Mr. Foxen

[quote name='TimR' timestamp='1377863550' post='2192902'] As things become more complicated and more varied. Trial and error becomes a very long process. So you buy a long lead and your guitar sounds bad. You assume it's the new lead. What process of trial and error would then lead you to buying a buffer? [/quote] Had exactly this happen in the studio, not idea how long they'd have been cocking about if I hadn't stuck a sansamp on bypass in the chain. Got me an album credit.

[quote name='redstriper' timestamp='1377859963' post='2192834'] I still don't understand why foam core panels are not used by any commercial cab manufacturers other than Flite. [/quote] Think you can poke holes in the pretty easily. When it comes to touring even light stuff gets treated the same as heavy stuff. Plus obviously the vocal sorts that demand everything is wood. SVT 8x10 is still an industry standard even though massively obsolete, so stuff just doesn't catch up.

[quote name='stevie' timestamp='1377805436' post='2192216'] If it's common knowledge, then do tell us what this material is and who is using it. [/quote] The variety thing is there is lots of materials. That is what 'variety' means. Two such woods are birch, and poplar, you can get ply of either, each with differing properties. For more esoteric examples, actually go read the thread where I already linked a bunch. Oh yeah, and guess what, not only have I braced a cab, but, drum roll, so has Alex Claber, and guess what they are telling me? That you are wrong. Also, know what is easier than making a braced cab? Making a not braced cab. And idiot's money spends just as well as smart people's. Edit: Also, know what increases stiffness? Bracing.

You want to more than match the draw of the amp and the rating of the transformer should overrate by a fair chunk as amps draw more when first on (hence slow blow fuses) and can draw varying amounts according to use.

[quote name='redstriper' timestamp='1377724754' post='2191070'] Great - can you post links to the other manufacturers making cabs from un-braced foam core panels please? I can't find anything on line, but I'm very interested to see anyone else doing it, especially in the UK. [/quote] There were a bunch of builds if the Fearful threads on another bass forum. Years ago, and threads were huge. Heres a googled one: [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fE3HE-T5R1Q[/media] Dunno if unbraced. More is more with stuff. Edit: Thread on the nidacore one, as I recall there was development of technique in it: http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f15/composite-nidacore-fearful-15-6-1-build-732771/ There was a fiberglass over foam one too, but it ended up looking pretty rough.

[quote name='redstriper' timestamp='1377723068' post='2191020'] I'm surprised no one else is using the idea. [/quote] It is used, you can get Fearful/fearless cabs made like that. Also Nidacore ones. And the barefaced ply is dual density, so has different engineering properties from standard ply.

[quote name='stevie' timestamp='1377721718' post='2190975'] You know what doesn't ring true? The idea that you can keep making material thinner and thinner and by adding bracing maintain the same properties as thicker material. It's b*llocks. Otherwise, we'd all be using cabs made out of 3mm MDF. [/quote] The whole point is thinner doesn't have the same properties as thicker. Properties like weight. The other properties you engineer to be how you want. [quote name='stevie' timestamp='1377721718' post='2190975'] What does changing the ply composition mean? And yes, bridges are designed for rigidity. But they are made from strong materials to begin with, i.e. reinforced concrete or steel. You don't design a bridge by making a structure that is as light as possible and then reinforcing it with bracing, now do you? [/quote] Changing ply composition is how you achieve the desired properties, there are a wide variety of different woods you can make ply form, as well as other materials that can be laminated into it. Kind of figured that was common knowledge. And yes you do start out by making a bridge light, that way you don't need excessive amounts of material engineering to support the needless weight. [quote name='stevie' timestamp='1377721718' post='2190975'] By the way, have you any idea how stiff a church bell is? Ding dong [/quote] Very stiff indeed. And with a narrow resonant band, in which they are very resonant, that's one of those engineered properties, you know how they achieve bells of different notes although the material is the same? Its engineering. MDF is a very different material that is very non-resonant, but it is very flexible. Starting to understand how material composition affects its properties now?

