The only thing left to do is perhapse install an in-line fuse holder as for some strange reason Fender decided it didn't need one. I must get back into recording again soon, and this is the amp to do it with. It's definitely a keeper and effects pedals work great too. My mate reckons it's the best Strat sound of all the amps I've got or ever had, including the Twin Reverbs, and I don't disagree. It is loud! There is a hugely improved bass response, a very balanced transparent tone, no hum whatsoever, no strange crackles and a good crunch at full whack. I tested all the passive components and replaced three electrolytics which read well below par, although the main filters read substantially higher than their stated 20uF so I left the orange cardboard cigar in place.Īfter completing the service, the amp plays absolutely brilliantly! What a transformation. The dates on the transformers and chassis range from 1973 to 1976, which is slightly odd but not unreasonable. The chassis and speaker appeared to be totally original with no sign of any previous work being done. Luckily I located a NOS pair of Brimars just around the corner from me for £10! They turned out to be excellently matched too. A quick check on the valve tester showed the filament was open circuit. I quickly ascertained that one of the differently branded output tubes (an RCA and a Brimar) was not glowing, even after the sockets and pins were cleaned. Oh well, bidder beware! Not all sellers are totally forthright in their description of what they are selling.Īnyway, all was not lost. I strummed a few chords and turned up full volume and although it had a good distorted Fendery sound it was very weak and trebly, nowhere near the stated 12 Watts. However, we plugged it in and there was a lot of crackling to which the seller said, "Oh, that never happened before." A quick wiggle of the pre-amp valve and it settled down. When I went to pick up the amp, I was fully expecting to see a pair of 6v6GT output valves, so was rather surprised to find the smaller bottle 6AQ5 tubes instead. As simple as can be, with just a volume and tone control for treble frequencies, the Musicmaster Bass Amp makes a fine home practice amp if you're in need of some good amount of fuzzy vintage tones. Although there was no picture of the rear of the amp in the listing, there were lots of pictures of the original user manual and circuit diagram that came with it. The Fender Musicmaster Bass Amp is a 1970s silverface combo amp designed to pair with the student-level Musicmaster bass guitars of the day. What attracted me to this was the unusual use of a transformer for the phase inverter and a pair of 6v6s. Having said this, there are a lot worse guitars out there, and as well as being historically important, the 1820 bass can certainly provide the goods when required.Yet another Ebay win. Over the course of the 70s, the Japanese output improved dramatically, and in many ways these early 70s models are a low point for the brand. These new Epiphones were based on existing Matsumoku guitars, sharing body shapes, and hardware, but the Epiphone line was somewhat upgraded, with inlaid logos and a 2x2 peghead configuration. The Matsumoku factory had been producing guitars for export for some time, but the 1820 bass (alongside a number of guitar models and the 5120 electric acoustic bass) were the first Epiphone models to be made there. By the end of the 1960s, a decision had been made to move Epiphone guitar production from the USA (at the Kalamazoo plant where Gibson guitars were made), to Matsumoto in Japan, creating a line of guitars and basses significantly less expensive than the USA-built models (actually less than half the price).
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