I use the Rumble 100, and I feel that, for me anyway, it’s a very versatile amp. It delivers everything I need in an amp. Now I have to say, that you guys have demoed that amp better than anybody on UA-cam have done. All in just a few minutes. Mind you, having someone dial in on the various tones while playing is the perfect way to do a demo. How does one say it in the UK? “Bloody brilliant!”
I love my Rumble 500 I have gotten many compliments on my bass tone with it Set the bass eq to 10 o clock, mids to 12, treble to 2 o clock, gain anywhere between %30 and %50, drive about 12 o clock, and level around 3 o clock OD on unless the song calls for a warmer sound, and I never touch the other buttons. Love those settings
I bought both the Rumble 210 combo and the Ampeg RB210 and used them both in a band setting. The Fender was much better in every way. It allowed the bass to sit in the mix in a very satisfying way whereas the bass was a bit lost in the mix with the Ampeg. I can see where somebody might prefer the Ampeg if they play alone in their bedroom but in a band setting, the Fender, for me, works much better.
@@jcm9097 I've found the bigger issue is being able to hear yourself when guitarists start playing But my guitarists have a bad habit of cranking up way too loud for practice settings
I like the Ampeg more than the Fender. Ampeg seemed deeper and beefier whereas the Fender seemed a bit pokey and boxy sounding, and the EQ seems peaky. Also I preferred the SGT at mid to low gain settings, the grit was integrated into the sound and reminds me a little of turning up my Ampeg CL. The Fender OD sounds a bit like a layer of static over a clean signal.
When harmonics collide! I took a couple years off playing bass to concentrate on my guitar skills. Just got back in to it and having way more fun than the first time I was playing. I missed this channel, and these two guys were great on it. Glad Nate is busy touring, but I look forward to new content with these two again.
I couldn't decide, so I bought the Fender Rumble 2x10 combo (with the 2x10 extension cab), the Ampeg RB 2x10 combo and Ampeg RB 1x10 combo. I love them all.
Really?? I mean, as long as you're happy, but for that money, I'd rather go for one awesome combo, e. g. the GK Fusion 210. I currently play the GK MB 210 (1st gen.), and I love it, I just wish it had a more solid build quality, some tube warmth and a little more flexibility in sound.
Liked that opening jam - groovy and melodic and offered a nice opportunity to hear each amp played in lead and supporting roles. Liked how one of you went through the controls while the other played, too. Suggestion for future videos, though: have the same player play through both amps - Player A plays the Jazz through the Fender and the Am peg while Player B twiddles knobs, then Player B plays the Stingray through both amps while Player A messes with the controls. As it was, I found myself trying to account for differences in playing style along with differences in the amps when you went from one to the other. Still a well made and useful video, though (and I appreciated that you miced the cabs and didn't just DI)!
I've been saving up for one of these two bass amp for a good nine months! I had the chance to audition both of the amps in the same listening room, the same bass that I own (American performer P Bass). The RB112 looks better; it possibly even sounds better. The ultra-low switch is very nice! $420 plus New York state tax equals $450. Now to the Fender Rumble 100. The construction of the amp looks far superior, 3 to 4 lbs lighter two years manufacturer's warranty compared to 90 days with the Ampeg (5 year old boys warranty). The rumble retails for $380. I have my Fender play discount (10%) discount equals $341 plus York State sales tax equals $355. Almost $95 difference. Does the Ampeg sound $95 better with its Barbie Ken warranty? Hell, NO, that $95 saved that could go into a nice pedal, maybe downtown express, or maybe the agular peramps or one of those fancy ones made in Finland! My Rumble arrives in three days direct from Fender!! With that sweet vintage switch and the wicked overdrive. ;-)
@dtausch ~ you're on a good journey. If you get the chance to audition both at the same time, that will be enlightening. My feelings are with the rumble you will be listening to your bass and how you sound. With the rocket, you will be listening to the amplifier interpretation of your bass sounds and a gloss over version of how you sound. In other words, rockets sound sweet. The Fender rumble sounds the truth. So, what kind of character do you have? Sweet? Or the truth? I hope this helps. lol.
I use the Rumble 100 with guitars. Plug a tele or strat in it and the tone is great. Nice full and tight bass. Lots of clean headroom. And the overdrive on the crunch channel is fantastic. I sold my guitar amps and use this one for guitar and an occasional bass.
I have one of the older versions of the Rumble 100 which I have found to be an absolute joy when playing with a rock band doing covers ranging from Free through Thin Lizzy to Whitesnake. It is light, has a vast array of sounds available and has enough flexibility that I never even needed any effects above the overdrive which is built into the amp. If you want something easily portable for rehearsals these are pretty much perfect.
Just the comparison I was looking for, though it didn’t completely resolve the issue. I have an Ampeg BA-115 and a Fender Rumble 40 in different rooms. Considering a 100 watt amp for a future billiard room, with a music corner. I love both of these combos. I think the quick versatility of the Fender will be the winner.
I've had great luck with the Rumble. I bought one with the 15" speaker and loved it. When I got my Mesa rig, I donated the Rumble to my church, where it has survived the youth ministry 😉
Both very good amps. I had an Ampeg BA 210...great little combo, but partially traded it for a new Rumble 500. 12 lbs lighter, but I just love the Vintage button...really gives it a warm, full tone. I would love to the Peavey Max 12" thrown in the mix as well. Great show!
@@ggnadeknight7733 Great tone with the Ampeg...full, beefy, as you would expect with an Ampeg. In reality, you could go with either, but I feel that my Ibanez Soundgear basses just sound a bit more crisp with the Rumble, and I like the EQ a bit more with it as well. Another big factor is the weight....Rumble is 36 lbs vs 48 for the Ampeg. I've seen a few of used BA 210's for decent prices at local music stores.
@@ggnadeknight7733 I had my BA210 for three years without issues. The only potential negative, for some, is that it has a somewhat noisy cooling fan. My Rumble....dead quiet. My theory is that any amp company can put out a clunker now and then, whether it's an Ampeg, Fender or Peavey....etc.
The vintage button on the Rumble is where this combo shines .I've been a Bassman 100wt head in the 70's then Ampeg SVT in the 90's Now using the 500wt Rumble it's a great win sales wise for Fender alot of my bass buddies have been getting the Rumble and love them
I could listen to hours of that intro jam, that was beautiful. As for the amps, I don't understand 100W bass amps, for home practice it's too loud, but for band use it's not enough.
It's a price point amp. People could afford more than a practice amp, but don't want to buy a "huge" expensive amp, so this is purely for that middle ground. Still can be a useful amp for sure like in a coffee shop or playing with without a traditional drummer in another intimate setting, but it's still a "bastard" size for the most part.
I used an Acoustic B100 as a practice amp. I ran a 4 ohm Carvin brx18 as an extension cab to attenuate the power. It sounded amazing. I realize it's not for everyone though.
ampeg Just go aquired by Yamaha so we could be seeing more products from them soon! the rocket bass is their first new product since the late 2000s under their previous owners
Great shootout guys! I was really impressed with the Fender. I have never heard a Fender ss amp sound that good, and I own a 100w Bassman 100 practice amp. By the way, in the late 80's early 90's Ampeg mad a line os ss guitar amps. I believe the one I played was called the SS140C. Had a pretty good jc120ish sound to it.
Love this. Superb energy. I'm all ready to order a Fender Rumble, then I watch this feed. I heard the Ampeg, and now I don't know. Rumble is cheaper, and that might be a decider... Love this channel!
I have the Rumble 500, it is an awesome amps, sounds great, loud as hell and weighs nothing. The overdrive channel is pretty poor but pedals sound great with it. The DI out volume is affected by the master volume too which is a bit annoying. I use a SANSAMP clone for recording and FOH for that reason
FWIW i just got a rocket bass amp (the 210 sounds miles better than the 115) to be able to gig properly. I have 2 basses, a 4 string active and a 5 string passive. Using the low gain channel for the active and normal channel for the passive balances the output beautifully so I can swap basses live without buggering around with the settings. So the two different inputs were a major selling point for me.
