Website improvements

[OldGit]

[quote name='BottomEndian' post='486737' date='May 13 2009, 11:00 AM']Seriously though, once everything's sorted in terms of website and production, if you get your PR campaign right, the sky's the limit.[/quote]


It will be like Bill's Omni's, Shuker's basses, SEi's, the parts suppliers and the good UK bass stores, ....

Once a few get out there and get used and praised things will take off. A review in BGM and the orderbook will be full to bursting.
Build your Chinese production plant now whilst things are still cheap, Alex ...

All the site really has to do is get returned when "Barefaced bass cabs" is googled and provide contacts ...

[Stylon Pilson]

[quote name='OldGit' post='486757' date='May 13 2009, 11:24 AM']All the site really has to do is get returned when "Barefaced bass cabs" is googled and provide contacts ...[/quote]

Uh, Alex, you might want to check out the Google results for "barefaced bass" - the prototype site is coming up on the first page.

Might want to get your designer to put in a relevant robots.txt so that it doesn't show up.

S.P.

[johnnylager]

[quote name='BottomEndian' post='486737' date='May 13 2009, 11:00 AM']Just imagine Fern Britton's endorsement, delivered straight to camera: "I've never come across another 1x15 cab that has pummelling low end, driving mids and just enough highs to cut through, yet weighs less than a 3-year-old girl. And it's so loud that Phil's ruptured something. This is a must-have for every gigging bassist."[/quote]
"I can even lift it without bursting me stitches". My mate used to empty her bins when she lived down Pompey, you know. It was kosher - he was a bin man.

[JPAC]

Web-developer is a good add-on for web site building.
[url="http://chrispederick.com/work/web-developer/"]http://chrispederick.com/work/web-developer/[/url]

Consider a subtle background and btw most young people work in metric now.

[BottomEndian]

[quote name='JPAC' post='486765' date='May 13 2009, 11:31 AM']...btw most young people work in metric now.[/quote]
+1

If there were metric measurements and weights, I'd be able to visualise the cabs much more easily. As it is, I have to use a tape measure or a conversion website.

Just don't take it too far and start talking about your "381 mm speakers".

[alexclaber]

[quote name='OldGit' post='486757' date='May 13 2009, 11:24 AM']Build your Chinese production plant now whilst things are still cheap[/quote]

Would have to change the badges if I did that! Seriously though, I have some plans to handle production increasing to hopefully avoid going overseas.

[quote name='BottomEndian' post='486770' date='May 13 2009, 11:38 AM']If there were metric measurements and weights, I'd be able to visualise the cabs much more easily. As it is, I have to use a tape measure or a conversion website.[/quote]

Honestly, the youth of today... But doesn't everyone still talk about being 5'10 and weighing 12 stone or whatever? Everything's designed in metric but I've alway preferred imperial for visualisation as the units are a more useful size. I was planning to add metric measurements for my continental customers so that'll kill two birds with one stone (or 6.4kg)

Lots of good suggestions, we are taking note! Though don't expect the new site any time soon, am too busy getting the current models built and the forthcoming designs finished and working with various suppliers on the PA side of things. Once all that's sorted then it'll be easier to deal with the content as we'll know exactly what the full product line is, plus we'll have decent and consistent photos.

Alex

[OldGit]

Some of us old gits work in metric too ...

I'd recommend a comparison page - not just between yuur cabs but also between your cabs and the well known classic cabs they could replace and improve on. This will add a good bit of search stuff for when someone is looking for an 8x10, for example.
I see you have this:

"Sensitivity
Similar to many 2x12" cabs "

"Frequency Response
Similar to the classic sealed 8x10" fridge "

I'd like the figures, please. If I've never played through a fridge or a 2x12 I'd have no comparison.



Also offer pop-out casters.
[url="http://www.peavey.com/products/browse.cfm/action/detail/item/1512/Pop%20Out%20Swivel%20Caster%20Set.cfm"]The Peavey version[/url]
Yes your stuff is light but anything that rolls gets my vote. If it's big and rolls it saves my back and if it's light and rolls I can put more stuff on top of it and roll it - at least over the dance floor to the load out door or for manuverability inside a van or storage cupboard...
Stuff like that shows more thought for the working player.

[wateroftyne]

[quote name='OldGit' post='486824' date='May 13 2009, 12:26 PM']I'd recommend a comparison page - not just between yuur cabs but also between your cabs and the well known classic cabs they could replace and improve on. This will add a good bit of search stuff for when someone is looking for an 8x10, for example.
I see you have this:

"Sensitivity
Similar to many 2x12" cabs "

"Frequency Response
Similar to the classic sealed 8x10" fridge "

I'd like the figures, please. If I've never played through a fridge or a 2x12 I'd have no comparison.[/quote]

I think Alex has addressed this elsewhere. If he published his figures it wouldn't be comparing like-with-like and it would show him in an unfair light. He doesn't want to massage his figures like many other builders...

I quite like the 'easy comparison' approach.

