Glasstone or Avatar?

[wave rider]

Saw mention of an interesting cab by Glasstone on another TB thread, a small cube-ish looking 2x12 (one must be rear-firing, cannot see the second 12 in the image). My interest piqued, I dropped by the Glasstone site to get more info. Could not find that particular cab but did see a couple that looked strangely familiar. WELCOME TO GLASSTONE MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS! (My bolds in the quotes below.)

Glasstone GT-156 Pro
GT-156 PRO

Originally Posted by Glasstone Site

The GT-156 Pro features rugged 3/4 inch voidless 13 PLY BALTIC BIRCH PLYWOOD construction with strong rabbet corner joints. The front and back boards are dadoed into surrounding top and side boards for extreme interlocking strength. The cab is well braced internally with three front to rear 2"X 3" posts.

The cabinet is loaded with, the best Neo 15 made in America which is the Eminence Kappalite 3015LF. It is crystlized with a custom 6 inch mid with a ceramic magnet because it sounds as smooth as silk and can handle even more power than the Neo 6 counterpart.

The tweeter is the industry standard one inch Fostex compression horn.The cabinet is covered in tolex, has protective corners, large recessed steel bar handles, full face steel diamond pattern expanded metal grill, front slot port, steel input panel with dual Speakon connectors and dual 1/4 inch in/out jacks. Weight 63 lbs Dimensions ":27H x 24".5"W x "16.5"D.

Avatar TB153
TB153* BASS CABINET

Originally Posted by Avatar Site

We got so many requests to do a Pro 15 inch 3 way bass system, that we set out to design the best one possible. We got lots of great input from the knowledgeable players at Talkbass.com. After much chat on the forums, the general consensus was the we should use the best Neo 15 made in America which is the Eminence Kappalite 3015LF. [...snip...]

Again on Talkbass.com, the consensus was that a sealed back mid was the only way to go. We had Eminence make a custom 6 inch mid with a ceramic magnet because it sounds as smooth as silk and can handle even more power than the Neo 6 counterpart. The tweeter is the industry standard one inch Foster compression horn which is used in our other popular bass systems.

[...snip...]


The Cabinet features rugged 3/4 inch voidless 13 PLY BALTIC BIRCH PLYWOOD construction with strong rabbet corner joints. The front and back boards are dadoed into surrounding top and side boards for extreme interlocking strength. The cab is well braced internally with three front to rear 2"X 3" posts.

The cabinet is covered in black tolex, has protective corners, large recessed steel bar handles, full face steel diamond pattern expanded metal grill, front slot port, steel input panel with dual Speakon connectors and dual 1/4 inch in/out jacks. For some speaker specs, please see Eminence.com Weight 63 lbs Dimensions 27H x 24.5W x 16.5D. [...snip...]

Also very similar are the 4x10s:
GT-410 PRO

NEW B410 NEO

I did not know that Avatar did OEM work. Now I am wondering who makes the other cabs in the Glasstone line. Nothing wrong with rebadging a product, especially good ones.

Anyone know about the other cabs? Any info on the 2x12? The 2x10+12?

Dang curiosity is almost as bad as G.A.S.

=wr=

[punkrocko]

I thought Avatar sourced out their cabs. Probably the same 3rd party building for both.

[Morning Beer]

Interesting basses on the glasstone, I hate that they have no prices listed for anything.

[will33]

They may indeed be sourcing from the same cabinet supplier or be a spinoff of the same company. They do look strangely familiar.

Avatar used to be a dealer of THD amps and is now doing Genz as well as their own (presumably farmed out) Marshall clones. Maybe they're branching out.

[LostInSauce]

Not that it's worth much, but Avatar is out of Idaho and Glasstone (based on the 703 area code on thier contact page) is out of Northern Virginia.

[LostInSauce]

I also went to thier site and saw what appeared to be a 2X10 with a hidden 12" speaker cab - the GT 2012.

GT-2012

Anyone heard of either Faital Pro or Ciare speakers?

[wave rider]

Fatal and Ciare are European speaker manufacturers and well regarded, at least as far as I remember from my Talkbass reading.

I thought the Avatar folks had someone make their boxes and they assembled them in Idaho.

