All the writers at ToneQuest are VERY talented, thoughtful and even comedic sometimes. These articles' are the some of the BEST I have read when it comes to finding the ultimate TONE.. These articles are the start of my dumble-tone obsessions
ENJOY!
Intresting ..
Moderators: pompeiisneaks, Colossal
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boldaslove6789
- Posts: 957
- Joined: Mon Aug 31, 2009 5:52 pm
- Location: Near Dallas, TX
Intresting ..
Maybe you have seen this and some of you haven't but.. This is a very cool article about Dumbles and all artists who use them and the likes of them.
All the writers at ToneQuest are VERY talented, thoughtful and even comedic sometimes. These articles' are the some of the BEST I have read when it comes to finding the ultimate TONE.. These articles are the start of my dumble-tone obsessions
ENJOY!
All the writers at ToneQuest are VERY talented, thoughtful and even comedic sometimes. These articles' are the some of the BEST I have read when it comes to finding the ultimate TONE.. These articles are the start of my dumble-tone obsessions
ENJOY!
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Greg D.C.
Can you dig it?
(NEW VIDS here!!) http://www.youtube.com/user/GDClarkProject
http://quinnamp.com/ http://www.prairiewoodguitars.com/
http://www.funkymunkpedals.com/
Can you dig it?
(NEW VIDS here!!) http://www.youtube.com/user/GDClarkProject
http://quinnamp.com/ http://www.prairiewoodguitars.com/
http://www.funkymunkpedals.com/
Re: Intresting ..
I hadn't seen this. Thanks for posting it.
Re: Intresting ..
Thanks for posting this,Greg,
very interesting read.
The most intersting part for me were Todd Sharpe´s comments on
the Rick Vito Amp (ODR #68 AFAIR).This is another "Holy Grail " amp
that is on countless recordings, hope to learn more about it in the future.
Marcos
very interesting read.
The most intersting part for me were Todd Sharpe´s comments on
the Rick Vito Amp (ODR #68 AFAIR).This is another "Holy Grail " amp
that is on countless recordings, hope to learn more about it in the future.
Marcos
Re: Intresting ..
Macos
Vito's #068 ODSR given to him by Jackson Browne...
The usual I have Dumble amp.. Bla Bla below in TQR
http://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cac ... pZrtZO8Tvw
That's a serious web address..
Take Care!!
T
Vito's #068 ODSR given to him by Jackson Browne...
The usual I have Dumble amp.. Bla Bla below in TQR
http://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cac ... pZrtZO8Tvw
That's a serious web address..
Take Care!!
T
Last edited by talbany on Wed Aug 18, 2010 1:47 pm, edited 1 time in total.
" The psychics on my bench is the same as Dumble'"
Re: Intresting ..
Hi Marcos,marcos wrote:Thanks for posting this,Greg,
very interesting read.
The most intersting part for me were Todd Sharpe´s comments on
the Rick Vito Amp (ODR #68 AFAIR).This is another "Holy Grail " amp
that is on countless recordings, hope to learn more about it in the future.
Marcos
Yes, you are right. Todd's comments are always worth the read. I can highly recommend his "Tonquest Report" concerning his two #120 and #121.
http://tonequest.com/content/estore_det ... roduct=158
Very educational and refreshing perspectives on the "Dumble topic" guaranteed!
Here's the site of his amp repair shop: http://www.amprepair.com/index.htm
BTW: Rick Vito's ODR is/was #058.
Cheers,
Max
Re: Intresting ..
Here you go!!
http://personalpages.manchester.ac.uk/s ... 20%230121/
In 1983 I invested about $8000 dollars in a couple of Dumbles. I played one at a Mick Fleetwood Rehearsal one day and I absolutely flipped. Finally, the amp for me!. The overdrive channel was an absolute one of a kind sound for it’s time (and may still be today) Anyhow, I met with the big guy at a place in North Hollywood known as The Alley. Dumble used to have his shop there, in a space literally the size of a closet. Any how we bullshitted each other pretty well for a while and I ended up writing him a deposit check for about four-grand. He built and delivered the speaker cabinets I wanted pretty much right away. A year and a half later I got one of the amps and (are you laughing yet?) about another year and a half later I got the other one. They were big beastly thick, rich and delicious sounding things.
