I'm looking for a new cab and a few have captured my attention... I play a Bee Bass fretless Groovebee in a church band which plays a very wide variety of styles and with a number of singer/songwriters. My current rig is a GB Shuttle 9.0 and an Acme B2 (4 ohm). I like the deep bottom of the B2 but the bottom end is a bit pillowy for me... I'd like to tighten it up some. And the mids and highs seem a bit weak compared to the bottom end. And the B2 is pretty inefficient. So, thinking about a new cab(s). I want/need something pretty transparent that gives me a good bottom end and strong but not overly emphasized mids. I don't play real loud, but that need could present itself at some point. I could purchase one cab and then a second if needed... but finances would become an issue over $1K. And I'm not a spring chicken so weight is an issue. I likely won't have the opportunity to try them before purchasing... I'd been thinking about a Genz Benz 1288 and have seen a couple of used ones and even a NOS one. Then I learned about the new Genzler 123. Both sound as if they might meet my needs with the 1288 being less expensive and the Genzler being significantly lighter and smaller without being less efficient. At a lower price point the Avatar SB126 and at a higher price point, the Barefaced Big Baby, Accugroove, or the Fearful with a 12 might work as well. Again, price begins to be an issue at about $1K. Any thoughts or testimonials???
All the enclosures you mentioned are good or great, and all will have a different voice. The fearful will be most like a big studio monitor with a flat accurate response. Testimonial?, I have a Fearful 115 at church and love it. I have a pair of 1288's that I have used in my loud classic rock/country band since they came out and love those. I also like my Berg NV115's for a totally different voice. I would like to try the new Genzler gear when I get a chance. You should really try to hear whatever you can before you spend your money. Good luck. Mark
I built a fEarful 12/6/1 a little while back and absolutely love it. The "big studio monitor" is a pretty accurate description. I also enjoyed the task of building the box, so there's that. I got to try out the Genzler 123 recently. If I didn't have the fEarful, I would have probably ordered one on the spot. Like you, I play fretless. With the amp (Shuttle 9.2) set flat, the response was very even across the entire neck. Lows were deep and clear without being boomy. Mids were present in appropriate amounts, and the highs were clear without being shrill. It responded very well to knob twiddling (boost, cut, pickup blend). I was really impressed. The interesting thing about the Genzler (and I urge you to try this if you get a chance) is how it sounds at a distance. It sounds really great up close (where we generally demo amps in a store) but once I stepped back 4 or 5 feet, the sound was even better. Again, very even sound throughout the register, but just a little "something" nicer. (BTW: this was outdoors.)
Revroy You might consider trying a different amp before you switch cabinets As I recall, the 9.0 series had a reasonably high HPF (meaning that it attenuates low end as a speaker saving tool) The 9.2 changes the HPF to a lower frequency and different slope I love my SM9.2 but feel that the HPF is still set a bit high for my tastes. OTOH, it is a speaker protector for the new player or the one that doesn’t hear (or care) about what the drivers are saying when pushed beyond design boundaries With experience, I believe that having the HPF set at a really low freq (like 30 Hz.) is preferable assuming that you have some training about knowing the sound of a speaker in trouble. Understood that manufacturers are concerned about warranty issues
My understanding Jim is that the tonal difference is pretty subtle between the 9.0 and 9.2 with the biggest difference being the "3d limiting" added to the .2 that only comes to play when you're really pushing the amp. The bottom end voicing of the 6.0 vs. 6.2 was pretty significant. In any case, more bottom end is not what I need with the B2. Unfortunately, I'll be buying blind in any case... but this is the kind of experience I was looking to hear. Again, I likely won't have a chance to hear any of them let alone all... Could you say a bit more about the different voicing of the 1288 vs. the Fearful?
I heard the new Genzler recently - very nice, defined upper register. Not terribly light compared to other newer options.
I have a 9.2 but don't use the Signal shape bit. We might be in the same ball-park. I do dial in a lot of mids, depending on the room/ other players. I use it with a 4x10 Focus GB cab. I have never been so satisfied with any gear before. It can do the big bass thing as well as a tight/ follow the kick drum thing.
This is sort of a zombie thread. I purchased the BA12-3 and it does pretty much exactly what I was looking for
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