AudioKinesis 1x12 Cab Part Two

[DLM]

So I will do my best on the 115, but it will probably come in just a wee bit behind the 112 in the crossover region.

However, you did state in a previous post that given this slight degradation vs. the TC112, you do expect the TC115 to outperform most bass cabs out there dispersion-wise, regardless of configuration (2x12, 4x10, etc.), correct?

 

[Ric Vice]

Ric is one of the cats in St. Louis! We go back so far it hurts

You need to make friends with Ric so he will let you play his 1959 P Bass. That is an experience IMO and IME!

Ken,
Yeah, we do go back quite a way. Steeley Dan killed by the way. Freddie Washington played the Peg bass line note for note exactly as Chuck Rainey recorded it. He was using two of those giant Agulliar tube heads with Aguillar Cabs and a P Bass.

Ric


Chief,
If you are ever in St. Louis, let me know. Once upon a time I visited Columbia to play at Murray's with Tom Andies. I haven't been over that direction in a long time.

Ric

 

[Chef]

Tom Andes and Allen Beeson are two of Columbia's gems, for sure!

 

[Jazzdogg]

pre-info:
I play a 1961 King Moretone, that was built by Bob Branstetter in KC MO. He bought the un0finished bass at a trade show with no top and no fingerboard-perhaps leftover from the factory.
He carved a spruce top for it, made a shim for the fingerboard, carved a pakkawood fingerboard (alternating layers of thin ebony and thermophenolic resins) and bridge for it. Strings currently are Thomastic Dominant for G, D, A, and Thomastic Mittle for the E.

K&K BassMax pickup and two band pre.

I typically use a Mesa Walkabout head, and Low Down Sound 2x8+5 cab. This, of all the stuff I've tried, seems to work best for me. I run the the K&K with bass and treble trimmed a bit from flat, Walkabout flat except to trim bass at ~50hz some to keep the low end from being overly bloomy, and treble trimmed a bit at ~4khz to smooth the piezo-ness.
This works and sounds reasonably well, the bands like it, sound guys like it.
I've always wrestled a bit with the piezo pickup treble being a bit overbright and being not so acoustic sounding. This is part of why I like the Doms; they're a perlon core with a steel outer than provides gut-ish warmth combined with steel sustain and are much tamer on top than the Weich or Mittle.

So, the TC112AF:
I've only used it at home for practice so far, playing along with the stereo. I have a very nice, older Luxman head unit, and some B&W Matix speakers.
The TC112AF is really quite a nice step up from my trusty standard.
The LDS is quite a deep cab, with a little bit of midscoop where the long throw 8's cross to the 5" mid, which is actually quite bright.

By comparison, the TC112AF is very, very even. The bass is tighter, but still delivers the back-fat I like with double bass. Very very smooth and even through the mids, and the fabulous crossover work to the horn is very evident. The transition to highs is spot on, and the smoooooth top end really does a great job of making the piezo pickup somewhat overbright treble response very much more natural.

I left the bass trimmed at 50hz, and set treble back to flat.
String and finger noise are nicely represented, but not at all overly so as is the case in many cabs.
Bass is fat without being boomy, yet still delivers nice bloom of the lower notes. Vibrato and slides are dreamy

Leaving the rear tweet on seems to add to "the 3D nature of things," and makes the bass "sound more acoustic." If you're a fretless or double bass player looking at a TC112, I'd surely recommend coining up for the AF version; it adds nicely to things.

I'll try to get the TC to swing band rehearsal this next week, and add some more at that time.

Thanks, Chef. Very helpful.

 

[Jazzdogg]

Maybe I'm "honeymooning" over the cab's response to double bass, but, right now:
"it's awesome."

While I liked the TC112 a little less for electric, I was really pushing it right to it's limits for the job I took it to. Typical double bass use requires much fewer Db's and has the cab much more in it's comfort zone and likely realm of intended use.

I can see one of these in my future...I've emailed Duke to get his opinion of whether the TC115AF would sound the same, as it's ability for higher output might likely cover my electric needs more readily. That might make it the best doubling cab yet, for me. Wouldn't that be grand!!

Sounds like you're wrestling with the same issues I am. There's an Acoustic Friendly Thunderchild in my future, but will it be the 12, the 15, or one of each?