Shop talk: Dumble called these “Overdrive Special OD150 WR” serial numbers #120 & #121. 4 x 6550 (or KT88) output section complete w/ bias test points and balance controls (like an SVT), Snd/ Rtn loop which required the use of yet another peice of gear he called a ($1200) Dumbleator, best tremelo, reverb & Overdrive ever, played through Dumble 2 x12’ (ported back) cab’s loaded w/ EVM12L’s (I think). TWO HEADS!, 150 watts a piece!. FOUR 2x12 cabs! These weren’t covered in suede or snakeskin, just plain old black tolex.
Why TWO Heads?. 83’ was a good year for me, I was living pretty large at the time and two of everything seemed like a good idea . I’d have a spare if one went down and besides “Stereo” guitar was ushering in just about then and everybody was doin it so I had to do it right?. Why FOUR 2 x12”s? I figured FOUR 2x12’s would be the same as TWO 4x12”’s but more flexible. Smart guy huh? Keep reading. I was using a 4 x12 Marshall box till I A/B’d the Dumble 2 x12 against the Marshall. The Dumble blew the doors off the Marshall cabinet, but to be fair, and really a big point to my story is that I made that decision playing by myself in a rehearsal room. Can you picture it.... the self indulgent guitar player working late night on his sound. What a buffoon! Before I met the Dumble amp I was an AC30 man, and occasionally I plugged into my Marshall 69 plexi SL 100 or a black face Twin. Anyhow, back to the story.
Around that time I had the privilege of working with Christine McVie on her Solo Lp for WB Records which we recorded in Montreaux, Switzerland. Now I can’t remember if I didn’t get the damn things (Dumbell’s) yet or if they were just so LOUD that we couldn’t isolate them properly in the studio, but I ended up carving at least half of Christine’s record (like eight-thousand dollars later) playing through a $150 dollar Rockman!. Yes, I’m ashamed to admit it, but truth IS stranger than fiction. I’m sure I thought at the time that I would overdub the guitar later and my original tracks were just “guide” tracks. That sort of thing was certainly pretty common about 15 years ago as we were still just coming out of the “let’s see how much money we can spend” 70’s. The only thing anybody ever seemed to care about those days (when tracking) was getting a keeper drum track. However, our fine producer (Russ Titleman) knew exactly what was going down. Speaking of which, it all went down so smooth and easy that after about two weeks of cutting we were basically done! A few live solos even!. Tell you the truth the Rockman fit in that record pretty good. It helped me to begin to see that it doesn’t matter what you play through, at least not near as much as we/I tend to think it does. Later on we toured and I tried on my Dumbles.
In all fairness to his Dumbleness, that amp would have worked great in a power trio, or in one of those bands where everything fits in around the guitar. My point? I fell into the trap - the “MY SOUND IS GOOD BUT IT COULD BE BETTER” trap. You know the trap. “My sound” does not exist with out some others making sound around it. It’s part of the ensemble. A good musician fits in. What I’m offering up here is - maybe that honking, humming, farting thing you’re playing through is working for you better than you think!. I think we have enough guitar players in the world who play amazing stuff but forgot or maybe never knew how to be in a band . Playing with the drummer, laying in there with the bass, maybe moving some intervals with the keyboard, or playing with dynamics? Dywho? whasat?. No, no, no, no. If MY SOUND is bigger, fatter, wider and thicker, with mucho gusto......... then I’LL sound better (and so will the band, thank you very much). Ha! Try and fit that crap in with a B3 or a Piano or YIKES! another guitar! Consider this: Small is good. Cheap, is good. It’s all an illusion for the ears anyhow. I think things appear to the ear as they do because of what they’re presented along with. I know the Electric Guitar is somewhat physical, but let’s be reasonable here! A guy could start a friggin’ pension fund with this kind of money!
So by now you’re wondering, “Why does he tell this ridiculous and expensive story of Dumble lore?” This must be the Dumble review article in disguise, right? The point of my story is that the Dumble was really bigger than me. I know for sure it was heavier than me. It was like the ultimate pipe dream for a guitar player lost in the...tone quest. Hell, I had all the junk I needed to play the guitar before then. As amazing sounding as that amp was, I had a heck of a time fitting it in with an ensemble. What originally attracted me to the amp was the hybrid cross between a Fender and a Marshall. Not honky - stays fat & thick - well you know, that tone. It existed mainly in a vacuum, however. At least it did for me. The only time I ever got to really air those pigs out was when I worked with Rod Stewart around ‘89-‘91 Now, that band was so loud, so incredibly loud, that by the time the sound man got it who knows what it sounded like. And once again, I’m not sure that the most important thing going on there wasn’t what the Singer was wearing for which song. (see last month’s column).
