New Amp Day - 1963 Ampeg B-15!

After a day in the shop and several more waiting for the weekend, it's New Amp Day. Here it is - a 1963 Ampeg B-15-N:





For those not familiar with this model, it was the first amp designed specifically for the electric bass and is still one of the handful of models that all other bass amps are judged against. A '63 B-15 is to bass amps what a '59 Bassman is to guitar amps. The features are pretty primitive by today's standards, but nothing can beat one of these for massive bass response at low volumes. So far I've tried it at the store with my '81 L-2KE and at home with an '86 SB-1. It's just pure, full bass tone. Think 60s and 70s Motown, Stax, Muscle Shoals and anything recorded in a New York City studio. These were the amps of choice.

As I said, the design is straightforward. It has half a dozen tubes, and two channels with volume, bass and treble controls. The neatest features though are the power on light - a piece of plexiglass with an etched Ampeg logo which the power tubes light up - and the flip-top design. The board that the head is mounted to latches to the cabinet. When you want to transport the amp, you flip the head over into the cabinet and latch it in place.

Back to thumping out some low notes now...

Ken

that thing is sooo cool !! ...... thanks for the education too !!

Cool amp.
Bass player in my first band in high school back in '69 had one of those.

What kind of speaker is in that? Is it original?

You lucky, lucky, lucky man!
I have missed my own Portaflex often, and sorely, ever since I foolishly sold it in the 1970's. The price back then would have perhaps bought a smallish used motorcycle...
They're special things, big-hearted and sweet both at once.

What a beauty! What a score! Looks to be in great condition too. Have fun with it Ken.

- Jos

Cool amp.
Bass player in my first band in high school back in '69 had one of those.

What kind of speaker is in that? Is it original?

It's the original JBL:



Ken

wasn't the 59 bassman the first amp designed for electric bass? to go along with the tweed deluxe for guitar?

wasn't the 59 bassman the first amp designed for electric bass? to go along with the tweed deluxe for guitar?

Maybe I should have said the first amp designed to really handle the electric bass's potential, or the first one that didn't tend to fall apart when a bass was plugged in.

I believe Leo Fender was under the impression that the Precision would be used in the same role that uprights filled in the 1950s: outlining a song's harmony and keeping a quarter-note beat just loud enough for the players on the bandstand to hear it. You can hold a conversation while a 3/4 size upright bass with gut strings is playing two feet away. That's what the Bassman was supposed to match. It just couldn't handle a bass signal at the volumes needed for amplified groups or large venues.

Ken

Very cool. So is this the holy grail for you?

That is very sweet Ken, The D140 F is sweet. I was under the impression that it was built for Fender. Ampeg must have used them to. That is a cool rig Ken. Lucky guy!!!!-- Darwin

Very cool. So is this the holy grail for you?

It is for bass tone. There really isn't one amp I lust after on guitar, so I guess this one is my holy grail overall. I'd love to experience an SVT, but that's never going to happen. The volume just wouldn't be practical.

Ken

That is very sweet Ken, The D140 F is sweet. I was under the impression that it was built for Fender. Ampeg must have used them to. That is a cool rig Ken. Lucky guy!!!!-- Darwin

Thanks Darwin! I believe Ampeg used Jensens as well as JBLs in these in the early 60s. How early did Fender start using 15" speakers? I thought it was quite a bit later.

Ken

That is very sweet Ken, The D140 F is sweet. I was under the impression that it was built for Fender. Ampeg must have used them to. That is a cool rig Ken. Lucky guy!!!!-- Darwin

Thanks Darwin! I believe Ampeg used Jensens as well as JBLs in these in the early 60s. How early did Fender start using 15" speakers? I thought it was quite a bit later.

Ken

I am fairly certain the one that my bass player had in the '60s did not have a JBL. In fact that was one of the shortcomngs of the amp--I think the speaker needed replacing.

The earliest Fender amps with 15" speakers I believe would have been the Showman and Dual Showman--In fact I remember players back then using Dual Showmans for bass amps--they sounded much better than the Bassmans of the day (for bass).

The Blonde Showman was introduced in 1960 I believe. There was also a Vibrosonic in 1960 with a 15" Altec. If I am not mistaken there was also a brownface Pro with a 15"

I am fairly certain the one that my bass player had in the '60s did not have a JBL. In fact that was one of the shortcomngs of the amp--I think the speaker needed replacing.

I found this article from Bass Player: http://www.bassplayer.com/article/The-A ... ction/5175.

According to the article, the first B-15s in 1960 had Jensen speakers. JBLs were available as an upgrade in 1963, and later on in the mid-'60s they went over to CTS and Altec speakers.

This amp would have left the factory with a serial number plate on the back of the head, and a sticker inside the cab with the serial number stamped and model designation hand-written. The serial number plate is long gone, but the sticker is intact in my amp. The serial number dates to October 1963. The model is listed as B-15-NB, which indicates a solid-state rectifier and a Jensen speaker. Since my amp has a tube rectifier and a JBL speaker, either the head and speaker were swapped with '63-vintage components or the number on the sticker is wrong. The B-15-NL would have had the tube rectifier and JBL speaker. I'm guessing the sticker was wrong.

Here it is:



Ken

Super classy!

Ken, you have done your homework. I remember reading an article by the designer of the D130F/ D140F saying that the D140F was designed for bass amps. I was unclear about Ampeg using the D140F as the the F was the Fender version but it makes sense that they may have not changed the logo for Ampeg. It was mentioned that Fender and Ampeg used the D140's. The difference between the D130 and D140 is the wire in the voice coil. The DF140 was for bass as the 130's did not hold up well for bass guitars.

Eddie, I believe that you are correct in the usage of the JBL's by Fender. I remember seeing the Showmans in the early 60's with the JBL's and they were the cats meow. Most bass cabinets at that time sounded flabby after a few hours of rock & roll but the JBL were very clean, crisp and articulate until you really blew them up. I had a 62 Bassman with 2 12's and wished it had the JBL's. Good old days, many fond memories!-- Darwin

The earliest Fender amps with 15" speakers I believe would have been the Showman and Dual Showman--In fact I remember players back then using Dual Showmans for bass amps--they sounded much better than the Bassmans of the day (for bass).

Earliest Fender with a 15" was the Pro, as early as 1946/47, just an FYI

-Dave