ardi100 Posted April 24 Share Posted April 24 I've seen a cab advertised reasonably locally that is a cut down combo, head removed and a pretty crude looking board replacing it. After some enquiries it seems to be an Ashdown ABM 115 Evo 3 but I'm not that familiar with them to be able to check - it could be a Mag too. I'm not currently gigging but am in a band that is rehearsing and could be gigging soon. My amp is an Ashdown RM800 and I've currently got an Eden Ex112 that I'm going to sell and try to get more speakers (210/212 or, eventually, 2x115). My budget is basically whatever I get for the Eden, but this would far cheaper than that. Is it worth an hour's drive and the faff of checking it out? Or would it be a total waste of time? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barkin Posted April 25 Share Posted April 25 Personally I wouldn't bother. Old school 15's (Ashdown/Trace/Peavey etc) can be had cheap, and would be more sellable than something that's been hacked about. Just my opinion... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassmanPaul Posted April 25 Share Posted April 25 IMHO Combo speaker sections tend to be a compromise to fit into the combo format. you'd be far better off buying a proper well designed speaker cabinet. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ardi100 Posted April 26 Author Share Posted April 26 Confirming my suspicions, thanks. Being on a budget and being a tight wad does funny things to the mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil Starr Posted April 26 Share Posted April 26 I wouldn't be too bothered about buying this. It would depend entirely upon price and what you are expecting to get. What you effectively have is an Ashdown ABM 15 in a home made box. A 15" driver of equivalent quality would set you back £120 new so if you pay sub £100 for it you'll probably have a perfectly serviceable working cab for rehearsals and practice. If you are handy you can probably smarten up the cab and you could even re-house the speaker in a new cab you build yourself. My first cab was a Peavey 15" Black Widow I picked up for £30 from a repair shop that was having a clear out. It did me proud in a home made cab for around four years. It still works If it's tatty but working when you've finished with it you can still sell it on when you've saved up for something better and you'll get most of your money back. Just don't spend too much. My guitarist, also a tight wad, had a Marshall combo with the amp missing but a decent Celestion speaker in it. I got fed up with him turning up to gigs with something so scruffy so I built him a cab for that and he is still proudly using it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gjones Posted April 26 Share Posted April 26 I once did the same with an Ashdown combo. I used it as a speaker cab for a long time. I even replaced the speaker with a more powerful one. It served me well for a couple of years. But make sure you're getting a very good deal and try it out at a decent volume before you buy. If it's being sold for more than £100 though, I wouldn't bother, as you'll have trouble selling it on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassmanPaul Posted April 26 Share Posted April 26 (edited) 11 hours ago, ardi100 said: Confirming my suspicions, thanks. Being on a budget and being a tight wad does funny things to the mind. Amps and cabinets are the tools of our trade. If you worked with wood as a profession would you use the cheapest, ratty equipment or would you invest in proper woodworking tools? If you are a serious musician, invest in your equipment. It'll pay dividends in the future and other musicians you work with will see that you mean business! BTW we've all been where you are now at some time in our careers. Edited April 26 by BassmanPaul 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Fitzmaurice Posted April 26 Share Posted April 26 +1. Good gear is an investment in your future. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ardi100 Posted April 28 Author Share Posted April 28 All of this is true! Thank you. It's for sale for £65. If my Eden doesn't cut a full band (which I'd be surprised if it did) then it might be worth a really lowball offer just to tide me over until I can get something better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil Starr Posted April 28 Share Posted April 28 That seems a good ball park price for what you could be getting. So long as it has the original driver in full working order then you have a quality piece of kit where the only drawback is cosmetic. For that price you aren't worried about re-sale value really, the most you can loose is £65 or whatever you pay and in reality the driver is probably worth £45 on its own and you can use the cab until you decide to upgrade and probably get nearly all of your money back, you might even make a profit Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lemmywinks Posted April 28 Share Posted April 28 Seems like a reasonable price, good results can be had if you can do the work: I'd just buy the cab I wanted though, the world isn't exactly short of old, heavy Ashdown cabs going for a song. