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Markbass Cab Opinions and Speakon Question


Danthearsonist327
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Hi guys!

I have purchased a Markbass Little Mark Rocker 500 the other day and am looking into what cabs to match with them. One of the main reasons that I am changing my rig in the first place is portability, as my current rig ways an absolute tonne! Very happy with the purchase of the rocker as I got it 2nd hand for less than half the RRP, and it weighs in at something like 5kg which is ridiculously light compared to my last head (hartke HA3500) seems like a hell of a bargain. Now looking into cabs and although I didn't initially intend on a full Mark Bass rig... (that is a hell of a lot of yellow in one rig after all) they are extremely light!

Considering a traveler 102p atop a traveller 151p (both 8 ohm obv). Weighing in at about 15kg each!! Me likey the sound of that!

Does anybody have any experience with these cabs? I have read very good things and also imagine that other brands cabs probably won't compliment the rocker head sound quite as well, however I also read that in a live situation they lack enough power to be heard, is this true? Or is their more than enough power to gig with in this rig?

Also a bit of a noob question:
I've never had to use speakon cables with my last rig, but on the back of the rocker there is one speakon cable labelled speaker cable (duh) and one cable caballed class 2 wiring which looks like a regular jack, but I believe both cabs have exclusively speakon ports in the rear.. what gives with that? I guess I'll just have 1 speakon to speakon and one speakon to Jack?

Cheers in advance :D

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If the rocker has the same as the LMII on the back, then one's a 1/4 Jack & the other's a Speakon/ 1/4 Jack combo.
You could either daisy from the head to cab 1, then cab 2, or you could take a Speakon - Speakon to one cab & a 1/4 Jack - Speakon to the other. It makes no odds.

As for cabs, go & find one that gives you the sound you want & if you need more volume, get a 2nd identical cab. A 2x10 with a 1x15 is a mismatch. Don't be fooled into thinking it's 10s for punch & 15s for bass, that's false marketing.

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I've used two 102p together and a 102p with a 151p, the two 102p 2x10 paired far better. They are really great cabs. Having two would cover all eventualities. One is plenty enough for small gigs. Saying that, two 151p would make a pretty cool 2x15!! Definitely find the cab you like and buy a second for maximum versatility, if you want a small light modular rig that can be used for bigger gigs too.

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Cool, thanks for the responses. I have often wondered how much difference there is, I'm currently using a 4x10 and 1x15 combo and I hate it, the 1x15 is so boomy and farty its horrible but I assumed this was due to it generally just being a rubbish make of cab more than anything.

Does the size of speaker really make that little difference? I read a review on this cab and it claimed that it lacked bottom end but sounded better when paired with the 151p ...

Guess it's all just BS! How do you like these cabs M@23? Serving you well?

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I use the 121H and also have a 151P. For portability why not try two 121H cabs. They are nice and light with their dimensions just that bit smaller than the 151P cab making them nice and portable. I tend to use the 151P with the 121H when I want some added presence, otherwise the 121H gets used on it's own.

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I'd go along with the two identical cab theory, but suggest maybe taking a look at a pair of NY121s. A good few people on here (myself included) have the CMD121P combo with matching NY121 extension cabinet, which is near enough the same as a pair of NY121 cabs and separate head, and I don't recall reading many negative reviews. I play in a fairly loud heavy rock / melodic metal band and the modular double 1x12 rig is doing the job just fine for me.

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[quote name='Danthearsonist327' timestamp='1419993604' post='2644732']
Guess it's all just BS! How do you like these cabs M@23? Serving you well?
[/quote]

BS is about right! Unfortunately I don't have my 102p anymore, but regret selling it and would really like another! If you have two you can stack them vertically too for a smaller footprint and easier-to-hear-yourself 4x10. I pushed one cab pretty hard and didn't have any issues though. They are punchy little things.

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[quote name='Danthearsonist327' timestamp='1419981004' post='2644660']
Considering a traveler 102p atop a traveller 151p (both 8 ohm obv). Weighing in at about 15kg each!! Me likey the sound of that!

Does anybody have any experience with these cabs? I have read very good things and also imagine that other brands cabs probably won't compliment the rocker head sound quite as well, however I also read that in a live situation they lack enough power to be heard, is this true? Or is their more than enough power to gig with in this rig?

Also a bit of a noob question:
I've never had to use speakon cables with my last rig, but on the back of the rocker there is one speakon cable labelled speaker cable (duh) and one cable caballed class 2 wiring which looks like a regular jack, but I believe both cabs have exclusively speakon ports in the rear.. what gives with that? I guess I'll just have 1 speakon to speakon and one speakon to Jack?

Cheers in advance :D
[/quote]

I run Traveller cabs - 121H and 151P - I generally turn the Piezo tweeter off on the 15 and just run with the highs from the horn in the 12".

