LawrenceH

I've sprayed Halfords acrylic and plastikote over 2-pack poly (factory) with no problems whatsoever

[quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1332796210' post='1593361'] Of course, there are certain problems at times, but maybe it is because I am too old to put up with it. If I can't do it properly from my POV, and that means as good a stage sound as poss then I'd pretty soon not bother. don't talk to me about my last gig ha ha !!! [/quote] That's the problem though, there's always that odd gig, apparently even when you're Muse! I agree it's so much better to have good (not just 'passable') sound, but I feel from a personal pride point of view that I need to be able to cope with those other times, plus if I know I can it makes me more relaxed whatever the gig, if that makes sense. I'll still look for the best sound I can get in any given situation though.

[quote name='Ou7shined' timestamp='1332411381' post='1587805'] Here's a good way to kill 5 minutes... [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TPfR9uH8vlg[/media] [/quote] That's fascinating - they check each wire under a stereo microscope?! Presumably that's just a single short sample from a really long wire or the'y need about 1000 times more workers looking into microscopes than at any other point in the factory!

My Markbass F1 seems pretty good, though I've heard reports of them developing clicks. With a lot of amps, as much as quality it's going to come down to age/usage since the bearings will unavoidably wear over time, if I had a noisy fan I'd probably look for a replacement part, preferably spend a bit more on one using nice bearings - still shouldn't be too pricey

[quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1332794082' post='1593303'] That is why the Muse train wreck went on for as long as it did.. [/quote] Interesting, not being fussed either way about Muse I've not heard of that - sounds painful/amusing. Perhaps an example of how, if you're used to excellent sound, then problems will throw you more as it's not an aspect of performing that you've rehearsed? I think bands that are more used to crap sound work out different ways of dealing with cueing issues etc., I've definitely worked with a real range of people in that respect I find gigs with audibility problems can be really hard work, and I don't enjoy them as much as a result, but I still want to be able to manage at them because on some circuits it's an unavoidable reality.

Does putting together a custom spec rig using a studio pre plus PA components count? You could fairly easily spend over £10K on that kind of rig if you desired...

Don't take this the wrong way, but it might be worth checking your ears if you've been playing loud for a long while. A lot of musos pick up on hearing problems because of 'deficiencies' in their tone

[quote name='Bill Fitzmaurice' timestamp='1332505729' post='1589245'] The center of the panel is the most important bracing point, as it's where the panel is subject to the greatest flexion. The cabinet should be fully lined to absorb all internal reflections. BTW, greenboys text is very well done, and I might add that it reads better than my Omni cab plans that was the original source. That would be the same cab that I built in both spline and cross braced versions to confirm by measurement which bracing scheme worked better, and by how great a margin. [/quote] On the flip side the Omni is a structurally unusual cab, it's much more asymmetric and the design is already inherently heavily braced thanks to the horn and internal baffle compared to a typical nasty box, not necessarily the most relevant comparison. In a more typical scenario a cross brace right into the centre of a panel would presumably damp the lowest mode but set up a symmetric pattern of vibrations above this, which can reinforce thanks to the symmetry. In the real world though any bracing at all is a lot better than none and I think a law of diminishing returns applies quite quickly - plus, shift the resonance higher and it's easier to absorb anyway. I was actually surprised how little subjective difference damping appeared to make in a braced, tweeterless cab I built recently - much more important for full-range and hi-fi use I think where the HF (although unaffected directly) gives 'context' to what you're hearing lower down. But perhaps that was also partly due to all the bracing which made the inside highly asymmetric anyway!

I'd start by checking the height adjustment screws are all in firm contact with the bridge plate.

You fool Pete! Didn't you stop to think that this song about doing cool stuff is really meant to be a soulful, heart-rending ballad bemoaning the intangibility of fashion and the agonies of mortality? And not fun in the slightest? How dare that fat idiot Marcus Miller come along and cheapen it like this by playing fast and incorporating a degree of treble in the tone of his BASS guitar. All frequencies above 800Hz are henceforth banned.

