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#Post#: 1190--------------------------------------------------
Setting tone controls on Fender amps
By: abstamaria Date: June 25, 2012, 8:02 pm
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I have a new Fender Bassman TV15 bass amp. This has a tube
(valve) preamplifier and a solid state power amp. I was reading
up on the amp in the web and came across this:
"On a contemporary amp, tone controls are Cut/Boost, with a
setting of straight-up noon representing the center point. But
the TV Fifteen has the passive ’50s Fender tone stack, where
Bass and Treble controls are boost-only and the midrange is
cut-only. For a flat EQ, put the Bass and Treble chicken heads
at about 3 and the Middle all the way up to the full 12."
That means, to get a flat frequency response, one must set the
treble, mid, and bass tone controls on the amp at 0/15/0.
I'm assuming that's correct advice. My question is which other
Fender amps work that way? The tweed '59 Twin Amp? The Twin
Reverb?
Many thanks,
Andy
#Post#: 1191--------------------------------------------------
Re: Setting tone controls on Fender amps
By: wstagner Date: June 25, 2012, 9:00 pm
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I owned a twin in the 70's and the tone controls were all
cut/boost. I never pay much atttention to the position of the
knobs as I always adjust to what sounds the best to me. This,
of course, changes with the guitar or bass I'm playing because
the PUPs are different
#Post#: 1192--------------------------------------------------
Re: Setting tone controls on Fender amps
By: wstagner Date: June 25, 2012, 9:04 pm
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When I'm playing guitar I adjust the controls so that the highs
are not piercing for the audience yet they're clear enough to be
hear. For the bass, I adjust the tone to be solid/distinct and
not muddy. That's why I prefer 2x10 or 4x10 speakers rather
than larger cones.
The larger cones have too much mass to move to provide good
transient response. I played thru an 18" speekar once and it
had unbeleefable bottom but was way 2 muddy for my taste.
#Post#: 1193--------------------------------------------------
Re: Setting tone controls on Fender amps
By: abstamaria Date: June 26, 2012, 6:14 am
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Many thanks, Walt. I appreciate the advice. I was just
curious whether boost only on the treble and bass tone controls
was universal on the 50s Fender amps.
Warm regards,
Andy
#Post#: 1194--------------------------------------------------
Re: Setting tone controls on Fender amps
By: wstagner Date: June 26, 2012, 9:06 am
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Not sure about the 50's amps...but the 60's stuff and 4ward had
"standard" tone controls.
#Post#: 1195--------------------------------------------------
Re: Setting tone controls on Fender amps
By: tabalt11 Date: June 26, 2012, 11:40 am
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Okay fellas maybe I'm lying a bit here when I state:
"Not to be a troublemaker in regards to 'the other forum' but
Andy I noticed
you posted YOUR SAME QUESTION verbatim on UF2 & have yet to get
a reply
or even acknowledgement in some form. So with that being said,
it's obvious why HERE is 'far & away' the better choice for any
number of reasons."
#Post#: 1196--------------------------------------------------
Re: Setting tone controls on Fender amps
By: wstagner Date: June 26, 2012, 11:49 am
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Andy, did you get a manwell with your amp? Does the manwell say
anything about settings?
#Post#: 1208--------------------------------------------------
Re: Setting tone controls on Fender amps
By: abstamaria Date: June 28, 2012, 10:46 pm
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Thanks, Tom. My impression is that UF2 is tightly focused on
Ventures discography, rather than on gear and playing, so it was
probably the wrong place to raise the question. The members are
otherwise very helful. I did ask the same question in three
Shadows forums and got very precise answers, including some of
the leads I mentioned here. I think that is because the members
there tend to play and very engaged in capturing That Sound. I
am quite hopeful that the same type of discussion can take place
at this forum.
The Fender amp did come with a manual, but it was thick only
because it said the same two-page instruction in several
languages! On tone controls, all it said was that these knobs
adjust the treble, mid, and bass. Not helpful at all!
I wrote Frank Glionna, who runs Music Gallery, a guitar store in
Chicago, is very knowledegeable, and has been very helpful on
technical points, such as the availability of flat-wounds in the
50s and so forth. I have no connection with his store, but he
has supplied guitars to our musical company (The Madeleine
Cookie Company) and, recently, a Victoria Victorilux amp. I
ordered the "Walk Don't Run" Jazzamaster and '56 Stratocaster
that I mentioned elsewhere in this forum through him.
This is what Frank wrote:
"The Fender Re-issue amps, 59 Twin, 65 Twin all have the same
tone circuit. This was standard among all Fender amps during
that time frame & other amps such as Marshall, Vox etc. This is
still quite common with guitar amps. It wasn't until companies
like Mesa Boogie & others that offered tone pots that started in
the middle & would either boost or cut that frequency.
The Victoria is old school. Just like the Fender amps. The
pot might be a little more sensitive on the Victoria making it
easier to dial in the tone you like but it works the same way."
As suggested here, there is no substitute to experimenting with
the dials, but it is good to know what the baseline is, as Walt
says.
My best,
Andy
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