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fearful 15/6 vs lds 15/6
- Thread starter bass7858
- Start date
To blur the lines even further Don appears to have built my 15/6 exactly to Greenboy's specs and I know for a fact he used Greenboy's crossover. I just had to tell him to do it that way at the outset and he did.
That's cool, but until he's on Greenboy's list of authorized fEARful builders, he builds nEARfuls.
Me too. My LDS 15/6 with 500 watts never gets pushed hard and is VERY loud and low. Amazing cab.
Sigh.
For many years, before the concept of "authorized builders" existed, Don was one of the few custom cabinet builders available for those of us unwilling or unable to build the cab for ourselves. Don did not offer these cabs directly, merely built them to customers requests. He did make some modifications to the plan where he saw weaknesses. As one of the few people on this board who have apparently compared a nEarful and a fEarful, I can tell you that I can't find any deficiencies in Don's work.
I'm going to guess that Don will never appear on that list, as he only builds custom cabs.
I've directly compared my LDS 15/6 to a "to spec" fEarful, and while there were SLIGHTLY different voicings given the same amp, bass, settings, etc. it certainly wasn't anything substantial, and definitely not something you'd notice in a mix. I'm guessing most of that was down to different crossover designs more than the slight differences in box design. Max SPL was indistinguishable between the two, and capable of being deafening in both cases.
Are they different? Absolutely. Does it matter? Not to me. Are they both amazing cabs? Absolutely. I'd happily use either one. Since I bought two 15/6's (gave one to my stepdad for Father's Day) before the list of approved builders was populated with more than a couple of guys, I went the LDS route, and it has served me very well.
Are they different? Absolutely. Does it matter? Not to me. Are they both amazing cabs? Absolutely. I'd happily use either one. Since I bought two 15/6's (gave one to my stepdad for Father's Day) before the list of approved builders was populated with more than a couple of guys, I went the LDS route, and it has served me very well.
There is another aspect to this that is being overlooked. Greenboy gets a commission from every build undertaken by an Authorized Builder. He spent many hours perfecting this design and personally, I think its only fair that he gets a little bit of payback. Since LDS is not an Authorized Builder GB gets nothing even though its his plans that are being used. Heck building the actual cab is not that hard as I can attest to since I am currently building one myself. The source of the magic of this cab is the design and in my mind GB deserves something for that. You could always donate to GB directly thru his fEARful forum, if you are so inclined. Others have done that in the past and I think that's an honourable thing to do.
Again, this is a bit of revisionist history. Greenboy did for years (and still does, I believe) offered his design for free to anyone who wanted it. The plans could be viewed directly on his website. He did not ask for money. A person could take the design and do with it as they please. So many of us did, and that included finding a builder willing and able to build the cabinet and associated electronics.
Your post implies that those that have used the design should feel some obligation to donate funds, or should feel some guilt if having the cab built by a "non-authorized" builder. In my mind, nothing could be further from the truth. GB chose to distribute his plans for free.
Totally. Don never went around advertising "nEarful" cabs, EVER. He has never mentioned fEarful or anything to do with it on his website, either. He'll discuss what you want, give advice, listen to your instructions and build a cab for you, period. The transformation of the plans into a for profit business by Greenboy came later, and that's totally cool. I am happy for him. I am also totally satisfied with my LDS cabs and wish folks would get off Don's back. If you want a fEarful, there are now options to have one built by an authorized builder. If you want it different, or similar, or whatever, there are many other custom makers (including LDS) to choose from. Get over it.
The pictured rig (55 lb LDS 15/6, 25 lb rack with GK MB800, dBX compressor, tuner, power strip) is light, easy to move, sounds killer and fills pretty much any room I play with gloriously fat, defined bass throughout the spectrum
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I didn't ask you if you cared. I was just stating a fact. I've never seen one of Don's cabs, but from what I've read, he does great work.
Doooooood. I looked at your rig and Paul Bordeaux's setup and had "rack envy", LOL. You (and the M9) also got me addicted to compression
I prefer the deeper lows of the LDS to the TC. Parted with the M9 but miss it.
And back OT, Don DOES do amazing work. His building and finish work are surpassed by none IME. BTW I am keeping my LDS 15/6 but selling a brand new LDS 12/6 (shameless plug)-see the classifieds.
Yeah, when I say he doesn't build fEARfuls, I'm not "piling on" him at all. I'm just saying he isn't on the "official list". That doesn't mean he can't read specs and build to them. If he builds a cab to fEARful specs, it's gonna sound like a fEARful.
Yeah, we've been over this before so I'll mention one last thought and leave it alone. GB did offer these plans for free but it clearly states on his website the plans are for non-commercial use. A guy like me can view the plans and build the cab... and thats what he intended. He did not intend for a business like LDS to profit from his design. That said, I know it likely puts Don in a difficult spot when someone asks specifically for a GB spec'd fEARful cab and of course Don wants the business so he's not likely going to turn it down. I guess I am just saying in a perfect world a small sum could be donated to GB for his design. Perhaps Don could say, "Yes I can build you a fEARful but there is an upcharge that will be forwarded to the designer for his plans." In a perfect world...
Anyways, LDS does do great work and I would definitely recommend him to someone who is looking to get a custom cab built. I owned a squat style LDS 15/6 that was very nicely built and sounded great.
Yes, this has been covered a number of times.
Unfortunately, it doesn't work the way you described above. There's no way to make a design public, then dictate who can use it or how. If some of us choose to employ a cabinet builder to build the cabinet, then that is our choice. Don has no obligation to pay GB for providing build services for his clients. Is a ridiculous assumption and the animosity against Don that is held by certain fanboys is misplaced and unwarranted.
There actually is a way to make a design public and then dictate who can use it or how. It's called about 3 different flavors of open software licenses. And there are some with roleplaying games and story settings and so on as well (Creative commons licenses, the D20 license).
It's a shame Greenboy didn't think to put one of those (GNU, GPL, etc.) on there
It's a shame Greenboy didn't think to put one of those (GNU, GPL, etc.) on there
rpsands said:There actually is a way to make a design public and then dictate who can use it or how. It's called about 3 different flavors of open software licenses. And there are some with roleplaying games and story settings and so on as well (Creative commons licenses, the D20 license).
It's a shame Greenboy didn't think to put one of those (GNU, GPL, etc.) on there
I don't believe these would be applicable here.
