You're not gonna start getting loud on us are you? lol
Has anyone put the AE212 head to head with a pair of AE112 boxes? Just wondering if a pair of the single 12's would be about the same as an AE212.
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Bergantino AE212 - Just Released
- Thread starter KJung
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You're not gonna start getting loud on us are you? lol
Has anyone put the AE212 head to head with a pair of AE112 boxes? Just wondering if a pair of the single 12's would be about the same as an AE212.
I've completely warmed up to this cabinet now, it's REALLY nice. As the session went on, I just kept digging it more and more.
Nice... in the bass track only, you can really hear that 'AE brightness and grind, but 'smoothed out a bit' sort of thing that the AE212 does. It comes through in the full clips also, which is what these AE cabs do.... punch that nice upper mid articulation through a mix. Nice clips!
Edit: Nice to see Roscoe offering the J pickup option. That's the best Roscoe tone I've ever heard! Still fat, but with a bit of grind versus that modern ping up top. NICE!
I'd love to do this sometime. I would think it would be quite close, but many times, the 212 box has a bit more ooomph down low for some reason (maybe more direct coupling of the drivers, or slightly different internal cab volume and tuning, etc.
The cool thing about the AE212 is that it is $400 less than the 2 x AE112 boxes and the same footprint, and still not much heavier than a single HT112ER!
I remember that you really dug the more open, less mid present tone of the GS112's versus the more mid present and punchy DB's. If I'm remembering that correctly, you might like the AE112's (or 212)... it kind of sits between the two... less mid mids than the DB's, but much more upper mid grind and lower mid punch than the 'boom and click' (IMO) of the GS cabs (I think you were using a Thunderfunk with your GS's if I remember correctly, which was probably a nice yin yang, with the wide, somewhat scooped voicing of the GS112s and the mid present and low end attenuated TF550). With your Shuttle 9 (based on my experience with the Shuttle 6 and my AE410), you will get a very bright, VERY punchy but warm tone from the AE's.
I think you tried an HT112ER. Did you dig that? I haven't tried one of those (although I spent quite a bit of time with the original HT112,,, never really dug any of the HT line of cabs... a bit too smooth and hi fi for my tastes). That, IMO, would be more like a 'better' GS112 (i.e., BIG low end, warmer mids, prettier top end) versus the more aggressive low mids and upper mid brightness of the AE line.
All good stuff... just depends what you want! One of the things that is exciting me so much about the AE212 is the form factor... meaningfully smaller and lighter than the AE410, similar tone, and differences that are in the right direction (i.e., a touch rounder and smoother while still having the AE signature punch and grind).
I greatly prefer a lightweight single cab solution that can hammer virtually any gig. I've yet to find a cab that can do that other than various 410's. This might be the one! It all depends on its ability to handle those high volume slap/dig in transients without compressing. These 12" neo drivers are getting better by the minute, and this cab 'feels' like it is there!
I really like the look of that AE212 - and it sounds great in the review. I prefer the way it's voiced very slightly over the 410 in your clip. I'm thinking one of those and a bass in a gig bag on my back with an F1 and cables would be a very potent, high quality, single-carry setup.
Nice review, Ken. NOW STOP GIVING ME GAS!!
Nice review, Ken. NOW STOP GIVING ME GAS!!
I really like the look of that AE212 - and it sounds great in the review. I prefer the way it's voiced very slightly over the 410 in your clip. I'm thinking one of those and a bass in a gig bag on my back with an F1 and cables would be a very potent, high quality, single-carry setup.
Nice review, Ken. NOW STOP GIVING ME GAS!!
I'm a little over the top on my gushing on this one, but I am very impressed. I have SO many gigs on the AE410 now (really like it), that the differences I'm hearing with the AE212 are really speaking to me... just a bit less 'in your face', but still all the other good stuff!
Jason is bringing over his passive Fender J today, and that will be another good 'test' of what this cab can do with a more traditional sounding bass (via the F500 and RH450). After that, I'll shut up about it
Allow me to ramble for a while...
I just priced up an AE212 plus F1 - would be about £1700 ($2.6k) over here. So, I guess I'm sticking with my trusty CMD102P/151P rig for now, which still sounds absolutely killer to me. And it's a one trip carry as well, but not in such a convenient form (MB rig = 44lb in one hand, 37lb in the other, whereas Berg + F1 rig = 55lb in two hands plus an extra few lbs in the gig bag for the amp).
Having said that, my own rig would cost over £1500 new here (I paid just over £1100 for it total in 2006-7), so the Berg/F1 rig woudn't be that much more. But I don't think it would compete in the flat out volume stakes either, as the cone area would be a lot less than my current setup which can get absurdly loud when I need it to. I know some folks on here say they don't like MB cabs as much as the amps, but I love the tone of mine and MB cabs have TONS of punch. The reason I'm interested in the Berg stuff is that the only cab I've ever tried that I liked as much as my own rig was an IP112.
Should I sacrifice a bit of volume/headroom and spend out for an easier carry? Perhaps not. As you say, Ken, it's always about the trade offs. If I was unhappy with what I have now it would be an easy choice. But this is seeming just like random new rig gas to me (not for the first time or the last, I'm sure).
