Lightweight cab, plans for 3015lf or other?

[JoeVictim]

I just found out I have Scoliosis and I am freaking out. Now all I can think about is how heavy all my crap is. My bass is around 9lbs, my rack/power/pre is about 20-25 lbs, and my cab is around 120 lbs. I love the sound of 15's but I need advice on what to do from here. I have two Eminence Kapplite 3015LF speakers sitting at my house and I need to either ditch them and buy something, or build some cabs that will help me cut weight but not tone.

To give you some background, I started playing with 15's when I was 14. Then I went to 12's and now I am back to 15's. My current cab is an old Yamaha. The Particle board it's made from is about 1" thick and it is heavy but it nails the old school 70's rock tone. The dimensions are similar to the Sunn 215B cab with the scoop looking side port running the length of the cab. I also have an old Peavey 2-15" with the triangle ports. It weighs about 100 lbs when fully loaded. And there is my Omni 15 that weighs about 70 lbs when fully loaded. So, non of the cabs I have right now are light.

I am rambling now so, please help me think this through. What options would you guys recommend?

[wcriley]

Sounds like you're a good candidate for a fEARful 15/6 or 1515/66 build.
Not sure if any of Bill Fitzmaurice's plans utilizing the 3015LF are suitable for bass guitar, but that's worth exploring, also.

[praisegig]

Check here, since you already have the 15" drivers. You will need to buy the 6" driver and a crossover that Leland also has. You'll not look back for any other cabinet

fEARful Parts, fEARful 15/6 Precut Flat Pack | Speaker Hardware

[JoeVictim]

Originally Posted by wcriley

Sounds like you're a good candidate for a fEARful 15/6 or 1515/66 build.
Not sure if any of Bill Fitzmaurice's plans utilizing the 3015LF are suitable for bass guitar, but that's worth exploring, also.

Already tried the BFD cabs, see above. The problem is I run fuzz. Mid range speakers do not like fuzz. I would be weary of trying anything with seperate mids due to my previous experiences.

[billfitzmaurice]

Originally Posted by JoeVictim

Already tried the BFD cabs, see above. The problem is I run fuzz. Mid range speakers do not like fuzz. I would be weary of trying anything with seperate mids due to my previous experiences.

You'll find that the 3015LF won't be happy without a mid driver. You could run the 3015 alone. In a J15 that would come in around 40 pounds, but it's a bulky cab. You're probably best off with 110 or 112 cabs, as many as you need for adequate output. More trips to the curb, but less load per trip.

[JoeVictim]

Originally Posted by billfitzmaurice

You'll find that the 3015LF won't be happy without a mid driver. You could run the 3015 alone. In a J15 that would come in around 40 pounds, but it's a bulky cab. You're probably best off with 110 or 112 cabs, as many as you need for adequate output. More trips to the curb, but less load per trip.

Thanks Bill. You have always been helpful in your assessments. So, ditch the 3015lf's and get some 10's or 12's?

[billfitzmaurice]

Originally Posted by JoeVictim

Thanks Bill. You have always been helpful in your assessments. So, ditch the 3015lf's and get some 10's or 12's?

I would. A light but bulky cab is just as difficult to deal with as a small heavy cab, and to get out of a fifteen what it's capable of giving the cab can't be small.

[greenboy]

Originally Posted by JoeVictim

The problem is I run fuzz. Mid range speakers do not like fuzz.

Odd idea. Where did you pick up that notion? Practically since starting bass playing in late '98 I've been running copious amounts of distortion, fuzz, and overdrive through mid drivers. If it couldn't be done at high SPL and also sound great I wouldn't have ever designed the fEARfuls - because I lurvs me some Chainsaw of the Gods.

[JoeVictim]

Originally Posted by greenboy

Odd idea. Where did you pick up that notion? Practically since starting bass playing in late '98 I've been running copious amounts of distortion, fuzz, and overdrive through mid drivers. If it couldn't be done at high SPL and also sound great I wouldn't have ever designed the fEARfuls - because I lurvs me some Chainsaw of the Gods.

IME.
Maybe there was a component in my cab that threw it off but my Omni just farted out when I was running my fuzz. Even when I just turned the gain up on my pre, it put out some nasty sounds. I thought I blew my mid at one point.

