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What happened with the Reverend Rumblefish?

Matt Till

Matt Till

Jun 1, 2002
16,305
111
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Edinboro, PA
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#1
I've wanted one of these basses for a while, but now they've stopped making them? It seems now they are collectors items, and of course, you have to pay collectors item prices. :rolleyes:


I'm starting to think that there has to be a God who makes it a point to plot against me. Damn him and his pointy shoes!
 
#10
Hmm...I've never really had any balance issues with either of mine. They are great basses, either way. With a little patience, you should be able to find a regular Rumblefish 4 or 5 at around $800, give or take. A PJ will probably be a bit tougher to come by, but they still pop up here and there.
 
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#11
There is a little bit of dive on both of my Revs, but nothing that made it hard to play. I use Dimarzio cliplock straps too, which are nylon. The Rev's come around fairly often here on TB. I've seen them sell from $750 to $1000, but usually around $800 or $850. I actually sold a damaged 5L for $650 last week. They are great basses with a very unique but classic sound. IMO their sound in directly in between a jazz bass and a p-bass. Not a PJ, but a true jazz and true p. My main bass right now is a 5L and I love it. My Brad Houser is unreal too. It has a ton of different sounds and has HUGE tone.
 
#14
Great basses... I can't part with mine!

DSCF3761.jpg
 
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#15
As much as these basses are worshipped on here they had an odd formica type wood that can be broken pretty easily compared to other solid body basses as a back wood.

I am guessing this caused a nightmare for Reverend customer support, since they didn't sell a whole lot.

As much as these basses sound good, they are also quite fragile.

They sold new in the 700 range, I wouldn't pay more than that for them collectors items or not.
 
#16
As much as these basses are worshipped on here they had an odd formica type wood that can be broken pretty easily compared to other solid body basses as a back wood.
Click to expand...

Just for the record...

Rumblefishes are not solid bodied, they are semi hollow. As such, they are susceptible to impact damage just like all other semi-hollow guitars.

If you need a bass you can back your car over, a Rev prolly aint a good choice. lol
 
#18
fenderhutz said:
As much as these basses are worshipped on here they had an odd formica type wood that can be broken pretty easily compared to other solid body basses as a back wood.

I am guessing this caused a nightmare for Reverend customer support, since they didn't sell a whole lot.

As much as these basses sound good, they are also quite fragile.

They sold new in the 700 range, I wouldn't pay more than that for them collectors items or not.
Click to expand...

Thats really not true.

I have only seen three broken basses and I keep up with the big Reverend threads over on some of the guitar forums and have seen only a couple of broken guitars (of which many more were made).

The ones that have broken tend to be from shipping problems. Despite the construction materials and methods, breaking one within normal gigging use is pretty damn difficult.

For what its worth, they are well constructed, with one of the best necks in the biz. They have a unique yet flexible tone and for those that love them, there is very little that compares.
 
#19
If my memory serves me correctly. The reason they quit making them was lack of interest in them. I read a blurb somewhere that they couldn't generate enough interest in them so they were discontinued. I got to try one once and found it kinda cool. It belonged to friend of mine (R.I.P.). So I will never know what happened to it.
 
#20
When they stopped making Reverends in the USA and outsourced production overseas, they only contracted with the new factory for guitars -- no basses.

As with all semi-hollow instruments, they're more susceptible to damage than solid bodied instruments are. I gig with mine all the time with no worries.

None of my four Reverends have a problem with neck dive. YMMV. They all have a weight in the back by the bridge as a counterweight (since the bodies are lightweight).

As Smallquestrian says, they are known for having great necks and a very distinct tone from the somewhat unusual construction.

FWIW, my Reverend PJ splits time with my NYC Sadowsky PJ as my #1 bass.
 
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