alexclaber

On another subject having used the Big One last night and it being so damn loud, I'm not convinced that there is any reason to sell the Big Twin (2x12"+6.5") for any reason other than marketing (i.e. those that are convinced a 2x12" is better than a 1x15"). Likewise I'm not sure the Midget Twin is worth having as the Compact is so loud. Maybe, maybe not. We shall see! Alex

Actually I think I'll use a 3-way switch so you can have the tweeter full-on, attenuated to give flat response, or off. Alex

[quote name='dood' post='413105' date='Feb 18 2009, 02:43 PM']I'm fussy. I like to hear the zing of new strings and the tails of reverbs. ...and for crazy people with too many strings ;o)[/quote] You do get a lot of zing with this midrange driver. However, I have acquired a suitable tweeter and once I've measured the response of the cab with the new crossover I'll design a crossover to integrate that tweeter yet still allow you to switch it off if so desired (I can see a pair of 3-way Big Ones making an awesome small PA system). Alex

[quote name='Al Heeley' post='412031' date='Feb 17 2009, 02:51 PM'][soapbox]Cos people like me don't want to spend the extra money to pay for British salaries, health schemes, national insurance, pensions, health and safety legislation, environmental control and everything else that is killing the sad remains of the British manufacturing base [/soapbox][/quote] At the price-point of my cabs it is possible to have UK manufacturing but only by avoiding the retailer mark-up. If they were UK built and sold through shops the designs would have to be simplified and we'd have to use cheaper components to manage to make any profit at all. But if you want to compete with entry-level cabs then there is absolutely no hope of doing so without using much cheaper labour. However, British labour isn't much more expensive than other European countries but our labour laws and our governments' long-term disinterest in manufacturing makes it much easier to close down UK factories and there are fewer incentives to open UK plants. [quote name='Al Heeley' post='412031' date='Feb 17 2009, 02:51 PM'][Just got a reply back from marshall: [b]After speaking to one of our engineers they have said that re-soldering the joint could have solved the problem but if you would like to send the cabinet back through the dealer we would be happy to check it over for you to make sure it is working fine. I will pass the e-mail and photos on to the R+D department and Quality Control so the issue will be raised and looked in to[/b].[/quote] Good service! Alex

[quote name='bass_ferret' post='412790' date='Feb 18 2009, 10:11 AM']Lightweight 2x15 is about as likely as a lightweight 8x10 [/quote] I think mine should be about 50lbs - not sure if that qualifies as lightweight any more but it certainly used to! Alex

Blinding! Loud, fat, clear. I have never been able to hear myself so well before. Definitely didn't need all the power I had on tap - with one side of the PLX 3002 the amp was just cruising, much more sensitive in practice than I expected. After the gig I walked a few hundred yards to my car with my rackcase in one hand and the Big One in the other. Not exactly effortless but at least it was possible! Alex

Well if anyone wants to hear the Big One in action it looks like it'll be coming along to The Freebutt down here in sunny Brighton and aiding in the creation of The Reluctant's uniquely BritSkunk sound. It may even have the new crossover in if I'm feeling organised! Alex

[quote name='warwickhunt' post='411732' date='Feb 17 2009, 09:46 AM']Why [u]shouldn't[/u] you tune this way... it will confuse the hell out of the lazy guitar player who has to rely on your fingerboard positioning so that he knows what he's supposed to be playing.[/quote] Adding a fifth string and having no fingerboard dots seems to confuse them equally well! As does telling the saxophonist what the notes are, him transposing them in his head and writing them down, and then the guitarist following that - free jazz... Alex

So not a sub bass cab at all then! Alex

I would always avoid using the same as that being used on the kickdrum otherwise you'll end up fighting each other to be heard. The cheaper kick mics are all very mid-scooped (I mean relatively cheap, I know the D112 isn't exactly disposable!) which works great for getting thump and click without honk and mud from a kick but sucks all the growl and punch out of a bass guitar. SM57 goes pretty damn low with proximity effect if you close mic, haven't used an M88 but have heard fantastic things about it. RE20 is amazing if you're feeling bling! Alex

