Warwick or Bag End cabinet?

[ThePPP]

I'm looking at two bass cabinets that are used, both are $300.
I'm not too sure about bass amps as I have just started getting serious enough to invest a little money for a cabinet and head. Can I have a little insight? Also head suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks!

Bag End S15X D

Warwick WCA411 4-Pro

[elgecko]

It really depends on the type of music you play. Warwick if you need a lot volume, Bag End if you don't. Note that the Bag End is over 30 lbs lighter and far more compact. Also note that the Warwick is 4 ohms, meaning you typically won't be able to run another cabinet in tandem unless your amp is stable below 4 ohms.

[interstatejoe]

Never played or heard the Bag End but I've only read good things about them. I have a Warwick 411Pro. I drive it with a BBE BMax pre & QSC RMX850 @ 830w bridged. Crazy loud, tons of headroom. I play Drop C, Drop D and D Standard tunings and the Warwick delivers buttloads of low end, tons of mid punch and you can dial in the tweeter for some high end sizzle if thats your thing. I usually keep the horn turned all the way down. I can't wait to give it a test drive with my new 200w tube Traynor YBA200.

[One Drop]

The Bag End is very efficient, a lot louder than you'd expect. Very tight sounding cab, no massive lows, but a much better stage monitor than its 15" speaker would have you believe.

I can't compare it to the Warwick, though, never tried one.

[FooHead]

The Bag End S15X D pairs really nice with a Bag End S15 D. Makes a super duper portable rig, loud enough for the bars I play in and sounds great with my Tech21 Landmark 300 head.

[mike_v_s]

Never played the Warwick. I own 1 Bag End and 2 Nahas Bag End clones. They get stupid loud and seem to match well with every head I've tried (SWR, Peavey T-Max, EA Micro 300, GK). They're light and portable, but the tradeoff is the extreme low end. For my situation (louder rock), this is a non-issue and the cabinets are voiced perfectly. As for volume, I can use one at practice and non-deafening gigs, 2 for those that need it and the one time I used all three I unplugged the third 2 songs into the show.

Mike

[ErnieD]

I have a chance to pickup this 410, 4 ohm cab rather inexpensively. I own and use a Eden 410xlt, 4 ohm with MB LMII or F1, rarely B1500 and always with 5 string basses (low-B). Seller says the Wick cab is about 84lbs, so its a bit lighter than my Eden.

I did a search and found only a few threads of em, some good but more negative on those cabs. Guess I should go look/listen at it but its not real convenient to me, so I'd appreciate any thoughts of this cab. Can anyone speak to the "tone or quality" of the Warwick cabs? Is it similar in anyway to my Eden? More of a Ampeg/Peavey/SWR/Etc, kinda tone? Is it purely a low quality thing?

For one thing why is it called 411? It is a 410 w/tweeter correct? So has OP made a choice yet? Did you get to hear either cab?

[Implosion]

Originally Posted by ErnieD

I did a search and found only a few threads of em, some good but more negative on those cabs. Guess I should go look/listen at it but its not real convenient to me, so I'd appreciate any thoughts of this cab. Can anyone speak to the "tone or quality" of the Warwick cabs? Is it similar in anyway to my Eden? More of a Ampeg/Peavey/SWR/Etc, kinda tone? Is it purely a low quality thing?

I have the 411 and it's not a low quality thing at all, the 410 is the less expensive little brother. Just be sure that you don't turn your tweeter all the way down because the crossover in my cab turned in to a smelly smoker when I had the tweeter turned off. However, it survived the heat and is still going strong

As for the sound I would say that it is a somewhat of a modern sounding cab that isn't overly bright and to me it sounds slightly scooped. But that's just how I hear it, someone else might disagree. At first I didn't like it that much, I thought it was too boomy, but I found that the pre in my bass was the culprit. A good cab I would say.

Originally Posted by ErnieD

For one thing why is it called 411? It is a 410 w/tweeter correct? So has OP made a choice yet? Did you get to hear either cab?

There are two versions of the 4x10 cab: the 410 (tweeterless) and the 411 (with a tweeter). However the speakers are not the same in those two cabs.

