Music Man 410 Sixty-Five

My amp is the 4X10 HD model (power galore!). All original as far as I can tell.
2 channels. Seldom use channel one.
I quit playing professionally in 1975. At the time, the amp I was using was a Music Man 4X10 HD - long since gone.
I found the one I currently have in the Kansas City area last year. I think it is a '75 model. Frankly, I have never checked it out. I bought it for nostalgic purposes actually. But, WOW! I forgot what a powerhouse I used to play through! Man, no wonder I'm half deaf today! lol.
Sweet reverb and tremelo.
Massive power.

I use a Lonestar Strat, Standard & Custom Les Pauls, and an ES-335.
This amp is as versatile as any amp I have ever used - and I have used many over the years. Everything from just about every Fender made to Sunn, Ampeg, Mesa Boogie, Kustom, on and on... I went through a lot of amps looking for warmth, tone, and clean power.
None have the power and pure crank this amp delivers.
Recently I re-united with several former pro musicians for a series of reunion concerts. This is a large group with horns, B3, and, at times, two drummmers. I have absolutely NO PROBLEM being heard with this amp. Terry Kath lead riffs cut through like a knife! As do SRV licks. Fantastic clean tone for Jazz, too.

Amp has never been a problem. Although I'm not certain, it may have the original tubes in it. It probably needs a good servicing. There is a little white noise that could be taken care of, I think. Nothing serious. For a 30-year-old amp, this is a true work horse.
As I think about it, I never carried a back-up amp in all the years I played (across the U.S. and Canada). Not wise, I know, but, apparently I always trusted my equipment and it never failed me.
Very dependable.
My first MM had casters. I don't have them for this one (ugh! Does anyone have extras??) Heavy to lug around - probably the biggest complaint I have (as well as those who handle it for me!)

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I have played for more than forty years. I have played just about every style of music (Classic rock, the Terry Kath Chicago days, Steely Dan, Yes, Gentle Giant, BS&T, - something that takes more talent than a box full of effects pedals and computer crap can provide... I confess, I sometimes use a TS-9 & a Cry Baby volume/wah.
Heck, I even played Country when it was Country - not Rock-wanna-be... Anyway, I have found the variety of sound/tone available through this MM to meet any needs I have. If something happened to this one, I'd probably look for another just like it. Wouldn't mind having a 2X10, as well. Would like to add a 15" extension cab...

Late 70's Leo Fender magic! This amp is the holy grail. 2 channel ea. with 2 inputs. You can run two guitars a bass and a mic through it if you need to. Chan 1 is dead simple volume (gain) treble, bass. Chan 2 includes a mid knob as well as speed and intensity for tremolo (love that intensity knob) and reverb. I tried bridging the channels but it din't seem to make very good sounds compared to strait in. Master affects both channels and works! Bedroom volume tone remains true to concert volume tone. Standby/hi/low power switch on front panel, just where it should be. On the back are rca jacks to footwitch reverb and tremolo, power on and ground switches. 4 ten inch ceramic speakers. Sparser than modern multi- channel heads but has tremolo so it gets an 8. All controls do just what you'd expect. Mine is the solid state phase inverter version. Amp has casters ( a big plus)!
The only cons here are no fx loop, no line out and 65lbs. To be expected with a 4X10.

OH MY GOD. My tone quest is finally over. I play through an analogue delay, a boss overdrive, a reverend OD 2, and a dunlop wah. The sound is clean and WARM. Totally perfect as the basis of my sound. I play humbucker equipped guitars so amp overdrive begins around 4 on the volume knob. Backing off the guitar volume brings up country chicken picken clean. Increadibly warm and vibrant. Notes just jump out of the speakers, the immediacy is amazing. It makes you play better. Very inspiring. I write a song every time I turn it on. The sonic differences of ea individual pickup are brought out. I use the reverend as a clean boost with eq (bring on the growl)and the boss to bring on the singing sustain (crunchy!!!) If you've never played an amp where you can hear every note that you play regardless of the level of overdrive you're using then you are really missing out. Reverb and tremolo are both phenomenal.

I also play bass through this monster and it sound perfect for the rock/blues/country that I play, warm slightly overdriven and "tubey" and no problem being heard in my trio or cutting thru the mix.
I gave my Traynor YCV-40 an 8, compared to this it's barely a 6. If I could give an 11 I would.

Well it's gotta be going on 30 and still rockin so...

HA HA HA, try www.musicmanamps.com

I haven't tried to deal with Ernie Ball but aparently they're pretty cool about these amps and they do have schematics posted on their web site and some parts available.

