Balcro

[quote name='cheddatom' post='252143' date='Jul 31 2008, 04:20 PM']Yeh this is the obvious solution. Certain strings will resonate if left open and you play another note that corresponds to it somehow (harmonics and fundamental and all that balls?) so if you don't want them resonating, mute the other strings.[/quote] Thank you for you replies today, everybody. I raised the action on G and D, but it didn't make any difference. Putting my ear to the unamplified guitar p/ups I can still hear the ringing harmonic. I even tried a few isolation tweaks between the p/up covers and or between the p/ups & the body, but no change. So for the time being I'll work away at muting technique. Maybe more tomorrow. Cheers, Balcro.

[quote name='Welshbassist' post='251763' date='Jul 30 2008, 11:56 PM']So you played about for ages to end up with basically the same settings as you had when you started? Typical, that is! :lol:[/quote] Well, that's the way it is sometime with scientific inquiry. Two steps forward, one step back. Yesterday will just have to stand as the interim report. Balcro.

[quote name='Welshbassist' post='250894' date='Jul 29 2008, 10:48 PM']Let us know how you get on mate![/quote] Well here we go. Well, that was 90 minutes or more of warm work. Equipment re-cap: - Coaster bass, 4-string with passive pups, into an Ashdown 5-15 practice amp combo. Lots of tweaking with guitar volume level and the tone control. Marked them with tape markers to get a clear indication of placement. Set the guitar tone control to mid-way and likewise the bass, middle and treble on the combo. I played two-thirds through the headphones (silent practice) and the rest with the combo amp live, so to speak. I confined the single notes to open E and A because the lower notes have the most energy and also used an A octave using the same two strings. The headphones (Sennheiser 450's) which I held slightly off my ears for audio comfort had less reserve than the 15" speaker. With the guitar volume control set to 80% as per usual, I set both the amp "gain" and "output level" to 75%. I gave the strings a fairly heavy dig. Something rattled on each side of my head. Again using the headphones I backed the three levels down to 70%. No rattles through the phones. Headphones off and through the cab, the sound was slightly boomy, probably because I was in the hall with the back garden door open. However, there was no clipping or break-up. About this time I put the headphones back on and started to notice that after hitting E, I could hear an overhang at higher frequency with an incredibly long sustain. I hit the E again, well many times actually, and damped it straight away. Still this overhang persisted. What was going on? I checked all the tone settings. Everything OK there. I backed of the guitar volume to 60% and the gain/output rotary switches to approx 65% and tried again, from now on holding the guitar flat with one hand, not hanging. The overhang was much less pronounced but I could stop it instantly, by palm damping the 4 strings. So obviously the source of the overhang was on the guitar. Mostly it occurred on "G" after I hit open "E". Are there any guitar afficionados ahead of me here? I'd heard it before on odd occasions but never thought much about it, usually when I was just practising. It could have been the headphone lead dragging across a string. This time it wasn't. I checked. Anyway what I think I've found is low level "crosstalk" between the strings emphasised by a high-ish level on the guitar volume control. The problem with the one-piece bridge on this bass is that string resonance is picked up through the brass saddles and transmitted across the steel bridge, up the steel allen-key adjusters, into the brass saddles and on to a sensitive string! Redesign all bridges to be isolated for each string? Cut the bridge into 4 slices or try raising the action of the "G" away from the pick-up? I think I'll try the latter first. If I ever buy another bass then I'll take account of an individual bridge per string design. It just makes sense. Even if it does nothing else on this bass, the crosstalk could muddy the sound at high volume levels. Anyway, to conclude. Accounting for the "crosstalk", I've backed the guitar volume control down to 60%. With this level, the combo pre-amp "gain" is more than happy at 65% and the same for the "output level". A bit like motoring at 70mph; sort of comfortable. I think there's still a fair bit of headroom to go, so 70%/70% is quite practicable. I'll raise the "G" action tomorrow and re-test. Balcro.

