The Overtone HRM is based originally on a Fender design and this design was modified/begged/borrowed and mutilated in to a world class amp by one 'Mr Dumble'. The only problem? Well firstly find 'Mr Dumble' and then convince him (yes you read that correctly) to make an amp for you - that is - after you have sent him your music AND only if he likes what you do will he proceed - so legend goes. The next problem.. you need lots of money - the man did/does not make cheap amps. Lastly - just don't ask when the amp will be ready - or you just might never get it. Some people can be picky that way. It is claimed there are only around 200 original amps or so in existence.

Since those heady days starting in the 60's and ending (so they say) in the mid 90's things have changed. If you want to buy one of those old Dumble amps be prepared to pay upwards of $50,000 today and there's no guarantee that the amp you buy will sound right for you. You could 'tweak' it up a little - that is, AFTER you decipher what Mr Dumble used for parts (they are well hidden under a pile of gooey mess designed to stop you looking) and then of course the value of your prized possession has just taken a tumble (no not dumble) so I guess it's not a good idea after all.

Now here's 2010 and onwards. Things have changed again. Mr Dumble (it is alleged) no longer makes his amps and now makes guns (really - so be careful) it's going to be hard to buy an original - even if you did rob the bank. Now there are a number of companies that have successfully made a 'Dumble' clone (to varying levels). Remember the originals were all different and custom made by probably one of the worlds best amp guys - so the clone's cannot all be all on the nail.

But one product stands out for me (and it's design is arguably the closest you can get to one of those originals) - and guess what - it only costs a fraction of the original. There's time marching on. But an advantage is that you can 'tweak' your Overtone HRM until it's right for you - and you will not probably lose any money! What a fantastic move forward.

Of course, this type of product will remain in the folk lore of the musicians world for a long time and there is no doubt that the guy you never heard of (Mr Dumble) will become even more legendary because now everyone is talking about him in a nice way and his tube amplifier works remain some of the finest the world has ever seen.

You can buy the Overtone HRM from a company called 'Ceriatone' who reside in Malaysia either as a kit or ready made from them. This website shows how you buy a kit, how you build it, how you test it but it does not tell you how to play it - I guess if you have made it this far then you probably know how to do that already!

There are many musicians who use Mr Dumble's amps even today, and of course there are many more that use various 'clone' amplifiers (amps) from various makers - but by finding this site you have probably found the best 'Dumble' clone in the world in my opinion.

On this site are audio samples, photos, documents and most importantly a video representation of exactly what I did to  build and test the overtone HRM from Ceriatone. My version was based on 240 volts so if you follow what I did please remember that mine may well be different than yours. Mine is bigger....

The Complete Video as shown on this site is available to buy in the form of a DVD. Just email me from the contact page HERE and I'll get back to you with how you pay. For the UK, shipping is £2.00 but anywhere else will cost more....

One last thing....

SAFETY WARNING: If you visit this site I accept absolutely no liability whatsoever if you either buy a kit or an amp of any kind and subsequently kill yourself. There are lethal voltages in all tube (valve) amp circuits. If you do not know what you are doing then don't do it! Failure to heed my warnings could be the end of the amp, or you, or both! After all - you will not be coming this way again soon if you get things wrong. Check out more safety information before the build pages but as I said - I take absolutely no responsibility for your safety and I advise you not to proceed if you are not trained in electronics and how to handle high voltages without getting killed.

If you don't understand something - then get someone involved who truly does.

Please enjoy this site, but remember that all content that I have developed remains copyright A B Mckenzie 2009. Why not visit one of my other websites www.tonymckenzie.com and find out more about me.