I'm a solid Ampeg user and have tried SVT tube amps and I owned a Portaflex 350w on a Hartke XL cab. This Rocket amp doesn't work for me though (tone wise). Yup, it has that distinctive rumbling low end expected of an Ampeg, but I prefer Fender Rumble's versatility. I can have more tone controls with the aid of a Sansamp, but it defeats the purpose of doing plug and play, single cable direct to amp thing.
Thanks for this comparison - really useful. What amazes me is that the ampeg sounds miles better than the fender … and the difference is obvious…yet many seem to think the rumble a better amp. Don’t get it
Love you guys video but one thing I want to point out is the levels between dialog and playing. I constantly feel the need to ride my volume; turning up during the playing to really hear what it's doing and feel the low end, to then turning down about 10db during dialog. I love the banter between but would also love at some point a direct A/B comparison of the amps to easily hear the differences vs having to click on the time lines. Cheers
I have a rumble 500 head with a rumble 15 inch cab on the bottom and a 2x10 cab on top. I use it at every practice and every gig. I regularly let the other bands on the show use it too and the all absolutely love the rig. I'm rocking a Creamsicle orange Fender Jazz bass with it.
I have the 200W Rumble combo, 15" speaker, which for bigger venues I like to stack on a GK cab fitted with a Celestion15". Recently shared it with a bassist who switches between upright and electric bass and usually uses a Markbass rig - he was blown away. Great in every respect.
@@TheStratpicker nice I play a few different basses with the same rig. I use the Fender 4 mostly I also use a stingray 5 but i have to mess with my EQ a lot, I was using a bass VI out of the rig for a few months but I like that through all the fx and in the Fender Twin more.
Bought the Fender Rumble 100 from you guys before the Ampeg option existed, but absolutely no complaints at all. The Rumble 100 has an incredibly slick and polished sound for it’s price.
This is my favorite review I’ve come across for gear. Great commentary. Funny. Intelligent. Musical. Fair. I love this video and I’m looking forward to getting a Rocket Bass amp for home. I loved playing it at Guitar Center compared to the Rumble during the same visit. The Ampeg sounded better to me and was noticeably more fun to play on. I tried the RB-108 and RB-110. For the Fender, it was the Rumble 25. The Ampeg had more power and good bass tone and wall shaking low end without even turning the volume up. The Ampeg amps definitely have a more electric sound. Beefy and the bass tone stands out on Ampeg. That distinct Ampeg sound shines in these smaller, lightweight amps and the sound is the same Ampeg sound of my old big and heavier Ampeg B2RE head and Ampeg 4x10 SVT410HE cabinet rig. Surprisingly, the 110 felt slightly lighter than the 108 when lifting the small amps! The Fender Rumble seems more of a basic bass amp with good musical tone and a more noticeable distortion and of course lightweight. The Fender Rumble seems to sound its best when slapping and popping. The SGT on the Ampeg is not overbearing and blends in more with what you’re playing. The Ampeg SGT overdrive is more smooth compared to the overdrive of the Fender Rumble 25 that’s more in your face with overdrive. I want to try the Fender Rumble 40 just for kicks before I pull the trigger on one of the Ampeg Rocket Bass amps. I won’t use distortion much and I have 2 bass distortion pedals already so it’s not that important. Lastly, the Ampeg 108 had more treble and the 110 had more low end due to its larger speaker and wattage. Both were nice but the 110 also comes with an XLR output on the back. The 108 would have to be mic’d up when recording. I’m leaning more towards the 110 plus it has a level control for the SGT when the 108 does not and only has an on off switch. I’m also considering the larger Ampeg Rocket Bass Amps for more power to play with others later and for the official Eminence speaker and Ultra High and Ultra Low buttons. So many things to consider. Hard to make up my mind haha.
The Rocket sounds great! I have had the Rocket 110 for a few months now. I grew up with audiophile gear, Dad had a pair of Klipshorns and a big phase linear amp and pre amp when I was a kid and I have two systems currently with big Yamaha receivers (R-S700 and R-S300) and polk audio speakers so I know good sound. You can tell Yamaha (they bought Ampeg) quality and know how, Ampeg style and tone, real tuning and quality plywood cab (not MDF) make for a beautiful sounding 10" amp for my 10'x20' music room!
Literally read my mind... Was lliterally thinking about buying a new bass amp, and was between these two and couldn't decide. Sure enough, yall release this video the next morning... Great timing!
I've owned and gigged w/ both RB200 and Rumble 200. The Rumble 200 won out and the Ampeg went back. Having the 2 mid controls on the rumble was key in different venues, and the rumble Vintage button turns it into the Ampeg. At the end of 1 yr trial and error I bought a Rumble 210 800 combo I still use, not the stage 800 combo (too much monkey bizness for me) , The 800 combo is 29 lbs and LOUD if needed, and really projects the sound into the room. BTW during a convo w/ beaver felton he said ; "i own bass central, I have access to any boutique bass rig I want, and I'm in a wheelchair so I have a roadie, I use the rumble 800 210 combo every time I play"
Playing with the knobs while jamming was actually kinda genius tbh. It gives everything in a nutshell. I dig it. The thing is that you gotta pay attention, otherwise you'll miss something. Lol. I like that creativity.
Keeping in mind that UA-cam does have some basic compression etc on their videos...I listened through some quality headphones and in my opinion the Fender Rumble is the winner hands down. My reasoning: more versatility, better clarity, better control through the EQ knobs, and definitely had the better drive channel. While the Ampeg did have it's classic tone and it wasn't awful by any means. I've definitely heard worse. However I don't know if anyone else noticed this, but when making adjustments on the 3-band EQ I didn't notice much range on any of the knobs (bass, mid, or treble) so the tone you get is nearly what you'd be stuck with. Maybe it's what you want and for that, no judgement. Tone is subjective. For me though, I prefer to have my tone and as much capability to adjust for different rooms, inside/outside, song compositions, how it will track when recording, and how it will cut through in a live band mix. Taking all of these things into consideration, the Rumble delivers better on everything. I'm not an Ampeg hater, I've played through them before. They are very worthy amps. Fender simply wins here in my opinion. 🤘
It’s incredible how subjective these things are… having had the rumble and now owning the rb112 i can say the ampeg wins hands down specially in the clarity department. Also the low end is much nicer to my ears.
@@kikodasneves1 Nice. Always glad when someone finds the gear that moves and inspires them. Guess one of the biggest things with me is all the extras with the Rumble. Idk. Like the EQ additional boost buttons. Selecting one at a time enhances but doing any combo of the 3 clean boosts will give you a different EQ curve to work from. I happen to like dialing in my knobs first, then pushing all three to get a burst of color. Combined with the right pick up...I'm using the stock mini humbuckers of a Gretsch short tale and believe me when I say you'd be impressed with the mix I've got. I imagine based off your brief description that I would be at least equally impressed with your tones too. Subjective? Heck yes! Has to sound good to us first or noone is going to hear what we have inside.
The thing about ampeg amps, is when you stand in front of them on the stage. You FEEL the lowend as well as hear it. In many competitors that just isnt the same. Thats the part of the ampeg tone Lee is mentioning. You cant go wrong either way, but that round sound, with a P bass, just always works.
