what cab should I choose for my bassman 135?

BootsMando · #1 09-16-2011, 05:28 PM

I have a silverface fender bassman 135 (probably a 1980) and I'm in the market for a cabinet. I know they used to be marketed with a fender 412 cabinet (weird, huh), but those seem to be pretty hard to find and I've heard bad reviews about them. I play in an eclectic rock band whose style varies quite a bit. I want something that moves some air but isn't too muddy. Suggestions?

Ben Clarke · #2 09-16-2011, 06:14 PM

I used to gig that amp with a DR250a and a Tuba24 by Bill Fitzmaurice. Sounded great with tons of headroom.

BassBob1 · #3 09-16-2011, 06:22 PM

why not an ampeg 810? If you have the means to move one around I bet it would sound great, move tones of air and it would be punchy not muddy (assuming you don't get one of the last SLM cabs made from OSB or what ever it was. Those apparently sound very dark with no highs). If your looking to go smaller I used to jam at a place where the guy there had a bassman 135 running through a mesa power house 410 on occasion.

**dmonroe** · #4 09-16-2011, 06:28 PM

You don't want a cabinet you want to sell it to me at a very low price!

BUT, if you insist on keeping it you could go with a 410 or an 810, I used the 135 I had years ago with the 412 and it was INCREDIBLE. I don't know where you heard the bad reviews from but I never got anything but compliments on my sound and never had a single issue with the head or the 412 cab.

will33 · #5 09-16-2011, 06:58 PM

I got the same amp, sweet tone. It doesn't have the power to make use of long excursion, deep bass type speakers, go for something with lots of speakers and/or high spl speakers. Mine sounded particularly nice through an old Dietz cab with EV15L's in it. Basically 2 tl606's in one box. Emi. Delta15's sound nice with it too. Any good sounding, loudish 412, 610, 810, 215, etc. will get you there.

walterw · #6 09-16-2011, 07:05 PM

right, a big efficient cab will be the ticket to get a little headroom out of that relatively low-powered bass amp.

Mojo-Man · #7 09-16-2011, 07:08 PM

Call Jorg at Schroeder Cabs.
He built me a custom 2x15 4 ohm cab that will rock a 135 head.
I've used a Bassman 100 with my cab and it kills that old school tone.
PS my cab came in a 45 lbs, ( A joy to move)

BootsMando · #8 09-16-2011, 07:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dmonroe

You don't want a cabinet you want to sell it to me at a very low price!

BUT, if you insist on keeping it you could go with a 410 or an 810, I used the 135 I had years ago with the 412 and it was INCREDIBLE. I don't know where you heard the bad reviews from but I never got anything but compliments on my sound and never had a single issue with the head or the 412 cab.

I heard bad reviews about the way it was put together, not so much the sound. It was apparently held together with some cheap caulking and would fall apart. I dunno, I've never even seen one.

I used to have a 90s fender cab with 2 10s and an 18, and it was serious business. It was stolen from my storage along with my hartke 410, which was nothing special but nice to have around.

Someone recommended an Acoustic cab to me. Anyone know anything about that?

AND THANKS FOR THE FEEDBACK DUDES.

BootsMando · #9 09-16-2011, 07:19 PM

Also, where are these fabled 412 bass cabs coming from? This sounds magical... But I'm assuming you can't just throw any 412 guitar cab under your head. What makes the difference between a bass 412 and a guitar 412?

JTE · #10 09-17-2011, 03:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BootsMando

Also, where are these fabled 412 bass cabs coming from? This sounds magical... But I'm assuming you can't just throw any 412 guitar cab under your head. What makes the difference between a bass 412 and a guitar 412?

The Bassman 100/135 4x12 was a big cabinet. Very deep, wide, and tall. Each speaker was in a separate baffle and the four baffles were angled in towards each other. The design was supposed to give better projection. But they were quite poorly built and tended to come apart at the seams under normal gigging handling. And they didn't sound all that great based on the number of cabinets we sold compared to the heads we sold (I was a Fender dealer from '77-'88). Most of the Bassman 135 heads we sold wound up driving various 2x15 or 1x15 boxes from Fender (used Showman cabs were popular), Peavey, Bullfrog, or homemade EV TL-606 boxes.

Now I'd get an efficient cabient that's able to work with the Bassman's EQ. I wonder how an Eden D212XLT would sound.

John

Muziekschuur · #11 09-17-2011, 04:11 AM

2x15 cabinet. Or two 1x15 cabinets. I'd load them with neodynium speakers... Or the Fane speakers wich are really affordable but nice. And around 98db very sensitive...

If you have the dough some Weber speakers. Wich are EV 140 clones in a neodynium way..... They will make your head twice as loud and because the attack is fast no tweeter nessesary.

will33 · #12 09-17-2011, 09:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BootsMando

I heard bad reviews about the way it was put together, not so much the sound. It was apparently held together with some cheap caulking and would fall apart. I dunno, I've never even seen one.

I used to have a 90s fender cab with 2 10s and an 18, and it was serious business. It was stolen from my storage along with my hartke 410, which was nothing special but nice to have around.

Someone recommended an Acoustic cab to me. Anyone know anything about that?

AND THANKS FOR THE FEEDBACK DUDES.

They were probably talking about the 408 I think it is? It has 4 15's in it. 2 facing forward and 2 angles inward in kind of a hybrid bandpass/ported cab design, very loud and with a full bottom. I think Monolith builds replicas of it? I know somebody does.

pgk · #13 09-17-2011, 10:15 AM

anything by bag end. a pair of s15-l-d midsized cabs will pummel a mid sized room with that head. we used to have one of the mongo 4-12's that came with that head in our rehearsal room and it was the biggest pos we ever heard. it was so bad we left the cab there when we found a better practice space!

will33 · #14 09-17-2011, 10:32 AM

BFM Jacks are another loud cab. Can finish them in grillcloth so they look classic.

Sunnmon · #15 09-17-2011, 11:27 AM

Hello BootsMando,
I own a 1981 Bassman 135 and a 1975 Bassman 100.

Great amps. They like 4Ω loads. I run mine through a variety of cabinets. 2 SWR 412 cabinets stacked sounds fine and loud enough for many venues. 2 SWR Goliath III 410 Cabinets stacked sound fantastic. I used my buddy's Ampeg 810E, sounded great. Sunn 200S with JBL D-140's also great. So many cabinets available. I am not a MAGNAVOX GUY But it did sound good through one. SVT 810. Key is one big Mo-fo cab @ 4Ω. Not a Berg guy but an NV610 would get it going as well.
Get a quality multi-driver large cabinet or 2 8Ω 410 cabinets.
The Mesa 610 or 810, shoot even an Orange 810(pricey).
Have fun, rock on. and

EXCUSE ME if I offended anybody.

PEACE and HAPPINESS TO ALL

sunnmon