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AudioKinesis Cabs Part VI...

#342
I have been using a 4 ohm version of the TC212 Composite with a MB Big Bang and I couldn't be happier with the sound. I am interested in running an 800 or 900 watt amp thru it to check it out. I will say that I will always mess around with amps but I am sold completely on this cab. This was one of Mike's last composite cabs and it rocks.
 
#343
Thank you, Thumper and mam1862.

Thumper, if you really want a TC112 just let me know... but then that's just me being greedy...

Mam1862, Mike told me a couple of times that he thought the TC212 was my best cab. Of course it's also my most expensive one (there I go being greedy again).
 
#345
LeonD said:
Duke, any new news on the Hathor 1203?

I believe you were thinking 8 ohm and the voicing would be such that I could pair it with the TC115-8. Do you have a size and weight estimate? Thanks.
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On the Hathor 1203, I've decided to go in a different direction as far as voicing, one reason being that the various cabs in the Thunderchild series are already good candidates for matching, and the other reason being that I think I've got a handle on what works for deliberate bass cab voicing and want to explore that area of the market more.

So with the Hathor 1203, I'm going for "sounds good with electric bass + sits well in the mix", rather than "what goes in = what comes out (or close)". The 1203 has a deliberate baked-in voicing that I think sounds good on its own, and which should dovetail well with electric guitar. I really don't see any reason why it couldn't be used with a Thunderchild cab, but that would be more of a mix than a match.

Dimensions are 14" square by 18" tall. I don't have the exact weight yet, but think it will be less than 24 pounds. So the Hathor 1203 will be among the lighter Kappalite-class cabs out there. I've had people ask me to do a high performance 110... having come up short in my search for a suitable 10" woofer, this cab is my response to that request. Yes, I know it's cheating.

"If you're not cheating, you're not trying hard enough." - Gene LeBell
 
#347
OT:

I know this is a real long shot: Anyone in Finland or Europe looking for trading a TC112 for TC115af?

I've had the TC115af for a bit more than a year now and I'm very happy with it. I've just come to realize that I would be ok with the 112 version. I might also consider selling the TC115af since I need something a bit more traditional sounding for the electric bass stuff, but a trade would be the best solution, since I really wanna keep a Thunderchild in the house. It's easily the best cab that I've used for double bass.

Btw, I have to agree with LMIII being a great amp for TC's. Jule's Monique + Demeter minnie is my first choice at the moment, but I always keep the Markbass as a backup on the road.
 
#350
Back in post number 265, I listed estimated weights for some of my new cabs. The Hathor 1203 is now officially 24 pounds (I always round up on my weight claims); the Hathor 1855 is 49 pounds [edited 2-19-2014] - that's the one with the 1200 watt subwoofer - ; and the Thunderchild 118's weight estimate is lowered to 44 pounds.

The Hathor 1805 project has been abandoned. The single 5" midrange failed to keep up with its 18" woofer; on paper they were a good efficiency match, but in practice imo it was "close but not quite".

I may revisit the original Hathor 1544 and re-work its voicing, now that I'm drawing more of a tonal distinction between my Thunderchild and Hathor lines. That would fill in the gap in between the 1203 and big 1855.
 
#352
DukeLeJeune said:
Back in post number 265, I listed estimated weights for some of my new cabs. The Hathor 1203 is now officially 24 pounds (I always round up on my weight claims); the Hathor 1855 is 50 pounds (that's the one with the 1200 watt subwoofer), and the Thunderchild 118's weight estimate is lowered to 44 pounds.

The Hathor 1805 project has been abandoned. The single 5" midrange failed to keep up with its 18" woofer; on paper they were a good efficiency match, but in practice imo it was "close but not quite".

I may revisit the original Hathor 1544 and re-work its voicing, now that I'm drawing more of a tonal distinction between my Thunderchild and Hathor lines. That would fill in the gap in between the 1203 and big 1855.
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Nice! :bassist: :bassist: :bassist: :hyper:
 
#353
As of now, how would you compare the tonal differences between the Hathor 1544 and the 1203?

Even though I'm sure the 1203 would be overkill, what I'm really looking is for something that sounds more like my gigging rig (1544 + Tonehammer500) at lower volumes (and perhaps cheaper). I leave the 1544 at the rehearsal space, but I can easily schlep the TH500 back to the house with me. I have a nice sounding combo amp at home, but I have to voice my pedal settings much differently when I get to the rehearsal space. Its kind of frustrating that my best rig is the one I get to play through the least.
 
#354
DukeLeJeune said:
Thank you for coming back, Basss, I'll try to give a decent reply for you and LeonD. I'll be leaving out pricing information of course, but can follow up with that in a PM.

