Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
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 free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
Last edited:
Good evening Rumble Club... I have come to pick your brains!
Forgive me for assuming a "presumptive" Rumble Club membership... but I am soooo close to pulling the trigger, I can almost taste it! (I'm sure all of you remember the feeling.) Regardless, I've been thinking and thinking about how I want to pose this question... and believe me, I have been trying to do my due diligence by going back and reading and researching as much as I can (so far I'm up to somewhere around winter of '15,) so that I'm not posing the same question here that's been posed a hundred times before. Still, I fear there will be some unavoidable necro-equi-flagellism to my query, so please be kind and bear with me.
(By the way, if you haven't guessed already... I'm wordy! So if you're bored already, feel free to move on!)
So I've decided I want to play a little thought experiment. Suppose you have a cat, and his name is Schrodinger...
..wait... no... okay never mind that. Suppose you are just a beginner at the bass, having been a guitarist and/or a drummer for most of your adult life... but now you've acquired a bass and a little practice amp and you're discovering that not only do you enjoy playing at the "bottom end" of the sound stage, but that you just may be better at it than you ever were on the six string upper registers. Let's also suppose that you don't play live... you've never gigged out nor do you ever have any intention to. You just enjoy playing and creating for your own amusement in your own little makeshift home studio with your drums and your guitars and your amps and your digital piano and.. oh yes... your new (to you) Dean bass and that little Eden EC-10 combo that you picked up for a sweet $45. (It was... is.. virtually brand new, so I couldn't resist!)
And just for the sake of knowing what kind of bass sounds you like from your favorite players and bands... think along the lines of Steve Harris, Reginald Arvizu (Fieldy), Cliff Williams, Michael Anthony, Geddy Lee, John Paul Jones, Sting (w/ The Police), Chris Squire, just to name a few. Some of your most favorite 'band' tones lean towards all those "clanky" sounds that come out of the likes of Iron Maiden, Testament, Exodus, Korn, Megadeth, etc.; as well as Aerosmith, AC/DC, 'Priest, Evanescence, Alter Bridge, Chevelle, Lamb of God... the list could go round and round and round and round...
Now... all that being said... that was just for atmosphere. That's to put you in the questioner's mindset... so to speak. But here's the real hardware question! (Finally!.. I know, right?) Suppose you had an Epiphone Thunderbird Classic IV PRO (in Alpine White, just in case that matters) with those amazing Gibson ceramic pickups.... and suppose you had a Rumble 200 Head (v3 of course) because, well, like I said... just a private amusement player in his own studio who still want's lots of headroom, but probably doesn't need enough to fill a large ballroom. So... knowing what you know.... you people who have tried all these combinations for the last 3 years or so.... what would you put underneath that head?
a) 2x Rumble 210's
b) 2x Rumble 112's
c) 1x 210 up top and 1x 112 on the bottom.
bdplaid, you have already weighed in on this with me in a pm (thank you good sir)... but if you have any further comments to make based on all the blah blah blah... feel free to expand upon your previous thoughts here in public. I look forward to hearing anyone's and everyone's recommendations as well. And if you read this far... jeezzus you ought to get some sort of medal or brownie points or something!
Thanks! LJ
Forgive me for assuming a "presumptive" Rumble Club membership... but I am soooo close to pulling the trigger, I can almost taste it! (I'm sure all of you remember the feeling.) Regardless, I've been thinking and thinking about how I want to pose this question... and believe me, I have been trying to do my due diligence by going back and reading and researching as much as I can (so far I'm up to somewhere around winter of '15,) so that I'm not posing the same question here that's been posed a hundred times before. Still, I fear there will be some unavoidable necro-equi-flagellism to my query, so please be kind and bear with me.
(By the way, if you haven't guessed already... I'm wordy! So if you're bored already, feel free to move on!)
So I've decided I want to play a little thought experiment. Suppose you have a cat, and his name is Schrodinger...
..wait... no... okay never mind that. Suppose you are just a beginner at the bass, having been a guitarist and/or a drummer for most of your adult life... but now you've acquired a bass and a little practice amp and you're discovering that not only do you enjoy playing at the "bottom end" of the sound stage, but that you just may be better at it than you ever were on the six string upper registers. Let's also suppose that you don't play live... you've never gigged out nor do you ever have any intention to. You just enjoy playing and creating for your own amusement in your own little makeshift home studio with your drums and your guitars and your amps and your digital piano and.. oh yes... your new (to you) Dean bass and that little Eden EC-10 combo that you picked up for a sweet $45. (It was... is.. virtually brand new, so I couldn't resist!)
