alexclaber

Apart from some Hartke drivers every bass cab on the market uses paper cones (some have a modicum of other fibres in the mix). It's a very good material for high sensitivity 'full-range' drivers. Alex

[quote name='alexisonfire' post='564245' date='Aug 9 2009, 04:58 PM']So it might be worth waiting for another payday to maybe get something like an SVT3? Sorry if I sound stupid ... What do I need to look for in a cab, instinct tells me that a 4X10 is what I should go for ... I used to have an Ashdown EB180, and I used to put the muddy tone down to having one 15" speaker.[/quote] I've always thought the SVT3 is rather blah - too little power for the cost/weight. The SVT2/4/5/6/8 are where it's at for Ampegs IMO but they are damned expensive new. If I was spending that much money on an amp I'd be looking at the various lighter weight and more high performance options from the less well known brands like Genz Benz, Markbass, Gallien Krueger, etc. For less money but more weight the Hartke LH500 has to be considered. For around £500 you can have an amazing amp head new, and less secondhand, especially heavier choices. As with most speaker/acoustics related things, instinct is not to be trusted as most acoustic engineering is counter-intuitive. The muddy tone was due to the EB180 having a [b]cheap[/b] 15" speaker. If you want to try a good 15" join the 'Barefaced On Tour' schedule! [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?s=&showtopic=53414&view=findpost&p=557968"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?s=&sho...st&p=557968[/url] Alex

[quote name='silddx' post='564284' date='Aug 9 2009, 05:48 PM']I would be SO hesitant to go the custom route, unless, as others have said, I knew precisely what I wanted.[/quote] It took me almost as long to work out my custom bass as it did to design my first bass cab. Literally hundreds of hours! A key thing for me was that I'd found a bass that I loved in so many ways (my '87 Warwick Streamer) but there were just a few things I wanted to change about it. In the end I went further than that, going with an extra string and a longer scale, which itself took a load more investigation into string spacing, neck dimensions, string tension, etc. If you're starting from a blank sheet of paper there is no hope of getting what you want, it's too much of an art and not enough of a science for that! Alex

[quote name='Born 2B Mild' post='563887' date='Aug 8 2009, 11:42 PM']Alex, you are technically spot on, about disconnecting the speakers. This mere (and perhaps lazy) mortal would rather just plug in the headphones, either at home or whilst configuring EQ before a gig, without having to remove two speaker connections, as well. However, it's not a deal breaker and there's far more things to worry about in life [/quote] Indeed. It's just that I know I sometimes like to monitor with headphones when recording whilst sending a low volume signal to my cab for miking, hence if the headphones cut out the speaker outs I wouldn't be able to do that. CK, why would you want to make such a tiny amp rack size? What's the point of putting something this small in a rack? With the performance of this and the Markbass equivalents I shall not be bothering with Barefaced amps for some time! Alex

[quote name='Born 2B Mild' post='563872' date='Aug 8 2009, 11:18 PM'][b]Cons[/b] [list] [*]Tiny feet, meaning it doesn't sit well on top of cabs with strap handles + this can't help cooling [*]Noisy fan [*]Headphones socket doesn't cancel speaker output [/list][/quote] Feet have to be surprisingly tall to clear a strap handle, which would increase the total thickness. The fan's much quieter than on my QSC PLX (unsurprisingly!) Why would you want the headphone socket to switch off the speaker output? Just unplug the speaker! Good amp isn't it?! Alex

I would only recommend getting a custom bass built if you really really really know what you want, which certainly isn't the case for most judging by the posts I see on here! Alex

Now I would say this but your live tone and volume is at least as much dependant on your cab as on your amp, so if you're planning to upgrade I'd think about both at once. Am not hugely convinced by the price:performance ratio on the less expensive Ampegs. Alex

That's the kind of design that can only be made to work really well by using onboard DSP and amplification. It doesn't actually crossover each driver so that none of them overlap but it uses clever trickery to made sure that where output does overlap that its's phase coherent. The performance is reflected in the price! Alex