[quote name='stevie' timestamp='1377715518' post='2190826'] Whilst theoretically possible in an ideal world, getting a 12mm panel as stiff as an 18mm panel requires some serious bracing – enough to make the box nearly as heavy as making it out of 18mm in the first place. The way I remember it, if you reduce the thickness of plywood by 3mm you reduce its stiffness by 50%. So a 15mm panel is half as stiff as an 18mm panel and a 12mm panel is half as stiff again. An 18mm panel is actually 8 times as stiff as a 9mm panel – and it's a lot worse if you're also using lighter materials like softwood ply. I don't think any of the companies making lightweight bass cabs are using a really sophisticated bracing system like the B&W Matrix because that would add too much weight. These companies are building lightweight cabs – so they use as much or as little bracing as they need to get the job done. The only company that provides any information on their cabinet bracing is Trace Elliot and they seem to be using a single circular brace. Good, but not belt and braces, although to be fair they don't make any special claims for their poplar ply cabinet anyway – except that it's light. Although in theory you can brace the bejaysus out of a thin panel to make it stiff, what you can't do is compensate for the reduced self-damping of thinner materials. Damping is what stops a material from ringing - and ringing is what makes cabinets sound bad. There's also the problem that the thinner material is less acoustically transparent and will allow sound to escape through the cabinet more easily at certain frequencies. So while I'm all in favour of neo drivers, I am not a fan of thinwall cabinets for bass. You can easily check the inertness of your cabinet (and thus how much spurious noise it is producing) by playing a low E on your bass whilst placing your (other) hand against the back panel. [/quote] All of this doesn't ring true. You absolutely can compensate for the reduced self damping of thinner materials, changing the ply composition can do that. additionally all the stiffness stuff doesn't work, half the panel thickness and brace across two opposing panels will happily give most of the stiffness of an unbraced full thickness one, along with massively reduced resonance/raised resonant frequency. Observing any engineered structure shows specific reinforcement is employed over plain mass, any large concrete structure isn't just made of masses of concrete, it is made of reinforced concrete, with an interior framework giving strength with concrete over it. Bridges are not made of a solid mass, but a framework of supports.

Phosphor bronze is better than brass, looks about the same, doesn't dull as much and is self lubricating.

Danish oil is one of those undefined terms. Some of them are totally different things to others. I use Rustins Danish Oil, its tung oil and dryers, so its easy to use. Other stuff is wipe on varnish and totally sucks (Wilko own brand). You can also mix rustins stain with the oil. The oil matures over a fair time, and goes from smelling like solvents for a few days to smelling like stale nuts for a few weeks. Here is a simple stain and oil job I did: http://basschat.co.uk/topic/213468-attempted-refin-of-a-washburn-force-40/

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1377364739' post='2186798'] Remember that not only do you have to compare the differences between one species of wood and another, but also show that there is a significant degree of similarity between instruments made of the same species of wood. [/quote] If species was the sole determining factor in properties, then the whole wood selection and seasoning thing wouldn't exist.

Main thing determining the sale price of a vintage valve amplifier: Willingness to ship internationally.

[url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?&v=TwIvUbOhcKE#t=100"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?&v=TwIvUbOhcKE[/url] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hp97GjuULX8 Whole series is useful watching.

Don't assume a cable straight to the amp is better. It may be different, but often a buffer will have higher impedance, and thus less tone effect than an amp input. The true bypass fallacy is all about the assumption cable straight to amp is better, regardless of lead length. A buffer removes lead length as a variable.

The other factors you need to take into account are the box size vs. Thiele-small specs of the driver. Get that wrong and you make yourself a fart machine.

Boss pedal buffered bypass is fine, some aren't bypassed though, ones that parallel process, digital ones and pitch shift ones can potentially not be buffered. It was the old wahs that really tone sucked due to having no bypass, meaning the signal always passed through the input circuitry even when the effect was off, those really improved with a true bypass switch, but a buffered one would have been even better.

Buffer will alter the tone from running unbuffered, suddenly you don't have chunks of it scooped out. Running into a high impedance can make quite a lot of difference.

Could totally bend you a bit of tin to order.

Short version is 'True bypass' is much cheaper to implement than a buffer. Then you call it a 'feature' and people don't twig they are getting stiffed. For consistent tone, you want a stable impedance on you pickups, as they are an inductor in a circuit with a resistor (the impedance) they act as a bandpass filter, if you constantly change the value of the resistor the tone changes with it (like turning a tone control), if you have a buffer, the impedance (the hypothetical resistor) stays the same, and the changes happen isolated from the circuit with the pickup in it. Edit: another write up for reference: http://www.tech21nyc.com/technotes/

I'm gonna make some bridges eventually. Kind of low priority, since plenty of choices about. Making metal necks is where the hotness is.

[quote name='Clarky' timestamp='1377458129' post='2187819'] I sincerely hope none of us on BassChat actually have to rely on dealing in bass gear to support our families (excepting those who work in music retail of course) [/quote] Aside from not really having a family to support, dealing bass gear is my main income. Well, guitar gear too, but I play bass through it all.

I can't find enough Laney AOR series to satisfy demand. I just don't see enough Matamps that I ever have a chance to pick one up cheap.

My own auction, so didn't post until it was done, because not advertising my stuff, but what have I missed here, I had this down as a cheap nasty before I robbed all the bits off it. Loads of people fighting over it, I figured I'd be lucky to get the £25 start and it out the way: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/300949307514?ssPageName=STRK:MESOX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1561.l2649

Also, a good modern conventional cab will be lightweight. Being heavy is something tech has moved on from.

I stuck a 3015 in an Ashdown MAG15 and lined it with knobbly foam, sounded good, but the ports are too small and it compresses before the driver is getting to its limit. So if you spend about £250 on top of the cost of the Ashdown cab, you get a sort of heavier, less loud Compact. Edit: typo