• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join freeLog in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Fender Rumble 350 combo - not suitable for rehearsal

Dead thread revived by a +1, hooray for that clown.

I just picked up the Rumble 350 Head on a whim a few days ago and I am surprised at how much I like the voicing, quick response and volume.

I was researching threads and found this one. I played the head at a gig on Saturday and it had plenty of volume with headroom to spare. However, I was playing it through an SVT 8x10.
 
That amp is not gonna cut it in a loud rock band, purely because the 210 cab is not gonna put out enough volume... I dunno if you can add an extension cab, but that would be a winner. It comes down to how loud u practice and what kind of music you play... in one band I can get by with a 210, in the other I need at least an 810 just to hear myself...

Those rumbles are decent sounding, but at that price and power point, the single 15 is always gonna get more volume than the 210
 
Tried my 2 x 10 bass cab at a jam session last week, could'nt hear a thing once the band kicked off. Kept turning up the volume but no real difference. Previously used same amp with 1 x 15 and sounded great, powerull and punchy. Cant understand why anyone would use a 2 x 10 on its own. Just my thoughts, no offence intended.
 
Maybe there is something wrong with the Rumble. I had a SWR SM400 that was not cutting it on stage through a goliath 2 410. This was pre internet so I had no one other than locals to discuss the problem with and no one had the amp. I thought it was the amp and that it just wasn't powerful enough. Turns out, there was something wrong with the amp and when fixed was plenty loud. You should have it looked at.
 
Sorry to resurrect a dead thread but I registered just to comment on this. I didn't read all three pages so forgive me if this has been covered.

I'm in a Red Hot Chili Peppers tribute where the bass obviously has to be pronounced. I NEVER turn the Rumble 350 past half at practice or live.

If I can't hear myself at practice, one of two things need to happen. Either the guitar needs to turn down, or I need more SPL and hearing protection. Suffice to say the guitar turns down. Practicing quietly is good practice for keeping stage noise down at your gig. After all, you want your fans to hear what the sound guy sends out, NOT your amp.

Using the Rumble 350 live, I can barely hear it at half volume, but who cares? That's when you yell to the sound guy "More bass in my monitor."

For reference, here's my live setup.

Custom Carvin with dual radiused alnico V hum-buckers blended 50/50, 18v preamp with gain pot maxed, all eq's set at detent and volume maxed.

Line 6 G30 straight to Rumble 350 with no 6dB pad

Boss limiter/enhancer, bass chorus and digital reverb(rarely activated live) in that order on effects loop

No scoop or punch, eq flat and horn on.

Cheap switch for distortion with blend at 100% and gain at 75% (for "Around the World")

XLR out with ground lift activated going to PA.

The only issue I've had was the horn putting out bad static suddenly after a few months of use. I pulled it apart to find that most of the connections were plug and not solder. Not surprising as this combo is cheap and one of the ways they do that is by not paying someone at the factory to do that extra soldering. I cut the connectors off, stripped, tinned and soldered the horn connections, horn switch connections and board connections. Problem solved.
 
I wish I could get this through our drummer's and lead guitar's head. They wear earplugs during practice and during gigs. They ruin the gigs by wearing them because their stage volume is too loud.
They're too stubborn to listen to me and too lazy to do research about "sound" during practice and gigs. By them wearing earplugs they can't keep the tempo for crap. We start off just fine but they turn it into a trainwreck by speeding up. I had a friend run sound through a PA for us at the last gig and to eliminate their excessive stage volume he tried to get them to wear in-ear monitors. They wouldn't do that because they never used them before. I used them but it didn't do any good because of the guitar's amp. I felt bad as hell for by friend that did the sound. He set up probably $10K of equipment at least and they still ruined the gig.
I know this should go under live sound but it's in reply to the previous post.
 
Your band will all be deaf before they hit middle age if the rehearsal volume drowns out your amp. You must need a couple of thousand watts and two 8x10 cabs to gig with if you guys practice that loud. Most times I rehearse with a Carvin BX500 pushing 300 watts at 8 ohms into an Eden EX112 cab. That is plenty loud enough.
 
Forgot to mention in my previous post, I also integrated my line 6 wireless receiver into the rumble 350 head. No more carrying around the receiver and wall wart. Plus its always funny to see the confused look on peoples faces when I make noise with nothing plugged in!

If anyone else wants to do this to their Rumble I'll give you the info.
 
This was my first amp. I've only been at this a couple years. I walked into GC without ever playing an instrument and bought this and a Schecter Stiletto.

This amp didn't work out for me because it was too loud! As soon as I got any sound to come out of it going up from volume zero, my neighbors in my tiny studio apartment with thin walls were pissed and complaining. I also had it sitting on my mattress in the middle of the room, not on floor or against a wall.

I never had this problem with my Little Mark III and 102P, which is about the same watts 300 vs 350 and a 2x10

Plus the size and weight just never felt right with my limited space in apartment or taking it to practice and lessons in my Mustang.

I'll 2nd what Keith said about never turning it up past 1/2 on volume with drums and 2 guitar players. Granted this was at the very beginning of my musical journey, wish I could go back and A/B it with my current rig now that I've had some gigs and played in a variety of rooms and with a bunch of different people and gear. I just remember it being so loud.

Sorry if I'm rambling, just brought back some memories. Been lurking a while and recently registered.
 
I use a Rumble 350 2x10 as do the two guys who sub for me occasionally. I can't turn it halfway up before I get complaints about being too loud. One of the subs plays a Rick 4001, which apparently has a hotter output level than my Allen Woody, through his Rumble and can't turn it up over one quarter. Maybe you need to elevate it a bit or put some distance between you and the amp. It could be plenty loud out front but you don't hear it when you are right next to it.
 
Obviously I haven't heard your band live. But IME a lone 210 bass cabinet going against a loud rock guitarist and a hard hitting rock drummer is typically a no win scenario. I'd recommend going with a 15 cab or 212 cab, driven by a 300 watt amplifier bare minimum. A single 210 cab simply doesn't push air or emphasize the frequencies needed to drive bass in most rock bands.
 
I have a Fender Rumble 350 Combo that works great for smaller gigs and rehearsal but I played a medium venue with a few guys with a hearing disability (LOL) and was beginning to get a little drowned out. The guitar player had a Fender Rumble 350 Combo at the gig so we daisy chained them so to speak from my effects send to the input of the 350 and it came to life! Plenty loud for stage volume by today's standards if you are running/patching your rig through the PA and had a great tone.
I used to use a Peavey Mark 8XP with a 410 cab and a JBL Cabaret under it with a 15-8-horn combo and it was very loud but also very heavy to move around on a regular basis.
With the 150-350 combo's I now have less weight and a variety of options depending on the gig as to which one to use and they are both easy enough to haul around for practice or whatever...
I hope this helps.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Linnin
I have a Rumble 350 head, and regularly use it in a loud band, and I've used it with my Berg HS410 and my Aguilar DB-112 cabinets, have no problem with being heard, granted the head has a baked-in tone, and a built in compression circuit, but it does have a line out for plugging into a P.A. system, but it's a good little head, whether a main head or a back-up head