Overview

Experience the bass amp sound loved by guitarists, man

It’s no exaggeration to call the classic bass amps designed by Leo Fender the “mother of rock and roll guitar amps.” Originally intended for bass players, these amps became an enduring hit with recording guitarists for generations, inspiring Jim Marshall’s later iconic head and cabinet designs. Today, the authentic tone of coveted classic bass amps live on in plugin form, thanks to the engineers at Brainworx.

Choose between clean or complex tube amp tones

The original Bassman amps have evolved significantly, ranging from the 1950s tweed combos to the late 1960s Silverface units. Many tone enthusiasts favor the early 1960s Blonde models for their diverse vintage tones. These pioneering 'piggyback' models, separating the amp from the speaker cabinet, are known for their warm, clean sounds at low volumes and a distinct transition to a rich, harmonically complex tube overdrive when the volume exceeds 4.

Sound like Stevie Ray Vaughan, Tomy Petty, and Brian Setzer

The bx_bassdude is a precise emulation of an early 1960s original, capturing the classic amp's tone and nuances. It reacts like the real hardware when you run a DI guitar recording through it. Cycling through presets offers a glimpse into rock history, echoing tones from decades of hit records. bx_bassdude brings the iconic sound of legends like Stevie Ray Vaughan, Tom Petty, and Brian Setzer to your studio.

Add vintage effects and high-end recording chains

Crafting an outstanding electric guitar recording goes beyond a great amp tone; it also requires a harmonious combination of the right room, microphones, effects, and preamps. The bx_bassdude plugin addresses this by offering 35 recording chains created using a real Neve console, including impulse responses from various guitar cabinets, high-end microphones, and studio gear.

Use bx_bassdude on guitar and bass

While the bx_bassdude, like the original amp, is primarily known and loved as a guitar amp, it sounds great on basses too. Switching the plugin to Bass Instrument mode lets you warm up bass tracks quickly and easily. This mode delivers a round but defined retro tone that’s deliciously satisfying.

Legal Disclaimer: Fender and Bassman are registered trademarks of Fender Musical Instruments Inc. bx_bassdude was developed by Brainworx Music and Media GmbH based on its own modeling techniques. Fender has not endorsed nor sponsored the bx_bassdude in any manner, nor licensed any intellectual property for use in this product.

Features

  • The sound of a 1960s blonde piggyback guitar and bass amplifier
  • 35 recording chain impulse responses
  • Noise gate
  • High/low pass filters
  • Lo-fi delay effect
  • Power amp simulation with Power Soak
  • Instrument and Bass channels for guitar and bass

Audio Examples

Industry Reviews

  • Doug Doppler

    Doug Doppler

    Guitar Teacher, Recording Artist, Session Player

    From guitar to bass, this plugin adds a sweet touch of special sauce - without losing the character of the instrument. LOVE IT!

Customer Reviews

  • Dime the knobs

    ★★★★★
    by smili
    Ok, so I accidentally stumbled on a preset called "Crank N Roll" that dimes all the knobs except for presence, and the sound of this amp maxed out with a bridge humbucker is pure rock-n-roll to me. I… Read More
  • Surprising

    ★★★★★
    by gmr2048
    I bought this during the current 2022 sale, just because I had a voucher to spend, and already owned literally every other PA bass amp (all the Ampegs, the GK). I wasn't impressed by the… Read More
  • Incredible amp!

    ★★★★★
    by Henry
    I tested it on my Jazz Bass Fender and what a great tone it acquired. I really loved the Rec. Chain and from now this is my go-to for record a bass line as well to reamp a recorded bass.
  • Look no further

    ★★★★★
    by GDrapos
    If you're like me and have been looking for a good bass amp plugin for a long time, look no further!
    I've tried most "big name" plugins and most of the time it's the same: great by themselves… Read More
  • And then...

    ★★★★★
    by TonVE
    Once...you get to know this darling, then omg this is the bass sound, like I m sitting next to the amp.
    Really F*! impressive, I use this on one bass buss and the Ampeg on another buss. Now… Read More

Specifications

Supported Plugin Formats
AAX DSP, AAX Native, AU, AAX AudioSuite, VST2, VST3

Supported Operating Systems
macOS 14 down to macOS 11
Windows 11 down to Windows 10

Mac
Intel, or Apple Silicon

PC
x64-compatible CPU

System Requirements
Display resolution: 1440 × 900px or 1280 × 960px or higher
Memory: 2 GB RAM

Downloads

With the Installation Manager you can select, download & install all the Plugin Alliance products. Select any and all formats you need for your system! Mac & PC.

