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Avatar or Greenboy?
- Thread starter Rajesh Arjan
- Start date
Not trying to troll here, been following the thread along, a lot of good points made for Greenboy's design. Since I bought my Tb153, NX2 212T, 2x RS210's all in past 2-2.5 yrs ago, prolly shoulda convinced myself to spend on 2 or just 1 of these custom cabs and been done. Was sorta hard then to find these local to listen to one or even had em built.
But you do see a few of these fEarful, fEarless, nEarful, nAwful, etc cabs for sale in the classifieds here abit. Some folks must tire of some of the best built, best designed, best sounding, most light cabs around.
May just have to buy one here used to really know. Just wondering what they went to from there; cab-wise.
Please don't say its just G.A.S......I know it all too well. ;>)
But you do see a few of these fEarful, fEarless, nEarful, nAwful, etc cabs for sale in the classifieds here abit. Some folks must tire of some of the best built, best designed, best sounding, most light cabs around.
May just have to buy one here used to really know. Just wondering what they went to from there; cab-wise.
Please don't say its just G.A.S......I know it all too well. ;>)
Sometimes they just weren't what they were looking for. Sometimes they are too much or not enough and they are sold to fund a larger or smaller cab.
Never heard of nAwful, who is making them? BTW the Crazy cabs are pretty awesome as well.
I'm thinking of downsizing a couple of 15/6/1's. I've found that my 12/6 cube does what I need, and the size, shape and weight work better for me. Tone wise, there is almost no difference, just a bit less volume. I think the inexpensive alpha 6 mid I have in the 12/6 makes it the biggest bang for the buck cab. I can put it in the trunk of my Corolla, and carry it a reasonable distance with one hand. The 15/6/1's are awesome but more work to move.
The 15/6's can make up for a poor sounding FOH. We messed around with the 15/6/1 at a local club. Out front the sound was less than impressive, on stage, it was just what I expected. This was at an open mike where I'd been talking up the fEarfuls, so I brought my cab in for the night. Everyone out front was sympathetic of my delusions, then each bassist got their turn on stage. They came back out front singing a different tune. Crappy FOH can kill your sound. Once we took the bass out of the FOH and turned up the fEarful, things were very nice.
I might adapt the 15/6/1 for PA. They also sound killer for keys, drum machines, and monitors. A pair running at 4 ohm is killer loud.
On the other hand, I've done plenty of small rooms with no FOH and just the 12/6. I had to learn the hard way.
I might change one fEarful for another, and I will build another 12/6 cube. I've found my cabs.
I'm as cheap as the next guy. I love that all the dough that goes into a fEarful goes into the cab. No marketing, advertising, celebrity endorsers (besides Burningskies!), just great components, and quality hardware. Yeah, I built that!
The 15/6's can make up for a poor sounding FOH. We messed around with the 15/6/1 at a local club. Out front the sound was less than impressive, on stage, it was just what I expected. This was at an open mike where I'd been talking up the fEarfuls, so I brought my cab in for the night. Everyone out front was sympathetic of my delusions, then each bassist got their turn on stage. They came back out front singing a different tune. Crappy FOH can kill your sound. Once we took the bass out of the FOH and turned up the fEarful, things were very nice.
I might adapt the 15/6/1 for PA. They also sound killer for keys, drum machines, and monitors. A pair running at 4 ohm is killer loud.
On the other hand, I've done plenty of small rooms with no FOH and just the 12/6. I had to learn the hard way.
I might change one fEarful for another, and I will build another 12/6 cube. I've found my cabs.
I'm as cheap as the next guy. I love that all the dough that goes into a fEarful goes into the cab. No marketing, advertising, celebrity endorsers (besides Burningskies!), just great components, and quality hardware. Yeah, I built that!
Jim Carr
Dr. Jim
- Jan 21, 2006
- 16,223
- 7,613
- 76
- Disclosures
- fEARful Kool-Aid dispensing liberal academic card-carrying union member Musicians Local 72-147
No, it's not G.A.S., it's that most of us think we will need two 15/6/1 cabs or a 1515/66, or even a 15/6/1 and a 15sub, but it turns out most folks only need a 12/6 or a 12/6 + 12sub. The excess cabinetry goes up on TB classified, so they can be snapped up by those if us who think "Too much is just enough," and that "One must practice moderation in all things, including moderation!"
I have probably owned more greenboy cabs in my ownership than just about anyone else outside of an AB. 6 in total. I have sold three of those, all to fund more greenboy cabs. They are not for everyone, but neither is any specific bass, or amp. However, the vast majority of users, do really like the cabs.
If you NEED more than one cab, the Avatars do a great job. There's always advantages to having more than one cab. Honestly you would rarely need more than one TB153 (with a good head) but it would be nice to have a second one for the same price as the Greenboy. If you want a Ferrari, buy the Greenboy. I also like the Xsonics cabs because they have a real punchy, in-your-face tone.
Jim Carr
Dr. Jim
- Jan 21, 2006
- 16,223
- 7,613
- 76
- Disclosures
- fEARful Kool-Aid dispensing liberal academic card-carrying union member Musicians Local 72-147
Didn't we kill the car metaphor in all those tired "Road Worn Basses are evil" threads?