Nice video, but you must better point out what separates them. I bought a Fender Rumble 100 v3 when it came out, and after I while I discovered you can't really turn up the master past 12 a clock, everything else in middle posistion, the it chokes, sags, farts, and limits. So... what to do, connect it to a PA? With the line output? Yes, and it's totally IMPOSSIBLE to do this, to set the PA volume isolated from the Rumble since the Master volume affects what is going LINE OUT as it says on the back. Which Fender has interpreted as different from DIRECT OUT, since LINE OUT is something you would record with and keeps the flavor of any speaker simulation as well as power amp simulation, but for PA connection it is pretty useless in getting that extra oopmh and power when the Rumble 100 doesn't cut it. Also if the PA has monitors and Hi-Fi systems any low B will cut through more than from the Rumble itself. What have they been smokin? You should really mention this too. On the Ampeg RB-112 it says "balanced DI OUT" and has a full XLR connection with ground lift switch. Now, since you DID provide us with the "direct" output from both of these amps you should while doing that change the master volume while playing giving us info if the output to PA or recording mix desk changes input or not. I still do not know whether Ampeg does this or not. But having taken a look at the signal chart visible in their manual, the volume seems to come BEFORE the fx send return AND the direct out, which is a deal breaker for me. I e this works the same on both amps. Pity. But Ampeg states all this too by stating in the manual that " Connect this post-EQ, Post-SGT, mic level, balanced XLR output to the balanced input of an external mixer or recorder. " So anything is POST. AFTER the matter of fact. Bad idea IMHO. ampeg.com/data/6/0a020a3f1016d60ad6f7c4f148/application/pdf/Owner%E2%80%99s%20Manual%20-%20English%20.pdf Oh BTW, neither the Rumble nor RB-112 has a tweeter that can be turned on or off since they have no tweeters at all. Only their step up models like 210 has. Which isn't that much of an importance to me. You may think it has to you, but then keep this in mind, when choosing between them. Since both of these amps are somewhat "vintage" tinted, and "modelled" towards, both in looks and specs, it seems kind of futile and ... moot. The SGT or "dirt" department on both amps, the Ampeg wins hands down. The overdrive on Rumble is somewhat "meh" to me. And I didn't use it at all when I owned one. BTW tweeters/horns in bass combos together with any distortion, dirt, boost or drive, is kinda "ughhh" to me. You have to turn the tweeter off.
While I like the flexibility of the Fender with its 3 presets and the 4 band EQ, I think the Ampeg sounds far more beefy and has a more musical EQ which sounds great even in the most extreme settings. The fender gets boxy or peaky when the mids are boosted. Also, the drive of the Ampeg sounds almost tube-like, while the Fender can't get a nice and warm overdrive. It's immediately in fuzz/distortion territory.
Last week I spend 40 minutes comparing the Fender Rumble 100, the Ampeg RB-112 and the Boss Katana 110. I liked the Ampeg best, the Fender the least and thought the Boss was a good second. Also tried out a small MarkBass that I didn’t like at all (I don’t remember which one). I played a Fender Player Precision bass with factory roundwounds. I like my bass to sound smooth and warm, but with a decent attack (Motown-like?). The Rumble 100 sounded too mids-heavy and boxy to me. Somehow constraint, at any level. Almost like it would benefit a guitar more. The RB-112 always felt like I was playing a bass, with a fat, punchy low end, moving the air in the room. It did have a dip in the mids, which I don’t mind myself. The Katana sounded a lot like the Ampeg, but with less definition in the low end, making the attacks a bit smudged out (or more positively: smoother). Both the Rumble and the Katana had a more “integrated” sound. The Ampeg always sounded more like there were 2 basses playing, one very low and one very high. But although that was a little weird, I kept returning to the Ampeg because I liked how I sounded. 😊 Of course I did use the tone controls on the amps, and yes, the Vintage button on the Rumble made it sound better to my ears. But the overall character of the Rumble and RB-112 were very different. And while I had trouble finding sweet spots on the Rumble, I easily found them on the RB-112. The Katana probably was the most allround or versatile of the 3. I could almost make it sound like both others. Some people might call that characterless. 😅 I didn’t buy any of them because I couldn’t decide between the RB-112 and the Katana 110 after 40 minutes of tryout. And I also want to hear the RB-110 in real life. Although I play a Fender bass, it’s now clear to me I don’t like the Fender amp. Which kind of surprised me, after all the positive online reviews. But here you have it, also in this online age you still need to hear the gear yourself. 😊
The ampeg sounded muffled, like it had a wet blanket thrown over it, and overly compressed, (in a bad way) especially compared to the Rumble, which sounded more versatile. neither "overdrive" sounded decent, but if I had to choose the better, more musical OD channel, it would be the Fender again. the ampeg just sounded "fake" or excessively processed.
I bought rumble 100 for bass fillins, usually a guitar player. Then my bass player bought one and loves it. Another bass player got the 100 but then upped to the 500 as he plays metal in some big halls and outdoors.
Great video! Love the comparisons. I can't make a choice which one its better, i would say that nothing its better that playing them to have a better opinion.
I have an Ampeg VL-501 guitar half stack from the early 90s. 50 watts of tube tone. And after 30 years it’s still the best sounding guitar cab I’ve played. So yes they did lead Amps. Also. I may be partial. But the Ampeg sounded better to me in this vid. Though I love the look of the knobs and such on the fender. Especially having a high and low mid separation. That’s a very nice feature.
The Ampeg definitely sounds "better" with the Music man...but the Rumble sounds great with both guitars. I don't play Bass, but I DO play guitar, and I would rather play with a Bassist that has a Rumble.
@Dizzy Duke Thanks for the advice I really don’t wanna take lessons I wanna go on my own with it since I had already taken lessons for the gutair and I wanna be able to save some money doing it on my own I feel like I got enough of the theory and all thay good stuff to have a good start with it
Too bad they didn't discuss the connectivity. I have a Rumble and the connectivity is EXCELLENT. Very good Lo-Z, emulated DI out, foot switch, aux in, phones out, and effects loop. I don't know what the Ampeg has.
It's honestly hard for me to choose between these 2 and the new Laney Digibeth amps. I personally like the Orange crush amps too. Basically these 4 I struggle to choose
Highly recommend getting an RB-115 or RB-210 as they give you the ability to add an additional cab (they're 100w/250w alone), I have the RB-210 and plan on adding a 1x15 cab to get the full 500w and the Ampeg stack look wont hurt.
I'd love to see a follow up of these two amps along with a Markbass and Trace Elliott to see how all 4 compare tone wise. Even better to hear it in a mix as well.
Generally I really liked the Ampeg Rocket tones, up until the SGT circuit was engaged. Okay at first, but got very farty very quickly. Now I,ve never really been that blown away by Fender Rumble Bass Amps in the past. But can understand why they are popular. The current generation is definitely an improvement over previous generations. There is a lot of tonal flexibility in the Fender, it doesn’t overly blow me away and the overdrive is a tad fizzy. Think today I’m a tough crowd to please. If the Ampeg had more tonal flexibility & a better overdrive channel it would perhaps sway me. But overall if I had to choose between the two I’d get the Fender and perhaps pop an Ampeg preamp onto a pedalboard for the additional flexibility. Despite the basic tone of the Ampeg having the more present tone. Perhaps with a different speaker combination I could be swayed definitely in one direction or the other, or even something else completely different.
Love you two noodling. Agree with Drummerking below, you should put out an album. The Ampeg has a lot to like but as a Jazz bass player I'm with the Rumble. Just seems to me to have more substance to the sound and closer to what I'm looking for. I'm currently looking at replacing my very old Ohm GA140 1x15" with a 2x10" with 500W if I need it. Currently the Rumble is #1 with an Ashdown as a close #2.
