Had that amp not been sold as a kit with the Musicmaster bass, and had it be named in a more consensual way, it might have become a Fender classic. Indeed, that kind of tool is perfect to get a big ample sound without crushing the room with volume. That amp could almost be seen as the ideal answer to all the guitar players who would modify their Princeton by putting a bigger speaker inside it. But in the same way that guitarists became enamoured with the evocatively named Bassman in the fifties, those same guitarists are the ones who got hip to the Musicmaster Bass, basically a low-power twelve-watt combo (featuring two 6V6 power tubes) with a twelve-inch speaker. When Fender released the Musicmaster Bass amp in 1970, they wanted to design something for bass players playing at home. Much more versatile than the MM.History has a funny way of repeating itself. In the end I think the MusicMaster has a def' "cool factor" compared to the Jr. The MM is a fun amp but it is what it is.
"Vintage" Fender amps look and sound cool for the most part and are def' fun to have around. They typically fetch between $250 and $400 (including the shipping) on eBay.
#Musicmaster bass amp upgrade#
A lot of owners go for an upgrade like a Weber for more vol. I have a '74 and it sounds great with a pair of 6AQ5A's in it instead of the the 6V6 powered ones that some favor. Some would say what more do you need? I round out the tone of mine with an OD pedal, 6 band EQ and an Alesis nanoverb. Controls volume, tone and the on/off switch. You can get by with it in a small club doing Blues n' basic Rock. Mine rivals a friend's Princeton amp (for volume anyways). the 5 watts with a 8" speaker for the Champ. They sound quite like mid 60's through 70's Champs except louder having a 12 watt output and a 12" speaker vs. don't expect it to be much of an investment since no one famous that i know of ever played one but, to me they sound every bit as good as a champ from the same era. depending on how cheap you can buy it for and how much shipping will set you back you should probably get it. there was another version with a different tube setup but i can't remember now what it was. they are extremely stripped down (no reverb, no nothing) but they sound fabulous if its the 6v6 version. Thanks.Īs far as i can tell the musicmasters are the last of the "affordable" vintage fender amps. My question, basically, is whether it's worth it for me to buy the amp from her, have it shipped cross-country (she's in Seattle, I live in Boston), and get it fixed up? Or would I be better off just buying a new Blues Junior or something like that? I'm aware that there's no definitive answer to a question like this, I'm just curious what the forum opinion on the Musicmaster bass is (for guitar amplification, of course-I gather that these suck as bass amps). The pots are scratchy, and it makes a lot of static-type noise when it's on-I presume that means that it probably needs a recap? It sounds pretty decent, despite the noise, but the only guitar I have to try it out with here is an old DeArmond M65C (LP copy), and I'm a SC kinda guy. My guess is that everything is stock (well, maybe not the tubes-they're Sovteks). Is this a low-watt vintage tone machine? Or another piece of CBS-era low-end junk? It's a silverface, from 1976, so far as I can determine (it uses two 6V6s). My sister has a Fender Musicmaster bass amp that she's planning to get rid of.
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