{"id":91,"date":"2018-12-15T22:59:12","date_gmt":"2018-12-16T06:59:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bassguitarshack.com\/?p=91"},"modified":"2021-09-14T03:43:13","modified_gmt":"2021-09-14T10:43:13","slug":"fender-rumble-bass-amp-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bassguitarshack.com\/fender-rumble-bass-amp-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Fender Rumble Bass Amp Review"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
After picking up a Fender Rumble Bass Amp, I thought it would be a good idea to write a review about it. To be totally honest, I had never been a big fan of the Rumble series amps in the past. I always thought they sounded kind of sterile. And, I wasn’t in love with the looks either. However, while browsing through the music store a while back, I noticed that Fender had a new series of Rumble amps, and it immediately caught my eye.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Fender offers several different models with a wide range of sizes and power to choose from. I was looking for a good-sounding practice amp that I could use on small jams, so I opted for the Fender Rumble 40<\/strong>. It has 40 watts running through a 10\u201d speaker with 2 front-mounted ports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The first thing I noticed was the styling. These amps have that classic 1960s \/ 70s design you usually only see on guitar amps. Classic black Tolex outer covering that is removable, simple, elegant and very cool looking. The controls are on top at the back, and I was surprised at how many there were (8 knobs and 4 buttons), especially for a small budget amp. The next thing that I tried was picking it up…and this is where I was completely dumbfounded. My biggest fear when I plugged into the Rumble was that it was going to sound like the old ones. I always felt that those older models had a somewhat flat, sterile tone with too much mid-range bark and not enough in the bottom end…and turning up the bass knob just made muddiness. But, the new Rumble series sounds totally different. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Fender has completely re-engineered the electronics, and they did it right. With all the controls set flat, the amp has a nice vintage punch and plenty of My favorite though was my P-Bass with flats and all controls at noon. The flats gave it more beef in the low-mid range and sweetened the highs. The smooth, deep tone reminded me of many ’70s era bass sounds. It seems this little amp was made for a Fender Rumble bass amp details<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The Size and Styling<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Amp weight is an important factor to most bass players, and even small bass amps can be kind of heavy. The Fender Rumble 40 is an extremely light amp. When I first lifted it I thought that maybe this was a dummy model, just for display. It felt like there was nothing inside the thing. I used to own a small Fender Bassman 25 amp that I loved, and I thought that was light, but this Rumble amp felt half as heavy. It turns out the Fender Rumble 40 is only 18 pounds, which is very light. Most amps that I have owned in this size range were around 35 – 50 lbs. So far so great, but what about the sound?<\/p>\n\n\n\nThe Sound<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The Rumble has a pleasingly warm, tube-like tone that reminded me of my Ampeg BA112 only with a little more of that classic Fender bark in the mid-range. With the rounds, I noticed more punch and grind at the top, which is to be expected. The P-Bass with rounds sounded full and punchy through the Rumble and the Jazz had that bright focused tone with a smooth, vintage vibe. <\/p>\n\n\n\n