Currently have a fender rumble 40, planning to either upgrade to the rumble 200 or the ampeg rb 115. The amps are within $20 of each other, both 15 inch drivers, 200 W RMS that can on both amps only be reached with an extension cab. I like the fender tone, but I like the Ampeg a bit better. Don’t get me wrong the fender gets low, but I play five strings, and the ampeg just has a nice clean thump and grunt with the low b that for me, the fender has, but not as pronounced. then again, I’m comparing my 10 inch fender to the 12 inch ampeg in the video, and I’m getting a 15 inch amp, so the only way I’ll really be able to tell is testing them in person. I can still get bright tones out of the Ampeg, I prefer the overdrive on the fender, really I’m not a fan of the Ampeg overdrive, but realistically, I’m never going to use those stock circuits anyways, getting overdrive pedals for that. Going to test out those two soon, but I might go ampeg on this one
Bought a Rumble 100 this morning, delivery in late March...the distributor has none in Canada right now. In before the price increase! There is a purity to the Fender sound that is lacking with the Ampeg.
Both Combos sounds amazing. P prefer the Ampeg and love the Music Man sound. The SGT ist awesome. I have the Scrambler pedal. It sound better, because you are really good play bass to show this stuff.
I love my Rumble 100 = small, lightweight and great sound. It's a little Beast. I use it with a Sterling Stingray SS-4 - deep, rich, room filling sound.
They are both great sounding amps, but I think the Fender is a tad too "dry" for my taste compared to the Ampeg. On the other hand, the Ampeg sounds a little less responsive to the controls than the Fender. Eventually I would go for the Fender just because of the reliability and time-testedness (so to speak) but still the Ampeg is really good.
I gotta fender rumble 500 in 2016 and it kicks dick to this day. Love the smaller versions, too. No real difference in sound, only power. Highly recommend this line.
good video! If I need more power for a gig I’m entertaining the idea of adding a fender rumble 115 v3 extension cab (600 watt 300 rms 8hm) to my ampeg ba 210 v2 ( 283 watt @ 4ohm, 450 @ 8) via the extension out jack. Other than offending other bass players do you think this is an advisable pairing spec wise? My thought process is to add a 15 for more low end thump where I already have 2 10’s handling the punchy sound. I’d love to get some feed back! Thanks
Ah, but the Ampeg weighs more. I have the Rumble 100, and I replaced the Chinese-made Eminence 12, with the Eminence S2012, and I installed speaker batting inside the speaker enclosure. Just doing those 2 things greatly improved the sound of my Rumble 100. Now my Rumble 100 weighs 18 lbs.
Love the shootout …. I normally just listen and gaze at what y’all men are doin but this time I watch,…very intently. Wow it was like 1969 smoking a religious substance. (Peyote). The sound did not jive to the video. I understand latency thank God. The jest of the comment. I’m gonna watch them all now……what a trip. Thanks and keep ‘em coming. Sincerely, Pops Fitch, USA Post Script: you men have chops.
Go Ampeg but I give up on tiny combos. I have their SVT preamp and an old school 850 watt QSC power amp and it can handle anything. It is heavy and bulky though.
Money no object, the Ampeg is my preference. Nothing bad about the Rumble, but paying that much into a solid state amp even. Finding an Ampeg BA-112 or better works as well as a preowned Rumble. If Bass tube amps are the amp thing, does one get the Ampeg SVT or a Fender Bassman ? I probably still lean towards the Ampeg SVT, but the versatility of a Bassman for 6 string guitar is also tempting.
I honestly have no idea what the ampeg sounds like. Between the weird playing style and the constant know tuning, I was completely lost. I have a rumble and really like it, but was considering an ampeg. This video did not assist me at all in making a buying decision. It was a couple of dudes fooling around with a couple of amps and trying to sound weird. I have even less of an idea how either of these amps sound in a mix, which may have been helpful. Cmon dudes. Be better.
I have the ampeg for tooling around with in my office. I play a short scale stingray on it mostly. This video didn't seem to capture it very well at all, it has quite the tonal range. It's a nice practice amp, loud enough for gigging, and it weighs almost nothing compared to my old ampeg ba115.
Before i starting watching ... Advertising video on UA-cam about bass i was doing well with my gears I was doing my setup according to my ears don't what's EQ exactly do but i just sit-up the knobs to the tone i want that fits good in mix But know these ads confused me
At least in December 2022 that Fender ($299) is $100 less than the Ampeg ($399) at Sweetwater. For my novice abilities and limited budget, that plays a big role. :)
I run a Tech21 VT Bass DI into the front of my Rumble 100. Best of both worlds!
I use the Rumble 100, and I feel that, for me anyway, it’s a very versatile amp. It delivers everything I need in an amp. Now I have to say, that you guys have demoed that amp better than anybody on UA-cam have done. All in just a few minutes. Mind you, having someone dial in on the various tones while playing is the perfect way to do a demo. How does one say it in the UK? “Bloody brilliant!”
How does Fender compete with the drummer?
I love my Rumble 500
I have gotten many compliments on my bass tone with it
Set the bass eq to 10 o clock, mids to 12, treble to 2 o clock, gain anywhere between %30 and %50, drive about 12 o clock, and level around 3 o clock
OD on unless the song calls for a warmer sound, and I never touch the other buttons.
Love those settings
Do you mic it or xlr out live?
Lee and Nathan you guys should release an album with all your Andertons bass jams as your bass playing styles really complement each other!! 🎸👌✌😊
Aren't they an awesome duo? Best demonstrators at Anderton's!!
I bought both the Rumble 210 combo and the Ampeg RB210 and used them both in a band setting. The Fender was much better in every way. It allowed the bass to sit in the mix in a very satisfying way whereas the bass was a bit lost in the mix with the Ampeg. I can see where somebody might prefer the Ampeg if they play alone in their bedroom but in a band setting, the Fender, for me, works much better.
Do you think either of them could be heard alongside a drummer at 100w? Drummer doesn’t play too loud or too soft, simple rock songs.
@@jcm9097 Perfect for that.
@@jcm9097 I've found the bigger issue is being able to hear yourself when guitarists start playing
But my guitarists have a bad habit of cranking up way too loud for practice settings
@@perryborn2777 it's a guitarist thing
@@perryborn2777 so these are definitely not going to cut it in a loud rock band then?
I like the Ampeg more than the Fender. Ampeg seemed deeper and beefier whereas the Fender seemed a bit pokey and boxy sounding, and the EQ seems peaky. Also I preferred the SGT at mid to low gain settings, the grit was integrated into the sound and reminds me a little of turning up my Ampeg CL. The Fender OD sounds a bit like a layer of static over a clean signal.
When harmonics collide!
I took a couple years off playing bass to concentrate on my guitar skills. Just got back in to it and having way more fun than the first time I was playing. I missed this channel, and these two guys were great on it. Glad Nate is busy touring, but I look forward to new content with these two again.
I couldn't decide, so I bought the Fender Rumble 2x10 combo (with the 2x10 extension cab), the Ampeg RB 2x10 combo and Ampeg RB 1x10 combo. I love them all.
Nice!!!
Really?? I mean, as long as you're happy, but for that money, I'd rather go for one awesome combo, e. g. the GK Fusion 210. I currently play the GK MB 210 (1st gen.), and I love it, I just wish it had a more solid build quality, some tube warmth and a little more flexibility in sound.
I have a Fender Rumble 100 and an Epiphone Thunerbird. Vintage mode gives me the tone I want. The amp is easier to carry than the bass guitar.
You guys need to get back to putting a new episode every Friday! Glad to see you back in my feed though!
Think Nathan has been out on a tour.
@@richardhuckle5715 ah perhaps 🤔
Speak to the management! 🤣
Lee - you inspire us in ways you'll never know. SO positive and disciplined.
Liked that opening jam - groovy and melodic and offered a nice opportunity to hear each amp played in lead and supporting roles. Liked how one of you went through the controls while the other played, too.
Suggestion for future videos, though: have the same player play through both amps - Player A plays the Jazz through the Fender and the Am peg while Player B twiddles knobs, then Player B plays the Stingray through both amps while Player A messes with the controls.
As it was, I found myself trying to account for differences in playing style along with differences in the amps when you went from one to the other.