[tombowlus]

Originally Posted by wcriley

Sounds like you're a good candidate for a fEARful 15/6 or 1515/66 build.

+1 Although I'd recommend two fEARful 15/6's (or 15/6/1's) to keep the weight down. Plus, you will likely find that one 15/6 will get you through most situations.

[BurningSkies]

Yeah, I know that many people don't like tweeters for distortion, but I've never heard smack about using it with a dedicated mid speaker.

[4Mal]

If you want 'old school' 2 1x15 cabs each about 2.6 cu ft using 3015's slot ported works well for me. The 3015 lf, is really not suitable as a stand alone.

A single fEarful 15.6 puts out a shocking amount of volume with relatively few watts though. As long as you pick a suitable mid, for me that means the less hifi AlphaLite - fuzz won't be a problem.

[JoeVictim]

Originally Posted by BurningSkies

Yeah, I know that many people don't like tweeters for distortion, but I've never heard smack about using it with a dedicated mid speaker.

I didn't understand it myself. I never would have thought that it would have created a problem. Maybe there was an issue with the crossover... ever since, I just haven't looked at mids the same way.

[MuzikMan]

You should probably at least audition another cab that has a dedicated mid before you write off the idea. My guess is that the problems you had in the past lie elsewhere.

[rpsands]

I'd consider springing for lighter wood with your 15/6 if you do one of those.

For the record I've run tons of dirt of various intensities (from slightly dirty to crazy fuzzed out with a wah pedal) through my almost-fEarful cab and have had no problems. Envelope filters into distortion, no problem.

[JoeVictim]

Originally Posted by MuzikMan

You should probably at least audition another cab that has a dedicated mid before you write off the idea. My guess is that the problems you had in the past lie elsewhere.

+1 Thats what I was thinking.

[JoeVictim]

Anyone know a fEarful user in Colorado Springs? I would be happy to give it a whirl.

[gregbackstrom]

Originally Posted by JoeVictim

I just found out I have Scoliosis and I am freaking out. Now all I can think about is how heavy all my crap is. My bass is around 9lbs, my rack/power/pre is about 20-25 lbs, and my cab is around 120 lbs. I love the sound of 15's but I need advice on what to do from here. I have two Eminence Kapplite 3015LF speakers sitting at my house and I need to either ditch them and buy something, or build some cabs that will help me cut weight but not tone.

To give you some background, I started playing with 15's when I was 14. Then I went to 12's and now I am back to 15's. My current cab is an old Yamaha. The Particle board it's made from is about 1" thick and it is heavy but it nails the old school 70's rock tone. The dimensions are similar to the Sunn 215B cab with the scoop looking side port running the length of the cab. I also have an old Peavey 2-15" with the triangle ports. It weighs about 100 lbs when fully loaded. And there is my Omni 15 that weighs about 70 lbs when fully loaded. So, non of the cabs I have right now are light.

I am rambling now so, please help me think this through. What options would you guys recommend?

JV -- you might want to check out Robby Hoinsky's fEARful cabinets. His company is called "Art of Noise," and he specializes in extremely light-weight cabinet construction using non-wood materials. I recently bought one of his Nidacore 15/6/1 cabinets, and it seems very sturdy, sounds great and incredibly loud, and weighs around 45 lbs + or -. His newer cabinets weigh even less.

I have absolutely no commercial interest BTW -- I'm just a consumer (of WAY too much bass gear)!

Good luck!
Greg

[robthebassplaye]

Originally Posted by billfitzmaurice

I would. A light but bulky cab is just as difficult to deal with as a small heavy cab, and to get out of a fifteen what it's capable of giving the cab can't be small.

Thats exactly right - any cab that will make a 15 sound right will be big, and I've never been happy with the 2x10, they are just somewhere in the middle (never loud enough, and never punchy/deep enough), so if you have a pair of cabs with 12"s, bring as many as you need to hit the SPL required.

Anyway, of course, a lot of this is personal preference.

Rob

[JoeVictim]

Thanks Rob, I will more than likely try to get rid of my 3015LF's and I will look at some Neo 2-12's. Thanks for all the suggestions.