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Finding 4x10 companion for a Little Mark

C

CodaPDX

Feb 2, 2009
55
0
#1
Currently I own an Ampeg BA115HP combo, and it's a great little amp. Well, maybe not little - the damn thing's about 90 pounds - but it's got a really nice tone and enough volume for small gigs. That said, I'm starting to really yearn for some more headroom and control, not to mention something a little easier to tote around. I've been reading a bunch of reviews, and amp-wise I'm pretty sold on the Little Mark II - it's tiny, flexible, powerful, and reasonably priced. Cab-wise, however, I'm nowhere near as certain. Part of me wants to just go with a MarkBass 4x10 - I've played the LMII through one and it sounded great, not to mention looked good with the yellow cones and all. But I'm curious if there's any better options out there. I saw a bunch of people mention Avatar cabs in another thread, but I'm a little leery of the whole 'buy it online without trying it out' aspect, not to mention the discount price - I don't want to buy a cab that's gonna crap out on me in a couple years.

Anyhow - lightweight 4x10s to go with the little yellow wonder: talk amongst yourselves.
 
#2
It really depends where on the planet you liveas to what kind of value for money you'll get.
Gallien Krueger cabs are wonderful - well I only have experience with the high end ones so I can't comment on the BLX or GLX range.

The Markbass speaker cabinets are very good in my opinion and reeeeally lightweight. The Markbass 4x10 feels like an empty box compared with my old Ampeg 410HLF!

That said, I play through an Ampeg 810 so weight isn't my concern.

Seriously though, the Markbass cabs are great.
 
#3
+1 on the 4x10 and LM2 combination.

I use it as my main rig (with a Marcus Miller M2 Preamp) and love the sound.


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#5
1: I have to say, I just took my LM2 back because I personally prefer the Genz Benz amps.. btw if you buy a new LM2 don't pay over 450 for it ;)
2: the Markbass cabs are nice but they are a little overpriced imo... I recently listened to nearly ever 4x10 I could get my hands on (which covered most of the big names except for bergantino)... I ended up with a 4x10 powerhouse mesa... my second choice was an Aguilar and third was Epifani...

Of course it's easy for me to go listen to a bunch of cabs as I live in Los Angeles.... if all else fails just buy a few cabs... then sell the ones you don't like.... it's called buy and try :p
 
#7
Depending on your budget, the best light weight 4x10 cabs for the LMII are the Epifani UL410 and the Bergantino AE410. Both are on the expensive side, but you'll find none better IMO.
 
#8
I understand your concern with not being able to try it out before purchasing. I am taking the "leap of faith" with Avatar simply based upon everything I have read about them in the press and, more importantly, owners. They seem to be very good cabs, particularly for the money. I was happy to find a quality manufacturer who deals directly with the customer. That eliminates the middle-man and, I suspect Avatar is letting most of those savings flow directly the the customer. I get my cabinets tomorrow (212 neo and 410 neo). Check back with me in about a week and I'll let you know how I feel about them.
 
#9
Tony G said:
Depending on your budget, the best light weight 4x10 cabs for the LMII are the Epifani UL410 and the Bergantino AE410. Both are on the expensive side, but you'll find none better IMO.
Click to expand...

+1 on the Epifani UL-410 it is smoking! I actually use the F1 through it. I like the F1 over the LMII (IMO/IME of course!)
 
#11
Thanks for the suggestions, everyone.

Pricewise, the GK NEO410 is significantly cheaper than the others, at $600 MSRP. That's two thirds of what they're asking for the MarkBass - worth trying it out with the LM, at any rate.

The Epi is the most expensive, at $1150, but it also seems to have garnered the most praise. Still, that's over 20% more cash than the MarkBass - nothing to sneeze at, and I'm thinking out of my price range unless a half price LMII drops into my lap. Likewise for the Bergantino.

The Aguilar seems pretty comparable in price to the MarkBass at $950, but it weighs almost 100 pounds. I'm pretty freaking strong for a chick, but I'd still like to cut down on the risk of throwing out my back loading it in my car. Likewise for the Mesa. : \

So, sounds like I should check out the GK, try to learn more about the Avatar, and pray for a deal to materialize on an Epifani. And if nothing satisfies, then a MarkBass it is.

Which brings me to impedance - 4 or 8 ohms? I'm leaning towards 4. I figure if I'm at a gig where they need more sound than a LMII putting all 500 watts into a 4x10 can provide, then I'm probably going to be plugging into a DI, anyway.

Another question - what's the difference between the sound of a front-ported cab and a rear-ported one? MarkBass offers both kinds of 4x10.
 
#15
Go the front ported Markbass 4x10 - tried both but the front ported just made me "feel" more bottom end - im sure someone will point out some hz over distance over time thingy but seriously the difference was noticable.
I run the 8 ohm 4x10 cab with my LM2 and never have had to need a second cab AND still have heaps of headroom on the amp. - This setup is LOUD!!!!!!!!...or maybe im just old...*sniff...lol
 
#16
CodaPDX said:
Thanks for the suggestions, everyone.