To give you an idea of how much difference an SMPS makes, compare your current mobile phone charger's weight to the charger you got with your first phone (assuming that was ~10 years ago). Alex

[quote name='pete.young' post='411483' date='Feb 16 2009, 08:55 PM']From my own experience, I know that an Eb Tuba will comfortably go lower than a bass guitar even in the hands of a tubahacker like me, and a Bb or C tuba (or an Eb in the hands of a PROPER player) even more so![/quote] Lowest note on an Eb tuba is Eb one semitone below that of a 4-string bass, lowest note on a Bb contrabass tuba is one semitone below that of a 5-string bass. So neither really go lower in terms of the note than a bass guitar can. However, the bass guitar is a transposing instrument where you transpose an octave so I think written scores may incorrectly suggest the tuba goes a lot lower. When it comes to the actually frequency content of the note, the horn of a tuba is far too small to support any audible output on the low note fundamentals, to an even greater degree than how an amplified bass guitar is short of low note fundamentals. Looking at the size of the horn I'd expect very little from a tuba below 100Hz whilst a decent bass guitar and amp will get down to about 50Hz. Pipe organ still rules for low frequency output! Alex

[quote name='Pookus' post='411461' date='Feb 16 2009, 08:27 PM']I am genuinely looking at some way of producing more lower frequencies. [/quote] If you build a dual 3015LF cab (as big as your 8x10") and power it with a ~1000W+ power amp then you'll get more output from 40-60Hz. If you want to go lower then the new Precision Devices neo 21" will go seriously low and still loud - again this requires another 8x10" sized cab and even more power, think 2000W+. Realistically the only way to go lower and still be loud and manageable you need to replace the entire rig with something that is aimed at going low. Alex

[quote name='bass_ferret' post='411212' date='Feb 16 2009, 03:31 PM']Sell the 8x10 and run 2 4x10 cabs.[/quote] Another option would be to rewire the 8x10" to give two separate loads but that depends on the impedance of the speakers within it. Alex P.S. A Mag 15 under an 8x10" has less chance of being heard than a mouse at an elephant symposium.

Turn your amp up and play softer when you aren't soloing. Turn your onboard volume knob down and then turn it up for solos. Add a series switch to your Jazz bass. However none of these will work well if your Big Muff is always on. How good are you at turning knobs with your foot? Alex

Grant from Toupé now often plays a four rather than a six, but tuned BEGC! One thing I rather like about having a little extra lower range is that it tends to put my guitarist and I about two octaves apart, which leaves a handy space in the middle for my vocals. Alex

[quote name='JPJ' post='410879' date='Feb 16 2009, 11:11 AM']Whilst the 4x10 + 1x15 setup remains fashionable, I have found that in a practical gigging situation, the 1x15's slower reaction time (somebody will correct me on that I'm sure, but thats what it feels like to me) coupled with the higher output of the 4x10 means the 1x15 adds little to the rig other than height.[/quote] The fifteen may sound slower because it produces less midrange than the tens and because it's further off-axis from your ears you hear still less of that midrange. Even one of my fancy fifteens will be a fair bit quieter with equal power than a good 4x10" and the generic large 1x15" cabs you'd usually pair with a 4x10" from Trace, Peavey, Eden, SWR, etc are significantly quieter than mine so as you say they add little other than height. Alex

[quote name='EBS_freak' post='410864' date='Feb 16 2009, 10:58 AM']Look at Portrait of Tracy... and then try and hit the harmonic when your index finger is on the B... then get back to me. If you can do it on a 36", you have gorilla hands. [/quote] Is that the artifical harmonic where Jaco would fret the second fret on the A string and touch the ~sixth fret for the harmonic? If so, I play that by fretting that B and then using my right hand thumb to get the harmonic node back down over the pickups. Alex

[quote name='EBS_freak' post='410663' date='Feb 16 2009, 12:47 AM']Not so much scared... but maybe my hands aren't big enough. I suppose it depends on what you need to do on the bass. I like chords and speed... Check out some of the stretches in say Portrait of Tracy... That's hard on a 34 inch scale, pushing it on a 35... and for me, would be nigh on impossible on a 36" scale.[/quote] I play a lot of chords and the extra stretch is barely noticeable. The difference in stretch between a 34" and 36" is the same as playing a given chord/riff/etc one fret lower on the 34" scale. Alex