[quote name='stevebasshead' post='250680' date='Jul 29 2008, 06:27 PM']You might also want to read the sticky [b][url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=3730"]click here[/url][/b] at the top of this forum, there's some very useful info in here which may be of help to you in understanding the interaction between gain and volume controls, what they really do and how best to understand them (despite the misleading labelling some manufacturers use). Very interesting reading.[/quote] Hi Steve, Thanks for your post. As it turns out I had checked the pinned topic before I posted the original. Didn't want to seem like a plonker. I understood pretty well all of it - the compressor stuff is beyond me at the moment, but alex claber's voltages, no problem. "Welshbassist" and "cheddatom" gave me the point about how hard you play affecting the gain output. Noted. I've been a bit off colour for a few days so I haven't picked up the bass but I'll perhaps carry out some research tomorrow afternoon. Balcro.

[quote name='labougie' post='248057' date='Jul 25 2008, 07:58 PM']Fun and games today. A buddy appeared with a Laney RBW200 - 125w 12" combo which sounded awful. I think the speaker might be past it but there was no bottom end and it farted like a demon. Took the speaker out (Beta 12A) and replaced it with one of the 1225es, which actually sounded rather better. The 1225es, bty, are already in cabinets (25 litres tuned to about 60Hz)- they're the bottom half of a small PA rig (one 12" per side, HF poled up on top). The Laney has an extension speaker socket so I tried one of the PA cabinets as an extension, with the other 1225e still in the Laney which was again an improvement. The next step was obviously to put the PA cabs back together, take the amp out of the Laney and hook it up to both PA cabs. Lo and behold, it sounds really quite reasonable. The enclosures are much smaller than optimum, and 125w isn't enough, but it's for sure enough to get going with. I'm surprised that the Celestions (which are PA speakers as Balcro pointed out) will take that much bottom end without complaining - it only farts when the amp overloads. A productive day - and thanks for all the input. If I ever get around to doing this properly, two Beyma SM112N in 35 litres each with a big old Peavey amp on top would be the way![/quote] Good testing day and reward for hard work. Result. By the way the Beymas work best in cabinets 30 - 100 litres. Cheers, Balcro

[quote name='Welshbassist' post='247916' date='Jul 25 2008, 04:08 PM']No, you put it BEFORE the preamp to keep the signal relatively steady, so you don't get any unwanted peaks. A compressor won't stop your amp from clipping, but it'll keep it the level of signal at the "sweet spot" once you've found it![/quote] Good morning and thanks for your advice everybody. I forgot about the influence of "eq" for the original question, but as I tend to like a deep tone, on a scale of 0 - 100 I set the bass/middle/treble to 45/45/40. I'm going to move "gain" up to 75% and take it from there. Interesting opinions on the use of compressors. Thanks again. Balcro.

[quote name='labougie' post='247335' date='Jul 24 2008, 10:13 PM']Funds available? Ha!! This is probably going to be the same thing everyone’s heard a squintillion times before. I’m too old to lug around anything bigger than a pair of 1x12s and indeed, 2 12s ought to move a lot more air than a single 15. Two BFM 10.5s would be excellent from a size pov, but again, I’m a bottom end John McVie/Rick Danko sort of player and I’m not sure they’d give me what I’m after. I’ve got Bass Box Pro to help me sort out a cabinet design, but I can’t seem to find any 12” speakers with fs 40 and xmax 6. Is there (affordably) such a thing?[/quote] G' morning. OK, perhaps too much wishful thinking on my part, particularly with the Xmax, but there's loads of choice aroundabout the fs I quoted. Before my first reply I checked bluearan.co.uk and usspeaker.com. Eminence Beta 12. - 225w, fs 50, Xmax 3.2 and ok for a vented cab. £38 from BlueAran. Eminence Kappa 12a. 450w, fs 45, Xmax 3.2 & OK for vented cab. £70 " " ". Eminence Delta 12 LF. 500w, fs 45, Xmax 4.8 & OK for vented cab. £52 " " ". Beyma SM112N.. 400w. fs 38, Xmax 5.5 & OK for vented cab. £68 " " ". BlueAran describe your Celestions as PA speakers, so they're not optimised for bass extension. See the following link: - [url="http://professional.celestion.com/pro/products/pdf/TF1225%20e.pdf"]http://professional.celestion.com/pro/prod.../TF1225%20e.pdf[/url] They will work in the pub as BFM suggests. Have fun with BB Pro.

