fEARful part 13: the bad luck's done, son

[monsterthompson]

Anyone with a 15/6 from Ron and a bathroom scale care to chime in? I'm trying to get an idea of the Nidacore weight savings on the AoN cabs. I know they say that material is 1/3 the plywood weights, but I['m not sure how that translates to total weight with components loaded in. Since I live in CA, the sales tax issue makes the cost diference between the two less of an issue.

 

[rpsands]

Ron can build out of Okoume which should be substantially lighter than birch. There is a local supplier in CA I believe.

 

[makohund]

When you get your cabinets, I'm sure you'll feel that the wait was worth it. I don't think anyone is making a better cabinet than Ron. His attention to detail is really impressive.

I'll second that. Got my 1212/6/1 (serial #0001! ) from him near the end of July. It's a beautiful little beast of a cab. Not a featherweight (81 lbs on his scale) but built to take a lifetime of hard gigging. Sounds amazing of course. Agreed, worth every penny.

And the packing that he did to ship the cabinet was AMAZING. Easily the best packing job for ANY product I've ever bought!

No kidding. If they had tied a rope to it and dragged/bounced it behind the truck the entire 1000+ miles, I think it still would have been fine.

 

[monsterthompson]

I'll second that. Got my 1212/6/1 (serial #0001! ) from him near the end of July. It's a beautiful little beast of a cab. Not a featherweight (81 lbs on his scale) but built to take a lifetime of hard gigging. Sounds amazing of course. Agreed, worth every penny.

Dang. AoN claims a 45lbs build for that cab. I'd consider the bulk for 45, but 81 is hefty. Guess Nidacore is pretty low density stuff.

 

[greenboy]

Not to detract from Ron who like other authorized builders has become a great daily friend aside from the enclosure stuff. Where in fact Ron is a king among men who builds enclosures that that will last a lifetime and always be a pleasure to hear and use.

But people should also consider the other builders as well. They are all encouraged to be the best they can be, and I do keep up with what they are all doing as much as is possible. We talk on the phone a lot and discuss building and tools and procedures, and I've seen a lot of their work in detailed photos. I even get cab prototypes from some of them. I don't want to see anyone deserving not also getting a place in the sun.

As far as I am aware - and here's where I always desire feedback from buyers - all these guys go above and beyond what is required in building, and in business and communication, and I expect all the guys to meet their quoted delivery schedules as promptly as is possible. I don't want anybody on the list that isn't really into all this CS stuff. I know they all love to be cab luthiers and they get what the fEARful is about personally so I don't want anyone left out!

 

[monsterthompson]

Greenboy, I'd certainly consider others based on geography. For me, Ron is CA based, so that makes sense, and AoN offers a unique element with their material choice, so I'm deciding between those two. if I lived elsewhere, I'd consider other builders. I'm assuming that variations in the materials offered by these builders don't offer significant differences in sound quality, otherwise, I'd expect you'd not list the deviants on your site.

 

[gregbackstrom]

Not to detract from Ron who like other authorized builders has become a great daily friend aside from the enclosure stuff. Where in fact Ron is a king among men who builds enclosures that that will last a lifetime and always be a pleasure to hear and use.

But people should also consider the other builders as well. They are all encouraged to be the best they can be, and I do keep up with what they are all doing as much as is possible. We talk on the phone a lot and discuss building and tools and procedures, and I've seen a lot of their work in detailed photos. I even get cab prototypes from some of them. I don't want to see anyone deserving not also getting a place in the sun.

As far as I am aware - and here's where I always desire feedback from buyers - all these guys go above and beyond what is required in building, and in business and communication, and I expect all the guys to meet their quoted delivery schedules as promptly as is possible. I don't want anybody on the list that isn't really into all this CS stuff. I know they all love to be cab luthiers and they get what the fEARful is about personally so I don't want anyone left out!

When I commented that no one is making cabinets better than Ron's, I wasn't trying to draw a comparison with other fEARful builders. I was thinking more of Mesa, Epifani, Bergantino, etc. I suspect the other licensed fEARful builders are highly-talented too, but I haven't seen their work!

But Ron's I can vouch for!!

 

[greenboy]

I got ya, guys. Ron has a devotion to building clean impregnable boxes that could withstand an artillery assault. Even without the shipping packaging ; } - and still sound great afterwards.

I just want people who haven't decided yet to know that I'm trying to make sure all the builders are about quality and good customer support experiences too. I won't recommend one over another. Each builder has his own idea of what finishes and grill options and so on to offer, so that's always part of the process too...

Anyway, I'm glad the initial results are rocking your worlds. Hopefully the honeymoon is only a taste of what the marriage will be.

 

[popgadget]

I'll second that. Not a featherweight (81 lbs on his scale) but built to take a lifetime of hard gigging.

And to think that I was disappointed that my 1212/6/1 came in at just over 73lbs. I don't feel bad about the weight any more. I am loving the sound though.
My cabinet before any finish, hardware grill or drivers was about 35 lbs, so unless you omit the handles and wheels, I'm not sure that a composite build could save as much as 20lbs. Does anyone have actual weights for a composite 1212/6/1?