I've been playing bass since I was 15 (I'm now 33) and guitar since I was 22. If it were stolen I'd be able to catch the guy as he struggled down the street with it. As punishment I'd make him be my roadie. I'll buy as many of these as I can get my hands on.

I've been on a tone quest for the last three years. Trying to find the perfect blend of sound, volume, headroom, affordability and portability. I've been through a vox pathfinder - through a 15" vintage Traynor speaker, a Laney AOR pro tube lead 100 (great amp, sorry I let it go but lugging a half stack was not ideal for me)a Legend Rock n Roll 50 (also great but kind of weird sounding and tough to get fixed), a Peavey Rockmaster preamp through a SS power amp, a Bogen PA head with a multi FX unit providing effects and amp modeling, a '68 Bandmaster and a Traynor YCV-40 with red lable speaker. This musicman is the only amp of the bunch that I'll have for life.

Circa 72-74 Solid State Preamp section, tube phase inverter (12ax7), tube power section (6ca7). Two channels, reverb, tremlo, 65 watts with half power switch. Bright and Deep controls. 4-10" ceramic magnet speakers.

I use a strat with no tone controls, a normal mexi strat, an archtop hollowbody with two humbuckers, and a Dearmond Starefire with two p-90-sort-of pickups. I haven't really used many pedals with it.

There is a setting in there that makes any of the above guitars shine. If you get one of these things please take note - YOU MUST REPLACE ELECTROLYTIC CAPS! These things are going on 30+ years old now - and if you know it hasn't been done in the last ten years spend the money to have a decent tech do it. It really will make a difference.

That said, Music Man tone controls are weird - some people don't like them - I am actually pretty fond of them. If you have all the controls set at zero, there will be NO sound. From there you can dial things in. I get great archtop tones with the bass up, and the mids on like 3 or 4 and the treble off. There are great Ronnie Earl tones in here with the bright switch on, the treble at zero, gain(channel volume) to 3 or 4, bass at 4, deep on, and the mids maxed. Reverb to 6 or 7.

Now, the MM distortion circuit is a funny thing - I like the one in mine quite a bit - but have played through others and not cared for it. It gets a good classic rock on blues crunch - but you won't find heavy modern distortion in here. For that you will want a pedal. I find the best distortion in here is from the power section - I am considering speaker attenuators now. At a loud gig I can edge into it nicely with my amp on low power. In fact, at low power it's about 30 watts, and with 4 tens that is a LOT of volume. More than you will really ever need.

Here's the scoop - these things are 30 years old. You can probably keep them going forever as long as components are available. Thanks to friends at http://www.musicmanamps.com, I have learned there is either NOS or substitute components available for everything in here. That website is a great resource, run by Steve above - and worth checking out. An IC dies? There is an easy substitute. This is a lot more than you can say for a brand new fender amp or marshall or peavey, that has all this stuff stuffed on a PC board. And if you run on low power, stuff will probably last even longer. These look easy to work on *if* you know what you are doing (if you don't don't touch it - there are lethal voltages of 700+ volts running around in here. I bias my amp myself, with one hand in my pocket). You will have to do some maintence on this from time to time. Caps ever ten years or so, tubes every year or two depending how often and hard you play, etc. You will want to rebias your amp when you change the tubes.

You should always hit a gig with a spare set of tubes and fuses. I do bring a backup, but I would with any amp - a nice small amp that lives in the trunk of my car. If worse comes to worse mic it through he PA. Cheap insurance.

Obviously there is no longer a music man to send these amps to - though I am told Ernie Ball provides schematics on their site.

This amp suits my needs very well. What strikes me more about this amp then any other I have owned (Crate, Fender Ultimate Chorus, Peavey Classic 50, etc), is that it is NOT A BEDROOM TOY! Seriously, if you mostly play at home or in your livingroom, and want to get that awesome van halen sound or that crunch ona pantera album. you will be limited by this. But, if you play in a band, want good sound projection, and a good clear tone that cuts but doesn't hurt, this amp will do it like crazy.

Some possible pitfalls could be how previous owners treated it. I paid a premium for mine but I knew it's history and it had been very well taken care of, even though it has been played out 4 nights a week for the last 5 years. Musicmans tend to be cheap though, and treated that way, probably seldom worked on or all out abused. Buyer beware. Your $400 investment could be $650-700 by the time you rebiase, retube, and fix your reverb. More if somebody messed with the speakers along the line. I would hit musicmanamps.com before you bought - to know what your getting into.

