Tom Bowlus

[quote name='Conan' timestamp='1361978050' post='1993946'] Exactly. If there is such a thing as an "industry standard" test (and I believe that there must be, from what Bill is saying) then surely [i]everyone[/i] who seeks to test amplification equipment should use that test. Otherwise they are comparing apples with pears, rather than apples with other apples. Or insert your own more apt metaphor... [/quote] There are industry standards for measurement of amplifiers and cabs for both home audio and pro audio use, but there are not equivalent standards for musical instrument amps and cabs. I am sure that Bill will disagree with me, though.

[quote name='Bill Fitzmaurice' timestamp='1361802072' post='1991064'] This procedure is starkly different from the Bass Gear procedure, which consists of sticking a mic in front of the cab, taking a single measurement at close range on the HF element axis. When you do so you get a half space result below the baffle step, a quarter space result above the baffle step, along with inaccuracies caused by floor bounce and response lobing, rendering the measurement useless for comparison purposes other than to measurements of other cabs taken using the same flawed technique. [/quote] That is not an accurate assessment of our testing procedure. Yes, we do test with one mic and we do not splice multiple measurements into one chart. For testing enclosures, we use an Audiomatica Clio system, and our test procedures are in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions on how to properly perform tests using that system. We measure using 1 watt at 1 meter. The Clio system employs a stepped, gated frequency response sweep. Measurements are made at a point which either directly on axis with the main driver (in the case of a single-woofer enclosure), or aimed at the epicenter of the main drivers on a multiple-woofer system. In addition to the on-axis measurements, we perform off-axis measurements at 15, 30, and 45 degrees off axis. I would also like to point out that our -10dB measurements on the "useable frequency response" line up almost exactly with the 40Hz to 9kHz measurements stated on the Baer webpage. From our perspective, we do not believe that the ML-112 measured "poorly." In fact, we think that it performed very well in both our technical and in-hand evaluations. The fact that both myself and the in-hand reviewer, Alan Loshbaugh, purchased two ML-112's for our personal use is further testament to what we think of these cabs.

[quote name='JimBobTTD' post='264333' date='Aug 18 2008, 03:20 AM']Correct me if I'm wrong, but this is pretty much "Guitar Buyer" for bass, right?[/quote] I wouldn't think so. But then again, I am not familiar with Guitar Buyer, so it is possible that by random coincidence, we are similar publications. Does anyone have a link to Guitar Buyer? Tom.

Howdy, folks. FWIW, Bass Gear Magazine is now fully up and running. We offer free digital subscriptions or paid print subs (and yes, we ship to the UK). You can sign up for either at www.bassgearmag.com. We focus pretty much solely on gear related issues (with lots of reviews, factory tours, discussions of where things are made and what that means, tech tips, etc.), and do not do any interviews/instructions/etc. Jake Kote and his crew at Bass Musician Magazine do an awesome job of that, and I highly encourage you all to check out his mag, if you have not already. I am also a long time subscriber and fan of both Bass Player and the UK's Bass Guitar Magazine (I used to write for Guitar World's Bass Guitar Magazine, btw). Those are both great pubs, and I like them a lot. Our magazine is a bit different, and hopefully we can offer something to the mix. One hallmark of our reviews are the extensive bench tests of amps, cab, and basses. Sorry to come across as an 'advertisement' (and I'll delete this post if people find it offensive), but I just wanted to let folks know that there is another source for free gear reviews out there, if you are so inclined. Thanks, Tom.

[quote name='Born 2B Mild' post='263626' date='Aug 16 2008, 10:32 AM']What's the link for free online subs please?[/quote] www.bassgearmag.com

[quote name='stingrayfan' post='256912' date='Aug 7 2008, 03:57 AM']Got one thanks - just signed up. It's easy. Content looks really good. If they'd post it to the UK, I'd probably pay to subscribe. Reading it on a screen is ok, but you can't beat sitting on the sofa with a proper mag and a big cup of strong, milky tea![/quote] Howdy, folks! Tom, here. I just wanted to confirm that we do offer international shipping on print subscriptions ($50/year). While I am happy about being able to offer the digital version for free, I am even more excited about the print version. It will be of very high quality, and the paper is a much better grade than what is typically used on most magazines. The print editions mail out next Wednesday (August 20th), but any paid subscriptions processed before issue #2 comes out (first of October) will still start with issue #1. Thanks for the kind words! This being our first effort, we hope to improve with age, so we will keep an eye out for any suggestions you might offer as to how to make Bass Gear Magazine better. Take care, Tom.