Stevie’s 12” FRFR Cab Build Thread (Basschat Cab v3)

[Pea Turgh]

And the wadding is there to cushion the sound, and also make it “warmer”.

[Chienmortbb]

18 hours ago, RichardH said:

I've mentioned it before I'm sure, but I've found a blunt handsaw (panel saw) to be much better at cutting drainpipe etc than a lovely sharp one. So for those without bandsaws, that's the way to go!

If you stand in front of that port you with feel trouser flapping like you have never felt before. I suspect that  it is the tuning of the lower braces that reflect the usually wasted stuff that falls to the bottom (removed tongue from cheek). 
 

 

 

Edited November 23, 2019 by Chienmortbb

[LukeFRC]

So plugged in and stuck the Walkabout through it for about 45 min.

firstly it works! 
 

so how does it sound? 
well I started off with my Sadowsky jazz - any my first thought was “I’m glad I stuck a new set of strings on my Christmas list as these are on their way out” - it sounded clear and balanced, none of the low mid hump that my Walkabout cab has. Turning up the bass boost it takes low end really well. Switching to the bridge pickup... erm well the lights downstairs make the pickups hum so that was really really clearly amplified. 
so far so hmmm ... it’s not blowing my socks off - and I really need new strings - but then the penny dropped that it’s not doing anything but reproduce what goes in - and that’s the point! 

switching to a Warwick SS1 and the thing sounds bright and snappy - it sounds like the bass but in a really nice way. The bottom end on this bass is a bit lower than the typical fender style bass and there’s a lot going on in the high mids- through bad cabs the lack of low end and peaky high mids that sound amazing though a fender style suddenly start fighting this basses core tone - not a problem with this cab, the lows are there and the high mids aren’t hyped. It sounds good. 

next was my latest accidental acquisition- a Lakland 55-94 which is my first 5 string. Now this sounded nice, it took tweaks to the 3 band EQ very well too. Through the Walkabout cab this bass struggles - it’s baked in tone and the walkabouts baked in tone clash big time to the point where you can’t tell differences between pickup settings easily and both  the E and B strings just don’t sound right somehow, like they are on a different bass... the BCCAB I can clearly hear the pickup selection differences - and all the strings sound like they are on the same bass  - horrah! 
 

next, and the real test was back to the jazz and putting the HX stomp in the signal chain. And when it came to using cab models it excelled. 
why does this matter? Because typically I use the stomp straight to the PA with IEM, and having a rig that gets reasonably close to the PA will be invaluable for setting up patches! 
 

so after45 min I am well happy (though still need to sort my grill) - thanks @stevie for all your hard work

[Chienmortbb]

That is how it felt for me. The more you use it the more you will want to use it and other cabs sound odd. 
 

Of course you could use the cab as a PA speaker. It is flatter than almost any commercial  PA Cabinet.

[LukeFRC]

1 hour ago, Chienmortbb said:

 

That is how it felt for me. The more you use it the more you will want to use it and other cabs sound odd. 

 

Yeah - the biggest difference is the 5 string, on the other cab ADG sounded warm and full and BE boomy and fat. With the BCCab it’s consistent up the neck and string to string - and takes EQ very well

[LukeFRC]

New grill on - lots more staples used, as good as it’s going to be.

its actually held in by the thickness of the staples at the moment - I think if I used the squidgy tape that seals behind the speaker and horn (brain dead at moment, what’s it called??) To kill rattles then Velcro would be optional. Also in shot is the banister! 

[JakeBrownBass]

4 hours ago, Chienmortbb said:

That is how it felt for me. The more you use it the more you will want to use it and other cabs sound odd. 
 

Of course you could use the cab as a PA speaker. It is flatter than almost any commercial  PA Cabinet.

 

I'm intrigued to find out. 

If anyone is local to Bradford id be keen to use Meyer Sound's SIM to measure one of these cabs to see what's what when they're built  

 

 

[funkle]

Snazzy! I like it.

You have correctly picked up in your testing that the cab is unforgiving of a bad signal chain. If your bass, amp, EQ, fingers, strings, effects are not all good, then it will simply produce that bad sound. However it sounds great once you make sure everything is sorted.

I can see the dilemma of bass cab manufacturers. If you make it voiced, then it will almost certainly conflict with the voice built in to some instruments. However, leaving it flat/unvoiced means many players who are not attentive to technique, etc, may not necessarily sound very good through it.  

 

[LukeFRC]

3 minutes ago, JakeBrownBass said:

 

I'm intrigued to find out. 

If anyone is local to Bradford id be keen to use Meyer Sound's SIM to measure one of these cabs to see what's what when they're built  

 

 

@JakeBrownBass I live in Farsley and just finished one ... seeing I could walk to Bradford in half an hour I figure I’m closest! 

[Chienmortbb]

1 hour ago, funkle said:

Snazzy! I like it.

You have correctly picked up in your testing that the cab is unforgiving of a bad signal chain. If your bass, amp, EQ, fingers, strings, effects are not all good, then it will simply produce that bad sound. However it sounds great once you make sure everything is sorted.

I can see the dilemma of bass cab manufacturers. If you make it voiced, then it will almost certainly conflict with the voice built in to some instruments. However, leaving it flat/unvoiced means many players who are not attentive to technique, etc, may not necessarily sound very good through it.  

 

I second that. My technique has gone from  awful to not very good since I built mine!🤪

[Phil Starr]

2 hours ago, funkle said:

Snazzy! I like it.

You have correctly picked up in your testing that the cab is unforgiving of a bad signal chain. If your bass, amp, EQ, fingers, strings, effects are not all good, then it will simply produce that bad sound. However it sounds great once you make sure everything is sorted.

