• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Fender 400PS

I

iampoor1

Nov 19, 2011
41
0
#1
Hey all, long time lurker here. I know who most of you are and you dont know me muhahaha
:p


Anyways, I have a chance to get a fender 400PS for a VERY good price. WHat are your thoughts on these amps? (Yes I have read the website devoted to them). It seems to me like the most logical option would to only run 1 set of output tubes, as to not kill children!

Is it true that the unused outputs all short to ground and lessen the tube life?

And alternativlly, what does one think that a head like this would fetch here?
 
#5
yeah, but running at full power, you wouldn't be driving each pair of tubes as hard to get the volume you needed, so they would all last longer.

+1 on the 6x10 idea, that would just rock.
 
#7
walterw said:
yeah, but running at full power, you wouldn't be driving each pair of tubes as hard to get the volume you needed, so they would all last longer.

+1 on the 6x10 idea, that would just rock.
Click to expand...

True man, Options Options Options, right? :p

I think Im going to go back and make sure the tubes are matched and such, because I was thinking of just using one cab and rotating the power inbetween them.

someparts said:
Not an amp to own if you are worried about cost, IMO. Excess is awesome but expensive!
Click to expand...

Im just worries about the tubes. Thats really the only concern now. I just want them to last long enough so I can use the amp for a while, then when it needs new tubes...well...I can hold on to it and suck it up once its worth more, if that makes sense xD
 
#9
iampoor1 said:
I was thinking of just using one cab and rotating the power inbetween them.
Click to expand...
what good is that?

you'd just be dragging around a 135 watt amp that's bigger and heavier than an SVT :hmm:

don't be so scared of tubes; they'll last many years if they're in at least decent shape, especially old USA-made power tubes.

i once scored a well-used magnavox SVT head for like $300 years ago when i was young and poor (now i'm not so young and...wait...:crying:)

i played it for a good two years without putting a dime into it, and eventually had to sell it (again for $300, knowing full well that it would be worth way more in years to come :().

point being, if you get that monster fender, don't be afraid to let it out of its cage.
 
#11
I had this amp back in the day. It came with an 18 folded horn and I got a second one, and then put a 2-15 bassman on top of each one. (Not sure how that was wired because it's been a few years.). Talk about crazy volume...

The load in was brutal. The head was tough to lift by yourself (do-able, just not pleasant). Then there were the folded horns.

The whole thing was insane now that I look back on it because we mostly played medium sized clubs. Of course the guitar players of that era were running stacks of HiWatt amps, so it was a competition as much as anything. Totally unnecessary and totally out of the question for this era where far more efficient smaller rigs are available. But it did have tube warmth that projected for miles and I enjoyed playing it.

The only problem I ever had with it was the big air vent on top of the head. A friend sat in on a few songs and put his Coke on the head which then vibrated and spilled into the vent. To this day, I avoid anything that vents in the top. Needless to say I run solid state amps now.
 
#12
walterw said:
what good is that?

you'd just be dragging around a 135 watt amp that's bigger and heavier than an SVT :hmm:

don't be so scared of tubes; they'll last many years if they're in at least decent shape, especially old USA-made power tubes.

i once scored a well-used magnavox SVT head for like $300 years ago when i was young and poor (now i'm not so young and...wait...:crying:)

i played it for a good two years without putting a dime into it, and eventually had to sell it (again for $300, knowing full well that it would be worth way more in years to come :().

point being, if you get that monster fender, don't be afraid to let it out of its cage.
Click to expand...

Hey, I never said it was ideal :p

True, but for the price Id be getting it...its also alooottt cheaper. And Im a drummer with a monster kit, so weight is the last thing on my mind in relation to a bass rig :p

Im going to go back and inspect the tubes. Im really familiar with tube gear (Im into collecting old radios and such), just the priuce of GE 6550's scare me. You are right thought, I shouldnt be so tedious twards that. The amp (from what I was told) has only had one owner, and was only used with one cab, so the tubes are probablly completly fine.

Those things always suck man :/

But I dont want to die... :bassist:

@PDGood: Thats an awesome story! I bet you got lots of stares with that baby eh? :hyper:

BTW: If you dont mind me asking, how much did these amps go for back in the day?
 
#14
FTR (for those who haven't seen this amp)
front2.jpg

Seem more pics here: Fender 400PS
 
#16
johnk_10 said:
NO. if you don't use them, it doesn't shorten their life, and it would blow the output tranny if it shorted them to ground.
Click to expand...

Alright thanks man. Ive been doing some research and I read that, and was pretty weirded out. Seemed like something was up, but one of the characteristics I inherited from my mom is having to double check everything, becasuse you never know :p
 
#20
If I recall correctly, it was like having three amps in one head. Each time you plugged a speaker in, you got another section being used that produced the same amount of power as the previous section. Maybe John K. can verify this.

Sorry, I don't remember the cost. I worked in a music store then and got deals. Plus I traded another rig (Peavey, I think) on the deal.

I only ever used one set of tubes, but I tended not to keep rigs for too many years back then. I traded in to get an Acoustic 370, also with folded horn.

I laugh when I see the one handle in the middle of that head. Anyone that can carry that head with one hand is a beast. It was hard enough to move using both arms on the end handles.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back