- May 12, 2007
- 481
- 43
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist for Low End bass guitars, DNA Amplification
Hi guys. Thought Id post my impressions of my new DNA/David Nordschow DNS-410 cab. Ive been waiting for quite a while for them to come out, and with some strategic phone calls, Ive got mine in-hand! Mine is part of the first factory run, and Im posting pics here so you can get a look at what these things are like right out of the gate.
Let me hit some of the non-audio stuff first.
I received the cab Thursday, October 21 (or, rather, I went to the Estes loading dock to pick it up, since they wanted to deliver it the next day). The DNS-410 comes in two flavors - 4Ω or 8Ω (You want the 4, unless youve got some specific reason why you need 8Ωs). 1400W RMS, 2800W Peak (Now I have to get a new power amp!). SPL right at 137db. The company page with some computerized renders is here:
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed].
The DNS-410 comes (for now) with DNL10XT speakers Im hoping for a neodymium version, so I can get the weight down. Still, its only 79lbs not the end of the world (My Eden metro combo weighs more than that). Design is outstanding seems are tiny and uniform, everything is very solid, and the handles are very stout not plastic-y at all (Ive no idea what theyre made of). High points (for me) include an embedded RFID tag that you can register with the company (GREATLY helps recover lost gear) and a real two way x-over, as opposed to a simple high-pass circuit. Mine is the rat fur version (which I actually prefer), and the cab was covered and finished *very* cleanly. *Very Solid* is the phrase that springs to mind. The only issue I was with the cab upon unpacking was that the front-loaded tweeter attenuator (Something new from David Eden stuff had the attenuators on the back) was slightly mis-aligned. More on that below.
The Audio stuff.
Im going to borrow my drummers Zoom and record some sound bites; for now, Ill just tell you about it. After breaking it in for a few hours (Just ran some music at a reasonable volume through it to let the contact surfaces polish, things seat, etc.), I put about 750W program power to it and started beating on it. I played a Low End Jazz 5 into an older Eden metro (that I love love love), and then into the DNS-410. Of course it sounded good thats to be expected. The bits that need to be mentioned are these: the attack is unbelievable. If you bang a higher register note (E on the G string, for instance) with any authority, the power and definition coming out of this thing is scary, and its absolutely instant this cab goes from 0 to a million miles per hour just as fast as you can hit the note. Same with the low E, D, C, B the sound just appears. The lower registers are very well defined, no burpiness at all, and the speakers do a great job preserving the upper mids while the low notes are booming. The volume is amazing granted, I only have 750W to push (for now) it with, but the SPL is very impressive. One of the disconcerting features of the cab is how transparent it is. Some cabs (SVT, Goliath, etc) can color the sound (often in a pleasing, classic way), and can be an integral part of the artists signal chain; some cabs seem to strive to offer a flatter, more accurate representation of the sound theyre reproducing. The DNS-410 is *far and away* in the latter category. This is a Good Thing, for me at least, since I want to reproduce a lot of different tones, but it can be disconcerting; everything you do is faithfully reproduced. If your muting or picking technique needs cleaning up, youll know it instantly. If, however, you feel like youre spot on playing some rising dynamic line with some subtle swells or vibrato, or a fast staccato finger-style run, youll be blown away at how crisp and clean it all sounds. And loud. Did I mention loud?
Customer Service. This section almost started out differently.