410 (4 ohm - 300W): 4 x 10" speakers (power rating 75W, max. 100W, 16 ohms, 95dB, resonant frequency: 60Hz, frequency range: 40Hz-7000Hz)

411 (4 ohm - 600W): 4 x 10" speakers (power rating 150W, max. 200W, 16 ohms, 94dB, resonant frequency: 50Hz, frequency range: 35Hz-3500Hz)
HF horn with attenuator (power rating 30W, max. 40W, 8 ohms, 95dB, resonant frequency: 2,5kHz, frequency range: 1,2kHz-20kHz)

But as always, take caution with specs given by the manufacturer.

[paqman]

I was playing through two 8 ohm Warwick 411pros for a while, they are great sounding cabs for all types of rock as long as you don't mind the weight and have the room to transport them. I was running them through a Warwick tubepath 10.1, sweet combination for heavy rock/metal. I'm trying to sell mine too, because I couldn't fit them in my car and I had to switch to a Neo cab. You won't be disappointed if you can transport them.

[interstatejoe]

Not sure why Warwick cabs are so underrated and overlooked. I love my 411Pro, definitely not cheaply made. Yeah it weighs 85lbs but that still 1/2 the weight of my 810E.

[CapnSev]

Never played a Warwick cab or amp, and honestly for the weight, I don't want to.

I do love my Bag Ends to death though, and if you're looking at the S15XD, I would highly recommend it. It's small, punchy, and stupid loud for a 115. It's not the lightest little cab, and yes it does sacrifice some lows, but paired with a second S15 (in my case the S15LD), the lows come back in spades.

[interstatejoe]

Originally Posted by CapnSev

Never played a Warwick cab or amp, and honestly for the weight, I don't want to.

I do love my Bag Ends to death though, and if you're looking at the S15XD, I would highly recommend it. It's small, punchy, and stupid loud for a 115. It's not the lightest little cab, and yes it does sacrifice some lows, but paired with a second S15 (in my case the S15LD), the lows come back in spades.

But a S15XD and a S15LD would weigh roughly 94lbs (10lbs more) and cost about twice as much the Warwick used. The Warwick has gobs of low end.

FWIW, I picked up my 411Pro with a matching RockCase RC23420 for $325 off CL. The RockCase had a few scrapes in the ABS coating, but otherwise both were in perfect condition. When I gig I leave the top of the RockCase in the garage and use the bottom as a cart to roll the cab around easily. I can fit the entire rig in the back of my Dodge Magnum (with the rear seats up), basses ride in the backseat. Much easier to transport than my Ampeg fridge.

[mike_v_s]

Originally Posted by interstatejoe

But a S15XD and a S15LD would weigh roughly 94lbs (10lbs more) and cost about twice as much the Warwick used. The Warwick has gobs of low end.

Well, I'm not saying the Warwick isn't a great cabinet, but price is quite variable (my S15 was $175 and the pair of Nahas was $400) and the total weight may be less depending on cabinet pairing (S-15s run 44 lbs). Regardless, unless you're carrying them both at the same time, comparing total weight of both to the weight of a single 410 doesn't make sense.

Mike

[interstatejoe]

Originally Posted by mike_v_s

Well, I'm not saying the Warwick isn't a great cabinet, but price is quite variable (my S15 was $175 and the pair of Nahas was $400) and the total weight may be less depending on cabinet pairing (S-15s run 44 lbs). Regardless, unless you're carrying them both at the same time, comparing total weight of both to the weight of a single 410 doesn't make sense.

Mike

And I wasn't trying to say the BagEnd isn't either. A used warwick runs right around 300, I've seen a couple different bagend 15s the past few months and I thought they were all right around 300 as well, but I don't know what models they were. As for the weight, you're totally right...not sure what I was thinking. I guess I'm lazy but if I had a 50# cab and a 44# they would be stacked on a dolly/cart with a head on top for load in/out just like I do with my 410.

Like I said earlier, I've heard nothing but good things about BagEnd products.

[mike_v_s]

Originally Posted by interstatejoe

And I wasn't trying to say the BagEnd isn't either. A used warwick runs right around 300, I've seen a couple different bagend 15s the past few months and I thought they were all right around 300 as well, but I don't know what models they were. As for the weight, you're totally right...not sure what I was thinking. I guess I'm lazy but if I had a 50# cab and a 44# they would be stacked on a dolly/cart with a head on top for load in/out just like I do with my 410.

Like I said earlier, I've heard nothing but good things about BagEnd products.

Well, the typical Bag End used price IS $300 (the S-15 is the model you usually see), but as with all gear, patience can be rewarding. The last time I looked at 410's, the Warwicks looked good on paper, but I didn't have a chance to test one out.

Mike

[mcm]

bag end