AudioKinesis Cabs Part VI...

[Kirk Bryant]

Don't take what I said about money wrong Duke. I in no way feel that you're gouging on price. I paid full retail for my Bergantino AE 212 when they came out as well as my AE 112, so I don't have a gripe about paying up for quality. As a matter of fact when I bought my Glockenklang Soul II I paid full retail and IIRC that was about $1500.

 

[Kirk Bryant]

Hey TrentB that Hathor 212 has my attention as well I'd love to hear that one. I find it interesting that you weren't crazy about the Darkglass head since most everything I've read has been extreamly positive in reference to the way it hits. I guess most folks that have embraced it use the pedals and I haven't tried them though the vids sound cool.

 

[DukeLeJeune]

Also you're welcome to use any of that as ad copy.

Thank you very much!

Don't take what I said about money wrong Duke. I in no way feel that you're gouging on price.

I didn't take your post as criticism at all! I was just lamenting the limitations imposed by my lack of economies of scale.

Every so often just for fun I try to design a killer $Affordable gig-worthy cab on paper (this stuff is my hobby as well as my job). The current imaginary version would look like a 500-watt ceramic magnet Hathor 212 but I don't think I'd be able to include the switches because of the parts cost and additional build time, and one thing the last couple of pages makes clear is, the switches matter. At least the midrange smoother switch does. Unfortunately I pretty much need the extra mark-up that the Kappalite woofers "justify" in order to cover my time and crossover parts costs.

Somewhere around here is a thread about a "low-cost practice/coffeehouse tweeterless 110". I'll probably never be able to manufacture an inexpensive cab, so that thread was my way of trying to at least offer a way for someone to DIY an inexpensive cab.

 

[staccatogrowl]

. . limitations imposed by . . lack of economies of scale. .

Increased economy of scale is opportunity for / responsibility of the end user / consumer. For example, play more events and cabinet cost per event decreases. Keep cabinet for years and cabinet cost per year decreases.

In these examples value increases with use over long holding periods, just like any commodity, ie Mercedes, Rolex, etc. Make a wise investment, use the item regularly over a long time period, and value increases in relation to cost.

Then, after acknowledging product excellence, factor these additional elements into the equation: customer service, end-user design input, designer-builder accessibility, and product durability. Considering these, most will likely agree that Audiokinesis cabinets are an amazing bargain. Purchase one. Keep it. Enjoy it.

Otherwise, there are endless cheap cabinets in the world. Buy one of those and know the addage, "The cheap becomes the expensive. ."​

 

[Turn Em Loose]

Purchase one. Keep it. Enjoy it.

Points one and three are easy.

Point two? Not so much.

It's a disease.

 

[TrentB]

Hey TrentB that Hathor 212 has my attention as well I'd love to hear that one. I find it interesting that you weren't crazy about the Darkglass head since most everything I've read has been extreamly positive in reference to the way it hits. I guess most folks that have embraced it use the pedals and I haven't tried them though the vids sound cool.

I also use the Darkglass pedals. I just feel that the pedals through the MiniMega is much more full sounding and hits harder.

 

[wagdog]

Duke, there are whole GCs full of cheap cabs. What you bring to the table is worth the premium.

 

[nutdog]

One of mine made it out in the wild last night. I've seen people comment on the looks of the AK cabs, some good, some not, but like it or not unless you're looking for it you probably won't see it.

 

[Interceptor]

^^^ That's what a lot of the "stages" I play on look like. I'm most at ease with a simple black box approach like Duke uses. I did have to grow into the looks round grills. The utility of that approach is easy to live with over time.

 

[Marial]

No one does customer service like Duke. Can't put a price on that.

 

[johnnybass01]

I saw the new version 3 tc112 and 115 on the AK Facebook page I'm just curious as to if these newer models are running the 4 ohm 3015lf and 3012lf or is Duke having Eminence make the drivers custom for him?

 

[nostatic]

Hey TrentB and Nutdog and Snaxter, it is interesting to hear your takes on these amps. Being a Glock owner (Soul II) I will say that the Blue Rock is on a very short list of new amps I'm interested in, along with the B/amp and a couple of others but finances don't allow that type of investment yet. So I hope (to get back OT) to pick up on an AK cab to add to my cab arsenel, most likely, before I get another amp.

I gigged a BlueRock for half a year or so. It is a great amp, though I actually found the D-800 to sound and feel a tad "louder." I attribute that partially to voicing of the preamp (that was with both set at noon, voicing flat on the Mesa), and partially to the taper on the Glock which doesn't have a ton of volume early in the master. I always was past noon, even on jazz hits.

