world, whose name will remain confidential, and we have discussed equipment and tone.

A lot of tone is in the fingers. A really good musician can make the crappiest equipment sound great but a lousy player can't make great equipment sound good. I fear way too many musicians go for crunch and effects and volume as a means to disguise their shortcomings. And in the end they shortchange their own growth because they can't hear themselves.

If you like the sound of a wasp on steroids buzzing in a bottle in the back of the room go ahead and load up on a Line 6 with max crunch. If you want to hear your fingers pluck a string and hear it ring out then go with the Fender Tweed line.

I find the HotRod a little too harsh for small venues. Likewise the Twin and Deluxe are great but you really need a large auditorium to open them up to where you get the best from those amps. I could have bought any one of them. But for whatever reason I liked the warmer tone of a simple Fender Bassman. I play it at around 4-5 which gets it hot enough to where it opens up. I haven't played it at 8 or 9 so I can't comment on the complaints that it becomes narrow at that level. I'm wondering what stadiums their playing where they can get up to that level and how many thousand yards they're standing back to even know the difference. Anything over 5 is way too much I think.

I've been able to get great clean, blues, jazz, country and rock tones out of this amp. Every combination of settings I try, on the guitar or amp, sounds good. In that respect, by changing my playing style, and working the guitar's volume/tone controls I can access a bunch of different tones. The (4) 10's setup has such a big, wide sound and puts the guitar in a great place (mix-wise) onstage. By running channel 1 into channel 2 each volume control becomes a gain stage, more sonic possibilities. That's an amp with features in my book. The right features at least

This amp just makes my guitar sound good. Whichever pickup, playing style or pedal I throw into it I get back a big, warm, complex tone. I feel like I've rediscovered a few of my pedals after hearing them through the Bassman. It's really responsive as well, going from crystal clean to greasy to dirty depending on pick attack. The sound is almost 3-D and really fills up the room without being to woofy - well..at least with my strat the frequency response seems to match my guitar perfectly, bringing out my guitar's best qualities. I haven't tried it with humbuckers yet but I have a feeling I'll like that tone as well. I've never really been a gear fanatic but I am absolutley hooked on the Bassman. I now understand what all the hype is about.

I've read plenty of positive reviews as far as reliability is concerned so I get the sense that this is a well designed package. Only time will tell exactly how mine will age. I do wish the tweed was lacquered like the newer Bassman LTD reissue but oh well. I did buy a cover off of ebay since that raw tweed can get really dirty and stained.

I never really had to deal with Fender directly but I imagine they are a large company and customer service is inconsistent at best. Maybe I'm just being cynical.

I've been playing for 23 years, I've owned many guitars, amps, effects, etc. Currently I'm playing a Suhr Classic with Barden pickups.

If stolen I would replace it immediately.

I love the basic sound of this amp and I honestly don't even mind not having reverb.

Anybody who gives this less than a 10 for features is a complete idiot. You buy it for what it is, not because it doesn't have an effects loop or digital reverb, etc. Mine is a 1990 with the Eminence blues.

I have a love hate relationship with this amp. For certain things, it sounds great, like volume less than 4, playing clean. At higher volumes, the higs get ice-picky and the bass gets very flabby. Turn the treble down to compensate and then the high aren't there enough. There's no happy medium, either ice pick or hardly anything at all.
A 5U4 rectifier helps a little. An AR4 makes the problems worse and the amp is almost unplayable.
It distorts well, above 6, but again, it gets very harsh. I have played with it for hours upon end. Jumping channels, trying every one of the 4, using different pick up configuartions and guitar tone and volume knobs and I can't find a good amp setting and just eave it alone and play, and that's a damn shame, because the potential is there for an awesome tone. In the end I just set treble, mid and presence to 6 and bass to zero. Jumper the channels or not and it seems to work pretty well. You'd think 40 watts on 7 or 8 is loud. Maybe I'm just used to it, but my neighbors don't complain, I don't live far out in the country, and pictures aren't falling off the walls. I've hesitated in getting a twin because I'm thinking 100 watts, even on 2 will melt my face off, but maybe that's what I'll need to do.

