Barefaced Midget, Aguilar DB112, Berg HD/CN112....

[JTUK]

[quote name='molan' timestamp='1376850754' post='2179971']
Mostly I think that they look cheap and nasty. Both on stage and up close. Don't look, or feel, to have the build quality of lots of other brands.

Also a lot of people whose opinions I respect have had real issues with them tonally. I realise I shouldn't just rely on third party comments but sometimes you just hear things from people who seem to really know their stuff and have to have to give them some credence.

When you don't like the look of something and you hear they it doesn't sound great it tends to colour your opinions a fair bit
[/quote]

Well, they do look cheap and nasty... IMO (Get a cab builder FFS.!!! )
but I have also heard more than a few people say the same thing about the tone...

But hey, that is not a problem, I would not be buying.

[RandomBass]

[quote name='BassBod' timestamp='1376560512' post='2175902']
The Midget sounds quite different to the Compact - don't think of it as a smaller version of the same cab. Its its own character. More mid response, and not as forgiving...and a bit barky as you crank up the volume. One of my more "accurate" amps (SWR Electric Blue) sounds quite unpleasant sometimes. Unless absolute size is a consideration I'd stick with a Compact for general gigging.

IME YMMV IMO etc etc etc
[/quote]
Exactly this, from personal exprience (although not with an SWR).

[mildmanofrock]

[quote name='molan' timestamp='1376850754' post='2179971']
Mostly I think that they look cheap and nasty. Both on stage and up close. Don't look, or feel, to have the build quality of lots of other brands.

Also a lot of people whose opinions I respect have had real issues with them tonally. I realise I shouldn't just rely on third party comments but sometimes you just hear things from people who seem to really know their stuff and have to have to give them some credence.

When you don't like the look of something and you hear they it doesn't sound great it tends to colour your opinions a fair bit
[/quote]

Each to their own, etc., but this surprises me. They're the clearist, loudest and punchiest cabs I've ever used.

[chris_b]

I have various "problems" with many cabs and amps. Doesn't mean that they bad because of that.

Just not my preference.

I've played many Barefaced cabs and they look, feel and sound pretty good to me.

Who cares if they look "flimsy"? They are not so don't fall for that one.

If anyone has played a Barefaced cab and doesn't like it, fair enough. If they haven't played one they really should before dissing it.

[mildmanofrock]

Very true - they're built like a tank with an excellent and durable finish. I think players who don't get on with Barefaced are those who are used to cabinets colouring their sound. To me, Barefaced cabs seem to give out what you put in - and because of that (and their sound dispersion), they work brilliantly in a band setting.

Edited August 19, 2013 by mildmanofrock

[warwickhunt]

[quote name='mildmanofrock' timestamp='1376907011' post='2180522']
I think players who don't get on with Barefaced are those who are used to cabinets colouring their sound.
[/quote]

This ^ and it equates to me!

I didn't realise that I actually liked a coloured/biased sound until I tried a whole bunch of cabs inc' BF and came to the conclusion that what I have liked about some cabs is 'probably' the way they influence what I want to hear coming out of the cab. The sound I want to hear (and I'm not talking distorted 'mush') isn't generally achievable with BF and most Neo loaded cabs, hence I have gone for ceramic loaded cabs, most recently Aguilar DBs. Ironically I presently use a Neo loaded Berg AE2x12 for it's portability and 'one-cab' solution BUT I have needed to EQ my amp quite a bit to get close to the sound I want, which I have never had to do with the Aggies and even then I am only 95% happy with my present tone over my previous pair of ceramic 1x12's.

[Musicman20]

Surely if the Midget is snarly and 'bitey', this would suggest it DOES have a 'voice' and colour...eg a mid bump? Not that I mind that at all.

[mildmanofrock]

Yes, I'm sure all the cabs do have their own colouration. I should have said that the colouration, to my ears, seems markedly less compared to other cabs - which, for me, is a good thing.

[JTUK]

In general....

Too much bass kills good tone. Example. max out your bass control on an active bass and see where that gets you.
It may well fill the sound out but you may not have clarity and character to your sound. ..In short, you are getting toward MUSH territory.

Also,

Can you play clean enough to use a bass sound that is pretty pure... sometimes that extra bass makes the bass actually playable
so I am not sure I get a sound that has a LOT of bass and has clarity.. Does not make sense to me.

If you are wanting to cut through in a mix.... you don't want to use a bludgeon as this is sound fill.. what you want is sound gaps in the spectrum.
Example... you and the gtr are fighting to be heard... who wins if he is in your sonic territory..??? no one, you have a mush mix,

These simple little pointers are why 2 Les Pau's and MM bass would be a nightmare for the soundman... unless the players were really on it and knew what they were doing.

A mix is not every thing louder than everything else... it is about staying out of the way of other instruments.

[Conan]

[quote name='Musicman20' timestamp='1376911281' post='2180618']
Surely if the Midget is snarly and 'bitey', this would suggest it DOES have a 'voice' and colour...eg a mid bump? Not that I mind that at all.
[/quote]

Ha! That's a good point!

Or is it that most other 1x12 cabs colour the sound to the extent that they scoop a lot of that mid, and the Midget doesn't? I dunno!

[Conan]

[quote name='warwickhunt' timestamp='1376908029' post='2180550']I didn't realise that I actually liked a coloured/biased sound
[/quote]

I think a lot of this depends on what you are used to and what you like to hear - which is why there are so many manufacturers making so many different specs of amp and cab and people buying them!

As others have said, it is all about compromise. For me, the main thing in the favour of the BF cabs is their lack of mass. That said, if they sounded terrible that would be too much of a compromise and I still wouldn't want one! To my ears they sound good, but I do like a clean sound.

Horses for horses, as with all things.

[wateroftyne]

FWIW, since getting the TKS 112s, I've been enjoying mids like never before. I just don't feel I have to be as loud.

The cabs don't have massively low extension or sizzly highs - they just 'speak' in a way that suits my style - like that fat tone on classic 70s recordings.

At larger gigs, running the two of them gives me all the authority I need.

[Conan]

[quote name='wateroftyne' timestamp='1376916737' post='2180756']
FWIW, since getting the TKS 112s, I've been enjoying mids like never before. The cabs don't have massively low extension or sizzly highs - they just 'speak' in a way that suits my style
[/quote]

I feel the same about my Compact. And the Vintage was even more of the same!

[JTUK]

I really like the flush single handle on the side if the CN112.... makes perfect sense to me.
Not so keen on the DB12 handle.
The top handle on the AE recesses well so it appears that Berg have a handle on their handles...
Berg certainly have a very good visual on their cabs aswell..the latest CN's are very natty with that graphite look.
Smaller that I thought as well... I doubt you get a conventional amp to sit atop of one well...it would look silly.
But... pretty convinced the TH500 is the amp you'd use for this mini rig, anyway.

[wateroftyne]

[quote name='Conan' timestamp='1376916936' post='2180764']


I feel the same about my Compact. And the Vintage was even more of the same!
[/quote]

It was your Vintage that made me realise what I was missing... :-)

[scalpy]

I've been using DB112s for 3 years.

Cons- Weighty for the size, can be tricky to hear yourself playing in small spaces if you're close to them regardless of volume.

Pros- Loads of personality, after all that's what this business is about, they record brilliantly and they look great. Tone is the be all and end all I know but the number of times I've plonked these babies down and clients or bandmates have gone "Wow" has been incredible. I used to use a big black box for a speaker cab and people often said the bass was too loud before I'd even plugged in! If you like a rich and characterful cab I'd recommend these in a flash.