Pleased you agree with me over the svt comparisons, Rod. I have been very careful to qualify them on the forum as I feel almost sacrilegious making them. Having owned my sb300 for 6 months now it has performed flawlessly and I think may well be the best head I have owned.
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The Fender Super Bassman 300 thread
- Thread starter Tim1
- Start date
Mate, the very first note I played on it,[ thru my (3015 modded) Ampeg PF115HE cab -sealed 115 ] floored me
. The ol' "sound in mah head" thang instantly. This weekend, I'm taking the SUPER BASSMAN & 2 cabs the NV412 & one of the (3015 loaded) PF115HE's to a friend house, who has a SVT-VR & Ampeg 810AV cab.
No gigs this weekend & he works for a PA hire co. So we thought we'd take the opp to compare em.
He actually said to me a cuppla months ago " The Super bassman's cool 'n all, but it's NO SVT"
Well I'd be GLAD it's NO SVT!!! If I wanted an SVT, I know where to get one
I think it's better for my needs than an SVT could be- tho I LOVE the VR's tone, as you, TIM1, said It NAILS the VR tone pretty much inherantly, then you start to adjust things if U wanna.
Both the VR & this SB300 are seriously great all tube beasts, & really the only thing that made me "go Fender" was the footswitchable channels. Often there aint a lotta real estate on stage I play, so if I can NOT take a pedalboard
Yep, when I first got my SB300 I still had the SVT VR and was able to compare them directly into both the berg 215 and the berg 610 cabs. I sold the vr since I could easily get its sound from the Fender, plus many more. For similar reasons I also sold the berg 610 when my Fender neo 610 arrived. The Berg 215 stays and remains my favourite cab though. I will be getting one of the new Berg 115s as soon as George gets them in at Bass Gear Direct.
That new NV115 sounds like a great idea!, but I'm really happy with my 2 modded PF115HE's. So, unless GAS gets the better of me, I'll stick with these.
I've not added any porting, so they've quite a steep low end roll off, which I like. A slight push of the lows from the amp's eq adds these back if wanted tho.
They sound like a mini frij
I've not added any porting, so they've quite a steep low end roll off, which I like. A slight push of the lows from the amp's eq adds these back if wanted tho.
They sound like a mini frij
Hey Rod, what are the mods you have done to the PF115HEs? Sounds interesting and might be quite cost effective.
I didn't do much. I'd bought one PF115HE & altho I liked it's "lo-fi" sound it didn't handle much power b4 flubbing out. I ended up selling it.
I wanted a 115 that could handle descent power, like my old EV TL15
Less than a week after selling it, I saw another for sale at a ridiculously cheap price, so couldn't resist.
So I did a li'l research & thru JohnK10 bought a cuppla Eminence 3015's
(I also bought another PF115HE cab, cheap!
)
These drivers are meant to be in ported enclosures, but John had experimented with a sealed box, so I thought I'd try it first, I could always add a couple 4" ports later.
I liked the results.
They now handle a heap of power a still sound a li'l "lo-fi"
I always liked the look of the Ampeg PF11FHE & the weight & design is good too, so now they'll actually handle enough power, that I mostly use just one, but can stack em for a cool 2x15.
There's a thread about me asking the experts on here but as I'm on my ph app, I can't link it.
As I stated, there's quite a severe roll off in the lows, but simply adding the amp's bass control to 1 o'clock usually brings it back.
They sure ain't an Eden style 1x15. I think they sound pretty much like a sealed multi driver cab, so I like em.
BUT, I haven't ruled out adding ports to one of these cabs sometime. Would be a nice variation methinks
I wanted a 115 that could handle descent power, like my old EV TL15
Less than a week after selling it, I saw another for sale at a ridiculously cheap price, so couldn't resist.
So I did a li'l research & thru JohnK10 bought a cuppla Eminence 3015's
(I also bought another PF115HE cab, cheap!
)These drivers are meant to be in ported enclosures, but John had experimented with a sealed box, so I thought I'd try it first, I could always add a couple 4" ports later.
I liked the results.
They now handle a heap of power a still sound a li'l "lo-fi"
I always liked the look of the Ampeg PF11FHE & the weight & design is good too, so now they'll actually handle enough power, that I mostly use just one, but can stack em for a cool 2x15.
There's a thread about me asking the experts on here but as I'm on my ph app, I can't link it.
As I stated, there's quite a severe roll off in the lows, but simply adding the amp's bass control to 1 o'clock usually brings it back.