Together the sound is both stunning and powerful. The 121H is enough for most gigs to be honest though, a pair of them would meet almost anything head-on. The annoying side of the 15 for me is it's anout 1/4 inch too big to fit into my car boot (Audi A5) but the 121 goes in easily!

The Speakon connectors on the cabs will be dual - the centre is a jack socket, same as the rear of the amp if it's like my Big Bang head.

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[quote name='Chrismanbass' timestamp='1420048255' post='2645209']i've owned both types of cabs and theres no comparison imho in sound and build quality[/quote]

Did you back-to-back the sound comparison of the two types of cabs? Same room, same bass, same amp? Having read some of Marco's comments I can't see a reason this should be the case - certainly not to the extent of 'no comparison'.

A thread from the start of last year indicates this should not be the case: http://basschat.co.uk/topic/226964-markbass-all-made-in-indonesia-now-and-heavy/page__view__findpost__p__2364926

I've not had the chance to do a back-to-back test but my Indonesian gear sounds great and has been faultless.

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[quote name='Iain' timestamp='1420073898' post='2645425']


Did you back-to-back the sound comparison of the two types of cabs? Same room, same bass, same amp? Having read some of Marco's comments I can't see a reason this should be the case - certainly not to the extent of 'no comparison'.

A thread from the start of last year indicates this should not be the case: http://basschat.co.uk/topic/226964-markbass-all-made-in-indonesia-now-and-heavy/page__view__findpost__p__2364926

I've not had the chance to do a back-to-back test but my Indonesian gear sounds great and has been faultless.
[/quote]

Try as hard as I can and I cannot hear the slightest difference between Indonesian and Italian made MarkBass cabs.

We regularly see both in the shop and get loads of opportunities to test them back to back.

The only way we can tell the difference is to turn them over, crawl round the back and find the tiny 'made in' plate on the back - you wouldn't believe how many times we've had to do this!

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Thanks Molan, that is good to know! There is a music shop in Newcastle that sells these I'm thinking of getting from since it's a pig of a job finding anyone close enough on the forums to buy off. And I'm assuming all of the ones bought new from the shop with be Indonesian made?

Good to hear good reviews, I like the idea of the 2 x 212 cabs, but wondering what the difference is between the NY and traveller series?

I'll have to make my decision in the shop obviously, but upon looking at them there seems no difference aside from looks and the fact the NY is ironically lighter than the traveller series!

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Shop stock is likely to be mixed Italian and Indonesian. If there is a choice go for Italian simply because there are people out there who will pay more for European than Far Eastern manufactured product.

I think if it was pushed to make a choice of any of the smaller light weight MB cabs then the 210's would probably get my vote.

1 is loud enough for rehearsing and a lot of smaller gigs and 2 combined allows you to stack vertically so you can bring the 2nd one much closer to your ears for on-stage monitoring :)

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I have a Little Rocker as a back up . I used it with various MB cabs 2 4x6 cabs I found the best sound was using a 121H & a 121NY cab together infact I'm not sure my Barefeaced super 12T sounds any better . I got the barefaced as part of my effort to get all my stuff made in the UK .

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[quote name='Iain' timestamp='1420073898' post='2645425']
Did you back-to-back the sound comparison of the two types of cabs? Same room, same bass, same amp? Having read some of Marco's comments I can't see a reason this should be the case - certainly not to the extent of 'no comparison'.

A thread from the start of last year indicates this should not be the case: [url="http://basschat.co.uk/topic/226964-markbass-all-made-in-indonesia-now-and-heavy/page__view__findpost__p__2364926"]http://basschat.co.u...ost__p__2364926[/url]

I've not had the chance to do a back-to-back test but my Indonesian gear sounds great and has been faultless.
[/quote]


Yep owned two 2x10 traveller cabs one italian one indonesian.

next to each other i could hear a significant difference (maybe my ears are racist i hate italians ;) )

but in all seriousness for me there was a lot more presence with the italian cab, and some of the felt started peeling off the indonesian cab after about 6 months of use i sold it to a friend a little while ago as for the gigs i was doing i only needed one

but hey like i said just my opinion

sounds like some people have had more time with both than me

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[quote name='Chrismanbass' timestamp='1420123035' post='2645795']
Yep owned two 2x10 traveller cabs one italian one indonesian.

next to each other i could hear a significant difference (maybe my ears are racist i hate italians ;) )

but in all seriousness for me there was a lot more presence with the italian cab, and some of the felt started peeling off the indonesian cab after about 6 months of use i sold it to a friend a little while ago as for the gigs i was doing i only needed one

but hey like i said just my opinion

sounds like some people have had more time with both than me
[/quote]

Might be 'just' your opinion but it's valid - thanks for the answer! I wonder if early Indonesian stuff wasn't up to spec? Wouldn't be the first time things manufactured weren't made to the expected spec and things have to be sorted out with the manufacturer. I've not had any QC issues with my gear (which I assume is Indonesian) and molan's post was certainly interesting!

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