AudioKinesis Cabs Part VI...

[nostatic]

I found that 12" worked pretty well with the Berg AE210s but if you have a big head (e.g. rack mount) it might not be a good fit. The current H1203 size is fine depth-wise. My main point was if there needed to be more cabinet volume, I'd rather go up than back or side-to-side

 

[steubig]

I hate it when someone's post makes a really good case for something that a) I should have thought of and b) means I have to change my drawings and go to my woodworker and tell him that I changed my mind on this cab (for the third time) so he has to redo everything that he was going to send to the CNC machine because c) that makes me look like an idiot. And I hate looking like an idiot, whether said idiocy is known only to me and my woodworker, or to everyone with enough time on their hands to read my posts.

And I hate it even more when a bunch of my paying customers "like" that post!

oh no, we **hated** that (joke), we all like this (well i did, i don't have a dog in the depth fight):

"I continue to not really have a complaint about my H1203. It doesn't quite have the B-string support that the TC112 does, but frankly it isn't night and day and the H1203 handles a low B better than it has a right to considering the size/weight."

always glad to help.

 

[DukeLeJeune]

Duke. Can you tell us anything on the new cabs your developing?

Sure!

The one that's farthest along is the Hathor 1533, enclosure shape revised earlier today as noted on the preceding page, but the internal volume, port tuning, driver choice, and crossover are done. The larger internal volume than originally planned means that I won't need to designate it as "-E", as it will have enough internal volume for low-B. And based on people liking the midrange switch in the 1203, the standard woofer will be the Kappalite 3015 (non-LF), which has a bit of switchable upper-mid bumpage in what I think is a good place for electric bass.

Right now I'm waiting on boards for several outstanding orders, so I've put in some R&D time on a few ideas. I'm going to give some configurations that have been on the back burner for a while a fair chance. I hesitate to get too specific right now outside of an e-mail or PM (check your conversations inbox), but one of them is a 212 that you suggested a while back.

Other than that, a concept that continues to interest me is improving horizontal dispersion. That's a cat which can in more ways than one be skinned, and I'm determined to find all of the wrong ways of doing so. Hence R&D.

Speaking of dispersion, recently groovaholic started an interesting thread about a dispersion-improving mod he did to a 410 cab. He rolled off the top end of one two-woofer vertical stack, and let the other two-woofer stack run fullrange as normal. This way the horizontal dispersion in the top end of the woofers' range is like a single woofer instead of like two side-by-side, and it's also more uniform because, as the system transitions from one woofer up high to two woofers down low, the pattern width changes more gradually than if it was one or the other all the way up and down. Obviously I like the idea. I'm not going to copy it because that would be cheating, and it turns out Alex Claber (of Barefaced) has been doing it in one of his cabs, but I do admire the creativity of groovaholic and Alex both.

EDIT: Kringle77 and 5StringPocket both posted ".5 alignment" designs before the thread linked above, and apparently kringle77's thread was the inspiration for groovaholic's work. JGR did a ".5 aligned" guitar cab.

 

[jnewmark]

So the Faital is out as far as the 1533 cab is concerned ? Bummer. I have that woofer in a Greenboy Basic 15 cab that I love, but sometimes I find myself wishing for a little more top end sizzle. Any plans for using the Faital 15 in another design ?

 

[JBNeedsBeer]

So the Faital is out as far as the 1533 cab is concerned ? Bummer. I have that woofer in a Greenboy Basic 15 cab that I love, but sometimes I find myself wishing for a little more top end sizzle. Any plans for using the Faital 15 in another design ?

I would imagine the two three inch speakers would cover the extended top end.

Hey Duke, what would the other options (if any) for woofers be for the 1533? Also, what kind of a 212 are you looking into?

 

[jnewmark]

I would imagine the two three inch speakers would cover the extended top end.

Hey Duke, what would the other options (if any) for woofers be for the 1533? Also, what kind of a 212 are you looking into?

No doubt, but I have tried the 3015 woofer in different cabs, and much prefer the Faital.

 

[DukeLeJeune]

So the Faital is out as far as the 1533 cab is concerned ? Bummer. I have that woofer in a Greenboy Basic 15 cab that I love, but sometimes I find myself wishing for a little more top end sizzle. Any plans for using the Faital 15 in another design ?

The Faital can be used, 4 or 8 ohm version, no problem.

I can only take away upper-mid bumpage; I can't add it if it's not there. So while it's possible for me to smooth out the top end of the Kappalite to approximate the Faital (with the little mids taking up the slack up high), it's not possible for me to get the Faital to approximate the Kappalite. So the Kappalite is the more flexible of the two, and I think that's likely to be a selling point, so that would be the "standard" offering.

The Faital version would be slightly lighter and a few bucks less expensive without the midrange smoother circuit and switch.

Hey Duke, what would the other options (if any) for woofers be for the 1533? Also, what kind of a 212 are you looking into?

Woofer options for the 1533 include the Faital 15PR400 and maybe a couple of the more uber-power offerings, and possibly the Kappalite 3015LF and Basslite 2515. The Basslite has maximum growly but is a 300 watt 4-ohm woofer, so it's not an uberwoofer and doesn't really "play well with others" because of its impedance. But I like it a lot.

The 212 would be a Hathor-style, and I'll have to do some experimenting before I can say just what the woofer and midrange complements will be.

It may be a couple of days before I can get back here, so my replies may be slow.