They sure ain't an Eden style 1x15. I think they sound pretty much like a sealed multi driver cab, so I like em.
BUT, I haven't ruled out adding ports to one of these cabs sometime. Would be a nice variation methinks
Hi I just bought a super bassman 300 at a meet in the middle spot, deal but the seller is a TB buddy.
When I cranked it up at home it sounds great. However the auto bias led for position 2a was not lighting up at all during the scanning phase not while stationary or playing either. I was able to get a red led by switching to the cold setting, but not always. usually no led light for 2a. That tube is lit up like the rest, and I am going to get it tested.
I am guessing the bias circuitry?
Sure hope the warranty can be transferred
So I swapped tube positions and the good 1a tube does not get a green light in 2a position and the supposedly bad 2a tube is doing fine in 1a position now. I see where some folks had bad auto bias circuitry. Guess I will take a trip to the authorized repair shop.
When I cranked it up at home it sounds great. However the auto bias led for position 2a was not lighting up at all during the scanning phase not while stationary or playing either. I was able to get a red led by switching to the cold setting, but not always. usually no led light for 2a. That tube is lit up like the rest, and I am going to get it tested.
I am guessing the bias circuitry?
Sure hope the warranty can be transferred
So I swapped tube positions and the good 1a tube does not get a green light in 2a position and the supposedly bad 2a tube is doing fine in 1a position now. I see where some folks had bad auto bias circuitry. Guess I will take a trip to the authorized repair shop.
after several minutes of no light with the previous good tube now in the 2a position, I went back and found red at 2a.
Interesting. Let us know the outcome. FWIW- I think the warranty IS transferable, iirc
Onto my amps performance- Man, am I enjoying this beast.
It's probly 13lbs heavier than my 200w Fender Studio Bass, but that it can switch impedance & have SUCH versatility with regards to the 2 channels-almost 3 when u do as I do.
I set vintage channel to a cool sound (very easy- just plug in) then set the "modern" or "overdrive" channel to a tone that also suits-both my music & the room. Then using the "blend" set about how much dirt I wanna be able to kick in (with footswitch). Then, adjust volumes so both channels match.
So-this gives me the sweet tubey vintage channel- 1 , the dirty Channel 2 +, just by quickly turning the BLEND down, I've got a 3rd option.
Love this amp!:thumbup:
Onto my amps performance- Man, am I enjoying this beast.
It's probly 13lbs heavier than my 200w Fender Studio Bass, but that it can switch impedance & have SUCH versatility with regards to the 2 channels-almost 3 when u do as I do.
I set vintage channel to a cool sound (very easy- just plug in
) then set the "modern" or "overdrive" channel to a tone that also suits-both my music & the room. Then using the "blend" set about how much dirt I wanna be able to kick in (with footswitch). Then, adjust volumes so both channels match.So-this gives me the sweet tubey vintage channel- 1 , the dirty Channel 2 +, just by quickly turning the BLEND down, I've got a 3rd option.
Love this amp!:thumbup:
Knew you would love it, Rod. My computer won't cut and paste at the moment but if you go to YouTube and look up Dusty Rhodes and the Bluesmobile Caledonia you will hear my 59 CS precision into the SB300 and Fender neo 610, cab Mic'd and also using it's own DI. It was a reunion gig for one of my old bands, recorded on a cheap camera by a member of the audience, but you will get the drift. On watching it I realised I was totally hung up on the turnaround, but that's what reunions with no practice can do to you . The amp sounds totally different into the berg 215, but I wanted to use the neo 610 in theory to counteract a suspended wooden stage.
. The amp sounds totally different into the berg 215, but I wanted to use the neo 610 in theory to counteract a suspended wooden stage.
my NEO 610 arrives on Fri. I won't get to put much more than an hour or two on it before Sat night's gig. Any opinions on wether or not i should give it more break-in time before gigging with it? I usually run my SB 300 with both the Vol and MV at around 6 in that room using a Berg HT/ER 112 stack.
Thanks for that, azwhofan. The 610 definitely improves and opens up after a bit of playing, but I have never heard of a speaker being damaged from being gigged straight up. Maybe you could just run an ipod into it for a few hours to break it in if you are worried.
Cool! Is that a Super Bassman or 100T ? Looks like a SB300 to me, but that's all I've seen in person. Oh, I did see a 100T in a store, but couldn't see if it has the same depth to it as the SB300.
