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Barefaced Big Twin T

pantherairsoft

By pantherairsoft,
in Amps & Cabs

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pantherairsoft Veteran

pantherairsoft

Posted
Posted

I've been wanting to review this beast of a cab for a while but though it was best to not get carried away by the "oooooh WOW, this is awesome" feelings of having a new toy so I have left it a number of months in which time I have rehearsed with it ALOT, gigged in everything from a huge theatre to a grotty night club and spent 2 days in a recording studio with it. So here goes...

[b]SPECIFICATION...[/b]
Barefaced Big Twin T.
2x12" Drivers (low passed @ 1000Hz), 1x6.5" Mid-Driver, 1x High quality tweeter.
Dimensions: 90cm x 43cm x 40cm.
Weight: 26kg (25kg if you get the version without a tweeter).
Useable frequencies: 30Hz - 22KHz (The upper limit drops to 10KHz if you loose the tweeter) though the spec sheet states it runs down to 21Hz (with a large roll off of course).
4 Ohms.
Recommended power amp: 300-1500w with a continuos thermal power handling of 900w (which is a lot!!).
Max LF/SPL Output: 127db.
[url="http://barefacedbass.com/product-range/big-one.htm"]Link to manufacturers site.[/url]

[i]For the purpose of this review and all of its gigging/rehearing/recording it has been used with my Roscoe Century 6 fretted & fretless (mainly the fretless) basses and powered by either an EBS-1v2 Preamp into a Crown XTi1000 power amp, or more recently a Genz Benz Streamliner 900. I also throw more effects and textures at the cab than you can shake a stick at.[/i]

[b]FEATURES & BUILD QUALITY: 8/10[/b]
Features wise, this cab has everything a gigging bassist needs. It comes equipped with side handles and casters in a tilt back and go configuration, plus a top handle for pushing/pulling it around. The wheels are plastic and intended for rolling it in and out of venues, NOT bouncing it up curbs etc. so you need to be wary of treating it as intended. When sat upright it rests of sturdy rubber feet at the front and the casters act as the rear feet. The cab has metal corner protectors and while the material used for the cab is quite thin it has a very solid feel to it. Back of the cab has a single Speakon socket and the attenuator for the tweeter can be found around the front on the ports, along with a two position volume switch for the mid driver - Great thinking there to make adjusting them on stage VERY easy.
The front is a black steel grill (although a silver retro cloth is available) which is sturdy and secured in place at multiple locations. All drivers are well secured and are very high quality. It's fair to say that very little expense has been spared on components.
The cab is amazingly light for a cab of it's size weighing in at only 26KG - When you consider that this thing competes quite happily with an 8x10 cab (which tend to weigh about the same as a fridge/freezer) thats pretty impressive! The EBS cab I used to use was half the size and weighed the same!

Small niggles here would be the handles are rubber strap style and I think, having carried this cab up and down stairs on a weekly basis for a number of months that it would really benefit from fold out metal handles like [url="http://www.penn-elcom.com/product/hardware/handles/surface-handles/h1078/1277/"]THESE.[/url] That said, the current handles are VERY low profile making movement through doorways etc very easy and so I understand the reasons for the handle choice. The metal corner protectors that cover the corners next to the full length port over lap the opening slightly and the edges are a little sharp. They could do with being ground back a little, though I appreciate this would be hard to do in a neat tidy way without having custom ones fabricated. If you wanted to be picky then a jack input on the back would be handy, though not an issue for me in anyway. I am aware that this was done to avoid a jack delivering the 1000+ watts that these cabs are regularly driven with, but as we do not all use super high powered amps, a Speakon connection is not always a requirement (and some older and/or less powerful amps do not have Speakon outs!) and many people with such equipment do not own Speakon cables. Again, this is no issue for me, but has proven an annoyance with support bands whom I have allowed to use the cab at gigs and who do not have a cable to connect their amp to it! :)

[b]TONE/SOUND QUALITY: 10/10[/b]
For me, it provides everything I could ever (and have ever) wanted from my bass tone. 10/10 is a pretty impressive score I know, but this really deserves it. Using EBS cabs for a long time I was very happy with the overall tone but it lacked the ability to provide real sub-esque low end when playing at venues that have poor PA support. This cab is effectively a PA sub and top in one box, tuned for a full range bass. The Big Twin T is the 1st cab that has really taken everything I've ever thrown at it. For anyone that knows me and my set up, my 'core' bass tone is a full octave down with a low pass filter, meaning huge amounts of 40-50Hz which I want to be clean and 'club sub' like. THIS CAB DELIVERS. Smooth, deep and clean.

