So I'm a poor bassist, and I've never really paid much attention to gear, I am however a pretty good carpenter. I'm having a hard time finding a decent 2/10 4 ohm cabinet to go with the 2/15 crate that I have and few I have seen are very expensive and not local , so can't even go play them to see if they sound good. I play a 5 string, tuned like a guitar and I'm trying to have it all. I like my lows low but want to be able to achieve some decent crunch and clarity on the distorted high end. I know building a cabinet is more than a box , any suggestions on where to look for designs?
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Building a 2/10 4ohm bass cab.
- Thread starter tashunca
- Start date
Welcome to TalkBass! Sounds like you already know drivers, ports and box volume are a complete system. There is modeling software available like winisd and Eminence Designer, but for your first build I definitely recommend using a published Eminence design. Look through their selection of 10" drivers and pick 2 that fit your needs and budget. They publish different box and port dimensions for different applications. Wire two 8 ohm drivers in parallel and you have a 4 ohm load. I'm curious about your amp setup: if your 2x15 is a 4 ohm cab you will need a 2 ohm stable amp or a stereo power amp. Stereo would be safer since the 2 cabinets won't have the same power rating or loudness. You mentioned distorted high end, implying a split signal and stereo power amp. Another word of caution: we typically build our own cabinets for fun and to have something custom, not to save money. Chances are you can find a used 2x10 4 ohm cabinet cheaper than you can build one. The materials and hardware add up fast.
- Feb 12, 2006
- 61,087
- 5
- 221,210
- Disclosures
- Development Engineer-Mesa Boogie, Development Engineer-Genzler (pedals), Product Support-Genz Benz
The reason why you aren't finding many 4 ohm 210's is because 8 ohm versions are better suited to the higher powered amps that have been available over the last 20 or so years.
What amp are you planning on using it with? Are you hoping to use this cabinet at the same time with your 215?
What amp are you planning on using it with? Are you hoping to use this cabinet at the same time with your 215?
I'm using a 1000 pevey it is rated at 4ohms, and yes planing on using it with my 2/15. Although if I can find a decent 1/15 I would use that.
So do you think I could use a 8ohm 2/10 with the 4 ohm 2/15? I've thought about a stereo system, I tried it once, but didn't really have the right equipment, but that's kinda what I'm going for, thick heavy lows on the clean ( I use lots of reverb) and crunchy highs for the distortion ( I play some relatively distorted chords) right now I've got it split into two channels a/d/y box. One reverb, delay , the other a big muff distortion then a 2 into one box and then through a flange. And it's good , but there are some times when I'm playing high notes that I love to be more audible, hopefully without buying a whole new set up.
The Peavey 1000 is only rated down to 4 Ohms. Combining a 4 Ohm cabinet with literally anything will make the total load too low for safe operation of the amplifier: Two 4 Ohm cabinets will present a 2 Ohm load, and a 4 Ohm plus an 8 Ohm will present a 2.667 Ohm load.
More than 4 Ohms is okay. Less than 4 Ohms is not.
If you want to drive your 2x15 plus another cabinet with your amp (not the best idea) you need to rewire the 2x15 in series for 16 ohms. Then you could wire the 2x10 in series for 16 ohms. The two 16 ohm cabs in parallel would result in a safe 8 ohm load.
- Feb 12, 2006
- 61,087
- 5
- 221,210
- Disclosures
- Development Engineer-Mesa Boogie, Development Engineer-Genzler (pedals), Product Support-Genz Benz
At this point, your amp is incapable of driving any more than one x 4 ohm load.
The amp is capable of destroying any 4 ohm 210 for the reasons I gave earlier.
I would stick with your 215, but if you are unhappy with it, you might want to reconsider the cabinet and look for something that better meets your goals.
The amp is capable of destroying any 4 ohm 210 for the reasons I gave earlier.
I would stick with your 215, but if you are unhappy with it, you might want to reconsider the cabinet and look for something that better meets your goals.
Leaving aside the fact that, as noted above, a single 4ohm cab is the most you can safely connect to that amp, the other issue to consider is that a 2x15 and a 2x10 with equal power is rather unbalanced. Roughly speaking a 1x15 is equivalent to a 2x10, and a 2x15 a 4x10.
Now you could do all sorts of old school bi amp stuff with two separate amplifiers and cabs, or crossovers post amp but basically the vast majority of us have ditched that sort of setup because its just not worth all the trouble and complication with modern kit.
If you want to go away from the 15s, then the obvious option is a 4x10 cabinet *instead* of the 2x15, and I imagine eminence will do a design. One must add the caveat, though, that 4x10s, especially older heavy 4x10s, are distinctly out of fashion, so its more than likely that you can pick something up on the secondhand market for rather less than it will cost you for a new one.
The other thing is not to get hung up on getting down to 4ohm impedance. Some folks get very worried about their amps not delivering full rated power if they have an 8ohm cab and a 4ohm capable amp, but the practical difference is way way less then one would think it ought to be, and in any case you have no shortage of watts with that amp. So your best bet is probably going to be to sell the 4ohm 2x15 and look for 8ohm cabs that suit.