My inclination is to never turn "Gain/Power/Volume" controls full on. If a use my hi-fi CD player the advice is to turn the output up to max so as to get the best signal-to-noise ratio. I suspect bass to combo-amp settings might be different. Using an Ashdown 5-15 combo/practice amp. 1. Pick-up volume control set to 70% - above that it tends to boom out. Old simple guitar (Squier like), ordinary pick-ups. That's given. No problem. 2. Single instrument input with variable "Gain" (designed for passive or active and claimed to have lots of headroom). Generally set to about 65% of rotation. 3. Output control/volume control is set variably depending on whether the neighbours are in or I'm listening on headphones. In order to get the cleanest good sound (that sweet spot), should I turn up the "Gain" to max and reign back on the output control? If I do turn the "Gain" fully up, what are the consequences for the reliability of any part of the amplifier. I'm not looking to create an overdrive sound, just balance the sweet spot against reliability for this equipment or amps in general. Your guidance please.

[quote name='labougie' post='247261' date='Jul 24 2008, 08:47 PM']I'm coming back to bass-playing after many years away from it. I've got a pair of 1225e Celestions (300w, fs 61Hz, Xmax 3.3mm, XMech 12mm). Would I be banging my head against a brick wall trying to build two 1x12 cabs with these, driving them with maybe 250 watts of Peavey and expecting to get enough bottom end to do small pub gigs with?[/quote] IMHO you would be banging your head against the brick wall. I think they'll sound a bit thin. They're probably quite easy to damage unless you play very quietly. OK for lead or rhythm though. If you have funds available, look for a speaker drive units with an fs between 38-45 and an Xmax of 6mm or higher.

[quote name='ashgeezer' post='243192' date='Jul 19 2008, 07:16 AM']I've just picked up a really nice ashdown after eight practice amp for the house, sounds awesome for such a small amp and i#m seriously considering getting its big brother,the five fifteen, has anyone had any experience with this amp and if so what do you reckon of it. I mainly jam with a few mates who play acoustic but every now and again one of the lads will bring is fender strat and we'll play some rock stuff. Is the five fifteen up to it or should i step up slightly and get the EB 12. cheers mick.[/quote] Hi there Ashgeezer, If potential volume is the overriding issue, I agree with phat_bass. The 5-15 is my only amplification (I'm working up to jams) and it delivers a really solid floorboard shaking boomph! I'm sure it goes plenty loud, although I've never stressed it into full blown competion. It will certainly be a lot louder than the "After 8", with 6x the output wattage, but the efficiency is probably lower. There are no published noise levels available, but I think you could assume 4-5 decibels extra loudness. According to the spec on the web-site there's only 0.2 Kg weigh difference between the 5-15 and the EB180 - both around 27Kg! The .pdf file is still out of date & wrong. Ashdown just don't seem to be bothered about correcting it. There is a CD/line-in socket on mine even if it's not shown on the ha-ha handbook. The EB 12 is definitely more serious with an effects loop, DI out, line-out and bult in compressor. However the headphone and CD-in sockets has been removed, so you'll have to keep the "After 8" for home practice. With an extra 80 watts and a smaller 12" speaker I would make a guesstimate that the EB12 is good for an extra 2 decibels over the 5-15. Not a huge difference, but maybe just noticeable to the ear. What do the poor acoustic guys do when Stratman turns up? Balcro.

