See and I felt like the entire rhythm section should have ditched the jackets in solidarity with the drummer - especially because he was the star of the rhythm section in my opinion.
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See and I felt like the entire rhythm section should have ditched the jackets in solidarity with the drummer - especially because he was the star of the rhythm section in my opinion.
D
Hi there. Often on TB I see someone posting that Rumble amps "have a strong baked-in tone" and that it's difficult to get other sounds out of the amp. Usually, others reply and dispute this. Can someone explain why this is or is not the case, and how you like to use the amp to get more flat/transparent tones? Considering Rumble amps 200/500 and up. TY
I have noticed the same said about Ampeg tones, although some also say that they are more "transparent". Having used both, I am convinced, more than ever, that one should try them all and decided which "tone" you prefer.
Everyone has tone(s) they prefer. They can change over time and genre. Some side with one or the other. Some decide they need both. Then there is the difference between the tone of amps and cabs they are connected to. Then there are those that prefer one bass tone over another.
Before you know it, TB has induced many rabbit holes. Only you can decide what you are happy with.
I have been there and done that. I have bought and sold many Ampeg amps, cabs and combos. I have chosen Fender. You need to make your choice (s). Good luck with your search...
Another successful show last night with my Rumble 100 as stage monitor.
Flat setting (10-2-2-10) and gain and master both just past 12. More than enough to hear myself over drums and a percussion section.
Flat setting (10-2-2-10) and gain and master both just past 12. More than enough to hear myself over drums and a percussion section.
See my above post. I'm using mine as a stage monitor. We're an electric band with guitar, keys and two added percussionists. And always FOH support. I'm not asking the amp to do much more than allowing me to hear what I'm playing. If it sounds like a bass, I'm happy. Keeps my monitor mix cleaner.
It's light, easily transportable, low maintenance.
I'm using my Rumble 40 for a musical production (Pal Joey) at a local theater. Five consecutive weekends of Friday night, Saturday night and Sunday matinee. The six-piece orchestra includes two woodwinds, one trumpet/French horn player, piano, drums, and me. The audience and the band can hear me loud and clear.
By using the flat settings listed here in the rumble club, my rumble seems to be able to sound very much like my gin's been shuttle 9 or my mark bass little marquette. Both of those are supposedly fairly transparent amps. It's not all exact but close.
GENZBENZ, not gins Ben's. And little mark. Stupid voice to text
I should also clarify that I am using the rumble 500 head in the various cabinets, not rumble cabinets.
I'm less experienced with rumbles than others here, but I get a tone that I really like through my R100 (the one cab of the rumble lineup that most people say is muffled, muddy, or boxy compared to the 45 or 200), and I don't really ask questions. I play through my audio interface sometimes, and I play through a boss katana bass amp. I get sounds I like out of all of them, but the rumble is the easiest for me to set it and forget it. It just kinda always sounds good to me.
Definitely try one out at a music store if you have a chance. They almost always have a rumble or two on the floor.
All amps have a baked in tonal *range*, which may be wide or narrow, deep or shallow, etc. It really just comes down to what you like. Even if you set preamp EQ flat on a given amp, the circuit designer made voicing choices in the rest of the preamp, power amp, cab sims if included, etc. That voicing can be anywhere from more or less transparent to sounding like an SVT stack, a Marshall stack, a Fender Bassman, etc. The Rumble tends toward a Fendery sound, IMO, but (a) it's not a clone of any of the old fender tube amps (I'm not really familiar with their other solid state offerings), and (b) there's a lot of variation in the amp's tone, based on where you point the knobs, your bass, how you play, etc. It's definitely not a one trick pony.
That said, some people prefer other things. Ampeg devotees, for example. (I happen to like both[1].) If at all possible, try a Rumble and compare it against other offerings, as @SoulReflection suggested. Or get one from a retailer (local, net, whatever) that has a good return policy, and play as much as you can with it for a week or two, ideally with a band part of the time.
[1] While I won't claim to get an Ampeg sound out of a Rumble, I will say I can get close enough for my purposes. I can't play nearly as well as any of my heroes, but I can get a wide variety of tones out of my Rumbles, including the Ox, Felix Pappalardi, Jack Bruce, Berry Oakley, and more. I can make it sound like an old Motown bass rig.
I have both an R500c, and an Ampeg BA-210v3. No real preference between the two; as many have discussed in countless threads, I sound like me regardless of which rig gets played. And I like ‘em both!
No rhyme or reason how I choose which one to play… just however the mood strikes me when I pick up a bass.
(I do have them in different rooms… one in my home office/music space, the other in the living room…)
I should add that I prefer running two of these daisy chained, but they work fine solo as well. When running two, one has an athletic sock in one port. I've also used one as a small PA and as a keyboard amp. In each case, the R100 sounded great for the job. @GonePlaid plugs a CD player into his R200 for music between sets. They're incredibly versatile combos.
They must be versatile. They can accept both "tube" and "athletic" socks!
Really people, do you have to "put a sock in it" or "sock it to me"? I will let the experts decide...all I know is I do not have to do either...YMMV
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Really people, do you have to "put a sock in it" or "sock it to me"? I will let the experts decide...all I know is I do not have to do either...YMMV
Sock-re bleu! I guess the dress socks I've been using just don't cut it. They were even washed.
Ok, I'll play. After a couple of years of not owning any gig equipment I bought a Rumble 40. I did own a Rumble head back then. I missed playing the bass just not band drama and super late load outs.. I got this little guy to play and occasional duo sit in or bluegrass sub job. I don't plan on using any kind of outboard gear at all (except a tuner.) in my new life I'm going to learn to love flatwounds with this modest setup.
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I've mentioned this before - I did the post and polyfill batting mod to the box, and blocked the ports with more batting. Definitely gave the amp more definition and less boom.
I also plug the CD player into the R100, which is then mic'ed into the PA. With the 200c I usually turn the 'tweeter' on for the CD's. And forget to turn it off for live playing. Oops.
Hi, Newy! I have it on very good authority that most amp manufacturers have their own historical signature "baked-in tone" that their designers work very hard to maintain (or mimic) from model to model over the years, within or around their ongoing innovations. That is not to say that all models of a certain brand will always sound the same, but more that their fixed tonestacks and EQ ranges contain "a certain tonal vibe", in addition to more, or less, flexible settings. And, of course, different descriptions of each "vibe" can vary to the extreme. Different people hear different things, apparently. (Who knew?) Likewise, sound versatility is subject to the subjective variable opinions of different hearers! Music is, after all, an art more than a science.
And rather than flat or transparent tones being the goal, I believe that to be merely a starting point for a given room before adjusting toward a more desirable sound for the gig, the set, the song or even a particular portion of a song. But I tend not to adjust my Rumble 500 combo once set for some certain rooms & gig types. If I really want to have multiple identifiably different tones I use my Rumble Studio 40 combo to easily switch between radically different modeled tones for different songs, or parts thereof. But, maybe that's just me. YMMV.
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