Breaking down tubes costs and recap costs, I figure it costs me $60 a year to run this amp.

i got this amp a month ago and i have to say it really kicks ass. it doesn't have thousands of knobs, effect loops, and stuff. it's just an good ol' kickass amp. it has 2 tubes and a ower output of 65 watts which suits my needs perfectly. too bad it doesn't have a headphone output.

i play a fender highway strat mostly singlecoils. it sounds great on lead passages and is good for rythm also. i love the slight kinda crunchy sound it can produce, but also can produce heavily distorted sounds.

this amp is just hard as a rock. it never broke down. it even has the original tubes inside. the preowner never needed to call a service hotline.

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for me this is an almost perfect amp. it looks a bit creepy and smells when warm :), but nevermind. i usually played a 20watt transistor noname amp which was definitely crap. this amp is great

The 4-10 M.M. has a volume and a master volume with a bright switch and deep.Reverb, Tremelo.

The amp is free from hums,etc. and suits my styles of playing very well.I like a tweed overdrive and can get it with this amp by turning the bass almost all the way off and turning the mids to 10. Deep switch on normal and the bright switch on normal. Turn the master on
2or3 with the volume (gain) on around 7or8.These amps have got a bad rap on the overdrive because most folks don't set it right . The trick here is to take out the bass. I first got this ideal from reading a interview on Johnny Winter and found it very odd that he said he turned his bass all the way down to zero.The clean on these amps are beutifull and compare to a blackface Super Reverb. With more warm.

This amp is built to last.I believe we will see Music Mans amps still around as vintage gear being sold with 40 and 50 years on them. There
built that well. Perfect for the musician who plays night after night
with one night stands.Reliability here get's a 10+.

If you can bias an amp, there won't be no need of repair. But, nothing is perfect.

I've been playing since I was old enough to pick up a guitar.
I have a 63 Tremolux, 1955 Fender Deluxe, 1959-60 Gibson Ranger.I would buy it again if I was in a Band that played out and needed a reliable, Great sounding amp. If this amps drive does'nt satisfy you it except Pedals through the clean set-up real well.I have owned several Black and silverface Super Reverbs and found the Music Man 4-10 Sixtyfive to be just as good sounding for the money.The Reverb does'nt do what a Fender's will but what does?The tremelo is odd to get use to but I found that turning the speed up on around 7-8 gives a nice Vibrato sound SOME WHAT like a Magnatone. It's a different beast but once you get it you'll understand why Clapton and Winter and so many other's use or used these amps.

this amp is great but has its limits, with a good amount of effects before (and I mean a LOT for me) it has a great sound. Mine has the cab restored with dark red stain and new alnico speakers. NO WORK HAS EVERE BEEN DONE ON THE AMP except a tube went bad after I dont know HOW many years.

A pair of Tesla or Sloveknvd (sp) tubes were added after one original tube went red.

I would buy another right now if i could.

I received this as a Christmas gift back in 1982 back when I was starting to get into guitar, and it was a big step up from a no-name amp that was built for bass. No channel switching, but with the two channels, I could plug in a mic in one and my guitar (an Electra MPC Les Paul Copy) into the reverb/tremelo channel.
Loud, although I found it a little harsh with the 10" speakers.

I started off using this with an Electra MPC Les Paul Copy. For those who don't remember, the MPC series had plug in effects modules in the back of the guitar, which worked pretty well. My style was garage band rock, with lots of Who and Zeppelin covers.
Distortion was nothing to write home about - I had a Univox super Fuzz, but got rid of it (now kicking myself) and instead got a MXR Distortion II for my distortion sound. With the loud clean tones of the Music Man, it sounds great with a good distortion in front of it.

I ended up getting rid of the amp in the early 90's when I was living in an apartment, and didn't want to get evicted from playing loudly. For concerts, this was certainly loud enough for both myself and our other guitar player to be heard over a very loud bass player and drummer.

Like a tank. Only problem was the reverb tank wires came loose and the reverb would only work if the amp was tilted back -- that could have been from years of being carted around in the back of a Jeep or dumping pedals and junk in the back. Heavy, which wasn't fun living on the 3rd floor of a dorm and having lots of gigs in college..

Never replaced a tube. Never worried about anything with it.

Never had it serviced, as it never needed it.

I've been playing for 24 years, and now own a couple of other amps - a rack ADA MP1, a Boogie V-Twin amp, and a 71 Silverface Princeton and a 73 Silverface Princeton Reverb. Nowadays, I either play through a custom humbucker Tele or a strat with Duncan Duckbuckers and a JB Jr in the bridge.

If I found another one on Ebay, I'd probably buy it if the price were right as a nostalgic kind of thing, but for most of the gigs we're playing, a mic'd amp through the PA is loud enough.

