AudioKinesis Cabs V!!!!

[Type-55]

When is the next run of 1544 going to start?
It sounds like the perfect cab.

 

[kringle77]

I have a vintage svt and think that 22" would be fine. Alot of guys want the full 24" for the look but, I myself prefer an easier trip through doorways. Im actually building a sealed 8x10 that is 22" wide and uses weber 10fl drivers, with maybe a guitar driver or two. One side low passed at 500hz with a switch to go back and forth between fullrange and crossed over. I know that Duke would have the knowledge to handle the fine details which add up to greatness though. I would love to see duke put out a modern, better fridge made in the USA.

 

[tombowlus]

Well, it's not an SVT, but FWIW, here is that a Reeves C225 looks like on top of the "wide" version of the TC115AF:

 

[kringle77]

I'd also like to mention that if you are talking about plugging into an ampeg SVT-CL head and running that into one of the dark sound ampeg 8x10 cabs, then you don't get what people like about the fridge sound. But again, this has been covered.

 

[rjmsteel]

Pics of a just completed 212---custom color.
40 lbs on the button
The new grills aren't available yet----soon. I'd be happy to drill them out for fasteners at no charge if someone wants to replace one on one of my cabs.

This is my favorite TC so far. A bit more midrange but not too much---just right. With no port plugs---I really like the low end. Deeper than the TC112 but a bit more focused than the TC115.
It doesn't sound as ruler flat as the TC112 or 15 but still very hifi--and maybe a bit more functional for my taste.

Just picked up my TC1212 today, and I'll tell you the verdict is in!
Don't even think that 12's cannot go deep as I will explain and backup everything that's been talked about here lately as follows:
(Note: I own a cabinet with a 15" Eminence LF driver that Mike also built for me for comparison to the dual 12" cabinet in the low & deep department)

These are the basses I tried out, in order, though this cabinet today starting out @ Mikes place.

~ 6 string Alembic with Élan electronics through Mikes amp sounded articulate, clean without any " dirty" characteristics to the tone produced using fairly old strings, DR's I believe. Drivers never had any trouble keeping up with my low B. Furthermore the stacked 12s give this cabinet a very small footprint on the floor while improving height to the compression driver/waveguide. At 6'1" it is good to be able to clearly hear the highs and the mid punch. The small footprint if using the cabinet by itself is great where you're crammed for space on a stage. (Normally the dual woofers are offset I suppose in a number of cab configurations- for what it's worth)

~ Second bass @ home I reached for my Alembic Series four string, run through a Superfilter and a Eden WT550. The bass is custom with No Filters on board- all Filtering is done via the SF-2.... OK this bass NEVER sounded better. Again for what it's worth, this IS the perfect slap tone - best tone I've encountered using the Alembic through the TC212 for me anyway. The bass sound is as clear as I've heard with this bass, as it's designed for clarity in mind. Went through a few paces of filtration settings including setting for ultra lows. The TC put out the best/deepest lows I could throw at it and did not become muddy at all. Next I mixed Ultra lows with crisp highs and truly acquired a complete full range sound, all there ~ Lows, not boomy, Mid punch, and Highs With clarity, no harsh character and just terrific/seamless Blend with the frequencies below. Using DR Black Beauties (Coated) strings.

~Warwick with MEC pickups straight to the Eden. Again punchy mids, good lows and same highs. Again old strings.

~Peavey Cirrus: Very punchy through the Thunderchild, using DR Sunbeams. Actually this bass has an issue right now but still sounded sweet. I guess I could say the lows sound "round & yet warm" without any hint, that I can detect, of gritty texture - if that makes sense. That goes for all the basses. I wish my old jazz bass was in working condition as I'm sure it would sound warm, etc. with the TC.

Chef: I think you'll really like this cabinet.

Thanks a ton to Mike, & Duke for designing such a sweet cabinet and especially for the SMOOTH crossover and the clarity from the tweeter! Hats off gentlemen.

 

[Chef]

Aye!
November: it's really only 4 weeks.

 

[DukeLeJeune]

It's your design man, and it's a good one. No one will faultyou for that.

Sorry, or your welcome??? , for getting the ball rolling on a small SVT cab sollution. It was simply a market niche that I didn't see a lot of players content with what is out there, and your new products seemed to line up quite well. I figured you were the man for the job.

As for the other question, that is more a question for those that actually own tube amps. Try asking Tom Bowlus or Anderbass on that one.

I think the main keys are 4 ohm, capable of consuming 3-400 watts and relatively low SPL. Sealed like low end is also proabbly a big part. I would dare also say that an upper bass low mid hump is probably also desireable. Guitar driver like top end would also intrigue most, IMO. Anyone care to add or change this list?

I do indeed appreciate you getting me thinking in that direction!!

There's an idea I've been kicking around that starts out at 22" wide, and I think it would be a better "fit" as an SVT-friendly cab than the Hathor 1544. It might have a rolled-off horn on the top end, with (I promise) no horn nasties. Same as in the TC112, see IntrepidCellist on the subject in post number 87 on the previous page. Do you think that using a horn would psychologically be a deal-killer for SVT fans, or if it sounds good, could they get over it?

 

[DukeLeJeune]

Duke, most players are after the sound they hear in front of the fridge. I would love to see what you could do with a smaller fridge design. Barefaced has that coming actually but, there is no telling when it will actually come out. The added price of duty from shipping outside the country hurts too. You can get ported cabs very close to a sealed sound but, it just doesn't feel the same.

Thanks for all your input in this thread!

