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Mark Crenshaw
05-20-2013, 7:37 PM
Hello all!

It's been a year or so since I've posted here at the Creek. Life has had me jumping but I've managed to finish up some old projects and even a few new ones.

The latest is a '59 Bassman 5F6-A 4x10 combo. It has a box jointed solid mahogany cab finished with open grain, brown mahogany Transtint with EM6000 top coats. I built the cab and hand wired the chassis. A huge departure from guitar building.

Here's a studio project I did last weekend to test drive it. It's obvious I'll never be a professional player but it's all about the amp. :D

http://www.crenshawweb.com/pretending.mp3

http://www.crenshawweb.com/bassman/fin01.jpg

http://www.crenshawweb.com/bassman/fin03.jpg

http://www.crenshawweb.com/bassman/fin02.jpg

http://www.crenshawweb.com/bassman/fin04.jpg

http://www.crenshawweb.com/bassman/fin05.jpg

http://www.crenshawweb.com/bassman/fin06.jpg

george wilson
05-26-2013, 4:49 PM
That sounded mighty fine,Mark. I had a reissue Fender Bassman some time ago. Now I play a new Standel with the 125" J.B. Lansing speaker. They are made in California by a very nice guy. Calls his Co. "Requisite Electronics". It is an exact copy of the original Standel that Chet Atkins and just about anyone who was anyone layer back in the 50's. Only 50 of these amps were ever made. They are truly amazing,super clean sounding amps. They will show up every teeny flaw in your playing,too! I jack mine from its chassis into a Roland Jazz Chorus with the old type aluminum dome speakers. It gives the most amazing tone I've ever heard. I want to take 2 of those Roland speakers,and make a speaker cabinet to match the Standel. I was so pleased with the speakers in the Jazz Chorus I got 5 extra speakers(I think it's 5). Now,the newer models have no domes in their speakers,and I'll bet they suffer from it,though I haven't played a newer model Jazz Chorus.

These new Standels run about $3500.00. He even seeks out and pays good money for the original 15" speakers. I wonder how long the existing supply of old speakers will last?

My Standel is a 25 L 15. Creme colored vinyl cabinet,no reverb,like the old ones, Buddy Merrill got amazing tone playing with his Strat in the 50's,with Lawrence Welk's orchestra,of all people.. His Standel got lost in a flood. I got a recording he made later,and was very disappointed to find that tone was gone without that amp.

I wonder if you can find the schematic for the Standel in the Aspen Pittman tube amp book (I only have volume #3) that has all the schematics. The book doesn't have much of a glossary of named amps,though.

Your case work is extremely nice.

Kevin McMichael
06-22-2013, 9:06 AM
This is interesting. I also like PTP amps and have some Alessandros and Lil Dawgs. I realized I was colorblind when taking a radio and TV class 30 years ago. I have some very old pine boards and have contemplated making a cabinet for a tweed super. I love bassmans but they are loud. I plan to leave the boards gray and hand dovetail with larger tails and pins leaving that rough also. I will add a bottle opener on the side. Your work looks very nice.

george wilson
07-10-2013, 3:57 PM
Correction The 15" JBL speaker,NOT the 125"!!

Mark Crenshaw
07-10-2013, 4:13 PM
^^^ Ha! I figured that had to be 12" or 15". ^^^ :D

Greg Peterson
07-10-2013, 10:41 PM
As usual, your work is fantastic. And your playing pretty darn good too!

I built a Fender Tweed Deluxe clone (Missions Amp 5E3 kit) several years ago. I finger jointed pine for the cabinet and covered it with tweed, hit it with a couple coats of Zinsser amber shellac.

It only weighs in a 15 watts, but it produces a magical tone at any volume level.

Mark Crenshaw
07-11-2013, 11:50 AM
Thanks for the kind words Greg. Your amp came out nice! The 5E3 is on my short list of projects. Maybe this Fall. I'm wrapping up a 50W Dual Rectifier Plexi build right now. Hope to have it done by Aug. Here's a sound clip of the Plexi. http://www.crenshawweb.com/plexi50/ss_delay.mp3
As usual, your work is fantastic. And your playing pretty darn good too!

I built a Fender Tweed Deluxe clone (Missions Amp 5E3 kit) several years ago. I finger jointed pine for the cabinet and covered it with tweed, hit it with a couple coats of Zinsser amber shellac.

It only weighs in a 15 watts, but it produces a magical tone at any volume level.

Greg Peterson
07-11-2013, 8:34 PM
Nice and crunchy. Sounds great. Is the plexi going to be a head or combo unit?

Mark Crenshaw
07-12-2013, 11:01 AM
Nice and crunchy. Sounds great. Is the plexi going to be a head or combo unit? Thanks!. It's a bit of a spare parts build. The chassis is a 1U rack mount with the tubes and xformers surface mounted. I've built a combo cab for it but I may bail and do a small stack. The head looks pretty cool just sitting on top of a cab. I'll get some pics up this afternoon. Since that sound clip was done, I've added the "one wire" mod that cascades the first 2 gain stages and takes the amp more into the 2204 gain range. Very tasty but I want to make the cascade switchable so I can get the crunch of the Plexi and the lead drive of the 2204.

Mark Crenshaw
07-13-2013, 8:57 AM
The one-wire mod really takes the Plexi into another world. I'm working on a way to make it switchable between Plexi, 1-Wire and 1-Wire with the Normal channel boost.

Here's a clip of the 1-Wire tones I want to switch between. In 1-Wire mode I set up the crunch tone and then got lead tone by only inserting a 1/4" plug into the Normal jack. I panned the crunch to one side and lead to the other. Superior Drummer wasn't playing nice this morning so it's just guitars and bass. :x

http://www.crenshawweb.com/plexi50/somebody.mp3

Peace,
Mark

Mark Crenshaw
07-13-2013, 9:02 AM
It's sitting on top of a Line 6 cab right now. I'm thinking piggy back is the way to go but I already have the combo cab built and ready to cover.

Mark Crenshaw
07-13-2013, 11:14 AM
I got Superior Drummer to load but I had to hand program the drums since I had tracked without them. I think it sounds pretty good for a scrap build.

http://www.crenshawweb.com/plexi50/somebody_drums.mp3

Peace,
Mark