alexclaber

The forum has been temporarily closed for the following reason: I do not have enough time to both manage the existing business and moderate/respond on the Barefaced sub-forum. However there is already an enormous amount of information both on the website, on the sub-forum and elsewhere on basschat, talkbass etc - and if you can't find what you want there then I'm always available via pm or email but do not expect an immediate reply. I would suggest that if you have a Barefaced related question an email direct to us will probably be quicker than endless googling though! I will continue to respond to non-Barefaced queries just as before, though you may have to wait a little longer. The 'Barefaced On Tour' cabs are all being returned as they are no longer representative of the current models. Once up to date examples are ready then a new thread will be opened to arrange the logistics and for those trying the cabs to provide feedback. There is therefore no need to keep the current threads open. As I've said elsewhere the Barefaced range are not the be all and end all of bass cabs but I do believe they fill some nice niches and I do not have the time to debate hype vs non-hype with those that think I'm convinced they are the perfect bass cabs for everyone. So for the next few months I will be focusing solely on producing the best possible bass cabs in the most timely manner and hopefully finding some time to finish off the long-awaited other models. I'll be back (but I won't really be away...) Alex

I can't see any way this could happen except by a determined prod. Even really extreme excursion shouldn't be able to cause a big enough pressure change to suck a domed dustcap inwards. Alex

Just spoken to Mike and he is still alive but hasn't had internet access for a while. He'll be passing the cab onto Etienne shortly. Alex

[quote name='Adee' post='702700' date='Jan 6 2010, 12:21 PM']Bloody Hell I sent the Cab to Mike257 on the 22nd October ![/quote] I know! Alex P.S. And you still haven't posted your feedback...

[quote name='EBS_freak' post='702596' date='Jan 6 2010, 11:02 AM']275 watts into a single 12 sounds like it should be plenty...?[/quote] Plenty for what? I wouldn't recommend using an SVT3 into a single Compact in a fairly loud rock band. I don't care what the claimed wattage is, all I'm interested in is the real-world performance (which is a complex blend of peak power, sustained power, frequency response, distortion profile, transient response and so on) and the SVT3 has been considered quiet for its rating since it was launched (and back then it was a high power head). That's why I ask every customer exactly what amp they are intending to use - not what power their amp is claimed to produce. Alex

Because if you want a loud small cab with a tweeter you can have a Midget T or a DMT and the smaller woofer gives better off-axis woofer/tweeter integration. The Vintage is taller so you'll be standing more on-axis which makes the off-axis integration less of an issue. Plus there's no way to fit a tweeter to the Compact without redesigning the baffle. Alex

[quote name='Conan' post='701723' date='Jan 5 2010, 03:30 PM']What's the status of this now? How long is the waiting list?[/quote] I don't know. Nothing heard from Mike257 in a while which really doesn't do much for the Scouse stereotype... Mike, if you're out there I'd like the cab or your money, please! Alex

[quote name='phsycoandy' post='701900' date='Jan 5 2010, 05:26 PM']Sorry to be impatient, but its been over six months now since these went on tour, and they seem to get no nearer East Anglia than when they first set off, I realise we are considered a backwater but c'mon give us a fair crack! I know theyve been recalled for newer models but that only makes the wait longer, Rant over........[/quote] The original route was to have one cab go to Essex and then onto East Anglia and onwards but as Musicman20 was so keen to try a Compact I elected to send it to him first and thus East Anglia/Essex ended up the other end of the circular-ish route. Unfortunately he tried it with the infamously weedy SVT3 whose tone he doesn't even like so it was rather a pointless exercise! Alex

Just over a week left to get your final submissions in! Then we'll create a shortlist and a poll which can run during January. Who will be the happy new Midget owner? Alex

[quote name='Mandril' post='683272' date='Dec 13 2009, 07:28 PM']Wow! The T'Midget has the twitter in front of the 12 cone, right? Doesn't that bar affect the way the big cone sounds? Never seen a cab like that...[/quote] The bar is small enough not to affect output until you get into the treble where it does slightly change the dispersion pattern and then the tweeter kicks in. On another topic entirely, I'm adding quite a bit of technical info and whatnot to the website, rather than adding it as new threads/posts here. Alex

