1977 FENDER MUSICMASTER INSTALL
1977 FENDER MUSICMASTER MANUAL
1977 FENDER MUSICMASTER FULL

All three models were offered with the option of a 24-inch scale and 22-fret neck or a 22.5-inch scale and 21-fret neck the 24-inch scale proved to be the most popular of these options. The Mustang body was larger and slightly offset, and was fitted with a plastic pickguard but with the volume and tone controls mounted on a separate metal plate. In 1964, following the release of the Fender Mustang, both the Musicmaster and Duo-Sonic were redesigned using Mustang neck and body blanks. At this time, the Musicmaster and Duo-Sonic both received a plastic pickguard in place of the previous anodized aluminum one, and a two-piece maple neck with a rosewood fingerboard. There was one major redesign of these two Musicmaster-bodied guitars, in 1959 when the entire Fender catalog was updated. The Duo-Sonic and Musicmaster also shared a single-piece maple neck and fingerboard, with a 22.5 inch scale length and 21 frets. Production of the Musicmaster began in late April of that year, using a body routed for two pickups to be common to the Duo-Sonic, which followed a little more than two months later. Prototypes were made in early 1956, followed by sales literature announcing both models. For now theres a 1 Amp fuse in the plug.Design work on the Musicmaster-and its two-pickup variant Duo-Sonic-began in late 1955 following a request from Fender Sales.

1977 FENDER MUSICMASTER INSTALL

The only thing left to do is perhapse install an in-line fuse holder as for some strange reason Fender decided it didn't need one. I must get back into recording again soon, and this is the amp to do it with. It's definitely a keeper and effects pedals work great too. My mate reckons it's the best Strat sound of all the amps I've got or ever had, including the Twin Reverbs, and I don't disagree.

1977 FENDER MUSICMASTER FULL

It is loud! There is a hugely improved bass response, a very balanced transparent tone, no hum whatsoever, no strange crackles and a good crunch at full whack. I tested all the passive components and replaced three electrolytics which read well below par, although the main filters read substantially higher than their stated 20uF so I left the orange cardboard cigar in place.Īfter completing the service, the amp plays absolutely brilliantly! What a transformation. The dates on the transformers and chassis range from 1973 to 1976, which is slightly odd but not unreasonable. The chassis and speaker appeared to be totally original with no sign of any previous work being done. Luckily I located a NOS pair of Brimars just around the corner from me for £10! They turned out to be excellently matched too. A quick check on the valve tester showed the filament was open circuit. I quickly ascertained that one of the differently branded output tubes (an RCA and a Brimar) was not glowing, even after the sockets and pins were cleaned. Oh well, bidder beware! Not all sellers are totally forthright in their description of what they are selling.Īnyway, all was not lost. I strummed a few chords and turned up full volume and although it had a good distorted Fendery sound it was very weak and trebly, nowhere near the stated 12 Watts.

However, we plugged it in and there was a lot of crackling to which the seller said, 'Oh, that never happened before.' A quick wiggle of the pre-amp valve and it settled down. When I went to pick up the amp, I was fully expecting to see a pair of 6v6GT output valves, so was rather surprised to find the smaller bottle 6AQ5 tubes instead.

1977 FENDER MUSICMASTER MANUAL

Although there was no picture of the rear of the amp in the listing, there were lots of pictures of the original user manual and circuit diagram that came with it. What attracted me to this was the unusual use of a transformer for the phase inverter and a pair of 6v6s.

1977 fender musicmaster