 

[monsterthompson]

They claim the composite is 1/3 the weight, so a 35lbs wood cab would be just under 12lbs of composite. Add in the extra material they use for the thicker-than spec dimensions and I'd say that it would be about 15lbs, meaning 20lbs of savings.

 

[Passinwind]

Dang. AoN claims a 45lbs build for that cab. I'd consider the bulk for 45, but 81 is hefty. Guess Nidacore is pretty low density stuff.

Robby at AoN bailed on Nidacore very quickly, as soon as it became apparent it failed to meet published specs. His current builds look much better.

 

[monsterthompson]

Interesting that they haven't changed their marketing to reflect that.

 

[KJung]

Interesting that they haven't changed their marketing to reflect that.

I believe as you dig into the website, you can see the current build materials, etc. (i.e., the fiberglass type material, with the wood inserts where drivers are mounted, etc.). It is pricey, but hopefully the weight will come in close to what was promised... under 40 pounds for my 15/6.

I'm kind of doing this as a bit of a science project, and also realized there were quite a few issues with these. I'm hoping that it has all been sorted out. I'll let you know.

He quoted 4 to 6 weeks (about 2 weeks ago). With the Holiday Season approaching, I'm assuming 8-10, but am hoping to be pleasantly surprised (which has yet to happen on the timing of a custom cab).

I'll post up the good, the bad, and the ugly (if there is any) next month when it lands!

 

[domestique]

KJung, I didn't know you were joining the dark side.

Do you have anyone near by you that you could A/B the fiberglass with the traditional baltic birch? I ended up going with Ron Anchak as I was a little nervous about moving away from Greenboys original build specs and shipping a fiberglass cab across country.

 

[KJung]

KJung, I didn't know you were joining the dark side.

Do you have anyone near by you that you could A/B the fiberglass with the traditional baltic birch? I ended up going with Ron Anchak as I was a little nervous about moving away from Greenboys original build specs and shipping a fiberglass cab across country.

I don't have access to a completely identical 15/6 spec in wood. I've played a lot of them though (in various formats), and do have a Wisconsin buddy that has the bigger version (the 'B' or something).

I'm actually more interested in the material than any thing else. Very curious, and always looking for something that sounds good that is stupid light. I realize I might be taking a bit of risk on this one, since it does seem quite cutting edge.

I am really looking forward to this cab with my 5 string P and my Streamliner. Should sound quite good, and if the spec comes through as promised, not much heavier than some neo 112's!

I'll post up. I can't believe the tone would be meanignfully different with the same hardware, box size and tuning.

 

[scowboy]

Tho I'm not a fEARful owner. I do have an IPR 1600 though. I took some black paint from a spray can and dabbed it onto the LED's. Two coats worth really tamed them down. However I need to do the same to the ones on the left side behind the logo!

The IPR is a great amp!!! And I'd love to hear a fEARful.

I used black sharpie on mine and they're still seizure inducingly bright.

 

[Passinwind]

Interesting that they haven't changed their marketing to reflect that.

Huh? I just looked at the website (albeit briefly) and didn't see Nidacore mentioned at all?

 

[monsterthompson]

Doesn't say Nidacore, but I assumed that was the material the site was describing:

Link Removed
"Our proprietary composite is laminated in house. It is 1/3rd the weight of Baltic Birch plywood, stronger, more durable, impervious to water, humidity, and chemicals.

The material uses a 1" foam core sandwiched between layers of fiberglass and epoxy."

Link Removed
"Are these built to exact the fEARful™ spec?

Almost. Our cored material is stronger when it is thicker. Doubling the thickness increases stiffness by 500%. This is why we use thicker material. As a result, our 1" cabinets are made with minimal bracing and are stronger than a heavily braced 1/2" plywood cabinet. The internal dimensions are the same."

 

[KJung]

Doesn't say Nidacore, but I assumed that was the material the site was describing:

Link Removed
"Our proprietary composite is laminated in house. It is 1/3rd the weight of Baltic Birch plywood, stronger, more durable, impervious to water, humidity, and chemicals.

The material uses a 1" foam core sandwiched between layers of fiberglass and epoxy."

Link Removed
"Are these built to exact the fEARful™ spec?

Almost. Our cored material is stronger when it is thicker. Doubling the thickness increases stiffness by 500%. This is why we use thicker material. As a result, our 1" cabinets are made with minimal bracing and are stronger than a heavily braced 1/2" plywood cabinet. The internal dimensions are the same."

That is what they are using now... some sort of fiberglass/foam composite. Looks pretty cool, and it seems that this material is allowing him to hit that ridiculous weight spec. We shall see!

 

[Passinwind]

Doesn't say Nidacore, but I assumed that was the material the site was describing:

Nope. He's laminating his own panels, and that's a much better process and product at this time, IMHO.