Are expensive cabs really worth the money

[Adam Bomb]

Here's the truth:
When cranked, it's hard to tell the difference between 2 brands.
When practicing it is very easy to tell the difference.

If it sounds good to you during practice, it will inspire you to play better at a show because you think people will tell the difference....well, until that one drunk guy comes to you and says 'slap that bass whiteboy..'.....and you finally realize the search for tone matters to you and no one else on this Planet.

I nominate this as best post, 1st quarter 2011

Seconded.

My take is a little different. If something is too dear to me, I tend not to use it. I lock it away like Rapunzel and just *have* it. While this can be good for, say, clothes (my wardrobe is epic) it doesn't work as well with, say, guns (I heard a noise in the night and I went and got my custom modifed Walther out of the box it came in and promptly shot myself in the foot).

While many of us have a practice rig and a gig rig, it is important to practice with the gig rig. That means it is going to get used, and with use comes wear. I use gear that I love but not so much that I can not bear to see it used. Mind you, I love how my gear sounds, but I think mainly that's because it sounds like bass (my favorite sound) and is loud. This idea that it could sound a little bit better - IMO, that way lies madness and poverty.

Also, and because that's how I feel about it, I tend to avoid exposing myself to gear that, if I owned it, I would be scared to take it out of the house. I deliberately keep my tastes simple. I drive a dope-*** Honda. Still don't have a high-def TV or blue ray. Don't want/need them. Yet.

And FTR I don't gig much but when I do it's not uncommon for someone to compliment my tone. Other bass players, even.

Good enough is an idea that gets very bad press but IME most of that bad press comes from someone who is trying to sell you something.

--Bomb

 

[shoot-r]

Speaking specifically on sound and volume is an expensive cab like a bergantino or augilar for example, really going to sound so much better that you can justify the money? I have heard a berg 410 in a band setting, the bass player for my favorite band plays one, and she has a great sound, but maybe it is just me but I don't think there is any audible difference in the cab than say any reasonable priced 410. I would say that there is a great difference in the sound of a head and a great difference in the sound from different speaker combinations, but looking at 210 to 210 or 410 to 410 is it worth it. Can I say yes I will spend two to three times the money on it and will get an equal sound and performance for my dollars. Just a question. What are your thoughts.

smgleitch,
Great topic...
When I was auditioning 210 cabinets for my two 210 vertical 410 set-up I was able to locate and try 14 different manufacturers 210 cabinets.
To "my ears" my top two favorite cabs turned out to be...
#1...Bergantino AE 210.
#2...Avatar 210 Neo.
The Berg's had a smoother high end than the Avatar's, but in a live, loud, band setting the Berg's advantage disappeared.
The Berg's came in at roughfully $850.00 each, the Avatar's $319.00 each.
I now own two Avatar 210 Neo cabinets and couldn't be happier!

I think we have reached a "tipping point" in bass amps and cabinets where some manufacturers prices have exceeded their quality and value.

 

[countrybass007]

I've really enjoyed all the answers on this thread. I think good quality cabinets have a tendency to sound better than the cheaper cabs. A friend of mind uses Epifani, and gets a great clear, rumbling bass tone. I use Orange and PJB and am totally happy with my sound. When other players come up and tell you your bass sounds great, whatever you've spent seems worthwhile.

 

[Brattbugg]

If your close to Detroit, you cant go wrong with an LDS. I got 2 of em and by far, the best cabs Ive ever had. That being said, Id put my money into the amp or preamp since that is what is gonna hook up to the PA

 

[derridiandrift]

play what you like

bam

 

[dukeorock]

Wondering...

The idea that your 'sound' just goes to the PA anyway...that may be true, but I can't hear the PA...if my rig sounds great onstage, I feel better, play better and perform better...that is worth A LOT to me, and hopefully to our paying customers, whether they consciously know that or not...I choose to believe it translates to them.

As for the idea of spending 3x as much for something that is 2% better...I own a recording studio...all my stuff is like like...but those tiny percentages, spread out across the spectrum add up, don't you think?

Very true that more expensive does not mean better...I have some truly junky cheap basses that just love for their 'personality.' Certain amps too...for live stuff, I like to remove the variables and get my hands on the best stuff I can get my hands on...I feel better.

Mark

 

[funkinbottom]

Good enough is an idea that gets very bad press but IME most of that bad press comes from someone who is trying to sell you something.

+1

 

[derridiandrift]

Wondering...

The idea that your 'sound' just goes to the PA anyway...that may be true, but I can't hear the PA...if my rig sounds great onstage, I feel better, play better and perform better...that is worth A LOT to me, and hopefully to our paying customers, whether they consciously know that or not...I choose to believe it translates to them.