Pretty basic amp. Two different inputs, regular and the tremolo/reverb input. I like the built in tremolo feature this thing has. It has the selectable 4/8 ohm switch. Sucks I'd rather the standby switch be on the front than the back, but it's no big deal.

I use a Fender Telecaster. This amp like said before is LOUD. It's one of the cleaner amps I've ever heard. I play emo/indie rock and it's perfect for it. It also sounds good with my Boos DS1 Distortion. It's got good punch to it and it's really clean. This amp rocks.

It's an old amp. I don't think it will go out on me though. I'll say it's pretty reliable. Alot of people say it's durable (physically), but I'm not taking any chances. I don't throw it around or anything so I don't how it handles that kind of thing. It's a vintage intstument, so I think I'm gonna get a roadcase for it.

Never dealt with Music Man.

This amp is the best. It's got the perfect sound I'm looking for. Unless I end up playing hardcore the rest of my life, I'm set with this amp.

The Music Man 410-65 is similar to most other Music Man amps of the "sixty-five" series.... solid-state preamp, reverb, tremolo, Bright & Deep switches, selectable 4/8 ohm output with extension speaker jack and a tube output stage which delivers 65 watts RMS (easily loud enough for un-miked club or small venue use). This model differs in that it is in a larger cabinet and weighs a bit more because it has 4 10" speakers.

These amps are pretty basic... no channel switching, no effects loops, (much like the classic Fenders), BUT no "decent" distortion to speak of... this solid-state preamp was designed for high headroom clean not overdrive! They do have a Master Gain control and two channels, but their distortion (preamp overdrive) is pretty lame and most people find it HIGHLY annoying to listen to for any length of time!

These amps were designed to play CLEAN and LOUD, and they do this very well! You need a pedal if you want usable overdrive or distortion tones. The overall clean tone (as well as the styling) is "Fender-esque".

I have two of these... the 1974 vintage has a 12AX7 phase-splitter tube driving a pair of 6CA7 (EL34 in a pinch) output tubes with rear panel Standby switch and front-panel HI-OFF-LO power switch. The 1979-vintage unit has a solid-state transistor phase-splitter driving the same output tubes with a rear-panel ON/OFF switch and a front-panel HI-STANDBY-LO switch (I like this switch arrangement much better!). The older one sounds a bit warmer and does output overload more gracefully but they otherwise sound pretty similar and can be dialed-in much the same.

As I stated before, these amps excell in dishing it out LOUD and CLEAN. If you have a good loud/clean amp to start with, you can go almost anywhere from there with add-on effects and pedals if necessary.

I use the MM 410-65 with a Fender Stratocaster (stock pickups with the addition of a Fender Red Lace Sensor in the bridge position) playing a wide variety of musical styles. A clean tone with "body" is an important starting point for me and these amps provide that in spades!

These amps are very quiet EXCEPT when using the Reverb/Tremelo channel with the Master voulume control turned up past about 8. The Reverb and Tremelo circuits add more "hiss" to the output when the Master is cranked. However, you won't notice it much if your playing.

These amps are great for the "Fender-Clean" sound by themselves. When used with a Tube Overdrive pedal or preamp (like the Tube Works units) a creamy-smooth tube overdrive sound can be fed to the amp which will dutifully amplify it without undue additional coloration! Driving 4 10" speakers, these amps can move alot of air and produce a lot of "punch" which adds immeasurably to the playing dynamics!

Under the right set of circumstances, it is possible (on the older tube phase-splitter models)to run the input gain low and the Master volume control high to get output-stage distortions that can get downright "bluesy". However, this points out another "difference" between the older-vintage and the newer:

On the older models, the "Hi-Lo" power settings changed a tap on the PRIMARY of the power transformer. In effect, they lowered the AC input voltage to the transformer (like inserting a Variac ahead of the amp and turning it down). This not only lowered the power output of the tube power stage, but it also reduced the headroom of the solid-state preamp (as well as modifying the overload charateristics somewhat)! On the newer models this "Hi-Lo" power setting is in the secondary DC power supply and simply cuts the plate and Bias voltages to the power tubes in half. This method has no effect on the low-voltage DC supply that feeds all the solid-state circuitry, thus no change in preamp characteristics.

If you buy one of these amps expecting ANY decent inherent overdrive or distortion you WILL be disappointed. If you already use a favorite effect pedal or preamp to achieve these sounds, then this amp will amplify them greatly in a very satisfying and reliable fashion!

These amps were built like TANKS!

