{"id":11539,"date":"2017-08-30T09:42:00","date_gmt":"2017-08-30T14:42:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.bestbassgear.com\/ebass\/?p=11539"},"modified":"2017-08-30T09:42:00","modified_gmt":"2017-08-30T14:42:00","slug":"what-bass-players-say-about-which-speakers-and-cabs-work-best-live","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bestbassgear.com\/ebass\/gear\/cabinets\/what-bass-players-say-about-which-speakers-and-cabs-work-best-live.html","title":{"rendered":"What bass players say about which speakers and cabs work best live"},"content":{"rendered":"

When we asked “Which speaker size projects best for a bass player when playing live?”, many of you posted comments<\/a> on what you think works best. Some of you wrote very detailed comments. There were a few that really stood out, enough to where an entire article (the one you’re reading right now) could be dedicated to it.<\/p>\n

From Rick Lazaroff<\/a><\/b>:<\/p>\n

I’m very surprised that most bass players still use 1 x full range cab or a combination of 2 x full range cabs of different speaker configurations. In the early 80’s I switched from using full range cabs to a sub and top cab employing an electronic cross over. When I made the switch it was magic. I’ve used a few different combinations. 2×18″ for a sub with a 2×10″ on top crossed over around 100htz or 2×15″ on the bottom with 2×10″ on top. It’s the only way to go. Clarity, punch, lots of bottom end and high end definition. You’ve got to move air and that’s not going to happen playing through a 2×10″ cab. And most 2×10″ can also have a tweeter as well. It’s a set up that’s bassically a small P.A. system. At present I’m only using a 1×15″ cab for my sub and it’s really not enough for the bottom end. I plan on adding another 1×15″ cab to beef up the situation. If you want to heard over the drummer and a guitar player you’ve got move air. And it’s not just about volume. It’s about clarity & projection. Get yourself a sub and a top cab and an electronic crossover. And, a good quality rack mount compressor. The real secret to a balanced attack. It’s not overkill. It’s the reason every soundman tells me my bass sounds great. (Fender Jazz Bass with EMG’s)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

From Phil S.<\/b>:<\/p>\n

I am always amazed by the number of folks who still think 10’s have more “punch” and “clarity”, and 15’s have more “warmth” and “low end”. Seriously? With all of the proven data that shows the only thing a speaker’s size tells you about a speaker is the size of the speaker, one has to wonder how this is still a topic of discussion. If you wanna mix driver sizes, knock yourself out, it’s your rig, your sound, and your money, but in most cases, the 4×10 is able to handle more wattage than the standard 1×15, so while your 4×10 is humming along, your 1×15 is on the brink of destruction. Unless you’re listening specifically to the 1×15, you may not hear it struggling until it’s too late. I played the “standard” 410\/115 combo for years. Thought it sounded killer, until I played a rig with 2×212’s. That rig went deeper and had more articulation than my 410\/115 ever thought about, and with less EQ! From that point on, I’ve only played two matching cabs or one really good cab. Right now, I’ve got two LDS 15\/6\/1’s and two Ampeg PN-410’s, but my gigging rig is a single Barefaced Big Twin II, which is a ported 2×12 with a horn. That single 2×12 is as loud and as deep as the two Ampeg’s and it has the same kind of articulation as the two LDS’s. It also happens to weigh less than 50 lbs, and it has super smooth casters and a well-placed top handle.<\/p>\n

My point is that my 212 cab has all the “punch” of 10’s and all the “warmth” of 15’s. If I needed another cab(I don’t), I’d buy another Barefaced BTII. Why would I take a chance that some other cabinet with a different sized driver will pair up with this cab and sound like crap? I know this cab sounds amazing, so why wouldn’t I just buy another one? Mismatched drivers MIGHT work, but matching drivers DO work, and speaker size really means nothing…<\/p>\n