[quote name='BottomEndian' post='690725' date='Dec 21 2009, 03:44 PM']Sorry if this has been stated elsewhere, but... what does that entail? Is it just metal corners and gloss in the ports?[/quote] Kind of. The later cabs also have smaller perforations in the grill and they're all machine cut before powder coating, plus the cabs have rubber feet as well metal corners. The internal bracing and damping has continued to improve with each iteration as well. And we're being generally more anal about the cosmetic side of QC. Alex

If you'd like to contribute a review please email it to [email protected] and it'll be added to the website asap. Alex

I'm calling the three 'on tour' cabs back as they're no longer representative of the current Barefaced cabs. Can whoever has them please get in touch directly to arrange their return. Once they're back they will be updated to the new look (though obviously not the new ply!) and then sold at a discount. I will then be sending out new cabs to continue the tour. My apologies if one of the cabs was just about to reach you but I don't think it's right for people to judge the cabs based on models which are both less cosmetically satisfying and significantly heavier than the current Barefaced range. Alex

Hi Pete, You need to find the T/S parameters for the Celestions and load them into WinISD (Pro is better). Then find the max power handling and then find the port air speed for that power input, and then adjust the port area to get the air speed reasonably low. Once you're settled on a tuning frequency and port area then you can get the port lengths. Test the actual tuning vs predicted tuning with a sine wave generator and some salt on the cone - minimum movement at the tuning frequency. Don't forget to ensure the cab is sufficiently braced and damped before you reassemble it. Alex

It is rather unfair, considering the trial period if you've bought one is only a month! Come on Mike, sort it out! How many people have gigged the touring Compacts and provided feedback in the time the Big One has been out and only garnered one live review? Alex

[quote name='crez5150' post='688721' date='Dec 18 2009, 08:55 PM']Great, easy to read chart.... Any reason why there are not speaker configurations for each cab Alex?[/quote] It hadn't even dawned on me that I hadn't put them on there - which just goes to show how little notice I take of what speaker configuration a cab uses to get the end result! Alex

It's getting progressively busier here and in the interests of maximum customer service and minimum time wasted arguing on forums I have closed all the existing threads. If you have a new enquiry then please use the pm system to contact me or email us directly at [email protected] or fill out the form here: [url="http://barefacedbass.com/contact-us.htm"]http://barefacedbass.com/contact-us.htm[/url] I will not be posting (or browsing) elsewhere on basschat, I've said enough there, on Talkbass, on the Low Down Lowdown and on The Bottom Line, to give keep anyone enlightened, entertained, bored, confused or offended for weeks. As I've said elsewhere, if you own a Barefaced cab and want advice on anything to do with it (I really do mean anything - acoustics, amps, effects, basses, playing, even writing/arranging music) or if you're thinking about possibly acquiring one at some point in the next decade, then come direct to the horse's mouth! As we get feedback from more and more customers we're building up a huge amount of information on what each product is good at and where its limitations lie - when it comes to our cabs no-one else is as well informed as us (which is obviously the way it should be)! Alex

[quote name='Shockwave' post='686413' date='Dec 16 2009, 03:30 PM']Thats what i would have done, had you not say you could get a replacement to me out that same week.[/quote] You're quite right I did say that. Over-optimism on my part, sorry. [quote name='Shockwave' post='686413' date='Dec 16 2009, 03:30 PM']But you yourself in that initial reply to my e-mail after i said i had a problem with the handles said that you were sending out replacement parts to me, you also stated that you were sending the appropriate instuctions so i could fix it myself. you didnt state to just send it straight back.[/quote] Quite true, that was our original solution. However, before you received instructions from me you opened up the cab, hence the tee-nut nightmare, and the continuing confusion over what was needed to fix it. Basically one moment of forgetfulness on my part (the handle screws) has been turned into a PR disaster by a load of misunderstood communication and a lack of urgency on my part. I understand that I may seem somewhat forthright and scary but you went from cheery emails to one "haven't received the cab yet" email and then stopped replying to my emails updating you on when it was sorted, when it had been boxed up and when it had been sent. The first I heard from you that you'd even received the cab was when you sent me a link to this thread. If you aren't happy, then tell me! Feel free to tell the world if you don't like my response but give me a chance to help. Alex