 

[Jazzdogg]

The 112 is the theoretical "ideal" format from a sound quality standpoint. As of this writing, a pair of my home audio speakers that use the same configuration (in this case a stock Kappalite 3012LF + a more expensive compression driver on the same horn as the Thunderchild) is competing against several high-end midfield monitors in the studio of a grammy-winning record producer. The winner gets to join his arsenal, but even making his shortlist was a victory of sorts. So the 112 + bighorn is a configuration I really believe in.

Back to bass cabs. The challenge for the 115 is this: A big part of why the 112 sounds good is the radiation pattern matchup in the crossover region, where the 112 transitions to the horn. Unfortunately there will be more of a radiation pattern discrepancy when we go from the 15" woofer to the horn. And there are no larger alternative horns on the market that sound as good.

So I will do my best on the 115, but it will probably come in just a wee bit behind the 112 in the crossover region.

Please tell us more about midfield studio monitors.

 

[DukeLeJeune]

However, you did state in a previous post that given this slight degradation vs. the TC112, you do expect the TC115 to outperform most bass cabs out there dispersion-wise, regardless of configuration (2x12, 4x10, etc.), correct?

Yes, I'm pretty sure my 115 will outperform most 115s, and most cabs in general, as far as dispersion goes.

But the fEarfuls are notable exceptions. They have wider dispersion than my cabs. Mine will have an arguably slightly more uniform pattern. As I've said before, if I wasn't using that bighorn, I'd be doing what Greenboy does... which would be redundant, because he did it first.

Acme is another exception. I try to stay out of direct competition with Acme by aiming for a significantly different efficiency vs low-end extension tradeoff target.

 

[DukeLeJeune]

Please tell us more about midfield studio monitors.

Hmmm... well, I'm just a newbie to the studio monitor world, but the speakers I've been told mine are going up against are what I think would be called "midfield monitors". They are too big to sit on a console like a "nearfield monitor" (and have correspondingly better bass), but are not as big as those monster "main monitors" that you see mounted in the wall.

Here's an example (not one of my direct competitors in this instance):

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[Jazzdogg]

Hmmm... well, I'm just a newbie to the studio monitor world, but the speakers I've been told mine are going up against are what I think would be called "midfield monitors". They are too big to sit on a console like a "nearfield monitor" (and have correspondingly better bass), but are not as big as those monster "main monitors" that you see mounted in the wall.

Here's an example (this isn't one of my direct competitors in this instance):

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Thanks, Duke. Every time I turn around, there's more to learn!

 

[tombowlus]

As of this writing, a pair of my home audio speakers that use the same configuration (in this case a stock Kappalite 3012LF + a more expensive compression driver on the same horn as the Thunderchild) is competing against several high-end midfield monitors in the studio of a grammy-winning record producer. The winner gets to join his arsenal, but even making his shortlist was a victory of sorts. So the 112 + bighorn is a configuration I really believe in.

Congrats, Duke! I hope you "win!"

 

[ACB0015]

Well, to have gone that far in the competition is a very great accomplishment and I salute you! Now I gots to get me some Thunderchild 12's!! Video didn't kill the radio star, after all. Oh, and while size may not matter, pricing definitely does. At least that's what she said.

 

[DukeLeJeune]

Thansk for the good wishes, Tom and ACB0015! My speaker was knocked out of the competition today by the PMC IB1S-A. But I had a good run going there for a while. Congratulations to PMC!

 

[kittyboy]

Congrats on competing well outside your price class Duke--those speakers are three times the price of yours, aren't they?

Dave

 

[JxBass]

I've hesitated to comment on this but figured since we're currently in the realm of studio monitors - what the heck ...

I've been considering an Acoustic Image amp for some time, got derailed by a Streamliner 900 and other things. But as I've been on this "PA-style" clarity kick for a while, culminating in Duke's TC112, I decided now was a good a time as any.

Pairing the AI Clarus with the TC112 has been a heavenly experience. With some EQ tweaking I was able to achieve the same smooth vibe as the STM-900 but with an up-level in clarity. And being able to add a hint of chorus or reverb in the second channel, on top of a clean first channel, is pretty cool. Verdict: I sold the STM-900.

