Am I Doing This Right Featuring Eden WT300

DasClyde · #1 07-05-2011, 07:00 PM

So I just set up my first head/cab rig of my bass playing experience. I got a Mesa Road Ready 2x15 from craigslist and an Eden WT300 from another TBer.

My first question is am I doing it right? Do these two pieces of equipment match? So far I haven't had any problems, other than achieving the right tone without clipping or distortion.

My second question is: what is the most efficient way to use this Eden head? I will start a song and root with my left hand and adjust with my right for the duration only to end up with every knob at flat or almost flat and I'm still not quite there. Is the Eden too weak for the Mesa?

Any other tips are definitely welcome. Sorry I'm such a huge noob but no matter how many times I read about or get impedance explained to me it goes right out the other ear.

Munjibunga · #2 07-05-2011, 07:11 PM

That cab might be a bit much for the WT-300 (a superb, classic amp, BTW). Is it a 4-ohm cab or 8-ohm? If it's 8 ohms, you'll only be getting about 180 watts going into a cab rated at 1,200 watts. While there is no such thing as underpowering a cab, there is such a thing as just not having enough power for a cab.

I've found my Eden D210XST to be a fantastic match for the WT-300. It's a 4-ohm cab (rated at 500 watts), so it has access to all 300 watts of power from the amp.

Bottom line, I'd say you've got too much cab for your amp. My guess is that that Mesa cab wants gobs of power.

Gearhead17 · #3 07-05-2011, 07:12 PM

If it sounds good for you, it works just fine! The tube head can easily do 4 ohm loads and your cab is most likely a 4 ohm load - good to go.

Are you having trouble with the tone knobs and understanding how they work? The Enhance knob all the way to the left is completely off, Gain should be set according to the manual, and the rest of the buttons can be adjusted to how you see fit. Practice adjusting one button at a time and move your picking hand around on the bass until you understand what each frequency sounds like. Then you can adjust each knob with some degree of understanding.

Download the manuals off the companies' sites and start reading! It's easier to work with bass equipment than you think.

Munjibunga · #4 07-05-2011, 07:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gearhead17

If it sounds good for you, it works just fine! The tube head can easily do 4 ohm loads and your cab is most likely a 4 ohm load - good to go.

Are you having trouble with the tone knobs and understanding how they work? The Enhance knob all the way to the left is completely off, Gain should be set according to the manual, and the rest of the buttons can be adjusted to how you see fit. Practice adjusting one button at a time and move your picking hand around on the bass until you understand what each frequency sounds like. Then you can adjust each knob with some degree of understanding.

Download the manuals off the companies' sites and start reading! It's easier to work with bass equipment than you think.

It's not a tube head, it's a hydrid with solid stade power amp.

DasClyde · #5 07-05-2011, 07:24 PM

So, Munjibunga, would that mean if I got a less powerful cab to match the head the sound would be louder and cleaner? I believe the Mesa is 2 speakers at 8 ohms wired in series(?) which makes it 4 ohms in the end. I think it is 800 watts.

Gearhead, I read through Eden's manual online the first day I got this. It said to set everything flat and do the do. It didn't mention any specific gain. It usually ends up around 12 o'clock. with 2 or 3 clicks of enhance and some lows 1 click off 12 o'clock just to keep distortion and clipping down.

This amp feels really sensitive. I've read that pairing an eden head with a non-eden cabis not the best idea. Should I consider trading up to an eden cab from the mesa? I really do like the mesa...it's pretty awesome. At the same time, I want to get a good sound. I've had some decent tones but I feel like I need a little something extra. I have also been considering getting a Sansamp bass driver.

hmm...

Munjibunga · #6 07-05-2011, 07:33 PM

It should tell you the impedance somewhere on the cab. A 4-ohm cab will usually be two 8-ohm drivers in parallel. You aren't going to have enough power to get the 215 anywhere near as loud as it could go with ample power, so I'm just suggesting something with better sensitivity and more closely matched to your amp's power capability. It seems to me that I've heard that that cab is very power hungry. Someone (who knows) slap me down if I'm mistaken.