I don't want to do large, heavy cabinets. Two neo woofers at the most. I much prefer vented boxes because, done right, they sound better in the midrange (this based on blind listening tests). I know that I'm departing from conventional wisdom with my low-tuned vented boxes, but they come closer than you'd think. In the home-audio world, at audio shows, I regularly fool experienced audiophiles into thinking that I'm using a sealed box (they also think I'm using an ultra-simple purist crossover topology, which is not the case either).

By the way, I really like your idea of low-passing one side of a side-by-side stack of drivers. For several years I've toyed with the idea of offering a 4x10 kit done that way, simply because I'd like to have something to offer people who can't afford my bigbucks neo cabs, but the truth is I barely have enough time to keep up with my current projects.

If I recall correctly the Barefaced design uses one guitar speaker for the top end, so it probably goes up a bit higher than the fridge. I like that, as I think it's an improvement - you can always EQ out the top end if you don't want it, but you can't EQ it back in if it's not there to begin with.

I would love to see duke put out a modern, better fridge made in the USA.

If I do something approximately fridge-like in performance, it probably won't be fridge-like in looks, as the weight of six or eight woofers (not to mention the cost if they're neo) is pretty serious.

When is the next run of 1544 going to start?
It sounds like the perfect cab.

The "perfect cab"? Wow... thanks!

Enough boards have been cut that we can build a few, so just let me know when you want me to put you in the pipeline.

 

[IntrepidCellist]

I do think the "vintage aesthetic" is a big deal for SVT guys. If you can do a grille cloth, that would probably go over pretty well.

 

[DukeLeJeune]

I do think the "vintage aesthetic" is a big deal for SVT guys. If you can do a grille cloth, that would probably go over pretty well.

Ugh. I hate doing grill cloth. I hate spending so much time on something that adds nothing to the sound; I'm just not a visual guy (as you can tell by looking at my cabs!!). But you're probably right.

 

[Jazzdogg]

Ugh. I hate doing grill cloth. I hate spending so much time on something that adds nothing to the sound; I'm just not a visual guy (as you can tell by looking at my cabs!!). But you're probably right.

It could be terrific fun to make up one of your cabs with grill cloth just to confound those who listen with their eyes.

Keep 'em guessing!

 

[astack]

I do think the "vintage aesthetic" is a big deal for SVT guys. If you can do a grille cloth, that would probably go over pretty well.

Berg NV cabs? I think that proved a modern take on the fridge doesn't have to have cloth or tolex (although, I do love me grill cloth and tolex, despite the pain they are).

 

[Bassist30]

The SVT 810 was at a rehearsal studio (Like they need that in a rehearsal room) I was at not to long ago. At a decent volume I thought it sounded really nice. Then I remember playing them on stage and they sounded good when you were close but as you moved away alot of that tone kind of drifted away. Just did not know why. Still don't. But its great how cabinets have changed over the years. Now we have some who study and developed custom cabinets (and amps) into the live band market. The little i know I thought OK we get a better speaker and we now get a cabinet with a better sound but that isn't the case.

 

[DukeLeJeune]

Just picked up my TC1212 today...

Thanks a ton to Mike, & Duke for designing such a sweet cabinet and especially for the SMOOTH crossover and the clarity from the tweeter! Hats off gentlemen.

Thank you very much, rjmsteel! And congrats on being the very first TC212 owner!

Mike's work is excellent, and it's really an honor to be associated with him, and to have him choose to put his time into building some of my designs. And this one is partially Mike's design as well - the porting arrangement is his idea, and is better in several ways than my idea which it replaced.

 

[kringle77]

The 1512 was available in both 4 and 8ohms right? The Hathor was only 4 ohms? By the way, Im kind of an ancient history geek and love the name.

 

[kringle77]

Never mind, I found it. It looks like they are available in both 8 and 4 ohm. I just love the design of these two cabs.

 

[steve_rolfeca]

Do you think that using a horn would psychologically be a deal-killer for SVT fans, or if it sounds good, could they get over it?

Read all the illogical, opinion-based, dead-end arguments on TB, and look at how many otherwise intelligent people get sucked into them, including me.

Musicians in general, but especially people into traditional gear, listen with their eyes.

You can get away with a horn if it sounds good enough (which you are obviously capable of), but only if you cover it with grill cloth.

 

[kringle77]

Steve is right about the grill cloth. I have played through the TC112 that Lomo had and thought it was the best 2-way I have ever heard, period. But, it still isn't the same as an actual fullrange cab that many svt users like and are used to. I won't go into the sealed aspect because it has been covered but, it is important for many players to hear and feel that grit and compression that only comes from a fullrange driver trying to do everything on it's own. Thats what many would consider a cabs character or "mojo". Im thinking that Dukes 1512 cab would be ideal for most SVT guys and the the Hathor would probably be a slightly more hi-fi version of that flavor. These are all guesses of course. It would be a tough call for me between those two. A stack of 1512's would be pretty killer I think.

 

[ACB0015]

Hathor: Not a god but a goddess, associated with music but primarily fertility, nurture, sexuality. Some great images if you Google "Hathor" and an interesting Wikipedia article. Nothing to do with any "Thor"-like qualities. Hathor is an Egyptian goddess, not Norse. Still a good name for the bass cab, though.

 

[Ric Vice]

Steve is right about the grill cloth. I have played through the TC112 that Lomo had and thought it was the best 2-way I have ever heard, period.

It's just the perfect cab for my needs. Sounds great, only weighs 30 lbs. and has a nice footprint. With a Walter Woods MI-400-8 or Woods Electroacoustic Ultra, and my little Mirecourt DB or a Lakland 55-94 it can't be beat for sound and form factor.

Ric