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Cab/Head Suggestions for 8 string bass

ninefingerbass

ninefingerbass

Jul 29, 2005
701
166
San Diego, CA
www.youtube.com
#1
I'm having a custom built 8 string bass, Low E to High Eb. The E will have a detuner to go to D. I have an SWR 410 and GK 1001RB and I doubt it will do well with the higher strings.

I'd like to find a bass amp/cab that will capture all the frequencies of the instrument, which will also include midi.

Price isnt an issue. I'm concerned the higher frequencies with the bass amp and the cab might not come out very well. Anyone have any suggestions or experience with this? :help:
 
#2
Hmm well that does sound interesting to say the least.

I think you would have good success with a Pre/Power set up. At least it will give you the versatility of being able to switch between pre amps. Maybe a Eden WTDI or an Aguilar TH pre depending on your tonal goals. The power amp that I am using right now is a Peavey IPR 1600. Cheap and readily available, light weight, boat loads of power, not picky about what is driving it. As far as cabs go there are a ton of wonderful options out there. Baer, Barefaced Bass, BFM, Audiokinesis, fEARful, and a few others that are building really forward thinking bass cabinets. For my tastes I dig a [Invalid or Expired Link Removed] cabinet. I think you would be a good candidate for a 12/6/1 or a 15/6/1. This would give you the option to add a 12sub or 15sub to the respective cabs if you want more volume. You could also go whole hog and start with a 1212/6/1 or 1515/66/1 if you want crazy volume. Here is a pic of my 66, its a beast. 100 pounds and more SPL output than an 810.

Link Removed
 
#3
Wow! That is beastly! I could use a new cab and sounds like that is perfect. I'm thinking the 12/6 would be better for my needs. I never even heard of them. After checking it out on youtube and it weighs 34lbs then this might be the one for me, strong, powerful, light and versatile. Thanks! I like tone control, mainly on my bass but I will look into the amps asap.
 
#5
ninefingerbass said:
Wow! That is beastly! I could use a new cab and sounds like that is perfect. I'm thinking the 12/6 would be better for my needs. I never even heard of them. After checking it out on youtube and it weighs 34lbs then this might be the one for me, strong, powerful, light and versatile. Thanks! I like tone control, mainly on my bass but I will look into the amps asap.
Click to expand...


12/6/1 I think you will want the tweeter for what you are doing.

I think there is one in HI now. At the bottom of the forum I linked there is a map of fEARful users.
 
#6
I'm definitely going to outfit the fearful with a tweeter. I like a full sound cab that has thickness and clarity. I don't play low subby bass but everyonce in a while I do. So the option of adding a sub will be great.

With the GK, I'm just not sure it will give me the tone and power but then again I could be wrong. I know for sure I'd like a new cab and want to get the frequencies of the higher strings to come out.

I'm going to keep a look out on alot of these suggestions.
 
#8
Joe Louvar said:
+1. I think you are going to like/want a 3-way cabinet too.


EDIT: If there is nothing wrong with your GK amp - at least give it a chance with the new cab before you decide.
Click to expand...

+1

The only reason I suggested a pre/power set up from what he has is that I dont know how much clean headroom he is going to want. Even a 12/6/1 isnt going to bat an eye at a 1001rb. If he does like the sound he gets with that amp, but wants a smaller for, the mb800 would be something to check out as well.
 
#9
Guitarists regularly use rigs with no tweeters and not one person ever said they weren't bright enough, and most you have to beg to turn the treble down. I used to own an 8 string and used cabs with no tweeters and not one person ever said I wasn't bright enough. Don't buy gear because you THINK you'll need it but aren't sure. You may be pleasantly surprised.
 
#10
JimmyM said:
Guitarists regularly use rigs with no tweeters and not one person ever said they weren't bright enough, and most you have to beg to turn the treble down. I used to own an 8 string and used cabs with no tweeters and not one person ever said I wasn't bright enough. Don't buy gear because you THINK you'll need it but aren't sure. You may be pleasantly surprised.
Click to expand...

I gotta agree somewhat with Jimmy on this one. I do occassionally use the tweeter on my 1212/6/1, and it's nice to have when I want it (I use a 6-string). But I can't say I've ever needed it. The 18 sound mid carries the extended range without any noticeable problems.

that being said, it's easier to have it built in than to install one later...
 
#12
Joe Louvar said:
+1. I think you are going to like/want a 3-way cabinet too.


EDIT: If there is nothing wrong with your GK amp - at least give it a chance with the new cab before you decide.
Click to expand...

Ideally that is what I am going to do at first. I'd like to keep the GK but wasn't sure if it would do the job hence the reason why I started this thread.

If I get this cab, most likely I will, I'll be using this as primary cab and have other basses (4,5 and 6s) I'd like to connect to. So a tweeter is likely to be installed, I use the tweeter and going to get the cab with a bi-amp option for use with the GK.
 
#14
ninefingerbass said:
I have an SWR 410 and GK 1001RB and I doubt it will do well with the higher strings.
Click to expand...

Why? If it's a Goliath cab it's probably rated to like 13KHz or something, which is WAY beyond the fundamental (and a lot of the harmonics) of any of the notes your bass will reach.

JimmyM said:
Guitarists regularly use rigs with no tweeters and not one person ever said they weren't bright enough, and most you have to beg to turn the treble down. I used to own an 8 string and used cabs with no tweeters and not one person ever said I wasn't bright enough. Don't buy gear because you THINK you'll need it but aren't sure. You may be pleasantly surprised.
Click to expand...

Also this.
 
#15
jungleheat said:
Why? If it's a Goliath cab it's probably rated to like 13KHz or something, which is WAY beyond the fundamental (and a lot of the harmonics) of any of the notes your bass will reach.



Also this.
Click to expand...

The tweeter would be for the basses that I have that don't go past the C string. If using the 8 string I would turn the tweeter off or turn it down.

bassgod- I think fearful offers biample connection but I'll have to make sure. I recalled seeing it on their site.

I also wouldn't mind a lighter cab, picking up the 410's is a pain in the @$$, not that I can't handle it but going lighter isn't such a bad idea either.
 
#16
ninefingerbass said:
bassgod- I think fearful offers biample connection but I'll have to make sure. I recalled seeing it on their site.
Click to expand...

Bi-amping
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bi-amping

And Note: “However, the crossovers themselves waste power; bi-amping along with active crossover components works around this problem by putting crossover networks before the amplifiers rather than between amplifiers and loudspeakers.” ;)
 
#19
ninefingerbass said:
The tweeter would be for the basses that I have that don't go past the C string. If using the 8 string I would turn the tweeter off or turn it down.
Click to expand...

Ok, I think you're kind of confused, so I'm not really sure how to help you. You want MORE high end, but you're going to turn OFF the tweeter on the higher range bass? If you just want more mid range, ANY decent bass cab should give it to you, all you have to do is basically dial it in on the amp. Then you use the pad on the back to tweak the tweeter to taste (on the GIII I usually like it about halfway for a passive bass, active basses, it depends on the bass itself). Midrange is basically free, because that's what the ear hears the easiest and is really easy for speakers to reproduce.

Also if I understand correctly, this extended range bass is not even BUILT yet, so you have NO idea how it will actually sound. So why are you trying to "guess" what you will need to pair it with? My guess is your SWR cab and GK head will do just fine UNLESS you already don't like the sound of them in general. If you DO like the sound of them in general and just want a lighter cab, maybe try one of the SWR Golights.
 

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