Fender Rumble gigging question

[rudy4444]

Hi All,
I have been giving a bit of thought into picking up a Rumble 200 or 500 as a practical and easily carried amp for smaller gig use.

I got a chance to try out a 200 today and this thing is REALLY LOUD. I was somewhat dismayed to find that if I barely crack the master up it's way louder than what it needs to be.

This means it's just a pain to use in a home setting or small space, I've now totally ruled out a 500. Who on earth needs that kind of volume for a stage monitor? I've been involved with performance for something like 30 years so I'm not new to gigging with a combo.

I plugged into a Rumble 100 and it was a lot more managable and still IMHO plenty loud to gig. Since they have DIs I don't understand all the recommendations to get a 200 (but preferrably 500) for live use. I've always used a "smaller" either combo or seperate head/cab for performance use and any place that would require more volume always has a dedicated PA with sound guy that I ported a DI to.

I felt that the 100 would be much more ideal as a stage monitor. Anybody else that can shed some light on those thoughts?

Thanks much!

 

[RattleSnack]

"Really loud" is very subjective. When gui**** cranks volume, drumer starts pounding, and the rest of instruments follow - "realy loud" quickly becomes "lost in mix". I always go for more watts than I think I need. Of course YMMV.

 

[Linnin]

I got a chance to try out a 200 today and this thing is REALLY LOUD.

This is true as that is it's job and does it very well. But it doesn't have to be loud if you don't want it to be. I play a Rumble 200 combo for personal practice daily.

I was somewhat dismayed to find that if I barely crack the master up it's way louder than what it needs to be.

This is not true in my extensive hands on experience. So something is amiss with the unit you auditioned. All of the Rumble master volumes I have tried have been very smooth and don't reach full power until they are at least 2/3rds to 3/4ths open. Make sure the gain is way down or even 0. Keep all the tone controls at noon for 0 boost/cut. Make sure all the voicings are off and the overdrive too. You should easily obtain low bedroom volume at 9 o'clock on the master. I play at low volume everyday as I do not want irate neighbors or unfriendly visits from the Sherriff.

 

[crucislancer]

Hi All,
I have been giving a bit of thought into picking up a Rumble 200 or 500 as a practical and easily carried amp for smaller gig use.

I got a chance to try out a 200 today and this thing is REALLY LOUD. I was somewhat dismayed to find that if I barely crack the master up it's way louder than what it needs to be.

This means it's just a pain to use in a home setting or small space, I've now totally ruled out a 500. Who on earth needs that kind of volume for a stage monitor? I've been involved with performance for something like 30 years so I'm not new to gigging with a combo.

I plugged into a Rumble 100 and it was a lot more managable and still IMHO plenty loud to gig. Since they have DIs I don't understand all the recommendations to get a 200 (but preferrably 500) for live use. I've always used a "smaller" either combo or seperate head/cab for performance use and any place that would require more volume always has a dedicated PA with sound guy that I ported a DI to.

I felt that the 100 would be much more ideal as a stage monitor. Anybody else that can shed some light on those thoughts?

Thanks much!

I don’t understand. The Rumbles are plenty loud, but not with a small turn of the master knob, unless you had all the knobs cranked on the amp. Also, you never really mention what too loud might be to your ears, what types of places you are playing, genre of music, who you are playing with, etc. I once used my 500 combo with a drummer and guitarist, playing blues rock in a small bar. It was not too loud for the gig, but I could have certainly cranked it up to ear bleed volume with ease.

 

[AstroSonic]

You know your band(s) and how loudly they play, so your assessment of how much volume is needed should be reasonably on target. However, if at some point you end up playing a medium size gig without FOH support, you'll be mighty happy you purchased some extra volume capability. Remember that you do not need to run your instrument with the volume control set at max. Same with the bass amp. Volume controls are used to control the volume. Have to admit that the Rumble 100 packs a remarkable amount of capability in such a compact, light weight package. If you don't have a dedicated practice amp it's great for that as well. OTOH, if you already have a practice amp, consider the Rumble 200. Significantly more volume, richer bass tone and you can add an extension cab if it should be needed.

 

[Linnin]

richer bass tone

^^^This^^^ That's why I bought my Rumble 200. The tone is just amazing even at very low volumes the tone doesn't retreat. It's plenty loud enough to play your average bar with no need to be in the PA.

 

[rudy4444]

Thanks for the comments so far, I appreciate all of them!

I'm confident in how I had the preamp stages set for the 200, tone stack controls at 12 o'clock, no voicing selected, no overdrive amount or gain, and input volume fully counter-clockwise. It's possible that the 200 I auditioned may have had an issue (Guitar Center, brand new amp).

As soon as I raised the master up to where the bass came through it was LOUD. There was a very small area of the control between fully CCW and 8 o'clock that I could get an intermediate volume, but it was REAL touchy. It did get louder past 9 o'clock but there's no way I was going to dime this in Guitar Center.