I moved it for a couple of reasons. First was it is a lot of money to have tied up in a head. Not a major reason, but if I can have something that does everything (or 95%) of it for significantly less money, then I'm going to go with that solution. No piece of gear is perfect, here was my analysis relative to the D800+ which is what kicked the Glock out of the house:

Glock:
really well built - love the pots (yes, stupid things make me happy)
5-band eq section with better eq points than previous Glock class-D heads (I had a Blue Soul for a day and sent it back)
switchable mid frequencies get you part of the way there but it isn't a full parametric
switchable eq section - I have a Rob Allen that I typically will eq on gigs, being able to go from "flat" to eq'd with a switch is great (though it isn't footswitchable)
drive section is great in theory, not so great in practice (at least in my hands - I never ended up using it on a gig)
size is great compared to a lead sled, big compared to many of the class Ds
the voicing (tied to the drive), mp3 input, and the two input channels are things I never used
$1650 is a lot of money

D800+
really well built, but not quite as "esoteric" as the Glock
4-band eq section has low and high mid parametric (set q, sweepable frequency) - works great on a gig
deep switch is useful for certain gigs/rooms
voicing knob is useful for certain gigs/rooms
bright switch isn't something I use at all but some guys dig it
damn loud, not heavily voiced in one direction or another
built in Petaluma, and $799 is a steal

The Glock is a great amp. So is the Mesa. Just depends on what you need. Both play great with Duke's cabs - steubig and I have done a number of tests/demos with the Glock, both Mesas, and every other amp we've had the past few years along with H1203 and TC112 cabs.

 

[DukeLeJeune]

I saw the new version 3 tc112 and 115 on the AK Facebook page I'm just curious as to if these newer models are running the 4 ohm 3015lf and 3012lf or is Duke having Eminence make the drivers custom for him?

The Thunderchild 112v3 uses the stock 4-ohm 3012LF, and the Thunderchild 115v3 uses a custom 4-ohm Kappalite variant that Eminence makes for me. Both are "high 4 ohm" woofers, so both cabs have my "4/8 ohm" switch, which means they can function as 8-ohm cabs, as far as paralleling with another cab, at the cost of about 1 dB of efficiency. The switch can be omitted if you don't want it.

 

[Marial]

Hey Duke, is my TC112 a v3? I think it is, but I can't recall now. I know it's 'acoustic friendly' with the rear-firing tweeter, but I can't remember if it's an official version 3 or not. Since it has the 4/8 ohm switch I'm guessing it's a v3?

 

[Mark Sacchetti]

Been playing with the B46 atop the 1203 ,port plugged, all day. I'm a home player with occasional small coffee house type dates.

I'm using the Demeter 800 head at the moment and have a Vanderkley Aurora , which I'll be trying out with the cabs in the next couple of days. As for the basses . I've played my Skjold Catacomb fretted and Whaleback fretless. Both are 5 strings strung E to high C. I also have 2 MAS 16 cabs which I'll be testing with the 46 .

I play and practice daily on my instruments. And often have guitar and mandolin over to work out material.

So low volume to mid volume level is where I sit in the mix with my fellow musicians.

The two side firing drivers were the draw for me with the B46. I must confess I love the tone smaller speakers reproduce in regards to my needs. So far the combination of the 46/1203 sounds impressive. The 6" drivers mix in nicely with the 1203. I'm going to try the 46 on its own. Duke has mentioned a version adding the 3" driver to the 46. I suspect that will also be a killer can.

Still playing and listening. More thoughts to follow.

 

[DukeLeJeune]

Hey Duke, is my TC112 a v3? I think it is, but I can't recall now. I know it's 'acoustic friendly' with the rear-firing tweeter, but I can't remember if it's an official version 3 or not. Since it has the 4/8 ohm switch I'm guessing it's a v3?

Yes, yours is a V3.

Been playing with the B46 atop the 1203 ,port plugged, all day...

The two side firing drivers were the draw for me with the B46. I must confess I love the tone smaller speakers reproduce in regards to my needs. So far the combination of the 46/1203 sounds impressive. The 6" drivers mix in nicely with the 1203. I'm going to try the 46 on its own.

Glad it's working well with your 1203!

And often have guitar and mandolin over to work out material.

I think that's a scenario where the wide dispersion of the Birdhaus 46 will be useful.

Duke has mentioned a version adding the 3" driver to the 46. I suspect that will also be a killer can.

Frist to recap a bit:

MarkA had posted, "I'm picturing a Birdhaus with a 3" mid/high driver above each woofer..."

To which I had replied, "Something like that is on the drawing board."

I can see how you thought I was talking about a 46 with the little 3" mid, but actually I have something else in mind.

 

[Mark Sacchetti]

Duke !
I am remiss!
Thank you fora your thoughtfully designed cabinets. More importantly for being a great human being. You are always kind and considerate.
I did spend the rest of the evening playing only the 46. It sounds wonderful with my fretless . I really like how the 6" drivers react.. There is a warmth and an openness to the notes. I'm listening to the timbre of the notes as I play them and I'm liking what I'm hearing ! The high C string doesn't sound choked or strident. I wasn't sure how the 46 would handle it. So far so good! I have more listening to do!

Always curious to see what's cooking in your lab!
Thank you !

 

[Kirk Bryant]

I just got an advance secret sneak peek at Dukes newest cab. Here's the pic from his super secret lab in the Aural mountains.

 

[Interceptor]

Mark, how do you like the Demeter and 46 pairing? I've been looking to move up to a head that's warm yet clear. Right now I'm using a GK MB500 and have grown tired of it.

 

[dave64o]

View attachment 1011315

I just got an advance secret sneak peek at Dukes newest cab. Here's the pic from his super secret lab in the Aural mountains.

Ha, the comb filtering could be so off the charts that I'd bet you could probably overlay multiple songs on top each other and, as you move to different spots around the venue, hear each song individuallly with no interference from the other songs that other people are hearing in other spots!