1965 Fender Bandmaster

[harryphunk]

I know this is not a bass amp but since I play other instruments I wanted to ask a general question.

I might pick one up today. It's 90% original with a few cap replacements but has most of the blue molded caps still in tact. Comes with the matching 2x12 cab. Has Oxfords in it.

Price is $895 and I might offer $800.

Thoughts on whether this is a good deal and worthy investment?

My use would be guitar and fender Rhodes and not for gigging, just practicing and recording.

Thanks

 

[two fingers]

Should sound amazing for that application. I use an old Fender PA100 for all kinds of instruments all the time. It sounds great with bass, electric guitar, acoustic, keys and really outstanding for harmonica. Heck, it even sounds good for vocals in small practice situations. I bet that Bandmaster will sound great for bass at house volumes. Maybe even louder with a different cab. Just experiment with it.

I would have a tech go through it just in case. Go for it!

 

[Bigskybassguy]

Lucky Harry they should call you. Two things:
a. I used to assemble/tunes Rhodes in Fender Fullerton as my college job; maybe my initials are inside your case!

b. If you find those Oxfords to be weak (or you want to preserve them), an awesome replacement would be a couple of 12" Reverend Alltone 1250s (and mean the earlier originals with the R

and not the A

logo... I just so happen to have a matching pair of them! Beg me hard, and I might list them in the for sale section!)

 

[jamzcl]

I had a '67 Bandmaster and it was a great head. Ended up selling it for $675 about 10yrs ago. If it has the matching cab I would think it would be a good investment at that price.

 

[JonW]

I also have a ’65 Bandmaster!

Just the head. I think that it’s great. For now I am only using it for my guitar (not bass). It sounds amazing. There is a lot of variation in tone from only the treble and bass knobs. It all sounds so smooth and rich.

My favorite guitar sound in the world is: Jazzmaster (both pickups) -> external reverb tank (set at 6, 6, 6) -> Bandmaster -> a DIY cabinet with a 12” Weber speaker (12F150T). It sounds so good… {How good does it sound?}… That even my pathetic playing sounds really good!

If yours is mostly original, I would definitely freshen up the caps. And *definitely* get the electric cord changed to a 3 prong, for safety.

I only have one bass and not yet any amp setup to go along with it. I have just been playing unplugged, after everyone in the house goes to bed. It’s soon time to get a bass amp setup. I am thinking about getting a cabinet like a Fearless F112. Then using the Bandmaster for a head. I would think that should be fine for playing at home and maybe some jamming with friends. No plans for, ummm, a stadium tour. But I do not really know if a Bandmaster + cabinet will work well at home.

Here are some pics…

 

[Bill Whitehurst]

It can work around the house

BUT

be careful with that open speaker!

 

[beans-on-toast]

It's a nice amp and the asking price is reasonable in good condition. Buy it if it sounds good, not for investment value.

I would be concerned about using the oxford speakers with a Rhodes. But at a low volume, you can get by.

Replacing caps, the power cord, or components that are required to keep the amp running does not affect the value unless it is a museum piece. This amp isn't.

 

[JonW]

It can work around the house

BUT

be careful with that open speaker!

Thanks for the warning. That cabinet is just for guitar. I only play bass through it with the volume below 2, until I get a proper bass cabinet. (And it does not sound great for bass.) I made it "convertible" in that there it can be open back or closed. See the photo, below.

My understanding is that just hanging a speaker onto a baffle like that is AOK and pretty typical for guitar. It is only when you make a bass cabinet that you need to get into tuning, sealed versus ported, etc. Isn't that correct?

And I agree with everything that beans-on-toast said with regard to harryphunk potentially buying a Bandmaster.

 

[jnewmark]

It's a nice amp and the asking price is reasonable in good condition. Buy it if it sounds good, not for investment value.

I would be concerned about using the oxford speakers with a Rhodes. But at a low volume, you can get by.

Replacing caps, the power cord, or components that are required to keep the amp running does not affect the value unless it is a museum piece. This amp isn't.

Funny, I was just in a local pawn shop, and saw a kind of beat up, Bandmaster head, and wondered if it would sound good for bass ? I wouldn't use it on most gigs, but thought it might be fun to try on low volume gigs . Beans, what 'cha think ?

 

[beans-on-toast]

Funny, I was just in a local pawn shop, and saw a kind of beat up, Bandmaster head, and wondered if it would sound good for bass ? I wouldn't use it on most gigs, but thought it might be fun to try on low volume gigs . Beans, what 'cha think ?

Good guitar amp. The power supply caps are much smaller in value than you'd normally see in a bass amp. That translates into loss of headroom and early distortion when the amp is turned up.

The amp may require some maintenance such as a cap job. Beat up Fenders are fun to restore if you are doing the work yourself.

Think of it as in the ballpark of an old Fender Bassman. I use my '59 Bassman with a proper cab for bass. Works for low volume and offers the Fender classic tone.

 

[jnewmark]

Good guitar amp. The power supply caps are much smaller in value than you'd normally see in a bass amp. That translates into loss of headroom and early distortion when the amp is turned up.

The amp may require some maintenance such as a cap job. Beat up Fenders are fun to restore if you are doing the work yourself.

Think of it as in the ballpark of an old Fender Bassman. I use my '59 Bassman with a proper cab for bass. Works for low volume and offers the Fender classic tone.

Cool. Would replacing the caps with a higher value be a waste of time for bass , or, would they give me a little more headroom ?

 

[beans-on-toast]

Cool. Would replacing the caps with a higher value be a waste of time for bass , or, would they give me a little more headroom ?

It can help with the bass end but will change the character of the amp as far as guitar is concerned. It is something that one would have to experiment with and see. The first thing is to try the amp as it is and see if you like it. Then consider trying to optimize it for bass if you'd like a little more tightness in the bottom end.

There were several revisions of the Bandmaster. In the one attached, a 5G7, the power supply caps at nodes A, B, C, D on the schematic are 40/20/20/20. Not too bad. It is important to have a high voltage rating in the A node, I'd want around 600V. This can be done with two 300V series connected capacitors. This is because there is a short lived spike when the amp is first turned on and the caps are discharged. Having a cap rated to take this surge helps them have a longer service life. If I were to modify the amp, I'd use a modern capacitor and try around 47uF in the first and second nodes. The 20uF in the preamp is fine as they have it. So 47/47/20/20uF. Increasing the first two nodes will give you a stiffer power supply.

 

[jnewmark]

It can help with the bass end but will change the character of the amp as far as guitar is concerned. It is something that one would have to experiment with and see. The first thing is to try the amp as it is and see if you like it. Then consider trying to optimize it for bass if you'd like a little more tightness in the bottom end.

There were several revisions of the Bandmaster. In the one attached, a 5G7, the power supply caps at nodes A, B, C, D on the schematic are 40/20/20/20. Not too bad. It is important to have a high voltage rating in the A node, I'd want around 600V. This can be done with two 300V series connected capacitors. This is because there is a short lived spike when the amp is first turned on and the caps are discharged. Having a cap rated to take this surge helps them have a longer service life. If I were to modify the amp, I'd use a modern capacitor and try around 47uF in the first and second nodes. The 20uF in the preamp is fine as they have it. So 47/47/20/20uF. Increasing the first two nodes will give you a stiffer power supply.

Good stuff, thanks as always, Beans. With my luck, it will be gone when I go back !