My amp seems quieter than it used to be.

Kitschead · #1 09-01-2010, 10:43 PM

Hi guys
I've got this Fender Rumble 100 which I've had for over 3 years now. My issue is that it seems to be a lot quieter than it used to be. I used to play in a rock band and it used to easily compete with the drums and guitar and I remember only ever cranking it up to about 12 o clock maximum. Now I easily crank it all the way up which I had never really done before because it was too loud. Just generally it seems to lack the same punch which it used to provide.
The issue is though that I'm not 100% sure that I'm not just imagining this. I've tried taking off the grille and there is no physical damage to the cone. I also tried vacuuming the cone to try get rid of any dust build up which might be affecting the sound. Sadly all of this has been to no avail.
Any suggestions would be very welcome.
Cheers

Plstrns · #2 09-02-2010, 01:12 AM

mmmm, your old drummer was a Pansy and your old guitarist was weak wristed?

Trust me, no Fender Rumble 100 has ever been an adequate amp. For anything.

dukeisdog · #3 09-02-2010, 01:34 AM

[quote=Plstrns;9649930]mmmm, your old drummer was a Pansy and your old guitarist was weak wristed?

Trust me, no Fender Rumble 100 has ever been an adequate amp. For anything.[/QUOTE]

I disagree. My friends hardcore band (loud volume, hard hitting drummer, and two guitarists with half stacks) sounds great, and all he uses is a Rumble 100. No joke. It's hilarious, seeing most of these guys with big cabs and tube heads, and he walks in with his tiny combo, and sounds great. Though he does have a 6 space rack on top of it, but that doesn't affect power, just tone.

onionpuzzle · #4 09-02-2010, 01:41 AM

a couple of reasons possible

1. your amp is a little undersized for a full size rock band, it might have just given up
2. signal chain ? do you have fx between your bass and amp that might be faulty ?
3. your bass itself -- maybe electronics got out of whack (plug a different bass into amp)
4. you are going deaf --- not unheard of in rock bands
5. could even be your cable -- make sure you are using good quality (read--expensive) cable

Kitschead · #5 09-02-2010, 02:33 AM

I don't play in a rock band anymore and haven't for a couple of years. even when I did we didn't play blisteringly loud. Now mostly I play jazz and also use the amp for amplifying double bass.
Its nothing to do with power or anything as i've tried it with it being the only thing plugged into the wall.
doesn't seem to be the bass because i've tried with both basses and I'm using a quality cable and have tried a few cables.
I'm not going deaf because as I said before I haven't really played a whole lot of loud music for a couple of years.

MIJ-VI · #6 09-02-2010, 04:15 AM

The gradual buildup of ear wax may be a factor in this.

Temporary Deafness Due To Excess Earwax

palmann · #7 09-02-2010, 04:21 AM

Have you turned it on?

Gruesse, Pablo

babebambi · #8 09-02-2010, 02:25 PM

asking a band whether they are loud , is similar to asking people in a bar whether they are drunk...

when a person can still answer that he is drunk, the fact is that he is not that drunk ... it's the drunks that keep saying that they are NOT drunk ...

other than that
this :

Quote:

Originally Posted by Plstrns

mmmm, your old drummer was a Pansy and your old guitarist was weak wristed?

Trust me, no Fender Rumble 100 has ever been an adequate amp. For anything.

T-Bird · #9 09-02-2010, 11:21 PM

Hi.

Without benching the amp, there's no telling whether the power section is producing the full power.

Without inspecting the speaker thoroughly and perhaps benching it also, again, there's no telling whether the speaker is still up to specs.

Not knowing the gain structure on Your signal chain, its equally impossible to know if the settings are the same as they were way back when it "still was a loud amp".

I won't even cross the line to start guessing the possible medical reasons for the lack of punch.

Regards
Sam

Thunderthumbs73 · #10 09-02-2010, 11:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by T-Bird

Hi.

Without benching the amp, there's no telling whether the power section is producing the full power.

Without inspecting the speaker thoroughly and perhaps benching it also, again, there's no telling whether the speaker is still up to specs.

Not knowing the gain structure on Your signal chain, its equally impossible to know if the settings are the same as they were way back when it "still was a loud amp".

I won't even cross the line to start guessing the possible medical reasons for the lack of punch.

Regards
Sam

+1. For clear, succinct advice which covers the most critical aspects.