All plated steel chassis and hardware, solid Ponderosa-Pine cabinets with joint-lock corners, 5-ply marine plywood baffle-boards, corner protectors on all 8 corners, etc. I am sure that their "U.S. Overkill" style of construction is in large-part responsible for the large number of Music Man amps that are still around.... they are hard to hurt and even harder to kill!

They achieve extremely long tube life from their unique circuit topology.... the output tubes are run at a very high plate voltage (700 volts) but with a low fixed-bias current (10-15 mA) instead of the other way around. The cathodes are the driven element, not a grid like most other tube guitar amps. One of my 410-65 amps came with Sylvania 6CA7 output tubes (originals they came with) that I have no doubt were the one's that came with it from the factory when it was new! My other 410-65 came with Amperex EL34 tubes in it... either of these are very difficult to locate nowadays and haven't been made for a very long time! Getting a DECADE (or two!) of use able service out of a set of output tubes is pretty phenomenal! The tubes typically run much cooler this way, so thermal stress is minimized and longevity is improved.

Some people (vintage purists mainly) claim that running the tubes in this fashion results in a "cold and lifeless" sounding amplifier. I don't find this to be totally true myself, and I am sure that a Marshall or Fender amp used at lower plate voltages and a similarly-low bias current would sound that way. These are run in a totally different manner so a direct comparison of this nature cannot truly be made.

I believe that another factor governing the increased life-span of the tubes relates to the fairly unusable front-end distortion.... since overdriving the preamp sounds so bad, no one does it thus saving a fair amount of wear and tear to the output stage (fewer stressful square waves!).

I have owned 3 Music Man amps over the last 25 years and have never has a single failure I can remember! I travel with spare fuses, but no backup all the time! I am, however, not a full-time professional musician so I am not abusing them as much as others might... However, Johnny Winter STILL tours and plays through a pair of Music Man 410-HD amps (the 130 watt version, identical except they added 2 more output tubes and beefed up the output transformer) even though the newest of these amps left the factory in 1985!

The "Achille's heel" of these lower powered models appears to be the barely adequate power rating of the stock ceramic speakers (25-30 watt Fane?) that they came with. Both of the MM 410-65 amps I bought had either blown speakers or open voice coils. I have heard of other people having similar problems with these models (using the factory speakers) but no problems using the high-powered units as they came with heavy-duty loudspeakers that apparently were a better match.

I restored one of my 410-65 amps to stock using all the good original speakers and replaced the 4 bad units with Fender Standard 75 watt 10" ceramic units (as used in many of their current line of amplifiers... blue back Fender label). The amps sound surprisingly similar, even with the differences!

Music Man amps were built from 1974 to 1985. Ernie Ball bought the Music Man trademark and designs in 1985 and still manufacture this fine line of guitars under the name. They elected not to continue production of the Music Man "hybrid" amplifiers, have never been a source of service or parts for these, but they DO provide most of the schematics on-line in PDF (Adobe Acrobat Reader) format, even though some are very hard to read. (Thanks guys, nice touch!)

For all intents and purposes, there IS no factory support and there hasn't been for 15 years. However, the designs are fairly straight-forward and easily repaired by any tech worth his salt. Luckily, the "special" parts (like the transformers) were seriously "over-designed" are another reason the "bullet-proof" reputation for reliability these amps enjoy in most circles.

I have been playing guitar on and off for 30+ years and have owned and used many tube and solid state amps! It was my earliest experiences with amp failures that drove me to become an Electronics Engineer/Technician! I wanted to be able to fix them myself! My "modified" '65 Fender Bassman ate output tubes or plate resisitors every 6 months like clockwork, and most people who played during the late '60s and early '70s know all about solid-state "reliability" at that time!)

I currently own:
Fender Concert II (project amp... experimented with more than played)

Fender Ultra-Chorus (the best, most luscious-sounding solid state amp I have ever owned... but you have to crank it almost all the way up to keep up with a band)

Marshall JCM800 50 watt 2-12 combo (excells at "crunch", but it is spectacularly "tubby" when played clean!)

in addition to the 2 MM 410-65 amps. I have a good variety to choose from, but I tend to gravitate to the Music Man amps for much of what I do! 65 watts RMS sure sounds louder than 65 watts in solid state, and the Marshall (or the Fender Concert II for that matter) just don't sound as good in the CLEAN department!

The 4 10-inch speakers DO make a difference as well! A big wavefront creates a playing dynamic that can add immeasurably to the "inspiration factor" an amp can provide! I love my Music Man amplifiers, and I have a lot of respect for those that designed and built-them... they are TOUGH, even if not everyone's sonic cup of tea!