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Living room amp. Rumble 15/25 vs. Vox Pathfinder, vs...?

Eilif

Eilif

Grooving under the MDW runway.
Oct 1, 2001
9,756
9,645
Chicago
#1
Update 3/7 Beautification of 1st Gen Rumble 15 begins on post # 14 Grill Cloth installed!


Considering purchasing a living room amp. It doesn't have to be gig or rehearsal worthy. I've got amps for that already.

Ideally it'd be small, $140 or less, and look good. Would be nice if it sounded good too, but the priority is that it be good enough looking to fit in nicely with a mid-century'ish living room on one of the bottom two levels of this bookshelf.
IMG_20220109_162400992.jpg


Any good advice regarding the various good looking and inexpensive amps out there?

Currently I think the Vox Pathfinder is absolutely gorgeous and wins on looks and size. My wife has always liked Vox aesthetics as well.

However, I have a suspicion that the Rumble 15 might win on sound and it's a good looking amp as well. The Rumble 25 is on my radar as well but I'm not sure what benefit there is to 10 more watts pumped into 8 inches and I don't need overdrive.

If there's any others I should consider, my ears are open.
 
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#3
If style is a key consideration, I think you have to look at the Ampeg RB-108 as well, but it is a little larger than the Rumbles in all dimensions. Your choice may end up being determined by the bookshelf as you'll need access to the top-mounted input and controls on all of these options. But any of these will make a great looking addition!
 
#4
Eilif said:
Considering purchasing a living room amp. It doesn't have to be gig or rehearsal worthy. I've got amps for that already.

Ideally it'd be small, $140 or less, and look good. Would be nice if it sounded good too, but the priority is that it be good enough looking to fit in nicely with a mid-century'ish living room on one of the bottom two levels of this bookshelf.
View attachment 4535822

Any good advice regarding the various good looking and inexpensive amps out there?

Currently I think the Vox Pathfinder is absolutely gorgeous and wins on looks and size. My wife has always liked Vox aesthetics as well.

However, I have a suspicion that the Rumble 15 might win on sound and it's a good looking amp as well. The Rumble 25 is on my radar as well but I'm not sure what benefit there is to 10 more watts pumped into 8 inches and I don't need overdrive.

If there's any others I should consider, my ears are open.
Click to expand...
The Rumble 25 does outperform the 15, not just because of more power but the cabinet is ported yielding a bigger sound.
That said, I'd take the Ampeg over all of em.
 
#5
Thanks for the suggestions folks. It's been a very long time since I looked into the starter/practice bass amp market.
Yahboy said:
VOX VX50BA

and glue the amp grill cloth infront the mesh.
Click to expand...
A cool little amp to be sure but more than double my price range.

Dino Boreanaz said:
If style is a key consideration, I think you have to look at the Ampeg RB-108 as well, but it is a little larger than the Rumbles in all dimensions. Your choice may end up being determined by the bookshelf as you'll need access to the top-mounted input and controls on all of these options. But any of these will make a great looking addition!
Click to expand...
The Ampeg did look a little bigger and more expensive than my target. but it might still fit in the shelf with room to reach the controls. I'll check. I do like the look. I wish they'd kept the original Rocket Bass look though with the blue tolex. My B100R is a beauty.

SJan3 said:
The Rumble 25 does outperform the 15, not just because of more power but the cabinet is ported yielding a bigger sound.
That said, I'd take the Ampeg over all of em.
Click to expand...
Good to know about the 25. If it does sound notably better, that would be worth the upcharge.
 
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#7
droo46 said:
If you're putting it on that shelf, you'll probably want front facing knobs which aren't very common these days. You might look for a used Ampeg BA110.
Click to expand...

Yeah, access to the knobs is another reason for the smaller size. I kind of figured I'd have to replace thekind of pointer knobs on for blind adjustments.
 
#13
Went a different way for a few reasons.
-Took seriously the usefulness of front mounted controls.
-Cash got a little tighter.
-Realized I've got plenty of space in our TV cart to really hide the amp (so maybe visuals aren't as important) and it's closer to the Bass Case than the shelf was anyway.

So I grabbed this on Craigslist for 20 bucks
IMG_20220201_101833895.jpg

Nothing special but it gets the job done for living room practice. Fits right in the TV cart/cabinet.
IMG_20220201_102451516.jpg

And it's both hidden and nicely close to my the bass case.
IMG_20220201_120143973.jpg


Long and short, I'm pretty happy with this arrangement. I've got a good amount of of space left in the cabinet, so there's a good chance I'll buy a slightly larger combo someday when a super deal presents itself.

Lastly, I still hate the 90s aesthetics of a carpeted cab with plastic corners, metal grill (a bit rusty in this case) and "Rock" style graphics on the control plate. However, this could be a nice cheap test bed for a visual redux.
-Texture paint instead of carpet.
-Chrome corners
-Grill Cloth. Anyone got a scrap they want to send me?
-Vintage style Knobs
-Repainted Control plate with single letter decals for controls.
-Possibly a vintage style logo.

We'll see. It's a tempting project since I have all the parts except for grill cloth and maybe the corners.

I'm the meantime, I'm happy for now just bring able to have a bass and amp close at hand when the mood strikes.
 
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#14
The 1st Gen Rumble Makeover begins!

Removal of chassis and grill.
Is that silver face grill cloth I see...?
IMG_20220304_212334691.jpg


Separate frame from amp board. Pull off the plastic control label and clean away allot of adhesive. MEK comes in handy.
IMG_20220305_134143846.jpg


Then polish with emry cloth to an acceptably (perfection is not the goal here) even matte finish. Pretty easy, just long strokes only along the length. No perpendicular strokes.
IMG_20220305_151303248_HDR.jpg


I've decided to completely lose the Fender branding and do my own thing for the control panel.
Next up transfers and decals...
 
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#15
Finished up the "printing" on the control face. Dry transfers and a vintage Chessie railroading decal.
IMG_20220307_193638638.jpg


Existing metal grill slightly downsized with an angle grinder to make space for the grill cloth to wrap around. Cleaned of rust, repainted with Hammered Finish silver spray paint to inhibit further rust. Glued on grill cloth and ironed over the edges.
IMG_20220307_213744549.jpg

Not perfectly even because I took a bit more metal away at the corners, but darn close and the lines are straight. I painted the previously black screws with silver sharpie and I'm much happier with the look so far.

Next up, matte varnish the control face and install chrome corners.

Finished it up, but decided it deserves it's own NAD thread.
NAD. Made-Over 1st Gen Rumble 15.
 
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