[OldGit]

[quote name='wateroftyne' post='486831' date='May 13 2009, 12:28 PM']I think Alex has addressed this elsewhere. If he published his figures it wouldn't be comparing like-with-like and it would show him in an unfair light. He doesn't want to massage his figures like many other builders...

I quite like the 'easy comparison' approach.[/quote]


But it's not an easy comparison as it stands. It's only an easy comparison if you have some working experience of the things he's comparing it with.

I can see the point but it's not made clearly.

[wateroftyne]

[quote name='OldGit' post='486836' date='May 13 2009, 12:34 PM']But it's not an easy comparison as it stands. It's only an easy comparison if you have some working experience of the things he's comparing it with.

I can see the point but it's not made clearly.[/quote]
But.. if you don't even have a working comparison of a few common cab configurations, what use are SPL, sensitivity, response etc. figures going to be?

[alexclaber]

[quote name='OldGit' post='486824' date='May 13 2009, 12:26 PM']I'd like the figures, please. If I've never played through a fridge or a 2x12 I'd have no comparison.[/quote]

But the figures won't tell you anything useful at all because almost all the benchmarks provided by the other manufacturers are wrong. A good example - Eden's 210XST's specs imply that the maximum output at 30Hz = 128dB when the actual max SPL at that frequency is about 100dB. They are exaggerating the output over five hundred fold!

[quote name='OldGit' post='486824' date='May 13 2009, 12:26 PM']Also offer pop-out casters.
[url="http://www.peavey.com/products/browse.cfm/action/detail/item/1512/Pop%20Out%20Swivel%20Caster%20Set.cfm"]The Peavey version[/url]
Yes your stuff is light but anything that rolls gets my vote. If it's big and rolls it saves my back and if it's light and rolls I can put more stuff on top of it and roll it - at least over the dance floor to the load out door or for manuverability inside a van or storage cupboard...
Stuff like that shows more thought for the working player.[/quote]

The bigger cabs already have casters. The smaller cabs are so light they really don't need them, just makes them bigger, heavier and more expensive.

However, your point about a more organised comparison page is an excellent one! What I really need to do is borrow a selection of cabs and then do some proper high power testing, so that'll take some time to organise.

Alex

[OldGit]

[quote name='wateroftyne' post='486840' date='May 13 2009, 12:36 PM']But.. if you don't even have a working comparison of a few common cab configurations, what use are SPL, sensitivity, response etc. figures going to be?[/quote]

Ok, and sound is subjective.
It's not easy to do this but common measures have to be a starting point with a link to "Why Barefaced Cabs are different" from the specs box.
A "fridge 8x10" may be a common starting point for many people but for many others it's not.

Schroeder make cabs that are different to most mainstream ones too:
[url="http://www.schroedercabinets.com/21012.htm"]http://www.schroedercabinets.com/21012.htm[/url]

[OldGit]

[quote name='alexclaber' post='486843' date='May 13 2009, 12:40 PM']However, your point about a more organised comparison page is an excellent one! What I really need to do is borrow a selection of cabs and then do some proper high power testing, so that'll take some time to organise.[/quote]


What I meant was "if you're considering a Ashdown 8x10 you may want to consider one of these instead" + benefits and advantages
That sort of comparison rather than SPL's etc.
If you report any testing results yourself it may be seen as hype, just as you perceive Eden's figures to be hype.

The figures don't tell anyone how things will sound but it is a starting point just as "500 watt amp" is a starting point.

[alexclaber]

[quote name='OldGit' post='486854' date='May 13 2009, 12:48 PM']Schroeder make cabs that are different to most mainstream ones too:
[url="http://www.schroedercabinets.com/21012.htm"]http://www.schroedercabinets.com/21012.htm[/url][/quote]

I'm not being negative about Schroeder because he's a very nice guy, provides excellent customer service and makes loud cabs that a lot of people like and which for some will definitely be a better choice than Barefaced, but the fact is that they're not engineered like mine. And like many others he's using comedy specs.

But this debate is really for another thread!

Alex

[alexclaber]

[quote name='OldGit' post='486863' date='May 13 2009, 12:55 PM']If you report any testing results yourself it may be seen as hype, just as you perceive Eden's figures to be hype.[/quote]

Interesting. So a properly referenced measured plot wouldn't be of use? Or distortion tests that show exactly how much power a cab can handle in the lows before it overdrives?

I don't perceive Eden's figures to be hype, I know they are hype. Fact. If they weren't then every live sound company would be using a small pile of their cabs to replace the monstrous arrays of pro audio subwoofers used at stadium gigs.

I'm just going to borrow one of Greenboy's responses to someone who refused to believe that SWR's specs couldn't be inaccurate and demanded proof as to why they were not:

"I told you where it is. On driver datasheets and in cab sim programs. Load up the most sensitive drivers you can find from any brand, money no object. From the leading edge companies in the world. Then look at LF response. The incredibly sensitive drivers don't have anything going on below 100 Hz, sometimes even 200 Hz, and they are NOT designed to do BASS. There is NOTHING out there from anybody that can make an enclosure do what Eden and SWR routinely claim. And you would think that these driver companies have tried their hardest, because they SURE do want to sell drivers! They want to sell to end customers, and to companies like SWR and Eden.

