Cab advice for a newbie

[JJ Honeycutt]

Another newbie question (and its after long research and reading here on TB). I'm fairly new still to playing the bass. I started off with a Sunn combo and recently bought my first amp head (Orange 4 Stroke 500). Looking to buy a cab to pair with it and I thought that before I pull the trigger on something I would consult the gurus here first.

I play mostly metal (doom, death, thrash) and for now just have loud jam sessions in my shop with my teenager who is a guitarist (don't worry, we wear ear plugs).

I see that there is a lot of preference in this forum for a 212 cab. I was looking at the Avatar 212 (local company to me) and its a fairly decent price. For the metal heads out there: Would a 212 be ideal for this amp or would you prefer a 410? Any cabs that you'd recommend over another? Thank you!!!

 

[drpepper]

Would a 212 be ideal for this amp or would you prefer a 410?

I think that a lot of the positive press on 212s comes from the fact that they (in generic terms) tend to represent a good compromise...as a practical matter, many people simply aren't pushing the limits of a 410, and a 212 (again, in very generic terms) will often times get "most of the way there" which is all that's needed while offering a savings of size and weight. If you're not trying to cut those kinds of corners, there's probably not a good reason to favor 212s over 410s in your search. Don't know what cabinets are considered to pair especially well with that head or for your type of music.

Good luck with it.

 

[Riff Ranger]

I can’t speak for or against Avatar cabs, but 2x12 cabs do seem “just right” for a lot of players in a lot of situations. If the Avatar either gets away from you or doesn’t do it for you, I would advise not to fixate on 2x12s if you want to stick to what you can try out locally in relatively remote areas like ours, because you might find yourself waiting for a long time. 4x10s, 2x15s, and 1x15s come up much more regularly. My experience with cabs is limited to ‘70s–90s Peaveys (including a 2x12 I still have), ‘80s–90s Ampeg, and one newer Schroeder 2x12. Do you see yourself favoring a darker sound more typical of doom, or a brighter sound more typical of death or thrash?

 

[Riff Ranger]

And what do you like and not like about the Sunn combo? That could help with suggestions as well.

 

[Phlipper]

Sweetest cabs I've ever owned were a pair of 4 ohm Avatar 2x12s. There's just something about them I loved. Used them with a PV Max 700, one cab with a PV MiniMax, and with a Hartke LH500. I love them. Hated the weight, though, and have become a Hartke cab fanboi lately.

 

[JJ Honeycutt]

And what do you like and not like about the Sunn combo? That could help with suggestions as well.

I knew I should have just went to you first. I didn't tell you that I ended up trading the Sunn combo for this Orange head. Couple reasons for it:

1) Even though I had fun with it, the driver was not doing it for me. You'd expect a 15" speaker to have a little bit more beef and it just sounded like a wet fart half the time.
2) Being a newbie to gear, I was just curious about other stuff. My curiosity of what a nicer head unit through a cab would sound like compared to the combo was what led me to agree to a trade. I figured that if I ever really missed that Sunn sound I would track another one down or even just buy one of those Hilbish preamps.

As far as sound I prefer (darker - Doom/sludgy) or (punchier - Death/thrash)... I honestly don't have the slightest. I like them both. Haha.

 

[JJ Honeycutt]

Sweetest cabs I've ever owned were a pair of 4 ohm Avatar 2x12s. There's just something about them I loved. Used them with a PV Max 700, one cab with a PV MiniMax, and with a Hartke LH500. I love them. Hated the weight, though, and have become a Hartke cab fanboi lately.

I like how they (Avatar) are a local company to me and weight doesn't really bother me since I don"t need to move the amp around. Dave seems like a nice guy. Just messaged him today actually.

Like RiffRanger, I too like the PV sound. The bass player for Bolt Thrower used a PV amp with Laney cabs on almost all of their albums and it sounded awesome.

 

[Riff Ranger]

I knew I should have just went to you first. I didn't tell you that I ended up trading the Sunn combo for this Orange head. Couple reasons for it:

1) Even though I had fun with it, the driver was not doing it for me. You'd expect a 15" speaker to have a little bit more beef and it just sounded like a wet fart half the time.
2) Being a newbie to gear, I was just curious about other stuff. My curiosity of what a nicer head unit through a cab would sound like compared to the combo was what led me to agree to a trade. I figured that if I ever really missed that Sunn sound I would track another one down or even just buy one of those Hilbish preamps.