Pricewise, the GK NEO410 is significantly cheaper than the others, at $600 MSRP. That's two thirds of what they're asking for the MarkBass - worth trying it out with the LM, at any rate.

The Epi is the most expensive, at $1150, but it also seems to have garnered the most praise. Still, that's over 20% more cash than the MarkBass - nothing to sneeze at, and I'm thinking out of my price range unless a half price LMII drops into my lap. Likewise for the Bergantino.

The Aguilar seems pretty comparable in price to the MarkBass at $950, but it weighs almost 100 pounds. I'm pretty freaking strong for a chick, but I'd still like to cut down on the risk of throwing out my back loading it in my car. Likewise for the Mesa. : \

So, sounds like I should check out the GK, try to learn more about the Avatar, and pray for a deal to materialize on an Epifani. And if nothing satisfies, then a MarkBass it is.

Which brings me to impedance - 4 or 8 ohms? I'm leaning towards 4. I figure if I'm at a gig where they need more sound than a LMII putting all 500 watts into a 4x10 can provide, then I'm probably going to be plugging into a DI, anyway.

Another question - what's the difference between the sound of a front-ported cab and a rear-ported one? MarkBass offers both kinds of 4x10.
Click to expand...
I wouldn't bother with a 4 ohm 410. The volume difference between 300w and 500w into the same cab isn't all that great. I'd get an 8 ohm, and then if you expand later, the extra speaker surface and the 500w will give you a much bigger volume difference than just adding more wattage.

As for the differences with Markbass 410's, the front ported cab is bigger so it sounds heavier on the bottom than the rear ported cab. I like them both, but I prefer the bigger cab. The smaller Markbass cabs can tend to be a little light on the bottom end. The smaller cabs still sound great, and the lighter low end on the smaller cab is actually preferred by some because it's impossible to make them sound muddy, so you really can't go wrong with either.
 
#17
JimmyM said:
I wouldn't bother with a 4 ohm 410. The volume difference between 300w and 500w into the same cab isn't all that great. I'd get an 8 ohm, and then if you expand later, the extra speaker surface and the 500w will give you a much bigger volume difference than just adding more wattage.

As for the differences with Markbass 410's, the front ported cab is bigger so it sounds heavier on the bottom than the rear ported cab. I like them both, but I prefer the bigger cab. The smaller Markbass cabs can tend to be a little light on the bottom end. The smaller cabs still sound great, and the lighter low end on the smaller cab is actually preferred by some because it's impossible to make them sound muddy, so you really can't go wrong with either.
Click to expand...

As has been posted many times by many of us, the LMII behaves MUCH better run at 4ohms when you are talking about a large, multidriver cab that can easily handle the additional power. The difference is very noticable... more open low end, less power amp limiting when pushed, and more volume.

I've found either the Epifani 410UL (4ohm) if you like big, wide pure tone, or the Bergantino AE410 (4om) if you like it tigher, punchier and a little more grindy/aggressive are both wonderful matches for the LMII.
 
#18
While what you say is true, Ken, how loud do you need to be? I can barely turn my LMII past 10:00 with the gain up halfway. You pretty much have to have the LMII up all the way to hit the limiter. Yeah, I've heard it hit the limiter and it's kind of nasty, but you really have to be cranking to hit it. So if you're going to top out your volume constantly, maybe it's a good idea to go 4 ohm. Otherwise...eh...
 
#19
Tony G said:
Depending on your budget, the best light weight 4x10 cabs for the LMII are the Epifani UL410 and the Bergantino AE410. Both are on the expensive side, but you'll find none better IMO.
Click to expand...

Bang...

Like most of the folks on here...Both those cabs are killer and I like both.

Its what you lean towards.

I personally like and use the AE410

I'm no fan of 8 ohm cabs unless they are 12's that I can stack.

Now because of the budget aspect I would like to mention a big sleeper.

The Carvin is very very good...Not as light as the other Neo cabs I think they are at about 70-75 lbs but sound real good. You can return the Carvin if you don't dig it.
 
#20
JimmyM said:
While what you say is true, Ken, how loud do you need to be? I can barely turn my LMII past 10:00 with the gain up halfway. You pretty much have to have the LMII up all the way to hit the limiter. Yeah, I've heard it hit the limiter and it's kind of nasty, but you really have to be cranking to hit it. So if you're going to top out your volume constantly, maybe it's a good idea to go 4 ohm. Otherwise...eh...
Click to expand...

As posted many times by many TBers, trying to judge 'how loud another player needs to be' is a losing game. Everyone has different needs. My point is always if you have a big enough cab to make use of the extra wattage, and know you will only be using a single cab solution, there is very little if any disadvantage to going with a 4ohm solution.

Also, you are not taking into account that transients with some playing styles (like slap or hard pick playing) can easily push a power amp to full output for short periods of time. Having enough power is the difference between those transients sounding pure, clean, even and open versus dull and compressed IMO and painfully IME!
 

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