Count Bassie

Looking at a Peavey Pro 810 cab, which is a sealed box. I hear, and have ecperienced that a ported cab brings out more lows than a sealed type. Any thoughts here on it? I wonder if the larger bank of 10s would bring more of an impression of depth, even in a sealed enclosure?

This is about the same line of replies I got over at the Talkbass site. Actually these were slightly more interesting to read! Thanks for the chime-ins, everybody. I went and got a GK head for my GK cab after all. But I appreciate your time!

Greetings, been awhile. Had a question if you'll suffer it... I just came a cross a Wharfdale WHB300H and a matching 212 combo. It looks very fancy in its red suit, and I wonder if any of you folks have experience with or knowledge of it? I'm in the market for a new head, and am curious. Thanks for your time. And don't forget those safety goggles.

Picked up an old, not so rare Sunn 215S cab, and it's loaded with some well-used Celestion PA 15s- it had been run with an old SVT in fact. But I wonder if there any advice on what one would put in it for a nicer, heftier low end and good throw into a room? Also something NEO might be fun... Thanks for your time.

Hey thought I'd bring this old topic back since I've pretty well finished my 210 cab project this thread was originally about. I loaded it with some old Eminence drivers I had laying around, neos from an Avatar 210. Had them reconed, and I've been playing out with it. Did a reggae gig last night, and it did a nice job. Full, big and deep, good snap up top. She's being a good little tank. Now if I can figure how to post a photo here from my little phone I'll put it up here...

The heavy is definitely an issue- moving gear becomes a logistical problem to solve, and requires some muscle. But last night it was worth it- reggae through the 301 folded-horn 1x18 was massive. Won't get that out of a small box, though that's mostly because of the design of the cab... the old folded horns did their own folded-horn thing, and the Acoustic is particularly colorful in its way. Not ready to give up my fridge just yet!

[quote name='brensabre79' timestamp='1433520725' post='2791848'] I still remember my old 301 with great fondness, unfortunately I didn't have the 370 to go with mine. My 'heavy rig' is the Peavey Alphabass All-valve head - which I have modified. Love the sound. My Carvin BX500 comes pretty close in awesomeness but lacks the big bouncy push you get from all-valve. [/quote] That Alphabass is a neat amp, a friend of mine has one and won't sell it. Do dig my 301 though- what a sound that beast has. Playing a reggae gig tonight, running my little Trace AH250SMX into it. First outing with this one, the boys're in for a fun surprise... Dig that 215 cab, Daddy-O.

[quote name='spacey' timestamp='1433321217' post='2789990'] ...Or have you flogged the new stuff you bought and hunted down what you had before. Pics welcome, who has the boldest and oldest "it just bloody works" bass rig that despite its weight, its worth lumping. [/quote] I had an [b]Acoustic 370[/b]- head only- when I was a new player, I'd been at it for about 3 or so years by then. Since then I've had the whole rig (called the [b]371[/b] when accompanied by its mate folded-horn 1x18 cab, the [b]301 Transducer[/b]), but sold it because of our basement being up a short-ish flight of old stone/mortar steps I didn't want to ruin. Anyway I've come back upon one (damn the mortar), and I am looking forward to that sound wrapping around my head once again! Best and most character-embued bass head I've ever owned I think, and as soon as I get it back from repairs at the shop, it's off to rock-land... Can't seem to get my attachment to attach... I'll try again later I guess.

I am, still, all lack of evidence pointing to the contrary aside, on a path to completion of this project. Updates pending, probably after recovery from this bottle of inexpensive red wine, and after the order has been placed for the speakers from the US Fane sales representative...

Well I've gotten derailed for a minute... (lol) I have an old Polytone 212-300 "Custom Bass Amp" combo amp; 180 watts, 2x12. The 12s are CTS speakers from 1974- the vintage of the amp- and they're a tad fragile I think to be bass speakers. So I'm going to try a pair of Fanes in there, and see how she rolls. The amp's controls are dead-simple: Bass/treble/Volume, 2 channels of each, each channel with a choice of 2 input jacks with a difference in sensitivity (I think that's the difference- they do sound different anyway). The sound out of this old thing is sweet and plump, not powerful so much as fat and tone-ful... great for R&B vibe, it's low-impact and well-spoken. My Squier Franken-P-Bass sounds very nice with the Thomastik flats on it... mo' as this and other stories develop...

