Small gigging cab recommendations to pair with Little Mark 2

[cameltoe]

Hi All,

Up until a month or so ago I was gigging fairly regularly, using an Orange Terror and TC RS212 for gigs (which I kept at the PA lock up) and a Little Mark Blackline 250 and Eden EX110 for a home rehearsal rig.

The band has now taken a huge backward step and I'm not sure when I'll be out gigging again, if at all.

Therefore, I'm reducing my gear to just the bare essentials and would like a rig I can keep at home for practice without taking up too much space, but which can still cut it at small gigs, and larger gigs with PA support.

The Orange and Blackline have made way for a Little Mark 2, and the Eden and TC cabs will be offered for sale to be replaced with what I hope to be a small footprint, lightweight cab that I can carry up to the spare room on the top floor, that won't take up too much space, but that will give me a bit of presence and depth in the onstage mix and keep up with the drummer.

We have PA support by way of 2 active 18's, so it doesn't need to fully project out front, but I don't want to be fighting the mix on stage as I don't want to use fold back, so it needs to be capable.

I've looked into some of the single 12's like the GK Neo, Aggie, GB etc but I really have no experience of them, and whether they are suitable. There is also the mighty BF Midget of course.

There is also the compact 2x 10 route, like the Markbass Traveler or BF Retro 2x 10. However these are usually more expensive.

Budget wise I am looking to release some cash as well so I'd be looking to buy from the marketplace and am at the mercy of what comes up there to be honest.

Thanks in advance

[Japhet]

A while back I picked up a GK 2x10 cab. I think it was an MBE210. I wanted something I could leave at our rehearsal room. It's incredibly light and very loud and handles 400W. Easily keeps up with drummer, guitar and vocals and would have no hesitation gigging it. It was also cheap - I think around £150. Worth a look if you can find one.

Edited March 8, 2017 by Japhet

[Happy Jack]

Try a Barefaced OneTen before you make a decision.

It's a ludicrously competent cab for the size.

[chris_b]

Small, light, loud but still sounds good at low volumes and capable of being gigged on its own. . . Super Compact or Super Midget.

There's also a Bergantino AE210 in the classifieds. Not so light but cheaper and still one of the best 210 cabs out there.

[yorks5stringer]

I picked up a mint MB NYC121 cab to run with my MB CMD121P. It suits the amp ( which is effectively a LMIII) and was £250.

[Conan]

One of the older models of Barefaced Compact would suit your requirements perfectly. Usually around the £300 mark on here too.

I run a Little Mark 2 through a generation 2 Compact and I'm very happy with the tone, volume and portability.

Edited March 8, 2017 by Conan

[Paul S]

Barefaced Supercompact gets my vote - compared to the Midget and 110 it has a more rounded quality to it.

[LewisK1975]

[quote name='Paul S' timestamp='1488983244' post='3253483']
Barefaced Supercompact gets my vote - compared to the Midget and 110 it has a more rounded quality to it.
[/quote]

Only thing to be wary of with the Supercompact is that it's somewhat limited in the top end.

Essentially the Littlemark's treble control (10khz) has little or no effect going through a supercompact (max 4khz).

[Kevin Dean]

I have the Barefaced Super Compacts But I prefer the Ashdown RM 1 x12" , They have more low end thud & a tweeter , The Compacts have more of a Hi Fi as they are supposed to I think ? best you try some & compare .

[Lw.]

May as well add the TKS S112 to the "to try" list - relatively small footprint when stood vertically & only weighs 10kg.

They don't have the outright volume of some of the other cabs mentioned but arguably have nicer tone. They can look pretty too.

[cameltoe]

Thanks all.

I've had a Compact in the past and I didn't really enjoy it- I was using it with the Orange and I think it may have been a bit of a mismatch perhaps, but I could never get a sound I was happy with from it. It was also a touch too transparent sounding for me.

I'd be willing to look at it again though.

Would the Midget be up to the task at all?

[Sparky Mark]

Another vote for the Markbass NY121P. It is a great match with the LM2

[Kevin Dean]

[quote name='Sparky Mark' timestamp='1489001569' post='3253667']
Another vote for the Markbass NY121P. It is a great match with the LM2
[/quote]I only stopped using them because I found out that the speakers were made out of pasta .

[ebenezer]

I use a tc rs 112, both single and in a pair with a lm 2 and it sounds great

[Matt P]

i'm running a pair of Gen2 barefaced Midgets with a Markbass F1, i've actually played a couple of gigs where i forgot to plug in the bottom cabinet, i didn't actually notice while playing! we're a pretty noisy pub band with just vocals through the PA, I've never run out of volume. So a single Midget can keep up.

Matt

[Telebass]

Don't forget the Traveler 121H. Small, light, loud.

[Lozz196]

I was very impressed with the Super Midget when doing a cab shootout at the SE Bash a couple of years ago. An amazing amount of sound from such a tiny little cab.

[JazzBass4624]

I run my LM3 through a Vanderkley 112ext. It's loud enough for the kind of gigs I do ( pubs, receptions etc.).
I also use it for home practice. For my taste it gives sufficient punch and low end so I'm very happy with this combination.

[chris_b]

[quote name='cameltoe' timestamp='1488989404' post='3253550']
I've had a Compact in the past and I didn't really enjoy it- I was using it with the Orange and I think it may have been a bit of a mismatch perhaps, but I could never get a sound I was happy with from it. It was also a touch too transparent sounding for me.
[/quote]

Seems to me that if someone don't like the sound of a transparent cab then they're actually saying they don't like the sound of their amp. IMO a great amp would sound just that through a transparent cab.

This is the trouble with neutral sounding gear, it puts the spotlight on the other parts of the signal chain. The stuff we might never have clearly heard because it was masked by other more coloured sounding gear. Moving to amps and cabs that sound very clean, with a well defined sound often bring out the comment, "I can now hear all my mistakes".

It doesn't always mean that we don't sound good. But we do sound different and probably uncomfortable because we feel our playing is more exposed.