I just priced up an AE212 plus F1 - would be about £1700 ($2.6k) over here. So, I guess I'm sticking with my trusty CMD102P/151P rig for now, which still sounds absolutely killer to me. And it's a one trip carry as well, but not in such a convenient form (MB rig = 44lb in one hand, 37lb in the other, whereas Berg + F1 rig = 55lb in two hands plus an extra few lbs in the gig bag for the amp).
Having said that, my own rig would cost over £1500 new here (I paid just over £1100 for it total in 2006-7), so the Berg/F1 rig woudn't be that much more. But I don't think it would compete in the flat out volume stakes either, as the cone area would be a lot less than my current setup which can get absurdly loud when I need it to. I know some folks on here say they don't like MB cabs as much as the amps, but I love the tone of mine and MB cabs have TONS of punch. The reason I'm interested in the Berg stuff is that the only cab I've ever tried that I liked as much as my own rig was an IP112.
Should I sacrifice a bit of volume/headroom and spend out for an easier carry? Perhaps not. As you say, Ken, it's always about the trade offs. If I was unhappy with what I have now it would be an easy choice. But this is seeming just like random new rig gas to me (not for the first time or the last, I'm sure).
Sounds like you are set. Remember, the IP112 is based on the HT112... TOTALLY different voicing IMO than the AE line. I greatly prefer the AE line, but others greatly prefer the HT. Liking one gives you very little info regarding how you will feel about the other.
Okay - thanks for the tip. I wouldn't spend that sort of cash without giving it a good test drive. 
Yeah, if you dig that 'two JBL 15' old school thing, the AE line would be exactly where you would not want to be. In the Bergantino line, the HS410 and the NV412 are probably closer to that vibe.
Well, I would'nt exactly call that JBL 215 old school, especially with that added tweeter. The K140's can be eq'd to get edgy enough for me, and I get a nice Jaco type of growl on the top end.
Well, I would'nt exactly call that JBL 215 old school, especially with that added tweeter. The K140's can be eq'd to get edgy enough for me, and I get a nice Jaco type of growl on the top end.
The AE line has much more upper midrange brightness and grind, and a much tighter punch in the low end to my ear. Of course, for the upper treble, the tweeter and crossover will define that, and have little to do with the drivers.
Unlike many two way boxes, there seems to be much less of a hole in the upper mids between the woofer and the start of the tweeter frequency. This is particularly true of the AE410, but I hear it in the AE212 also... a nice upper mid extension of the driver, and a low crossover point (to my ear) of the tweeter. It is a unique sound that can sound a bit 'rough' to some. In a mix, if you are trying to achieve a bright, punchy tone with a lot of character and articulation in the upper mids (i.e., grind), these cabs are amazing.
Your clips seemed to me to be alot more chunky and full on the bottom end. Perhaps it's just a matter of eq?
Im liking the sound of this cabinet a LOT.
Might be the one Berg cabinet for me....and I always like the 2x12 approach anyway.
Looking forward to the new clips again Ken
Might be the one Berg cabinet for me....and I always like the 2x12 approach anyway.
Looking forward to the new clips again Ken
My guess is, it is the amplification. As one who used that Alembic pre back in the day for years, it is warm and fat and full with a nice edge to it up top, but it does not really excel in 'low mid punch' and forceful low end... it is more relaxed down there, since it is based on that old Fender Showman or Bassman circuit and voicing.
IMO and IME!
Thanks! Yeah, those are Joe Barden humbuckers in the 60's locations (normalized to 35" scale). It's a fairly old school sounding jazz bass with some modern amenities (4-band onboard EQ thanks to the Audere pre). It's perfect for my main gig (an Allman Bros & Little Feat sort of thing), especially when it all comes out my Berg NV-610 cab.
Im liking the sound of this cabinet a LOT.
Might be the one Berg cabinet for me....and I always like the 2x12 approach anyway.
Looking forward to the new clips again Ken
Here's a teaser of the final clip we will do later tonight (A-C LG... alder/RW 60's singles) with the RH450 and the F500 as a sort of comparison. Jason will also bring his 'real Fender', so we can try a couple of more old school J's with the more traditional sounding RH450.
Yep, I completely agree, Ken. I think I mentioned earlier how I usually run my bass with the Audere's bass and low-mid knobs boosted slightly. That's me adding in some low end punch on the bass itself.
But the AE-210 cab doesn't need it, that low end punch is built into the cab. I found myself running my bass flat with just a smidge of high-mid boost, and that made for a yummy tone.
I usually struggle to get a "round/warm" tone with neo speakers, even with the Alembic pre. But it's there in the AE-212.
Cool. I've been messing with the RH450 this morning a bit, and it is coming around. Not optimal with this cab IMO, but nice for a warm, mid punchy sort of vibe. It sounds good with the A-C in passive mode particularly. Not really my thing, but pretty nice. That RH450 benefits from the brightness of the AE410 IMO (at least for me).
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