Bassman TV!

Chris P. · September 23, 2009, 04:32:32 AM

I ordered one for a review, I tried it and now it's at a colleague's house for a review. I kinda like it! They are real good lookers in real life: Tweed, kinda suede speaker cloth (think Champion 600), chrome control plates and chickenheads. I'm a sucker for chicken heads. It has a tube preamp indeed, a tranistor power amp and they sound very nice. Nothing really special, but just a good amp for smaller gigs.

300W and 2x10 is what I sometimes use for bigger gigs too. In the end I'm always DI'd, always bass on my monitor, so no use for a big amp. I almost always take my Hiwattt DR201, but that is just because I like it;)

luve2fli · September 23, 2009, 10:25:07 AM

I tried the TV 15 last week and was impressed! I ran a MIA Precision and a 5-string Sterling Ray35 through it and it held its own. Not in the same league as many other amps out there like Mesa, SWR and the SVT but definitely a good all-around amp and stage-worthy. Lots of punch, clarity and decent tone-shaping controls. Looks-wise ...... hhhhhmmmmmmm ..... maybe in a Rockabilly, Blues or Country band.

drbassman · September 23, 2009, 02:49:53 PM

So you beat it with some chains, leave your cigarette burning on the top and spill a few beers on it. How hard is that?

patman · September 23, 2009, 02:57:53 PM

I don't need to relic either of my Peavey combo 300's...by now they have more than their share of mojo...

drbassman · September 24, 2009, 10:17:43 AM

Well, my local dealer has them all in stock, so I'm gonna test them just for giggles.

drbassman · September 25, 2009, 08:40:37 PM

OK, I took my trusty 4005 tribute bass to the House of Guitars and played 3 of the new Fender TV amps. I love the sound and the look. Sorry! The down side: under powered for serious R&R gigging. Even the 15" version wasn't quite loud enough to compete with drums and sound systems IMHO. The output jack for running through a sound system is a good feature and necessary.

However, I really liked the size, tone and more than adequate output for moderately demanding gigs. I just joined a trio to do semi-acoustic R&B gigs, so I bought the 12" 150w model. I'm looking forward to picking it up, they're holding it for me after I sell a bass to cover it. And I don't think it's ugly at all in person!

Dave W · September 25, 2009, 10:20:06 PM

I suspected it wouldn't be as loud as 300w might indicate. Not my cup of tea, hope it does what you need it to, reliably.

Highlander · September 26, 2009, 02:40:55 PM

Bill, have you seen the state of my Hiwatt and Marshall gear...?

drbassman · September 26, 2009, 04:01:15 PM

Quote from: Kenny Five-O on September 26, 2009, 02:40:55 PM
Bill, have you seen the state of my Hiwatt and Marshall gear...?

Yes, and it is a beautiful sight. I love naturally reliced gear!

Hold the phone. The acoustic group I was going to join isn't going to work out, so I may not buy this puppy after all. If I'm not playing in coffee houses and such, I just might forgo this for now. I still would like one to screw around with once in awhile.

Dave W · September 26, 2009, 04:38:46 PM

You wait until you need something to buy it?

Lightyear · September 26, 2009, 08:25:23 PM

Quote from: Dave W on September 26, 2009, 04:38:46 PM
You wait until you need something to buy it?

Aussie Mark · September 27, 2009, 11:26:22 PM

When I saw the title of this thread I thought that "Bassman TV" was Mark's new forum handle.

luve2fli · September 28, 2009, 09:22:37 AM

LOL! Good one .....

Dave W · September 28, 2009, 10:53:16 AM

That one took me a minute to get.

Must be Monday morning.