|
s
|
A
Bass Player's Bassman Amp
The
R&D of Fender's New 21st Century Bass Amps
By
Alan di Perna
|
|
|
"The
first time someone said, 'Let's call it a Bassman,'
we actually got a little frightened. We weren't going
to call anything a Bassman that wasn't absolutely
terrific,
for obvious reasons."
—Dale
Curtis, Fender R&D
|
|
s
The
Fender Bassman amp holds a unique place in history—it
was the world’s very first bass guitar amp. Designed
by company founder Leo Fender, the Bassman was introduced
in 1952 as a companion to Fender’s new Precision
Bass, the world’s first viable electric bass
guitar.
The earliest Bassman models featured a “TV”
style front panel and one 15-inch Jensen speaker.
By 1955, however, the Bassman featured a wide-panel
cabinet and four 10-inch speakers. Ironically enough,
this 4x10 Bassman very quickly became popular with
guitarists as well as bassists, and is now considered
one of the all-time classic “brown tone”
guitar amplifiers.
In
fact, Fender still offers the modern guitar player
the classic Bassman sound with its ’59 Bassman.
But what about the modern bass player? The style,
sound and art of the electric bass guitar have evolved
considerably since 1952. And this year, Fender is
introducing a brand new line of Bassman amps, specifically
geared toward the needs of the contemporary electric
bassist. The idea was to create something as revolutionary
and relevant to today’s musical world as Leo's
original Bassman was back in the ’50s.
|
|
s
|
“There
was a time in Fender’s history when interaction with
professional players was a key part of the company's design
philosophy,” says Richard McDonald, Marketing Manager
for Fender amplifiers. “Part of the direction of
the company at this point is to re-embrace that doctrine.
The new Bassman amps are a reflection of that.”
A hand-picked cadre of pro bassists worked closely with
the Fender design team headed up by Fender Vice President
of Electronics R&D Dale Curtis to create the new Bassman
line.
“We spent an enormous amount of time on this project,
as we do on most projects,” says Curtis. “The
first thing we do is create what we call a sound sample,
made out of whatever we can use—breadboard or bits
of other Fender products, all cut, jumpered, hacked up
and reassembled in Frankenstein fashion. We create something
that has the right features and the right sound. We prove
to ourselves that we can do it before we develop the product
in the traditional sense of designing the circuit board,
cabinet and chassis. This way, also, we avoid painting
ourselves into a corner, so to speak. We can keep the
process open and adapt new ideas, if necessary.”
“At this point in the project, it still wasn't called
a Bassman,” adds McDonald. “We didn't deliberately
set out to make some amps and call them Bassmans. We just
set out to make a great sounding and great looking amp.
Only once we’d achieved that did we ask, ‘What
should we call it?’” |
|
s
|
“The
first time someone said, ’Let’s call it a
Bassman,’ we actually got a little frightened,”
says Curtis. “We weren’t going to call anything
a Bassman that wasn’t absolutely terrific, for
obvious reasons. And it wasn’t until well down
that sound sample path—when we had all these Frankenstein
amplifiers that sounded fantastic—that we started
developing enough confidence to say, ‘You know,
these could be Bassmans.’”
Along with the sound and features, the look of the new
Bassman amps was a key consideration. Everything about
the new amps’ styling announces that the 21st Century
Bassman has arrived.
|
  The
Bassman series features 25-, 60- 100- and 400-watt
models. A bass amp for any occasion.
|
|
s
|
“As
far as designing the look of the new amps,” says
Shawn Greene, Fender R&D’s graphic designer, “the
challenge Marketing gave us was to push the envelope,
to make something stylish and futuristic and yet keep
it ‘Fender.’ The techno-style front panel
says 21st-century Fender.”
“With the cabinets,” adds Glenn Gooler, the
project’s principal draughtsman, “we achieved
a distinctive new look by adding angles and curves.”
The net result of all this creative thinking is a complete
line of exemplary bass amplifiers. There are four models
in all, power rated at 25, 60, 100 and 400 watts, which
means that there’s a Bassman that’s right
for every gig, from the smallest club to the biggest
stadium, from home recording to high-powered session
dates. All models are combos, all solid state. The top-of-the-line
Bassman 400 model is a full-featured bruiser with a
three-band EQ section (the low, mid and hi bands are
all sweepable), a built-in compressor, dual 10-inch
speakers and a horn driver. “The 10s and horn are
really great for modern bass sounds and techniques like
string slapping and popping,” says Curtis. “But
you can still get the sounds you need for some of the
more traditional styles of playing. Also, two tens give
you the ability to handle more power than one big 15-inch
speaker. And that’s critical when you have an amp
that’s as powerful as the 400-watt Bassman. To
make a 15-inch massive enough to handle the heat, you’d
have a problem getting certain sounds out, particularly
the more contemporary sounds.”
|
Fender R&D graphic designer Shawn Greene developed
the modern-yet-classic styling of the Bassman series
amp.
|
|
Every
amp in the new Bassman line is equipped with useful,
well-thought-out features like an effects loop, separate
tuner output and an “Enhance” switch. The
latter provides an instant mid-range cut, yielding a
punchy sound that’s ideal for those aforementioned
string slapping and popping timbres. The controls are
comprehensive, but intuitively easy to use.
“We make it hard for the user to make the amp sound
bad,” says Curtis. “Some companies give you
50 knobs so you can dial in your sound. It’s essential
to be able to dial in your sound, of course, but how
many sounds did you have to go through that weren’t
what you wanted? Sometimes 50 knobs will actually make
it more difficult to get to the sound you really want.”
Another key design criterion was to make the amps eminently
road-worthy. The new Bassman enclosures are tougher
than a pair of Doc Martens, with black iron front grilles
that also enhance their stylish modern look. The 25
and 60-watt models can kick back to a 45 degree angle
(like a floor monitor). The larger models come with
casters for enhanced mobility. The 25-watt Bassman even
comes equipped with a CD-input for practicing with album
tracks.
|
|
s
|
“Even with the smallest Bassmans, we weren’t
out to make a cheap amplifier,” says Curtis. “These
are quality amps. The small model is a practice amp for
serious musicians. It’s got the features they want.”
But what about the classic Bassman that several generations
of musicians have come to love? Fear not. Fender will
continue to produce the ’59 Bassman reissue. Look
at it this way: Fender Bassman amps now come in two flavors,
vintage and modern.
“In my five years at Fender,” says Curtis, “I
can honestly say I’ve never been involved in a product
I was more proud of. These new Bassman amps have good
tone, good reliability—everything you expect from
Fender. And they’re going to look and sound modern
for a very long time.” |
|
Fender’s
Marketing and R&D staffs worked for hours in order
to dial-in a new, feature-laden bass amp design.
|
|
|
