NAD: Aggie rig with custom cabs

Dark Horse · #1 04-30-2010, 04:02 PM

I needed to change up my rig. OK..."needed" isn't the right word...."wanted" is more appropriate.

Anyway, I wanted something I could do small and medium size venues with, where the sound would be consistent. I had been jonesing for a Aggie - and this 500SC came up in the Classifieds here on TB for a great price, so I bought it immediately. I don't need another channel, so this was perfect. I was considering a 2x12 cab, but I really thought I would rather have the option of having two 1x12 cabs. After a bunch of research, I decided to just have some made. I have been using a Lopo Line 1x15 cab for years and have been extremely happy with it, so I contacted Tiffany @ Lopo and told her what I was looking for. Nice compact, lightweight 1x12 cabs that looked great and sounded better. They are based off of the Lopo "Signature Series" cabinets, but with a bit larger box and some porting. Well, two weeks later, my custom cabs arrived ! I loaded in the Eminence Delta 12LF speakers I had purchased for the cabs, and set it all up with "great hopes" that it would sound as good as I envisioned. Well...it absolutely does ! Great low end, really punchy, not overly bright...just a great bass sound.

I didn't play it a lot because I have a raging headache, but I took a few pics because "no pics, no amp". I was slightly bummed because UPS dinged one of the cabs a bit (you can see it on the bottom cab in one of the pics), but it really isn't enough to bug me. Besides, these will get dinged up at gigs anyway.

Next up - matching rack for the head !

joshmickelson · #2 04-30-2010, 04:17 PM

that is sexy

Dark Horse · #3 04-30-2010, 04:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by joshmickelson

that is sexy

Thanks - definitely a good looking set of cabs

poor_gear_whore · #4 04-30-2010, 04:52 PM

Those cabs look super classy. Nice choice on the grill cloth.

afroman · #5 04-30-2010, 04:59 PM

Very cool look!
Didn't know anything about Lopo.

So they only make the cab enclosure and YOU have to put in the speaker???

How can I know if the cab will be tuned correctly for a certain speaker? Is it just a hit-or-miss thing???

Dark Horse · #6 04-30-2010, 05:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by afroman

Very cool look!
Didn't know anything about Lopo.

So they only make the cab enclosure and YOU have to put in the speaker???

How can I know if the cab will be tuned correctly for a certain speaker? Is it just a hit-or-miss thing???

They can do it either way - loaded or unloaded. The necessary speaker specs are available, so you can design around that.

EricF · #7 04-30-2010, 05:02 PM

*wipes drool off chin and desk*

WOW!!!!

Those cabs look truly amazing - so much so that I'm distracted away from the Aguilar amp.

afroman · #8 04-30-2010, 05:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dark Horse

They can do it either way - loaded or unloaded. The necessary speaker specs are available, so you can design around that.

I have no building or electrical talent, that's why im asking.
I saw their webpage and the cabs look nice, but I dont know how they would come out soundwise with one of those NEO Eminence 3012s, without a cab tunes specifically for that speaker.

Couldn't find the loaded bass cabs either.

Dark Horse · #9 04-30-2010, 05:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by afroman

I have no building or electrical talent, that's why im asking.
I saw their webpage and the cabs look nice, but I dont know how they would come out soundwise with one of those NEO Eminence 3012s, without a cab tunes specifically for that speaker.

Couldn't find the loaded bass cabs either.

Just ask Tiffany - I'm sure she can do a loaded one for you.

Just forward her the speaker specs, which are usually on the manufacturers website, tell her what you have in mind, and let her do the rest. Very reasonable prices, and fast. friendly service. It sounds like I'm pimping for Lopo, but I'm just VERY happy with these cabs (and the one I've been using for years).

afroman · #10 04-30-2010, 05:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dark Horse

Just ask Tiffany - I'm sure she can do a loaded one for you.

Just forward her the speaker specs, which are usually on the manufacturers website, tell her what you have in mind, and let her do the rest. Very reasonable prices, and fast. friendly service. It sounds like I'm pimping for Lopo, but I'm just VERY happy with these cabs (and the one I've been using for years).

