#1961 FENDER BANDMASTER SERIES#

This is incorrectly called tweed because of its feel and appearance (actual tweed is a rough woolen fabric). This phase saw the company drape their amplifiers in a cloth covering, which consists of varnished cotton twill. In 1948 Fender entered a new phase of amplifier construction dubbed 'the tweed phase'. The production of these amps ceased in 1948, however, the names of the amps became enduring ones for Fender. It was the largest of the trio featuring Jensen 15” field-coil speaker and 6 tubes delivering 25 watts of power.

#1961 FENDER BANDMASTER SERIES#

The rarest of all the original 'woodie' series was the Professional. It was the most popular amp of this era, with most amps surviving from this era today being Deluxes.

The Deluxe was a larger amp with a Jensen 10” field-coil speaker and five tubes in a 14-watt design. This amp had no controls as it was designed for the guitar to solely control the volume and was simply turned on by plugging/unplugging into the wall plug. The Princeton was a small six watt amp with an 8' Jensen field-coil speaker. These amps were the Princeton, the Deluxe and the Professional. They were constructed out of spare hardwood held by the Fender company at the time and were hence given the name 'woodie' later on by collectors. The first amplifiers made in-house by the Fender Electric Instrument Company were a significant step up in size and function to the small, nameless amps that preceded them, however, they didn't have technological advancements such as circuit boards in their designs. They are all very rare today and few have survived. They were made in three sizes, 1×8' (one 8-inch speaker), 1×10', and 1×15'.

The amplifiers were housed in a steel case and most were finished in a 'gray crinkle' finish that was baked in the Kauffman family oven. The first ' Fender' amplifiers were manufactured by Leo Fender and Doc Kauffman, doing business as the K&F Manufacturing Corporation.

1961 fender bandmaster