[quote name='dannybuoy' post='363662' date='Dec 26 2008, 01:27 PM']I'd like to see the Compact vs the Trace Elliot 1153 and Orange OBC-115![/quote] Just found out that the Orange uses the Eminence Delta-15A: [url="http://www.eminence.com/pdf/delta-15a.pdf"]http://www.eminence.com/pdf/delta-15a.pdf[/url] So with the EQ set the same the Orange will be brighter than the Compact. However the Compact is 3dB more sensitive throughout the midrange so only needs half as much power to play as loud yet will handle almost five times as much power in the lows. End result is that the Compact can literally play twice as loud (10dB louder) than the Orange, or even louder than a pair of Oranges. You should be able to easily EQ that extra upper midrange and treble into the Compact but one thing you won't be able to EQ in is the added growl/distortion you'll get from the Orange at higher SPL due to the lower excursion and sensitivity - the Compact will have to be pushed to much higher SPL to get that kind of break-up. Alex

If you go back some way double basses (or their bass viol predecessors) only went down to (55Hz) A. When bass guitars first appeared they often used to be doubled with tic-tac guitar to make the lower notes audible. On Motown recordings the bass leapt to the forefront without anything doubling it for audibility and even in lowered tunings. If you move forward to AJ's work with Chaka Khan he was pulling off even lower tunings and making them work on radio-friendly pop-fare. So there is no doubt that improving technology and production know how over time has made lower notes more relevant and useful. Note that plenty of organ music goes lower than 5-string basses do, the pipe organ having long been excellent at delivering big low notes in a musical way, so lower tunings on bass guitars shouldn't be seen as a fad but as the inevitable result of technology allowing bass players to get the sound they want. The issue I have with BEAD tuning is that a 34" scale rarely results in an instrument that can make good use of that low B string throughout its range. If you dare go a bit longer the difference in tone and playability is radical. I'm one of those weirdos who having switched to 5-string a year ago actually regularly uses the entire range but such use of frets fifteen and upwards seems so uncommon that I used to find myself wondering why most didn't just tune lower rather than adding another string. However losing that G-string doesn't just lose five notes at the top of the neck, it loses you a different sound on about fifteen notes and a whole load of alternate positions. But if you really don't want any of what the G-string can give you then why bother with having another string to mute and keep in tune? Alex

When it came to replacing my beloved '87 Wariwck Streamer with something better Robbie @ RIM Custom Basses made a beast that completely exceeded all my expectations and at a fraction of the cost of any high-end Warwick let alone their custom shop models. My big hint for any five string players, which most seem too scared to take up, is to go for a 36" scale. The difference is incredible. Huge, HUGE tone! Alex

Can the ABM900 be bridged? Alex

Do you have a separate volume control for the second channel? If not you're going to struggle to get a any sub that can be heard over the 8x10". Two 3015LFs in an 8x10" sized ported cab will blow down walls even with relatively little power but in most situations if you already have an 8x10" then bridging your amp (if you can) and turning up the bass knob a bit will have a similar result. Alex

[quote name='chris_b' post='409857' date='Feb 15 2009, 02:21 AM']These guys may design good cabs, and I'd be interested to hear a Bareface[b]d[/b] cab, but [i]my[/i] cabs sound great so I disagree with your sweeping generalisation!![/quote] I wouldn't classify Bergantino or Acme as mainstream, they're both definitely a cut above! Glad the cab worked so well in the real world, I look forward to gigging it myself! Just put together the new crossover for it, looking rather fancy. Just to make 100% that I'm not going to get any warranty claims I shall be bridging my PLX 3002 into it for a real 2000W max output - if it can handle this amp at full power then it can handle anything! By the way, strange fact: it's actually a 6 ohm nominal impedance, not 8 ohm, due to the crossover design. Very easy load to drive though, nice phase angles etc. Alex