Lesson learned. Now you can save up for something nice and not kill it! Always look on the bright side of life...

[quote name='Phil Starr' timestamp='1352413647' post='1862882'] I'd forgotten this thread. First of all yes i would definitely port the cab.[/quote] There's the original plan; I've got inserts cut to plug two of the baffle holes and will turn them into ports... [quote name='Phil Starr' timestamp='1352413647' post='1862882']Your amp will overload the 125's but this is more due to over excursion than the thermal load. Having said that they suit your cab a little better. In practice it depends upon how you use them. I've used two with a 600W amp but I tend to leave the bass flat or even cut a little and I don't play in a very loud band. I can drown out the drummer and so it is plenty loud enough for me. If you use a lot of bass boost or are heavy on the volume there is a small risk. How easy would it be to get replacements?[/quote] Replacements are pretty easy, and the Fanes are [i]quite cheap[/i] over here. Don't want to say that too loud... I'll probably run at the 10-125s and see what they're like. For what I'll be using it for I don't think I'll need to worry much. Also I had a bad groove on blowing speakers a few years back, and have since learned (after 30 years of playing, heh) that bass guitar isn't really a "bass instrument" per se anyway- it's more mids-friendly, and fools the ear into hearing "bass"- so I don't have to be King Tubby to get it on in the rhythm section! But you knew that. [quote name='Phil Starr' timestamp='1352413647' post='1862882']If you wnt to be idiot proof the 300's take you well beyond the thermal limits and with the extra air in your cab the speakers are less likely to go beyond the excursion limits. They are going to have an extended bass with a slow roll off in this cab so they might be a bit 'polite' sounding though the bass will be clean and deep. If it helps I've been gigging a lot with the 300's in a 2x10 but I'm swapping them out for the 125's to get a little more character. The 300's are cleaner and will be going into a pair of wedges. [/quote] Thanks for looking back in Phil! I will post pix and some notes when I have it set up and making some noise.

Hey one more question, if I can tax you guys again: My amp is now an SWR SM-400s, and it runs around 400w @ 8 ohms, more at 4 ohms... I'm afraid of slamming too hard into a pair of 10-125s. Now maybe this is a bit of an obvious question, but would you rather go for the 10-300s?...

[quote name='jaydentaku' timestamp='1350569888' post='1840645'] I have a hand made cab i pick up from a fellow on here. It has an 18" Fane Classic 200watts at 8ohms. Its from the 80's. Forget the figures, it is LOUD and has an excellent sound. [/quote] That's encouraging! Also I've just heard from a Fane rep after contacting them, and the prices are pretty encouraging as well... so I shall return...

Say Phil... if you're in 'ear-shot' of this thread still; I was going to model in WinSID Alpha and come up with port sizes to fill two of the 4 speaker/baffle holes. Would you port or do sealed? I'm thinking a 2x10 still... I'm actually getting ready to move on this now!

Buy for sound and most useful features, not for wattage. Depends, but 200-400 is probably enough for anything if you pair with well-designed cabs, and if you learn how to get the most out of your amp. The trend for high-power is mostly due to buying into the bogus marketing feed. My Eden head runs "400w at 4 ohms" and does just fine wherever I go with it. Punch, nice tones, and good solid presence in the mix. Ta-da.

Thanks. I should've turned the amp on and got the purple light in the shot! I'd be almost ok if it were my only amp, actually.

Got this recently from an old bass playing hero/avatar from my upstart days in the Miami, FL punk scene. Back in the 80s we had a pretty slammin' thing going on: Lots of original bands, lots of people going to see them- was quite the happening, the likes of which I haven't seen since the advent of youtube and facebook... but I'll stop before someone offers me some well-cooked oatmeal and a diaper change... Anyway, I scored this amp from a guy named Ray Harris, whose band "Z-Cars" was at the top of the rock heap back then. What a great band- loaded with vibe, energy, and they were highly entertaining. Walking into their gig for the first time was a revelation to my young green sensibilities... It was an "Ohhh... yeah! So THIS is how you play the bass..." kind of a moment. He wasn't using this one, but we met up on facebook about a year ago, and this came along: I've been playing it in our original punk-esque trio, "The Same"; we're starting off with a short list of covers from The Sex Pistols, Dead Boys, Husker Du, Ramones, Motor Head and a couple Who covers... my kids think it's sort of a kick that their dad is (still) a punk-rocker. Kinda cute. Them, I mean. : ) I've also found that running the amp's volume pretty 'hot' and keeping the instrument's volume back a bit helps with getting the most headroom out of it. Those Eminence Kappalite 3015s in the TL-606 cabs don't hurt either. Dang thing works- got some nice snarl and some satisfying, deep lows with this old full-contact model Kustom head. And I always wear my safety goggles.

