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AudioKinesis Cabs Part VI...
- Thread starter Thor
- Start date
- Nov 24, 2008
- 4,343
- 7,163
- Disclosures
- Owner & designer, AudioKinesis; Auth. mfg, Big E (Home Audio only)
Thank you svtb15 and nostatic, and all the rest of you who gave me a verbal thumbs-up on the subject of numbers and specs.
It would be wrong of me to mis-use whatever credibility I've earned by posting exaggerated specs that unsuspecting bass players wouldn't stop to question. And it would be disrespectful to my fellow boutique bass cab manufacturers (most of whom also use realistic specs) for me to do that. And it would be extremely disrespectful for me to make a public comparison between my product and someone else's in which I repeatedly claimed superiority largely on the basis of my exaggerated specs. When that happened to me in another thread, well I got all nerdy about it.
Just for the record, a cab with exaggerated specs can still be an outstanding design. The one doesn't preclude the other.
The TC115 was originally available in Compact (17" wide x 15" deep) and Wide Body (22" wide x 14" deep) configurations. The Compact out-sold the Widebody by at least 3-to-1 margin, so I removed the Widebody from my lineup, one less set of boards to cut and store and slowly sell.
I concluded that people who will pay the big bucks for a lightweight cab are less likely to be using a 24" wide tube amp, but I could be wrong...
Well it looks like I was wrong! Obviously I need to think about bringing back the TC115 Widebody or coming up with a suitable variation on the theme. Hmmm.
Thank you very much. I'm now aiming for "will fit in a large cajon bag", as that seems to be something of a target as far as portability goes among upright players.
Selta organized and hosted a GTG in Seattle a couple of years ago and when I heard that his wife would be there with her violin, it was like a challenge had been issued. Sure the little TC112 would be decent with violin, but how insane would it be if a big ol' 118 cab would work?? It would be like teaching a Rottweiler to meow.
One of my proudest moments as a bass cab dude guy was when Mrs. Selta plugged her violin into the TC118 and liked what she heard.
I'm honored each and every time any of you guys chooses to play through one of my cabs, but still can't help grinning when I think that over in Seattle there's an incredible violinist who actually chooses to play through my 18" + horn bass cab!
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Hey Duke, I'm glad we could be a source of good memories. 
It can get ugly if we both want to use the TC118 at the same time.
What would your thoughts be on two of those (when used for a single instrument)? Would it be better stacked (one upside down?), or aside by side?
Frigging love your cabs. Wish I could do more to get more of them into the hands of players.
It can get ugly if we both want to use the TC118 at the same time. What would your thoughts be on two of those (when used for a single instrument)? Would it be better stacked (one upside down?), or aside by side?
Frigging love your cabs. Wish I could do more to get more of them into the hands of players.
I have used your cab with a Fender SB300. Sure it's a heavy tube head but it sounded absolutely fantastic.
- Nov 24, 2008
- 4,343
- 7,163
- Disclosures
- Owner & designer, AudioKinesis; Auth. mfg, Big E (Home Audio only)
Okay, one instrument through two TC118s... I'm not sure what would be the best configuration. If you have enough real estate on stage AND it's a wide venue, side-by-side and cross-firing a bit (each cab toed in maybe 20 to 30 degrees or so) would give the widest most uniform coverage. Otherwise I'd suggest stacked, and I'm not sure you gain all that much by stacking the top cab upside-down unless the venue has stadium or balcony seating, in which case inverting the top cab to get the tweeters closer together in the vertical plane is probably a good idea.
This is all just a non-bass-player armchair quarterbacking... any input from a real bass player and/or any realworld experience is more likely to be useful.
I think your 115 is the 8-ohm version. Was it a Widebody? I don't remember. If not... where did you put the amp?
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Mine is the 8 ohm version. It's not a widebody so the amp went on a stand.
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- Nov 24, 2008
- 4,343
- 7,163
- Disclosures
- Owner & designer, AudioKinesis; Auth. mfg, Big E (Home Audio only)
Thanks. Your willingness to go to the trouble to bring an amp stand is a pretty strong argument for a tube-head-compatible cab width.
Not just bring it but had to buy it.
I could have turned the cab on its side but I figured that would change the dispersion of the horn.
I wide body with the option of a grill cloth to get the vintage look would be cool.
For me, I'm happy with my cab and will probably get a 1203 or two someday.
I'm planning on fabricating a stand when I get around to it but for now I found an amazon furniture item that would work with the 1203. If I get a 1505, I'll have to get out the angle iron and sawzall.
Would it make sense, when using smaller cabs and a full-width tube amp, to have a height-adjustable stand that would straddle the cab(s) rather than sit next to them? Might help if stage space is limited, and certainly not limited to use with the A-K cabs. Just a thought.
(Forward royalties to me care of my trust fund, please.)
(Forward royalties to me care of my trust fund, please.)
You can always just put the tube head on the cab but it just looks odd b/c it's sticking out. But that's coming from someone that gigged a Sunn 2000S amp with a B-15 cab for many years. 
How about a (w)hacky idea? Duke might make, by request, pairs of pillar things with the same finish as the cabs and a way to secure them to each side of the baffle: it'd look sharper than the T-shaped stack and help with stability. Boom!
(It would change the baffle step point and mess with the planned response somewhat, I guess, but to what extent? Just spitballing here...)
(It would change the baffle step point and mess with the planned response somewhat, I guess, but to what extent? Just spitballing here...)
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Passinwind
I know nothing.
- Dec 3, 2003
- 23,071
- 46,016
- Disclosures
- Designer/Toaster Tech @ Passinwind Electronics
You can always just put the tube head on the cab but it just looks odd b/c it's sticking out. But that's coming from someone that gigged a Sunn 2000S amp with a B-15 cab for many years.
I've had so many rigs like that over the years that it just looks perfectly natural to me by now. I built a DIY half rack format preamp/amp pair to fit my TC112 but in practice I nearly always just bring the regular rack one, and a wider cabinet would not work all that well in many of my playing situations. Vive la difference.
In any case, maybe youse guys should be bugging Duke to just build AudioKinesis amps that match his current cabs...Link Removed
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I'm curious, to be sure, but I think that market is pretty well covered. I think getting his cabs into the hands of more people would be a bigger priority.
Passinwind
I know nothing.
- Dec 3, 2003
- 23,071
- 46,016
- Disclosures
- Designer/Toaster Tech @ Passinwind Electronics
Dino I would hope you treat my Hathor 1855 with kid hands when you try it out at Dukes Wednesday !! Out of the kindness of my Heart I am letting Duke ship a couple of days later to let you try it out since you are considering buying one. This one will be my 4th AC cab !!!!