And just for the sake of knowing what kind of bass sounds you like from your favorite players and bands... think along the lines of Steve Harris, Reginald Arvizu (Fieldy), Cliff Williams, Michael Anthony, Geddy Lee, John Paul Jones, Sting (w/ The Police), Chris Squire, just to name a few. Some of your most favorite 'band' tones lean towards all those "clanky" sounds that come out of the likes of Iron Maiden, Testament, Exodus, Korn, Megadeth, etc.; as well as Aerosmith, AC/DC, 'Priest, Evanescence, Alter Bridge, Chevelle, Lamb of God... the list could go round and round and round and round...
Now... all that being said... that was just for atmosphere. That's to put you in the questioner's mindset... so to speak. But here's the real hardware question! (Finally!.. I know, right?) Suppose you had an Epiphone Thunderbird Classic IV PRO (in Alpine White, just in case that matters) with those amazing Gibson ceramic pickups.... and suppose you had a Rumble 200 Head (v3 of course) because, well, like I said... just a private amusement player in his own studio who still want's lots of headroom, but probably doesn't need enough to fill a large ballroom. So... knowing what you know.... you people who have tried all these combinations for the last 3 years or so.... what would you put underneath that head?
a) 2x Rumble 210's
b) 2x Rumble 112's
c) 1x 210 up top and 1x 112 on the bottom.
bdplaid, you have already weighed in on this with me in a pm (thank you good sir)... but if you have any further comments to make based on all the blah blah blah... feel free to expand upon your previous thoughts here in public. I look forward to hearing anyone's and everyone's recommendations as well. And if you read this far... jeezzus you ought to get some sort of medal or brownie points or something!
Thanks! LJ
If I was a beginner at the bass (which I am), I would hardly have tried all those combinations for the last 3 years.
Anyway.... as a beginner with no experience with different cabs and speakers, but wanting to build a stack for my Rumble 200 head.... I would buy one 2x10 and one 1x12, preferably used.... try them both separately with the head and also together... see which tone I like better (single 2x10, single 1x12, or both)... and if it turns out I prefer the tone of one of the singles, I would just sell the other and buy a second cab to match the one I liked best.
Any reason you're not considering 1x15s ?
Yeah Mr. @Phat Stanley I'd probly go 1 or 2 of the Rumble 15"s but 210s are nice too.
Sorry for the short reply
Sorry for the short reply
If I was a beginner at the bass (which I am), I would hardly have tried all those combinations for the last 3 years.
........................................................................
Any reason you're not considering 1x15s ?
Yeah, having gone back and read it that way... that was the clunky part of the question. But I think you got my drift (as I'm sure everyone else will.) "Suppose blah blah blah... but at the same time, here's what I'm asking all of you based on your actual experiences since these products have come out."
As to the 115s... I suppose I've discounted those based on what I've read so far. It seems based on my musical tastes and whatever tones I'll end up chasing... 15's would be great for super low end, but I would be looking more for "midrange"? bass or even treble? To put it another way... that low, fat, full round bottomy (sorry) sound is all nifty and everything, but I really like the tones I get when I've got things adjusted up a little higher... like when I'm not just hearing a bass tone, but I'm hearing the strings, the wood, etc. ... if that makes any sense.
Phat Stanley...Welcome to The Fender Rumble Club. You are in the right place for good expert advise from the Rumble members. I'll leave you to their expert handling and chime in occasionally. Have fun.
Actually Rumble experts..I have a question. Why don't the Rumble amps have a fuse thats external on the rear of the amp that you can unscrew and replace with the same type? Its the first amp ive ever owned that hasn't got a normal "unscrew" type fuse holder.
So I gather if ever a fuse blew you have to unscrew the entire back panel and slide it out to locate the blown fuse and replace it. Check my pics of the rear panel. No Fuse Holder.
EDIT. I noticed just after I posted this that there are 2 screws on top of the amp near the rear and 2 screws on each side of the amp near the top. I would assume these are the actual amp chassis frame retaining screws..so if removed I assume again that the head chassis would slide backwards to access the fuse. (If so my Peavey MKIV head has a similar chassis screw placement arrangement. )
(PICS BELOW)
RUMBLE EXPERTS - I am presuming this is a pic of top chassis screws? (Blurry sorry)
RUMBLE EXPERTS - Also presuming these are the side chassis screws?
