dumble-esque amps for ~$1300?

[yoyohomieg5432]

I have around $1300 dollars and would like to get a dumble type amp. I would love to get a tone similar to RF. Are there any d style amps going for around my price range? Most seem to be more than 2 grand.

 

[67mike]

You could buy some belly button lint from dumble and stick it in the chasis of your current amp?????

 

[rummy]

http://www.ceriatone.com/

 

[mdclark58]

I'd skip the C-tone and head for a used Fuchs. C-tones look cool, but I can't say enough about the Fuchs ODS series.

Head to the emporium. There are a few going for around 1500. It's worth the extra dollars. Go to the blood bank a few times. 1500 is a steal for these amps. The build is impeccable, the tone is killer (Dumble with a rocky twist, IMHO), and Andy Fuchs and his organization are class all the way.

 

[wrxplayer]

VVT X model. http://www.vvtamps.com/x-model.html

 

[Onioner]

Phaez Dragonfly is well under that limit. Emphasis on the "esque" though. It's not a clone of anything.

 

[Joe Perry]

I'd skip the C-tone and head for a used Fuchs. C-tones look cool, but I can't say enough about the Fuchs ODS series.

Head to the emporium. There are a few going for around 1500. It's worth the extra dollars. Go to the blood bank a few times. 1500 is a steal for these amps. The build is impeccable, the tone is killer (Dumble with a rocky twist, IMHO), and Andy Fuchs and his organization are class all the way.

They are a great deal used! An extra $200 in the long run will be worth it. Especially considering the Fuchs has a built in D'lator which you'll probably want also anyway. Most Ceriatones require an external one.

 

[yoyohomieg5432]

They are a great deal used! An extra $200 in the long run will be worth it. Especially considering the Fuchs has a built in D'lator which you'll probably want also anyway. Most Ceriatones require an external one.

could you explain more about the d'lator? Why is it recommended to put effects through these instead of just through the front of the amp?

 

[JunkGear]

Check out the Fuchs Casino series as well. They are still D-Style amps, but with a few less features, and less expensive, than the ODS. They do not have a buffered FX loop, so a D-lator might be required if you plan to use the FX loop.

 

[Joe Perry]

could you explain more about the d'lator? Why is it recommended to put effects through these instead of just through the front of the amp?

Mainly to smooth out the tone and to add signal to time based effects that are used in the loop. Also to act as another master volume for more tonal control.

 

[SuperReverb2]

could you explain more about the d'lator? Why is it recommended to put effects through these instead of just through the front of the amp?

Effects work fine through the front of a clean amp, (or the clean side of a Dumble style amp) but not so well through a distorted amp or the OD side of a Dumble. Most time based effects sound MUCH better if they are placed between the pre amp and power amp sections of an amp. Thus the reason for a loop. Most Dumbles and clones have passive loops making it hard to simply add a time based effect to the loop without signal loss or signal degredation. The outboard Dumbleator acts as an effects loop interface (send and return signal controls and bright switches) allowing the user to place the Dumbleator in the passive loop of the amp and then place the effect in the loop of the Dumbleator. The send and return controls and the bright switches of the Dumbleator then allow the user to recover and tailor the "tone" (as close to the original tone as possible) that may have been altered by placing the effect in the loop in the first place. The Return control on the Dumbleator can also be used as the overall Master Volume in this type of set up as well. Adding the Dumbleator also has the so called "smoothing effect" on the overall tone that many feel is essential for the Ford and Carlton tones theses amps are famous for. Many amp makers will build the Dumbleator into the amp with send and return controls thus negating the need for an outboard Dumbleator.

One can also run time based effects into the front of a CLEAN amp, (or the clean channel of an amp) and then use a distortion or overdrive pedal PLACED BEFORE THE TIME BASED EFFECT in the signal chain to achieve the desired OD tone. Placing an OD pedal before the time based effect in the signal chain, and using that OD pedal as the amps OD (instead of using the OD side of the amp) is one way of "fooling" the time based effect into thinking it's in a loop. Robben Ford seems to be using this with his current Dumble rig and pedal board if I'm not mistaken.

 

[DRS]

I have around $1300 dollars and would like to get a dumble type amp. I would love to get a tone similar to RF. Are there any d style amps going for around my price range? Most seem to be more than 2 grand.

Used Twin Reverb and a Zendrive = $800

 

[yoyohomieg5432]

Effects work fine through the front of a clean amp, (or the clean side of a Dumble style amp) but not so well through a distorted amp or the OD side of a Dumble. Most time based effects sound MUCH better if they are placed between the pre amp and power amp sections of an amp. Thus the reason for a loop. Most Dumbles and clones have passive loops making it hard to simply add a time based effect to the loop without signal loss or signal degredation. The outboard Dumbleator acts as an effects loop interface (send and return signal controls and bright switches) allowing the user to place the Dumbleator in the passive loop of the amp and then place the effect in the loop of the Dumbleator. The send and return controls and the bright switches of the Dumbleator then allow the user to recover and tailor the "tone" (as close to the original tone as possible) that may have been altered by placing the effect in the loop in the first place. The Return control on the Dumbleator can also be used as the overall Master Volume in this type of set up as well. Adding the Dumbleator also has the so called "smoothing effect" on the overall tone that many feel is essential for the Ford and Carlton tones theses amps are famous for. Many amp makers will build the Dumbleator into the amp with send and return controls thus negating the need for an outboard Dumbleator.