Just so everyone doesn’t think I’m totally new school, my pedalboard is almost all analog(my loop switcher has some digital qualities), and my main amp is an all-tube Mesa Strategy(my backup amp is a Mesa D800+…;-) )<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

From renotunez<\/b>:<\/p>\n

I am a live player, have done some studio in my past but I perfer playing live. Back in the late 80’s early 90’s I had a Fender BRX bi-amped 400 watt head with a 2×10 and a 15″ each in it’s own cabinet. Then my friend who at that time was a rep for Kaman Corp. He convinced me to use his Trace Elliot’s SMX-12 2×10 combo w\/ horn back in the early 90’s one night. That configuration sold me, thus selling my Fender amp, speaker cabinets, and even Fender Jazz V string ( it had Kubicki active electronics and I had upgraded to Bartolini pickups). After trying his amp and his Hamer Cruise Bass V with a 2Tek bridge (Jazz inspired and passive) I was sold! Had everything I needed, and my tone was much more defined than with my Fender kit. I was playing in a 3 piece Classic Rock band back then and need clear tones and a defined sound. After that tryout, the 2×10’s w\/ a horn and a English made Trace head became my go to. I just like the early Trace stuff’s warm, defined tone even still today. Currently I am using an English pre-Gibson Trace GP-7, a Rane dual compressor with crossover, w\/ 2×10 w\/ horn cabinet. Bass guitar goes in to a Tech21 Sansamp VT direct box before amp\/compressor and split to PA mixing board. I’m 63 and I like the modular stack approach due to weight\/transporting it for other gigs. I just need to hear myself on stage, not really to project. Last year for 3 months I played without an amp on stage as a trial to explore downsizing, just direct into PA and thru monitors. Hated it! I went back to the amp after 3 months. I really feel an amp on stage helps me stay connected to the band. Without an amp on stage it was very hard for me, especially after using amps on stage since the early 70’s. I did try the challenge, but I don’t care for bass just in monitors or thru a small monitor. JMHO, and it works well for me. I am always conscience of my volume and band mate interactions.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

From James Markway<\/a><\/b>:<\/p>\n

I am a pro player of over 40 years on electric and upright, with over 10,000 gigs in the New Orleans area. If you have to be louder than a 10″ speaker can provide on an upright gig, that gig should be on electric.<\/p>\n

I used to use 6 different cabs I made myself- 2 cabs w\/single 15″ Altec Lansing 4-21, 2 cabs with single EV 12L, and 2 cabs with single 10″ Hartke aluminum cones. Each cab was 8 ohms and built to specs derived from the computer EV 12L design.<\/p>\n

I would mix and match cabs to whatever the gig demanded. I even had a junction box so that I could run 3 cabs but still have the resulting ohms fall between 4 and 8 ohms. Then Hurricane Katrina destroyed all of that gear.<\/p>\n

When I got new gear I got a single 10″ and a single 12″ from Flitesound. This is what I use now for any gig. Loud electric gigs get both cabs, upright gigs get the 10″, and I use the single 12 on the occasional gig needing more than a 10″. That’s it.<\/p>\n

4 10″ cabs have a pronounced mid range bump that you can’t get rid of. 8 10″ cabs are stupid unless you are playing heavy metal. Most concert rental rigs are TOO BIG. I like to use a small cab on stage at a concert or festival, like a 2 10″. That way you can push the cab up to, but not into, distortion. This gives the best bass tone without being distorted. A smaller rig on any stage makes the soundman’s job easier, with monitors not as loud, and reduced low frequency feedback due to low frequency resonances. Use a small cab, push it up to the threshold of distortion but not into it, and you will get great tone, a happy sound man, and grateful fellow band members.<\/p>\n

I recently played a small jazz room here in town with both electric and upright- I used a rebuilt 1969 Fender Showman head with a LDS 2 8″ cab. With each axe in its own separate channel, it was perfect.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

