Vintage Fender vs. new-old Fender.

[SirJackdeFuzz II]

Quick teenage style question :

What amp would be more appealing/practical to you ?

A 1974 (silver face) Twin Reverb (2X12 combo), or a 2015 Vintage Reissue '59 Bassman LTD 4 x 10 ?
'Horses for courses', i know . . . but what would the more desired combo here be ?

 

[Mincer]

Does that silverface have a master volume? If so, then the Bassman. The Twin is a great platform for pedals, while the Bassman can be fine just by itself. Both are unwieldy and heavy, though. I'd pick the Bassman for looks and keep it in one place.

 

[GuitarStv]

Age aside, those are radically different amps!

The twin reverb is ungodly loud, very clean, has lovely reverb, and is a little mid scooped. The Bassman is a touch less loud (although it's getting up there if you want it to overdrive, and at lower volumes it can sound too bright), and has a nice mid range that does a pretty good early Marshally impression.

My preference is towards the twin . . . I like having a lot of clean headroom and reverb.

 

[beaubrummels]

2015 Vintage Reissue '59 Bassman LTD 4 x 10

 

[jeremy]

ive had both of those amps, or at least something close. i had an old sf twin and a bassman ltd. both are heavy and both are loud. the stock bassman can sound a little harsh by itself but cuts through a mix really well. the p10r is part of the culprit, i did put some p10q in there and it changed things in a way i liked but still had some of that modern jensen thing in the upper mids/highs. one of my favorite all time gigs was a a big outdoor show with that ltd. i used my esquire direct into the bassman turned up to 8 and it was epic. that said, the twin is probably a more versatile and is much more easily modded.

 

[NegativeEase]

OP, do you need super clean, slightly scooped, big bottom and reverb perfection -more versatile and easier to keep tone at different volumes? Twin.

or do you want a slightly less versatile cleanish to slightly aggro amp, with more mids and the ability for overdriven wild dog sustain from the amp with less lows? Bassman.

Personally, I probably do the Twin and get the Bassman advantage with one of 1000s pedals available to do it and thereby also having the versatility of a Twin. But if you want to do only one thing and want mids and some grit in spades -Bassman.

 

[Securb]

You can do anything with a twin, I played thrash with mine. I have the master volume and love it. As others have said the amp is loud as hell, you can tame it with the master. I would imagine the Twin is also less expensive.

 

[SirJackdeFuzz II]

Does that silverface have a master volume? If so, then the Bassman. The Twin is a great platform for pedals, while the Bassman can be fine just by itself. Both are unwieldy and heavy, though. I'd pick the Bassman for looks and keep it in one place.

Yes Mincer . . . it is the 'master volume' model. (in this case)

Thought a master volume would be a 'good' thing . . . not so ?

 

[SirJackdeFuzz II]

Age aside, those are radically different amps!

The twin reverb is ungodly loud, very clean, has lovely reverb, and is a little mid scooped. The Bassman is a touch less loud (although it's getting up there if you want it to overdrive, and at lower volumes it can sound too bright), and has a nice mid range that does a pretty good early Marshally impression.

My preference is towards the twin . . . I like having a lot of clean headroom and reverb.

Fair enough

 

[SirJackdeFuzz II]

ive had both of those amps, or at least something close. i had an old sf twin and a bassman ltd. both are heavy and both are loud. the stock bassman can sound a little harsh by itself but cuts through a mix really well. the p10r is part of the culprit, i did put some p10q in there and it changed things in a way i liked but still had some of that modern jensen thing in the upper mids/highs. one of my favorite all time gigs was a a big outdoor show with that ltd. i used my esquire direct into the bassman turned up to 8 and it was epic.
that said, the twin is probably a more versatile and is much more easily modded.

Good to know . . . thank you very much Jeremy.

 

[SirJackdeFuzz II]

OP, do you need super clean, slightly scooped, big bottom and reverb perfection -more versatile and easier to keep tone at different volumes? Twin.

or do you want a slightly less versatile cleanish to slightly aggro amp, with more mids and the ability for overdriven wild dog sustain from the amp with less lows? Bassman.

Personally, I probably do the Twin and get the Bassman advantage with one of 1000s pedals available to do it and thereby also having the versatility of a Twin. But if you want to do only one thing and want mids and some grit in spades -Bassman.

DAMN . . . NegativeEase . . . you are not making it easy . . . as i would love to have both tonal characters in an amp.

