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Fender Rumble Club

#7,581
Big Hoss said:
For starters, I LOVE the effect of that pic. Yeah its grainy but something about that looks good...

Secondly though, your pic illustrates something about the Rumble that DID trigger an absolute OCD fit with me. The input jack that sticks the cable STRAIGHT UP.
image-jpg.jpg


Now I'm not exactly Mr. OCD or anything, but something about that arrangement on mine just gave me the feeling like fingernails on a chalk board, so bad that even though I have piles of nice cables, I went and ordered up new cables with the 90 degree ends.

It's funny what gets under your skin, this shouldn't have bugged me at all, but boy talk about an irritiant! I just kept picturing grazing by the upright portion of the connector and breaking it off in the amp...

I am probably the only person here that this has bugged this much, I just needed to vent about it, back to your normally scheduled programming.
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Thanks - I just snapped the pic quickly with my iPad late last night, so the graininess is mostly due to poor lighting :)

The point you make is interesting. Now, I actually AM Mr. OCD (pleased to meet you), but it's never occurred to me that this should look wrong in any way. Thinking about it, though I would say this: I actually quite like the arrangement. Aesthetically I have no problems with it at all, and functionally, there are actually some advantages. Firstly, since the combo is smallish and sits on the floor, a vertical input jack is vastly more accessible. Easier to see if the light is dim, easier to plug into, and you don't have to squat down to do it. And since nothing is meant to sit on top, the straight jack plug doesn't really present a problem. On an amp this small, surely it would be easier to break the connector of the amp it it was sticking out horizontally somewhere?

I prefer to use Fender Custom Shop braided instrument cables (which admittedly have sleeves that are quite long) for a variety of reasons. One of the reasons I like braided cables is that they tend to get fewer tangles, but they can twist a bit, and you can easily give a straight plug a quick turn in its socket to untwist it. This is nearly impossible to do with angled ones. I do use angled jacks sometimes when standing, simply because they're more easily tucked behind the guitar strap. When I do, it's all the more important to have a straight jack at the other end, so I can still untwist the cable easily.
 
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#7,582
Smoove-Groove said:
Over time, a straight plug, if left plugged in, will start to bend due to gravity pulling down on the cord. This can cause broken connections within the cord. Just a tip...
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Fair enough - but the Fender cables have very long sleeves, which minimizes that risk. Anyway, cables are disposable. Even the Fender Custom Shop ones are cheapish, so when one breaks, I just get a new one. Haven't had that happen to me yet, though.
 
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#7,583
Scott Truesdell said:
I'm with Big Hoss on that issue... somewhat.

I don't like the whole back-of-the-bus layout of all the v3 controls. I much prefer the classic black face look.

But it is a big cost savings which is good for us. Up front controls means taller cabinets across the Rumble line which is more cost and more weight. So I'm happy with it how it is.
And yes, I too use a 90-degree plug for the input.
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I'm not a big fan of the blackface look myself - Harder to see on a small amp, especially on a dimly lit stage, and more cumbersome to plug in. The controls placement on the rumbles make perfect sense given the size of the amps, and much more comfortable for home practice. The amp would have to be almost waist-high for front-mounted controls to make sense functionally. It's the main reason I disliked Ampeg's new BA series the moment I clapped eyes on it. Well, that and the ridiculous tiltback design.
 
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#7,586
Hey fellow Rumblites,

I have the Rumble v3 100 for home practice, quiet drummers and acoustic stuff...works great.
I have the Rumble v3 500 head and two Rumble v3 112 cabinets for louder gigs...awesome rig.

I've tried both the Rumble 500 Combo and the 210 cabinet, and for *my taste* they are a bit too bassy and boomy. Great pieces of gear, just not what I'm looking for.

So for something in between the 100 combo and the 2 x 112 stack, I was thinking about the Rumble v3 200 combo. It would be a nice grab and go when I needed something to keep up with a moderately loud drummer but didn't want to bring the 2 x 112 rig. Although I've always used matched cabinets, I would also have the option, per Fender's suggestion, of trying one of the 112 cabinets under the 200 combo. I know for a couple of extra pounds and a not too many more dollars the 500 Combo delivers in spades, but it's not my sound.

So, has anyone tried the 500 combo and the 200 combo side by side? If they sound alike I'll just stick with my 2 x 112 set up for everything that the 100 combo can't handle.

BTW, I'm already in the Rumble Club...awesome group here!