Maybe someone with more experience on both topics can set me straight...

=wr=

[will33]

Originally Posted by wave rider

Fatal and Ciare are European speaker manufacturers and well regarded, at least as far as I remember from my Talkbass reading.

I thought the Avatar folks had someone make their boxes and they assembled them in Idaho.

Maybe someone with more experience on both topics can set me straight...

=wr=

Right on both counts. Maybe this company is so as not to break an Avatar contract deal somewhere, or for tax purposes or something. Who knows how that all comes together.

[Brad Johnson]

Glasstone makes each of the new little 2-12 cabs by hand. I don't know the
sourcing of the other cabs and I sent him a him a link to this thread. The second
12 in the 2-12 is perpendicular to the front firing 12, firing straight down.



The design is still being tweaked esthetically, there are several in use locally. The
main drivers are Faital neo 12PR300 twelves. Weight is sub-35 lb. and there's an
optional dolly. Here's mine with my Glasstone Mahogany/Wenge 5:


The website is still fairly new and there's contact info for any questions such as pricing.

[drslglass]

When, I first started with cabs, Dave at Avatar and I tried to work out his building my boxes, but it wasn't profitable for either of us. These are the same boxes, I only made electronic mods to produce my sound, but ultimately discontinued offering the cabs. It will fall off my site soon as I offer a totally different line now taking a different approach to address issues presented by bass players. The Avatar desgin is excellent, which is why I had interest in it to start with, but you can get a better deal, direct from Dave.

[wave rider]

Originally Posted by Brad Johnson

Glasstone makes each of the new little 2-12 cabs by hand. I don't know the
sourcing of the other cabs and I sent him a him a link to this thread. The second
12 in the 2-12 is perpendicular to the front firing 12, firing straight down.

[...snip...]

The design is still being tweaked esthetically, there are several in use locally. The
main drivers are Faital neo 12PR300 twelves. Weight is sub-35 lb. and there's an
optional dolly. Here's mine with my Glasstone Mahogany/Wenge 5:


The website is still fairly new and there's contact info for any questions such as pricing.

I was thinking rear firing for the other 12, down firing is both surprising and interesting! The Bag End red carpet (in the first photo of your original post) caught my eyes initially since I knew you liked their cabs in the past. Looking forwards to an in depth review.

Still sorry about the twister that got ahold of your fender...

Originally Posted by drslglass

When, I first started with cabs, Dave at Avatar and I tried to work out his building my boxes, but it wasn't profitable for either of us. These are the same boxes, I only made electronic mods to produce my sound, but ultimately discontinued offering the cabs. It will fall off my site soon as I offer a totally different line now taking a different approach to address issues presented by bass players. The Avatar desgin is excellent, which is why I had interest in it to start with, but you can get a better deal, direct from Dave.

Thanks for chiming into this thread and curing my curiosity. Looking forwards to reading about your knew cabinets; I find the whole topic of speaker/cabinet design fascinating especially when the designs stray from the "status quo" of the mainstream. Sub 35 pounds for a 2x12 is impressive!

=wr=

[Chef]

attn drslglass:
you have a pm;
thanks

[phillybass101]

Man I want me one of those LIL G's. Just a matter of time.

[Brad Johnson]

Here's a clip with a Lil G outdoors without PA support.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MBOhNmEEXY4

[Brad Johnson]

Originally Posted by wave rider

Still sorry about the twister that got ahold of your fender...

That's my Glasstone bass.

[jlepre]

That GT-15 looks interesting. At 28 pounds it has my interest. I emailed them for pricing.

[jlepre]

Well the email kicked back...now what?

EDIT: I just called the number on the website, and it was Sammie's cell. I Left a message.

[pbasswil]

Hi,

Anybody know if Glasstone has any future as a builder of very light and very potent bass cabs?

http://www.glasstonesound.com/lilgpage.html

And does anybody know a way to contact him, to get the answer straight from the horses mouth?

Thanks in advance!

- Peter

[jlepre]

Call the number on his website

[pbasswil]

Originally Posted by jlepre

Call the number on his website

Ah, so your May phone call (as per post #17) was returned, jlepre?
Did you learn anything about his speaker building plans?

(Yes I will call him when I figure out my budget.)