A few things: As anyone that has contacted me to express an interest in buying a cab will know, I ask a lot of questions and provide a lot of advice on how to get the sound you want. That advice doesn't stop when you receive the cab, in fact it's even more important then that the customer learns how to get the optimum performance during the trial period so they can make the right decision. Maybe I don't always make that clear but that's the way it is. I've been advising bassists on how to best use their amplification, effects and instrument for a lot longer than I've been selling bass cabs, it's something I enjoy doing and something I'm good at. I'm not interested in selling bass cabs that are deemed to only sound ok but have people still use them because they're light and loud. I'm fairly unlikely to sell anyone a cab which won't reproduce the sound they want but it does happen occasionally, usually due to the perils of the english language in describing sound, which is now why I advise people to send me links to clips of bass sounds they're after. Yes, there was a serious QC problem with the first cab's handles. But I refute that the cabs are flimsy, I strongly believe that's a hangover from the longheld heavy=tough perception. And I also refute that the Vintage can't do huge lows and I know it can also put out a ton of angry dirty midrange if you put the right signal in - and that's where it helps to come directly to me for advice! Yes, everyone's got an opinion on how do get your 'perfect' sound, but when you're buying a cab from me you're also paying for my expertise - take advantage of it! And regarding the service nightmares, I don't have tons of stock sitting around and if Rob had done as I'd originally suggested and waited for me to get a replacement to him before I collected the original problem cab then he'd have not only saved himself that shipping cost but also those wasted hours fiddling with the cab himself (bear in mind that doing so would arguably void any legal warranty) and not had those many days when he didn't have a cab at all. If a similar situation ever happens again (which probability dictates it has to at some point) then I shall insist: 1. Don't try to fix it yourself. 2. Wait for a replacement to arrive. 3. Let that same courier take the original cab away. Obviously if the cab doesn't work then the replacement will be sorted much more urgently - but this cab did, it just had two dodgy handles - and it still had one good handle on the top and wheels so was perfectly usable as a stop-gap. I look forward to an update to this review when either Rob has all his money back or he is thrilled with the tone of the cab in a proper high SPL band environment. Alex

[quote name='JTUK' post='685555' date='Dec 15 2009, 06:43 PM']...despite the maker being a sponsor of this site...[/quote] I don't sponsor basschat and I was just another poster who built a DIY cab a while back. I never intended for this to be a commercial enterprise and it only happened because people wanted to buy the cabs I'd designed and built solely to fulfil my own needs! Also, I'm a little perplexed as to why bigfatbass considers it outlandish to claim that a 2x15" stack with high thermal and excursion limited power handling and high sensitivity is as loud as an 8x10". It's not exactly a small rig and it's using very potent drivers. Alex

Some time ago someone asked me how strong the cabs were despite their low weight. At the time I demonstrated that they're absolutely fine to be stood upon. Feel free to sit on your Barefaced cab. Feel free to stagedive off it if you can do so without it toppling over. What's the point of building a lightweight cab if it can't stand up to gigging? None at all! Alex