Still a well made and useful video, though (and I appreciated that you miced the cabs and didn't just DI)!
I've been saving up for one of these two bass amp for a good nine months! I had the chance to audition both of the amps in the same listening room, the same bass that I own (American performer P Bass). The RB112 looks better; it possibly even sounds better. The ultra-low switch is very nice! $420 plus New York state tax equals $450. Now to the Fender Rumble 100. The construction of the amp looks far superior, 3 to 4 lbs lighter two years manufacturer's warranty compared to 90 days with the Ampeg (5 year old boys warranty). The rumble retails for $380. I have my Fender play discount (10%) discount equals $341 plus York State sales tax equals $355. Almost $95 difference. Does the Ampeg sound $95 better with its Barbie Ken warranty? Hell, NO, that $95 saved that could go into a nice pedal, maybe downtown express, or maybe the agular peramps or one of those fancy ones made in Finland! My Rumble arrives in three days direct from Fender!! With that sweet vintage switch and the wicked overdrive. ;-)
What a rollercoaster of a comment! I love it!!! I’m between Fender & Ampeg rn so we’ll see what I decide!
@dtausch ~ you're on a good journey. If you get the chance to audition both at the same time, that will be enlightening. My feelings are with the rumble you will be listening to your bass and how you sound. With the rocket, you will be listening to the amplifier interpretation of your bass sounds and a gloss over version of how you sound. In other words, rockets sound sweet. The Fender rumble sounds the truth. So, what kind of character do you have? Sweet? Or the truth? I hope this helps. lol.
I use the Rumble 100 with guitars. Plug a tele or strat in it and the tone is great. Nice full and tight bass. Lots of clean headroom. And the overdrive on the crunch channel is fantastic. I sold my guitar amps and use this one for guitar and an occasional bass.
I have one of the older versions of the Rumble 100 which I have found to be an absolute joy when playing with a rock band doing covers ranging from Free through Thin Lizzy to Whitesnake. It is light, has a vast array of sounds available and has enough flexibility that I never even needed any effects above the overdrive which is built into the amp. If you want something easily portable for rehearsals these are pretty much perfect.
Just the comparison I was looking for, though it didn’t completely resolve the issue. I have an Ampeg BA-115 and a Fender Rumble 40 in different rooms. Considering a 100 watt amp for a future billiard room, with a music corner. I love both of these combos. I think the quick versatility of the Fender will be the winner.
I've had great luck with the Rumble. I bought one with the 15" speaker and loved it. When I got my Mesa rig, I donated the Rumble to my church, where it has survived the youth ministry 😉
Both very good amps. I had an Ampeg BA 210...great little combo, but partially traded it for a new Rumble 500. 12 lbs lighter, but I just love the Vintage button...really gives it a warm, full tone. I would love to the Peavey Max 12" thrown in the mix as well. Great show!
How was the Ampeg BA 210, tone wise?
@@ggnadeknight7733 Great tone with the Ampeg...full, beefy, as you would expect with an Ampeg. In reality, you could go with either, but I feel that my Ibanez Soundgear basses just sound a bit more crisp with the Rumble, and I like the EQ a bit more with it as well. Another big factor is the weight....Rumble is 36 lbs vs 48 for the Ampeg. I've seen a few of used BA 210's for decent prices at local music stores.
@@benavich8 Another question, I've heard that the BA210 aren't very reliable, something about them shutting off midset
@@ggnadeknight7733 I had my BA210 for three years without issues. The only potential negative, for some, is that it has a somewhat noisy cooling fan. My Rumble....dead quiet. My theory is that any amp company can put out a clunker now and then, whether it's an Ampeg, Fender or Peavey....etc.
The vintage button on the Rumble is where this combo shines .I've been a Bassman 100wt head in the 70's then Ampeg SVT in the 90's Now using the 500wt Rumble it's a great win sales wise for Fender alot of my bass buddies have been getting the Rumble and love them
I could listen to hours of that intro jam, that was beautiful. As for the amps, I don't understand 100W bass amps, for home practice it's too loud, but for band use it's not enough.
It's a price point amp. People could afford more than a practice amp, but don't want to buy a "huge" expensive amp, so this is purely for that middle ground. Still can be a useful amp for sure like in a coffee shop or playing with without a traditional drummer in another intimate setting, but it's still a "bastard" size for the most part.
@@GravyHucker That makes sense, I didn't realize that someone could play without a drummer.
I used an Acoustic B100 as a practice amp. I ran a 4 ohm Carvin brx18 as an extension cab to attenuate the power. It sounded amazing. I realize it's not for everyone though.
@@craigemmett2425 @RedM39 OK, I didn't mean too loud, I meant unnecessarily expensive for home use.
I play with 100w combos with drummers live all the time. Not every genre of music is super loud.
It’s a shame that Ampeg did stop making guitar amps. The V-22 and V-4 heads are so awesome. Those are so good and underrated!
ampeg Just go aquired by Yamaha so we could be seeing more products from them soon! the rocket bass is their first new product since the late 2000s under their previous owners
@@BassRacerx These sound nothing like classic Ampeg amps and tone, sorry.
Great shootout guys! I was really impressed with the Fender. I have never heard a Fender ss amp sound that good, and I own a 100w Bassman 100 practice amp. By the way, in the late 80's early 90's Ampeg mad a line os ss guitar amps. I believe the one I played was called the SS140C. Had a pretty good jc120ish sound to it.
Love this. Superb energy. I'm all ready to order a Fender Rumble, then I watch this feed. I heard the Ampeg, and now I don't know. Rumble is cheaper, and that might be a decider... Love this channel!
Proper way to show us the different tones. Playing whilst turning the knobs. Perfect. How would keyboard bass sound through these?
I had problems with ordering a Rocket- had to reorder 3 times due to factory defects. Ampeg has to up their game in terms of quality control.
The Ampeg sounded ok but the Fender is the better sounding of the 2, very versatile amp.
I have the Rumble 500, it is an awesome amps, sounds great, loud as hell and weighs nothing. The overdrive channel is pretty poor but pedals sound great with it. The DI out volume is affected by the master volume too which is a bit annoying. I use a SANSAMP clone for recording and FOH for that reason
FWIW i just got a rocket bass amp (the 210 sounds miles better than the 115) to be able to gig properly. I have 2 basses, a 4 string active and a 5 string passive. Using the low gain channel for the active and normal channel for the passive balances the output beautifully so I can swap basses live without buggering around with the settings. So the two different inputs were a major selling point for me.
I'm a solid Ampeg user and have tried SVT tube amps and I owned a Portaflex 350w on a Hartke XL cab. This Rocket amp doesn't work for me though (tone wise). Yup, it has that distinctive rumbling low end expected of an Ampeg, but I prefer Fender Rumble's versatility. I can have more tone controls with the aid of a Sansamp, but it defeats the purpose of doing plug and play, single cable direct to amp thing.
Thanks for this comparison - really useful. What amazes me is that the ampeg sounds miles better than the fender … and the difference is obvious…yet many seem to think the rumble a better amp. Don’t get it
Love you guys video but one thing I want to point out is the levels between dialog and playing. I constantly feel the need to ride my volume; turning up during the playing to really hear what it's doing and feel the low end, to then turning down about 10db during dialog. I love the banter between but would also love at some point a direct A/B comparison of the amps to easily hear the differences vs having to click on the time lines. Cheers
I have a rumble 500 head with a rumble 15 inch cab on the bottom and a 2x10 cab on top. I use it at every practice and every gig. I regularly let the other bands on the show use it too and the all absolutely love the rig. I'm rocking a Creamsicle orange Fender Jazz bass with it.
I have the 200W Rumble combo, 15" speaker, which for bigger venues I like to stack on a GK cab fitted with a Celestion15". Recently shared it with a bassist who switches between upright and electric bass and usually uses a Markbass rig - he was blown away. Great in every respect.
