stevie

I have a Carvin 1000W power amp (non-lightweight). It's got some intelligent features and build quality is very good. I have my doubts about support though: I sent them a straightforward query by email and it was ignored.

For most people that's true, JTUK, although I'm firmly of the opinion that swapping out an OEM driver for a top quality one is one of the most cost-effective upgrades you can make to your sound. You do need some background knowledge to do it properly though, as some swaps will work and others won't. Also, the cabinet often requires some modification to suit. You could easily improve on the OEM Eminences inside the TC 212 but you'd probably have to forget about having a coaxial driver.

The answer to your question is yes, the power (handling) of your cabinet will increase if you put more powerful speakers in it. As others have suggested, it's not necessarily as simple a job as it might appear.

I had one of these - for about two weeks. It was one of the Chinese-built ones. It was nicely finished and had a useful feature set. Even the piezo tweeter didn't sound that bad and I rather liked the GK 'growl'. The bad news started when I took a look inside. The driver had the smallest magnet I've ever seen on a speaker (well nearly!). It was really cheap and nasty. The cab itself was made from half-inch poplar or some other lightweight ply and constructed using staples and heat glue. The ply had obvious voids in it. The staples had missed the bracing in a couple of places and the brace rattled when you tapped it. It sounded quite good at low volumes but as soon as I turned the volume control up the cabinet vibrated in sympathy and it just sounded annoying. It was light, but that's because it was build like a packing crate - although it's not alone in that respect and there are lots of bassists out there using boxes like this and loving them. I didn't waste any time getting rid of it.

It would be interesting to know what the crossover is supposed to be. The picture of the x-over earlier in the thread shows four 100uF 40V *polarized* electrolytics and two diodes. That's a weird configuration. I wonder if somebody has changed the caps at some time (from bipolar).

Yes, thanks Keith for all your efforts. I do hope this has now developed into an annual bash.

I've upgraded most of the parts on my BB1100S over the years. Its main problem was being neck heavy, which I fixed with a set of Hipshot lightweight tuners. I've never looked back. It's also got a Schaller bridge, a Duncan Vintage P-Bass and a Duncan Musicman pickup. I've never felt the need to change the preamp. Your mileage may vary on the pickups. The Schaller bridge looks a lot better and is nice to adjust but probably doesn't change the sound one iota. However, if your bass is a bit neck-heavy, I strongly recommend lightweight tuners, as they will make your bass so much more comfortable to play.

I remember the original Brightbox speakers having rubber, not foam, surrounds. They were purely midrange drivers with a phase plug in the middle. They stopped making them last century. I expect any decent quality 5" PA midrange would do a similar job. Bass/midrange or hi-fi drivers are unlikely to be sensitive enough. Edit: I obviously missed the photo of the original drivers on the previous page.

Don't forget the Major's amazing contribution to this site: <http://basschat.co.uk/topic/74284-the-majors-bass-boot-camp-session-index-1-36/>

I'd like to thank all of who who brought and set up their rigs for us to try. They all sounded great in their own ways - not a dud amongst them. I certainly learned a lot.

We did, thank you. Just arrived back in Dorchester.

I think it's a Stingray. If my memory serves, it featured strongly in a thread on here about "The worst bass amp you've ever played" - or something like that. Found it for you: <http://basschat.co.uk/topic/198205-worst-amp-you-have-owned-or-had-the-luck-to-use/> Described by one experienced contributor as ".... the most toneless, lifeless waste of components I have ever had the misery of hearing. I hated the bloody thing." I suspect this wasn't the answer you were looking for.

Looks like I'll be able to make it too. I'd be interested in having a look at the Fearful, Jim. I'm not sure what to bring though - all my gear is heavily customized. Anyone interested in trying out a Seymour Duncan Double Back compressor?

[quote name='dannybuoy' timestamp='1392397618' post='2368257'] Must be a good amp if Gandalf uses it. [/quote] Yeah. Dolly Parton appears on their Artists web page. Must be good.....

You guys must have extremely good memories, that's all I can say. Thanks for the chord sheet, ambient - brilliant! Now I'll see if I can fudge a walking bass line.

[quote name='owen' timestamp='1391880854' post='2362286'] I would love a cab engineered for the increased LF extension (fully accepting the efficiency trade-off) that my ACME offers. Would that be an option? I am also a huge fan of DSP as evidenced in all the grownup PA systems as well as the Berg IP series. There was a thread on TB looking at DIY DSP [url="http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f36/diy-line-mixer-crossover-eq-high-pass-filter-749884/"]http://www.talkbass....-filter-749884/[/url] which would be great to slot into a nice 12" cab. [/quote] A cab engineered for LF extension (with the trade-offs that entails) is certainly on the cards but it will have to be based on drivers that are easily available to the DIY'er. DSP is a fascinating field (and I'm discovering that the eq available from the current crop of bass amplifiers is not capable of properly equalising compact cabinets) but is beyond the scope of this project.

Not much more to say, really. If you have a transcription or midi file of Is You Is Or Is You Ain't My Baby, I would love a copy. Thanks. Not too hopeful but still......

The main problem with those drivers is that the manufacturer's specifications are likely to be wildly inaccurate. WinISD won't do you any good at all unless you have reliable T/S parameters. As to excursion and power handling, the specs are probably very optimistic. The frequency response of driver 2 looks fine to me but I doubt that it's accurate. It certainly looks the most promising of the trio. Try the 12s in a 50-litre box, tune to 50Hz and see what you've got.

[quote name='redstriper' timestamp='1391711743' post='2360542'] Thanks Chris, that doesn't sound too bad, does it take account of the inset handle and the quite thick walls? [/quote] Exactly. It depends on how thick the walls are, Steve, but the internal volume of the Flite cab is probably around 55 litres. Have a look at the yellow curve in the diagram I posted for the 3015LF - that's how much bass you are losing because of the small cab. The Ashdown MAG cabs are around 85 litres internal volume - still not big enough for your particular needs and they have a problem with inadequate porting which limits maximum output (porting is a subject that the three of us have discussed at length and that Phil will talk about in detail later on in this thread). If you could modify the Flite cab to take a 12 you would get better results. I don't know of a sound reinforcement 15" speaker that will produce reggae-style bass in a 55-litre cab.

The 3015 will produce prodigious amounts of low end but it needs a cab between 100 and 120 litres to work properly. If you put it in a smaller one it will still work but you will lose quite a bit of output between 40 and 80Hz - exactly where the fundamentals of the bass guitar are. It's good old Hoffman up to his old tricks again. Here are curves showing the 3015LF in 60, 90 and 120 litres. Notice how the bass efficiency drops as you reduce the size of the cab with the same driver. There is a point with every driver where you don't get much more bass by increasing the cabinet size and it's around 120 litres with that 15. [IMG]http://i60.tinypic.com/2l6v6t.jpg[/IMG]

Really nice styling and clearly not by the same industrial designer who gave us the jolly green amps. It could be a serious contender. Two criticisms. First, there is no excuse for a single Speakon on a 500w amp. It's penny pinching. Yes, I know Mark Bass and others are guilty too. Second. Nobody uses the sub bass harmonics generator. (We'll now hear from the two people on the forum who do). Otherwise, I like it a lot.