DGBass

There has been some comparisons between modern high quality 10s and 12s and "traditional" 15s and how these modern drivers can out perform the trad 15s which is probably a valid point that also encompasses modern cabinet designs. Saying that, will a modern high quality 10 or 12 with an 8mm excursion be able to move as much air as a modern high quality 15 with an 8mm excursion? And will a modern 10 or 12 ever actually sound like a modern 15? 15 inch speakers in my experience also have a tone all of their own which I personally like, and I think this still makes them a valid choice for me. Perhaps BF are thinking along the same lines and feel the need to fill a gap in their product line with a new up to date take on a 15 cab ( which they originally did ). These days its an easier sell doing a lightweight 2x15 cab, or a 15 + 12 cab or maybe even a 15 +10 cab( all cab designs TE did back in the day) which will be bigger from the outset, rather than trying to market a 1x15 cab as a compact option. 15 inch speakers sound different from 10s or 12s which still makes them valid tonally imho, and modern neo 15s( like the Faital pro 15-PR400) in particular are a world apart from "traditional" 15s of old. 15s also 'feel' different and I think that's something that's sadly lacking where the bass maybe heard a lot easier these days with modern 10 and 12 cabs, but is no longer felt the same way as 15s can deliver. 🫤

I'm still unsure what the point of the comparison is other than 15" speakers are perhaps still a viable option, and depending on any feedback or demand for them BF recieve they may build 15" cabs again. But as Mr. BF mentioned it would likely be a 2x15 only they would be interested in building. That's still going to be a physically large cab even if they apply the same sonics and design philosophy as they do to their smaller driver cabs. It would also likely have a pro crossover and tweeter adding to size and complexity, and i'll guess a potential £2k plus price tag. Personally I like 15'' speakers, always have done, still use them, and for a particular sound they make and how they feel in use. The 1518 cab in the video sounded the best overall imho and reminded me of the 1518 I owned which was an early 90s grey tolex with the Celestion C15J-300. It really could handle a lot of bottom end but also had that extra mid/brightness the older cab with the Fane has. The cab in the video is an 80s version and ten years is a sizeable gap in speaker design that imho made the 90s grey tolex TE cabs much more useable. Still, it's nice to see and hear a near 40 year old cab still has something to give tonally, as long as you are using an amp from the same era ,eg. something like an AH150/200/250. And of course if you are happy to lug it about. Well designed high output 15" cabs that can deliver prodigous low end , have meaty mids, and sparkling highs are never going to be compact, cheap, or ultra lightweight. Thats one reason it would be difficult to persuade players to exchange their lightweight ten and twelve cabs for a 'decent' modern well designed 15" cab. I'll be the first to applaud if BF could work their magic on such a cab that doesn't end up costing a king's ransom. So, thumbs up from me for any development into modern 15" cabs, especially single 15 inch cabs.

Something like this rubber nonslip mat, with a soft carpet top. Rolls up and fits in the gig bag easily too.

Screwing rubber feet onto shiny new Markbass cabs might affect your warranty, and with a lot of lightweight thinner walled cabs, there often isn't a great deal of wood to hold a screw for a decent sized rubber foot. I recently road tested an LFSYS Goodwood cab and it had no feet, but did have hard plastic stackable corners. At under 9kg, there wasn't a lot of weight to 'plant' it on a hard wood floor. The simple solution was to use a 'mighty mat' non slip carpet mat, the type that can be bought cheap at most DIY or convenience stores. Protects the cab, stops it slipping around, also protects the flooring, and no need for rubber feet. Saying that, I will always fit decently large rubber feet on bigger and used cabs and amp heads, even if they have stackable plastic corners like Markbass kit has. For brand new stuff with a warranty, I'd prefer using a mighty mat.

Thats a proper old school unit, thanks for posting a pic. I must admit never having had any issues with overheating or fans on these types of Trace Elliot amps. My last 4x10 combo was a ( MK4) GP11 with the PM2-S setup and Papst fan which ran silently. It was probably one of the most original old TE's I'd come accross when I bought it. Same with the (MK4) AH150 head I still gig occasionally, its a PM4-S with the same Papst fan that runs silently. I did previously use an older GP7 head and the fan on that was noisy but I think that was just wear and tear / worn bearings from decades of use.

I've never come accross an early 4x10 combo that had switched speaker sockets, or any speaker sockets for that matter, especially on the PM2-S output boards. They were usually wired direct from the output board via male and female spade terminals to the green/orange wires from the cabinet. The back panel usually had blanking plugs, probably to discourage owners from using extension cabs. The 4x10 cabs were also 8 ohm so these type combos were probably not pushing out much more than 100 watts and were never intended to power an extension cab. But they were loud. The PM2-S versions run a lot hotter than the PM4-S versions, and there was normally a large cast frame Papst cooling fan that ran permanently on. I guess that's just how it is when dealing with amps that are 40+ years old. You can never be totally sure what is original and what is not. Even the most reliable kit will need servicing at some point, which might include modifications that could cause unexpected reliablity problems in the future. 🙂

That is a good question. Wish I could answer it with 100% certainty. I can only say from experience working on these type of boards. Tant's are as far as I am aware more expensive, have a longer life span, and from experience seem to have tighter tolerance than comparable electrolytics so are more stable. Yes, on these boards, and also on most Ashdown amps in recent years, tants are often employed as input couplers. Most schematics for these type amps specify components are replaced with the same original part specification which for me at least is good enough reason to replace like with like.🙂

Changing the tantalum cap for a standard electrolytic is unfortunatley something i've come across in the past. It will cause instability and random noise when done, but won't stop the board working. It's an easy fix done mostly because standard electrolytics are more commonly available in the parts bin. If you have a test meter you could try measuring the pot to see if you get a reading both sides of it. Be careful though as once you open up things, there will be hazardous voltages, especially from those very large smoothing caps. It might be time to consult a tech if you aren't confident in testing or swapping out a few components.