From Dan G.<\/b>:<\/p>\n

Back in the 60\u2019s I used a 1966 Fender Bassman amp (blackface) with a really large 212 cabinet (new size for \u201966). That worked fine for high-school group and also worked fine when I first started touring with a nightclub group (5-days a week, 50-weeks a year). Then the guitarist and keyboards both bought Vox Super Beatle amps, which buried my poor Bassman.<\/p>\n

In 1971 while playing \u201cLittle Bo\u2019s\u201d in Lincoln Nebraska, I visited Hospe music looking for a dual showman. They had sold out the week before so I was trying everything in the shop. The finally showed me a previous year\u2019s model of a Standel bass amp. It was the MCIIB head (just a preamp in the head) and a SAM30B cabinet. The SAM30B was a 215 cab with 4 circular ports alongside the speakers. It was a powered cab at 250-watts and was shorter and twice as deep as my bassman cab. I could easily bury the guitar and keyboard’s Super-Beatle amps with it. Speakers were very efficient and I couldn\u2019t dial it up beyond 9 o\u2019clock indoors (3 on the dial). Outdoors, I could run it at 12 o\u2019clock (5 on the dial) because there were no walls to bounce it off of.<\/p>\n

I toured for another 2 years with that amp and it was as good as it gets \u2013 better than the acoustic 360\/361 and the all-tube SVT with the 810\u2019s. It was stolen in 1976 along with my 1965 Fender Jazz Bass.<\/p>\n

Used a number of single 15\u2019s since and none of them were good enough for anything beyond small club. Then I got an acoustic B410 and stacked that on top of my GK115. With some EQ\u2019ing (the 115 was terribly boomy) I could make that stack sound good and play inside or out with my 800-watt Eden amp driving it.<\/p>\n

In 2015, I bought DNA\u2019s DNS-410. It\u2019ll handle 1400-watts rms. Using that same 800-watt Eden amp, I can\u2019t run it above 9:30 without blowing everyone out of the room. That 410 is as good as it gets and it will stand up to an 810 without any problem. The low B string on my 5 string sounds tight and clear. If I play bass chords on it, you can discern each note of the chord. The clarity and richness of the sound is just amazing.<\/p>\n

Until I bought my DNS410, I would still have preferred my old Standel (2\u00d715) if I still had it. But that new DNS-410 is just killer \u2013 inside, outside, loud or soft, it rocks the house and has no fear at all of a Marshall double stack of 12\u2019s or a super-loud drummer. So, for me, my 410 is the choice.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

From Bill J<\/b>:<\/p>\n

For years I have been using a Hartke 5000HA with either a lighter 4×10 Hartke Transporter cab or a 2×10 SWR Workingman… or often, both. I play from small Tiki bars, small to medium clubs to Outdoor festivals. This setup has been sufficient. I am 65 and wanted something smaller and lighter since I play blues, classic rock, R&B, Alternative music or acoustic folk with multiple groups almost nightly. I took the plunge and bought a Phil Jones Compact Suitcase and Compact 4 cabinet without hearing one, based solely on feedback on several bass forums (Risky, I know!). I now run 500 watts through a total of 8×5″ speakers (I know this sounds crazy… it did to me too!). I have used it in all the above settings (for larger or outdoor venues I run direct to PA through my trusty SansAmp Tech 21 3 channel programmable DI) and have been extremely pleased with this setup. I use my old ’74 Fender Jazz rewired in ’76 with Sunrise pickups by Pat Murphy and Tim Shaw. I like a clean, well rounded punchy tone, but also go for some growl with some high end cutting through when needed. The typical… and common comment I get is “Awesome bass sound! What is that little amp?”. I just did a show with another band with a bassist that swears by his old SVT with 8x10s. He was hesitant to use it when I emailed him ahead of time just to let him know what I was going to have set up on stage so he could bring his amp. When he heard us play, he raved about it, and used it himself. Afterwards he asked all about it since he was unfamiliar with Phil Jones. My only issue has been since it is so small (only about 2′ stacked), I have resorted to putting it up on a milk carton (now my cord crate) so I can hear it better when in less than ideal monitor situations. I realize I am losing some natural bass from it not being on the floor, but that is has not been an issue.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

