Dumble & Mercury Magnetics

[Funkalicousgroove]

Paul was the Marketig guy for Groove Tubes before he went to work at MM, You can also thank him for all the made up hype there as well-


Who is more foolish? The Fool, or the fool who follows him........

[ayan]

Paul was the Marketig guy for Groove Tubes before he went to work at MM, You can also thank him for all the made up hype there as well-


Who is more foolish? The Fool, or the fool who follows him........

Eeerrr... The Fool on the Hill?

I have to say that MM iron looks good, they seem to be well made. However, as far as sound goes, I can't say that I have been impressed considering the price difference. The Dumble style amp whose sound I like the best happens to be one of my own builds -- OK, I am not known for my modesty -- and the only one in which I used what some have put down in public: NSC generic Marshall style iron. I have more expensive iron in other amps of mine and yet, for all I know, the NSC may be the reason the "special" one is unequaled in tone.

Gil

[paulster]

It's well made iron, no doubt. The trouble is the marketing hype, BS and (as a consequence) price associated with them.

They're like the Two Rock of transformers. IMO.

[BobW]

MM buys a lot of ad space in Vintage Guitar, GP, etc. Hammond and Heyboer, not so much. Since a lot of musicians thrive on hype, myths, and wives tales, it makes marketing sense for MM to do that. I am happy enough using Heyboers and Hammonds. So unless someone has A/Bd the transformers using the same amp, then the comparison is apples to oranges. I doubt the extra $$$ is really worth a MM, and would prefer my friend John Cerniak of EMC transformers build a custom for the same or less $$$. On the other hand, I would pay more $$$ for a Dynaco, having used them in past builds.

my .02

[talbany]

MM definitely caters more t word the amp manufactures than the do it your-self type builders...OEM pricing is comparable to Heybor and cheaper than the Hammond's in many cases...My opinion is they don't really want to cater to the little guys..I am sure they have their reasoning behind this..Maybe it's more of a hastle for them who knows...


Tony VVT

[Funkalicousgroove]

How so? Their engineering charges are throught the roof, and FORGET a 1-off, 20 pc pricing is still more expensive than single piece pricing from Heyboer, To me having shiny bells and the lam stack wiped clean after potting simply does not justify the additional cost, usually at the expense of tone-

[talbany]

having shiny bells and the lam stack wiped clean after potting simply does not justify the additional cost, usually at the expense of tone-

Sure the shiny bells certainly don't justify the extra cost.... I think offering a 10 year warranty to our customers is a huge + and worth the extra bucks per for me... The part #'s is kind of cool..I am perfectly pleased with the tone of all their transformers and so far have not heard a flat one yet..
Have you ever heard a MM after it's been in an amp for 3 or 4 years...If the customer wants to save a few bucks I give em the option.. They usually opt for the MM just for the warrenty


Tony

[Funkalicousgroove]

Does that warranty cover Tube failure, improper installation, or mis-use? Because otherwise if it works now, it'll work in 10 years-

[JD0x0]

Does that warranty cover Tube failure, improper installation, or mis-use? Because otherwise if it works now, it'll work in 10 years-

+1 tranny's are hard to blow unless youre EVH and you run a 40 watt bandmaster straight into the front of your cranked marshall.

And with the money you save not buying the MM you could easily get a new set if yours blew and still pay less than you did if you bought the MM

[talbany]

And with the money you save not buying the MM you could easily get a new set if yours blew and still pay less than you did if you bought the MM

Maybe for you.. But not for me!!


Tony

[Funkalicousgroove]

Do you get some deal beyond the advertised pricing? I've had them quote for me numerous times over the years, and it's always been such that even at their maximum quantity discount the Iron is still 2x the price of Heyboer

[talbany]

Much of it depends on the tranny...But PM Me!!..We'll compare..I know that my 25 piece price is not that much more than (certainly not 2X) what someone would pay for an off the shelf at Mojo or CE...Maybe Heybor has hooked you up with a great deal I don't know!! I've always delt with MM cause I want the 10 years..really this type of thing shouldn't be here since it really doesn't apply to most builders on a DIY form.. Lets move on..


Tony

[BobW]

It does apply to this post,

Dumble & Mercury Magnetics

[collinsamps]

Tony if you get that pricing good on ya. I'm in the same boat with Brandon and have used exactly seven MM's in the past five years as a result. Even if I did get that pricing, I still can't support a product that is 98.99% hype driven and priced like they are.

FWIW, I came across a blown MM Tremolux "tone clone" doing a repair and tore it down to compare it to an oem woodward schumacher unit that had also gone bad. It's beyond me how anyone can "clone the tone" using completely different lamination thickness and metals, bobbin construction methods & materials(plastic), paper interleaving types and thickness, and wire gauges and types.

IMHO MM uses the matchless, badcat, star etc. proven method of mass media blitz and the theory that if it costs more it must be better

I'd put a magnetic components at 1/8th the price up against anything they make in a blind taste test on any given Sunday. I'm at the 3rd revision of my ODS model and getting close to a prototype but it will not have MM's on it for sure.

Oh.........and I can't end this without bringing up how many people are replacing ORIGINAL vintage fender & marshall iron with MM "tone clones" and then selling the originals on ebay for LESS than the MM's cost them. That to me is the text book definition of there's one born everyday.

[talbany]

Tony if you get that pricing good on ya. I'm in the same boat with Brandon and have used exactly seven MM's in the past five years as a result. Even if I did get that pricing, I still can't support a product that is 98.99% hype driven and priced like they are.

FWIW, I came across a blown MM Tremolux "tone clone" doing a repair and tore it down to compare it to an oem woodward schumacher unit that had also gone bad. It's beyond me how anyone can "clone the tone" using completely different lamination thickness and metals, bobbin construction methods & materials(plastic), paper interleaving types and thickness, and wire gauges and types.

IMHO MM uses the matchless, badcat, star etc. proven method of mass media blitz and the theory that if it costs more it must be better

I'd put a magnetic components at 1/8th the price up against anything they make in a blind taste test on any given Sunday. I'm at the 3rd revision of my ODS model and getting close to a prototype but it will not have MM's on it for sure.

Oh.........and I can't end this without bringing up how many people are replacing ORIGINAL vintage fender & marshall iron with MM "tone clones" and then selling the originals on ebay for LESS than the MM's cost them. That to me is the text book definition of there's one born everyday.

.I wouldn't go so far as to say 98% hype...Some of the best sounding amps I.ve built have MM iron in them...I do agree that if your not at their 25 piece price I wouldn't go there either..Which is why I said what I said about them being more manufacturer friendly...

Tony