@@TheStratpicker nice I play a few different basses with the same rig. I use the Fender 4 mostly I also use a stingray 5 but i have to mess with my EQ a lot, I was using a bass VI out of the rig for a few months but I like that through all the fx and in the Fender Twin more.
Do you mix it or xlr out?
Bought the Fender Rumble 100 from you guys before the Ampeg option existed, but absolutely no complaints at all. The Rumble 100 has an incredibly slick and polished sound for it’s price.
yes.
This is my favorite review I’ve come across for gear. Great commentary. Funny. Intelligent. Musical. Fair. I love this video and I’m looking forward to getting a Rocket Bass amp for home. I loved playing it at Guitar Center compared to the Rumble during the same visit. The Ampeg sounded better to me and was noticeably more fun to play on. I tried the RB-108 and RB-110. For the Fender, it was the Rumble 25. The Ampeg had more power and good bass tone and wall shaking low end without even turning the volume up. The Ampeg amps definitely have a more electric sound. Beefy and the bass tone stands out on Ampeg. That distinct Ampeg sound shines in these smaller, lightweight amps and the sound is the same Ampeg sound of my old big and heavier Ampeg B2RE head and Ampeg 4x10 SVT410HE cabinet rig. Surprisingly, the 110 felt slightly lighter than the 108 when lifting the small amps! The Fender Rumble seems more of a basic bass amp with good musical tone and a more noticeable distortion and of course lightweight. The Fender Rumble seems to sound its best when slapping and popping. The SGT on the Ampeg is not overbearing and blends in more with what you’re playing. The Ampeg SGT overdrive is more smooth compared to the overdrive of the Fender Rumble 25 that’s more in your face with overdrive. I want to try the Fender Rumble 40 just for kicks before I pull the trigger on one of the Ampeg Rocket Bass amps. I won’t use distortion much and I have 2 bass distortion pedals already so it’s not that important. Lastly, the Ampeg 108 had more treble and the 110 had more low end due to its larger speaker and wattage. Both were nice but the 110 also comes with an XLR output on the back. The 108 would have to be mic’d up when recording. I’m leaning more towards the 110 plus it has a level control for the SGT when the 108 does not and only has an on off switch. I’m also considering the larger Ampeg Rocket Bass Amps for more power to play with others later and for the official Eminence speaker and Ultra High and Ultra Low buttons. So many things to consider. Hard to make up my mind haha.
UL-high and UL-lox buttons it's a must!
The Rocket sounds great! I have had the Rocket 110 for a few months now. I grew up with audiophile gear, Dad had a pair of Klipshorns and a big phase linear amp and pre amp when I was a kid and I have two systems currently with big Yamaha receivers (R-S700 and R-S300) and polk audio speakers so I know good sound. You can tell Yamaha (they bought Ampeg) quality and know how, Ampeg style and tone, real tuning and quality plywood cab (not MDF) make for a beautiful sounding 10" amp for my 10'x20' music room!
I recently bought the Rumble 100 to use in my apartment and it sounds fantastic even at low volume.
Lee's passion and positive attitude is contagious and I could listen to them play all day. Nathan's nice, too. Ha.
And Fender. Hands down. The rumble is hard to beat on tone, and that overdrive. I use a 75, stacked on a Peavey TNT 130, for all of my top end.
Literally read my mind... Was lliterally thinking about buying a new bass amp, and was between these two and couldn't decide. Sure enough, yall release this video the next morning... Great timing!
Did you buy one?
I've owned and gigged w/ both RB200 and Rumble 200. The Rumble 200 won out and the Ampeg went back. Having the 2 mid controls on the rumble was key in different venues, and the rumble Vintage button turns it into the Ampeg. At the end of 1 yr trial and error I bought a Rumble 210 800 combo I still use, not the stage 800 combo (too much monkey bizness for me) , The 800 combo is 29 lbs and LOUD if needed, and really projects the sound into the room. BTW during a convo w/ beaver felton he said ; "i own bass central, I have access to any boutique bass rig I want, and I'm in a wheelchair so I have a roadie, I use the rumble 800 210 combo every time I play"
Playing with the knobs while jamming was actually kinda genius tbh. It gives everything in a nutshell. I dig it.
The thing is that you gotta pay attention, otherwise you'll miss something. Lol.
I like that creativity.
Awesome jam y'all! Great note choices, great chord progressions, all that!
Y'all are sharing the same harmonic space wonderfully!
I'll take the smaller and lighter Fender for portability. However I liked the sound of the Ampeg a bit more. Both very nice.
These Ampeg amps are similar. Lightweight as well
The Ampeg RB-112 weighs only 26 pounds, quite portable.
The Fender seems more balanced with different tone settings. The Ampeg has more thump but I prefer the Fender.
oh man been toooo long since a Nate and Lee vid!! love these two!!
Keeping in mind that UA-cam does have some basic compression etc on their videos...I listened through some quality headphones and in my opinion the Fender Rumble is the winner hands down. My reasoning: more versatility, better clarity, better control through the EQ knobs, and definitely had the better drive channel. While the Ampeg did have it's classic tone and it wasn't awful by any means. I've definitely heard worse. However I don't know if anyone else noticed this, but when making adjustments on the 3-band EQ I didn't notice much range on any of the knobs (bass, mid, or treble) so the tone you get is nearly what you'd be stuck with. Maybe it's what you want and for that, no judgement. Tone is subjective. For me though, I prefer to have my tone and as much capability to adjust for different rooms, inside/outside, song compositions, how it will track when recording, and how it will cut through in a live band mix. Taking all of these things into consideration, the Rumble delivers better on everything. I'm not an Ampeg hater, I've played through them before. They are very worthy amps. Fender simply wins here in my opinion. 🤘
It’s incredible how subjective these things are… having had the rumble and now owning the rb112 i can say the ampeg wins hands down specially in the clarity department. Also the low end is much nicer to my ears.
@@kikodasneves1 Nice. Always glad when someone finds the gear that moves and inspires them. Guess one of the biggest things with me is all the extras with the Rumble. Idk. Like the EQ additional boost buttons. Selecting one at a time enhances but doing any combo of the 3 clean boosts will give you a different EQ curve to work from. I happen to like dialing in my knobs first, then pushing all three to get a burst of color. Combined with the right pick up...I'm using the stock mini humbuckers of a Gretsch short tale and believe me when I say you'd be impressed with the mix I've got. I imagine based off your brief description that I would be at least equally impressed with your tones too. Subjective? Heck yes! Has to sound good to us first or noone is going to hear what we have inside.
@@kikodasneves1 The only thing I would change is rather than a single 12, I wish it had dual 10's...mounted stacked rather than side by side.
That's pretty much exactly what I was thinking. I'm probably buying one of these, need to go listen for myself.
It is KEEP in mind and you are correct.
I have the Fender 210 plus the 210 cabinet and i recommend it..!!!! Power and huge sound ( indoor and outdoor as well ).. good review 👍 👏
The thing about ampeg amps, is when you stand in front of them on the stage. You FEEL the lowend as well as hear it. In many competitors that just isnt the same. Thats the part of the ampeg tone Lee is mentioning. You cant go wrong either way, but that round sound, with a P bass, just always works.
You’ve clearly never stood in front of a vintage Fender Bassman with a stack.
Agree 💯! I've used the Ampeg 210 on live shows & you can feel which is why I chose it over the Fender.....
A proper PA, you'll feel any amp, or no amp.
Yeah bought a rumble. Great eq and very light but sounded way too boxy!! Sold it 3 weeks later.