Well, if you're missing something, so am I. As a real newbie to this game I've managed to avoid MAS (Magazine Aquisition Syndrome). Years of addiction to computer mags and the subsequent weaning-off process stood me in good stead, as I've managed to keep the copies of Bass Player down to 3 copies in 10 months. Buying BP was not a deliberate choice, it was the only bass mag I could find in Smiths at the time. The local town centre shop seems to only keep one copy of BGM in stock and maybe 4 of BP. I've nevertheless looked at them all when I found one on the shelf. Yes BP is very american and full of adverts, including those awful adverts that look like they belong in New Musical Express or something similar. I guess they have to appeal to the teenies. Buy our gear, put some lead in your pencil!! BGM would probably prefer to be filled with more adverts. That's the unfortunate commercial reality. Anyway we need the adverts to give us the sources. The main star interviews are OK, no complaints. I'm more interested in their approach to playing, not their gear. After all. most of the big guys are being gifted the stuff. Occasional features on working man's bass playing? Why not? Alex C, please step forward. To echo another contributor - let's see something about upright/double basses. I don't play one and probably never will, but lets see and hear something about these beautiful instruments. Jazzers probably feel very left out. Detail needed. How; why; technical problems. Stuff. BUT Oh!! The gear reviews. [Permission to type in bold] - internet protocol for shouting. THEY COME ACROSS AS HALF ARTICLE, HALF PRESS RELEASE! WHEN WILL SOMEBODY [b][u]TEST[/u][/b] THE B$*zy THINGS. DOES NOBODY EVER OPEN A BOX AND LOOK INSIDE; TAKE A PHOTOGRAPH OF THE INSIDES? (See EBS..'s relevant post earlier in this topic). HAS ANYBODY EVER UNSCREWED AN EFFECTS PEDAL? WHAT'S INSIDE? IS THE WIRING DANGEROUS? DOES NOBODY EVER CARRY OUT A SOUND LEVEL TEST AND PRODUCE A FREQUENCY RESPONSE GRAPH? Hi-fi magazines were doing this over 30 years ago. I know it will cost money, but start small and work up to something bigger. EVEN A COMPETENT AMATEUR COULD DO THE PHOTOGRAPHY, after all it's only still life photography. CALming DOwn now. If the mags worked like "CAR", "Autocar", Computer or Hi-fi mags etc., then we could all see what was going on. See the measurements. I know they are not the be all & end all, but they fill out the picture. Yea, I think we're all missing something.

Before your last comment, (see below), I was also going to say "Have a look at the Warwick Blue Cab 60". I was also going to say look at the Ashdown 5-15. I went through the same research about 8 months ago and my budget & requirements were similar to yours, i.e good for home practise and maybe a casual jam for less than £135. Various circumstances forced an internet buy without hearing it beforehand. Both are carpeted, and have similar power. The Ashdown has a 15" instead of a 12 in the Warwick. Wattage difference probably not of any great significance. The Warwick has an effects send/return and is probably easier to pick up because of it's shape & weight. The Ashdown is a more awkward cube shape & is VERY heavy, probably 6Kg heavier than the Warwick. It's 2 handed job to lift it and the top handle won't last for long if you plan on lifting it a lot. I've seen the smaller and lighter Ashdown Perfect 10 in a "Cash-converter" shop and even that had a broken handle. Don't take any notice of the Ashdown web-site where their practice amps are concerned. The pictures and the specsheets are all out of date - they were out of date back in November - and they still haven't updated them. The power is 100 watts, not 65, the front grille is a strong black metal grid, not silvery-grey as in the pics and current spec includes a CD input jack for playing along to recordings. The 5-15 has an extension speaker-out socket and the Warwick a Line-out. Both have headphone sockets for silent practise (or is that practice?). In the end I bought my Ashdown from RockingRooster - hey, aren't they near you. Prompt delivery, no problem, but getting a proper paper receipt out of them is a pain. My choice came down to the larger 15" speaker ( I prefer boomph to bap), the little chance that I would have to tote it around much and hell, they're English. Another late thought: Prices have dropped even further, so how about blowing the full budget on an Ashdown Electric BLue 180. It has even more features & power than the other 2 above. However, it might lack a headphone socket. £149.99 from RockingRooster this morning. When I looked last November these were about £190! Happy shopping. [i]I use the LMk for rehearsals,luckily we have a dedicated "band"room in our percussionists warehouse and my cabs live there.I'm scouting for another band tho',something a bit more funky,so ideally im looking for something that would double up if i have to go elsewhere for a jam/audition.Thanks for the suggestion though,i'll give the Line 6 another look see. ;) You dont happen to know which Line6 he was using ?? thought about the warwick but they're a bit f'ugly man hehe Tbh they look cool and very retro but i wouldnt have another.The tone is erm ...........boring. :D [/quote][/i]