[quote name='chris_b' post='563414' date='Aug 8 2009, 12:16 PM']This is a very old argument. Maybe we should believe the theory that 410's shouldn't work, but in practice some work very well so base your purchases on your ears and experience.[/quote] Theory doesn't say that a 4x10" shouldn't work. It merely says that two 2x10"s stacked vertically works better. If you've only ever heard 4x10" cabs then you'd be none the wiser. There is an argument to say that the poor off-axis response of 4x10"s actually helps to cover up the deficiencies of the speakers often used. Alex

Even a high power amp shouldn't draw that much continuous current unless there is a fault or you are using a very low current power lead. A hi-fi amp of mine did a similar thing years ago which was related to transformer failure. Alex

Can we get some measurements for these actions? How many mm at the 12th fret? One man's high is another man's low! Alex

[quote name='Protium' post='563058' date='Aug 7 2009, 08:52 PM']The manufacturers of 4x10's must be doing something right or else no one would buy them...[/quote] It's not like a sea change is being suggested - just a different shape. It's a bit like the hordes of cars running on low profile, 17"-19" wheels because they look good and the market likes that - but they're ride and handle better on a smaller wheel. Marketeers 1, Engineers 0. Alex

Though looking back to happy days, has any hearing loss occurred since then?! Alex

[quote name='sdgrsr400' post='562557' date='Aug 7 2009, 09:16 AM']Just as a matter of interest, how do you manage powering all those amps at the venue? If you fired up all of them you'd surely blow a few fuses?[/quote] Should be fine as long as we don't all want a cup of tea at the same time. Alex

[quote name='4000' post='563000' date='Aug 7 2009, 07:00 PM']One thing I'll add; the less playing I do (by that I mean rehearsing & gigging), the more fussy/obsessive I get about every aspect of my gear, set up especially. The more I'm actually playing (in the real sense, not just noodling at home), the less it all matters.[/quote] Absolutely! Like I said earlier - tone and string excursion are inextricably linked. Bigger lows require bigger excursion unless you lighten your touch. String excursion is inversely proportional to tension so heavier strings or higher tuning or longer string length will help. If you don't want higher action then you'll have to lighten up with your plucking hand. And I'm not suggesting you go to high action - there's a lot of different actions in between ridiculously low and high! Alex

If you were closer I'd lend you my bass for a couple of weeks. Some time on that and the Ken Smith will feel effortless! Alex

[quote name='Josh' post='562938' date='Aug 7 2009, 05:47 PM']I've only had my Smith for barely a week and I'm just about to ready to list it up for sale. While tonewise I can't fault it and love what I can get from it, but after constantly resetting the action over the last few days(Both the neck and bridge) I can not find my ideal and preferred set up. To clarify, my ideal set up is a stupidly low action, with minor buzz and the tension is usually quite low because I dig in a lot, and as such I compensate by playing a full step down. Ironically, my £200 Squier has this action and I achieved it with ease, yet on a £3000 boutique bass I can't seem to get anywhere near it without seriously choking a lot of the notes.[/quote] Hang on. You dig in a lot, you have stupidly low action, tune down a full step and thus have very low tension, and you're complaining about notes choking off? You can't have it all! One of the perils of expensive neck-thru basses is that they have more sustain in the low harmonics, which equals more string excursion for a given input, and as string excursion tends to rotate with sustain it's in the sustain phase that the strings start hitting the frets. With a cheap bolt-on bass those lower harmonics last for much less time, hence the string doesn't have time to rotate and start hitting the frets. Raise the action and persevere. You may find that you come to like having a marginally higher action, if not the bass will probably have appreciated if you bought it used. Alex P.S. I see your bass is a bolt on, in which case the fundamental sustain issue shouldn't be as extreme, so it should be easier to tweak in.