So I gather if ever a fuse blew you have to unscrew the entire back panel and slide it out to locate the blown fuse and replace it. Check my pics of the rear panel. No Fuse Holder.
EDIT. I noticed just after I posted this that there are 2 screws on top of the amp near the rear and 2 screws on each side of the amp near the top. I would assume these are the actual amp chassis frame retaining screws..so if removed I assume again that the head chassis would slide backwards to access the fuse. (If so my Peavey MKIV head has a similar chassis screw placement arrangement. )
(PICS BELOW)
RUMBLE EXPERTS - I am presuming this is a pic of top chassis screws? (Blurry sorry)
RUMBLE EXPERTS - Also presuming these are the side chassis screws?
Last edited:
2 210s, hands down, would give you the sound you're looking for. In addition the exceptional power handling capability of the 210s would allow you to swap out that wimpy 200
for a 500 with no problem.
But after getting the 500 head he would want to upgrade to 410s or 2 15s.
Here some pictures of the amp I took off my 500 V3.
There are 2 screws on top, 2 x 2 on the sides and 5 on the bottom of the amp.
You can see the fuse just above the big cap.
Fender probably didn't use a separate fuse holder to cut costs.
Given your choices, go with a pair of Rumble 112 cabinets.
With the info that you have given and the influences and sound that you like, I feel that I should share what I use as a rig as it is very similar and matches your criteria. I have different basses for the different individual sounds each one makes and tunings, for example my Surveyor 5 I use for the more traditional P and PJ bass or music man sounds, Then my F series basses for B and A standard tunings like korn and other more modern sounds, and my B-1005 multi scale for F# standard tuning, way down low. My rig is a Rumble v3 500 head on top of 2 x 112 cabs. This gives me more than enough volume to cut through any mix and with clarity even at open F#. The Rumble series have such a versatile and simple adjustment that any tonal preference is possible. My vote is for the 2 112's for your home purposes. Mine are plenty enough for my home playing and recording, more like overkill. One demonstration of it's power to shake the walls had my wife veto playing even at 1/2 volume as things were falling off the walls and shelves.
In that case, I'd go with the 2x10s. I have a 500 combo with 2x10 and I can dial a very nice midrange/treble-y cutting sound, but it can still retain the boom, if you know what I mean. Or I can dial a fat round sound if I want. In fact, if I'm playing my Mustang bass, I could set all of the EQ on the Rumble to 12 o'clock and dial all those sounds on the bass alone, and the amp would translate them very well... that's how clean the combo is... add the EQ and you can seriously increase the tonal range.
I have absolutely no need for a second 2x10 cab but I plan to get one as soon as I can.
Rumble fans, I have been thinking for a while about an act of Rumble sacrilege.
I have a guitar amp. It's tiny. It's awesome. I play my bass through it and a small 4" speaker in my office all the time. It's an Orange Micro Dark, with a tube pre-amp section. It makes great distorted bass sounds, but alas! It is but 20 watts. But wait, it has an FX send and return loop.
Would it be heresy to use it as a preamp for my Rumble 500? It has a 12AX7 tube preamp section which would be sent through the effects out into the Rumble 500's effects in. It really does sound good with my little home made 4" speaker cab in my office. I assume it will also sound good with my Rumble 15s that Sweetwater is sending me currently.
Edit: Upon further thought, it may be better to route from the speaker out into a A/B box, and just use it like a distortion preamp.
I have a guitar amp. It's tiny. It's awesome. I play my bass through it and a small 4" speaker in my office all the time. It's an Orange Micro Dark, with a tube pre-amp section. It makes great distorted bass sounds, but alas! It is but 20 watts. But wait, it has an FX send and return loop.
Would it be heresy to use it as a preamp for my Rumble 500? It has a 12AX7 tube preamp section which would be sent through the effects out into the Rumble 500's effects in. It really does sound good with my little home made 4" speaker cab in my office. I assume it will also sound good with my Rumble 15s that Sweetwater is sending me currently.
Edit: Upon further thought, it may be better to route from the speaker out into a A/B box, and just use it like a distortion preamp.
With apologies to the late, great, Dr. Martin Luther King, I have a dream, that little bassists will one day live in a world where amplifiers will not be judged by the color of their tolex and the badges on their grilles , but by the tone produced by their speakers, cabinets and circuitry.
