dumble

nepalnt21

HamerTimeologist
theres someone in my area who has 2 dumble overdrive specials. one combo and another is a head. how rare are these? ive never played one, and im just curious as to how they sound. how much do they tend to run for in good condition?

both are switcheable between 50 and 100 watts, and the head has some sort of brown suede or suede like fabric. thats all i remember about them.
 
Re: dumble

To say it mildly.. They're ****ing expensive, I've never seen more expensive amps actually.
 
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Sune said:
To say it mildly.. They're ****ing expensive, I've never seen more expensive amps actually.
they were the only amps in the place without price tags. i was afraid to ask how much they were.
 
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Just look at ebay how much they go for, as far as I remember I've seen Dumble's for 10.000$ and up, but somebody here probably knows alot more about it than me.
 
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Count on somewhere in the high 4 to 5 figures...even if they are ugly 70's shag carpet basement-crafted buzzboxes. Remember, it's Alexander (not Howard) Dumble now...
 
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If you want a new dumble, you have to audition, and Mr. Dumble has to approve you first. Probably the most exclusive amp currently being made.
 
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ok so now the question is.... are they anywhere near worth it? what do they sound like? who uses them that i could listen to?
 
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yeah...what everyone else said...you will not find a more expensive amplifier. They are first of all the hardest to have made because you have to audition for the maker and then he has to approve you, and then he builds it to the specs *HE* wants for you, then you just have to wait however long he decides it takes to get it. Many artists have used them (Stevie Ray Vaughan for one) and people want them so those that have them, because of the exclusivity, can ask nearly any price they want for them because they are nearly impossible to get new.
 
Re: dumble

Why don't you try it out if it's in a shop?? Afraid of breaking it?? :laugh2:
 
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Eric Johnson used or uses one I believe.....can't think of anyone else off the top of my head other than (formally) SRV.

They are supposed to be the schnizl, and have incredible tone, but to me....$10k + is just way too much. You can get 95% of the tone for half the money or less.
 
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yah.. for that kind of money, it has to make me ice cream in every flavor till the end of my days, be able to cook, have a built in microvawe, fridge and cure cancer!
 
Re: dumble

Sune said:
Why don't you try it out if it's in a shop?? Afraid of breaking it?? :laugh2:
im afraid of asking. the place is the size of my bedroom and there has to be millions of dollars of gear in there. the windows are tinted, and the guy seems like a real ayee- whole. its a very awkward situation but the next time i go ill see.
 
Re: dumble

the Dumble is a high quality, high level pro player's amp, built to the player's needs, but in general excelling at clean overdrive

a list of those who play or played Dumbles:

Lowell George
SRV - after playing Jackson Browne's in his studio
David Lindley
Robben Ford
Larry Carlton
Sonny Landreth
 
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Eric Johnson USED to use one until it broke and he couldn't get it fixed...

Sorry, they may sound nice, but if you need a $20,000 amp to have a good tone, something's not right.
 
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Save yourself a ton of dough & grab a Fuchs or similar "poor mans Dumble" (And the Fuchs ain't cheap!) :wink:
 
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This and questions about Barden's remind me of when I worked as manager of the Herb David Guitar Studio in Ann Arbor, MI. It was the height of the SRV craze and a customer was questioning the replaced screws on a vintage Tubescreamer and the price ($90). I replied that the price was firm and suggested if he had ever tried the new Boss OD-3 (which had just come out) and is a better sounding "tubescreamer". He looked at me as if I had offended his family and stated loudly, "Stevie never played thru one!", I was taken aback and replied, "you, Sir, are correct but he might have if he wasn't DEAD!" ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGH!!!
 
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Re: dumble

nepalnt21 said:
ok so now the question is.... are they anywhere near worth it? what do they sound like? who uses them that i could listen to?

They're kinda like 59' Les Pauls....sure the price is insane now....but wait a week and they'll be insane plus a weeks worth of insanity on top of that.

Whether you hear the difference....debatable. I'm certain there are 59's that play like crap but because they're 59's they get they kind of coin they do.

The big thing going around was that Robben Ford was using a ZenDrive with his Super Reverb in place of his Dumble rig. I could never justify the money for a Dumble....but the bread for a ZenDrive...sure!
 
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i think the price is more about the 'myth' than tone. Dumble did a great job building that up. Ive heard 2, and they were..ok...nice, but for my needs, I would sell it if I had it, and I like clean sounding overdrive. For that amount of $ though, and it isn't a 'custom' amp, it is built to order, yes, but HE specifies what you need, not you. If I had the $$ I'd rather give it to an amp builder who didn't seem like such an @ss.
 
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