Ferrari?
If you really want to go there—a fEARful, IMHO, is more like a home brew hot-rod from free plans drawn by Boyd Coddington, than a Ferrari.
I went with the Avatar stuff. A 410 ceramic and tb153 to be specific. Is it as good as the greenboy stuff? I don't know, never had a chance to play any. But from what I can tell theyre not really in the same league. What I can say is that the price was right. Next time around I will probably invest in a slick fearxxxxx setup. But for now I'm super pleased with my avatar gear. As greenboy stuff gets more accessible, or my wallet expands I'll revisit the cab issue.
Jim Carr
Dr. Jim
- Jan 21, 2006
- 16,223
- 7,613
- 76
- Disclosures
- fEARful Kool-Aid dispensing liberal academic card-carrying union member Musicians Local 72-147
[QUOTE="carl h.
Never heard of nAwful, who is making them? BTW the Crazy cabs are pretty awesome as well.[/QUOTE]
Haha, that's just a name I was calling my TB153 awhile back where things got kinda heated in one of the custom cab threads; can't recall which. Totally a joke on my part back then and now. The reasonable replies here on what cabs folks went to upon selling their custom cabs made sense. I really was curious, so glad I got some good replies.
Never heard of nAwful, who is making them? BTW the Crazy cabs are pretty awesome as well.[/QUOTE]
Haha, that's just a name I was calling my TB153 awhile back where things got kinda heated in one of the custom cab threads; can't recall which. Totally a joke on my part back then and now. The reasonable replies here on what cabs folks went to upon selling their custom cabs made sense. I really was curious, so glad I got some good replies.
I never counted before but I just realized I've owned 7 Greenboy cabs
2 x C8s, 2 x C88s, F210, F110, F110s. I also sold a majority of them only to further explore Greenboy land. I now own just an F110/F110s stack that more than covers all of my needs.
I have owned 2 LDS 15/6 (similar to fEarfuls, sold the 1st and regretted it instantly, then bought another used and kept it as my only gig cab for several years), Greenboy Bassic 15 (sold because I missed a tweeter for my drum machine), Bassic 12 (sold because I wanted to raise $$ for bass GAS) and now have 12/6 and 12 sub fEarfuls, bought because the LDS 15/6 was larger and louder than I almost ever need after leaving my last (loud) band. . I also own a GB Shuttle 2 210/112 stack. The Genz stack is excellent, but once I heard those true, deep, clear lows of the fEarful and similar LDS cabs, the others I have owned became secondary.
FYI other cabs I have owned include Audiokinesis, Epifani, EA, Mesa (Scout and PH). The others were auditioned against the LDS and were eventually sold.
FYI other cabs I have owned include Audiokinesis, Epifani, EA, Mesa (Scout and PH). The others were auditioned against the LDS and were eventually sold.
I was one of the early users of the fEARful, before there was a list of " authorized " builders. I was in a 7 piece wedding/party band, and was lugging around a 215, loaded with JBL's. The 15/6/1 I had built was definitely loud enough, but was not the " sound in my head " that I wanted. I also found it somewhat awkward to schlepp without carrying a two wheel cart to every gig. Sold that one, and thought I might try the 12/6/1, I bought used here on TB. Poor build quality, and still not the sound I was looking for. At one point, the mid driver started distorting like crazy. Getting more frustrated with the " 3 way design ", I opted to have a 212/horn cab built, with 3012HO's. This was definitely closer to what I wanted in a lightweight cab. Gig situation changed, and I found myself in a little , 4 piece Blues band, playing in small cafes, and bistros. Needed a more schlepable cab. By that time, Dave had his full design network going, and a list of builders that actually knew what they were doing. I opted for the Bassic 15, and finally heard what was going on in my brain for the sound I wanted. Long story short, there are some of us who do not care for the 3 way design for bass, no matter who builds it, and want a more traditional bass sound in a lightweight cab that can pound. It is clear that Dave also realized this, and designed a more traditional cab, with advanced qualities that gave me exactly what I needed. Still, if I ever decided to try the 3 way design again, it would be a Greenboy design.
I get this 120%. Dave's take on the traditional cab, especially with the 15pr400 is very well done. There is a reason I have a few of his cabs.
They are speakers in a cheap 3/4" ply box. Sturdy, but no bracing. It is cost effective, and some of that is passed on to the consumer. Nothing wrong with them for the price, but when you line them up against some of the cabs that have a tone of thought put in to them, it is clear it isnt apples to apples.
Buy what you like, and what you can afford.
What a sparkling analysis; those who prefer Greenboy designs to Avatar cabs are snobs and those who prefer Avatars are magnanimous, self-actualized beings. Who knew? I guess I have been schooled. Now where is that sarcasm emoticon? Seriously, though, Avatar makes cabs that are great for the price, and the TB153 is excellent in that regard, but is far larger and heavier than the crossed 15/6 stuff it competes with, since in order to cut cost it uses the same box as their 410. It's crossover is also not as good.