Thanks for the tips OG. Downloads in progress. Balcro. PS. Still haven't got the hang of the Quote button. It just changed from plus or minus. So I've used italics below. [i][quote name='OldGit' date='Jul 8 2008, 03:07 PM' post='235014'] The bass player in Free was Andy Fraser (still playing, and looking good :)) [url="http://www.andyfraser.com/intro.html"]http://www.andyfraser.com/intro.html[/url] He was about 16 years old when he played All Right Now and had such a fresh approach to bass playing that we all had a "wow! moment at the time too .... Simon Kirke was the drummer, Paul Kossof on lead and Paul Rogers on Vocals .. Start with The Free Story, but make sure you download Wishing Well (not on the CD) and the Mr Big live version as well, - cracking bass solo over just two chords ..[/i]

Bas players of the world unite: - Just click on the following link or cut & paste it into your browser. The simple initials JPJ. [url="http://www.christies.com/LotFinder/lot_details.aspx?from=searchresults&intObjectID=5101185"]http://www.christies.com/LotFinder/lot_det...bjectID=5101185[/url] Sorry for the short Notice, just get on the phone to Christies. It goes tomorrow, but it could be yours. Godd luck for those with deep pockets.

What do you have in mind? What cabinets & what duff speakers? Were the previous drivers Ok? It could be cheaper then you think, but sometimes manufacturers - well, the more expensive ones - have custom made versions of standard speakers. If you want to replace the originals OK , but it's a bit like buying car-parts for an Audi. The big money is made on the spare parts. Thinman's comments are just as apt. It's not simply the cost, it's the matching. Tell us more. Balcro [i]Guys, I suppose many bass cabs are built to a budget Price no object, what bass drivers would basschatters recommend ? Eminence seem to have a good reputation for bass drivers what experiences have you had in replacing stock drivers in well known manufacturers cabs ? Cheers Mark [/quote][/i]

I must agree with endorsements for "The Police" and the Dusty Springfield song, my favourite Dusty song. By chance a newbie like me had a "Heartbeat" moment a few months ago. Who is that? Wow , what's that bluesy number - then it was faded out. Quick search on web-site. FREE "Walk in my Shadow". What was I missing all those years ago! Brilliant simplicity. Just roll around as you play and feel it. What a bass, perfect tone for the song and just the right number of notes (Simon Kirke?). What a vocalist (Pau Rodgers?). Now that's voice used as an instrument.