As far as sound I prefer (darker - Doom/sludgy) or (punchier - Death/thrash)... I honestly don't have the slightest. I like them both. Haha.

Ah, so no delegating the doom to the Sunn, then I’m sorry to hear the Sunn wasn’t doing it for you, especially since I feel like I might have influenced your decision to acquire it.

In my (somewhat limited) experience, it’s easier to tone down a bright sound than to brighten up a dark one, so I’d shoot for something that can do brighter. You can generally turn off/down tweeters/horns, back off the highs at the amp, or roll off the tone knob on your Jaguar bass; you can’t really accentuate highs in a cabinet that just doesn’t reproduce them.

Maybe that’s an Avatar cab—I just don’t have any experience with them. Forgot they made them up that way; there’s definitely something to be said for supporting your local people.

 

[eriky4003]

There is a lot of love on this forum for Avatar so I'd say you should do well. Any chance you can head over to the shop and try a cab or two with your amp? That may help your decision.

 

[Riff Ranger]

I knew I should have just went to you first.

You’re very wise to seek out opinions and experience beyond mine I know a thing or two, but I haven’t played everything and of course what does it for me won’t necessarily do it for you, even if we’re into similar sounds.

 

[JJ Honeycutt]

There is a lot of love on this forum for Avatar so I'd say you should do well. Any chance you can head over to the shop and try a cab or two with your amp? That may help your decision.

Not sure if testing out a cab over there is ok but I think I will ask Dave. He did say that a 410 would be my best bet over a 212. They have a new 410 with a carpet blemish for $330. That'd be half the cost of one of their nicer 212 with the Neo speakers in it.

 

[JJ Honeycutt]

You’re very wise to seek out opinions and experience beyond mine I know a thing or two, but I haven’t played everything and of course what does it for me won’t necessarily do it for you, even if we’re into similar sounds.

I am really interested in all the gear stuff and find it highly entertaining to read about the different stuff out there. Not sure if I told you but we upgraded my sons rig a bit. Got him a PRS baritone guitar and he is making all sorts of chunky tones with his Randall tube amp. Fun stuff.

 

[Riff Ranger]

Since you don’t mind heavy, many Cabs of Yore still sound great so you can consider them if the Avatar doesn’t pan out (though that blemished 4x10 sounds like a steal). Just make sure your head can handle the ohms and your cab can handle the watts.

 

[MrLenny1]

GK Neo 1x12's. 2 are LOUD

 

[JJ Honeycutt]

GK Neo 1x12's. 2 are LOUD

GK seem to be fairly priced compared to other cabs from what I've seen.

 

[JJ Honeycutt]

Since you don’t mind heavy, many Cabs of Yore still sound great so you can consider them if the Avatar doesn’t pan out (though that blemished 4x10 sounds like a steal). Just make sure your head can handle the ohms and your cab can handle the watts.

Im still trying to figure out the ohms and watts thing. This Orange 4 Stroke 500 is probably a bit more than Id ever need but thats how I roll .

 

[Phlipper]

Wow! That blem'd 410 is a steal. I'd jump on that asap. There was a used/mint Avatar 410 Neo on my local CL for $600 that he reduced to $400 but it was gone before I could grab it, of course.

And yes ... Dave is an awesome guy who has gone the extra mile for folks here, me included. I bought my first 2x12 new from him and when I picked up a second used one he sent me all new corner pieces and Avatar logo thingee to fix it up for free.

Wish he still made the 12/6 cabs. They sounded excellent, too.

 

[dalkowski]

Sunn combo

Beta Bass?

 

[JJ Honeycutt]

Beta Bass?

Yes Sir.

 

[Riff Ranger]

Im still trying to figure out the ohms and watts thing. This Orange 4 Stroke 500 is probably a bit more than Id ever need but thats how I roll .

Looked up your head and it puts out 500 watts at 4 ohms. You could go with one 4-ohm cab, or two 8-ohm cabs; in either scenario, the cab(s) should (all) be rated to handle 500 watts or more. You could also run a single 8-ohm cab, in which case the amp would probably put out no more than 300 watts, which almost any cab can handle. 300 watts into a 4x10 or 2x12 or even 1x15 would still get plenty loud.