Markbass 104HR and/or 104HF vs Bergantino AE410

Kwesi · #1 09-04-2011, 06:26 PM

I love my AE410, it's an awesome cab and still makes for the best rig I've ever played through but I'm tempted to own a matching rig just because, lol. I owned a Markbass 104HR for a very short time and found it severely lacking in upper mid and top end definition but I feel like maybe I didn't give it enough of a chance. Anyone want to compare and contrast either of the Markbass 410s and the AE410?

Kwesi · #2 09-05-2011, 10:49 AM

murphy · #3 10-11-2011, 05:42 AM

Can't touch it

bassnj · #4 10-11-2011, 05:55 AM

I found all Markbass stuff to be lacking in the same area. Enough so that I won't touch it again.

Gearhead17 · #5 10-11-2011, 01:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kwesi

Markbass 104HR for a very short time and found it severely lacking in upper mid and top end definition but I feel like maybe I didn't give it enough of a chance. Anyone want to compare and contrast either of the Markbass 410s and the AE410?

In regards to Markbass LM heads and the cab you mentioned, the upper mids and high end (900hz to 3khz) were noticeably not very strong. I like to get some grind out of my basses and this frequency range is crucial for me. One big reason I never went with Markbass.

Edit:

The two cabs are on opposite ends of the spectrum. The AE410 is a grind machine while the 104HF is more of a thicker and smoother sounding setup with no grind.

Melvin7822 · #6 10-11-2011, 01:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kwesi

I love my AE410, it's an awesome cab and still makes for the best rig I've ever played through but I'm tempted to own a matching rig just because, lol. I owned a Markbass 104HR for a very short time and found it severely lacking in upper mid and top end definition but I feel like maybe I didn't give it enough of a chance. Anyone want to compare and contrast either of the Markbass 410s and the AE410?

Did you ever use the Markbass cabinet live? I'll admit the cabs can sound boring on their own, but I've always been pleased with my Markbass rig in the mix.

Gearhead17 · #7 10-11-2011, 01:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Melvin7822

Did you ever use the Markbass cabinet live? I'll admit the cabs can sound boring on their own, but I've always been pleased with my Markbass rig in the mix.

I had the 104HF or the 104HR (can't remember which one) and I used it four times in band practice. It definitely does well with the low midrange and the low end, but I always had trouble hearing the high end in my notes. I even tilted the cabinet up with a 2x4 to hear it better.

I can see how it can be helpful in a live situation, but the lack of string clarity was driving me crazy. The highs through the tweeter were clear though, but that was not helpful to me.

Kwesi · #8 10-11-2011, 01:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gearhead17

In regards to Markbass LM heads and the cab you mentioned, the upper mids and high end (900hz to 3khz) were noticeably not very strong. I like to get some grind out of my basses and this frequency range is crucial for me. One big reason I never went with Markbass.

Edit:

The two cabs are on opposite ends of the spectrum. The AE410 is a grind machine while the 104HF is more of a thicker and smoother sounding setup with no grind.

Ah, ok. Good to know. As cool as it would be to have a matched rig, I like my AE410 too much to take a chance on something that's so different. Glad to hear that my ears weren't just playing with me when I had mine.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Melvin7822

Did you ever use the Markbass cabinet live? I'll admit the cabs can sound boring on their own, but I've always been pleased with my Markbass rig in the mix.

As often as I've heard things like this about various bits of gear, I can't bring myself to own anything that doesn't kill in and outside of a mix. Probably why I'll never own a straight P bass, haha. If I don't like the sound of something by itself, I won't play it and that isn't exactly good when I know I need to practice

.

Tunaman · #9 12-09-2011, 04:39 PM

Doing some research & found this...

The MB 104HF appears to be tonally closer to my Epifani 310 than Berg AE or GK NEOs according to descriptons

One came up for sale in my area & I'm consider it... I WANT it to be low fi, low end monster & too polite in the upper mids to contrast my GK NEOs

Is the MB 104HF the opposite of GK Neos tonally ??

murphy · #10 12-09-2011, 07:48 PM

I think the horn is the weak link in Markbass cabs.
the GK horn is stronger....but to me the drivers sound cheaper...break up quicker

Tunaman · #11 12-09-2011, 08:52 PM

Yeah, I may wait on the new Ampeg NEO line vs GK or MB... Made in USA baby, we'll see

bonzodog · #12 03-22-2012, 04:18 AM

Hi all, own a Little Mk2 amp and 4x10HF, together with a Gallien Krueger RB1001/2 series and RBH 4x10.

Playing wise, the Mk2amp doesnt have the beefy controlled bottom end of the RB1001 for some reason and have tried all manner of control tweaks, but the RB does it better overall.

The 4x10 HF is a great speaker box and pumps out the volume but unfortunately is a bit on the woofy side with no top end compared with Eden/SWR etc, so pull out the compressor and tweak the amp knobs to get some punch and tops.

The combo of RB1001 and RBH kicks more butt in the punchy area and I'm getting rid of the MK Bass amp, but thats not to say it wont suit someone else with perhaps a different combination, but overall I wasnt that impressed with anything MK Bass wise other than the 102HPF with two 10's and a port which does sound fabulous for the size.

Tunaman · #13 03-22-2012, 07:08 AM

wow old thread!