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Marshall MBC810 vs Marshall VBC810


joegarcia
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Ok, as some of you may know Marshall have just released a new 8x10, the MBC810. It's 1200w (almost twice as powerful as the VBC810) and It can be found at Soundslive for £459.



The cheapest I can find the VBC810 new for is £599 at GAK.

Anyone have any idea why the MBC is so much cheaper than the VBC when it is on paper seemingly higher spec? The VBC does look better with the cloth as opposed to the grille IMO and it's sealed too. Are sealed cabinets more expensive to design? It seems to make sense as all the cheaper 810's seem to be ported (Peavey, Ashdown Mag etc). I think comparing the two is pretty unlikey so just wondered what everyone else thought really.

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[quote name='chrisAngryman' post='133841' date='Feb 4 2008, 08:00 PM']i have tried both 8x10 at Marshall at believe that the VBC is a much better cab.
I thought the response was better and the construction quality was no wear near.[/quote]

Hmmm ok thanks for that. May well go with a new VBC810 then.
Just a little nervouse that its 640w handling will not be enough for my Sunn 1200s. It tends to make mincemeat out of anything less than 800w.

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[quote name='G-bitch' post='134531' date='Feb 5 2008, 05:18 PM']Joe, don't worry - you'll struggle to stress it out, I used to have the 412 and it'd handle pretty much anything thrown at it.[/quote]

Cool. Looks like I've found another Aguilar GS412 now anyway. Sounds amazing with the V4 by the way, exactly how I'd hoped. Looking forward to a proper practice with it tomorrow, last one before studio time.

The VBC810 was at Fairdeal Music:
[url="http://www.fairdealmusic.com/marshall/7042_marshall-vbc810-600-w-8-x-10-bass-cabinet"]http://www.fairdealmusic.com/marshall/7042...10-bass-cabinet[/url]

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[quote name='joegarcia' post='134758' date='Feb 6 2008, 12:15 AM']Cool. Looks like I've found another Aguilar GS412 now anyway. Sounds amazing with the V4 by the way, exactly how I'd hoped. Looking forward to a proper practice with it tomorrow, last one before studio time.

The VBC810 was at Fairdeal Music:
[url="http://www.fairdealmusic.com/marshall/7042_marshall-vbc810-600-w-8-x-10-bass-cabinet"]http://www.fairdealmusic.com/marshall/7042...10-bass-cabinet[/url][/quote]

Awesome, glad to hear it!

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I bet one of my Acmes (rated at a mere 350W) could easily handle all the power from your Sunn. Cab power handling ratings are all but useless and certainly one of the least important specs for a bass cab. The power handling of an 8x10" is particularly irrelevant as the sensitivity of so many speakers in unison means you need very little power to go loud. Spread that power across eight voice coils and each speaker has a very easy time, whether the cab is rated at 400W or 2000W.

Alex

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[quote name='alexclaber' post='135797' date='Feb 7 2008, 03:04 PM']I bet one of my Acmes (rated at a mere 350W) could easily handle all the power from your Sunn. Cab power handling ratings are all but useless and certainly one of the least important specs for a bass cab. The power handling of an 8x10" is particularly irrelevant as the sensitivity of so many speakers in unison means you need very little power to go loud. Spread that power across eight voice coils and each speaker has a very easy time, whether the cab is rated at 400W or 2000W.

Alex[/quote]

I don't mean to sound arrogant but I'm willing to bet I could blow both speakers in five minutes. I use a lot of nasty fx with lots of extreme volume spikes. :)

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[quote name='joegarcia' post='136214' date='Feb 8 2008, 12:48 AM']I don't mean to sound arrogant but I'm willing to bet I could blow both speakers in five minutes. I use a lot of nasty fx with lots of extreme volume spikes. :)[/quote]

When you have blown speakers, how have they failed? And what speakers, in what cabs, have you blown?

Alex

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[quote name='alexclaber' post='136253' date='Feb 8 2008, 08:11 AM']When you have blown speakers, how have they failed? And what speakers, in what cabs, have you blown?

Alex[/quote]

I have the same head. and the same problem. I've blown two cabs. I've now had some cabs made for me to spec to resolve the prob.

I dont think he's being arrogant, but the amp is STUPIDLY powerful. Im actually thinking of looking for another head because of it!

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[quote name='man_at_arms84' post='136351' date='Feb 8 2008, 10:23 AM']I have the same head. and the same problem. I've blown two cabs. I've now had some cabs made for me to spec to resolve the prob.

I dont think he's being arrogant, but the amp is STUPIDLY powerful. Im actually thinking of looking for another head because of it![/quote]

I wouldn't consider it stupidly powerful - in fact it is less powerful than each half of my amp, each half of which drives an Acme 2x10", and has done so whilst using tons of effects.

The problems lies with the dubious power handling ratings on most bass cabs. Although they may be able to handle the heat from say 1000W of power, the speakers cannot move far enough without damage, hence they get blown. I've written tons about this in the past if you want to search.

I believe it is almost impossible to have too powerful an amp. The problem lies with the operator - just as with fast cars, if you are incapable of keeping control of the power then you will crash and burn.

Alex

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[quote name='alexclaber' post='136356' date='Feb 8 2008, 10:39 AM']I wouldn't consider it stupidly powerful - in fact it is less powerful than each half of my amp, each half of which drives an Acme 2x10", and has done so whilst using tons of effects.

The problems lies with the dubious power handling ratings on most bass cabs. Although they may be able to handle the heat from say 1000W of power, the speakers cannot move far enough without damage, hence they get blown. I've written tons about this in the past if you want to search.

I believe it is almost impossible to have too powerful an amp. The problem lies with the operator - just as with fast cars, if you are incapable of keeping control of the power then you will crash and burn.

Alex[/quote]

That sounds all too complicated for me. But im no tech head. Your probably right.
Simply put, All I know is I plug my head into the cabs as I have done with different amps before. Cant take this one above 3. play the same as I always have before, cab blows.
My band is kind of like your description. Always trying to maintain control of the power but ultimatley crashing and burning. ha.

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[quote name='man_at_arms84' post='136369' date='Feb 8 2008, 10:59 AM']That sounds all too complicated for me. But im no tech head. Your probably right.
Simply put, All I know is I plug my head into the cabs as I have done with different amps before. Cant take this one above 3.[/quote]

Well here's something to mess with your head - when your volume is at 3, you could actually be getting full power from your amp. In fact very few amps can handle the volume knob being past 12 o'clock because by that point the gain is so high that they're out of power. Once you get into the world of pro PA gear instead of instrument amps you can actually use the whole travel of the knob.

Why is this? Because a typical bassist will put two amps side by side, set the knobs in the same position and then deem the loudest amp to be the most powerful. By this test my amp isn't very powerful - but lo! if you turn up the knobs further it just gets louder and louder, whilst staying clean.

That thing I was saying about cabs not handling their rated power because the speakers couldn't move far enough - look at this plot and tell me if you now understand:



Where the line is horizontal the speakers can move far enough to handle the rated thermal power. It then drops as the speaker reaches its excursion limits. With a sealed cab that line would continue dropping right down to bugger all at 30Hz. With a ported cab the power handling then recovers as you approach the area where the port is producing most of the sound. Below the port tuning frequency the power handling plummets again. This plot is for a nice boutique 4x10" with expensive neo speakers. A cheaper 4x10" like a Hartke VX410 will see the graph dip to as little as 100W.

If you're running synths and other octaving effects you can end up pouring tons of power in below the tuning frequency and rapidly killing your cab.

Alex

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