Hi Petronius, A quick Ask/Google showed that you had been to the other place. The chances are that "Bassmec" is right about the amp as well as the cab. GEM / LEM / ELKA have a web-site at [font="Garamond"]www.generalmusic.com[/font] and they're based in Italy. The site is rather poor on information. You could send them and e-mail and ask for support. Look at the back of the equipment for the labels with electrical information. That might be more helpful and gove proper name and model information. Good luck. Balcro [i]I bought this amp about month ago, but I still don't know what's this. I bought it because the price was very low (300zl = +/- 120$ for head + cabinet). I was surprised when I heard it for the first time - it sounds great for me, besize it was in very good condition, altough it's 25 or more years old (older than me ), so I paid for it and took it to my home. Now I want to know more about it. So here's the question: Does anybody heard anything about this amp?? I searched the Internet for some information but didn't found anything. Thanks for any information [/i]

Oh no, stuff for me already and I only retired from Environmental Health in April. I'm with [b]ironside1966[/b] on this; lots of good advice. Don't by-pass gear or smash anything up. A quick drive-by from an EHO will spot mains cables going to the wrong place and the venue will probably loose its Premises Licence!! Work the venue and entertain the guests, not yourselves. The establishment will like you and the wedding party will love you. You're lucky there's no backline. With PA only you've got maximium control and you can keep the instrument balance. Right, tech stuff: - By my simple theoretical calculations you can work to a maximium (PEAK) of 93dB. Assuming 93dB(a) at 1m from the marquee you should (in theory) be down to 54dB(a) @ 128m. Double check with the venue or the Licensing Officer that the sound level has been set at 54dB(a) and not 54dB©. If it's set to © then you 'll have to trim the bass just a little more. If you want to check your level, get a £20/25 sound level meter from Maplin and do a dry run ASAP - at the lower setting for your PA guy. In this type of situation the most penetrating noises are usually the bass and the vocals, so they will need the most care. Flatten off any boom from the bass and reduce any echo on the vocals. it all helps. Good luck, Balcro. [i] We're booked for a marquee wedding at an 'established' venue in the midlands next month. We've just been sent the following as a warning: "1 - they have very miserable neighbours who 'won't like rock', apparently they particularly dislike the bass.... 2. the have environmental health fitting a sound limiter this week which has to be set at 54db on the boundary of their property. This does mean it can be louder inside the marquee, but who knows how much. 3. we have to cross a river to get to the marquee - this can be achieved by footbridge or by driving through a ford"[/i]

Hello Dan, Are you guys still doing the RotW on the 12th at Hitchin under that name? The local paper says it's all happening on various stages in the grounds of The Priory. No mention of Remix. Can't promise to be there, but it might happen. Good luck anyway. Balcro. [quote name='dandini' date='Jun 22 2008, 11:45 PM' post='224610'] Hi... Im Dan, Bass player in Tokyo Outsiders (www.myspace.comthetokyooutsiders), Im 31 and from kempston, Bedford. Experience wise ive played with 2 bands including my current band but thsi will be the first one gigging. Were doing the Ryhthm of the World Festival in Hitchin at Remix on the 12th July and were bricking it to be honest. The band is a four piece, me on Bass and BV, Glenn on Guitar and Lead Vocals, Andy on the drums and Kris on Keys. Andy pand Kris are new to the band thing and we (in our current guise) have been togteher about 10 weeks!!!!! Kit wise I play a Yamaha BB614, currently through a Hartke A100 but ive just brought an Ashdown ABM 210T 500 and a 4 x 10 ashdown extension cab. I love the ashdown sound and play through Ashdown at the studio (London Road in Baldock, great place) so had to buy some gear.