I knew I wanted a DNA 410 cab, way back when before I even knew when they would become available. I was already in the process of finding a local dealer so I could pre-order one when I met Lane Baldwin (Lane on Bass), and was able to get one of the initial run cabs fast-tracked to middle Tennessee. Out of the box, as above, it all looked great, except for the misaligned tweeter attenuator. The knob didnt *quite* fit perfectly in the recessed collar, and it rubbed the side a little bit when you turned it. This was a little disappointing, but not the end of the world, particularly on a first production run item Im an engineer myself, so I was looking for little things like this seams, alignments, fastening strategies, materials, etc. I sent an email to DNA Thursday night with some pics of the problem. I expected to get something back, some sort of acknowledgement that my email had been received (I mentioned in my email that Id be happy to keep the cab exactly as it was as a first factory run, though, I wanted to alert DNA to a potential problem). This morning (Saturday), Lane Baldwin called me about my cab. Then, Lane *drove* down to my house, and took a look at the problem. He called David Nordschow on the phone, and while they were talking, Lane pulled the grill on my amp, and took a look at the tweeter attenuator post and mounting structures. He really spent a lot of time on it, and he and David decided that theyd send me a new grill that David believes will fix the problem (if its just a bad grill), and if that doesnt fix it, theyll drop ship me a brand new cab. I know, after doing some searches on TalkBass about DNA (looking for reviews before buying) that theres been some Lane is a prick talk, and some DNA is just eminence speakers in a box, it cant do what they claim, etc type talk as well. I have to tell you guys: those are just words. Ive got some pics to post that demonstrate the reality for a prick, Lane still drove up here and spent 90 minutes looking at my rig and talking to the engineer that designed it before explaining to me that they were going to make it right, whatever it takes. From my experience, bass gear vendors could stand to have a few more of those pricks around. As far as the naysayers who claim these cabs cant do what David and DNA can mine sounds like a stick of dynamite dipped in blowjobs, and Ive got the p.od neighbors to prove it.
If youre in the middle Tennessee area and want to check it out, drop me a line, and Ill be more than happy to let you plug in and take it for a drive. If youre interested in having a DNA cab of your very own, Id suggest talking to Brian Barrett at The Low End hes just become a dealer, and should have some cabs in-store very soon.
Flames? Very interested please send them directly to me at [email protected] and Ill get right back to you.
Peace, love, etc!
Back of the cab.
Beside the metro.
Up close. Very clean assembly.
Corners and seams - very clean. Note the handle reinforcement layer over top of the grip.
Handle design - great for two people. Not too bad for one, but I've already got the casters on order. Can you believe that's rat fur (which I prefer)? Very clean finish all over.
Lane Baldwin of DNA Amps. Drove to my house to take a look at my cab, and then told me they'd take care of everything. What a prick.
Let me hit some of the non-audio stuff first.
I received the cab Thursday, October 21 (or, rather, I went to the Estes loading dock to pick it up, since they wanted to deliver it the next day). The DNS-410 comes in two flavors - 4Ω or 8Ω (You want the 4, unless youve got some specific reason why you need 8Ωs). 1400W RMS, 2800W Peak (Now I have to get a new power amp!). SPL right at 137db. The company page with some computerized renders is here:
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed].
The DNS-410 comes (for now) with DNL10XT speakers Im hoping for a neodymium version, so I can get the weight down. Still, its only 79lbs not the end of the world (My Eden metro combo weighs more than that). Design is outstanding seems are tiny and uniform, everything is very solid, and the handles are very stout not plastic-y at all (Ive no idea what theyre made of). High points (for me) include an embedded RFID tag that you can register with the company (GREATLY helps recover lost gear) and a real two way x-over, as opposed to a simple high-pass circuit. Mine is the rat fur version (which I actually prefer), and the cab was covered and finished *very* cleanly. *Very Solid* is the phrase that springs to mind. The only issue I was with the cab upon unpacking was that the front-loaded tweeter attenuator (Something new from David Eden stuff had the attenuators on the back) was slightly mis-aligned. More on that below.
The Audio stuff.