From EddieB<\/b>:<\/p>\n

These days I use a 4×10 + 1×15 for larger venues, though I put the 15 on top because it’s lighter. For smaller gigs, just the 1×15. I power them with a GK 800RB. This has served me well going on 20 years now. For really small gigs I’ll use a GK MB150 microbass combo with its single 12 and maybe an additional 1×12 to get a little more bottom.<\/p>\n

Before that, I used a Sunn 2000S with a variety of speakers, finally settling on 9×12 in three cabinets. I still have the muscles to prove it. Back then we had limited power so we had to add speakers to get projection. These days you can fit 2000W into a shoe box and still lift it with one hand.<\/p>\n

Whatever happened to the 1×18 in a folded horn “W” cabinet? The Acoustic 360 used to rule the bass world. I think they actually sounded louder the further away from them you were. With a backline of those you could play a coliseum and not need to run the bass through a PA. Probably not ideal for your local pub or Elks club though.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

From Donn R. Westmoreland<\/b>:<\/p>\n

I was a cabinetmaker before I became disabled, so I built my rig and it’s unique as far as I know. The baffle is angled at 15 degrees to overcome phase-cancellation of standing waves off the back of the 15″ speaker. There is a ‘Port’ 2 1\/2 ” tall that runs the entire bottom of the cabinet. At the bottom it is 24″ deep, at the top approx. 18″ deep. It is 24″ tall and 24″ wide (OD). The speaker enclosure is sealed with a 15″ passive radiator aiming down into the ‘Port’. It is loaded with a Peavey Black Widow 15 (400W capable) and is packed with insulation. The upper cabinet is a 2 – 10″ cab, built with similar design parameters to the 1 – 15, though no passive radiators and porting is tuned. 10″ Peavey Black Widow speakers load this cabinet. The baffle is a 10 degree ‘V’ to create cross coverage. This cab is incomplete, so I can’t tell you yet how they sound together?<\/p>\n

The idea was based on room coverage, the two tens angle so that they cover 145 degrees, more than enough to push into the room. It stands on a pole out of the top of the 1 – 15. The 1 – 15 aims upward to bounce the long waves off the ceiling with a coverage of 115 degrees wide; which I know covers the room I’ve played it many times. It also pushes the deep bass from the port across the floor. which increases the ‘feel’ received by the audience.<\/p>\n

I did feel the need for the two ten box, to ‘brighten’ the sound and give the rig more mid\/upper punch. But the bass you feel in your chest on the rockers and boogie tunes, that comes out of the 15 box. My amp head burned, so I don’t even know what I will end up with to power the rig, as I’m not playing right now, I have a few problems. But given my choice, this rig would run on a Peavey VB 2 head, heavy, but everything you ever need.<\/p>\n

I’m a hobbyist player; and an on-again-off-again weekend warrior (I admit it). My experience is in bars and clubs, no large venues, though I would love to hear this rig in a larger space, with DI\/mic’d through the PA mixed. I think I’m onto something.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Thanks to everyone who shared their thoughts on amplifiers and speaker cabinet setups. And if you’d like to continue the conversation, please feel free to post a comment or two below.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When we asked “Which speaker size projects best for a bass player when playing live?”, many of you posted comments on what you think works best. Some of you wrote very detailed comments. There were a few that really stood out, enough to where an entire article (the one you’re reading right now) could be … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":11541,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[20],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bestbassgear.com\/ebass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11539"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bestbassgear.com\/ebass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bestbassgear.com\/ebass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bestbassgear.com\/ebass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bestbassgear.com\/ebass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11539"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.bestbassgear.com\/ebass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11539\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bestbassgear.com\/ebass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11541"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bestbassgear.com\/ebass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11539"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bestbassgear.com\/ebass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11539"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bestbassgear.com\/ebass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11539"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}