Now it's easy to get carried away thinking that this cab is all about bottom end and with it holding a pair of low-passed 12" speakers delivering nothing over 1000Hz (that means bass, bass and more bass) you can see why. However, the 6.5" mid driver seems to defy reality as it basically covers the full range sounds of your average bass cab out of its tiny footprint! This driver delivers all of my fuzz, modulation, distortion, 2 and 3 octave split tones and it delivers it cleanly and articulately. How it does it I'll never know, but my goodness it's impressive. I run the mid-driver on its 'high' volume setting which seems to add a little more 'bite' to the high mids as well as increasing the volume. I imagine if I was using a clean bass tone I'd be happy to run this driver on the 'low' setting, but up high it really helps bring out the upper harmonics from dirt and and modulation effects.

The tweeter is very high quality and comparable with the EBS tweeters I am used to hearing (and always considered the best I had heard). Sound is crisp and glassy and it produces very little hiss when cranked up high. This helps add real sparkle to effects like bit crushing, ring modulation and high gain distortions that usually get missed though bass rigs. It may be a bit much for many bassists but it really allows me to fulfil my role of bassist, guitarist and synth-player all in one from a single cab and set up, rather than depending on the PA to delivery a part of my sound as I used to.

I appreciate that the score in this category will always be the most subjective to musicians (after all we all want and hear different things in our tone) and my application is fairly unique from a live bass perspective, but for me this as close to perfection as I think I'll ever find.

[b]VALUE FOR MONEY: 8/10[/b]
I'm giving this an 8 purely because these cabs are expensive and with the current Neodymium shortage/supply restrictions they became more expensive still. This is not a reflection on it's 'value' as such. I think the cab is worth every penny for me and my application, but the cost difference between this and other options is fairly steep. This cab will out perform its rivals without doubt and in a fairly impressive way, but for the non-audiophiles among us I expect the price step up for this level of quality to be one that some would struggle to comprehend. That said, I'd happily of paid a little more given what this cab has done for my overall tone and presence at our live shows. After all 8 is a HIGH score still! :P
Worth noting though that I had tried out more expensive cabs when I was on my quest for the right one and this outstripped all opposition including those with higher price points.

[b]CUSTOMER SUPPORT: 10/10[/b]
No quibbles here. Alex is a gent. He cares about his customers, goes out of his way to help where he can and offer suggestions to trouble shoot new and interesting issues that may arise. He knows his stuff and answers questions with technical information to support his thoughts and reasoning. When you get an answer you know its right and that its based on real facts/maths/science and from a musician himself. Many companies are all too happy to be helpful leading up to a sale, then get a little slack about things when you have already bought your toys - Alex stays on the ball and it goes an awful long way in my experience.

Who else gives you a 1 month no questions returns policy and encourages you to gig the hell out a cab in that time to make sure it works for you at a live show!

[b]OVERALL: 9/10[/b]
It would be unfair to give this cab 10/10 due to the 'minor' niggles like the corner protectors/no jack input/strap handles etc and I don't believe in using decimal places (otherwise we'd be looking at a 9.5!) so I'll consider this a VERY solid 9. The Big Twin T delivers everything I need to carry my complex signal chain and force feed it into people ears. It is LOUD - literally making my amp seem twice as loud as it was before and it has no compromise in tone anywhere to be seen. We've all said it before, but I can't imagine using another cab (well, until the Big Twin T Mk.II is born! lol) as after 12 years of playing live and owning some seriously gucci gear, this has been a total game changer.

I would encourage anyone interested in this cab, or any Barefaced cab to drop Alex an email. He has some eye opening thoughts and will be all too happy to answer questions and point out a few things you may of considered regarding the equipment you already own as well as some great tips on matching amp to cab.

Anyone near Nottingham that would like to try the cab is more than welcome to do so. Just get in touch!

