Dave_the_bass Posted February 22, 2013 Share Posted February 22, 2013 Well okay it is! Okay boys and girls of the basschat world, I'm not looking for a definitive answer, I'm looking for inspiration. I recently sold my beloved Genz Benz rig, hope you're loving it as much as I did bramleyapple because I wasn't in a band and didn't really have the space to store it. As always seems to happen, I got home from delivering the amp to find myself in a band, D'oh! I have decided on my head and will hopefully be getting it in the next week or two. I've opted to go for a Genz Benz Shuttlemax 12.2. So here's where you lovely folks come in to inspire me with cab ideas. What I'm looking for is a multi cab, flexible solution that's good for some really nice deep rumbling lows (Drop D tuning rather than Low with nice mellow, smooth mids for playing lead bass melodies in the more ballad anthemic songs. If it can do crisp highs it would be a bonus but not essential. So we're looking for either four 8ohm cabs or two 4ohm cabs, 2x600W @ 4 ohms power amps to play with. I'm not in a rush to get the cabs as the rehearsal room provides cabs and storage space is still going to be an issue for the next 3-6 months. As such I'm going to say that this is a "money no object" situation although don't discount the cheaper solutions. Weight and size are a factor as our rehearsal room is on the 4th floor of a building with no lift and I want to be able to carry my full rig by myself. An example for weight reference, I have an old Ashdown 4x10 combo that I would deem to buy a comfortable carry. So come on people, inspire me in to giving someone some money for the rig I'll never want to part with. Cheers Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_b Posted February 22, 2013 Share Posted February 22, 2013 (edited) I think a modular rig would be best. 2 112 cabs or 3 112 cabs for loud gigs (that's what I do). 2 210 cabs would also work well. Edited February 22, 2013 by chris_b Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xgsjx Posted February 22, 2013 Share Posted February 22, 2013 I'd be inclined to say Barefaced. It's what I'd try first if I change my rig. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Truckstop Posted February 22, 2013 Share Posted February 22, 2013 2x Barefaced Compact. Ultra light to carry and will surely handle all the power you can throw at them! Truckstop Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conan Posted February 22, 2013 Share Posted February 22, 2013 [quote name='Dave_the_bass' timestamp='1361525910' post='1986888']What I'm looking for..... is nice mellow, smooth mids for playing lead bass melodies in the more ballad anthemic songs. If it can do crisp highs it would be a bonus but not essential.[/quote] [quote name='xgsjx' timestamp='1361529950' post='1986953'] I'd be inclined to say Barefaced.[/quote] [quote name='Truckstop' timestamp='1361530029' post='1986957'] 2x Barefaced Compact. Ultra light to carry and will surely handle all the power you can throw at them![/quote] Compacts are great cabs, as are all the BFBs I've tried... but I'm not so sure that they do "nice mellow, smooth mids". I tend to find the mids very assertive and even a bit "shouty", so you need to be very careful with EQ. Still, it is nice to have all those mids available if you need them! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gjones Posted February 22, 2013 Share Posted February 22, 2013 [quote name='Dave_the_bass' timestamp='1361525910' post='1986888'] Well okay it is! Okay boys and girls of the basschat world, I'm not looking for a definitive answer, I'm looking for inspiration. I recently sold my beloved Genz Benz rig, hope you're loving it as much as I did bramleyapple because I wasn't in a band and didn't really have the space to store it. As always seems to happen, I got home from delivering the amp to find myself in a band, D'oh! I have decided on my head and will hopefully be getting it in the next week or two. I've opted to go for a Genz Benz Shuttlemax 12.2. So here's where you lovely folks come in to inspire me with cab ideas. What I'm looking for is a multi cab, flexible solution that's good for some really nice deep rumbling lows (Drop D tuning rather than Low with nice mellow, smooth mids for playing lead bass melodies in the more ballad anthemic songs. If it can do crisp highs it would be a bonus but not essential. So we're looking for either four 8ohm cabs or two 4ohm cabs, 2x600W @ 4 ohms power amps to play with. I'm not in a rush to get the cabs as the rehearsal room provides cabs and storage space is still going to be an issue for the next 3-6 months. As such I'm going to say that this is a "money no object" situation although don't discount the cheaper solutions. Weight and size are a factor as our rehearsal room is on the 4th floor of a building with no lift and I want to be able to carry my full rig by myself. An example for weight reference, I have an old Ashdown 4x10 combo that I would deem to buy a