I think it gets a lot easier once you're all out of your twenties! So do you write all your songs from jams? Alex

Two 2x10"s will sound the same as one 4x10" but be easier for you to hear due to the greater height, whilst your bandmates and audience will hear a much more consistent sound due to the better off-axis response. Same tone but more useful dispersion pattern. Alex

[quote name='richrips' post='562748' date='Aug 7 2009, 01:13 PM']2.does the weight of the cabinet affect the sound?i'm a little dubious about the abilities of a lightweight cab to throw air as convincingly as a heavy cab?which leads to my next question...[/quote] No. It's stiffness/rigidity that matters, not weight. [quote name='richrips' post='562748' date='Aug 7 2009, 01:13 PM']3.does the thickness and weight of the ply used make much difference? what ply to use? where is a good place to buy a suitably light/stiff ply as opposed to the ultra heavy peavey ply?[/quote] With any thinner lighter ply you will need to add bracing to get sufficient stiffness. You'll need to hunt round your local suppliers to find decent ply, much of it is pretty awful quality. [quote name='richrips' post='562748' date='Aug 7 2009, 01:13 PM']4. is there much merit in a half-ported/half-sealed 4x10 cab? i've heard sealed=punchier and ported=potentially more low end?[/quote] No, very bad idea as response of each half will be out of phase in the lows and a speaker that likes ported cabs rarely likes sealed cabs. [quote name='richrips' post='562748' date='Aug 7 2009, 01:13 PM']5. are there any specific light-weight cab plans out there? if not which plans are going to suit me best?[/quote] Yes. Here: [url="http://www.billfitzmaurice.net/"]http://www.billfitzmaurice.net/[/url] and here: [url="http://www.talkbass.com/wiki/index.php/Fearful%E2%84%A2_12/6_&_15/6"]http://www.talkbass.com/wiki/index.php/Fea...12/6_&_15/6[/url] No 4x10"s because those designers believe that a 4x10" isn't that great an idea and I'd be inclined to agree. I'd look at the 15/6. Alex

Can you find Hybrio 9Vs? NiMH have longer life under heavy load than alkalines (hence good for digital cameras etc) but most self-discharge within a month or two - the Hybrios don't (that's why they can be sold fully charged) which means you can use them in low load situations too. Alex

[quote name='dood' post='562633' date='Aug 7 2009, 10:31 AM']Did I ask you about an ETA for a tweetered Big One? My memory seems to be failing me![/quote] Couple of weeks! Alex

[quote name='Mr.T' post='562652' date='Aug 7 2009, 10:52 AM']We can/could get so hung up on attaining perfection that we lose the 'soul'.[/quote] So true. Get it in the first few takes or give up! Strange though it might sound, I am totally not a gear tweaker. I tend to put my rig in the place that seems intuitively best for me, plug in and play. Add some bass boost if necessary and that's it. Fastest soundchecks ever! To veer off on another topic entirely, if you're thinking about upgrading the electronics in your bass, be avant garde and just get some really nice passive pickups and either vol/pan/tone, vol/vol/tone, vol/switch/tone. Throw your onboard preamps away - they might sound more impressive and exciting in the shop but once the music starts I'm no longer convinced that they're a bonus. Alex

[quote name='dood' post='562602' date='Aug 7 2009, 10:02 AM']If I added two or more drivers in to a simulation, the HF roll off extended upward, yet the response curve remained relatively flat still.. or in some cases actually flatened out more. - the SPL etc obviously went up too. So using a slightly backward method - and I am thinking a rather expensive way too - If you added more mid drivers but padded them back (and fettled with the crossover) you would indeed keep that nice smooth midrange treble response, that in theory wouldn't go harsh like a tweeter does at high SPL's?[/quote] Sadly you can only use WinISD for low frequency modelling where the cone is totally pistonic, so unfortunately adding more midranges doesn't extend the response upwards, in fact it narrows the dispersion and increases the lower midrange so will make the response seem less extended in the highs. There are really three reasons that a tweeter sounds harsh at high SPL - one is a lack of sensitivity/power handling and/or a crossover that doesn't protect the tweeter well enough from lower frequencies, one is the gap in response between woofer and tweeter making the tweeter sound disembodied and making any distortions more obvious, and one is the amplifier running out of power and the tweeter showing that up. Hopefully both my betweetered designs will address that - T'Big One will have the tweeter crossed over very high so it takes over where the midrange stops whilst T'Midget/Double Midget will have the tweeter crossed over lower but with a very steep slope and a coaxial mounting to integrate the sources, whilst the high sensitivity of all three cabs should minimise the chance of amp clipping. Alex