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Dare Posted April 28 Share Posted April 28 On 26/04/2024 at 17:07, BassmanPaul said: Amps and cabinets are the tools of our trade. If you worked with wood as a profession would you use the cheapest, ratty equipment or would you invest in proper woodworking tools? If you are a serious musician, invest in your equipment. It'll pay dividends in the future and other musicians you work with will see that you mean business! BTW we've all been where you are now at some time in our careers. This. I appreciate not everyone can afford the gear they really want, but buying the best possible within ones budget is always a smart move. You will enjoy using it more and you will recoup more of your original outlay when the time comes to move it on/upgrade. In the OP's position, I'd be looking for another Eden EX112 to go with the one he has already. They aren't a bad cab by any means and can be had used for a couple of hundred. Two of them would be a lot better than a hacked about old Ashdown. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lemmywinks Posted April 28 Share Posted April 28 A lot of those Eden EX cabs were 4ohm, was looking for a used 8ohm EX110 after they'd gone out of production and couldn't find one at the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ardi100 Posted April 28 Author Share Posted April 28 My Eden is 4 ohms, hence wanting more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lemmywinks Posted April 28 Share Posted April 28 There was someone selling 2 x 8ohm EX112 in the classifieds recently. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lemmywinks Posted April 28 Share Posted April 28 Is it this one? https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/285824368461? Yeah, I'd be giving that a miss even if it was around the corner, let alone an hour away. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassmanPaul Posted April 28 Share Posted April 28 From that seller I'd rather go with the Warwick 2x10 for 25 quid more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ardi100 Posted April 28 Author Share Posted April 28 18 minutes ago, lemmywinks said: Is it this one? https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/285824368461? Yeah, I'd be giving that a miss even if it was around the corner, let alone an hour away. That's it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ardi100 Posted April 28 Author Share Posted April 28 24 minutes ago, BassmanPaul said: From that seller I'd rather go with the Warwick 2x10 for 25 quid more. Is that in Trowbridge? That's four hours drive from me! There are some Warwick 115s pretty cheap - are they any good? Basically, I'm looking for an old school, heavy, unwanted cab that I can capitalise on and sound good. Oh, and for peanuts! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassmanPaul Posted April 28 Share Posted April 28 (edited) Anything Warwick is a superior product. I just gave away my Warwick Streamer. it was a beautiful bass with an incredible sound. I hadn't played it in years so I passed it on to someone who'd appreciate it. Edited April 29 by BassmanPaul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ardi100 Posted April 28 Author Share Posted April 28 (edited) 2 minutes ago, BassmanPaul said: Anything Warwick is a superior product. I just gave away my Warwick Steamer. it was a beautiful bass with an incredible sound. I hadn't played it in years so I passed it on to someone who'd appreciate it. Are their cabs on a par with their basses? I used to play a Profet 3.2 which, apart from being a bit under powered, I absolutely loved. Edited April 28 by ardi100 Spelling Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassmanPaul Posted April 29 Share Posted April 29 I've never actually tried one but I hear that they are great speaker cabinets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassybert Posted April 29 Share Posted April 29 19 hours ago, BassmanPaul said: Anything Warwick is a superior product. I just gave away my Warwick Streamer. it was a beautiful bass with an incredible sound. I hadn't played it in years so I passed it on to someone who'd appreciate it. Got any more lying around 🤣 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassmanPaul Posted April 29 Share Posted April 29 I'm slowly disposing of all of my music;al gear. I have moved a lot of rack mount units over to someone else who can make use of it. My small PA will be going shortly. I still have two six string basses, one Fretless.. A Hofner Violin bass that needs a lot of love and wood working skills that will go to someone who wants it. My 63 Precision will not be going anywhere. I was playing that when I met my wife on June 06 1968. Some times I just shake my head at all of the music making equipment I have collected over more than sixty years of being a Bass player. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dclaassen Posted April 29 Share Posted April 29 It can be a real challenge to get good gear for a limited amount of cash. When I started gigging again after a long hiatus, I had a Hartke Kickback…120 watts through 1 12. Good practice and rehearsal amp. Next was a great deal on my Trace rig..smt 11 head..400 watts, a 4x10, and a 15”. Cabs are pretty shabby but sound good…just really heavy. Now I’m moving to 2 1x12 Genz Benz cabs, . If those work out, I’ll sell the 410 cab, refurb the 15, and should be ready for anything. Trace rig was £250, 2 GB cabs are 280….you don’t need to spend a ton to get good gear. I am going to spend some cash getting a tune up on the Trace head, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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