[quote name='Bill Fitzmaurice' timestamp='1332285765' post='1586276'] They're more effective. It's not the raising of the resonance that makes the cab better, it's the stiffening of the structure. The raising of the panel resonant frequency is a side effect of that stiffening. Cross bracing is no less than twice as effective as spline bracing in so doing. [/quote] Hmm...so your rods method raises the resonance further due to stiffening in that design? I must say that directly contradicts my experience. If an engineer wants to stiffen an internal structure like this they typically use i-beams, not point contacts which still allow flexure around the point, so if your method works better there must be more to it than overall wall stiffness

[quote name='Ou7shined' timestamp='1331904573' post='1580689'] I'll put my neck on the line here and say that I think my cab is probably the more articulate of the two (I feel like a heretic saying that).... maybe its just the honeymoon period talking... maybe not. [/quote] This is a really nice build! I think that 'articulate'-ness is down to the big upper-mid peak in the Deltalites and the way they'll likely have a bump in the upper bass as well (depending on cab size/tuning) - I found it a bit much and preferred flatter speakers in the end, but you basically get instant scooped mids and a very useable 'up-front' freq response for bass guitar. FWIW if Markbass still use the same drivers as they did a few years ago then they weigh about the same (the Deltalites are a tad more powerful). They use 15mm ply though, so the weight benefits of poplar are largely negated. You'll find that they'll quite quickly distort with 'real' bass, but then I think a lot of people don't really want as much of that as they imagine...pure 50Hz is [i]seriously[/i] deep. Good work!

Depending on the types of vibrations/resonance seen I'm not sure the rods method will be as effective as stiffening the cabinet with conventional parallel braces running along the open faces of the panels. The rods will mainly act to prevent flexure in opposite directions - in phase flexure won't be nearly as effectively prevented, while glued-in parallel braces would seem to have a greater impact on raising primary panel resonance frequencies as they're providing stiffening along more of the panel's surface. Raise the resonances and you can kill them more effectively with damping material. Re damping, the keen-eared on the fEarful pages have expressed a preference for 1" or so acoustic panel-type pyramidal open cell foam of the type sold by aurelex, studiospares etc. The published absorption coefficients suggest they'd make a good choice, it's hard to find materials that absorb effectively into the low-mids. With bass guitar in a well-braced tweeterless cab I've found it surprisingly hard to tell much of a difference using generous amounts of wool/poly 'acoustic fibre' type stuff compared to the bare cab (yet damping makes a really noticeable difference on hi-fi). As Mr F says keep damping well away from the ports.

Fender's own '75 RI pickups from the US version are available as '75 Vintage'. They are excellent pickups IMO, easiest way to get them is via ebay from the States at about £80 a set all in. Nothing like the rubbish so-called 'US' pickups in my MIJ 75 by the way. Comparing them directly to a pair of Model Js they are significantly brighter and more 'open' sounding, a lot of grind with a good even bottom end that isn't as overwhelming in the lower mids - not quite so 'hot-rod' (I wouldn't describe the Model Js as 'classic jazz' however you wire them, they are a lot beefier without the upper end snap).

I think, contrary to what's been said on here so far, Ernie Ball do make their own...that unpleasant man in charge has certainly said as much on the EB forum anyway (kind of puts me off buying them as I find him so rude and annoying). If someone has any evidence otherwise then I'd happily stand corrected though!

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1331556670' post='1574640'] Ahh... not so good.. in that case, I don't know! I didn't have the problem when I restrung my P... I wonder why? [/quote] What are you supposed to do if it does this, re-drill the tuning peg?!

[quote name='tbonepete' timestamp='1331406688' post='1572573'] Things look like they are being steered towards a preamp of some sort, but this will rather defeat the object of the lovely passive sounds this bass has to offer! . What I want is vol/blend/tone, and NO appreciable volume drop regardless of where the blend knob is. Shall I put this with the quest to cure the common cold? Cheers Pete [/quote] I [i]think[/i]that with the right taper pot (non-overlapping dual audio taper, 500k to compensate for the fact there's effectively an extra pot), the blend at centre detent should be identical to a two volume-knob set up on full - it's the options for intermediate sounds that are a bit different. At any rate, volume drop with two pickups blended is to an extent part of what the 'passive bass sound' is. Pickup loading issues require a buffering preamp, while perceived volume changes due to phase cancellations between pickups are an inherent part of the tone and would require electronic gain compensation.

[quote name='geoffbyrne' timestamp='1331149126' post='1568576'] Replace neck pup with DiMarzio Model J wired in series - as near as it gets without routing. G. [/quote] Put in a series-parallel switch for that pickup too, so you can still get more of a jazz bass tone as well!