 

[NegativeEase]

DAMN . . . NegativeEase . . . you are not making it easy . . . as i would love to have both tonal characters in an amp.

Haha. Well, A twin can do most anything -it's a do it all amp with more versatile voiced 12" speakers - tons of clean head room, easy to keep tone at different volume, and you can drive it with pedals to get your dirty -Put a plexi, klon, TS, D+ style pedal and you get your overdriven drive and crunch -An 85w Twin is as loud of an amp as you will likely ever need -they are louder than my 100W Marshalls -believe it.

The Bassman has some serious magic though -especially if you want a dirty hard driven tone -personally -but I'm not a huge fan of 10s speakers -they are too punchy for my tastes. The Princeton and the Bassman is the most storied of all amps -although the Deluxe and Twin are considered the "desert island" amps because of their versatility. The Bassman preamp circuit is the basis of most legendary amps later -like Marshalls, Traynors, Mesa Boogies etc....

Let me make this extra extra hard for you. I'm sorry.

Do you want both of those AMPS? You can. The Fender 1968 Twin Reverb Reissue -has BOTH of those amps in one amp with Vibrato and Reverb on BOTH channels

Four Inputs Input 1 CUSTOM Bassman Tonestack (reduced Neg feedback) Full Sensitivity to get that natural dirt

• Input 1 CUSTOM Bassman Tonestack (reduced Neg feedback) Full Sensitivity to get preamp breakup earlier
• Input 2 CUSTOM Bassman Tonestack (reduced Neg feedback) Low Sensitivity (For super hot pedals)
• Input 3 VINTAGE Classic Vintage Twin Silverface Channel Full Sensitivity to get preamp breakup earlier
• Input 4 VINTAGE Classic Vintage Twin Silverface Channel Low Sensitivity (For super hot pedals)

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/det...B&gclsrc=aw.ds

https://www.fmicassets.com/Damroot/O...win_Reverb.pdf


BTW, the "MAGIC SIX" setting works on both the Twin and Bassman, and is real and amazing.



https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/re...-singlecoilcom


I apologize for this post.

 

[Securb]

Yes Mincer . . . it is the 'master volume' model. (in this case) Thought a master volume would be a 'good' thing . . . not so ?

The non-master Twins were 85 watts. The master volume Twins are 100 - 135 watts depending on the model. The master volume is a great tool to have when dealing with an amp that loud. I have a 72 Quad which is very close to the 74 you are looking at when looking at the amplification. I would say go for it.

 

[Mincer]

Yes Mincer . . . it is the 'master volume' model. (in this case)

Thought a master volume would be a 'good' thing . . . not so ?

It depends. There were changes in the amp in the master volume models. They don't sound like the blackface or the early silverface Twins. They can still sound good, but my favorite Twins are from a little earlier.

 

[Securb]

It is funny I have 4 Fender Amps and none of them are close to being similar

• 72 Quad Reverb
• M80 Pro Head
• Bassman 100B Head
• Excelsior

 

[Wattage]

The lighter one ugh

The Bassman

 

[Drak]

Honestly, probably neither one.
Keep shopping.
I've owned a ton of old Fenders and still have a few.
A Twin (owned two) isn't one of them.
And tho I love 4-10 Supers, that Bassman probably doesn't sound like a good Super.
I'd skip both and keep looking.
Used amps aren't in short supply.

 

[jeremy]

in general bf/sf fenders and tweeds are kinda the opposite. the bf is scooped, cleaner, and tighter. both are awesome in their own way

 

[Powdered Toast Man]

Practical? The Bassman. It weighs about 55 lbs as opposed to the Twin's roughly 80 lbs.

Bassman is also a fabulous amp for playing with a band. The 410 has a great spread and you can be heard more widely. Also being a tweed design it has more mids and cuts through a mix without having to be turned up.

 

[NegativeEase]

Practical? The Bassman. It weighs about 55 lbs as opposed to the Twin's roughly 80 lbs.

Bassman is also a fabulous amp for playing with a band. The 410 has a great spread and you can be heard more widely. Also being a tweed design it has more mids and cuts through a mix without having to be turned up.

You're probably thinking of the Mesa Boogie Twin or a Custom loaded Twin with big *ss magnets -Most Silverface 70s Fender Twins weigh only 10-15 lbs more than a Bassman -in the 65 pound range.

I own 3 -I'm certain of this.

Plus, once an amp gets over 60 pounds -if it leaves the house -put it on wheels and none of this is a big deal.