Hello fellow bassers, I play for fun and will probably never gig, but I still love bass. I started singing bass & tenor in choirs and learned piano from the age of 6. I’ve built 2 sets of home hi-fi loudspeakers. One is still in use downstairs. Spent my formative years taking photos for the college magazine which in turn gave me access to side-of-stage and sometimes a dressing room for many a top group or solo performer. All sorts from “Davey Graham”, “The Strawbs”, “Al Stewart”, “Tom Paxton”, through to “Hiseman’s Colosseum”, “Audience” , “Yes” and my all time favourite, the original Mott the Hoople. Behind me is a home bult 1 x 18” bass cabinet, that contains a 100watt Celestion G18c. Since I carried the drive unit home by hand from Tottenham Court Road in the early seventies, my arms have not shrunk back to they’re original length. On top of that is an all-original Selmer Treble ‘n Bass 50 valve amp, original except for being recovered in dark blue vinyl. The amp and cab were originally used for playing a home organ, but that has long gone. Neither the amp or cab have had any real use since 1975, but I can’t bear to part with them. I worked in Environmental Health for over 30 years, so you can love me or hate me. Just remember, I’m the one with brain cells who talked to you as if you were always an adult. I just love acoustics (science of) in general, audio/hi-fi, speaker enclosure & drive unit design. My missus bought me an Encore Coaster Bass for my 40th. However work in general and catching the computer bug in 1983 meant I rarely had to time to play. Not only that, but the neighbours were the other side of the walls. Still building & fixing PC’s as a hobby but now that I’m sort of retired (just turned 60) I have more time and a new Ashdown 5-15 with CD input and headphone socket. Great. Playing all sorts of rock & pop. Anything that helps my technique. The Encore is very heavy and the neck pick-up goes boomy over 70%. Mmmm. those Yamaha RBX374’s feel nice. Hoping to have a jam with 3 other local guys, all in their 50’s. One is already retired and the other two are all too busy working to rock, but I’ll drag ‘em together eventually. Cheers all.

[quote name='Bill Fitzmaurice' post='229763' date='Jun 30 2008, 03:04 PM']If it did then the Fridge (f3=58Hz) would be even more unsuitable. While the fundamental of the low B may be 31Hz it's the length of the string that determines where the power bandwidth lies. Should you wish an instrument that puts out the low B fundamental with equal power to the harmonics you'll need long arms and big hands, the scale would be nine feet long. :unsure:[/quote] Thanks for the reply Bill. I get the reference to wavelength. Oh, that is such a disappointment to me. I thought I was generating fundamentals with subsequent harmonics of decling power level. Meanwhile I'll just have to save up for an octaver special effects pedal followed by another one in series. Cheers, Balcro

Hello fellow basschatters. This is my first ever post, but I can't hold back any longer as this post is close to one of my all time favourite rants about speakers. First of, I don't know why they current fave rave is for a 1 x 15 and 2 x 10. I think it's a fashion. When I were a lad so to speak, everybody played through a stack of two 4 x 12's. Slapping was almost unheard of. 10" speakers were for practice cabs and small combos. By 1969, real men played "Acoustic" 361's with a 1 x 18". I was lucky enough to touch one once. The Ashdown example (and it applies to every other manufacturer, but at least Ashdown are brave enough to quote them) quoted by bass-ferret is typical of the partial mis-information you get from manufacturers. Is it 37Hz - 2KHz + or minus 3, or + or minus 5?!!! or worse. If it's the latter than you've got a possible 10dB(a) difference across that small small frequency band. Remember it's a expressed over the range. So for example you could get +3 dB(a) above a certain nominal figure with -7 below; any combination of the numbers 1 -10. In practice that could mean your bass lows are way down. Sure, 10" speakers will have a punchier sound and more extension into the midrange. In general they also have a higher fundamental resonance (Fs), hence the specification quote of 75Hz for the 210T. Again, plus or minus What? What bass player is going to generate even 15Khz? As bass_ferret says, you get a serious mid-range hump and phase issues where the two speakers overlap. Add to that the smaller cones and lower inertia of a 10 and that means they start & stop quicker than a 12 or 15 (or is that part of the phase issue?). Above about 850Hz the 10 incher is doing most of the real smooth work anyway. I couldn't agree more with Andy Martin, it's triumph of marketing over science. Likewise with Gwilym - mixing 10's and 15's is a pointer to engineering deficiencies; the constraints of physics. Anyone want to build a hi-fi style loudspeaker with built in crossover? Failing that, trim the volume of the pick-up under E and A or reduce the mid-range setting on the amp. Devils advocate time. If low B on a five string is 31 or 32Hz, does that mean even every 15" is unsuitable? ? ? Regards to all. Balcro.