Shep

Pic from a recent live show - The Barefaced with my (now old) pre/power set up:

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GRAHAM SG1 Apprentice

GRAHAM SG1

Posted
Posted

[quote name='lowregisterhead' timestamp='1330174761' post='1553709']
Just got the email from Alex... it's coming this week :lol:
[/quote]

Aaaargh, my anticipation is reaching fever pitch, hope you enjoy your Barefaced cab :)
I had a bass lesson with an owner of a BF compact today and that was a nice cab, the births of my kids did not give me as much anticipation as the impending delivery of a Super twelve T :D

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woodyratm Experienced

woodyratm

Posted
Posted

[quote name='pantherairsoft' timestamp='1330282244' post='1555137']
Cool! Prime_BASS came to my studio today and gave the cab a good run for its money. I unleashed my new sub tone on him and I think he left with bleeding ears (sorry about that bud! ;-)). The low end is scary!
[/quote]

I vote you move to Aberdeen dude ;)

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pantherairsoft Veteran

pantherairsoft

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[quote name='woodyratm' timestamp='1330379693' post='1556634']
To be honest, let me play the roscoe and pedalboard and i'll be your wife! :P hahaha!
[/quote]

Interesting. I usually just say bring some biscuits to the studio and all is good. You're really keen! :) Currently running the Roscoe > Pedalboard > Genz Streamliner 900 > Big Twin T. BOOM!

Find yourself in Nottingham anytime soon and the door is always open. For you to have a few hours trying stuff out, not to be my wife!

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woodyratm Experienced

woodyratm

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[quote name='pantherairsoft' timestamp='1330379935' post='1556641']


Interesting. I usually just say bring some biscuits to the studio and all is good. You're really keen! :) Currently running the Roscoe > Pedalboard > Genz Streamliner 900 > Big Twin T. BOOM!

Find yourself in Nottingham anytime soon and the door is always open. For you to have a few hours trying stuff out, not to be my wife!
[/quote]

Hah built my hopes up bud! :P

Aye thats pretty epic mate, will try and get down that way in a bit! Still say we should plan a tour :)

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pantherairsoft Veteran

pantherairsoft

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[quote name='ShergoldSnickers' timestamp='1330415787' post='1556925']
I reckon that's about as close as it gets to a sublimely versatile rig. :i-m_so_happy:
[/quote]

Pretty much. The Genz is warmer and less hi-fi than I'm used to, but it has waaaaaaaaay more BALLS than I've ever had from an amp before and the sound just seems to really owe itself well to this cab. They are a fantastic pairing.

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Prime_BASS Experienced

Prime_BASS

Posted
Posted

[quote name='pantherairsoft' timestamp='1330282244' post='1555137']
Cool! Prime_BASS came to my studio today and gave the cab a good run for its money. I unleashed my new sub tone on him and I think he left with bleeding ears (sorry about that bud! ;-)). The low end is scary!
[/quote]

WHAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!????

haha ;). One monster cab, coupled with a monster pedal board and a B-E-A-utiful bass.

The extra 10hz lower this can does really makes a difference I think in getting super big clean lows. Not that the Compact is lacking. The BigTwinT is the perfect full range solution and Alex is super confident about his tweeter not blowing. even with Shep's sonic abuse!

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pantherairsoft Veteran

pantherairsoft

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[quote name='Prime_BASS' timestamp='1330555147' post='1559499']
WHAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!????

haha ;). One monster cab, coupled with a monster pedal board and a B-E-A-utiful bass.

The extra 10hz lower this can does really makes a difference I think in getting super big clean lows. Not that the Compact is lacking. The BigTwinT is the perfect full range solution and Alex is super confident about his tweeter not blowing. even with Shep's sonic abuse!
[/quote]

I've thrown my all at it and that Tweeter is going strong! Very impressed!

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pantherairsoft Veteran

pantherairsoft

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[quote name='Riddler' timestamp='1330847288' post='1563618']
Great review, very tempted now, Alex is in Brighton isn't he? so am I, oh dear GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAS
[/quote]

Brighton he is - though distance is no worry. He'd get you a cab safe and sound if you were in Iraq!

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  • 10 months later...
WinterMute Mentor

WinterMute

Posted
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Ive had mine for a couple of months now, I'm involved in a writing project currently, so I haven't had a chance to gig with it, but it's in rehearsals with a very big hitting drummer and it is, without doubt, the most capable cab I've ever owned, the LF is very, very scary with the B on both fretted and fretless basses absolutely thunderous and clear.

I'm running with a Crown XTi1000 in bridged, and the pod, and I'm seriously impressed with the levels and sound of the cab.

Money well spent, no question.

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  • 2 years later...
Dood Grand Master

Dood

Posted
Posted

I've not heard the Big Twin T, but I've been testing out the Big Twin II recently and have to say it's a very impressive and capable cabinet. I'm enjoying it's ability to reproduce recorded material accurately - I've played CDs through the cab and would happily use a pair for PA usage. Of course for bass guitar it really shines. Lots of clarity and weight in the sound despite having very little weight to worry your back over.

This cabinet is showing itself to be my new favourite - and gawd only (and most of basschat actually) knows I've been through a great deal of boxes!!

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