I just did a search on Pete's cars, this looks pretty close. I remember it being a 1957, but it was a long time ago and it was the 70's.
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Well, Yamaha has finally gotten Ampeg into competition with the Fender Rumbles with their new Rocket Bass line! And, on paper, it looks pretty close. It only took 'em 7 years to catch up. The RB-115 even looks 1/2 lb. lighter and just $30 more. But the RB-112 is almost 4 lb.s heavier and is $100 more! Plus, all the Ampegs are just 3-band EQ to Fenders 4-band for the 40 & up.
Oops! When making that comparison chart I wrongly assumed the RB-210 and RB-115 to be 70% of full power at 8 ohms, like the Rumbles are. But, since I've found the owner's manual, I see they are only 50% of full power at 8 ohms, instead.
Less power, more weight, higher price, and less features. There's the Ampeg I know!
I just ordered a Rumble 210 extension cabinet for my Rumble 500. I traded in an Eden 210 cabinet and my trusty Line 6 LD400 pro. All said and done I got the Rumble 210 for $26.89 shipped to my house. I'm happy with that.
I also just received the Eden WTDI I ordered a while ago and it does eliminate the boxy Rumble tone! The I remembered that I had a Korg Tone Works AX30B stashed away some where. After digging thru a bunch of boxes I found it and hooked it up. I have to say that it sounds even better! Yippie!
BTW in this process I found that the Rumble and the WTDI is easily over powered (distorted) with an active bass and neither has a peak light which would be a great addition. The Tone Works doesn't seem to care and it does have a peak light.
So the question is...what is it about the Rumble that sounds boxy? I thought it would have been the speaker box. But the fact that a pedal can fix it tells me it's the amp/eq?
I also just received the Eden WTDI I ordered a while ago and it does eliminate the boxy Rumble tone! The I remembered that I had a Korg Tone Works AX30B stashed away some where. After digging thru a bunch of boxes I found it and hooked it up. I have to say that it sounds even better! Yippie!
BTW in this process I found that the Rumble and the WTDI is easily over powered (distorted) with an active bass and neither has a peak light which would be a great addition. The Tone Works doesn't seem to care and it does have a peak light.
So the question is...what is it about the Rumble that sounds boxy? I thought it would have been the speaker box. But the fact that a pedal can fix it tells me it's the amp/eq?
juan, checkout the Rumble Talks section of the Rumble Club Wiki page, especially the ones about Gain Structure and Tone Tips. My Rumble 500 has no trouble with my active basses, but I rarely turn them up full, and I don't use an external preamp.
Also, try some of the collected settings listed in the Rumble Club Tone Pool for some ideas.
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So I just have to ask...what does it sound like without (2) preamps between the strings and the Rumble?
Yep, aren't all of them? I guess middley with no warmth is a better description. Turning up the bass gets gets, well, bassy. Turning up the treble gets edgy. The WTDI and Tone Works add the missing warmth.I don't know about sounding boxy but, after all, it is (in) a box.
Good question...I used my Jazz with Barts and Audere preamp for the first two gigs. All it did was extenuate the built in Rumble sound. Neither gig was loud enough to have over drive issues. For the third gig I used my stock Jazz bass which was better, this gig was a louder show. I feel that the Rumble sounds great close up and below say 10 o-clock on the master. This show had me up an 12 and every one in the band felt the sound deteriorate.
At home (in my music room) I tried the Tone Works and WTDI with the stock bass. The warmth added via both of these pedals was immediate. I then plugged in my Audere pre amp bass with the same settings and got distortion with the WTDI so I had to turn everything way down.
I will say that the Rumble is very sensitive to what is input, my stock bass had an E string buzz that I never heard before and couldn't hear live with full band. So perhaps the sound degradation that everyone picked up on was that.
I did the same test with my mixing board thru head phones to find that the WITI is a monster and can easily over power the board so I cannot fault the Rumble, just realize that it is very sensitive.
I can't wait to get the extension speaker!
I'm fascinated by how differently your Rumble experience seems to be going. I'm glad you're working out your own sound though. Plus respect the determination to make the amp work for you! I never would have thought to run my bass through 2 preamps.
I would never have thought that would have been necessary. But, then again, I have never found Rumbles to be or sound boxy, whatever that sound is.
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Indeed, but whatever gets the job done!
Speaking of! I bought a fretless neck made of neutronium. I'm gonna need to redo this bass one day when I get access to a drill press but I thought y'all might want to have a laugh.
Dat pocket gap!
That's what I get for trying to drill the hardest substance in the universe on my floor. You could practically fit a whole guitar in there!
The best part? It's a perfectly intonated 34.25" scale fretless P bass.
Also tort, abalone, and white pearl all on one maple board...
Indeed, but whatever gets the job done!
Speaking of! I bought a fretless neck made of neutronium. I'm gonna need to redo this bass one day when I get access to a drill press but I thought y'all might want to have a laugh.
View attachment 4243212
Dat pocket gap!
View attachment 4243213
That's what I get for trying to drill the hardest substance in the universe on my floor. You could practically fit a whole guitar in there!
The best part? It's a perfectly intonated 34.25" scale fretless P bass.
Also tort, abalone, and white pearl all on one maple board...
That is an "interesting" piece. I would love to see it once you give it some love and understanding. Oh, I can see where the .25" scale comes in
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Whoa that looks classyIndeed, but whatever gets the job done!
Speaking of! I bought a fretless neck made of neutronium. I'm gonna need to redo this bass one day when I get access to a drill press but I thought y'all might want to have a laugh.
View attachment 4243212
Dat pocket gap!
View attachment 4243213
That's what I get for trying to drill the hardest substance in the universe on my floor. You could practically fit a whole guitar in there!
The best part? It's a perfectly intonated 34.25" scale fretless P bass.
Also tort, abalone, and white pearl all on one maple board...
Indeed. With a better wrap, refilled and redrilled holes (by a drill press, no more hand drills for this bass), and new tuners and bridge all properly fitted it'll be quite the bass.That is an "interesting" piece. I would love to see it once you give it some love and understanding
Still for less than $100 (we'll see what the old neck sells for) I've got a solid foundation for a future beauty, and a current oddball that plays fine.
@juancaminos, thanks for the report on your Rumblings. It's always a fun journey to get where we need to go, eh? I'm curious, could you describe the type of sound you mean by "warmth"? It would help me understand how the two pedals changed the Rumble's sound. Thanks.
