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Author Topic:  Tom Brumleys Tweed Fender Bassman (Together Again Amp)
Mickey Adams


From:
Bandera Texas
Post  Posted 7 Feb 2017 1:21 pm    
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OFFERS BY PM ONLY PLEASE
Im not sure where to start with this....But here goes..!
I spent this morning with Rolene Brumley, helping to move some of Tom's gear to a new home for her, and we got to talking about this amp..

THIS IS THE AMP THAT WAS USED TO RECORD TOGETHER AGAIN..

WITHOUT A DOUBT, TOTALLY AUTHENTIC!


Rolene and I discussed all of the history of the amp, as well as numerous stories of the actual interaction in the studio with, the band, the wives, Buck, the engineers...
This is a true piece of musical history, classic memorabilia...
The amplifier was originally a Tweed Bassman with 4 12's in it.
Leo himself, brought the amp back to Fullerton for some modifications, while giving Tom a replacement for it.. The amplifier was re-covered in the new "tolex" which Leo thought would be more durable for the roadwork, a 15" JBL, (All Toms Amps were JBLs)...and a spring reverb unit, was mounted in the cab. The rectifier was removed, and obviously replaced with the 'new" solid state one which must have been brand new on the market..The tube socket remains, but is filled with some sort of white sealant to keep foreign material from entering the chassis.(PIC 3)...Well, Tom wasn't real happy about the Tolex change.. because...Well, I guess he was a "tweed" kinda guy!!..
The chassis was modified for the reverb send and return sockets, and a new Tube config chart was pasted inside the cabinet (The reverb requires a single AX7 driver tube), which appears to have been done on a typewriter, as its is not the original Fender template...The cover is in great shape too...
I will tell you all up front...The bottom price that will be accepted exceeds the market value of the typical production models, of this amplifier, even in MINT CONDITION..
If this auction, does not generate a suitable offer....IT WILL BE MINE!...(Insert Evil Laugh Here !!!)

Tom Brumley was one of the most proficient, visible, and professional musicians in history, and I am so excited about this event, words cannot express...So here are some of the pics I took this morning...PLEASE>...FEEL FREE TO POST..!!!>....But those of you that wish to make an offer, please PM me directly...I will conduct this in a fair, and non biased manner from start to finish......

I will eventually figure out WHY, all of my pictures get turned sideways..When I try to rotate them they fail...




OFFER

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Last edited by Mickey Adams on 7 Feb 2017 5:05 pm; edited 9 times in total
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Tim Whitlock


From:
Colorado, USA
Post  Posted 7 Feb 2017 1:43 pm    
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Whoa!
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Mickey Adams


From:
Bandera Texas
Post  Posted 7 Feb 2017 2:08 pm    
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THE REAL DEAL!!!!!!!!
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Mickey Adams


From:
Bandera Texas
Post  Posted 7 Feb 2017 6:01 pm    
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Up!
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Craig A Davidson


From:
Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin USA
Post  Posted 7 Feb 2017 7:34 pm    
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Wouldn't it just be easier to post a price? That way nobody is insulted by a low bid.
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Mike Scaggs


From:
Nashville, TN
Post  Posted 8 Feb 2017 3:37 am     .
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Hey Mickey,

Any chance you can pull that back panel so we can all see some nice gut pictures?

Thank you sir
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Mickey Adams


From:
Bandera Texas
Post  Posted 8 Feb 2017 7:10 am    
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Mike, this happened quite spontaneously, otherwise
I would have documented everything
with a good camera...
I'm headed back to TX, she is in MO..
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Dick Wood


From:
Springtown Texas, USA
Post  Posted 8 Feb 2017 7:26 am    
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If you're using an Iphone or Apple product to take pics,you have to hold it so the home button is towards the ground. If you're using some other camera,don't ask me what's wrong cuz I don't know why it doesn't work.
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David Weisenthal

 

From:
Arizona, USA
Post  Posted 8 Feb 2017 5:10 pm    
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Great to see pictures of this classic amp Mickey. I would love to hear some of those stories you mentioned. Mr Brumley's sound was the best. Can you break off a little chip of wood from the inside of the cabinet and send to me! Like they used to do with the pyramids... Laughing
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john widgren


From:
Wilton CT
Post  Posted 8 Feb 2017 6:02 pm     bassman
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thought the 57 bassman came with 4-10" speakers.. was it a custom deal to have 4 12's?
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Cartwright Thompson


Post  Posted 9 Feb 2017 2:14 am    
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Carl Mesrobian


From:
Salem, Massachusetts, USA
Post  Posted 9 Feb 2017 1:46 pm    
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Gotta be some serious mojo in that amp. Cool Cool Cool It also looks like possibly the filter caps are in a doghouse, as in later Fenders. Very cool amp indeed!

EDIT - oops some have the doghouse Embarassed
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John Goux

 

From:
California, USA
Post  Posted 10 Feb 2017 11:20 am    
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"I will tell you all up front...The bottom price that will be accepted exceeds the market value of the typical production models, of this amplifier, even in MINT CONDITION.. "

I don't follow vintage amp prices.
Tell us what is the market value of a mint condition Bassman of this year?

John
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Cartwright Thompson


Post  Posted 10 Feb 2017 12:00 pm    
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I see dealers asking upwards of $10K for nice clean ones, I have no idea what a truly mint one would go for. If Mickey means what he says,then I think he wants to keep it Laughing
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Carl Mesrobian


From:
Salem, Massachusetts, USA
Post  Posted 10 Feb 2017 12:10 pm    
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These are "ask" prices.

https://www.gbase.com/gear?q=fender+tweed+bassman&f=t
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Carl Mesrobian


From:
Salem, Massachusetts, USA
Post  Posted 10 Feb 2017 12:29 pm    
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Cartwright Thompson wrote:
I see dealers asking upwards of $10K for nice clean ones, I have no idea what a truly mint one would go for. If Mickey means what he says,then I think he wants to keep it Laughing


Only Mickey knows what goes on in his mind Wink

The unique things are its history AND the speaker configuration. Even if I wanted to spend the gwop to buy this one, Id' be afraid to take it out to a gig, but why? I bet it's INCREDIBLE SOUNDING!!