Nice video, but you must better point out what separates them. I bought a Fender Rumble 100 v3 when it came out, and after I while I discovered you can't really turn up the master past 12 a clock, everything else in middle posistion, the it chokes, sags, farts, and limits. So... what to do, connect it to a PA? With the line output? Yes, and it's totally IMPOSSIBLE to do this, to set the PA volume isolated from the Rumble since the Master volume affects what is going LINE OUT as it says on the back. Which Fender has interpreted as different from DIRECT OUT, since LINE OUT is something you would record with and keeps the flavor of any speaker simulation as well as power amp simulation, but for PA connection it is pretty useless in getting that extra oopmh and power when the Rumble 100 doesn't cut it. Also if the PA has monitors and Hi-Fi systems any low B will cut through more than from the Rumble itself. What have they been smokin?
You should really mention this too.
On the Ampeg RB-112 it says "balanced DI OUT" and has a full XLR connection with ground lift switch. Now, since you DID provide us with the "direct" output from both of these amps you should while doing that change the master volume while playing giving us info if the output to PA or recording mix desk changes input or not. I still do not know whether Ampeg does this or not. But having taken a look at the signal chart visible in their manual, the volume seems to come BEFORE the fx send return AND the direct out, which is a deal breaker for me. I e this works the same on both amps. Pity. But Ampeg states all this too by stating in the manual that " Connect this post-EQ, Post-SGT, mic level, balanced XLR output to the balanced input of an external mixer or recorder. " So anything is POST. AFTER the matter of fact. Bad idea IMHO.
ampeg.com/data/6/0a020a3f1016d60ad6f7c4f148/application/pdf/Owner%E2%80%99s%20Manual%20-%20English%20.pdf
Oh BTW, neither the Rumble nor RB-112 has a tweeter that can be turned on or off since they have no tweeters at all. Only their step up models like 210 has. Which isn't that much of an importance to me. You may think it has to you, but then keep this in mind, when choosing between them. Since both of these amps are somewhat "vintage" tinted, and "modelled" towards, both in looks and specs, it seems kind of futile and ... moot. The SGT or "dirt" department on both amps, the Ampeg wins hands down. The overdrive on Rumble is somewhat "meh" to me. And I didn't use it at all when I owned one. BTW tweeters/horns in bass combos together with any distortion, dirt, boost or drive, is kinda "ughhh" to me. You have to turn the tweeter off.
While I like the flexibility of the Fender with its 3 presets and the 4 band EQ, I think the Ampeg sounds far more beefy and has a more musical EQ which sounds great even in the most extreme settings. The fender gets boxy or peaky when the mids are boosted. Also, the drive of the Ampeg sounds almost tube-like, while the Fender can't get a nice and warm overdrive. It's immediately in fuzz/distortion territory.
I still have my 90's rocket 100. Weights a ton but still kicking.
Last week I spend 40 minutes comparing the Fender Rumble 100, the Ampeg RB-112 and the Boss Katana 110. I liked the Ampeg best, the Fender the least and thought the Boss was a good second. Also tried out a small MarkBass that I didn’t like at all (I don’t remember which one).
I played a Fender Player Precision bass with factory roundwounds. I like my bass to sound smooth and warm, but with a decent attack (Motown-like?).
The Rumble 100 sounded too mids-heavy and boxy to me. Somehow constraint, at any level. Almost like it would benefit a guitar more. The RB-112 always felt like I was playing a bass, with a fat, punchy low end, moving the air in the room. It did have a dip in the mids, which I don’t mind myself. The Katana sounded a lot like the Ampeg, but with less definition in the low end, making the attacks a bit smudged out (or more positively: smoother). Both the Rumble and the Katana had a more “integrated” sound. The Ampeg always sounded more like there were 2 basses playing, one very low and one very high. But although that was a little weird, I kept returning to the Ampeg because I liked how I sounded. 😊
Of course I did use the tone controls on the amps, and yes, the Vintage button on the Rumble made it sound better to my ears. But the overall character of the Rumble and RB-112 were very different. And while I had trouble finding sweet spots on the Rumble, I easily found them on the RB-112.
The Katana probably was the most allround or versatile of the 3. I could almost make it sound like both others. Some people might call that characterless. 😅
I didn’t buy any of them because I couldn’t decide between the RB-112 and the Katana 110 after 40 minutes of tryout. And I also want to hear the RB-110 in real life.
Although I play a Fender bass, it’s now clear to me I don’t like the Fender amp. Which kind of surprised me, after all the positive online reviews. But here you have it, also in this online age you still need to hear the gear yourself. 😊
The intro jam video seems like not in sync with the sound..
Glad it's not just me, thought I was going bonkers
Sound was from the mic in front of the amp but they didn't sync up the audio :(
The ampeg sounded muffled, like it had a wet blanket thrown over it, and overly compressed, (in a bad way) especially compared to the Rumble, which sounded more versatile. neither "overdrive" sounded decent, but if I had to choose the better, more musical OD channel, it would be the Fender again. the ampeg just sounded "fake" or excessively processed.
You really can’t tell anything from these kinds of videos… plus they’re being miked with a dynamic mic that influences the sound a lot.
Agreed- I got the exact same impression in the store today A B'ing both other these amps. I am not an expert but I kept going back to the Rumble.
Funny, but I had the exact opposite reaction. I thought the Fender OD sounded like a swarm of bees.
I bought rumble 100 for bass fillins, usually a guitar player. Then my bass player bought one and loves it. Another bass player got the 100 but then upped to the 500 as he plays metal in some big halls and outdoors.
As a gigging bassist fender does great on the clean channel but their overdrive circuits are always lacking
That's why God made pedals...
Can u play with Gain knob all the way down??
It's called Fractal FM09. Get one.
Great video! Love the comparisons. I can't make a choice which one its better, i would say that nothing its better that playing them to have a better opinion.
I have an Ampeg VL-501 guitar half stack from the early 90s. 50 watts of tube tone. And after 30 years it’s still the best sounding guitar cab I’ve played. So yes they did lead Amps. Also. I may be partial. But the Ampeg sounded better to me in this vid. Though I love the look of the knobs and such on the fender. Especially having a high and low mid separation. That’s a very nice feature.
INTRO JAM??? Bright Size Life by Pat Metheny!!! Was credit given???
The Ampeg definitely sounds "better" with the Music man...but the Rumble sounds great with both guitars. I don't play Bass, but I DO play guitar, and I would rather play with a Bassist that has a Rumble.
@Dizzy Duke I’m thinking about getting a bass I’ve already been playing gutair for 5 years what should I except going in ?
@Dizzy Duke Thanks for the advice I really don’t wanna take lessons I wanna go on my own with it since I had already taken lessons for the gutair and I wanna be able to save some money doing it on my own I feel like I got enough of the theory and all thay good stuff to have a good start with it
Too bad they didn't discuss the connectivity. I have a Rumble and the connectivity is EXCELLENT. Very good Lo-Z, emulated DI out, foot switch, aux in, phones out, and effects loop. I don't know what the Ampeg has.
Damn. My son plays a Sterling 4HH and just got the Ampeg RB 112 to replace the toasted B-50R that smoked... Sounds gooooood!
It's honestly hard for me to choose between these 2 and the new Laney Digibeth amps. I personally like the Orange crush amps too. Basically these 4 I struggle to choose
@@LucasJRice I think the Laney sounds great here: ua-cam.com/video/sidEFyF-9tU/v-deo.html
Highly recommend getting an RB-115 or RB-210 as they give you the ability to add an additional cab (they're 100w/250w alone), I have the RB-210 and plan on adding a 1x15 cab to get the full 500w and the Ampeg stack look wont hurt.
You can do the same with the rumble 500, I believe it's 350w stand alone and you get the full 500w with the extra cab
Stand alone is 300 watts
I think the two inputs would be great for a teacher and student to both be plugged in during lessons.
I use Fender Champion 50 xl in the studio to double guitar parts to help fatten up my bass lines it's a good modeling amp
I'd love to see a follow up of these two amps along with a Markbass and Trace Elliott to see how all 4 compare tone wise. Even better to hear it in a mix as well.