A couple of quick notes... On the low-end extension specs, I posted how far down the cab is at the first overtone of the lowest note the cab is designed for, which in most cases is low-B. On the power handling, my claims should be good both thermally and mechanically. On the efficiency spec, I go by the Thiele/Small paramater calculations, as this is most representative of the efficiency in the bass region. I don't yet have the weights on the "new" cabs, as I haven't yet built production versions in lightweight plywood, but the boards are on order.

The Thunderchild v2 series (generally "hi fi"/studio-like cabs, PA-style compression driver + horn for the top end), the v2 denoting the switch to a horn that has wider dispersion in the vertical plane than the originals:

Thunderchild 112v2, 4 ohms: Dimensions 22" tall x 14" wide x 14" deep; 30 pounds; 95 dB; 500 watts; -2 dB at 62 Hz with normal tuning; pluggable ports give two ported and one sealed option; top end switchable between 3.5 kHz and 17 kHz (-3 dB points). Woofer is custom 4-ohm Kappalite 3012LF variant.

Thunderchild 112v2, 8 ohms: Dimensions 22" tall x 14" wide x 14" deep; 30 pounds; 94 dB; 500 watts; -1 dB at 62 Hz with normal tuning; pluggable ports give two ported and one sealed option; top end switchable between 3.5 kHz and 18 kHz (-3 dB points). Another switch toggles between smooth mids and a bit of grind in the mids. Woofer is stock Kappalite 3012LF.

Thunderchild 115v2, 8 ohms: Dimensions 25" tall x 17" wide x 14.5" deep; 36 pounds; 98 dB; 500 watts; -4 dB at 62 Hz with normal tuning; pluggable ports give two ported and one sealed option; top end switchable between 3.5 kHz and 18 kHz (-3 dB points). Another switch toggles betwen smooth mids and a bit of grind in the mids. Woofer is stock Kappalite 3015(non-LF).

Thunderchild 212v2: 4 ohms; dimensions 34.5" tall x 14.5" wide x 14.5" deep; 47 pounds; 97 dB; 900 watts; -1 dB at 62 Hz with normal tuning; pluggable ports give two ported and one sealed option; top end switchable between 3.5 kHz and 18 kHz (-3 dB points). Another switch toggles betwen smooth mids and a bit of grind in the mids. Woofers are stock Kappalite 3012LF.

Thunderchild 118 (new, also with a wider-in-the-vertical horn): 8 ohms; dimensions 30" tall x 20" wide x 14.5" deep; estimated 47-50 pounds [EDIT 2-16-2014: New estimate = 44 pounds]; 97 dB; 600 watts; -1 dB at 62 Hz with normal tuning; pluggable ports give two ported and one sealed option; top end switchable between 3.5 kHz and 18 kHz (-3 dB points). Woofer is stock Faital 18FH500.

The "Acoustic Friendly" option: Reduced-level rear-firing tweeter that adds a bit of top-end energy to the reverberant field and therefore comes a little bit closer to mimicing an actual acoustic instrument, and also lets anyone behind the cab (drummer perhaps) hear the overtones a bit better. More useful for upright bass than for electric bass. Adds about 1.5 pounds to the cab.

The Hathor series (cone midrange drivers for the top end, in a mid-chamber that is partially open on the top & back):

Hathor 1203 (new): 8 ohms; dimensions 18" tall x 14" wide x 14" deep; estimated 28 pounds [EDIT 2-16-2014: Weight = 24 pounds]; 94 dB; 500 watts; -3 dB at 62 Hz; pluggable single port; top end switchable between 3.5 kHz and 12 kHz (-3 dB points). Another switch toggles betwen smooth mids and a bit of grind in the mids. Woofer is stock Kappalite 3012LF, mid is 3" Faital.

Hathor 1544: 4 or 8 ohms; dimensions 25" tall x 18" wide x 14" deep; 34 pounds; 98 dB; 400 watts; -4 dB at 62 Hz; top end switchable between 3.5 kHz and 10 kHz (-3 dB points). Woofer is Faital 15PR400, either 4 or 8 ohm version, mids are 4" Faital. Kappalite 3015(non-LF) will also be available soon.

Hathor 1805 [EDIT 2-16-2014: ABANDONED!! The single 5" mid failed to "keep up" with the high-output 18]

Hathor 1855 (new): 4 or 8 ohms; dimensions dimensions 30" tall x 20" wide x 14.5" deep; estimated 55-60 pounds [Edit 2-16-2014: Weight = 50 pounds]; 95 dB; 1200 watts; -4 dB at 46 Hz (the first overtone of low F#); pluggable ports offer two ported and one sealed option; top end -3 dB at 6 kHz. No switches. Woofer is Faital 18HP1060, either 4 or 8 ohm version, mids are 5" Faital.