To me, this is like playing through a big-time studio monitor for bass. Almost like a giant Cafe Walter I know the AI amps don't get too much attention beyond the DB world but it's a pretty terrific pairing, again IMHO. Of course, you wouldn't want to pump a crummy bass through it (crummy in = crummy out) but my mag pickup Rob Allens sound exactly like they should, just darn loud

Lastly, the stealthy, mil-spec appearance of the two is perfect, IMHO:

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[KJung]

Nice! I could see where that pairing would sound pretty good. I really like the AI company also... top notch service and support.

 

[Chef]

Yessir, I bet that all adds up real nice.
The AI is great for DB because you can blend mic and pickup very nicely...

 

[Joe Smithberger]

I've hesitated to comment on this but figured since we're currently in the realm of studio monitors - what the heck ...

I've been considering an Acoustic Image amp for some time, got derailed by a Streamliner 900 and other things. But as I've been on this "PA-style" clarity kick for a while, culminating in Duke's TC112, I decided now was a good a time as any.

Pairing the AI Clarus with the TC112 has been a heavenly experience. With some EQ tweaking I was able to achieve the same smooth vibe as the STM-900 but with an up-level in clarity. And being able to add a hint of chorus or reverb in the second channel, on top of a clean first channel, is pretty cool. Verdict: I sold the STM-900.

To me, this is like playing through a big-time studio monitor for bass. Almost like a giant Cafe Walter I know the AI amps don't get too much attention beyond the DB world but it's a pretty terrific pairing, again IMHO. Of course, you wouldn't want to pump a crummy bass through it (crummy in = crummy out) but my mag pickup Rob Allens sound exactly like they should, just darn loud

Lastly, the stealthy, mil-spec appearance of the two is perfect, IMHO:

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Looks amazing. I had a focus 2R for a while. I am sure this kills with your Rob Allens. Not great for passive solid body basses, but a pedal like the Catlinbread SFT would warm this setup back up if you needed to do the rockin' P Bass thing

 

[Ric Vice]

Pairing the AI Clarus with the TC112 has been a heavenly experience. With some EQ tweaking I was able to achieve the same smooth vibe as the STM-900 but with an up-level in clarity. And being able to add a hint of chorus or reverb in the second channel, on top of a clean first channel, is pretty cool. Verdict: I sold the STM-900.

Jx Bass
Coming over from the DB side this is very interesting to me. I just demoed the AI Ten 2 Combo recently. Listening to my bass through that amp something was missing. I was considering buying the cabinet only to lighten my load, but listening to your posts, it sounds like the cabinet's tone is what threw me off and not the head. Incidentally, that polymer resin cabinet it built like a tank buy the way, it has the look and feel of metal.

To me, this is like playing through a big-time studio monitor for bass. Almost like a giant Cafe Walter I know the AI amps don't get too much attention beyond the DB world but it's a pretty terrific pairing, again IMHO. Of course, you wouldn't want to pump a crummy bass through it (crummy in = crummy out) but my mag pickup Rob Allens sound exactly like they should, just darn loud

Those Rob Allen's are about as close to a Double Bass as you can get. Very close.

Lastly, the stealthy, mil-spec appearance of the two is perfect, IMHO:

True on both counts. this is a combination I would have never considered for EB. You have me thinking in a different direction.

Ric


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[JxBass]

Yessir, I bet that all adds up real nice.
The AI is great for DB because you can blend mic and pickup very nicely...

A TBer who is an AI Clarus user has a Rob Allen in the works with both mag and piezo pickups, he plans to split them between the two channels.

Looks amazing. I had a focus 2R for a while. I am sure this kills with your Rob Allens. Not great for passive solid body basses, but a pedal like the Catlinbread SFT would warm this setup back up if you needed to do the rockin' P Bass thing

I have a customized Rob Allen Solid 4 coming in the next few weeks (hopefully around the same time as my TC115 ). I predict it will sound great with this setup. My RAs don't have the typical DB sound, they're all fretted with mag pickups.

 

[Joebone]

Thansk for the good wishes, Tom and ACB0015! My speaker was knocked out of the competition today by the PMC IB1S-A. But I had a good run going there for a while. Congratulations to PMC!

Congrats to you on punching above your class!