stevie

Tuffcab is also easier to get hold of in the UK.

I used Tuffcab to smarten up a couple of PA cabs I'm selling on Ebay. I got a good result with just a single coat using the recommended foam roller, although a second coat would no doubt have been even better. Judge for yourself.

All good advice from 3below. Any leaks in the cab will produce the kind of noise you're describing. So my first port of call would be the input panel. If there are any gaps (from your description it looks like there are) seal them, and make sure all the jack sockets have a jack in them - not just the one you're using. I'd also suggest you get someone to play the bass (low E is always good) while you crawl around the cab trying to locate exactly where the noise if coming from. The good thing about having separate chambers is that you can use the drivers individually. So if you find you have a faulty driver, just disconnect it and use the good one.

Cab kits are going out on Thursday. If you're expecting a kit but I've not contacted you by pm (unlikely), please let me know.

Indeed - and I suspect that's how they've calculated the 126dBs.

For the TS308 to produce 126dB, you'd need to drive it with about 2,000 watts and have the cone moving about an inch either way.

Woody, did you manage to compare the BCcab with the TC112?

I guess that would make sense.

Bought some speakers from Gerry. He packed them up really well and sent them off quickly. Everything went like clockwork and the speakers were in very nice condition. Thanks!

I've updated the Parts List and you'll find it at: This should be the final update to the list of parts, as I won't be supplying any more kits after this batch. There may well be developments and improvements, in which case all builders will be kept in the loop. I'm picking up the cabinet kits on Friday and will be assembling all the crossovers and cable kits over the weekend. So builders should have their goodies for Christmas. PM's on the way with payment details later today. Incidentally, I notice that the latest plans have been downloaded 130 times. So there may be a few more of these cabs about than we think.

I think that's the idea, Lozz.

What could be better than a Supercompact?

It looks like the next batch of cabinet kits will be ready next week. I'll be in touch with everyone as soon as I have a firm date. In the meantime, I've put together a pack containing all the screws, machine screws, t-nuts, washers etc. that builders will need. This will save you having to order them from different sources and ensure that you have the correct types.

Richard, I've had a look and I don't see a problem in creating another cutout at right angles to the existing one to allow for rotation of the horn.

Cheers, funky. It's definitely something for the future but I think I'll have an uphill battle persuading the rest of the band.

Indeed. It's a 90 x 65 degree horn. On a PA cab, you'd want the wider, 90-degree dispersion in the horizontal direction, but turning the horn round gives you better dispersion directed at the player's ears when the cab's on the floor. You will lose some dispersion horizontally but it's not critical, and turning the horn round does make a difference when you're standing in front of the cab. It would also be useful to be able to rotate the horn if you're going to use the cab sideways, which isn't currently possible with the cutout as it is. So it's worthwhile finding out what's possible.

Yes, it is. And the horn is square. So in theory it should be easy enough to cut a hole in the baffle that allows it to be used either way.

I have a cab that has been cut out to allow for rotation of the horn. Before I commit myself, I'll check it out later today. I seem to remember that it was not as straightforward as you might think.

That's interesting. Do you have a sound engineer, or do you set the PA up yourselves?

We can't all be rock gods.🙂 For a lot of us, it's a way of socialising and being involved in music-making. I do tend to forget sometimes that there are plenty of players out there for whom the backline is not very important, but it does have an important job to do when you're playing a smaller venue. Unless you're using in-ears, of course, but I've yet to see a band using in-ears in any of the pubs around here.

Talking of clamps.... Lidl are selling some neat, one-handed clamps, which would be a useful addition to the longer ones. Starts today - so won't be available for that long. https://www.lidl.co.uk/en/p/product-recommendation/powerfix-profi-one-handed-bar-clamps/p27850 If you're on the wating list for the next batch of kits, or if you plan building from the plans, I'd recommend you get yourself a set of the 150mm ones for £6.99. Cheaper than anywhere else.

You could well be right, BigRed, but I think there are still a lot of us out there for whom full PA support is the exception rather than the rule.

Ooh, that's a blast from the past. It conjures up expressions like Vortexion, Ferrograph and Reslo. It's actually got 'condensers' in it. And 85-year old electrolytics. Amazing!

You took the words right out of my mouth, Stew.

Whilst PA cabs do deliver useful features that are lacking in today's bass cabs - and they offer unbeatable value for money because they are produced in larger numbers - we shouldn't forget that they haven't been designed for bass guitar use in particular. Their main application is voice and music. So we have plastic cabinets (really not ideal for bass, sorry) and a driver specification biased in favour of the midrange. RCF, in their excellent range of powered cabs, spend twice as much on their compression driver as they do on their bass driver , which is great for vocals but not a sensible use of resources if your goal is bass guitar amplification. One of the reasons why bass players often prefer these FRFR cabs to normal bass cabs is that they handle midrange frequencies much better. But there's no reason why a bass guitar-specific cab can't do the same. I know a couple that do - and they have better quality bass drivers than any comparable QSC or RCF cab. But they are the exception (and one of them you have to build yourself 😀). In the meantime, a couple of high-profile American bass cab manufacturers are happy to fit a tweeter to their £1,000 cabs that I can buy at retail for £15. No wonder you hear players say "I don't like tweeters", and why they keep buying and using PA cabs for their backline.