The Tanabe Zenkudo Dumble Drive is truly an inspiration machine full of verve and vibrancy

So I’ve finally hit the trigger on a Tanabe Zenkudo - Tanabe-San’s humbucker-optimised Dumble Drive variant (Dumkudo is the one for Single Coils). I thought I had snagged one of these on Ebay a few weeks back, but the seller had gotten mixed up between Dumkudo and Zenkudo - and the one he had in stock was actually the former - which is generally much more available out there in the wild than the Zenkudo variety.

I had kind of been putting this off, as I knew that this would likely be the start of another unhealthy obsession - and for sure - so impressed was I by this Zenkudo Dumble take - that I’m pretty much going to buy the whole compact lineup now! I already have a Tanabe May Queen (Brian May sounding) one on the way, and will then be tackling the Santanabe (Carlos!) which beautifully covers that fine gentleman, and finally the Sunkudo take on the Burns Buzzaround Fuzz. That quartet will indeed set me back a pretty penny!

I’m very glad I went direct - as Toshihiko Tanabe is wonderful to deal with. This is going to be a fairly dear adventure for me though as each of those pedals is priced between $330 and $350 with then $40 for delivery, and around £50-60 for customs and import charges into the UK. For me though these are definitely of worth it overall - 3 of the 4 are 3-in-1 pedals with a 3-Mode voicing switch on the side. And there is something beautifully balanced about these circuits - with maximum flavour combined with great amp-like dynamics and feel.

I got a Menatone Dumbstruck V2 at around the same time - and for sure you can dial that one in to deliver a similar tonality to the Zenkudo - but there’s something extra special about the Zenkudo Dumble voicing - I love an open and beautifully harmonic register - and the Zenkudo just sounds perfect to me every which way - it’s a breeze to dial in too for sure. I’ve not had it long enough to declare it the Champion of Champions Dumble Drive yet - but it certainly looks like it’s heading that way.

Controls - Gain, Volume, Tone (Post-Gain Passive Hi-Cut Filter), Voice (Pre-Gain Mid Frequency Filter), Mode / Voicing switch on side : Red - Marshall / Blue Dumkudo / Green Dumble.

As with all my favourite gain pedals and overdrives - there’s plenty of range across each of those dials, and the tapers are even and entirely predictable. And yes this circuit has superb dynamics too - with superior guitar volume gain cleanup - just as I like it.

I’ve kind of mostly landed on the Green Dumble voicing as the one I use the most - while the Red Marshall voicing and Blue Dumkudo voicing are equally superb. I also love that I was able to get a silver knob edition - as that version looks so slick. The Abalone facia fairly dances with different colours lighting up on the surface - it kind of reminds me of the northern lights from my homeland - as a shifting viewpoint will give you an illusion of surface shimmer as the light refracts differently off that mother of pearl surface - that plus its incredible sound delivers a pretty magical experience for me.

My own current preferred settings have Gain @ 10 o’c, Volume @ 3 o’c, Tone @ 3 o’c, and Voice at Max!

I will be doing a roundup of my dozen or so Dumble pedals capsule collection very soon. If you’re a fan of the Dumble genre of overdrives - then you definitely need a Zenkudo or Dumkudo to make your reference collection fully salient. They hype is real - these genuinely are very special pedals all-round. The beautiful fit and finish just adds to the whole experience.

The Zenkudo version I have is available for order from the Tanabe.TV website for $350 plus $40 shipping to UK / USA. Tanabe-San makes each one to order - while he turns those orders around really quickly. You need to let him know by email to tanabe@tanabe.tv - covering which model you’re interested in - and in which variety. His customer service is legendary!

These are for sure a little pricey - but so worth it!