Eventually, I sold two of the speaker cabinets because I didn’t need four. Then I sold one of the heads (doh!) because I couldn’t lift two. Naturally, as fortune would have it some clever fellows stole the other head. I still have the two remaining cabs, though I’ve loaded them with Vox blue/silver’s (all re-coned by now) and put closed backs on them. The ported back was way more versatile for studio (mic ‘em in the back for instance) but I use these more for live gigging, so the closed backs are a little more “polite” to others around the stage. The truth be known, this was a great, great amp, and I’d gladly return the insurance money if I could have my stolen amp back. Not to mention having the option of selling it to a rich collector to put my kid’s through college.
So, in wrapping up my little Dumble story, I’ve revealed to you some embarrassing truths about myself, in that I’ve struggled with this beast some. Though I kick myself every once in a while for it, upon reaching a point in my “career” where I actually could afford whatever I wanted, I spent a fortune on a bunch of stuff that I didn’t really need and only thought I wanted. To top it off, I ended up playing through a ROCKMAN – the Chevy Vega of guitar amps! It doesn’t even come with a speaker! My great hope is that maybe when you feel that compulsion to go and screw it all up with THE BIG ACQUISITION, you’ll think first. Think first and remember our little chat. You could even just write a check and send it directly to me for say, a hundred bucks – still a huge savings.
Todd Sharp
Tony
http://personalpages.manchester.ac.uk/s ... 20%230121/
In 1983 I invested about $8000 dollars in a couple of Dumbles. I played one at a Mick Fleetwood Rehearsal one day and I absolutely flipped. Finally, the amp for me!. The overdrive channel was an absolute one of a kind sound for it’s time (and may still be today) Anyhow, I met with the big guy at a place in North Hollywood known as The Alley. Dumble used to have his shop there, in a space literally the size of a closet. Any how we bullshitted each other pretty well for a while and I ended up writing him a deposit check for about four-grand. He built and delivered the speaker cabinets I wanted pretty much right away. A year and a half later I got one of the amps and (are you laughing yet?) about another year and a half later I got the other one. They were big beastly thick, rich and delicious sounding things.
Shop talk: Dumble called these “Overdrive Special OD150 WR” serial numbers #120 & #121. 4 x 6550 (or KT88) output section complete w/ bias test points and balance controls (like an SVT), Snd/ Rtn loop which required the use of yet another peice of gear he called a ($1200) Dumbleator, best tremelo, reverb & Overdrive ever, played through Dumble 2 x12’ (ported back) cab’s loaded w/ EVM12L’s (I think). TWO HEADS!, 150 watts a piece!. FOUR 2x12 cabs! These weren’t covered in suede or snakeskin, just plain old black tolex.
Why TWO Heads?. 83’ was a good year for me, I was living pretty large at the time and two of everything seemed like a good idea . I’d have a spare if one went down and besides “Stereo” guitar was ushering in just about then and everybody was doin it so I had to do it right?. Why FOUR 2 x12”s? I figured FOUR 2x12’s would be the same as TWO 4x12”’s but more flexible. Smart guy huh? Keep reading. I was using a 4 x12 Marshall box till I A/B’d the Dumble 2 x12 against the Marshall. The Dumble blew the doors off the Marshall cabinet, but to be fair, and really a big point to my story is that I made that decision playing by myself in a rehearsal room. Can you picture it.... the self indulgent guitar player working late night on his sound. What a buffoon! Before I met the Dumble amp I was an AC30 man, and occasionally I plugged into my Marshall 69 plexi SL 100 or a black face Twin. Anyhow, back to the story.
