Bass cabs

[Tony bass7]

Anyone have experience with the barefaced cabs? How good are they actually? 

[lownote]

Ha!  That's a bit like going on a Christian forum and asking, 'this Jesus geeza, was he for real?'

Speaking personally I've had their Two 10 and One 10.  Both amazing, loud, light, expensive.  Be prepared for another hundred replies in short order.

 

PS you might want to get a mod to move this post to Bass Cabs

Edited May 23, 2021 by lownote12

[fretmeister]

I’ve had the One10 cabs and loved them, then needed something bigger and now have a Super Twin and really love that.

[Moos3h]

Well, my view is they do EXACTLY what they say on the tin - the question is do you like what they say on the tin?

I've got a Super 12 T (although I'm moving it on) and have owned the Compact and Big Twin in the past.

They are VERY transparent sounding cabs, that may be a good thing or a bad thing in your view - what they don't do is colour the sound significantly, and they can reveal elements of your tone that you may then wish to address - in my case I end up doing a LOT of sculpting in the mids to get a tone I like.

They are also stupidly lightweight, but that does come at the cost of SOME of the ruggedness that 'old school' cabs can put up with on the road.

Try one if you can but if you like the sound of what I'm saying above, my advise is to buy second hand - that way you can move it on if it's not your cuppa tea and not worry about losing £££

[lownote]

2 minutes ago, Moos3h said:

 My advice is to buy second hand - that way you can move it on if it's not your cuppa tea and not worry about losing £££

Although be aware they hold their value very well usually. Which is good when you're selling but a squeeze if you're buying.

[Lozz196]

Light, powerful, portable, sound good, hold their value, stronger than they look. Difficult to find negatives on them.

[chris_b]

I bought my first BF cab in 2013 and have used them exclusively since 2015. I'm gigging with either a BB2, SC and/or SM.

What cabs are you currently using? What are you looking for in a new cab? I can't guarantee that you will like the BF cabs but I haven't heard better. These cabs will see out my playing days.

Buy a new cab and you get 30 days to return it. Buy a used one and you'll find they keep their prices if you want to move it on. It's a no risk move.

[Kiwi]

I've not owned one but I've played through a couple.  The light weight is a revelation.  I'm not convinced on the cabs being transparent tonally, I can hear differences in the high end but Alex definitely maximises efficiency and the tonal differences between BF cabs and alternatives are not going to add up to much in the on stage mix.  I don't own one because Alex has never been keen on tilt back cabs. I like tilt back because it helps to avoid most of my monitoring blasting past my knees.

[Bill Fitzmaurice]

1 hour ago, Kiwi said:

I like tilt back because it helps to avoid most of my monitoring blasting past my knees.

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/GFWGTRAMP100--gator-frameworks-gfwgtramp100-collapsible-combo-amp-stand

[Downunderwonder]

1 hour ago, Kiwi said:

keen on tilt back cabs

You need the ACME Downunderwonder foldup cardboard stand.

Fold 2ft slab of cardboard into an artful W with return wings back down from the top and a short middle peak.

Slice in a ramp.

You want the back corner of the cab to sit on the floor and the sloping topped W (looking from above it's a W, bottom toward front of cab) locks in place uncollapsible.

Store in port slot.

Edited May 24, 2021 by Downunderwonder

[Kiwi]

3 hours ago, Bill Fitzmaurice said:

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/GFWGTRAMP100--gator-frameworks-gfwgtramp100-collapsible-combo-amp-stand

 

3 hours ago, Downunderwonder said:

You need the ACME Downunderwonder foldup cardboard stand.

Thanks guys, I have a couple of fEARless F112 cabs that do the trick and am pretty happy with them so far although they're not as light as the Barefaced equivalents.

[Steve Browning]

13 hours ago, Moos3h said:

Well, my view is they do EXACTLY what they say on the tin - the question is do you like what they say on the tin?

I've got a Super 12 T (although I'm moving it on) and have owned the Compact and Big Twin in the past.

They are VERY transparent sounding cabs, that may be a good thing or a bad thing in your view - what they don't do is colour the sound significantly, and they can reveal elements of your tone that you may then wish to address - in my case I end up doing a LOT of sculpting in the mids to get a tone I like.

They are also stupidly lightweight, but that does come at the cost of SOME of the ruggedness that 'old school' cabs can put up with on the road.

Try one if you can but if you like the sound of what I'm saying above, my advise is to buy second hand - that way you can move it on if it's not your cuppa tea and not worry about losing £££

An excellent summary.

I had a pair of Compacts for a short while but didn't like the sound and actually felt they were too light for their dimensions - placing a heavy (and deep'ish) amp rack on top seemed a bit precarious.

I am not the Barefaced target audience.