After a lot of years of having a crash cymbal off my right ear I don't play with loud drummers any longer. Once in a while I get involved with a pickup project where a drummer is involved, but all these guys now play nice percussion and there's usually not even a crash cymbal on their kits. My tinnitus can't take the abuse any longer.

I gave up actively playing a few years ago for various reasons but I still do an occasional bar gig doing Cajun/Zydeco, early country, or old time / Bluegrass / Americana stuff, but sans loud drummer. I used to play Tele mostly, but I've went to acoustic guitar, again due to the volume issues.

I'm still totally up in the air on any long-term decision, I currently use a Workingman's 12 for bass and that does fine volume-wise. The extreme light weight of the Rumble combos is a huge plus for me.

Keep those cards n' letters comin'...

 

[Old Garage-Bander]

This is true as that is it's job and does it very well. But it doesn't have to be loud if you don't want it to be. I play a Rumble 200 combo for personal practice daily.

This is not true in my extensive hands on experience. So something is amiss with the unit you auditioned. All of the Rumble master volumes I have tried have been very smooth and don't reach full power until they are at least 2/3rds to 3/4ths open. Make sure the gain is way down or even 0. Keep all the tone controls at noon for 0 boost/cut. Make sure all the voicings are off and the overdrive too. You should easily obtain low bedroom volume at 9 o'clock on the master. I play at low volume everyday as I do not want irate neighbors or unfriendly visits from the Sherriff.

Ditto what Linnin said.
I also have the 200 combo and use it for home practice.
I can turn it way down and it still sounds fine. The controls are very smooth and linear.
I practice in the basement, and my wife watching TV in the living room directly above, never is bothered by it.
If the overdrive was on and turned up, that might affect where some if the other settings need to be.
It gets stoopid loud with the OD.

 

[basslust]

If you are sure that you'll never use the full power of the 200, it's perfectly reasonable to get the 100. I use the 500 for shows (sometimes as a stage monitor, sometimes not), but then again I play with a loud drummer (and wear ear plugs to prevent the aforementioned hearing damage.) I also have a Rumble 25 that I use for practicing at home.

I think part of the confusion is that different people have different ideas of what makes a stage monitor... If you are playing on a large outdoor stage with a drummer and are standing ten feet in front of your speaker cabinet, no Rumble 100 or 200 is going to do the trick, and even a 500 with a 212 or 410 won't really cut it without ample support from the stage monitors. On the other hand, for a small stage doing a jazz show or something similar, a 100 or 200 combo would be just fine.

 

[AstroSonic]

Thanks for the comments so far, I appreciate all of them!

I'm confident in how I had the preamp stages set for the 200, tone stack controls at 12 o'clock, no voicing selected, no overdrive amount or gain, and input volume fully counter-clockwise. It's possible that the 200 I auditioned may have had an issue (Guitar Center, brand new amp).

As soon as I raised the master up to where the bass came through it was LOUD. There was a very small area of the control between fully CCW and 8 o'clock that I could get an intermediate volume, but it was REAL touchy. It did get louder past 9 o'clock but there's no way I was going to dime this in Guitar Center..

If the sample you played was fully functional, it would NOT do that UNLESS the gain control was also turned up to 12 o'clock (or higher), and/or the instrument's volume control was maxed out.

BTW, from your description of the musical genres you play and typical venues, the Rumble 200 would be ideal. Perfect tone, and plenty of volume with headroom to spare.

 

[rudy4444]

Ditto what Linnin said.
I also have the 200 combo and use it for home practice.
I can turn it way down and it still sounds fine. The controls are very smooth and linear.
I practice in the basement, and my wife watching TV in the living room directly above, never is bothered by it.
If the overdrive was on and turned up, that might affect where some if the other settings need to be.
It gets stoopid loud with the OD.

Thanks again.
The overdrive was completely off, so that wasn't a factor. I'm using an active bass with an internal preamp obviously, but even turning the instrument volume down still resulted in way more volume than any of the other amps I've used for that same instrument.
The other thing I noticed about both the Rumble 100 and 200 was the input gain and master controls were scratchy. That's something that normally doesn't happen in amps with off-board pots until they get quite a bit of use and/or age. The scratchy pots on brand new amps sitting on the sales floor makes me think that possibly this is a built-in problem with the Rumble series?

Anyone else have problems with the pots being scratchy?

 

[Old Garage-Bander]

One thing to consider is not so much the rated power output, but how much power you don't use.
Headroom, the power you're not using but that is available, is important.
A Rumble 200 running at 100 Watts will have a much easier go of it than a Rum100 running full out.
Like an automobile. You don't usually drive it pedal to the metal, but it's nice to know you have some reserve horsepower in case you need to hit the gas to get out if a jam.
Your amp will thank you, your speakers will thank you.

