LFsys Monaco - use for double bass.

[Paddy Morris]

I just recently bought a Monaco cab from LFsys.   I've done a few gigs with it now, and as there doesn't seem to be much info out there on their use for double bass, I thought I would leave a small review.

Practicals first:  It's really nice and light.  Very easy to carry with the recessed handle.  It fits in my car standing upright, so plenty of space for other gear.  The finish and appearance look very smart, in fact I don't really think the website pictures do it justice.  Construction quality feels really nice and premium.

For these purposes I'm going to compare to my Barefaced BB3, as they are similar scale FRFR speakers - different price points, but broadly comparable.  I've finally realised that I can only really use flat speakers for upright bass at any reasonable volume, because any specifically 'voiced' cab, with humps and bumps in the response, tends to make the feedback issues with the instrument much worse - unusable in fact.

Efficiency:  The Monaco is plenty loud enough.  I would say the BB3 is a few dB louder for a given amp setting, but both are freakishly loud compared with a lot of traditional cabs.  It's subjectively the same volume as my BB Supermini T.

Response:  It's flat - extremely flat.  I think I would actually be pretty happy to use a pair of them as studio monitors.  Out of box, the BB3 feels as though it has a deeper bass extension (in my case I have to roll all that rumble off with an HPF anyway) but I did check with a bit of tone shaping on the amp, and the Monaco is still very capable of generating those very low notes if you dial them in.  I wonder if it's the difference between the big-ass slot port on the BB3 and the reflex port on the Monaco?  I guess if you were after a particular 'sound' then you would use a cab-sim, or a head that provided it.  But the Monaco is very much a blank canvas.

Load:  This is an interesting one.  If I push my amp really hard at LF, much harder than I would hope to need to on a gig, the Barefaced cabs will eventually cause the class D stage pop into protection/mute for a few seconds.   This isn't a criticism of the Barefaced, because I'm taking about abusively high loudness levels at this point.   But this doesn't happen with the Monaco.  And if I run the Monaco in parallel with the BB3 then the combined load doesn't cause the class D to trip either.  I'm not sure what's happening here, but certainly it points to the Monaco being a good, consistent load impedance and easy to drive.

Actual use on gigs:  It's a very clear sound, very easy to hear what you're playing and get your intonation right.  The notes bloom into the room (or field if it's an outdoor gig!).  So the dancers get a tasty set of low notes to set their pulses racing, but the player gets something that's nice and focused so you can hear what you're up to.  The low end is present, but really tight and punchy.   And here's the big deal for me, very little feedback.  Loads of BassChatters will know if you're playing upright with a loud guitarist and drums then managing feedback is a full time preoccupation during a gig.  I don't have a 2nd sound posts fitted. I don't use a mag pickup because I'm playing guts.  We don't generally use IEMs.  So all I have to damp things down is a pair of F-its sound hole blockers and the fact that I'm playing a laminate instrument with a lacquered finish.  And using this Monaco cab, I can get to a perfectly acceptable volume without causing horrendous feedback issues.    I have got a quieter dinner jazz gig coming up in a few weeks, for which I'll use a carved bass.  So maybe after that I'll report back here.

You always take a bit of a punt when you buy a cab online, without trying it out via a dealer beforehand.  But generally speaking I'm really pleased with it so far, and thanks to everyone on here who recommended LFsys to me.  If anyone is near York and fancies trying it out for themselves then message me on here and we can sort something out.

 

[Lozz196]

Good review 

[tubbybloke68]

I’m glad you’re liking your cab,whilst I don’t play double bass, i have a pair of the Monza 10” cabs and can confirm they are fantastic little units too.

. One does me for 90% of gig situations .Stevie is very easy to deal and has great products. It’s nice to support small home grown businesses. For the record, I’ve owned loads of different barefaced cabs too what served me very well.keep enjoying your sound! 😊x

Edited yesterday at 11:22 by tubbybloke68

[stewblack]

Nice review. I had the pleasure of playing through some LFsys cabs at the South West Bass Bash last year. I was extremely impressed. I did a direct comparison with my Trace Elliot 2x8 cabs and they couldn't compete. Not even close. 

[cetera]

Love my Monaco with my electric basses! Clear, punchy, authoritative and full with wonderful dispersion. Couldn't ask for more!

[Phil Starr]

Really interested in your experience. Declaration here: @stevie is a friend and we've shared ideas on the home build designs we've published on Bass Chat. Two or thre years ago at the SouthWest Bass Bash I took along a pair of new designs of my own for people to have a look at. I'd been following a discussion here on amplifying double bass and I thought one of them in particular would work well for DB. I ran live sound for a couple of years a very long time ago so I know all about the problems.

 

Well I grabbed a DB player and got him to try my 8" design which did work well reinforcing the sound without overwhelming it and making it sound like a double bass. I was fgeeling pretty pleased with myself but we also had a prototype  Monza there. Effectively the 10" version of the Monaco. I knew about the highly damped bass response and all the care that had gone into the crossover design and horn and driver selection and been there when some of the frequency plots had been made so I suggested we try that with the DB. It blew my little 8 out of the water, absolutely gorgeous.

 

I know the response of the BB3 too, it isn't as flat as the LFSys and the drive units aren't as sophisticated. Keeping any resonances controlled and reducing them by 3db will give you 3db extra headroom. I'm not saying how much the difference will be in practice but I'm not surprised from the measurements that you've found it works that way.  Equally the magnet systems in the Faital drivers Stevie uses are unusually powerful and keep the cone movement well damped reducing the bloom you get in a lot of commercial bass cabs which contributes to bass feedback.

 

The price difference is irrelevant to the performance. The Monaco uses better components than the Barefaced and is a bit of a secret bargain if FRFR is what you want.

[eude]

As another Monza owner here, I can only chime in with extremely positive vibes.

I've had my cab a several months now, definitely way past the usual honeymoon period and yet, every single time I use it, I'm blown away with it.

For a single cab, with a 1x10" speaker it is incredible.

The low end is tight and punchy, all the time, but you can dial in more low end if you wish, the driver can handle it.

The best word to describe it, as @cetera stated above, is, "authoritative". There is a solid presence at all volumes, that can't be ignored.

I also think it would be a wonderful cab to reinforce a double bass.

@stevie is also an absolute star to deal with, and although I'll likely never need it, I have another Monza on my shopping list, as soon as I can afford one.

I recommend LFSys and the Monza especially to anyone that'll listen!