The MPB2 Issue 2 boards on the older TE models were usually 150 watt units. They just sound like 300 watt units. There is sometimes a circular sticker on the front that will say which configuration it is, either PM2-S ( two hitachi mosfets ) or PM4-S ( four hitachi mosfets). The issue 2 boards were usually fused on the board, wheras the more common Issue four boards were not, but had a seperate speaker fuse on the back panel. Here is a photo of an MPB2 Issue 2 board from a 150 watt combo unit PM4-S. These ran off a 40V-0V-40V tap on the transformer. The PM2-S version had a larger supply voltage to get the 150 watt rating. IMHE, servicing points I always look out for on these boards are the open frame preset pot, these often go open circuit, and the tantalum bead capacitor can cause signal gremlins eg distorition / intermittent noise. The mosfets rarely give any trouble. If I was servicing one of these boards, I'd change all five small transistors as well even if they test ok, renew the open frame preset with a sealed one, and renew the tantalum bead cap while the board was out of the chassis. Clean the multi plug contacts as well. The resistors, diodes and passive caps also rarely give any trouble but its worth testing them anyway if the board is out on the bench.

I don't really get excited by the latest and greatest bass out there these days. I have a main and a backup P-Bass and that does me fine for everything. Saying that, I saw this bass advertised for a ridiculously small amount of money and got very curious about how much lefty bass guitar I could reasonably expect to get for just fifteen quid. Being fretless, or looking fretless, also intruigued me as i've never owned or played a fretless before. So, I picked it up, gave it a good clean and set up to my liking( never actually set up a fretless before either, so just guessed what it should be) and took it along to a rehearshal. The verdict is that this was indeed a lot of bass for the money. It also played really well and I'm now a convert to fretless basses. It also sounded great through my Ashdown MAG 600 straight in with no effects. It's well made, has a slab rosewood finger board that would shame many a Fender, and the pickups are AXL branded EMG Passive J's. Not high output, but have lots of clarity, and are very toneful. All the hardware is sort of generic fendery type stuff, does what it needs to do quite well, and with no fuss or bling and stays in tune and intonates well. I don't know much about these instruments other than they were made between 2001-2005 in China so its at least two decades old. The only real downside so far is that its a tad neck heavy because the body is quite light. It's maybe made of basswood or something similar instead of alder and is slightly thinner than most J basses I've come across. It's certainly a gigglable bass and solidly made. So has anyone else found a budget lefty that's peaked their curiousity, and has turned out to be a diamond in the rough? And giggable?

I was given this the other day for 'evaluation purposes' by a fellow bass player. Never seen or heard the like of it before. I suspect it has been a custom made pedal and possibly a take on an old Tonebender distortion pedal. Sounds very nasty, and makes the user want to play evil riffs. Apparently🙄

This weekend's rig of choice was based around some old school Ashdown kit. A big mag and a wee mag. The wee mag 200 is tried and tested, and was brought along as a back up to the big mag 600. Reason being, the big mag was bought as a parts only unit a few days ago. Both are UK built, and the big mag 600 only needed some minor repairs to get it going again ( new input and output volume pots, a new sub harmonic pot, and lastly a new VU meter bulb). Serviced and fully cleaned. Did its first gig in alledgedly years, sounded brilliant and performed brilliantly. I've owned a few mag 600 evoII before, but never bonded with them. This old UK built one sounds so much better than any other MAG i've used. The only real difference is that the UK ones came with very high quality and high output Demeter transformers instead of the generic PRC ones. Bass and pedals - same as it ever was. Cab is my 4 ohm Laney R210.

Just my tuppence worth on these new standard basses after seeing them in the flesh today at a well kent guitar store down the Trongate in Glasgow. They look well made with good fit and finish, however a few examples of Player and Player II basses hanging next to them easily outshone them for looks and overall finish imho. The Player basses were between £200-300 more expensive but would have got my money if i wanted a Fender logo on my bass. The black Fender logo on the standards looks a little tacky and cheap, and perhaps too reminiscent of budget Squier Affinity models imho, not that i'm knocking Affinity basses. Comparing them to another raft of Squier basses hanging next in line, the Squier basses looked just as good if not better than the standards. Again, the price difference between Squier and Standard varies between £200-300 and it looks like a deliberate pricing structure from Fender to fill a gap. Of course looks, fit and finish are only a small part of it, how they sound and play/feel is probably more important. I would have loved to have reported on the sonic aspects, but of course as a leftie player, Fender have all but removed all leftie Squier options these days (except one black Jazz) and completely removed Player/Player II leftie options. I'll get my coat before a leftie rant ensues😉 Anyway, im sure the new standards sound fine. You can't see the headstock while you are playing anyway so does it really matter to the masses if its a solid black Fender logo or a traditional gold / silver spaghetti logo?

same here, still nothing arriving from basschat at all.

The solution didn't work for me mainly because i'm not even recieving anything in my spam folder. Nothing is arriving at all from Basschat and hasn't since the server update. All other mail is arriving normally in the account I use for Basschat.