C'mon, blue pill takers! I know you just want to keep on sleeping. If you took the red pill your world view would be shattered, that view that somehow the tiny companies like SWR and Eden have done things that the amassed knowledge, wealth, and effort of an entire scientific community based on audio research, and an entire industry of which bass cab companies are a drop in the ocean, somehow has not discovered yet (even though any canny realize that if Eden and SWR have had this supposed Superior Technology for decade, that any decent reverese engineering or industrial espionage could quickly duplicate it).

I had to applaud Aguilar a year or two ago when presented with this. Aguilar took the high road and revised their sensitivity figures DOWNWARD to realistic numbers for their enclosure products. That took a lot of courage, being surrounded by many companies who they must compete against who are NOT using realistic figures, and a market with many customers in it who are clueless about this and just see that "high numbers are better".

The sad and funny truth of this whole matter is, that all 10" drivers suitable for bass cab use tend to be within a dB or two of each other in sensitivity, regardless of what company has its logo on the enclosure. Only cabs like Acmes, which sacrifice midrange sensitivity for LF extension, fall outside that range."

Alex

P.S. It was me that contacted Dave Boonshoft (CEO Aguilar) about the inaccurate specs - kudos to him for doing something about it!

[OldGit]

I'm not disputing anything you say, merely giving one view on how such facts and figures may be perceived by your potential clients if you test and record them youself.

[alexclaber]

[quote name='OldGit' post='486924' date='May 13 2009, 02:11 PM']I'm not disputing anything you say, merely giving one view on how such facts and figures may be perceived by your potential clients if you test and record them youself.[/quote]

But without honest specs from the competition the only way to make comparisons is to either test their cabs or rely on anecdotal evidence from customers.

Alex

[OldGit]

[quote name='alexclaber' post='486989' date='May 13 2009, 03:34 PM']But without honest specs from the competition the only way to make comparisons is to either test their cabs or rely on anecdotal evidence from customers.

Alex[/quote]

Just sell your stuff on it's own inherent goodness and your customer feedback.
You don't have to dis' the competition to prove your stuff is good. You just look daft and insecure doing that.
You just have to get people to use it and then report independent good reports back.

"Try the rest then try the best" is about as close as you need to get to comparisons.

"Brilliant cabs" - Simon Rix. will sell many more than any unverified comparative testing you do yourself.

Oh and get a few people to use them on Jools.



zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
I'm done

[Stylon Pilson]

[url="http://barefacedbass.com/"]I see that the new design has gone live.[/url]

I'm sure I'll have a comprehensive list of bugs for you shortly.

S.P.

[Captain Rumble]

[quote name='Stylon Pilson' post='481069' date='May 6 2009, 02:23 PM']I like this idea. Especially if you then show a 10 year old girl picking a Compact up and putting it in the boot of a car.

S.P.[/quote]
Or a 50 year old wimp

[Captain Rumble]

[quote name='OldGit' post='487078' date='May 13 2009, 04:21 PM']Oh and get a few people to use them on Jools.[/quote]
+1 That would be a major coup

[mike257]

Just to be a pedantic bugger - the text in your FAQ about wait times is still referring to things being ready in May, might want to do something to bring that up to date. Your page about availability kind of renders that question obsolete, so you could replace the current answer with a link to that page

Looks the business though, a huge improvement. Nice one!!

[Stylon Pilson]

There are a few aspects of the new design that irritate me (I PM'd you back in May, Alex, but if you need me to resend, let me know). One additional thing to note is that the picture on the [url="http://barefacedbass.com/index.php?page=vintage"]Vintage[/url] page is actually that of a Vintageised Compact - surely you must have good pics of Vintages by now?

S.P.

Edited October 26, 2009 by Stylon Pilson

[OldGit]

[quote name='mike257' post='636992' date='Oct 26 2009, 03:49 PM']Just to be a pedantic bugger - the text in your FAQ about wait times is still referring to things being ready in May, might want to do something to bring that up to date. Your page about availability kind of renders that question obsolete, so you could replace the current answer with a link to that page

Looks the business though, a huge improvement. Nice one!![/quote]

Looking good...

Take out any dates and things that need updating .. so for example don't say "we've been building cabs for 4 years" but "we've been building cabs since 2005" that sort of thing.
Also take the date off the copyright statement. It will be out of date come 2010. If you update it every year you'll like you are a new company which raises questions about longevity.
You don't need it anyway. Just have "© Barefaced"

+1 on pictures .. also as we said before, with a bass / head for scale.

[OldGit]

Typo on the Vintage page:

"And because this [i][b]amp[/b][/i] is one for all the valve amp lovers we're going for a vintage look with silver Fender-style grill cloth and metal corners."