


It's all been done before." -Jim Marshallįollowing its debut, the 5F6-A circuit is tweaked, enhanced, and re-introduced under many different logos and the late-1950's so we were influenced by it, but after all, there is nothing new in valve technology "Obviously we looked at the Fender amps, because they were my favorite amplifier,Īnd the Bassman seemed to be nearer the sound that people were talking about. You can't reinvent the wheel." -Zakk Wilde "Fender was first, and the original Marshall was basically a dupe of a Fender Bassman. So blokes on a pension in England could afford to buy one for their kids." -Aspen Pittman I think the whole motivation for those early Marshall amps was to copy the more expensive Fenders They even lined up the jacks the same way, and the on/off switch, the standby switch. "Marshall copied Fender's basic circuit - virtually no difference at all.

Many other amplifier manufacturers create new Bassman-derived designs that themselves become the legendary instruments of a rock generation. Those that desire one give up whatever it takes to obtain their holy grail." -John Teagle 1 The 4x10 Bassman is to this day a sanctuary of tone for many. To the weekend warrior who escapes the Monday-Friday grind answering to no one but his guitar and amp, To Bruce Springsteen and Jimmie Vaughan, from recording studios that keep one as their "house" amp "From Fran Beecher with Bill Haley, and Bo Diddley with his two extra speakers (pointing backwards!), The Bassman stack and long-tailed-pair phase inverter with negative feedback become the foundation for many great rock and blues sounds. Ironically it doesn't quite make it as a bass amp, but the musical tones it creates from a guitar make history.

Throughout the decade it is modified and improved, culminating in the model 5F6-A. The amp has a 15-inch speaker with a closed, ported cabinet and uses a pair of beam power tetrodes for lots of volume. Fender designs the Bassman in 1952 to be an amplifier for its new Precision Bass.
