Dub Sonic is one of the few French workshops building sound system preamps. And to understand the machines, you need to know that the workshop came after the sound system, not the other way round.
A sound system before it was a workshop
Jean Rambaud builds from Les Épesses, in the Vendée, western France. The sound has been running since 2007. In 2008 he hosted the Bush Chemists, in 2009 Jah Shaka, in 2010 Aba Shanti-I — on his own wall.
The first sirens came out in 2009. The preamp followed at the end of 2010.
That explains a lot. These machines were designed by someone who used them for himself first, in front of his own wall, with the constraints that come with it.
A lineage he owns
Jean makes no secret of where his preamps come from: they are built on a JTS blueprint, fixing what bothered him about it.
That is rare — plenty of builders take from JTS without ever saying so. If you know the JTS sound, you already know roughly where you are stepping.
The range
| Product | What it is | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Dubmaster | The top of the range, made to order | around €1,850 in 5 way |
| Standard | 3 and 4 way | on request |
| Dubbox | Effects unit | €600 |
| Spacedrum PS-3 | Synare 3 replica | €230 |
| Dubsiren SE-10 | Entry level siren | €150 |
The Spacedrum PS-3 takes on the Synare 3, the electronic drum you hear on dub productions from the 70s and 80s. It is a machine you buy for one specific sound, not for versatility.
Crossover and outputs
Active filter at 24 dB per octave, kill switches per way. Crossover frequencies are customised at order time, and on the latest generation 5 way the frequency cards are swappable.
The outputs are unbalanced, and that is the thing to check before ordering. On a short cable it changes nothing. But if your preamp sits at the control position and your amps are at the wall, with twenty or thirty metres between them, an unbalanced run picks up more noise and hum. Look at your setup before you decide.
→ Balanced or unbalanced: what it actually changes
What I think of it
I have had his gear in my hands several times. I did not get on with the parametric EQs on the early versions, but that is a matter of taste. I have not tried the latest ones, and I hear good things from people who own them.
Who it is for
A sound building a fixed wall, that wants multi-way mono, and that likes being able to discuss crossover frequencies with the builder before anything gets made.
The JTS lineage is a real reference point: if you are after that sound without the British price tag or the lead times, it is the most direct route.
→ All dub preamp manufacturers
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