Back to my workbench...
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Bruce Derr

 

From:
Lee, New Hampshire, USA
Post  Posted 10 Feb 2017 9:14 pm    
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Not much help comparing this to a stock Bassman for pricing. It's a different amp now. The value is more about its history with Tom and Leo, which is real but hard to quantify.
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steve takacs


From:
beijing, china via pittsburgh (deceased)
Post  Posted 11 Feb 2017 11:55 am    
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I think this was the amplifier on which Forum Member Ken Fox based one or several models of his Fox Vintage amps. The one I heard, the 5D6B, is dynamite. I'm sure the one Mickey is selling here is amazing. Stevet
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Ken Fox


From:
Nashville GA USA
Post  Posted 11 Feb 2017 5:00 pm    
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Not really similar to the 1954 Bassman 5D6 that I basically cloned but did add a few tweeks. It was a prototype amp only made for a few months featuring two 5Y3 rectifiers. It and the 1955 amp were referred to as 2 hole Bassman amps (2 input jacks). In 1955 the Bassman was officially introduced with a slightly different circuit and used two 5U4GB rectifiers. That was a 5E6 circuit. The 5F6 circuit was designed in 1957 and was the most sought after Bassman amp of the tweed era.

From the web:

Model/Circuit Number: 5D6 ~ 1955, 5E6 ~ 1955, 5E6-A ~ 1955-1957, 5F6 ~ 1957, 5F6-A ~ 1958-1960 Years of Production: 1955 – 1960 Era

In the above it states 5D6 was 1955, incorrect. The "D" in the model number is a 1954 circuit. "E" was 1955 circuit. "F" was 1957 circuit, etc.
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Richard Lester

 

From:
Constable, New York, USA
Post  Posted 12 Feb 2017 6:12 am     amp it up
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I own a 1958 fender bassman amp and I was offered 10k for it in 1986 and I didn't sell. It's the best amp I've ever owned, nothing can compare. Just my two cents sense [cents] worth. Very Happy
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John Brock


From:
Xenia, Ohio
Post  Posted 12 Feb 2017 12:21 pm    
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Mickey...KEEP IT! 🎼. God Bless You for having it. Meant to be.
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Larry Welter


From:
Wisconsin, USA
Post  Posted 13 Feb 2017 2:05 pm    
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mickey,,, I agree with john,,keep this piece of history,,plus we all would love to hear you play thru it,,,even your great lessons,,,, Very Happy
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Kaare Festvog

 

From:
Minnesota, USA
Post  Posted 13 Feb 2017 4:44 pm     Circuit
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I would love to know what this circuit is. Depending on when it went in for an overhaul, it could be a modified Tweed Bassman circuit with reverb. However the transformers kind of look like they might be from the time of the modification. Who knows if it's similar to a newer circuit like a Super or something or if it's some weird mongrel that Leo came up with. You can see the thing just off to the side of the steel in a bunch of videos on YouTube. Oh, to just have an afternoon drawing the circuit out to make a clone that likely wouldn't get quite there and wouldn't be played with that level of artistry. I don't think I could afford the original. But a tinkerer like me just dreams of drawing the circuit and figuring out what was in Leo's mind.
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steve takacs


From:
beijing, china via pittsburgh (deceased)
Post  Posted 15 Feb 2017 3:30 am    
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Ken,
Thanks for correcting my error there. Sill have the amp I bought from you and am still very to glad I have it. Stevet
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Brad Sarno


From:
St. Louis, MO USA
Post  Posted 15 Feb 2017 8:08 am    
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One time about 15 years ago, my wife and I were visiting Tom and Rolene at their home in Branson. Tom mentioned that this amp wasn't working right and he sent me home with it to St. Louis to fix it. It was so funny, every time we looked in the back seat at this amp, safely seat-belted in, one of us would bark out "Together... Again..".

It's a pretty heavily modded amp, and shamefully I can't find my scribbled schematic when I drew it out back then. I'm pretty sure the 2-ohm transformer was swapped out for a 4-ohm. Also it had a reverb circuit added at some point, but I did not like the way the reverb was implemented, not the best way to do it. But we got it going and man it sounded gorgeous, really a cool amp, as you'd expect from such a classic circuit design and 15" JBL. Tom always liked a BIG FAT WARM Fender tone, and this amp does it big time. And Tom always liked to remind people that when he tracked Together Again, he had a big fat tone, but the engineer/producer removed all the bass for the recording.

Also, Tom reminded me that Together Again was tracked when the amp was still Tweed and had 4-10"s in it. Then maybe in 1964 or '65 or so, Leo took it in for the 15" baffle, new transformer, and black tolex to match the new Fender look at the time. Tom went on to use it quite a bit in that form. I don't totally recall, but it stands out in my memory that the reverb came even later, a mod done by one of Leo's guys (maybe) - heck, could have even happened in the 70s, not sure. But the resistors and parts around the reverb mod are of a more modern type, not the commonly used carbon comp resistors of the time. That also suggests the reverb came later.

It's such a holy grail piece of musical history that would LOVE to continue being used to make music. It's a real player amp as well as a historical object. I can't imagine anyone figuring out its value. It feels like a priceless item, so special.


Brad
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