I can see the dilemma of bass cab manufacturers. If you make it voiced, then it will almost certainly conflict with the voice built in to some instruments. However, leaving it flat/unvoiced means many players who are not attentive to technique, etc, may not necessarily sound very good through it.  

 

That's probably why I'm still using the Mark1 cab. It covers up a lot of sins.

[Pea Turgh]

4 hours ago, LukeFRC said:

New grill on - lots more staples used, as good as it’s going to be.

its actually held in by the thickness of the staples at the moment - I think if I used the squidgy tape that seals behind the speaker and horn (brain dead at moment, what’s it called??) To kill rattles then Velcro would be optional. Also in shot is the banister! 

That looks really good!  I’m also enjoying the “Changing Rooms” updates in the background!!

[stevie]

21 hours ago, JakeBrownBass said:

 

I'm intrigued to find out. 

If anyone is local to Bradford id be keen to use Meyer Sound's SIM to measure one of these cabs to see what's what when they're built

If Luke's up for it, that sounds like a great idea! I'm not familiar with the Meyer Sound SIM - does it do quasi-anechoic measurements or is it an RTA-type system? The fact that it can use music as the basis for its measurements is intriguing.

Anyway, for a standard frequency response, the mic needs to be on the tweeter axis and at least two metres away (because of the size of the cabinet). I make my quasi-anechoic measurements with the speaker in the air, but they are only valid down to 200Hz. For below 200Hz, I use a ground plane or a summed nearfield and port measurement. I can splice these two responses to give me a full range frequency response, but it's fiddly, and I find that an RTA with pink noise and multiple mic positions gives me a good idea of how the system sounds in situ (i.e. on the ground).

I'm off to do a bit of research on the SIM. Not that I'm ever likely to be able to afford one.....

Edited November 25, 2019 by stevie
missing indefinite article

[Chienmortbb]

Painted the grille today. Not sure I like it as much as the grey primer but will do a temporary fix of the badge tomorrow to see if it looks OK. Sorry about the picture quality as it is gig-ready. However it does give you a general idea of what it looks like. The paint is https://www.toolstation.com/industrial-spray-paint-500ml/p80525

[stevie]

I think it needs the badge to bring it to life, John.

[RichardH]

Some more progress...

Surround to back the handle cutout

 

Braces going in - plus surround for the rear connector plate.

 

For the "sub" cab, we are going to swap the top and bottom panels so the handle is nearest the 12" driver, and also flip the baffle so that when stacked the ports will be vertically above each other - just a visual thing. It does mean that if I choose to convert the cab to a fully tweeter-ed version at some stage, they will end up being mirrored versions of each other.

 

[Chienmortbb]

I wonder how many others will build the band limited lower cabinet.

When I started badgering Stevie and Phil provably close to 4 years ago I wanted a single cab solution and since the MK 2 was finished, I been very happy. On to he MK3 and I am even happier and the thought of going to 2 cabs...

Well they say the proof of the pudding is in the eating and Stevie has usually been right so I can’t wait to here the finely tuned system with the BC112 MK3 plus the reinforcement from the second 12”. 

 

Edited December 4, 2019 by Chienmortbb

[stewblack]

Got to play through a fellow Basschatter's cab the other day. Remarkable. You cannot get away with sloppy playing, it is so clear, unvarnished. 

Sadly I have now twice saved up for this project and twice had to use the money  on more pressing financial commitments.

I don't really 'need' another cab, in fact I'm selling not buying so I shall withdraw from the field. 

[RichardH]

1 hour ago, Chienmortbb said:

I wonder how many others will build the band limited lower cabinet.

When I started badgering Stevie and Phil provably close to 4 years ago I wanted a single cab solution and since the MK 2 was finished, I been very happy. Onto the MK3 and I am even happier and the thought of going to 2 cabs...

Well they say the proof of the pudding is in the eating and Stevie has usually been right so I can’t wait to here the finely tuned system with the BC112 MK3 plus the reinforcement from the second 12”. 

 

Main reason for wanting a pair is so they stack to a nice height so I can reach my pint.

[RichardH]

9 minutes ago, stewblack said:

You cannot get away with sloppy playing

Uh-oh....

[Chienmortbb]

26 minutes ago, RichardH said:

Main reason for wanting a pair is so they stack to a nice height so I can reach my pint.

That’s why you need a small sized amp and a cab that does not resonate. Way back when,  I remember seeing my mate’s pint slowly move toward the grille above the power valves and tip over, shattering two of them and ruining his amp. 

[Woodinblack]

27 minutes ago, Chienmortbb said:

That’s why you need a small sized amp and a cab that does not resonate. Way back when,  I remember seeing my mate’s pint slowly move toward the grille above the power valves and tip over, shattering two of them and ruining his amp. 

By seeing it slowly move, do you mean you sat and watched it happening, with a 'I wonder if that will tip into that hole'. 'Yep'.

[pete.young]

On 22/11/2019 at 19:54, RichardH said:

I've mentioned it before I'm sure, but I've found a blunt handsaw (panel saw) to be much better at cutting drainpipe etc than a lovely sharp one. So for those without bandsaws, that's the way to go!

I use a hacksaw.

[basstone]

I just had to see how my cab sounded with the SVT classic amp that I just repaired for a client, and what better way to demo the amp. It almost looks made for the amp to sit on when on its side. I needed to add  the 1 x 15" polytone cab to get the 4ohm load for the amp.

Imagine 2 Basschat cabs stacked with the SVT (top cab with horn rotated 90 degrees and bottom with low pass filter and no horn?). It  would make a great looking and great sounding rig! Needless to say it did sound great, a nice rounded full tone but with plenty of definition. Shame about the weight (of the SVT that is :-)) but great valve tone is never going to be lightweight.

 

[stewblack]

Yep, two cabs, badges rotated, black grills, svt, bish, bash, bosh.