Cool.
I've read some stuff about their cabs not being tuned properly for a good 12 or 15.

So I'll see what I decide.
I'd love an LDS cab but the 12 week waiting period is a No-No for me.

Dark Horse · #11 04-30-2010, 05:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by afroman

Cool.
I've read some stuff about their cabs not being tuned properly for a good 12 or 15.

Well, I can tell you that the 3 I've purchased sound great. They match up with the Deltas well. I get constant compliments on the sound when using my Lopo 1x15, and I can't imagine that I won't get tons of compliments on the 1x12 cabs.

Quote:

So I'll see what I decide.
I'd love an LDS cab but the 12 week waiting period is a No-No for me.

The LDS stuff is great from what I've heard. I say just talk to the builders of all the cabs you're interested in and go from there.

I'll try to do a demo video of these cabs sometime in the next week as well.

Dark Horse · #12 05-03-2010, 01:13 PM

I've been playing these cabs constantly over the past few days - man, they sound great !
Fat, but still defined. I've been using the Aguilar 500SC head with them - match made in Heaven - and a variety of basses, including vintage Fender P and J Basses, a Lakland with actives, a Mosrite hollowbody, and a 54 style P with a single coil. The cabs haven't "let me down" yet...they just sound great.

I don't have a five string to test them with, so I don't know how well they'd do on a low B, but with a regular 4 string they just kill. I'll be using them in my session Wednesday, as well as my gigs this week.

I'll try to shoot a quick demo video soon as well.

The Butler · #13 05-03-2010, 01:35 PM

Nice cabs. Looking forward to the video.

Spinal Tapper · #14 05-03-2010, 01:43 PM

Very nice! I love the white grill cloth.

I was really looking into the Lopo cabs for a while - I ended up re-covering the rat-fur on my my SWR 2x10 because I love the way it sounds, but hated the way it looks. I chose baby blue tolex and black cloth.
Not to thread jack, but I figured you'd appreciate a nice shot of the finished product. I know you do a lot of DIY, and I'm pretty proud of the DIY project I did here (with a lot of help from my awesome girlfriend who basically OWNED the technique of applying tolex.

Seriously, your rig looks KILLER though! I'd definitely consider ordering from Lopo if I decide to buy more cabs one day.

Dark Horse · #15 05-03-2010, 01:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Spinal Tapper

Very nice! I love the white grill cloth.

I was really looking into the Lopo cabs for a while - I ended up re-covering the rat-fur on my my SWR 2x10 because I love the way it sounds, but hated the way it looks. I chose baby blue tolex and black cloth.
Not to thread jack, but I figured you'd appreciate a nice shot of the finished product. I know you do a lot of DIY, and I'm pretty proud of the DIY project I did here (with a lot of help from my awesome girlfriend who basically OWNED the technique of applying tolex.

Seriously, your rig looks KILLER though! I'd definitely consider ordering from Lopo if I decide to buy more cabs one day.

Definitely diggin' the baby blue !

I've never tried doing tolex.... how difficult (1-10) is it to make it look nice ? You should see if you can get your GF to help you do a "how to" thread on applying tolex.

Spinal Tapper · #16 05-03-2010, 02:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dark Horse

Definitely diggin' the baby blue !

I've never tried doing tolex.... how difficult (1-10) is it to make it look nice ? You should see if you can get your GF to help you do a "how to" thread on applying tolex.

I'd say the whole project was about an 8 in difficulty...and I still didn't quite "nail" it on my first try, but I'm really happy with it.
There's definitely imperfections on it - some you can see, some are more hidden...but all in all, the amount of work I put in was probably not worth starting a bass cab upholstery business

I got a lot of help from fellow TBer's on the subject too, but a little less info on the subject than I thought there'd be - seems most people go the way of the Rhino liner and other techniques like that.

My GF was just as new to it as I was, but the girl can WRAP a present like no one else, so I think for her, imagining how the corners would look wrapped and folded came easier to her than I.

I'd say stripping the existing "rat fur" was the toughest part physically. But if I had started with a pre-sanded cab, it would've been much easier, but this stuff did not come off easy, LOTS of muscle involved. Hours of sweating, pulling, tearing, and sanding, and more sanding. Then more (hand) sanding to get the old dried glue off - that stuff was real tough (in retrospect I should've rented a belt sander, DUH).

