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Read the review: http://bit.ly/FenderBassbreaker45

As Jane Austen might have written had she worked for a guitar magazine, it is a truth universally acknowledged that early Marshall amps “borrowed” heavily from the Fender Bassman circuit. Marshall would go on to define its own unique sound world, but the Marshall and Fender families have always shared some DNA.

Fender underscores the point with their new Bassbreaker amps, which feature vintage Fender-style circuits, but populated with traditionally “British” components. We checked out the largest Bassbreaker, which deploys a Bassman-style circuit in a 2x12 45-watt combo. (The series name is a fusion of Bassman and Bluesbreaker. The latter is the nickname for Marshall’s model 1962 combo, which Eric Clapton popularized during his tenure with John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers.)

Mind you, the made-in-Mexico Bassbreaker 45 isn’t built like a 1960s amp. It uses an automated-production circuit board in lieu of hand-wired components, and the cabinet is plywood rather than solid wood. But in a sense, these things are plusses: They allow the amp to sell for under a grand, a fraction of the cost of a hand-wired Bluesbreaker clone from Marshall or a boutique builder.

While Bassbreaker 45 is inexpensively made, it’s well made. The cabinet and chassis are brick-solid. The speakers are powerful 70-watt Celestion G12s. The power transformer is roughly the size of Gibraltar. The amp weighs a ton—or rather, 55 pounds, which feels like a ton after a three-set gig. It’s big, too: 26" x 22" x 8.5". (Fender also offers an $899 head-only version, which we didn’t test.)

To continue reading the review, visit: http://bit.ly/FenderBassbreaker45