I find this quite surprising too.
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Rumble 200 turned out to be eggshell fragile
- Thread starter Lowandfat
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I just purchased a new Rumble 200 combo, after trying a LOT of combo amps- I've posted some comparison threads here on TB.
The times I've used a friend's with a fairly loud blues band- have resulted in my respect for the sound of the amp- and how well the 15/ cabinet seems to be voiced for said amp section. I heard this amp with a GK 1-15 extension, and it killed. Unlike the more powerful Rumble 500 combo, that seems to just use the same cabinet, and does not seem to be as well paired amp-to speakers... which I made fart every time I've played through one. As far as accidents go, it is unfortunate that that occurred. Perhaps a Tuki, or other well padded cover might have prevented that.
Longevity? Who knows, so far... I dig the amp, and will use it. I always bring my Shuttle 9.0 as a backup. The Rumble 200- 35 pounds, one piece... pretty good setup. If it lasts a while, I'll be happy.
The times I've used a friend's with a fairly loud blues band- have resulted in my respect for the sound of the amp- and how well the 15/ cabinet seems to be voiced for said amp section. I heard this amp with a GK 1-15 extension, and it killed. Unlike the more powerful Rumble 500 combo, that seems to just use the same cabinet, and does not seem to be as well paired amp-to speakers... which I made fart every time I've played through one. As far as accidents go, it is unfortunate that that occurred. Perhaps a Tuki, or other well padded cover might have prevented that.
Longevity? Who knows, so far... I dig the amp, and will use it. I always bring my Shuttle 9.0 as a backup. The Rumble 200- 35 pounds, one piece... pretty good setup. If it lasts a while, I'll be happy.
It does seem to me that barely grazing the plug is possibly worst case. The trouble is we have good strong jacks these days and whereas a nasty plastic jack might have just disintegrated I can't see many amps with circuit board mounted sockets surviving an impact like that. Just too much leverage, and I'm not sure how one could avoid the circuit board being the weakest link. 90degree plugs would reduce the risk, but who bothers?
Wasn't even anything plugged in, an 18lb micro monitor literally grazed the external nut.
Very weird. May have just gotten a bad amp. I'm not a Fender gut though, so I don't know them much.
Yes, low quality boards, and poor design based more on cost than any other factor. My guy is a certified tech for a dozen high end makers, and is known all over the country. If you include rebuilding Mac amps, expand that to the world. Glad you think you know not only more than him with your BS armchair diagnostics, but even what he is thinking when inspecting the damage. You don't know him, you don't know me, and you have even less an idea of our working relationship. Mike will fix anything I bring him, IF he thinks it is worth spending the money fixing. Not because it is "below him". Replacing the board would be half the price of the combo. No thanks. He even refused cash for the time it took to find out the board was toast. That's what any reputable repair center should do. You can take your gear you earn your living from to DVD-fixer guy. I'll stick with certified industry pros, with whom I have decades of interactions, thanks. Your presumptuousness is only surpassed by your arrogance.
I totally dug it, too. Great combo for small clubs, and the dirty channel is the bomb.
So far the vote in this thread that the 210 Rumble 500 sounds weak is 2-1, and I am not "lashing out". When I test drove the Rumble 500, having owned both a 12 and a 15 Rumble, it farted out at an embarrassingly low SPL, and had none of the beef or warmth of the other two combos. There are thousands who rave about Hartke Transporter 210s, too, but "use what I use, it's awesome!" is not always the best advice.
I don't know what the best advice is but I really like my GK MB200 and MB500. They are rock solid performers. Fender did perform some magic on their Rumble series by building some very lightweight gear that sounds decent. It makes sense that there would be some trade-offs for that weight and performance.
I'm surprised that no one at Fender came up with your scenario when putting together the amp. That was just a disaster waiting to happen. I hope more Fender Rumble users don't suffer the same fate as your amp.
I'm surprised that no one at Fender came up with your scenario when putting together the amp. That was just a disaster waiting to happen. I hope more Fender Rumble users don't suffer the same fate as your amp.
It can happen to any amp if the situation is right. I had an Aguilar that was well padded in a box and was shipped. Shipper dropped it and damaged the box, but the amp didn't have a scratch. The concussion cracked the power amp board. After insurance paid the for the damage, I found a board on Ebay from a seller who was also a fellow TBer and the amp got back up and running like new. You could try to find a used board and maybe get lucky.
It was definitely a fluke blow at the exact right angle that caused it. I doubt many will experience catastrophic failure like I did, but google problems with the Blues Jr series if you want confirmation of the brittle boards with jacks stuck to them Fender uses.
All circuit boards are brittle, and if they have connectors soldered directly onto them, this sort of thing can happen. It’s probably true that using onboard connectors is one of the ways Fender manages to hit a certain price point, but all products have weaknesses and vulnerabilities, and it doesn’t mean they’re bad products as such.
Fender probably judged the chance of something hitting that jack in just that way was small enough that it was a worthwhile trade-off to save a few cents by soldering it directly onto the board, and they’d be right. You were just very unlucky. Commiserations, by the way. Hope you get it sorted.