I know with that Music Man, Markbass can’t really be beat!! Those are almost made for those basses!!
Generally I really liked the Ampeg Rocket tones, up until the SGT circuit was engaged. Okay at first, but got very farty very quickly.
Now I,ve never really been that blown away by Fender Rumble Bass Amps in the past. But can understand why they are popular. The current generation is definitely an improvement over previous generations. There is a lot of tonal flexibility in the Fender, it doesn’t overly blow me away and the overdrive is a tad fizzy.
Think today I’m a tough crowd to please. If the Ampeg had more tonal flexibility & a better overdrive channel it would perhaps sway me. But overall if I had to choose between the two I’d get the Fender and perhaps pop an Ampeg preamp onto a pedalboard for the additional flexibility. Despite the basic tone of the Ampeg having the more present tone.
Perhaps with a different speaker combination I could be swayed definitely in one direction or the other, or even something else completely different.
Love you two noodling. Agree with Drummerking below, you should put out an album. The Ampeg has a lot to like but as a Jazz bass player I'm with the Rumble. Just seems to me to have more substance to the sound and closer to what I'm looking for. I'm currently looking at replacing my very old Ohm GA140 1x15" with a 2x10" with 500W if I need it. Currently the Rumble is #1 with an Ashdown as a close #2.
Currently have a fender rumble 40, planning to either upgrade to the rumble 200 or the ampeg rb 115. The amps are within $20 of each other, both 15 inch drivers, 200 W RMS that can on both amps only be reached with an extension cab. I like the fender tone, but I like the Ampeg a bit better. Don’t get me wrong the fender gets low, but I play five strings, and the ampeg just has a nice clean thump and grunt with the low b that for me, the fender has, but not as pronounced. then again, I’m comparing my 10 inch fender to the 12 inch ampeg in the video, and I’m getting a 15 inch amp, so the only way I’ll really be able to tell is testing them in person. I can still get bright tones out of the Ampeg, I prefer the overdrive on the fender, really I’m not a fan of the Ampeg overdrive, but realistically, I’m never going to use those stock circuits anyways, getting overdrive pedals for that. Going to test out those two soon, but I might go ampeg on this one
I bought both and use the ampeq as a live monitor with the fender rumble 500w pushing the tunes to the masses
Bought a Rumble 100 this morning, delivery in late March...the distributor has none in Canada right now. In before the price increase! There is a purity to the Fender sound that is lacking with the Ampeg.
I have the Ampeg Rocket Bass 108 30w amplifier and it sounds sweeeet!
A rumble sounds good, but in my opinion is best when use with a pedal like a Tech 21 VTBass.
Both Combos sounds amazing. P prefer the Ampeg and love the Music Man sound. The SGT ist awesome. I have the Scrambler pedal. It sound better, because you are really good play bass to show this stuff.
I'm sorry but the Fender overdrive is sick. Also, why do reviewers not turn it all the way up? Still a good review.
The ampeg overdrive (probably based on the flipster pedal) is way ahead on it’s competition.
Clean is great. Overdrive is … wow …. Tube amp territory.
Ampeg knocked it out of the park with these combo’s.
They mean business… best in business.
I love my Rumble 100 = small, lightweight and great sound. It's a little Beast. I use it with a Sterling Stingray SS-4 - deep, rich, room filling sound.
I much preferred the Fender amp sound.
You and everyone else.
Guys, as always - great video. Both brilliant bassists and have a great presentation style.
They are both great sounding amps, but I think the Fender is a tad too "dry" for my taste compared to the Ampeg. On the other hand, the Ampeg sounds a little less responsive to the controls than the Fender. Eventually I would go for the Fender just because of the reliability and time-testedness (so to speak) but still the Ampeg is really good.
Happy Holidays Nathan and Lee. Look forward to more videos in 2022.
I gotta fender rumble 500 in 2016 and it kicks dick to this day. Love the smaller versions, too. No real difference in sound, only power. Highly recommend this line.
Watching you guys play is Always Ebjoyable.. I play Too, (for Decades,, ) so I'm Naturally "Picky" KUDOS!!
Along with everything else, I'm digging the vintage HiFi gear in the room.
Tried the fenders and Ampeg models, the Ampeg 15" was my favourite
good video!
If I need more power for a gig I’m entertaining the idea of adding a fender rumble 115 v3 extension cab (600 watt 300 rms 8hm) to my ampeg ba 210 v2 ( 283 watt @ 4ohm, 450 @ 8) via the extension out jack.
Other than offending other bass players do you think this is an advisable pairing spec wise?
My thought process is to add a 15 for more low end thump where I already have 2 10’s handling the punchy sound.
I’d love to get some feed back!
Thanks
The winner is the stingray bass,
Wow, they really live up to the hype/reputation .
Don't like that jazz bass, give me a p bass anyday!
Ampeg BA 115v2 1x15 bass combo is Epic...and loud.
I prefer the look of the Ampeg, but the sound of the Fender. Stingray sounds way better than the J bass
Me too.
I with the dials were in the front as well as the on switch. My old rumble 15 has everything in the front.
Ah, but the Ampeg weighs more. I have the Rumble 100, and I replaced the Chinese-made Eminence 12, with the Eminence S2012, and I installed speaker batting inside the speaker enclosure. Just doing those 2 things greatly improved the sound of my Rumble 100. Now my Rumble 100 weighs 18 lbs.
Would love to see a comparison between the lower end models: RG 100 vs rumble 40 vs orange crush 50, etc.
Actually going to buy one of these soon and this helped so much!
The rumble seems to be the all around better choice
It's like comparing a Snickers bar and Peanut M&Ms - love them both.
Both Snickers and m&m are nice nice and have their own place :)
Both are garbage and poison for our bodies....
Love the shootout …. I normally just listen and gaze at what y’all men are doin but this time I watch,…very intently. Wow it was like 1969 smoking a religious substance. (Peyote). The sound did not jive to the video. I understand latency thank God. The jest of the comment. I’m gonna watch them all now……what a trip. Thanks and keep ‘em coming. Sincerely, Pops Fitch, USA
Post Script: you men have chops.
Go Ampeg but I give up on tiny combos. I have their SVT preamp and an old school 850 watt QSC power amp and it can handle anything. It is heavy and bulky though.
Money no object, the Ampeg is my preference. Nothing bad about the Rumble, but paying that much into a solid state amp even. Finding an Ampeg BA-112 or better works as well as a preowned Rumble. If Bass tube amps are the amp thing, does one get the Ampeg SVT or a Fender Bassman ? I probably still lean towards the Ampeg SVT, but the versatility of a Bassman for 6 string guitar is also tempting.
SS means reliable. Most critical electronic gear, even emergency gear is SS BTW.
I honestly have no idea what the ampeg sounds like. Between the weird playing style and the constant know tuning, I was completely lost. I have a rumble and really like it, but was considering an ampeg. This video did not assist me at all in making a buying decision. It was a couple of dudes fooling around with a couple of amps and trying to sound weird. I have even less of an idea how either of these amps sound in a mix, which may have been helpful. Cmon dudes. Be better.
I have the ampeg for tooling around with in my office. I play a short scale stingray on it mostly. This video didn't seem to capture it very well at all, it has quite the tonal range. It's a nice practice amp, loud enough for gigging, and it weighs almost nothing compared to my old ampeg ba115.
Your boomer is showing
"anything other than old blues licks sounds weird"
Before i starting watching ... Advertising video on UA-cam about bass i was doing well with my gears
I was doing my setup according to my ears don't what's EQ exactly do but i just sit-up the knobs to the tone i want that fits good in mix
But know these ads confused me
At least in December 2022 that Fender ($299) is $100 less than the Ampeg ($399) at Sweetwater. For my novice abilities and limited budget, that plays a big role. :)
i was waiting for this! thanks guys!