My recent plans of wanting to go all light weight stuff has me curious about the rumble 500 head , weight would be great , have you gigged one a while, dependable , no problems etc. ? Do they some what have that classic Fender sound ? do these seem to have a reputation of lasting so far ? I know its not the same price or maybe quality of GK, or more upper end brands , but if like the sound , I guess bottom line do most people think it will last for years of just 1 or 2 small gigs a month maybe ? Does the wattage output seem accurate , not overrated ? Thanks .
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Fender Rumble 500 Head , do you use one?
- Thread starter cbnutt
- Start date
I recently switched from an ampeg SVT 4 pro and 4x10 cab to the 500 combo. I share that to give the context that I'm used to playing a massive sound-monster rig.
I love the sound this 500 combo puts out. It's big and rich and cuts thorough the mix well. The combo with it's 2x10 is 8 ohm, looking forward to hearing it opened up with another cab (I'm going to get the rumble 1x12).
The voice options really makes it versatile, and the vintage voice does not disappoint (I play it in bright+vintage, with horn on).
I don't have a lot of the specific details you were asking for, but I will say that it is certainly worthy of your consideration.
I love the sound this 500 combo puts out. It's big and rich and cuts thorough the mix well. The combo with it's 2x10 is 8 ohm, looking forward to hearing it opened up with another cab (I'm going to get the rumble 1x12).
The voice options really makes it versatile, and the vintage voice does not disappoint (I play it in bright+vintage, with horn on).
I don't have a lot of the specific details you were asking for, but I will say that it is certainly worthy of your consideration.
I've had mine for over a year and it's been good to me. For durability, I don't abuse it, but most class D heads fit inside backpacks or utility cases easily and often come with a carrying bag (as does the Rumble). The only issue I've had with mine is the master volume pot sometimes crackles a little early in its rotation, but stops once set at your desired volume. Not a deal breaker.
For the power aspect, I've used it on gigs with a pair of the matching 2x10 cabs, an Orange 1x15, and an Ampeg 8x10. It got plenty loud with all of them, though the single Rumble 2x10 cab on its own was the quietest (a pair of them is great, though!). I saw someone here post that in bench tests it puts out slightly less than the rated wattage, but it gets very loud regardless of the numbers.
For the power aspect, I've used it on gigs with a pair of the matching 2x10 cabs, an Orange 1x15, and an Ampeg 8x10. It got plenty loud with all of them, though the single Rumble 2x10 cab on its own was the quietest (a pair of them is great, though!). I saw someone here post that in bench tests it puts out slightly less than the rated wattage, but it gets very loud regardless of the numbers.
If you want a brand new Rumble 112 cab, grab one as soon as you can. They have been discontinued.
I love them and have four of them.
zZounds shows "only one left"
Sweetwater says no longer available.
Fender still shows them on their site but I hit the chat button a couple of weeks ago and a staff member verified that they are discontinued. I should have asked him if they still had some in stock but forgot to.
How much does the 112 weigh ? Would it be safe running just the one cab with the power the 500 does , enough for small , med , gigs ? looked like it dosnt have a top amp style handle, but iam sure it could be added easy enough .
As long as you don't turn up too much. The amp's 350w thereabouts into 8 inche ohms, so just listen for any sounds like farty/ flappy noises etc, and if there is, turn the bass eq and volume down until it isn't there anymore.
Ftr, its safe to use a 5000w amp into a 1x10 cab if you don't use to much power....i.e. turn up too much
Ftr, its safe to use a 5000w amp into a 1x10 cab if you don't use to much power....i.e. turn up too much
31 lbs
The feet of the rumble heads sit in cups on top of the cabinets. From Fender site..
"Fender's magnetic Rumble head-attachment system, which magnetically holds the Rumble 200 and 500 heads securely in place atop it for a perfect pairing"
Rumble™ 112 Cabinet
Installing a handle on top of the cabinet would defeat the purpose of the feature.
As radl said, just don't push it with only one cabinet. You can blow the drivers even if you use two cabs.
I've been using the 500 head and two 12's for over a year now.
Love it. Great sound and an easy schlep.
Love it. Great sound and an easy schlep.
buldog5151bass
Kibble, milkbones, and P Basses. And redheads.
Been using the 500 combo for a couple years now and love it. Just got the head two weeks ago to power my 4x10 neo cab and it sounds great. Haven't gigged with the head/ cab combo yet but it sounds and performs great so far. If you needed anything more powerful than that then you probably have a bass rig technician that can worry about it.
Also, the full 500 is available if you run an extension cab off the combo, when using the combo with my 4x10 I could definitely notice the difference.
Also, the full 500 is available if you run an extension cab off the combo, when using the combo with my 4x10 I could definitely notice the difference.
I've played Rumble 500 heads with 4x10 cabs for years live and in the studio and never had a failure or complaint 
I've been using the Fender Rumble 500 head for almost 3 1/2 years now without an issue. I've never seen a need to take it past 12 O'clock for volume. I originally bought the head because at the time they came with a 5yr warranty (not sure if they still do). I play in a rock band and the head powers a GK Neo 2x12, or 2 GK Neo 2x12s, or a Fender Rumble 4x10, or the Fender Rumble 4x10 and an Avatar 2x10 and/or one of the GK Neo 2x12s (yup, I did that). My DI to the board is done through my MXR M-80 Preamp so I never even touch the voicing buttons; although vintage and bright sound good to my ear at home. It's got about 100 gigs under its belt and no problems. I do, as a matter of procedure, open the case and shop-vac out the internals once every 6 months or so (some bars here are still allow smoking, and the stage smoke machine). Really, for the price point you can't go wrong.