 

[Handyman]

I can only take away upper-mid bumpage; I can't add it if it's not there. So while it's possible for me to smooth out the top end of the Kappalite to approximate the Faital (with the little mids taking up the slack up high), it's not possible for me to get the Faital to approximate the Kappalite. So the Kappalite is the more flexible of the two, and I think that's likely to be a selling point, so that would be the "standard" offering.

What exactly do the switches do on your Hathor 1855? The 18HP1060's frequency response plot doesn't show the big midrange bump just before the high frequency corner that I see in the Eminence drivers.

 

[Coolhandjjl]

....The 212 would be a Hathor-style, and I'll have to do some experimenting before I can say just what the woofer and midrange complements will be.....

So for those seeking 4 ohm dual-woofer mojo, in both a compact & lightweight package, do I have this right?
The Thunderchild 212, the polite cab. Deep and articulate.
The proposed Hathor 212, the snarly buck. Less deep, but with growl & punch approaching sealed cabs.
Will wonders never cease?

 

[DukeLeJeune]

I found that 12" worked pretty well with the Berg AE210s but if you have a big head (e.g. rack mount) it might not be a good fit. The current H1203 size is fine depth-wise. My main point was if there needed to be more cabinet volume, I'd rather go up than back or side-to-side

Thanks for making that point quickly and effectively, as it got me to make the necessary course-correction.

What exactly do the switches do on your Hathor 1855? The 18HP1060's frequency response plot doesn't show the big midrange bump just before the high frequency corner that I see in the Eminence drivers.

Excellent question!

The 1855 uses two M5N8-80 midrange drivers, which combined have enough output to give a worthwhile net increase in the 1-2kHz region over what the 18HP1060 does on its own. Then in order to end up with upper-mid bumpage, as opposed to just loud from there on up, I intentionally scoop the 2-4 kHz region. Imo that octave belongs to the electric guitars, but 1-2 kHz belongs to you, and imo north of 4.5 kHz or so is fair game for electric bass as well. In this cab both of those regions can be brought down via their respective smoother switches, if you'd rather not have emphasis in either or both.

So for those seeking 4 ohm dual-woofer mojo, in both a compact & lightweight package, do I have this right?
The Thunderchild 212, the polite cab. Deep and articulate.
The proposed Hathor 212, the snarly buck. Less deep, but with growl & punch approaching sealed cabs.
Will wonders never cease?

The low-end voicing of the Hathor 212 won't be decided until after it's been beta-tested, but it's possible that it will trade off some of the low end authority of the Thunderchild 212 for a bit higher efficiency. And that might sound a bit more like a sealed cab. The growl that I'm seeking would be a combination of woofer top end and midrange bottom end, and again that will have to be tested before I know for sure what the production version will be.

 

[Coolhandjjl]

Sounds like you are on the right path!

 

[maisbass]

Duke, the Hathors just keep delivering gig after gig. I've never been so happy with my entire setup!!

 

[thudfromafar]

I'm still using the good ol' Thunderchild 112 (acoustic friendly).
I put a new grill on it, got a cover, and using one port plugged.

Sounds nice.

Can someone remind me if there's one particular port I should be plugging instead of the other? I forget if it made any difference to plug the higher or lower one.

 

[nostatic]

Duke, the Hathors just keep delivering gig after gig. I've never been so happy with my entire setup!!

View attachment 520093

Hard to argue with any piece of that signal chain, from the bass to the cab

 

[maisbass]

Hard to argue with any piece of that signal chain, from the bass to the cab

Well I owe it all of you here on TB. I first discovered TB by accident I think about 10 years ago but never signed up or followed it much. I was pretty content with my Fodera / Ebs setup and really didn't have the desire to venture further.

You see, I'm still pretty old school and don't dabble in social media at all. No Facebook, Twitter, etc, just never been my thing I guess.

Well the last couple of years I really started to follow TB and I guess it has become my one and only social media outlet. Im so thankful for all of the good people around here, knowledgeable as well at their craft, and the great reviews and insight on gear. Also to the designers who actually listen to what we are looking for as players, simply amazing.

So yes now you all have given me tireless g.a.s., and influenced me to empty my bank account!! Lol!! But I've never been happier playing. Although I feel gasless right now... But that can change at a a moments notice around here. Haha!

TB is s special place because I have talked to drummers, guitarists, etc, and they don't have the same experience with forums as I have here. What a shame.

So thanks for all the help gentlemen and making my gigs more enjoyable.

 

[DukeLeJeune]

I'm still using the good ol' Thunderchild 112 (acoustic friendly).
I put a new grill on it, got a cover, and using one port plugged.

Sounds nice.

Can someone remind me if there's one particular port I should be plugging instead of the other? I forget if it made any difference to plug the higher or lower one.

Thanks!

I don't think it makes any significant difference. I've had people tell me they prefer one over the other, but I don't remember which. How about this: Neither one is wrong.

 

[5StringPocket]

Some like strawberry, others like chocolate. Both are good.

What are the dimensions of the new Hathor 1533?

 

[thudfromafar]

Thanks!

I don't think it makes any significant difference. I've had people tell me they prefer one over the other, but I don't remember which. How about this: Neither one is wrong.

Cool.

Obligatory crappy pics:

new cover, was about $45 from lecover

I like this grill more than the bug-eye. Was $10 from speakerhardware.

 

[MarkA]

Hard to argue with any piece of that signal chain, from the bass to the cab

I sometimes argue with my fingers.

 

[DukeLeJeune]

Some like strawberry, others like chocolate. Both are good.

What are the dimensions of the new Hathor 1533?

Chocolate-covered strawberries.

Dimensions of the Hathor 1533 will be 26" tall by 17" wide by 14" deep... assuming it gets past my beta-testers this time!