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Fender Rumble Club

#13,141
Played my first 2 gigs with my new Rumble 500 head and 2x10 cab. First gig was last week on upright. Had a dj's speaker on a stand, BLASTING directly behind me so it was difficult to set up and get a sound. After that speaker stand tipped over, knocking my upright onto the ground resulting in (thankfully) just a little road rash on an edge, I dialed in a sound on the fly and was happy.
Saturday night I played it with my new '63 AVRI Precision and set-up was breeze and the tone (with Vintage button engaged) was beautiful and it had plenty of headroom! Got compliments on the sound from a few folks that night.
 
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#13,142
getrhythm said:
Saturday night I played it with my new '63 AVRI Precision and set-up was breeze and the tone (with Vintage button engaged) was beautiful and it had plenty of headroom! Got compliments on the sound from a few folks that night.
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Thanks for the gig report @getrhythm (member #569). Those new AVRI '63 Precisions get rave reviews. Some say they are even better than the original others say that they are the best Precisions ever.
 
#13,143
BazzaBass said:
Excellent explanation. Thankyou very much for taking the time to help me understand.

Just a further question. What you are describing as a Vertical Array is a 500 combo on top of a 2x10 Cab? Is this more efficient than placing the 2 boxes next to each other which would be like a 4x10. Or is there no difference? Thankyou
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Yes. Vertical stacking is better than horizontal.

I do not know WHY line arrays work; I just know the practical applications. I have Olson's book but the math is mostly beyond my comfort zone.
Stacking the speakers vertically concentrates the sound perpendicular the the stack. If the speakers are side-by-side, the same effect occurs and the sound is projects up and down as well as ahead but with less projection out to the sides.

The 2x2 array would have a combination of these two effects where sound is projected straight ahead, but not out to the sides very well. The audience right in front of the speakers will hear well but the people off to either side will not get the best sound. In the drawing below, the two square arrays (vocals and keyboards) are mounted on semi-circular lifts to compensate for the reduced lateral dispersion.
Stacking 2x2 arrays into 2x4 (e.g. stacking two 410 cabs) will work to distribute the sound more like a line source again and the audience off to the sides will again hear clear sound.

The Rumble 500 combo and 210 speaker cabs have the speakers staggered a bit so the full line array effect is not fully achieved. But it's close enough to provide benefits which are easily noticed.

I got to hear the most impressive line array PA ever assembled as the Grateful Dead's "Wall of Sound" on several occasions.
42 years later and the fidelity of that system still impresses me! This PA had headroom like nothing I've heard before or since.
wall_of_sound_article_03_sketch_1081px.jpg
 
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#13,144
On smaller gigs, GrooveSession uses a Bose L1 PA which Bose gave to them for evaluation. I've talked with the lads about it and they say it is by far the easiest PA to set-up. I wondered how stressed the system was in the Golden Sails Inn (Long Beach, CA) -- a low-ish space which holds about 200-300 and was told they still had the ability to crank it up some more. The Bose L1 is a stripped-down line array (Bose calls it "Spatial Dispersion™") and it is a dramatic example of how line arrays work. As I walked around the room during a set, the vocals remained loud and clear with no nulls. Even as I walked around behind the stage and the instrument amps were fading, the diminutive L1 continued to deliver clear sound.
The power of line arrays.
I was impressed.
 
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#13,145
Scott Truesdell said:
On smaller gigs, GrooveSession uses a Bose L1 PA which Bose gave to them for evaluation. I've talked with the lads about it and they say it is by far the easiest PA to set-up. I wondered how stressed the system was in the Golden Sails Inn (Long Beach, CA) -- a low-ish space which holds about 200-300 and was told they still had the ability to crank it up some more. The Bose L1 is a stripped-down line array (Bose calls it "Spatial Dispersion™") and it is a dramatic example of how line arrays work. As I walked around the room during a set, the vocals remained loud and clear with no nulls. Even as I walked around behind the stage and the instrument amps were fading, the diminutive L1 continued to deliver clear sound.
The power of line arrays.
I was impressed.
Click to expand...
Yeah, it seems the traditional setup of a sub + top both left and right is changing. Systems like the L1 are being taken over by more companies, like the HK Audio Elements, DB ES503 or JBL Eon One. Interesting times.
 
