Kniferide wrote: Thu Mar 05, 2026 3:40 pm I built a couple of little LM386 amps. Isn't it basically what those little amps in cigarette boxes were? Pretty fun little projects.

Yes but way fewer components on those:

losthighway wrote: Thu Mar 05, 2026 1:56 pm

hyljetronic wrote: Thu Mar 05, 2026 1:39 pm Not a question, but just random thing that doesn't maybe warrant a thread, so fuck it.

This guy does interesting stuff and this Dumble-on-a-block-for-5-bucks seems like somebody might get a kick out of it:

So cool. Thanks for sharing.

I've often wondered about the Dumble lore but couldn't handle the tone dentists who tell it.

(Not saying this video is the case ) the youtube comparisons that make grand comparisons and don't consider the whole signal chain from guitar to iphone to your ear, are wearing me out.
I can make a 70s Hiwatt into a ButtDog speaker, recorded with a Smurf 57 sound like fart - and then put a $100 guitar and a $3000 guitar through it and and claim the guitars or amp don't matter.

Did this kind of thing irk FM steve?

TylerDeadPine wrote: Thu Mar 05, 2026 7:00 pm (Not saying this video is the case ) the youtube comparisons that make grand comparisons and don't consider the whole signal chain from guitar to iphone to your ear, are wearing me out.
I can make a 70s Hiwatt into a ButtDog speaker, recorded with a Smurf 57 sound like fart - and then put a $100 guitar and a $3000 guitar through it and and claim the guitars or amp don't matter.

Did this kind of thing irk FM steve?

Yeah neither sounded particularly good to me though for sure the little amp sounds like a fun build. I was watching some german guy demo a nice eq I have in a youtube video today and he was complaining that it sounded harsh with like a 6 db high shelf boost while listening in solo. I know plugin youtube guys are brain damaged but you can do a 2 db boost with that kind of stuff and call it a day. I just know some motherfucker is going to use that video to lowball me one day.

That Australian guy’s accent sounds like curdled milk btw.

I don't know, amps be amps. For me they are both kind of personal and trivial at the same time. Different people can make different stuff work for them, so I don't really care about demos.
Playing live I mostly care about headroom, and even then I'm not super demanding about it. Enough to not distort if I don't want it to.

But I'm a bassist, so there is that. I'm sure it's different with guitar.

I could see this fun little project be useful in studio when farting about and preparing for EQD's Show Us Your Junk.

llllllllllllllllllll wrote: Thu Mar 05, 2026 7:53 pm

TylerDeadPine wrote: Thu Mar 05, 2026 7:00 pm (Not saying this video is the case ) the youtube comparisons that make grand comparisons and don't consider the whole signal chain from guitar to iphone to your ear, are wearing me out.
I can make a 70s Hiwatt into a ButtDog speaker, recorded with a Smurf 57 sound like fart - and then put a $100 guitar and a $3000 guitar through it and and claim the guitars or amp don't matter.

Did this kind of thing irk FM steve?

Yeah neither sounded particularly good to me though for sure the little amp sounds like a fun build. I was watching some german guy demo a nice eq I have in a youtube video today and he was complaining that it sounded harsh with like a 6 db high shelf boost while listening in solo. I know plugin youtube guys are brain damaged but you can do a 2 db boost with that kind of stuff and call it a day. I just know some motherfucker is going to use that video to lowball me one day.

haha yeah that's exactly it. I'm imagining the 2204 Marshall JMP coming out today, and the internet hating on it in A/B comparisons

TylerDeadPine wrote: Thu Mar 05, 2026 7:00 pm

losthighway wrote: Thu Mar 05, 2026 1:56 pm

hyljetronic wrote: Thu Mar 05, 2026 1:39 pm Not a question, but just random thing that doesn't maybe warrant a thread, so fuck it.

This guy does interesting stuff and this Dumble-on-a-block-for-5-bucks seems like somebody might get a kick out of it:

So cool. Thanks for sharing.

I've often wondered about the Dumble lore but couldn't handle the tone dentists who tell it.

(Not saying this video is the case ) the youtube comparisons that make grand comparisons and don't consider the whole signal chain from guitar to iphone to your ear, are wearing me out.
I can make a 70s Hiwatt into a ButtDog speaker, recorded with a Smurf 57 sound like fart - and then put a $100 guitar and a $3000 guitar through it and and claim the guitars or amp don't matter.

Did this kind of thing irk FM steve?

I dunno. doesn't bother me. it's just kinda saying "hey look this little project can sound pretty fucking good and be made to sound kinda like this dumb amp. no real harm done unless you are a tone chaser and tone chasers are silly people.

Kniferide wrote: Fri Mar 06, 2026 3:17 pm

TylerDeadPine wrote: Thu Mar 05, 2026 7:00 pm

losthighway wrote: Thu Mar 05, 2026 1:56 pm

So cool. Thanks for sharing.

I've often wondered about the Dumble lore but couldn't handle the tone dentists who tell it.

(Not saying this video is the case ) the youtube comparisons that make grand comparisons and don't consider the whole signal chain from guitar to iphone to your ear, are wearing me out.
I can make a 70s Hiwatt into a ButtDog speaker, recorded with a Smurf 57 sound like fart - and then put a $100 guitar and a $3000 guitar through it and and claim the guitars or amp don't matter.

Did this kind of thing irk FM steve?

I dunno. doesn't bother me. it's just kinda saying "hey look this little project can sound pretty fucking good and be made to sound kinda like this dumb amp. no real harm done unless you are a tone chaser and tone chasers are silly people.

oh totally - that specific video was fine. It's the comparison videos in general that have two tings that sound like ass, they make grand claims and crap on stuff, and none of it's controlled

TylerDeadPine wrote: Fri Mar 06, 2026 5:43 pm
oh totally - that specific video was fine. It's the comparison videos in general that have two tings that sound like ass, they make grand claims and crap on stuff, and none of it's controlled

it seems to me that YouTube would have you believe that every guitar player is looking for a "hack" to steal someone else's exact guitar sound. seems like a lot of IR based hardware is made for that too, but I don't personally know a single person that sits around trying to make their guitars sound just like some other guitar players. I know they are out there but sheesh... what a boring thing to do. that in utero guitar guy tone is mentally ill imo. I mean once he perfects Cobain's mediocre tone what's he gonna do with it? start a cover band?

I guess it's people's opinions and I can get over it being presented as fact. I prefer forum opinions!

TylerDeadPine wrote: Fri Mar 06, 2026 8:21 pm I guess it's people's opinions and I can get over it being presented as fact. I prefer forum opinions!

The main thing I take from it is that every time I hear a "Dumble" I never think it sounds special in any way, so it didn't really surprise me that the little overdrive amp circuit did the trick.