I have used my WT-300 with a D-410XLT (rated at 700 watts) and it was great for up to medium size venues. However, outdoors it wasn't enough, and I'd send the amp into clipping before I got to my desired volume. That prompted the purchase of my WT-800, which was a match made in heaven.

So you can use the Mesa cab, but once you start hearing distortion, you need to turn the amp down. The amp only has so much to give.

DasClyde · #7 07-05-2011, 07:38 PM

Alright. Thanks for the explanation. I guess I'm alright for now but I'm going to keep my eye out. I may have made a rash, quick decision on the big Mesa but then again maybe I just wish I could power it better. I feel like the Eden has a lot of potential but it is mismatched with the Mesa.

Bass_Pounder · #8 07-05-2011, 07:56 PM

If the Mesa has the original EV15L drivers in it, it gets very loud WITHOUT a lot of power.

It is not a power hungry cab at all.

TomB · #9 07-05-2011, 08:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DasClyde

Alright. Thanks for the explanation. I guess I'm alright for now but I'm going to keep my eye out. I may have made a rash, quick decision on the big Mesa but then again maybe I just wish I could power it better. I feel like the Eden has a lot of potential but it is mismatched with the Mesa.

As MB said, the WT-300 is a great solid-performing head, but I've mostly used mine (upgraded to a WT-400) w/250 - 400W cabs over the years (1 or 2 @8 or 4 ohms total), and all has been well, and still is 17 years later. However, if you're still open-minded about an amp to drive the Mesa cab vs. the other way around, lots of the new minis check in at 500+ watts and wouuld likely drive the 4-ohm Mesa just fine. I'm particularly fond of the new GK MB line, myself.

Rick Auricchio · #10 07-05-2011, 08:55 PM

For starters, leave the Enhance fully off or use just a tiny bit. It provides a heavy mid-scoop that sounds great solo, but won't work with the band.

I generally kept my Eden head flat, with maybe a tiny adjustment of the bass for the room. The Eden EQ is very powerful; a little goes a long way.

Since we have differing opinions on the cab's need for power, don't worry about that for now. Get your EQ flat and see where you stand first.

Gearhead17 · #11 07-05-2011, 09:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DasClyde

Gearhead, I read through Eden's manual online the first day I got this. It said to set everything flat and do the do. It didn't mention any specific gain. It usually ends up around 12 o'clock. with 2 or 3 clicks of enhance and some lows 1 click off 12 o'clock just to keep distortion and clipping down.

This amp feels really sensitive. I've read that pairing an eden head with a non-eden cabis not the best idea. Should I consider trading up to an eden cab from the mesa? I really do like the mesa...it's pretty awesome. At the same time, I want to get a good sound. I've had some decent tones but I feel like I need a little something extra. I have also been considering getting a Sansamp bass driver.

hmm...

Eden heads come alive with their cabinets. I had two Eden 410XLT's and they sounded decent with my Mesa 400+ or the SVT 4 PRO, but the Eden cabs sound better with the Eden heads. Obviously, the cabs were designed to benefit greatly from Eden heads.

The Sansamp Bass Driver is a tube amp emulator and it will suck out the midrange rapidly on your clean tone. It will also add some growl to your tone. You have the Eden 300T correct? All-Tube right? I do not think the pedal will be too useful in this situation.

I suggest finding an Eden cabinet and trying it out with your Eden head and trying out a different head (most likely a Mesa head) with the Mesa cab. At least you can see what your gear can actually do when paired up correctly. Then you can try out the Eden head with the Mesa cab again to hear the differences. There are no rules in mixing brands of heads and cabs.

DasClyde · #12 07-20-2011, 02:12 PM

I just wanted to drop back in this thread to ask another question instead of making a new thread.

