Fender Bassbreaker 15 - Amplifier Manual

Also See for Bassbreaker 15:

Owner's manual (13 pages)

Table of Contents

Contents

1 Introduction
2 Control Panel
3 Rear Panel
4 Specifications
5 Documents / Resources
- 5.1 References
- 5.2 Download manual

Fender Bassbreaker 15 - Amplifier Manual

Introduction

The Bassbreaker 15 is a versatile 15-watt amp that delivers the big, thick and crunching tone sound of pure tube greatness, with a special preamp gain structure control and many other great features. Bassbreaker guitar amplifiers continue the acclaimed lineage established by the great Fender Bassman® amp of the late 1950s, taking classic Bassman design and "breaking" it with features including unusual-for-Fender circuitry and components, dark gray tweed covering, refined pointer knobs, and the early Fender block-letter logo.

With its full sound and distinctive style, the Bassbreaker 15 comes in combo and head models ideal for stage and studio alike. Its preamp gain structure control lets players effortlessly shift gears among three impeccably voiced tonal flavors from clean sparkle to bluesy crunch to full-on burn.

Bassbreaker 15 also features a bright switch for extra brilliance, shimmering reverb, convenient front-panel mute switch, recording-quality speaker emulated line out, dual EL84 output tubes, a 12" Celestion® speaker for tighter rock distortion (combo model), impedance select switch and more. The Bassbreaker 15 head pairs neatly with the Bassbreaker BB-112 and BB-212 speaker enclosures.

Register your Bassbreaker 15 online at www.fender.com/product-registration.

Control Panel

INPUT: Plug instrument in here.
BRIGHT: Pushbutton switch provides greater high-end sparkle.
GAIN: Adjusts preamp gain and signal overdrive.
STRUCTURE: Three-position switch delivers three distinct preamp gain tonal flavors: clean sparkle (LOW), bluesy crunch (MED) and fullon burn (HIGH).
Set the STRUCTURE control to one of the preamp gain tonal flavors listed above, then adjust both the GAIN (C) and MASTER (F) controls to further tailor the sound and volume to individual preference.
BASS, MIDDLE, TREBLE: Tone controls.
MASTER: Master volume control; use with GAIN (C) and STRUCTURE (D) to set overall volume.
REVERB: Digital hall reverb level control.
POWER INDICATOR: Illuminates when Bassbreaker 15 is on.
MUTE: Mutes power amp and speaker while DIRECT OUT (R) signal remains live for recording and sound reinforcement use. POWER INDICATOR (H) flashes when MUTE is in use.
POWER: Turns Bassbreaker 15 on (up) and off (down).

Rear Panel

IEC POWER INLET: Using the included power cord, connect to a grounded outlet in accordance with the INPUT POWER voltage and frequency specified at the power inlet.
FUSE: Provides electrical over-current protection. With power disconnected, replace a blown fuse only with one of the type and rating specified on the amp's rear panel.
IMPEDANCE SELECT: If no external enclosures are connected to PARALLEL SPEAKER OUTPUTS (N), this switch should be set to the 8Ω position. To avoid damage to the amplifier when using PARALLEL SPEAKER OUTPUTS, this switch must be set in accordance with the total impedance load as shown in the tables at on the facing page for the Bassbreaker 15 combo (first table) and head (second table) models. Also to avoid damage, turn the amplifier off when changing IMPEDANCE SELECT switch settings.
Using two speaker enclosures of different impedance ratings is not recommended. If using enclosures with different ratings, set IMPEDANCE SELECT switch (M) to the lower of the two speaker enclosure ratings. When using both speaker jacks, do not use an enclosure rated at less than 4Ω. When using MAIN SPEAKER jack alone, do not use an enclosure rated at more than 16Ω.

PARALLEL SPEAKER OUTPUTS: Connect external speaker enclosures here. To avoid damage, turn the amplifier off when changing speaker connections. For the Bassbreaker 15 combo, use an external speaker enclosure in combination with the internal speaker by plugging external enclosure into EXTENSION SPEAKER. To use an external speaker enclosure only, plug external enclosure into MAIN SPEAKER (internal speaker will automatically be disconnected). For the Bassbreaker 15 amp head, use the MAIN SPEAKER jack when using only one enclosure (there will be no sound if the MAIN SPEAKER jack is not used). See tables below for acceptable parallel speaker enclosure impedance combinations for the Bassbreaker combo (first table) and amp head (second table) models.

Bassbreaker 15 combo acceptable parallel speaker enclosure impedance combinations with correct IMPEDANCE SELECT switch (M) settings:

INTERNAL SPEAKER	MAIN SPEAKER	EXTENSION SPEAKER	IMPEDANCE SELECT
8Ω	NONE	NONE	8Ω
8Ω	NONE	8Ω	4Ω
DISCONNECTED*	16Ω	NONE	16Ω
DISCONNECTED*	8Ω	NONE	8Ω
DISCONNECTED*	4Ω	NONE	4Ω
DISCONNECTED*	16Ω	16Ω	8Ω
DISCONNECTED*	8Ω	8Ω	4Ω

* warning NOTE: When a plug is inserted into MAIN SPEAKER jack, internal speaker load (8Ω) is automatically disconnected and does not affect total impedance load.

Bassbreaker 15 amp head acceptable parallel speaker enclosure impedance combinations with correct IMPEDANCE SELECT switch (M) settings:

MAIN SPEAKER	EXTENSION SPEAKER	IMPEDANCE SELECT
16Ω	NONE	16Ω
8Ω	NONE	8Ω
4Ω	NONE	4Ω
16Ω	16Ω	8Ω
8Ω	8Ω	4Ω

EFFECTS LOOP: Optimized for use with pedals. Connect SEND to effects input and RETURN to effects output.
CABINET EMULATION: Pushbutton switch sends a speaker-emulated signal through the DIRECT OUT (R) to recording and sound reinforcement equipment (instead of preamp-only signal).
GROUND LIFT: Pushbutton switch helps eliminate unwanted electrical noise associated with ground loops.
DIRECT OUT: High-quality XLR output sends preamp signal for recording and sound reinforcement use.