[casapete]

I’ve used an original Compact for over 12 years now, and have been extremely happy with it. Took a while to get the sound I wanted from my amp (GK 1001RB or GK 800RB) but once settled it’s been wonderful. Goes as loud as I need, but crucially has made my gigging life so much easier. Now in my 60’s and looking forward to getting working again, it (or possibly another BF cab) will be with me as long as I continue to gig. 

[garyt]

21 hours ago, lownote12 said:

Ha!  That's a bit like going on a Christian forum and asking, 'this Jesus geeza, was he for real?'

Speaking personally I've had their Two 10 and One 10.  Both amazing, loud, light, expensive.  Be prepared for another hundred replies in short order.

 

PS you might want to get a mod to move this post to Bass Cabs

🤣🤣🤣 great analogy - slight difference is that I have a Supertwin and it’s definitely real and I have heard it move bowels.  Still waiting for a photo of Jesus. 

[pbasspecial]

I had 2 Super Compacts and now a Super Twin which for me is the ultimate one cab solution. Now using an Ampeg Rocket B200r combo for a bluesy/funky/Soul project so may very reluctantly move on the BFST on as it’s not getting the love it needs right now. Would buy another again on a heart beat if I did. 

[Muzz]

I've had quite a lot of cabs, including things like Bergs (and even an Ampeg 810 fridge, back when I could be bothered shifting something like that), and I have a Super Twin and an older Compact, which I only keep just in case I get a gig where I need a stack (it's happened once, and it was only for the look of the thing)...in reality the ST will do everything, including making old-school JCM100/412 guitarists (two of them) jump...

The Super range of cabs are pretty transparent (tho cards on the table, I don't like tweeters - I had a BB2 (and a Midget) and moved it on, because there was no point in the tweeter for me), so you kinda need to rework your EQ a bit, but I believe the 10 series are the more traditionally coloured ones. Never had one of those.

They're daft light for what they do, and I've gigged mine dozens (if not hundreds) of times and they're as solid as anything I've used.

While bass and amp GAS remains a constant daily struggle, I'm not in the market for any other cabs, and haven't been for years...

[Pea Turgh]

I bought a One10, then another one because it was tweed and looked cool.  Only sold them because of money issues.  Bought a Two10 when I had cash.

I liked the modularity of two One10s, and they made a cute micro stack!

Cant see me buying another cab out of need, will probably buy another cab just because I like them and my own personal expression of our consumerist conditioning (egged on by Basschat).

[warwickhunt]

I've tried them and don't like them but that's not too say they are a bad cab or not to someone else's taste... each to their own and vive la difference. 

[TheGreek]

I haven't played through BF cabs though I did have a chat with Alex about them at the SE Bash.

When he asked me to pick up one of the 1x12s I thought there was no speaker in it.

[gjones]

On 23/05/2021 at 17:43, Tony bass7 said:

Anyone have experience with the barefaced cabs? How good are they actually? 

What's good to one person might not be good for another but if you're after loud and light, you can't go wrong.

As a one cab solution to gigging, a secondhand 10 year old Barefaced compact (about £300) might be all you need.

[cetera]

An accomplished bassist friend & I blind a/b'd a Super Twin against my Genz Benz Neox 2x12 with identical bass & amp set up and we were both surprised to find that we both agreed that the Genz sounded better and punchier.

Saved me a lot of money in what I thought might be a potential rig upgrade.

 

Edited May 28, 2021 by cetera

[Jus Lukin]

-

Edited March 14, 2022 by Jus Lukin

[Al Krow]

6 hours ago, cetera said:

An accomplished bassist friend & I blind a/b'd a Super Twin against my Genz Benz Neox 2x12 with identical bass & amp set up and we were both surprised to find that we both agreed that the Genz sounded better and punchier.

Saved me a lot of money in what I thought might be a potential rig upgrade.

That's very interesting to hear. I wonder if it had anything to do with greater frequency range of the Neox 212 which tops out at 18kHz vs a much more modest 4kHz for the Super Twin and which loses a big chunk of the treble zing in consequence? That was the main reason for me swapping out my BF Super Compact for a BB2 to get access to the 4kHz+ spectrum.

Edited May 28, 2021 by Al Krow

[BassManGraham]

I have quite a few decent cabs. 

My Barefaced Super12T (2×12) gets used more than the rest put together due to its power, punchy, tone and portability.

I have tried loads of amp/cab combinations. My firm favourites are Barefaced and/or Vanderkley.

If you're looking for loud and light, (and UK based) you won't find better than Barefaced.  

 

[suitably swell]

Speaking as someone who is primarily a guitarist I entered the Barefaced world through their guitar cabs, which are similarly revelatory but don't seem to have gained quite as much traction with the ever traditionalist 6-string set. They are fantastic sounding cabs though and ridiculously well engineered and built for their output, size and price point.

Having recently re-entered the world of bass playing - and having previously sold off my pair of back-breaking Trace Elliot 4x10s to a friend in a very loud band when mine stopped playing - I'm definitely in the market for a secondhand Super Twin or even a Super Compact. Just sayin'...