aniki

Thanks again for all the responses. Just a quick update. I still have Ampeg and Orange cabs for live shows; the purpose of the mission was to find something simple and easy for jam sessions and practices that would be a bit more practical. Not bothered about the cost but I'm no snob either! If it costs £100 or £1000 I don't care as long as it gets the job done. For now, I've raided a mates studio spares and found an unbranded plywood box and a Celestion TN1525. If it gets even half way where I want it to it'll be a good start for a free cab.

Hey, Thanks for the info folks; some very interesting stuff there. I've mainly played through Ampeg, Orange, Peavey and Mesa Boogie cabs; all heavy monsters! I use a couple of valve amps with an old Peavey PA head as back up. More recently I bought a class D head which I also like the sound of. My basses will go to the grave with me so I won't be swapping those. Maybe 'dull thud' was a bit OTT but I've had to use quite extreme eq to get even close to what I'm used to with modern cabs. They all seem to have a lot of upper mid emphasis and lack 'punch'. Appreciate this is all a bit cloudy trying to 'describe' tones anyway. I'll keep trying different brands and see what happens...

I’ll start by mentioning I’ve been in this game quite a while now and have experience of most gear produced in the last 40 years or so. When I buy equipment, I tend to buy what’s right for me regardless of price and use it for years and years. Recently I’ve tried a few lightweight cabs but there seems to be a commonality among them that makes them sound very bright / clear / hifi etc. No doubt that’s a good thing for some but I’m looking for something with a more vintage ‘dull thud’ but without the weight of an svt810! Does this even exist? Or is the shift in tonality simply a consequence of neo magnets? Recommendations?

Thanks. The lacquer I used is manufactured by Hemway. Opinions are quite divided on it based on Amazon reviews. I contacted them and they were quick to respond and advised that all polyurethane lacquers will take at least 2 to 3 weeks to fully harden. Longer for oil based. I guess I’ll just be patient. If it works I’ll put up a proper build thread. I’m very happy with the final look so hopefully it’ll work out well!

I’ve just started a new project based on a Fender Dirnt neck and guitarbuild 54 body. I started with Black water based wood dye to get the (almost white) wood really dark. Then moved on to a water based wood stain for the final darkening. Once that was dry I started applying thin coats of water based clear lacquer until I got it just where I wanted it. The lacquer dries to touch almost instantly but it’s still very delicate. After 24 hours I still easily scratched it with a finger nail. I’ve read of similar issues on furniture finishing forums and the consensus seems to be that lacquers actually take several weeks to ‘cure’ and become properly hard and resilient. Does this equate with the experience of builders on here? Obviously I’m desperate to finish the build but I don’t want to wait for weeks only to find the lacquer is still soft and there’s something obvious I’m missing… Many thanks

I have a TC BAM200 stuck to my pedalboard that I use for practicing at home. The fan is whisper quiet; similar to a macbook. In my soundproofed room I only really hear it at all when everything else is turned off. Can't imagine it being remotely intrusive while actually playing. For reference, before I bought the BAM, I read reviews where people had said they 'hadn't pushed it hard enough for the fan to run'. However, I learned after buying mine that the fan actually runs all the time so I guess the reviewers hadn't heard it at all! I can't compare to the others I'm afraid. I've used an Elf but only in a noisy environment.