While I haven't given out much information about them yet, also in the current new wave of cabs is the "Twister" series which will be quasi-old-school midless/tweetless cabs with a pattern-widening "twist" of sorts (sorry, I can't bring myself to just do woofers-in-a-box):

Twister 212: 4 ohms; dimensions 28" tall x 18" wide x 16" deep; weights and performance specs will vary according to the specific woofers used but suitable woofers include the Beta 12A; the Deltalite 2512 II; and the Kappalite 3012LF. The Beta 12A version will be kinda weak on low-B, that being the trade-off for its higher efficiency.

Twister 215: 4 ohms; dimensions 34" tall x 22" wide x 16" deep; weights and performance specs will vary according to the specific woofers used but suitable woofers include the Legend CB158; the Basslite 2515; and the Kappalite 3015 (non-LF).

* * * *

Why all the new designs? I want to compete in categories where I haven't had anything to offer yet.
Click to expand...

Here's the original post you mentioned.

Just a suggestion: until you get your website updated, maybe massage the above info (along with current pricing?) & post it on your AudioKinesis Facebook page.

I'm torn between the TC212 v.2 & the Hathor 1855; I'd love to audition them both, but I'm thinking the 212 may be a bit more versatile with the two tone switches.
 
#355
monsterthompson said:
Rad
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tombowlus said:
Nice! :bassist: :bassist: :bassist: :hyper:
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Thank you both!!

Smallequestrian said:
As of now, how would you compare the tonal differences between the Hathor 1544 and the 1203?
Click to expand...

The Hathor 1544 is smoother; in some ways it's almost like a cone-only counterpart of the Thunderchild series, with a little bit less thump down low (that Faital 15" woofer has less impact than the Kappalites). When I designed it, I still didn't have any idea how to "voice" a cab for electric bass.

The 1203 is deliberately voiced a bit on the growly side, so it would take a bit of EQ to get them to be similar. Probably not the ideal solution in your situation... look for a PM with another idea.

If I redo the 1544 with the Kappalite 3015 (non-LF) woofer, I could probably make its native upper-mid emphasis switchable, so it would have the two voicings in one cab. That would come closer, but not be cheaper.
 
#357
DukeLeJeune said:
The Hathor 1544 is smoother; in some ways it's almost like a cone-only counterpart of the Thunderchild series, with a little bit less thump down low (that Faital 15" woofer has less impact than the Kappalites). When I designed it, I still didn't have any idea how to "voice" a cab for electric bass.

The 1203 is deliberately voiced a bit on the growly side, so it would take a bit of EQ to get them to be similar. Probably not the ideal solution in your situation... look for a PM with another idea.

If I redo the 1544 with the Kappalite 3015 (non-LF) woofer, I could probably make its native upper-mid emphasis switchable, so it would have the two voicings in one cab. That would come closer, but not be cheaper.
Click to expand...

I like the 1544 the way it is. As a big distortion user, the idea of a Thunderchild like cab without having to run my distortion through the big horn of the Thunderchild is what drew me to the Hathor in the first place. I'd have to play through a revoiced 1544 to really say, but I don't think it needs much help to better voiced for bass.
 
#358
Smallequestrian said:
I like the 1544 the way it is. As a big distortion user, the idea of a Thunderchild like cab without having to run my distortion through the big horn of the Thunderchild is what drew me to the Hathor in the first place. I'd have to play through a revoiced 1544 to really say, but I don't think it needs much help to better voiced for bass.
Click to expand...

I loved the mids on the 1544, but wouldn't mind a bit more deep(er) low end support to build a firm foundation for those mids. Just a case of IME/IMHO, though, and YMMV.
 
#360
LeonD said:
So now it's MTD434/Lull P4 -> GK MB800 -> TC115-8. The basses and cab aren't going to change; they are the constants. I've gigged with this combination and it sounds good but I have a sneaking suspicion it's not the best amp for me and my setup.

The two front runners I'd like to try is the Jules De-Monique and the Baer Valkyrie. My concern with the Valkyrie is that it might not have enough power to drive a single 8 ohm cab. With the others, I've played AI amps years ago and really liked the sound and features. I'm thinking the Focus might have enough power to get it done. Regarding the Puma, I was thinking the 1000 with it's higher power rating with 8 ohms.
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You don't want the Puma 1000 - instead consider the 900. We did another cab shootout the other day and ran my Monique/Minnie along with Steuart's Puma 500 (and I used to have a Puma 900). Both sounded great with the TC112. I could see how the GK isn't quite the right fit. While I liked my MB Fusion, it has an edge to it that I could see not playing well with the horn, smooth though it is.

Monique sounds damn near perfect through the TC112 - I imagine the 15af would be great as well. I've played Valkyrie twice at NAMM and like it a lot. If I was willing to put up with a 19" rack form factor and some extra weight, it would be at the top of my list.

Markbass - not in the same league imho.
 

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