Around that time I had the privilege of working with Christine McVie on her Solo Lp for WB Records which we recorded in Montreaux, Switzerland. Now I can’t remember if I didn’t get the damn things (Dumbell’s) yet or if they were just so LOUD that we couldn’t isolate them properly in the studio, but I ended up carving at least half of Christine’s record (like eight-thousand dollars later) playing through a $150 dollar Rockman!. Yes, I’m ashamed to admit it, but truth IS stranger than fiction. I’m sure I thought at the time that I would overdub the guitar later and my original tracks were just “guide” tracks. That sort of thing was certainly pretty common about 15 years ago as we were still just coming out of the “let’s see how much money we can spend” 70’s. The only thing anybody ever seemed to care about those days (when tracking) was getting a keeper drum track. However, our fine producer (Russ Titleman) knew exactly what was going down. Speaking of which, it all went down so smooth and easy that after about two weeks of cutting we were basically done! A few live solos even!. Tell you the truth the Rockman fit in that record pretty good. It helped me to begin to see that it doesn’t matter what you play through, at least not near as much as we/I tend to think it does. Later on we toured and I tried on my Dumbles.
In all fairness to his Dumbleness, that amp would have worked great in a power trio, or in one of those bands where everything fits in around the guitar. My point? I fell into the trap - the “MY SOUND IS GOOD BUT IT COULD BE BETTER” trap. You know the trap. “My sound” does not exist with out some others making sound around it. It’s part of the ensemble. A good musician fits in. What I’m offering up here is - maybe that honking, humming, farting thing you’re playing through is working for you better than you think!. I think we have enough guitar players in the world who play amazing stuff but forgot or maybe never knew how to be in a band . Playing with the drummer, laying in there with the bass, maybe moving some intervals with the keyboard, or playing with dynamics? Dywho? whasat?. No, no, no, no. If MY SOUND is bigger, fatter, wider and thicker, with mucho gusto......... then I’LL sound better (and so will the band, thank you very much). Ha! Try and fit that crap in with a B3 or a Piano or YIKES! another guitar! Consider this: Small is good. Cheap, is good. It’s all an illusion for the ears anyhow. I think things appear to the ear as they do because of what they’re presented along with. I know the Electric Guitar is somewhat physical, but let’s be reasonable here! A guy could start a friggin’ pension fund with this kind of money!
So by now you’re wondering, “Why does he tell this ridiculous and expensive story of Dumble lore?” This must be the Dumble review article in disguise, right? The point of my story is that the Dumble was really bigger than me. I know for sure it was heavier than me. It was like the ultimate pipe dream for a guitar player lost in the...tone quest. Hell, I had all the junk I needed to play the guitar before then. As amazing sounding as that amp was, I had a heck of a time fitting it in with an ensemble. What originally attracted me to the amp was the hybrid cross between a Fender and a Marshall. Not honky - stays fat & thick - well you know, that tone. It existed mainly in a vacuum, however. At least it did for me. The only time I ever got to really air those pigs out was when I worked with Rod Stewart around ‘89-‘91 Now, that band was so loud, so incredibly loud, that by the time the sound man got it who knows what it sounded like. And once again, I’m not sure that the most important thing going on there wasn’t what the Singer was wearing for which song. (see last month’s column).
Eventually, I sold two of the speaker cabinets because I didn’t need four. Then I sold one of the heads (doh!) because I couldn’t lift two. Naturally, as fortune would have it some clever fellows stole the other head. I still have the two remaining cabs, though I’ve loaded them with Vox blue/silver’s (all re-coned by now) and put closed backs on them. The ported back was way more versatile for studio (mic ‘em in the back for instance) but I use these more for live gigging, so the closed backs are a little more “polite” to others around the stage. The truth be known, this was a great, great amp, and I’d gladly return the insurance money if I could have my stolen amp back. Not to mention having the option of selling it to a rich collector to put my kid’s through college.
So, in wrapping up my little Dumble story, I’ve revealed to you some embarrassing truths about myself, in that I’ve struggled with this beast some. Though I kick myself every once in a while for it, upon reaching a point in my “career” where I actually could afford whatever I wanted, I spent a fortune on a bunch of stuff that I didn’t really need and only thought I wanted. To top it off, I ended up playing through a ROCKMAN – the Chevy Vega of guitar amps! It doesn’t even come with a speaker! My great hope is that maybe when you feel that compulsion to go and screw it all up with THE BIG ACQUISITION, you’ll think first. Think first and remember our little chat. You could even just write a check and send it directly to me for say, a hundred bucks – still a huge savings.
Todd Sharp
Tony
" The psychics on my bench is the same as Dumble'"
-
boldaslove6789
- Posts: 957
- Joined: Mon Aug 31, 2009 5:52 pm
- Location: Near Dallas, TX
Re: Intresting ..
