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Topic: How about this: Fender 300-PS? |
Jeremy Threlfall
From:
now in Western Australia
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Posted 28 Sep 2009 7:41 pm |
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Its really out of the question - freighting this sort of thing to Australia (90lbs!)
but intriguing prospect nonetheless
has anyone ever used these for PS?
well, I had to ask - it is labelled "PS" afterall ....
Last edited by Jeremy Threlfall on 28 Sep 2009 7:59 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Jeremy Threlfall
From:
now in Western Australia
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Posted 28 Sep 2009 7:47 pm
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here's a bit more for you to chew on ..... (from "bikehorn" on the TalkBass forum)
i can tell you a bit about this thing.
it was descended from the 400 PS, a 435-watt all-tube beast made by Fender between 1970 and 1975. the 400 PS remains, in my eyes from a technological standpoint the baddest bass amp ever despite having three controls: volume, bass and treble. i've never tried one, but the people who own them all agree that even an SVT can't touch them. they have a sextet of 6550A, which normally only makes 300 watts. well, Fender used a special driver design with a 6L6 before the final output stage to beef up the signal - final result 435 watts. this amp was not easy on its tubes and thus you couldn't just put any old 6550 in there...you might melt it!  like, really melt it! Fender used a special high-power 6550 called the 6550A. it was made by General Electric in Owensborough, KY until the late 1980's. this is the finest 6550 ever made by anyone ever anywhere. Sylvania made some 6550A at some point as well, but they are very rare now and you won't find a matched sextet. don't even bother trying. however, some GE 6550A tubes are still available. a few parts value changes will allow you to use new-production tubes without exploding them...you will get reduced output. it had three 4 ohm outputs. if you used one, you got 145 watts. if you used two, you got 290 watts. if you used all three, you faced the full brutality of 435 tube watts. the matching cabinet was a 1x18" W-style folded horn bin that weigh 126 lbs and used a Cerwin-Vega L187F. this amp even had its own wheeled stand because it weighed 84 lbs.
well, after 1975, Fender decided the 400 PS was overdoing it a bit...i mean, ordinary amp techs couldn't bias it unless they knew how. they might damage it if they didn't know what they were doing. so the 300 PS was created as a successor. it used a quartet of 6550 and didn't quite run them as hard. the driver was a 6V6. it used a single input system switchable betweem guitar and bass unlike the 400 which had a bass input set and a guitar input set. the matching cabinet was a 4x12 with angled speaker baffles and some beefy Jensen speakers. they were called the X somethingorothers, i can't remember.
they 300 PS is a great amp! tthe 300 and 400 PS were Fender's response to the Ampeg SVT and the Sunn Model T. ultimately not as successful for whatever reason, but in 1970, if you played bass and you wanted to let the world know, literally, you fired up an SVT, a 400 PS or a Model T.
you can find out more by going to http://timeelect.com/400-PS-IDX.htm
it is a site dedicated to the 400 PS, and by association the 300 PS. |
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Jeremy Threlfall
From:
now in Western Australia
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Posted 29 Sep 2009 6:04 am
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| theres an inoperative one for sale on ebay closing in 6 hours from now - for US$113 (at the moment) ... |
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James Morehead
From:
Prague, Oklahoma, USA - R.I.P.
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Posted 29 Sep 2009 8:09 am
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Jeremy, Steel through 6550's is very,very sweet. If you could snag that amp head, and service and voice it a little more toward steel, you'd be dangerous for sure.  |
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Jeremy Threlfall
From:
now in Western Australia
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Posted 29 Sep 2009 8:18 am
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thanks, James. Its 177 now, plus 500 (+/-) freight for 85-90lb weight (to Australia) plus whatever servicing it needs. Freight sorta kills it.
I suppose the mods would be along the lines of the Super-Twin mods (disable distortion, grounding etc) - should work in theory |
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Jeremy Threlfall
From:
now in Western Australia
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Posted 29 Sep 2009 4:10 pm
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| sold for $227 |
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