ChangeLog

bx_bassdude

Brainworx bx_bassdude - Changelog

Version 1.11.1 (Oct 9, 2023)
- General: fixed CPU spikes on Mac OS

Version 1.11.0 (Aug 15, 2023)
- General: added native Apple Silicon compatibility for AAX
- General: added macOS Ventura support
- General: improved plugin loading time in the DAW
- General: fixed issue causing Logic to crash when closing the plugin UI
- General: improved font drawing behavior

Version 1.10 (Mar 15, 2022)
- General: added native Apple Silicon compatibility for VST3, VST2 and AU
- General: added macOS Monterey support
- General: added Windows 11 and Windows 10 21H1 support
- General: discontinued Windows 7 support
- General: discontinued macOS 10.9 and 10.11 support
- General: fixed metering behavior in block sizes of 2048 samples and higher

Version 1.9 (Mar 22, 2021)
- General: Compatibility with Logic on Apple Silicon devices via the Rosetta-2 layer
- General: Fixed possible artefacts when freezing or bouncing tracks in Pro Tools
- General: Fixed automation highlighting disappearing in Studio One
- General: Improved license dialog visibility in dark mode

Version 1.8 (May 27, 2020)
- General: Qualified for use with the Windows 10 May 2020 Update
- General: VST3: Fixed potential hangs in a DAW upon loading
- General: Fixed logical issues in undo / redo behavior
- General: Fixed UI resizing issues in Ableton Live on Windows
- General: Fixed audio processing initialization issues on amp and delay products

Version 1.7 (Nov 06, 2019)
- General: Qualified for use with macOS 10.15 Catalina
- General: Qualified for use with Windows 10 November 2019 Update
- General: Fixed plugin validation in Logic under macOS Catalina
- General: Fixed preset name restore in Logic when reopening a session
- General: Fixed opening authorization dialog triggering automation
- General: Improved instantiation times for plugins
- General: Improved license functionality and branding for subscription
- General: Removed 32-bit support on macOS and Windows

Version 1.6 (Jul 10, 2019)
- General: macOS 10.14.5 Update compatibility
- General: Windows 10 1903 Update compatibility
- General: Fixed activation issue in Windows hosts set to non-English language (e.g. Cakewalk)
- General: AU: Fixed issue with increased CPU and memory on reopening UI
- General: VST3: Fixed issue with adapting to host knob mode, and now prioritizing linear
- General: VST3: Fixed issue with VST3 preset permissions
- General: VST3: Improved synchronization between parameter states and some UI functions, e.g. toolbar reset

Version 1.5 (Nov 16, 2018)
- General: macOS Mojave compatibility
- General: Windows October 2018 update compatibility
- General: adding Windows High DPI support for VST2/3 plugins
- General: Fixed potential crashes in Cubase and other VST2 / VST3 DAWs
- General: Fixed potential CPU spikes and audio dropouts
- General: Fixed rendering in Pro Tools on the start of a session
- General: Fixed missing presets in Wavelab and other VST3 DAWs
- General: Improving keyboard control, fixing issues with catched keys preventing it from passing through to DAW
- General: Fixed parallel use of host sessions (e.g. with Live)

Version 1.4 (May 24, 2018)
- General: Microsoft Windows Redstone 4 compatibility
- General: Added computer keyboard control for plugin parameters
- General: Fixed Mouse scroll wheel not working in Windows 8
- General: Fixed an issue where plugins will not validate or load after a certain amount of plugins have been loaded (Windows)
- General: Fixed visual GUI freezes when adjusting DAW parameters, meters, analyzers (Mac)
- General: Fixed possible issue with Pick Pack licenses
- General: Small licenser stability fix

Version 1.3 (Oct 23, 2017)
- General: Mac OS High Sierra compatibility
- General: Fixed possible crash on online activation (Mac OS High Sierra)
- General: Fixed Logic Pro X not validating AU plugins (Mac OS High Sierra)
- General: Fixed CPU spikes and crashes with Cubase (Windows)
- General: Fixed bug that could lead to "AAE -6 error" in ProTools (Windows)
- General: Fixed crash with FL Studio
- General: Fixed crash when cross-opening plugins in various hosts
- General: Fixed crash when using mixdown in Audition
- General: Fixed crash in Final Cut Pro
- General: Fixed delayed parameter handling and crackling issues in Cubase with VST3
- General: Fixed bug where plugin settings were not saved in Harrison Mixbus
- General: Fixed bug that led to AAE error -9317 in ProTools when instantiating plugin
- General: Fixed bug where plugins did not render properly when "x ray" option is enabled in Sonar
- General: Modifications to factory presets were lost when reopening session
- General: Fixed mouse wheel behaviour with second monitor setup (Windows)
- Some plugins: Value labels do not appear every time when clicking on parameter in UI
- General: Faster instantiation time for plugins (Windows)
- General: Adding support for automation highlighting in Presonus StudioOne

Version 1.2.1 (Dec 20, 2016)
- General: Mac OS Sierra compatibility
- General: Fixed automation issues in AU and AAX
- General: Fixed license dialog use of special characters
- General: Improved AU preset support
- General: Performance improvements

Version 1.2 (Apr 1, 2016)
- General: Major UI codebase update
- General: Fixed possible crash when authorizing plugin
- General: Added gain reduction meter support for StudioOne 3
- General: Installers show version info in Windows "Programs And Features"

Version 1.1 (Jan 18, 2016)
- General codebase update
- Fixed missing parameter highlighting in Pro Tools
- Removing RTAS format support

Version 1.0.1 (Oct 2, 2015) - Hotfix Release
- Fixed RTAS Windows
- Added 32 new impulse responses with 3 different bass boxes
- Added new bass presets

Version 1.0 (Jul 18, 2015)
- Release version