Thanks for posting Tony. Great story..... What a sense of humor LOL
Greg D.C.
Can you dig it?
(NEW VIDS here!!) http://www.youtube.com/user/GDClarkProject
http://quinnamp.com/ http://www.prairiewoodguitars.com/
http://www.funkymunkpedals.com/
Can you dig it?
(NEW VIDS here!!) http://www.youtube.com/user/GDClarkProject
http://quinnamp.com/ http://www.prairiewoodguitars.com/
http://www.funkymunkpedals.com/
Re: Intresting ..
At least I can try to "picture it":talbany wrote: Can you picture it.... the self indulgent guitar player working late night on his sound. What a buffoon!
http://web.archive.org/web/200604101443 ... /damps.jpg
Tony, thanks a lot for posting this! Did not find it in the www and have only a hardcopy.
Have fun,
Max
Re: Intresting ..
Max
Actually that was one of the first articles published on the web gosh way back when Dumble info was real scarce..So to me it's forgotten news till you recently brought it all back..I wasn't all sure the article related to Todd's Amps till I read it again this morning and had a feeling it was.. I don't know where this came from as it's been a decade now but I would assume it would be the TQR article you refer.. I looked around the web briefly and finally found it buried deep in my hard drive of old backed up Dumble info...Great article Huh!!..
Rockman
Tony
Actually that was one of the first articles published on the web gosh way back when Dumble info was real scarce..So to me it's forgotten news till you recently brought it all back..I wasn't all sure the article related to Todd's Amps till I read it again this morning and had a feeling it was.. I don't know where this came from as it's been a decade now but I would assume it would be the TQR article you refer.. I looked around the web briefly and finally found it buried deep in my hard drive of old backed up Dumble info...Great article Huh!!..
Rockman
Tony
Re: Intresting ..
How is Carlos' 2nd ODSR amp different from the #121 in the area of OD & reverb. I notice that Carlos' amp has 3 reverb knobs, send, clean, and drive where #121 has 2 knobs. Is the reverb section of #121 like that of Carlos' first amp and the new 3 knob reverb is today's newer, better method by Dumble?
-
guitardude57
- Posts: 355
- Joined: Fri May 15, 2009 6:19 pm
- Location: Austin, TX
- Contact:
Re: Intresting ..
I played through the Rockman Rack jobby with the matching chorus/delay unit in the mid 80's when they came out. Along with an old ADA rack multiFX and a digital delay into a 100 WPC Scott rack amp.......pushing 2 single EVM's in stereo.
Was a decent sound for the time. Perfect for 2 year long, 6 night a week house gig doing all the current and older tunes..........limited stage volume, etc.
It was my first and only brief escape from tube sanity.
Heck I ran a Boss OD1 pedal direct to the board in a recording session a couple of times............that worked well too.
Sometimes the $20K guitar rig is like a 50 dollar fishing lure.
Sometimes it catches fish..........but you are glad you have it!
Was a decent sound for the time. Perfect for 2 year long, 6 night a week house gig doing all the current and older tunes..........limited stage volume, etc.
It was my first and only brief escape from tube sanity.
Heck I ran a Boss OD1 pedal direct to the board in a recording session a couple of times............that worked well too.
Sometimes the $20K guitar rig is like a 50 dollar fishing lure.
Sometimes it catches fish..........but you are glad you have it!
Mike
I am never surprised and always amazed
I am never surprised and always amazed
Re: Intresting ..
I think I just became a Todd Sharp fan.
<i> "I've suffered for my music. Now it's your turn."</i>
Re: Intresting ..
I had a Rockman walkman type unit in the 80's.
It had overdrive and chorus and sounded really good through headphones which my girlfriend at the time liked.
Then the weak points in it's construction started failing like the jacks.
I must have re-soldered the jacks to the PCB until there was nothing left to solder to.
I wish I still had it. Well I may but I don't have a clue where to start looking.
I believe Billy Gibbons recorded with one as well.
It had overdrive and chorus and sounded really good through headphones which my girlfriend at the time liked.
Then the weak points in it's construction started failing like the jacks.
I must have re-soldered the jacks to the PCB until there was nothing left to solder to.
I wish I still had it. Well I may but I don't have a clue where to start looking.
I believe Billy Gibbons recorded with one as well.
Tom
Don't let that smoke out!
Don't let that smoke out!