Fender amps

A

a_goodlett

New member
allright cats, i've come to a very powerful dilemma. i am going to be getting a new amp. I want an all tube fender amp. So i've been looking into the Bandmaster and the Bassman. does anyone know the differences between these? I know that the Bandmaster has a vibrato channel on it, but thats about all i know between the two. My friends dad has a 100 W(i think its 100W) blonde bassman. My friend and I play it whenever his dad is gone at work. We've been cought playing it red-handed a few times. But this thing absolutely ROARS! and i love it. He also has a Bandmaster, but its not hooked up and we cant find it. So, I can't test the Bandmaster. In your peoples "expert" opinions, what are the differences tonally, and which in your humble opinions, do you like better?

if you need to know what music styles i play, i play mostly "classic" rock stuff. a lot of hendrix, led zeppelin, beatles, rollin stones, a ton of jam blues type things, some jazz jam type things, and a little of surf on the side.
 
a_goodlett said:
I know that the Bandmaster has a vibrato channel on it...
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No, that's a tremolo channel.
My friends dad has a 100 W(i think its 100W) blonde bassman.
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If you're referring to a vintage blonde Bassman, it was nominally 50W.
My friend and I play it whenever his dad is gone at work. We've been cought playing it red-handed a few times.
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Ahh...I'm so glad I never had kids!:)

I'm still not sure which generation of Bassmans and Bandmasters you are discussing. This would make a difference. Vintage Bassman heads were highly prized as guitar heads, but until we know which ones you're talking about, it's hard to say more as they've gone through some substantial evolutions.

If you want a 100W Fender tube amp with all the classic sounds and volume to shake the garage off its foundation, you might see if you can bag a deal on one of the remaining Fender "Evil Twins" that have just been discontinued after the introduction of a new model. Many people got them for $599 at Guitar Center's "List Sale" on Labor Day and I'm hearing reports of some of them still out there getting picked up cheap. Total doomsday guitar amp to make the neighbors move.

I got one and it's sitting here in my office. I'm almost scared to look at it.
 
The Fender '59 Bassman re-issue is 45 watts and it has 4 10" speakers....it's a beautiful amp and I love the vintage look and sound. The Hot Rod Deville and Deluxe are excellent amps too. For home recording I would consider the Deluxe or even the Blues Jr. All those Fenders are LOUD amps considering the wattage and they are perfect for classic rock.
 
all right, 1st: what is up with fender calling a whammy bar a tremelo bar and the tremelo channel on the band master a vibrato?

to try and clarify what amps i am talking about, i got some pictures off of ebay, these amps look exactly like my friends dads.
when my friends dad caught us, he wasnt TOO upset. he was like, "if you break it, i'll kill ya." ahah oh well, getting yelled at was worth it.

i would think the "vibrato" on the bandmaster would be a pretty cool effect, i've heard practically everyone that has one talk about how they don't use it at all. i think used in the right places, it could be damn cool.

so what can you tell me about these things? how many watts is the bandmaster? and the bassman is 50 watts? i thought that 50 watts wasnt a whole lot, but these things are insanely loud.
i dont know where i read it was 100.
 
> what is up with fender calling a whammy bar a tremelo bar and
> the tremelo channel on the band master a vibrato?

Good question. No good answer.

Tremolo (note spelling) is variation in amplitude.

Vibrato is variation in pitch.

Always. Why this is so hard for people, I don't know.

I've heard people talk correctly about one's fingered vibrato technique as part of his playing ability and then turn around and call a whammy bar - which does the very same thing - a "tremolo."

Amps have tremolos, guitars have vibratos...though technically some chorus/phase tricks may accomplish a true vibrato, I'm not sure...but the old amps definitely had tremolo effects, not vibrato.
 
Whammy bar Tremelo Bar

I was always under the impression that a tremelo bar was meant to be used very subtly and a whammy bar was designed for extreme dives and very dramatic pulls.
 
Re: Whammy bar Tremelo Bar

Kitwell said:
I was always under the impression that a tremelo bar was meant to be used very subtly and a whammy bar was designed for extreme dives and very dramatic pulls.
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No. You've been laboring under a misapprehension.

They are the identical device, a mechanical vibrato.

Tremolo (note spelling) is _always_ about varying iteration or amplitude, and therefore is _never_ correctly applied to that silly crank on guitars. It's the surf-tone guitar amp effect.

Vibrato is _always_ about varying pitch, which is what "whammy bars," Bigsbys and soforth do.

Electric guitar people - including many who should know better - have been getting these mixed up for fifty years. If you don't believe me, check with any music professor or consult the _Oxford Dictionary of Music_, which I just did.

Vibrato devices on guitars are supposedly called "whammy bars" because "whammy" is a West Coast euphemism for "bullsh*t."

That makes perfect sense to me!:D
 
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