I guess I have a couple of comments. First is that the linked clip isn't really very good on a few different levels. I had never heard of this thing before, but after looking there are a few clips out there that sound much more interesting.
So nice to see you here again, Aristotle!
When I said 'that' sounds nothing like a Dumble, I meant 'that clip'. Haven't tried the pedal.
I had about a half-dozen Two-Rocks of various iterations. As with the Dumble amps, each sounded a little different; the amps I had bore a strong family resemblance to the Dumble tone I heard live.
The second channel on the T-R Onyx Sig models (I had versions 1 and 2, as well as the original Onyx) did a very Dumble-like thing. I wasn't really going for a Dumble sound in particular, but I did like the OD on those amps.
They compressed, sustained and sang in a unique and very Dumble way, and supported the note (for lack of a better description), both clean and overdriven. Very easy amps to play through, even though they were extremely touch-sensitive and 'fast' for lack of a better word.
To my way of thinking - certainly everyone thinks differently about that particular sound and what is or isn't desirable about it - that compression as the note sustains is the most wonderful thing about the Dumble style amps.
Just my two cents here:
Speaking only for myself, the most desirable quality of the Dumble sound that's fairly unique to that style of amp isn't the frequency response or other tonal characteristics, as much as the quality of that compression and the beautiful way it hangs onto the note.
I think of Dumble vs other amps akin to the way an LA-2A grabs and hangs onto a note in a very different way from, say, a VCA or FET compressor. They all compress, but they also all do different things to the sound that aren't necessarily about frequency response, or tone, if you will.
To be clear, I'm
not saying the Dumble compresses like an LA-2A, merely pointing out that compressors have very different characteristics.
An LA-2A is wonderful for melodic instruments and vocals because of the transparent, un-grabby way it engages the compression and supports the note, and this is of course different from a Dumble's compression that's clearly audible.
In any event, not many amps I've played through have done this, in my experience, and I've yet to encounter a pedal that does it. For me, that compression is the most important quality these pedals lack.
Back when TAG was all about the Dumble sound, he used to say it 'squeezes the note' in a particular way; I think he was right about that, and of course, he was talking about the compression (TAG got me into trying Two-Rock).
. This weekend's project is replacing the still functioning but "stressed" components. I can say Siglent has outstanding customer service as they replaced a board for free under warranty.