One can also run time based effects into the front of a CLEAN amp, (or the clean channel of an amp) and then use a distortion or overdrive pedal PLACED BEFORE THE TIME BASED EFFECT in the signal chain to achieve the desired OD tone. Placing an OD pedal before the time based effect in the signal chain, and using that OD pedal as the amps OD (instead of using the OD side of the amp) is one way of "fooling" the time based effect into thinking it's in a loop. Robben Ford seems to be using this with his current Dumble rig and pedal board if I'm not mistaken.

thanks for the explanation

so time based effects would be delay,reverb, echo, etc?

is there a physical reason why these dont sound good going into an overdriven amp? does the gain distort the effect or something?

in the case of the fuchs, what does the send and return knobs do?

is my understanding of the effects loop correct: you plug your guitar straight into the front of the amp. the pedals input is connected to the 'send' and the output is to the 'return'. when you play, your signal travels through the preamp and then into the effects loop. it travels through the pedal where the signal is altered and then comes back into the amp where it then goes to the power amp?

also, you mentioned there are bright switches. i don't see any on the back of the fuchs. does the fuchs not have those or am i missing something?

thanks for your help

 

[aflynt]

Used Twin Reverb and a Zendrive = $800

Well if go that way you may as well just get a used Super Reverb and a COT 50.

-Aaron

 

[SuperReverb2]

thanks for the explanation

so time based effects would be delay,reverb, echo, etc?

is there a physical reason why these dont sound good going into an overdriven amp? does the gain distort the effect or something?

in the case of the fuchs, what does the send and return knobs do?

is my understanding of the effects loop correct: you plug your guitar straight into the front of the amp. the pedals input is connected to the 'send' and the output is to the 'return'. when you play, your signal travels through the preamp and then into the effects loop. it travels through the pedal where the signal is altered and then comes back into the amp where it then goes to the power amp?

also, you mentioned there are bright switches. i don't see any on the back of the fuchs. does the fuchs not have those or am i missing something?

thanks for your help

Yes. Reverb, delay, echo, etc..

Yes. It does "distort" the time based effect. Some like it for something different but most prefer the time based effects in a loop in the "D" style amps. Tried both myself. Definitely prefer the loop. Try it for yourself and see which one you prefer.

If the Fuchs has a built in Dumbleator then the send knob controls the amount of signal going to the effect (so it won't overload or distort) and the return knob allows you to adjust the signal (after the effect) so that you don't loose any signal strength or tone.

Yes this is correct. The Dumbleator is basically a loop within a loop. The send and retrun controls allow you to "send" the signal to the effect and then the return control allows you to "return" the signal to the amp.

In the case of the Fuchs (or any other amp for than matter with a built in Dumbleator) you only need the bright switch that's on the amp. The bright switches are used on the Dumbleator to compensate for the long cable runs some use to and from the unit. The cable run to and from the effect should always be kept as short as possible.

 

[Billion81]

Effects work fine through the front of a clean amp, (or the clean side of a Dumble style amp) but not so well through a distorted amp or the OD side of a Dumble. Most time based effects sound MUCH better if they are placed between the pre amp and power amp sections of an amp. Thus the reason for a loop. Most Dumbles and clones have passive loops making it hard to simply add a time based effect to the loop without signal loss or signal degredation. The outboard Dumbleator acts as an effects loop interface (send and return signal controls and bright switches) allowing the user to place the Dumbleator in the passive loop of the amp and then place the effect in the loop of the Dumbleator. The send and return controls and the bright switches of the Dumbleator then allow the user to recover and tailor the "tone" (as close to the original tone as possible) that may have been altered by placing the effect in the loop in the first place. The Return control on the Dumbleator can also be used as the overall Master Volume in this type of set up as well. Adding the Dumbleator also has the so called "smoothing effect" on the overall tone that many feel is essential for the Ford and Carlton tones theses amps are famous for. Many amp makers will build the Dumbleator into the amp with send and return controls thus negating the need for an outboard Dumbleator.

One can also run time based effects into the front of a CLEAN amp, (or the clean channel of an amp) and then use a distortion or overdrive pedal PLACED BEFORE THE TIME BASED EFFECT in the signal chain to achieve the desired OD tone. Placing an OD pedal before the time based effect in the signal chain, and using that OD pedal as the amps OD (instead of using the OD side of the amp) is one way of "fooling" the time based effect into thinking it's in a loop. Robben Ford seems to be using this with his current Dumble rig and pedal board if I'm not mistaken.

Brilliant summary on the 'lator..seriously, well done SuperReverb2!!

 

[Structo]

Since most people that buy a Dumble style amp really like the overdrive channel, many effects sound better when placed after the preamp.

These amps have a pretty clean power amp and derive their distortion from the preamp.

You can run a single reverb pedal or delay, depending on the pedal, in the passive loop jacks on the amp but you get much better results using the Dumbleator and as mentioned it adds richness and more control over the tone.

I could never afford one of the better class D clones or D'lator so I made them.

I would say if you are into more of the Fender side of tones than Marshall, and like a great clean tone as well as overdrive, then you may like a Dumble Overdrive Special.

 

[DRS]

Used Twin Reverb and a Zendrive = $800

I'm not trying to be a smartass but when Robben travels and doesn't bring his own amps, he uses a Zendrive in front of a Twin and sounds just like Robben Ford.

 

[riffmeister]

I have around $1300 dollars and would like to get a dumble type amp. I would love to get a tone similar to RF. Are there any d style amps going for around my price range? Most seem to be more than 2 grand.

VVT X-40

also, I have a VVT Earthquake 100 watter that I am contemplating selling, it's in your price range (and has built-in "Dumbleator" loop).

 

[aflynt]

I could never afford one of the better class D clones or D'lator so I made them.

+1 - That's what I did too. I didn't get much sleep for a month or so, but I've got a pretty awesome rig out of it and learned a lot.

-Aaron