Compared to stripping it down, the rest of the work was relatively easy. Just measuring more than enough tolex, cutting straight, and just wrapping slowly, smooth out, let sit with books on top so it stayed flat while the glue dried. All in all, materials only ran me a total of about $100, which was cool.

Lots and lots of patience - but I'm sure you know all about that from your DIY projects, DH. haha.

Dark Horse · #17 05-03-2010, 02:21 PM

Very cool....thanks for the rundown on it. It is something I've always thought about trying, but never got around to.

"Wrapping a present" made me laugh, but it is pretty much the perfect analogy. I might have to do a bit of experimenting. What glue did you use to affix the tolex to the cab ? I've heard about various types, and I'm sure there are benefits (and detractions) to each.

Spinal Tapper · #18 05-03-2010, 02:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dark Horse

Very cool....thanks for the rundown on it. It is something I've always thought about trying, but never got around to.

"Wrapping a present" made me laugh, but it is pretty much the perfect analogy. I might have to do a bit of experimenting. What glue did you use to affix the tolex to the cab ? I've heard about various types, and I'm sure there are benefits (and detractions) to each.

You should totally try it sometime DH... It's a fun project if you're not in a rush to finish (I did the whole thing in my 1 bdrm apartment, so I guess space was sort of a problem for me - had the whole apartment lined in painter's plastic because of the dust and adhesive spray LOL).

I felt very accomplished once it was done, and I gig with this 2x10 on top of my Orange 15" as my main rig, it looks (and sounds) amazing. I love the complements I get on it from other musicians. It's getting a lot of real wear and tear from gigging as well, which I think looks badass

The adhesive I used for attaching the wood to the tolex was 3M 90 spray from Home Depot - the big can was more than enough. Strongest stuff you can buy I believe...DO NOT get this stuff in your arm hair LOL

I found it easy to apply, spray both wood and tolex, and you get about 10-15 seconds of "adjustment" time before it really sticks down. I drew lines with pencil on the inside of the tolex so I lined everything up correctly as soon as it was sprayed.

One day, when I get some time and patience, I'm doing my Fender Rumble 25 bedroom practice amp in baby blue too. I have enough materials left over to probably do another 2x10, but you gotta be on the safe side when ordering materials!

s_mcsleazy · #19 05-03-2010, 02:39 PM

prettyest rig on talkbass

think they would ship to the uk

Dark Horse · #20 05-03-2010, 02:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Spinal Tapper

You should totally try it sometime DH... It's a fun project if you're not in a rush to finish (I did the whole thing in my 1 bdrm apartment, so I guess space was sort of a problem for me - had the whole apartment lined in painter's plastic because of the dust and adhesive spray LOL).

I felt very accomplished once it was done, and I gig with this 2x10 on top of my Orange 15" as my main rig, it looks (and sounds) amazing. I love the complements I get on it from other musicians. It's getting a lot of real wear and tear from gigging as well, which I think looks badass

Yeah, you definitely want to watch out for fumes ! I'll bet it looks crazy cool with the Orange cab.

Quote:

The adhesive I used for attaching the wood to the tolex was 3M 90 spray from Home Depot - the big can was more than enough. Strongest stuff you can buy I believe...DO NOT get this stuff in your arm hair LOL

Cool, thanks - I'll try not to get it in my arm hair....or any other hair, for that matter !

Quote:

I found it easy to apply, spray both wood and tolex, and you get about 10-15 seconds of "adjustment" time before it really sticks down. I drew lines with pencil on the inside of the tolex so I lined everything up correctly as soon as it was sprayed.

I would imagine that a scrap piece of wood and some tolex scraps would be helpful in practicing the "timing" of adhesive-tolex-positioning.

Quote:

One day, when I get some time and patience, I'm doing my Fender Rumble 25 bedroom practice amp in baby blue too. I have enough materials left over to probably do another 2x10, but you gotta be on the safe side when ordering materials!

I'd dig seeing that for sure !

Thanks again for all the info !