First off, I love my GS112s. Recently one of them developed a 'rattling' sound. Others in the band thought it was a 'growl'. Uh-uh. It had little to do with power or volume...it was just there, and got inside my head. I pulled the speaker and checked out the 'usual' culprits-surround, spider, voice coil...all were A-0-K. The speaker did it's rattle, in, or out of the cabinet. To me, it has to be something loose under the dust cap. I have spare GS112s, so I soldiered on.
When I originally purchased my cabs, I inquired out of curiosity, the cost of replacement drivers. I thought it was most reasonable. Well I called the dealer from whom I had purchased the cabs...the figure I got was more than twice the earlier quote...not to mention they were not in stock and I would need to pay for shipping! Obviously, the first quote was mistakenly given...it had to be dealer net.
Attn: newcomers: I am a cheap bastidge!
As the OEM speaker is a custom Eminence, and I have contacts there, I got some info on the speaker. No, they couldn't sell me one...I didn't even ask. But I was given the names of two speakers that were "very close" to the OEM driver.
One of them was the Deltalite II 2512. I had been watching the neos as they have evolved and was very curious. On a lark, I ordered a pair. Put one in last night and played ad nauseum...comparing the OEM to the Deltalite. Summoned the wife for her input. We both think we have a better speaker here. The neo went noticeably lower, using Dave's "let's play with your ThunderFunk" suggestion of boosting the lowest band of the semi-parametric and see how low your cab goes...
With the OEM driver, it came alive between 40-45 hz...right where the OEM spec of 42 hz said it should. The neo, tho' was really coming alive between 35 and 40 hz (yeah, I know...I wanted it to happen...but at least I used the same knob, so there is a relative correlation there...if Dave's markings are really that accurate...man, that's spooky!)
The neo was noticeably louder at the same input levels. Not 'blow you away" louder...but not subtley, either.
Perhaps the greatest difference, to me, was in the mids. I knew that the GS112s were 'scooped' in the mids when I bought them. I don't mind that at all. I could eq around that, either with my F-1X or TF. The neos are so MUCH more articulate in the midrange. The last two cab series I have been using have both been 'scooped' in the mids. I have been used to boosting my mids a touch on the bass itself. This helped restore the 'cut' in a band mix.
I haven't broken out the F-1X yet, but my trials with the TF have led me into heretofore uncharted territory. While the 'enhance' knob sounded good in a solo environment, I couldn't use it at all in a band context...cutting the mids was a no-no. Similarly, rolling the timbre to the left was great for 'thud' but definition went bye-bye.
This is now a whole new ballgame. The mids that the neos bring to the table now allow me to experiment more with the TF. Settings that had been 'taboo' on stage now are viable. I can tweak the 'enhance', roll the timbre to the 'dark side'...all while being able to cut through.
There 'may' be a caveat...the neos aren't rated for the same power as the OEM speaker. It's close...300 for the OEM, 250 for the neo. These are both rms ratings..."music program" numbers are doubled...since this is where we 'really' operate, it should be a moot point.
My wife and I, both, after 'ad nauseum' listening...gave the nod to the neos...by a huge margin in 'real world' terms.
My disclaimer:
Please do not 'desecrate' your lovely GS112 cabinets. They are wonderful, just as Aguilar has provided them. (really!)
If you trash a driver...and are the experimenting type...try the Deltalite II 2512.
At the very least...it's 7 lbs lighter!
Kim
When I originally purchased my cabs, I inquired out of curiosity, the cost of replacement drivers. I thought it was most reasonable. Well I called the dealer from whom I had purchased the cabs...the figure I got was more than twice the earlier quote...not to mention they were not in stock and I would need to pay for shipping! Obviously, the first quote was mistakenly given...it had to be dealer net.
Attn: newcomers: I am a cheap bastidge!
As the OEM speaker is a custom Eminence, and I have contacts there, I got some info on the speaker. No, they couldn't sell me one...I didn't even ask. But I was given the names of two speakers that were "very close" to the OEM driver.
One of them was the Deltalite II 2512. I had been watching the neos as they have evolved and was very curious. On a lark, I ordered a pair. Put one in last night and played ad nauseum...comparing the OEM to the Deltalite. Summoned the wife for her input. We both think we have a better speaker here. The neo went noticeably lower, using Dave's "let's play with your ThunderFunk" suggestion of boosting the lowest band of the semi-parametric and see how low your cab goes...
With the OEM driver, it came alive between 40-45 hz...right where the OEM spec of 42 hz said it should. The neo, tho' was really coming alive between 35 and 40 hz (yeah, I know...I wanted it to happen...but at least I used the same knob, so there is a relative correlation there...if Dave's markings are really that accurate...man, that's spooky!)
The neo was noticeably louder at the same input levels. Not 'blow you away" louder...but not subtley, either.
Perhaps the greatest difference, to me, was in the mids. I knew that the GS112s were 'scooped' in the mids when I bought them. I don't mind that at all. I could eq around that, either with my F-1X or TF. The neos are so MUCH more articulate in the midrange. The last two cab series I have been using have both been 'scooped' in the mids. I have been used to boosting my mids a touch on the bass itself. This helped restore the 'cut' in a band mix.
I haven't broken out the F-1X yet, but my trials with the TF have led me into heretofore uncharted territory. While the 'enhance' knob sounded good in a solo environment, I couldn't use it at all in a band context...cutting the mids was a no-no. Similarly, rolling the timbre to the left was great for 'thud' but definition went bye-bye.
This is now a whole new ballgame. The mids that the neos bring to the table now allow me to experiment more with the TF. Settings that had been 'taboo' on stage now are viable. I can tweak the 'enhance', roll the timbre to the 'dark side'...all while being able to cut through.
There 'may' be a caveat...the neos aren't rated for the same power as the OEM speaker. It's close...300 for the OEM, 250 for the neo. These are both rms ratings..."music program" numbers are doubled...since this is where we 'really' operate, it should be a moot point.
My wife and I, both, after 'ad nauseum' listening...gave the nod to the neos...by a huge margin in 'real world' terms.
My disclaimer:
Please do not 'desecrate' your lovely GS112 cabinets. They are wonderful, just as Aguilar has provided them. (really!)
If you trash a driver...and are the experimenting type...try the Deltalite II 2512.
At the very least...it's 7 lbs lighter!
Kim