Thanks,

Bob
 
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#7,588
I've found that sound -- particularly boominess or notches -- depends on speaker height from the ground. Just like the discussion about speaker distance from the back wall or corner, distance off the ground is a "tunable" factor. A lot depends on what the floor is made from, too. Hardwood, thin carpet, thick carpet, etc., all have an influence on the way your sound is projected. It all counts. Linnin's piano bench got me thinking.

At home, the rig is on thick carpet but on most stages it's hard wood. At home I can run the 500 combo on the floor but at a friend's with wood floors, it sounds more balanced across the range being lifted up a bit. I'm convinced that changing the height up or down by an inch or so can change the sound as heard in the audience. Having an adjustable height stand would be so cool, but who needs that sort of complexity added to a sound check?

I've made a 9.5-inch-tall (240 mm) stand out of a mahogany drawer from David Crosby's schooner "Mayan" (THE wooden ship) salvaged a year ago from when the new owner was doing some restorative work, bringing the boat closer to the original configuration. As is my way, the stand is a mish-mash of minimum alteration and over-refinement, but it's been fun. When not being used as a stand, it flips over to be an open-top carry box to hold cables, etc. Now that the stand is complete, I see ways I want to modify it to look cleaner and more refined, but on the other hand, the used patina and obvious origins as a drawer are sort of its provenance. Of course the front-facing side is hand-rubbed nitrocellulose lacquer... :rolleyes:
 
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#7,589
Scott, you make some good points. I always use an Auralex Gramma pad to mitigate the effect of floor coupling...it seems to help. I also experimented with placing the speaker cabinets at different distances from the wall in our rehearsal space. It definitely makes a difference in bass response. It's hard to get a bad sound (to my ear) out of the 112 cabinets, whereas I was always fiddling with EQ and speaker placement to get an acceptable (to me) sound out of the 210 combo and cabinet.

I'm hoping someone has heard the 500 combo and the 200 combo side by side to see if they sound any different. Like Linnin said, sometimes you just have to try it.

Thanks all,

Bob
 
#7,593
RColie said:
Hey fellow Rumblites,

I have the Rumble v3 100 for home practice, quiet drummers and acoustic stuff...works great.
I have the Rumble v3 500 head and two Rumble v3 112 cabinets for louder gigs...awesome rig.

I've tried both the Rumble 500 Combo and the 210 cabinet, and for *my taste* they are a bit too bassy and boomy. Great pieces of gear, just not what I'm looking for.

So for something in between the 100 combo and the 2 x 112 stack, I was thinking about the Rumble v3 200 combo. It would be a nice grab and go when I needed something to keep up with a moderately loud drummer but didn't want to bring the 2 x 112 rig. Although I've always used matched cabinets, I would also have the option, per Fender's suggestion, of trying one of the 112 cabinets under the 200 combo. I know for a couple of extra pounds and a not too many more dollars the 500 Combo delivers in spades, but it's not my sound.

So, has anyone tried the 500 combo and the 200 combo side by side? If they sound alike I'll just stick with my 2 x 112 set up for everything that the 100 combo can't handle.

BTW, I'm already in the Rumble Club...awesome group here!

Thanks,

Bob
Click to expand...
Why not just the head and one 112 cab? Worth a try I would think.
The 200 is 140w by itself, the 112 is rated for 200 watts, I'd think it would get you there as much as a 200 combo would.

But it's your money ;)
 
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#7,594
Yes, I'm currently using the head and one 112 cabinet at rehearsal. I feel like I'm pushing it a bit more than I want to sometimes, although I'm overly sensitive about that. I figured the 200 Combo would give me more volume (more cone area) and would be easier to move about than a separate head and cabinet. But then again, that's a bit extravagant. ;)

Bob
 
#7,595
Not 100% related, but I use the 500 head and 4x10 cab. Practicing for a hard rock band at appropriate levels, I don't go past a quarter volume, and a similar gain setting. Keep in mind I use a heavy fingerstyle attack like Alex Webster, so a lighter touch could mean less volume. Rumbles seem to be very, very loud at their given power ratings.
 
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#7,598
Linnin said:
Yes they are, but also keep in mind that Fender is honest in their wattage ratings.
Click to expand...
I think that a lot of vendors have started doing this since the ubiquitous icePower was adopted for power sections. I have a suspicion that there's probably some reseller/contract language which forbids inflating the power rating.

Peace, Love, and Goodwill
 

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