Im going to borrow my drummers Zoom and record some sound bites; for now, Ill just tell you about it. After breaking it in for a few hours (Just ran some music at a reasonable volume through it to let the contact surfaces polish, things seat, etc.), I put about 750W program power to it and started beating on it. I played a Low End Jazz 5 into an older Eden metro (that I love love love), and then into the DNS-410. Of course it sounded good thats to be expected. The bits that need to be mentioned are these: the attack is unbelievable. If you bang a higher register note (E on the G string, for instance) with any authority, the power and definition coming out of this thing is scary, and its absolutely instant this cab goes from 0 to a million miles per hour just as fast as you can hit the note. Same with the low E, D, C, B the sound just appears. The lower registers are very well defined, no burpiness at all, and the speakers do a great job preserving the upper mids while the low notes are booming. The volume is amazing granted, I only have 750W to push (for now) it with, but the SPL is very impressive. One of the disconcerting features of the cab is how transparent it is. Some cabs (SVT, Goliath, etc) can color the sound (often in a pleasing, classic way), and can be an integral part of the artists signal chain; some cabs seem to strive to offer a flatter, more accurate representation of the sound theyre reproducing. The DNS-410 is *far and away* in the latter category. This is a Good Thing, for me at least, since I want to reproduce a lot of different tones, but it can be disconcerting; everything you do is faithfully reproduced. If your muting or picking technique needs cleaning up, youll know it instantly. If, however, you feel like youre spot on playing some rising dynamic line with some subtle swells or vibrato, or a fast staccato finger-style run, youll be blown away at how crisp and clean it all sounds. And loud. Did I mention loud?
Customer Service. This section almost started out differently.
I knew I wanted a DNA 410 cab, way back when before I even knew when they would become available. I was already in the process of finding a local dealer so I could pre-order one when I met Lane Baldwin (Lane on Bass), and was able to get one of the initial run cabs fast-tracked to middle Tennessee. Out of the box, as above, it all looked great, except for the misaligned tweeter attenuator. The knob didnt *quite* fit perfectly in the recessed collar, and it rubbed the side a little bit when you turned it. This was a little disappointing, but not the end of the world, particularly on a first production run item Im an engineer myself, so I was looking for little things like this seams, alignments, fastening strategies, materials, etc. I sent an email to DNA Thursday night with some pics of the problem. I expected to get something back, some sort of acknowledgement that my email had been received (I mentioned in my email that Id be happy to keep the cab exactly as it was as a first factory run, though, I wanted to alert DNA to a potential problem). This morning (Saturday), Lane Baldwin called me about my cab. Then, Lane *drove* down to my house, and took a look at the problem. He called David Nordschow on the phone, and while they were talking, Lane pulled the grill on my amp, and took a look at the tweeter attenuator post and mounting structures. He really spent a lot of time on it, and he and David decided that theyd send me a new grill that David believes will fix the problem (if its just a bad grill), and if that doesnt fix it, theyll drop ship me a brand new cab. I know, after doing some searches on TalkBass about DNA (looking for reviews before buying) that theres been some Lane is a prick talk, and some DNA is just eminence speakers in a box, it cant do what they claim, etc type talk as well. I have to tell you guys: those are just words. Ive got some pics to post that demonstrate the reality for a prick, Lane still drove up here and spent 90 minutes looking at my rig and talking to the engineer that designed it before explaining to me that they were going to make it right, whatever it takes. From my experience, bass gear vendors could stand to have a few more of those pricks around. As far as the naysayers who claim these cabs cant do what David and DNA can mine sounds like a stick of dynamite dipped in blowjobs, and Ive got the p.od neighbors to prove it.
If youre in the middle Tennessee area and want to check it out, drop me a line, and Ill be more than happy to let you plug in and take it for a drive. If youre interested in having a DNA cab of your very own, Id suggest talking to Brian Barrett at The Low End hes just become a dealer, and should have some cabs in-store very soon.
Flames? Very interested please send them directly to me at [email protected] and Ill get right back to you.
Peace, love, etc!
Back of the cab.
Beside the metro.
Up close. Very clean assembly.
Corners and seams - very clean. Note the handle reinforcement layer over top of the grip.
Handle design - great for two people. Not too bad for one, but I've already got the casters on order. Can you believe that's rat fur (which I prefer)? Very clean finish all over.
Lane Baldwin of DNA Amps. Drove to my house to take a look at my cab, and then told me they'd take care of everything. What a prick.