1990, battered to hell and still all original. Beat that!

I use it with strats, TS9, fuzz, the usual stuff. I don't know if I'd buy it again, but I'd definitely miss it if it were gone. Maybe I was asking for too much, but I was hoping this would be my workhorse, but I can see it has limitations and may not be suitable for what I'm looking for. I was considering a bluesbreaker, but for $2,000, it better make me cry when I hear it.

This is a supplement to my earlier review. I've had some luck getting a really good tweed overdrive tone. Once you get those power tubes distorting smoothly, you want care about reverb. Clapton is IMHO the god of tweed tone, and you will notice he doesn't use reverb with either the Tweed Twin or the Cornell Custom 80.

Although there is no bias adjustment, I've found you can still adjust the bias by swapping rectifiers. If you are using a 5u4 and the bias is too low, you will raise it by going to a 5ar4. If the bias is still too low, you will raise it more by using a solid state rectifier. And the reverse is also true (go from s.s. to 5ar4 to 5u4 to lower bias).

Another thing I've found is that the exact bias you use isn't that critical with this amp. 6l6's and 5881's have a very wide operating range. For example, for a 6l6 operating at 450 volts with a 5ar4 rectifier, anything from 18 mV to 42mV is within the operating range, and you should be able to go all the way to 55mV without blowing up the tubes.

I've been using a tube rectifier, but I think I'm going back to solid state. The amp came with a ss rectifier, and it seems to work better that way. And another thing I noticed about the Cornell Custom 80 Clapton uses; it doesn't have a tube rectifier.

Still a great amp!

This amp needs a bias control and reverb. Without the bias, you ended with little choice of what tubes to use. It works great with Fender's tube reverb box. But that's a lot to carry around.

I think this is the top of the line for tone. I put in a tube rectifier, but that's about it. The Jensen P10R's are the best of the re-issues; and they sound great.

I've never had any problems with the amp, and I've owned it for a while now. The older style tweed (without the laquer) gets dirty easy and looks like heck, so I had mine recovered with tolex (Weber does it for a reasonable price), and now it looks great.

I've never dealt with Fender, but that's a good thing. For the money, the Fender re-issues are, I think, the best amps you can buy.

I've gone through a lot of equipment, but I've always held on to the Bassman. It's the best of the re-issues. The Marshall Bluesbreaker is a close second, but the tone isn't quite as nice, its a little noisy, and it weighs a ton. Get one of the new Bassman LTD's. If anything happened to mine, that's what I'd do. Unless you play metal, I don't know how you can go wrong with a Bassman.

Two channels perfect for blending the bright with the normal. 4X10 jensens are killer. This is a vintage style tube amp-those are the best features money can buy. I did have to replace the volume pots though because it was too irritating to have it go from 0 to extremely loud between 2 and 3 on the knob.

I play modded (rewired to 60's and 70's specs) fender USA strats with custom shop vintage pickups in them, through a Dunlop Classic Wah, TS-9, BD-2, and Electro harmonix LPB-2. This is a perfect sound. In a small room where I can't crank to get the amp to breakup, the LPB-2 does the trick. In a large space....crank it and go. I play with this in tandem with a 72 Super Reverb and the combo of the two is awesome. The bassman has a great sound and you can dial in the "sparkle" by mixing in the bright channel. It is a perfect amp.

I always bring a backup...it's just good policy. Even if I had a solid state amp...which I don't... I would still have a backup...you just never know...That being said, I have never had any problems.

I have a tech here in Austin, TX who can fix anything...I never go anyone else.

I've been playing for 20 years, I have the bassman, the 72 Super Reverb and a Hot Rod Deluxe. Sometimes I run all three, sometimes just one. Usually the main amp the the super, but the bassman is about to eclipse it. One thing to note...I bought it used, and someone had point to point wired it with the right stuff. I brought it to my tech and he said it was a steal getting it for what I did. The only difference I noted when I compared it was that it was more mellow (less bright) than other bassman amps. Maybe it was because it sounded like the Super Reverb that I loked it so much, either way it is an awesome amp.