 

[basslust]

The other thing I noticed about both the Rumble 100 and 200 was the input gain and master controls were scratchy. That's something that normally doesn't happen in amps with off-board pots until they get quite a bit of use and/or age. The scratchy pots on brand new amps sitting on the sales floor makes me think that possibly this is a built-in problem with the Rumble series?

Anyone else have problems with the pots being scratchy?

Yes, that's a known issue with many Rumbles, it seems... I don't think it is necessarily a problem as I don't know anyone who changes the volume on the amp mid song. Still, I understand that it bothers some.

Edit -- Also, if I remember correctly, this only happens right when you start the amp.

 

[rudy4444]

Very true on the amount of power you will use while playing at performance level. That's the reason why I instantly ruled out the 500, as I knew I'd most likely be using less than 20% of that amp's rated output. Actually hearing the 200 gave me pause about even needing anything close to it's rated output, something like 120 watts as I remember.

Gigging my SWR Workingman's 12 I run the gain and master considerably less than noon.

I had the 100 and 200 powered up and switching back and forth for something like 20 minutes and noticed the scratchy pots the entire time. Adding a bit to the price of these combos wouldn't hurt my feelings a bit if that problem was rectified.

 

[Reggie Hamilton]

Hi,

I'm a diehard fan of my Rumble 500. From my experience, the rig is more manageable when the pre is set to 8:00 rather than 12:00. That way there is a supreme amount of control with that little box. It's loud when I need it to be. I can sit on it and play upright and it's light enough to carry while rolling an upright with my other hand.

Best of luck with your decision.

Stay groovy,

RH

 

[micguy]

The loudest band I ever played in, I had a 100 watt head. Now the only time I use a head is an acoustic gig, which is a whole lot quieter, and I have head from 200 watts up that I can use. I'm not sure what point I'm making, other than times change.

 

[Linnin]

scratchy pots

They're a pain, but easily cleaned up with a shot of Deoxit D5. The shafts are sealed and the amp must be removed and the pots cleaned from the rear. I have not had any problem but others have and this is the solution.
Fender Rumble Club

 

[Crusher47]

I use my 500 combo for band practice all the time and most gigs. Actually going to use it for a gig tomorrow night light and loud

 

[MDBass]

Hi All,
I have been giving a bit of thought into picking up a Rumble 200 or 500 as a practical and easily carried amp for smaller gig use.

I got a chance to try out a 200 today and this thing is REALLY LOUD. I was somewhat dismayed to find that if I barely crack the master up it's way louder than what it needs to be.

This means it's just a pain to use in a home setting or small space, I've now totally ruled out a 500. Who on earth needs that kind of volume for a stage monitor? I've been involved with performance for something like 30 years so I'm not new to gigging with a combo.

I plugged into a Rumble 100 and it was a lot more managable and still IMHO plenty loud to gig. Since they have DIs I don't understand all the recommendations to get a 200 (but preferrably 500) for live use. I've always used a "smaller" either combo or seperate head/cab for performance use and any place that would require more volume always has a dedicated PA with sound guy that I ported a DI to.

I felt that the 100 would be much more ideal as a stage monitor. Anybody else that can shed some light on those thoughts?

Thanks much!

The number of watts tells you almost nothing about how loud an amp can get; the cab/speakers you're using are much more important.

I'm assuming you're referring to the combo amps, which are a total nonstarter for me due to the form factor, but on a theater or festival stage with a louder band I can just about guarantee that the Rumble 200 combo isn't going to cut it for a monitor.

 

[MDBass]

Thanks for the comments so far, I appreciate all of them!

I'm confident in how I had the preamp stages set for the 200, tone stack controls at 12 o'clock, no voicing selected, no overdrive amount or gain, and input volume fully counter-clockwise. It's possible that the 200 I auditioned may have had an issue (Guitar Center, brand new amp).

As soon as I raised the master up to where the bass came through it was LOUD. There was a very small area of the control between fully CCW and 8 o'clock that I could get an intermediate volume, but it was REAL touchy. It did get louder past 9 o'clock but there's no way I was going to dime this in Guitar Center.

After a lot of years of having a crash cymbal off my right ear I don't play with loud drummers any longer. Once in a while I get involved with a pickup project where a drummer is involved, but all these guys now play nice percussion and there's usually not even a crash cymbal on their kits. My tinnitus can't take the abuse any longer.

I gave up actively playing a few years ago for various reasons but I still do an occasional bar gig doing Cajun/Zydeco, early country, or old time / Bluegrass / Americana stuff, but sans loud drummer. I used to play Tele mostly, but I've went to acoustic guitar, again due to the volume issues.

I'm still totally up in the air on any long-term decision, I currently use a Workingman's 12 for bass and that does fine volume-wise. The extreme light weight of the Rumble combos is a huge plus for me.

Keep those cards n' letters comin'...

Definitely not a normally functioning amp.