News and Tips

An Update from Toob Inventor and Builder Markku Pietinen

Welcome to our new website! We have moved over to the WordPress platform, which is easier to update than the previous version. New models are finally in! The new site also signals that we are marching on.

2024 did not result in overall sales growth but contained positive signals. While some resellers retreated, sales to direct customers advanced. This, together with positive exposure in social media, attests to growing product awareness. In direct sales, USA and the UK tied for the first place, followed by Finland. Fourteen other countries were represented. As before, professional musicians and performing amateurs were well represented.

When the overall market is hesitant, customers are more likely to make complementary rather than replacement investments. This explains why Metros spearheaded our flying start into 2025. Introduced three years after the original Toobs, they now account for almost 50% of unit sales so far. In 2025, we will take steps to reinvigorate the 10”-12” Toobs, especially the bass line.

We are committed to developing the operation. I have the pleasure of welcoming professional bassist and passionate woodworker Jukka Nuuttila  as a valuable addition to our team. However, to ensure continuity in the long term, the search for a successor or partner goes on. If you are interested in the whole business, do not hesitate to contact me. Succession may take several forms: outright divestment, partnership, even licensing/franchising. This is not the place to get into details, but I’ll be happy to send further information on a confidential basis, subject to a non-disclosure agreement (NDA). Thank you for your interest! 

Markku Pietinen
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‍toobspeakers@gmail.com
‍+358 500 703 370 

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Playing with an upright cab

Our 12J, 12F, 10B, 12B, 6.5BG+ and 6.5FR II+ models, as well as most telescopic versions, come with removable UpBeat legs for playing in the vertical position. While we were aware of Johnny Smith’s “Fountain of Sound”, a huge 1957 Ampeg amp tilted on its back, we consider the upright legs another Toob innovation. First photos of our upright prototypes date from 2010.

Why upright? The concept makes the cab more omnidirectional: you hear yourself better, the band hears you better, and nobody in the audience is on the fire line. Works best if there’s a reflecting ceiling above – 3-5 m (10′-16′) seems ideal. 

For double bass players, the solution raises the speaker closer to the instrument’s sound holes and allows the acoustic and electric sound to blend harmoniously. For guitar, applications range from orchestra pit work and big band comping to enhancing acoustic instruments and playing jazz in intimate situations. 

‍TRY!