Ya, that's what Jimmy was saying. Plus, the vast majority of the professional sound techs I've worked with in better rooms have great skill in putting a mix together. Bass tone becomes a single piece of the puzzle. I tend to set up my rig how I like it and then try not to worry too much about how it sounds out front. Beyond using professional gear that I like and using good playing technique, I don't have much control over how the mix gets put together. I trust the person behind the board to make that happen.

I know that my gear influences the players in the bands that I work for. One band in particular always wants me to bring the SVT and 810 (and they help me move it too). They hear the difference.

[edit: maybe it's not MY GEAR as much as it is the way I use my gear? Point was that I have a sound I'm happy with and my bandmates love it too.]

 

[Calaverasgrande]

I have to say, until I went Mesa, I kind of thought the same thing about cabs. That at high volume they all sound the same. In a small club or rehearsal studio this is certainly true. When you achieve very high SPL in those spaces your eardrums themselves are actually contributing significant distortion! If you have the opportunity to open up your amp to full volume on a very big stage, or outside, that is when the boys are separated from the men.
When you can clearly hear you tube head's power section compressing NOT the speakers.
A good Mesa (or Berg or Aguilar) will faithfully convey your tone. A cheap cab (and by cheap I would actually include some of the more expensive cabs that are made cheaply) will sound muddy before you even get to wide open volume. Of coures due to forum rules I cant name the Cheap Cabs anufacturers, but you know who you are. You know what you've done.

 

[MrLenny1]

Unfortunately yes. You get what you pay for. Some cabs sound good but when you need to drive them the sound just craps out.

 

[Tom Howland]

In a word, yes.
if you know what your looking for.
It took going to Bergantino, and Schroeder cabs, to find my tone.
Bass-strings-amp cab- cables.
It's all part of the tone chain.

 

[Robert Sjea]

I was in doubt until I got my Aguilar 410 ($300 used). I had an Avatar, but it left me in doubt as to whether there was something better - so I sold it and bought my Aggie, which is super-sub-sonic and beastly. Last nght I let someone sit in for a tune - my Ric + Markbass SA450 and VT pedal was pounding, belting, deep and clear. I won't go cheap again, but then again I can't buy new.

 

[Robert Sjea]

If your close to Detroit, you cant go wrong with an LDS. I got 2 of em and by far, the best cabs Ive ever had. That being said, Id put my money into the amp or preamp since that is what is gonna hook up to the PA

I've got an LDS 110 and it's a really quality little cab. I wish I could find used or afford something else by them.

 

[thesneakyjesus]

I think as long as you choose the right set of speakers the cab doesnt matter too much.

some cabs have extended stuff and special designs to get super low end. Those things work!

Most gigs I play, as long as I have a good bass, I can get a decent tone, especially if I have my own amp.

 

[ben12390]

Personally, I play cheap, road worthy cabs for gigs. cause as far as tone goes, i can get what i want for a live tone. I run acoustic cabs and acoustic heads, with a VT for my tone. and i couldnt be happier.

but for the studio, i use a small fender tube amp and Mic it, and it sounds amazing. can i get that tone live? maybe. it's gonna cost. but whats the point? everyone in the crowd wont care. as long as i'm loud, low, and clear, it doesnt matter to me.

i pay a bit more for solid cabs, speakers can always be replaced. but the cab itself cant really.

 

[JimmyM]

i'm all for cheaper stuff if it gets you where you want to go, but i will never understand the whole "audience doesn't care" mindset. even when i'm using cheap stuff, i just can't think like that.

 

[Doug Parent]

I just paid a little over $1000 for ONE speaker cabinet. Bergantino. First time I paid retail for a new bass cab in DECADES. I always find good deals used.

But lately I have wasted more time and more money trying other things, but I can say that every Bergantino cabinet I have had made a very noticeable improvement in my overall experience and I have been buying selling music gear for over 35 years.

Follow the bigger names in the amp catagory like Epifiani, Bergantino, Aguilar, etc and you can't go too wrong.

 

[MegaSwing]

If you can hear the difference, they're worth it. If not, why bother?

 

[Jaco who?]

My take is really expensive cabs may or may not be worth the money, but there are several comparatively inexpensive cabs that are a particularly good value - Avatar, GK neos (not the MBE series) Hartke Hydrives (not the transporters), Traynor TC series, there are more I don't know about I'm sure.

In the long term, the most expensive cabs are the super cheap mdf stuff with cheap drivers that become tacky coffee tables after you upgrade your head and blow them up.

 

[bassdude51]

IMHO......seems like for most high end stuff, be it bass guitars, bass cabs, stereo equipment and even automobiles.............to get something that's 10% better than average, we have to spend at least 50% and even more. Got the bucks? Go for better or best! If not, 90% quality ain't bad!