[quote name='bigfatbass' post='684861' date='Dec 15 2009, 09:22 AM']Here is a thought. I used to have a brace of the baby EBS Neo's, but they farted out so I got an EBS Neo 212. When the babies were farting the big boy was just clearing his throat. Same drivers though. Same Vd![/quote] I'm guessing that to try to get the perception of sufficient bass out of a small enclosure the 112s are tuned too high and the speakers are unloading. The 212 has 50% more volume per driver so it's a very different alignment. Knock out the lows below the tuning frequency with a highpass filter and I'd expect similar performance between two 112s and one 212. I've deliberately avoided the temptation to tune the Midget higher to make it feel more bassy - and I suspect if they were sold through shops the tuning I've chosen would actually mean none get sold because you have to boost the lows to get fatness and it's hard for people to get their head round that actually being a good thing for a tiny cab, instead they deem the cab with less apparent bottom end to be inferior. if I had £1 for every time I've heard someone compare two cabs side by side at shop/bedroom volume and make a judgement on LF performance based on such low SPL I'd definitely have a good Xmax (sic) fund. So what works best in the real real world of gigging is very different to the (un)real world of the guitar shop.* At the moment the uninformed are going by 'RMS power' and 'freq range'. Get a load of cabs together with very similar claimed specs and the variability in max output will be HUGE. Get a load of cabs together with very similar Vd and there will be a difference but its going to be within a reasonable tolerance. Alex * This isn't an uncommon problem in engineering. Since the CO2 tax bands came into force manufacturers are having to skew their engine management systems to perform as well as possible on the unrealistic laboratory tests so you pay less tax but actually get worse fuel economy and performance in actual usage.

[quote name='Shockwave' post='684462' date='Dec 14 2009, 08:38 PM']I agree with Ped.[/quote] I'll keep quiet then. Email me if you want anything! Alex

[quote name='Shockwave' post='684458' date='Dec 14 2009, 08:36 PM']Just found this in an email[/quote] There you go, me being over-optimistic again on how quickly I can get a cab finished! But you do see that I said I'll get it sent so it arrives on the same day as the other cab is collected, hence zero cab-less time. Alex

Sorry, I didn't see your reply before writing my addendum! [quote name='Shockwave' post='684404' date='Dec 14 2009, 08:09 PM']As you know, i already know about the return policy, i havent made a decision yet, I guess i am mostly semi satisfied due to the experience as opposed to the actual cab itself. I do not gig very regularily so my perceieved flimsyness is not so much an issue with me. However it is my opinion which i feel other people should know if they plan to regularily gig with it.[/quote] The thing is that it isn't flimsy but I can understand why your handle and grill experience makes you think that. [quote name='Shockwave' post='684404' date='Dec 14 2009, 08:09 PM']Whilst this is true, some of the tee nuts werent securely screwed as a number of them only partially covered the wood (IE a small section of the tee nut isent secured into wood). I realised when i was unscrewing them that something was dropping out, when i started undoing them more gently, the tee nuts were still dropping out.[/quote] That's not how tee-nuts work, they act like a clamp. They aren't screwed into the wood and if you exert any more pressure on the bolt than that required for the bit to grip the head, then they will pop out. They are not fun to work with but the end result is excellent - the speaker is so firmly clamped it adds useful bracing to the baffle, like a semi-monocoque chassis car. [quote name='Shockwave' post='684404' date='Dec 14 2009, 08:09 PM']I understand that this was probably one off, Though i still question how good the handles really are. Maybe a handle that uses more then one screw per end would feel more solid?[/quote] I'm absolutely confident that you could be totally abusive with the handles the way they are normally installed and they will never have a problem. The screws that caused the problem were so tiny it's an unfortunate miracle they stayed in whilst I was putting the cab in the box. The correct screws would take a ridiculous force to pull them out. [quote name='Shockwave' post='684404' date='Dec 14 2009, 08:09 PM']I havent ranted it that much admittedly. Somehow i was under the impression that you ran in the speakers during testing before sending them out.[/quote] I did on the early cabs but stopped when I realised it just took way too much time. I think it mentions this on the website but if it doesn't then I'll correct that. There are a ton more lows in there, it will open up a lot but it will take much longer to run in than a Compact unless you play it twice as loud. [quote name='Shockwave' post='684404' date='Dec 14 2009, 08:09 PM']I'll make a decision at somepoint soon. Thanks for getting back to me, i was already aware i can return it because of the return policy. What is your position based on the partial refunds? Should people pay for the return of a cab that is not fit for purpose? Or is shipping refunded? On this assumption, if i returned this cab, wouldnt i get shipping refunded twice as well as the full price of the cab?[/quote] My position is that I want every buyer to be happy with the experience, whether they keep the cab or not. In this case if you return the cab then I'll make sure you suffer zero financial loss for the whole experience as it was not what a normal Barefaced customer enjoys. Cheers! Alex