Now you could do all sorts of old school bi amp stuff with two separate amplifiers and cabs, or crossovers post amp but basically the vast majority of us have ditched that sort of setup because its just not worth all the trouble and complication with modern kit.
If you want to go away from the 15s, then the obvious option is a 4x10 cabinet *instead* of the 2x15, and I imagine eminence will do a design. One must add the caveat, though, that 4x10s, especially older heavy 4x10s, are distinctly out of fashion, so its more than likely that you can pick something up on the secondhand market for rather less than it will cost you for a new one.
The other thing is not to get hung up on getting down to 4ohm impedance. Some folks get very worried about their amps not delivering full rated power if they have an 8ohm cab and a 4ohm capable amp, but the practical difference is way way less then one would think it ought to be, and in any case you have no shortage of watts with that amp. So your best bet is probably going to be to sell the 4ohm 2x15 and look for 8ohm cabs that suit.
As others have said, your amp is already maxed out with the 215, so you can't add an extension cab.
If you want to build a cab, ideally you would learn to do the modeling so you can evaluate drivers and choose one that suits your needs. There are various free speaker design programs available that crunch the numbers for you.
If you don't want to go that route, Eminence publishes cab design docs for most of their pro drivers and some of their MI drivers. I suggest doing some research on how speakers work and then reviewing various cab design docs so you begin to develop a feel for it.
The Eminence cab design docs do not tell you how to build a cab. They tell you the internal volume and port requirements.
If you want to build a cab, ideally you would learn to do the modeling so you can evaluate drivers and choose one that suits your needs. There are various free speaker design programs available that crunch the numbers for you.
If you don't want to go that route, Eminence publishes cab design docs for most of their pro drivers and some of their MI drivers. I suggest doing some research on how speakers work and then reviewing various cab design docs so you begin to develop a feel for it.
The Eminence cab design docs do not tell you how to build a cab. They tell you the internal volume and port requirements.
How about splitting your signal into a clean channel (full fat, big low end, etc) and an overdriven channel without much in the low end. It's probably similar to what you are doing already, but instead of sending everything back into the Peavey, use your existing equipment for the 'clean' channel, and feed the overdriven channel into a guitar amplifier? It means adding another piece of equipment, but a 30-50W 1X12" combo doesn't take up much room and they can be pretty cheap. You'll need to play a bit with the balance between the bass and the guitar units, but that gives you full separate control over the overdriven highs and the heavy low end.
Or find an amp with biamping capabilities (eg. GK 800RB, although I think it's gonna be expensive these days...) and get a guitar cabinet. Open back, even. Run the guitar cabinet over 400Hz or so and the 2x15" below. You mentioned distortion. This kind of setup is killer for a "bass guitar & drums without a rhythm guitar" kind of duo/trio (maybe a lead guitar playing riffs). It gets kind of intense, even.
Maybe turn your 2-15 into two 1-15's? More than likely they are 8ohm drivers. Then you can build a 2-10 that's 8ohm and have a bunch of options.
I saw a nice 2/10 dark glass that was 8ohms. if I built a new cabinet for one of my 2/15,? That would be safe?
this is exactly what we are doing, or trying to. I basically play lead bass and rhythm guitar, and the guitarist plays essentially a lead. . Great advice, I'll look into baiamp.
- Feb 12, 2006
- 61,087
- 5
- 221,210
- Disclosures
- Development Engineer-Mesa Boogie, Development Engineer-Genzler (pedals), Product Support-Genz Benz
You are making this way harder than it needs to be, by fighting with gear that's not a good fit with what you are needing/wanting.
Totally possible, however since I'm playing unconventionally, there are not any clear cut off the shelf solutions. Or at least non I've found yet. Also I don't have the means to go drop 3000 on new gear.
@agedhorse he said he's "poor". I understand him and what he's trying to do (get the most with the least amount of money). He plays a very specific genre and what he wants is a bass that has all of the lows but sounds larger than life in the mids and treble. The cheapest way he can achieve what he wants is by buying something like a used Fender FM212R (or a similar cheap transistor amplifier) and something like the stuff mentioned here:
(and maybe a distortion and/or other effects, eg. chorus/delay/reverb on the guitar line).
(and maybe a distortion and/or other effects, eg. chorus/delay/reverb on the guitar line).
In kit form: [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
Looks like a bare-bones Jack 210 (wood cut but not fastened, no tweeter, Beta-10a speakers, cheapest Speakon plate, strap handles) will start at $315 plus shipping. A similarly configured Simplexx 210 will be under $300. Better speakers and accessories drive those prices up. You have to go for the "Deluxe" versions of any model to get the cabinet, hardware and speakers in one package. The other versions are exclusively the cabinet or the speakers, and combining them costs more than the "Deluxe".
