Dr. Bass, Avatar, and other non-corporation cab companies

[hachi kid]

I'm looking at going with a Dr. Bass or Avatar cab for my high and low cabs. the prices between the two companies are extremely similar between the two, although I've heard Avatar a lot more than I've heard Dr. Bass. what I have heard about Dr. B, though, has been nothing but positive. same with Avatar, too.

here's the situation:
I basically run two full half stacks. dual outputs on my bass. one for lows, one for highs. for the lows, I'm running a 400w SWR Workingman's 4004 head, and it will be running mostly JUST lows with a bit of low mids for some extra punch. I am wanting a 1x18 cab for this side.

for the highs, I am running through an all tube Peavey Valveking 100 guitar head. I run my mids, upper mids, treble, and distortion along with other effects through this, and I'm wanting a 4x10 with a tweeter for the cab.

I've been in contact with Dr. Bass about the 1x18, and waiting to hear back from him about a 4x10. I'm curious if anyone has any feedback about either Dr. Bass or Avatar cabs. I talked to some people at Peavey and they said to look at how many program watts the cab will handle as opposed to RMS. and I've seen the Avatar cabs are good for 1000 watts RMS, and I think that would just be WAY too much for a 100w tube head. would anyone have any feedback about any of this? or would anyone know about any other companies that would be able to fulfill what I need?

the reason for this is I went to the local guitar shop, and was on my way to buy an Ashdown cab, until I saw it started farting out pretty early (even though it was rated for 450w, and I was playing through a 100w tube head.....). so, I started thinking about a Dr. Bass cab or some other high end cab without the high end price tag. I figure the knowledgeable people at TB would be able to guide me. ^_^

[grifff]

Don't buy from Dr. Bass from what I've read on TB. I'm sure someone can direct you to the thread.

A lot of people say great things about LDS cabinets.

I love my Avatar 4x10 and it was definitely worth every penny. Dave is a great guy to do business with.

[BassistFreak416]

i always thought Dr. Bass had the coolest amps, but with there being so many threads about their problems, unless he has begun fixing the problem i would avoid them. now if you could find a used one...
LDS can build you anything you want. great pricing, tons of good reviews on him.
also many good reviews on Avatar

[Febs]

Read this thread before giving any further consideration to ordering anything from Dr. Bass:

Dr. Bass (Doctor Bass) - Customer Service Thread - Complaints & Concerns (Part II)

[bongomania]

Defo stick with LDS, Avatar, LoPhat, Baer, Mojo-Sonic, etc... Avoid Dr. B.

[rpsands]

If I were buying it'd be LoPhat or LDS, or Speakerhardware if I was doing another BFM cab

[bongomania]

Originally Posted by hachi kid

I've seen the Avatar cabs are good for 1000 watts RMS, and I think that would just be WAY too much for a 100w tube head.

Hold it right there! The wattage rating of a cab is how much wattage it can safely handle, not how much wattage it "needs". You can drive a 2,000 W cab with a 1 W amp, no joke.

[Jeff Scott]

+1000 on all the above; I am still waiting on a fully paid for custom cab from Dr. Bass that was finished before the end of last year (he sent me photos that I posted here) but since that time, Marc has not returned any of my phone call or e-mails.

Go with LDS or any other company until Dr B gets his problems sorted out and makes amends to the bass community.

[Derk_Falsco]

2 time customer of Avatar. Great folks to do business with, Dave is a super nice guy. Been nothing less than completely satisfied with them and their products.

[shoot-r]

I've got "two" Avatar Neo 210 cabinets.
I've only got good things to say about Dave and Avatar!

[Foz]

+1 Avatar

+1 LDS

Have bought from both - am well pleased.

[MarshallLaw]

www.emperorcabs.com

1x18 will run you about $400.
not sure on the 4x10, but they do great work for very reasonable prices.

Everything is custom, built to order, and turnaround is about 1 month.








beautiful, quality stuff.

[MLC_BassPlayer]

I can only speak to my experience with Dr. Bass.

I ordered two cab (1260 slant and 115LF) in early January. Was told that it would take about four to five weeks. They ended up taking about nine weeks.

Once I started playing through them, the 1260 slant had a buzz whenever it was played at any volume. I called Marc, we talked through a couple of things to try. No luck. I sent the back. It was fixed and turned around straight away, as promised. It arrived today with no buzz.

Build quality seems good and I like the Rhino liner exterior, although on first sight they take a bit of getting used to.

[M0ses]

Hmmmm, I wonder why the OP hasn't heard many Dr. Bass cabs.....

Maybe it's because no one has any.

[iualum]

Originally Posted by Jeff Scott

+1000 on all the above; I am still waiting on a fully paid for custom cab from Dr. Bass that was finished before the end of last year (he sent me photos that I posted here) but since that time, Marc has not returned any of my phone call or e-mails.

Go with LDS or any other company until Dr B gets his problems sorted out and makes amends to the bass community.

...neither will ever happen...

[Jeff Scott]

I forgot, I ordered and paid in full for my Dr. Bass cabinet 02/10/09!

[jtc_hunter]

You cannot go wrong with Avatar. I have bought 212's, 210's, 112's, and all are fabulous. You cant get better for the $ Spend a little extra and get Tolex or Linex coating.

[MLC_BassPlayer]

I also own an Avatar 210. Bought it used. I had a question about it, emailed Dave and he did reply promptly.

[hachi kid]

yea, I think after all the posts in the thread, I'm steering clear of Dr. Bass. I've sent emails to all the companies listed in the thread, though.

here's the thing now. part of me is wanting the 4x10/1x18 combo because of the "look" of a full stack. but I'm also curious if I would still be able to get that sound out of something like a 2x10/2x12 setup. I know Avatar sells these cabs, and I could possibly go with that.

I've always been curious about a 1x18 setup. I know those are known to produce bass for absolute days, and I'm really looking for that super huge "subwoofer" type bass. would there be much tonal or audible (loudness) difference between a 2x12 cab and a 1x18 cab? and would there be much tonal or audible (loudness) difference between a 2x10 and a 4x10 if both driven by the same head (let's just say both cabs were Avatar cabs).

I'm curious about this because I also know it would be hell to transport huge cabs to shows and practice, so I'm interested in a slightly smaller rig, but only if I can get the same tone out of it. I know with modern technology, some pretty incredible things can be done, but like I said, I've always been curious about a 1x18 setup. and I don't know what the differences between a 4x10 and a 2x10 setup is. is it mainly size and looks? or is there much of an audible difference, too? keep in mind, the 10" speakers will be driven by an all tube 100w head. I don't think it should be a problem with anything by Avatar. their stuff looks pretty heavy duty.

[bongomania]

Bear in mind that the combo you want, looks and all, can be made by any of these builders that does custom work.