The Mesa 2x15 I have has one original EV speaker and one JBL speaker. Is that JBL a high quality speaker in comparison to the old EV or should I seek out a match on the EV and swap it in?

Is there any simple maintenance/service I can do on this cab to get it to top notch/make it last longer (i.e. the oil change of a bass cab)? I really like the cab and I'm thinking about possibly testing out other heads. I think I could hold on to this amp for a very long time and not need to replace it because it will likely fit my needs for awhile.

also, concerning the eden/mesa combination: when i turn the bass, mids, gain or vol up too high, the speaker(s) boom but in that "gotta turn it down" way. I hate to ask this terrible noob question, but is that higher-volume distortion a lot of people talk about? (sorry this is my first time with an amp that goes louder than 100 watts, my original amp couldn't even make this sound). If I got a higher watt head to go with the Mesa, would I be able to turn the speakers louder without this type of thing happening?

And finally- on this amp, the caster ports are there but the casters are gone. I purchased it that way. As you may know, this amp weighs more than my drummer and my singer (maybe combined). Can I go to the hardware store and get casters that I could drop into the old sockets or should I buy new ones and take the old pieces off and replace them?

That's all for now. Noob signing off.

DasClyde · #13 07-20-2011, 07:41 PM

Interceptor · #14 07-20-2011, 07:52 PM

I gigged a Eden WT-400 into a pair of Electro Voice TL606 cabinets for about a year - the same design as the Mesa.

It sounded very good, and was more than loud enough to handle a bar gig.

Eden's eq is aggressive. It takes very little to make a big difference. Go easy on the eq. The EV cabs couldn't take lots of eq without getting ugly if you start turning up the volume to stage level. The EVM series of drivers are not as capable of big lows as more modern drivers are.

Run that rig flat and enjoy it. It is darn good just like that!

As far as casters - go get a decent hand truck with big fat inflatable tires instead.

DasClyde · #15 07-20-2011, 08:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Interceptor

I gigged a Eden WT-400 into a pair of Electro Voice TL606 cabinets for about a year - the same design as the Mesa.

It sounded very good, and was more than loud enough to handle a bar gig.

Eden's eq is aggressive. It takes very little to make a big difference. Go easy on the eq. The EV cabs couldn't take lots of eq without getting ugly if you start turning up the volume to stage level. The EVM series of drivers are not as capable of big lows as more modern drivers are.

Run that rig flat and enjoy it. It is darn good just like that!

As far as casters - go get a decent hand truck with big fat inflatable tires instead.

I run mostly flat with enhance at 0 usually. Although, we started a reggae jam and I cut the active treble on my bass and both the high and treble knobs (to 0) and got a really great, deep bass sound. I loved it.

I paid more attention to that sound I thought was 'distortion' and I think it's just the drummer's walls.

Maybe I'm just using supposed lack of function as an enabler for gas.

Doogal123 · #16 07-20-2011, 08:05 PM

I would check out getting a 2nd mesa 15 for this cabinet so you have a matched pair. A matched pair of Mesa Speakers designed for this cabinet will give you the best results (unless by some miracle the JBL specs match with the cabinet).

On my first bass cabinet, I had the same issue - a used 2-15 cabinet with one Altec 421A and one JBL D140F 15" and they did not work well together. We live and learn.

And regarding the Eden head - a couple clicks of any Eq is pretty significant.

DasClyde · #17 07-20-2011, 08:34 PM

well it has one original speaker (the EV) and one replacement. It doesn't sound terrible, I think I'm just playing it in a bad area. I probably need to play it more. Before I get it retolexed I'm going to check everything out inside and make sure it's all secure and ship shape.

babebambi · #18 07-20-2011, 08:56 PM

The RR215 can take a bit more power than the WT300 can dish out, but that by no means make them a bad match. In fact, I like how Eden sound with Mesa 15's.

There really is no point to find a less capable cab to "match" the head. Unless you need the money; or if you want a smaller cab.

Advice regarding the WT300
Enhance all the way off
keep EQ adjustment to a minimum