#13,151
Scott Truesdell said:
On smaller gigs, GrooveSession uses a Bose L1 PA which Bose gave to them for evaluation. I've talked with the lads about it and they say it is by far the easiest PA to set-up. I wondered how stressed the system was in the Golden Sails Inn (Long Beach, CA) -- a low-ish space which holds about 200-300 and was told they still had the ability to crank it up some more. The Bose L1 is a stripped-down line array (Bose calls it "Spatial Dispersion™") and it is a dramatic example of how line arrays work. As I walked around the room during a set, the vocals remained loud and clear with no nulls. Even as I walked around behind the stage and the instrument amps were fading, the diminutive L1 continued to deliver clear sound.
The power of line arrays.
I was impressed.
Click to expand...

I run my saxophone exclusively through a Bose L1. Very few soundmen can eq a sax correctly. I play in some very loud rock bands and it can be heard loud and clear in large venues when I solo.

btw: the vocalist sounds better in my post hardcore band singing through the Bose l1. I am toying with investing in the largest one for my band. If we tour a lot in the future--it is a given--they are so easy and quick to set up.
 
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#13,153
Linnin said:
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed] Don't forget Fender Expo. $700 and much better than Bose.
Invalid Link Removed
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I haven't heard one in person--but I will do it as I like Fender. There are other brands out there like Maui as well. Bose certainly charges a premium for their name brand. But I can attest Bose sounds damned good.

btw: the expo weighs 15 pounds more--I just checked a review and it claims the Bose cuts through much better. I will do some more digging.
 
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#13,154
husky123 said:
Anyone know if the new Bassman 800 will be tuning the new ICE power module like in the Subway 800 and Magellen 800? If so, that thing is going to flat get it.
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More than likely. We'll find out for sure later. D-Class ICE Power is extremely transparent and simply amplifies the tone input from the front end. The Fender Super Bassman front end is the best sounding bass pre-amp ever invented by mankind. Thanks to Fender's Principal Engineer Dave Lewis and his design team.
 
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#13,156
Michael B said:
Played guitar through my Rumble Friday night with friends. Sounded great to me. Like with bass I have of late preferred to actually use the tone knob rather than leaving it wide open. The Rumble reacted well to it.
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Agree. I adjust the tone for the most bass meat. That ends up being about 1/3rd open. A wide open tone control exacerbates finger noise and pick click and string noise and fret buzz.
 
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#13,157
Linnin said:
Agree. I adjust the tone for the most bass meat. That ends up being about 1/3rd open. A wide open tone control exacerbates finger noise and pick click and string noise and fret buzz.
Click to expand...

I actually played my guitar on a gig yesterday through the 500C. I had to switch from bass to guitar and didn't want to lug another amp--as I was playing sax as well--which meant I had my Bose L1 to lug as well.

The guitar sounded sweet to me.
 
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#13,158
Linnin said:
Agree. I adjust the tone for the most bass meat. That ends up being about 1/3rd open. A wide open tone control exacerbates finger noise and pick click and string noise and fret buzz.
Click to expand...

For me using the tone reflects a big change in the style of music I am playing. It feels wierd not using the bridge position as much.

Getting more refined? Probably just older.
 
#13,160
Linnin said:
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed] Don't forget Fender Expo. $700 and much better than Bose.
Invalid Link Removed
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Where can I find the specs. I need to know if this will reproduce a bass down to 40 Hz. My Bose B2 will. I am definitely interested. If it can't handle 40 Hz, I would have to pass. I have two Bose systems I use all the time.

Edit: I found it. It only goes down to 50 Hz (between G and G# on a bass). If they ever make one with a subwoofer that goes just a little lower, I'd be in and so would a lot of others. They can't give Bose a run for their money until they do that. I would buy one TODAY if it could do 40Hz!!

Edit: I have to go to work now, but I intend to do a lot more research on these. I am interested. I run my entire one man band through one of two Bose systems every time I play.
 
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