I once owned a Marshall 3540- I think that was the model number.. I liked it a lot. 400 watts, Bi-amp, or stereo... and the amp failed on a gig. Took it to an alleged repairman, who was a pompous ass. He fixed it. Took it to a gig, and it failed again. I took it apart to see what he did- he used some of the thinnest gauge wire I've ever seen in his repair. After realizing the amp needed four new large power caps, I went about trying to find them. Apparently, Marshall had a run of these specific value caps made, but they were not available as replacements anywhere. The original manufacturer didn't even offer them in their catalog. I gave up, and bought a Trace Eliot RAH 350. Another mistake. Went to a Mackie M-1400 Power amp and SWR Grand Prix pre-amp, and was very happy for the several years I used it. Too heavy, at about 60 pounds with the Furman power conditioner, and all the cables. Went to a Pearce B2P. Still have the Pearce.
After using older Ampegs for much of my early career- and always being able to get ANY part for them, encountering this situation was well, unacceptable. I grew up in Woodside, Queens, and used to actually rehearse on Roosevelt Ave., right across from the original Ampeg factory. It was a storefront, not a typical factory like you might think.
I had a newer model Acoustic B200-115, dug it. Powerful and reasonably priced. A small cap blew up, and the amp hummed and made a little smoke show. Bought a new cap for 2 bucks at Radio Shack, soldered it in, and back in service. But I lost faith in it, and sold it.
The Fender, is an unknown quantity, as it is allegedly made in China. A long way from Southern California. The Acoustic, I think was made in China as well. Ampegs? Vietnam. A long way from Woodside. It's the reality of the things we buy now.
After using older Ampegs for much of my early career- and always being able to get ANY part for them, encountering this situation was well, unacceptable. I grew up in Woodside, Queens, and used to actually rehearse on Roosevelt Ave., right across from the original Ampeg factory. It was a storefront, not a typical factory like you might think.
I had a newer model Acoustic B200-115, dug it. Powerful and reasonably priced. A small cap blew up, and the amp hummed and made a little smoke show. Bought a new cap for 2 bucks at Radio Shack, soldered it in, and back in service. But I lost faith in it, and sold it.
The Fender, is an unknown quantity, as it is allegedly made in China. A long way from Southern California. The Acoustic, I think was made in China as well. Ampegs? Vietnam. A long way from Woodside. It's the reality of the things we buy now.
Both my Fender Rumbles (Rumble 500 Combo and ext cab 115) are marked on the rear as made in Indonesia.
My tried and true rig I gigged with since 1990 is a Peavey MKIV head through a Peavey 1820 cab. Made in the USA. This rig never let me down once. I hope I get the same run from the Rumble rig.
My tried and true rig I gigged with since 1990 is a Peavey MKIV head through a Peavey 1820 cab. Made in the USA. This rig never let me down once. I hope I get the same run from the Rumble rig.
Amazing how people can give an instant diagnosis on the failure AND the tech without having seen either.
PaulCISSA
Unsweetened, highly-caffeinated
Jacking ports soldered on boards always seemed sketchy to me since the practice first started. It makes all kinds of sense from the production perspective and even more so from the “outsourcing” perspective. But you can’t take away the fact that any externally facing port, especially a 1/4” jack, will take more user cycles than most other board-mounted components. Failure rate is guaranteed to be greater. I still believe in vibration/movement isolation.
I’m not surprised the board shattered from the impact, as light as it may have been. PCB’s are thinner, lighter, cheaper and not made from the same materials/resins used just a decade ago. Traces are thinner and durability suffers. Add the road-wear and stuff is gonna break.
Would love to see you do a Frankenstein thread so the collective can stay entertained. Regardless, hope you get it sorted.
I’m not surprised the board shattered from the impact, as light as it may have been. PCB’s are thinner, lighter, cheaper and not made from the same materials/resins used just a decade ago. Traces are thinner and durability suffers. Add the road-wear and stuff is gonna break.
Would love to see you do a Frankenstein thread so the collective can stay entertained. Regardless, hope you get it sorted.
okcrum
in your chest
How many trace layers is the circuit board? More than two and it's scrap if it's cracked.
What's the tech's labor rate? It might be fixable, but is it worth fixing?
What's the tech's labor rate? It might be fixable, but is it worth fixing?
If it’s a multilayer board in that amp then a cracked board isn’t going to be fixable.
Why do people keep asking if it's worth fixing, or suggesting just fixing it when the OP said he does not want to pay for the new component? Am I just stupid and missing something? Good googly moogly folks.
Also, whoever in here was the "Mind Reader" that not only passed judgement on a tech he's never met, but somehow "knew" why he wouldn't replace the component - you need some kind of award or something for that post.
@OP: Can you post some photos as to the baffle arangement in that cab? I have a pair of 3015's in a pair of Kustom cabs - but they're just installed into a box essentially (factory design) as I replaced similar drivers with those. Just curious if there's anything I could experiment with for the sake of experimenting.
Also, whoever in here was the "Mind Reader" that not only passed judgement on a tech he's never met, but somehow "knew" why he wouldn't replace the component - you need some kind of award or something for that post.
@OP: Can you post some photos as to the baffle arangement in that cab? I have a pair of 3015's in a pair of Kustom cabs - but they're just installed into a box essentially (factory design) as I replaced similar drivers with those. Just curious if there's anything I could experiment with for the sake of experimenting.