Just cruised back through... I've been in double-time mode with work and family-related stuff, and that cab is still sitting in the basement! I keep looking at it... but it taunts me with promises of a better life, so I'll have to get to it. Haven't forgotten!

The additional buzz is that GK will mod the older model up to the series-II spec, free of charge- you only pay shipping. It's on my list of things to do now! I'm pretty much figuring all my standard watering-hole type gig needs will be met with the MB112 and a powered extension 1x12. There's a Talkbass thread about it [url="http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f15/new-gk-mb112-ii-just-arrived-big-box-need-411-a-858875/#post13015160"]here...[/url]

Love the XL cabs- I had an old Guild/Hartke with a rumpled cone, and it was great! Tight, warm, nice pleasant 'punch'. Saw Throwing Muses in '96 here in Providence RI, and their bassist played a Fender Precision through a GK 800RB and Hartke 410/115 stack. Beeeeautiful sound. I also had a Hartke 1155 combo for a while- a 3500 head and 115 alum and 5" alum mid-driver in the cab. Sweet little combo, made a Hofner Beatle Bass come through true and present. Great stuff all around, I think.

One note, if I may chime in- you'll notice [i]more air [/i]being pushed with 2 cabs... and if you get decent matched cabs (at 8 ohms each), they'll probably 'link up' and increase the apparent dB by a few: You'll tend to get a bigger-sounding bottom and generally more presence in the live mix- so there are benefits to using 2 cabs. Edit: Also you get the full benefit of your amp's headroom at 4 ohms, another reason for more apparent lows and presence... If I'm indoors with a line to PA, or playing a low-key gig, I almost always just bring one cab. We'll be playing in a funky small-town parade on back of a flat-bed tow-truck next month though, so I'll be stacking the TL-606s for that nuttiness...

[quote name='bertbass' timestamp='1337942211' post='1667667'] Marshall Major and 4 Vox Foundation cabs, 18s. [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=54H3EUAzpVg[/media] [/quote] The singer sounds like the guy from Stories... both bass players too (same guy?). And I dig the fat 'bump' of those 18s...

Here are a few more... [b]"Room EQ Switch"[/b] [IMG]http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c179/Sloom/Amps%20and%20Gear/Polytone/Polytone%20Bass%20Combo%20212-300/PolytonelabelRoomEQ.jpg[/IMG] [b]Power amp[/b] [IMG]http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c179/Sloom/Amps%20and%20Gear/Polytone/Polytone%20Bass%20Combo%20212-300/Polytonepoweramp.jpg[/IMG] [b]CTS 12s, date-coded 1974, still sound great[/b] [IMG]http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c179/Sloom/Amps%20and%20Gear/Polytone/Polytone%20Bass%20Combo%20212-300/Polytoneopened.jpg[/IMG]

Alrighty, I did a swap a month or so ago wherein I traded my Trace Elliot Commando 15 (150 watts) and an old pair of JBL mains for a Polytone 212-300 bass combo amp. It sounds clean and clear, seems very 'uncolored'- I joke that I can almost pretend to hear the wood of my bass... So a nice lady at Polytone amps named Dianne spoke with me after leaving a few messages, and told me shed go find the manual for it that they'd have on hand and mail me a photocopy. "Great!", I said and thanked her very much. A few days later I got a phone message that she could not find any info on the amp, and that perhaps it's an older model than she'd thought. I'm still waiting for more info, having left two messages since that call. They're not really known for being on top of their customer relations unless you're Ray Brown, and he's not my uncle. Anyway the amp is a 2x12 cab, preamp up top with a front panel, and the power section bolted to the bottom of the inside of the cab. Front panel controls are Bass, Treble, Volume. There are two identical channels, 2 jacks each for plugging in to. 180 watts of spanking clean signal into a pair of CTS 12s from 1974. Pix below. I'd be very interested to hear any info or insight, wisdom, etc., anyone might have to throw in here. Thanks very much! I've got more pix stashed but these'll give you the presentation... it's in pretty great shape for an amp built in 1974 or so.