comfortable carry. So come on people, inspire me in to giving someone some money for the rig I'll never want to part with. Cheers Dave [/quote] If you're going to buy a barefaced cab(s) I would order it now because you may be in for a long wait (mine took 3 months). Hartke Hydrive cabs are both loud and light and you can order them today and get them within a couple of days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lozz196 Posted February 22, 2013 Share Posted February 22, 2013 [quote name='Conan' timestamp='1361531925' post='1986985'] Compacts are great cabs, as are all the BFBs I've tried... but I'm not so sure that they do "nice mellow, smooth mids". I tend to find the mids very assertive and even a bit "shouty", so you need to be very careful with EQ. Still, it is nice to have all those mids available if you need them! [/quote] Strange, I found that the Compact was a bit "polite" for me, so I added a Midget, and the pair together were great, each bringing their own ingredient to the overall sound. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hamfist Posted February 22, 2013 Share Posted February 22, 2013 (edited) Even ignoring the mids, The BF Compact does not have the top end that the OP is ideally looking for.... "If it can do crisp highs it would be a bonus but not essential. " Sounds like some Berg (HD's or the new neos (ouch, they are going to be pricey !!)) or Aguilar GS cabs would provide a nice complement for good, deep bass, smooth mids (which to me means not too prominent) and sparkling highs. We don't know the weight requirements (or in fact the budget) of the OP though which, these days, is a huge thing for cabs especially. For cabs on a reasonable budget I always recommend GK neos. THis range are great quality, good power handling, light and a reasonable price. They also don't fart out too early like certain other cabs with "equivalent" specs. You do need the EQability to be able to tame the slightly prominent upper mids of these cabs though. They do respond very well to EQ though. ( It does seem odd but true that some cabs seem to need vast changes in amp EQ to notice any significant difference in the output.) The TC Electronic RS cabs have good upper and lower frequency extension with "smooth" mids also. So many choices really. It's a minefield. Edited February 22, 2013 by hamfist Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Foxen Posted February 22, 2013 Share Posted February 22, 2013 Barefaced with a mid driver, and good EQ skills. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonunders Posted February 22, 2013 Share Posted February 22, 2013 Talk to Alex at Barefaced. He will help you to narrow the field if that's the direction you want to go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave_the_bass Posted February 23, 2013 Author Share Posted February 23, 2013 (edited) Right, the Shuttlemax 12.2 is now in my possession. I've taken a bit of a drive today to see Mark at bass direct buy the head. I was rather blown away by the pair of Berg HD210s that I was playing through so they are a very serious consideration. The tone was almost perfect for me with the amp eq just about flat. So, anyone know of others that are similar to the bergs that might be worth me checking out? Edited February 23, 2013 by Dave_the_bass Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discreet Posted February 23, 2013 Share Posted February 23, 2013 [quote name='Dave_the_bass' timestamp='1361639682' post='1988695'] ...anyone know of others that are similar to the bergs that might be worth me checking out? [size=4][/quote][/size] Well... at risk of repeating what other people have said, if you haven't tried BF cabs then you owe it to yourself to do so. On the other hand, if you're finding the Bergs that close to what you want - then get those. Either way I'd say that what you're hearing in a shop playing solo is not what you'll hear when you're playing with a band. Alex at BF has a scheme whereby you can try a BF cab under different circumstances before committing yourself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JapanAxe Posted February 23, 2013 Share Posted February 23, 2013 [quote name='hamfist' timestamp='1361538381' post='1987133'] Even ignoring the mids, The BF Compact does not have the top end that the OP is ideally looking for.... "If it can do crisp highs it would be a bonus but not essential. " [/quote] BF quote the usable upper frequency limit for both the Compact and the Midget as about 4kHz. You would probably want a tweeter for 'crisp highs' - you can order the Midget with one, but not the Compact. [quote name='gjones' timestamp='1361532643' post='1987004'] If you're going to buy a barefaced cab(s) I would order it now because you may be in for a long wait (mine took 3 months). [/quote] Yup, I ordered mine late September last year, and it is currently in the gentle hands of Fedex Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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