LDS 1x8 and 2x8 3ways vs. Epi UL110

Aw gee mac, thanks for making the choices clearer. Here I was set on a LDS 2x8 or an EA 2x8 (when it comes out) and now you do this!

Kidding! Thanks for the review.

 

macmrkt, you just never let up do you? Talk about the relentless pursuit of "the" tone!

It's apparent that you were surprised with the results of this test. So am I actually.

I think a lot of people get real good at practicing self-deception when they buy equipment, 'cuz they want to feel like they made the right decision on how they spent their hard earned $. I think you have to be pretty open minded and have big ears to admit when maybe what you thought was #1 yesterday might not be #1 after all. Granted, LDS and Epi both make outstanding products I'm sure.

Anyway, here's a genuine "Thank you!" for taking the time to write up these impressions, and all the other evaluations you've done. You and Tom Bowlus (and many others) are better than a Consumer Reports for DB.

 

Just returned from St. Louis where I had the pleasure of hearing Ric Vice's new LDS 2x8 three way powered by an older Walter Woods and fed by a Realist pickup. It was one of the best live DB sounds I've heard to date. Ric's LDS has the B&C drivers (that Epi uses). It was warm, articulate and clear up and down the neck.... amazing sounding.

I love my EpiUL's for EB, and I bet that little 110UL also sounds great. When you get to that level of quality, it's almost just pure personal taste.

However, that little LDS box sounded AMAZING on the gig.

 

Nice review as usual!

I corresponded briefly with Martin regarding a similar comparison that I recently did (bass guitar only) of a variety of 1x10's and 1x8's. My results were pretty similar, though I will add (as a teaser!) that the Epi T-110UL (same cab as the UL110, I believe) was probably my favorite all around cab at the lower to moderate volume settings. At higher volumes settings (playing fingerstyle on a 5-string electric bass), the VL-110 took control of the pack.

I'll post a thread soon on the BG side of things and post a link to it here.

Tom.

 

So much also has to do with the pickup, bass and head (I would guess even more so than in the EB world in which I live). I've heard DB's sound great through AI heads for example, but Ric's Realist pickup did not sound good at all through the AI preamp... very dull, dead and lifeless... even through my 3x8 LDS with agressive selenium tweeter! On the other hand, that bass and pickup with a WW head sounded way too clacky with the Epifani tweeter (he was playing out of my 410UL for a brief moment a while back). It does make your head spin, since all these components work together to either make a wonderful or awful sound that sometimes depends on just one component being different.

 

I finally got a chance last Thursday to take my new LDS 2x8 3way out on a gig. From my perspective, it's the finest Double Bass cabinet I've ever owned. I was using my older Walter Woods MI 400 with the cabinet at the club. What I noticed about this cabinet is it's ability to faithfully reproduce the instrument. Bass notes are very full, but equally articulate. The cabinet handles the lower range of the instrument faithfully. The transition in to the midrange is very smooth, so smooth that you just don't notice the Mid Driver. The same thing happens when you move into thumb position for solos, the transition to the tweeter is effortless and transparent. On ballads the cabinet allows you to lean into the those big, open singing low E's, F's and G's without the
over sustain that most cabinets produce on those pitches.
Playing really fast tempos really shows the LDS's ability to
precision articulate moving bass lines at those screaming bebop tempos. Provided you can actually play at those tempos. I can't speak to the EPI 110 since I don't own one, but this leaves my Euphonic Audio VL 110 in the dust.

I do not work for LDS, I paid for my cabinet just like any one else would, in fact, since I opted for the spray finish and the detachable cart option and 4ohm load, I payed a little more. It was worth it.

Ric

 

Macmrkt,
I forgot to mention two other important things. First, thanks to you for that wonderful LDS 2X8 design that you and Don Oatman came up with, it's killer. Second the LDS is an extremely efficent cabinet I had the volume control sitting at somewhere between 2 and 3 all night and it was more than loud enough to meet my needs.

Ric

 

Yup. At lower volumes, the VL-110 is a bit dark sounding, and not as clear or present as either the LDS cabs or the T-110UL.

 

Tombolwlus,
I tend to agree with you here, with one qualification. I had the opportunity, or misfortune to play at a rather large outdoor festival last fall and decided to take a single EA VL 110 as a fall back speaker.

It proved to be a wise decision on my part since the stage rig was a SWR Workingman's 410. Using my Walter Woods
Ultra at pretty high volumes, didn't produce a better sound. In fact even with proper adjustment in EQ the cabinet just wouldn't cut it in that particular situation.

Without adjoining walls, a single Transmision Line Cabinet has difficulty IMHO, even with lots of avaliable headroom from the amp. My educated guess is that I would need a lot more cabinet surface to "fill the space", but working exclusively with the Double Bass as I usually do, I think the more sensible approach is to use something like the LDS 2x8 on the stage and run a mike for the house IMHO.

Ric

 

I've come to love the sound I get with my new BG going through the WW and into the LDS 2x8.

It's so mellow. And that's basically how I want to hear the BG... I like a very relaxed, chill sound for the music I play with electric (invariably either funk or Latin).

 

Well, I think that has more to do with the fact that it's a single 1x10 at an outside show. I really wouldn't expect a single VL-110 to be able to handle that task. A single CX-310, though, which is also a transmission line design, would be far better suited, of course.

I just don't think that "single 1x10" and "large outdoor festival" are concepts that I would recommend putting together.

Tom.

 

Agreed,
Unfortunately, you're one of the few people on the planet that actually own's the EA CX 310. I have never actually seen anything but pictures of those cabinets.

Ric

 

I've owned my Epi 110ul for over a year and it has been a god-send for gigging with my AI Focus head. My Shen hybrid with a Rev. Solo PU and that rig - I'm always good to go.

I'm happy to hear that the Epifani 110 rates up there with the LDS 8" cabs. You always wonder if it's greener on the other side.

And I have to admit that when EA comes out with their new 2 x 8 cab, will the grass be greener?

 

I have a sneaking suspicion that the NM-208 will set a new standard. Between the new EA 2x8 and the AI series 3 heads, I wonder sometimes why I didn't wait another year to upgrade my rig.

On the other hand, I'm crazy about my current setup and really can't complain.

 

Marty, thanks very much for posting your review. I have wondered many times about the UL-110 but based on descriptions from others, I had decided to give it a miss.

I think the LDS 1x8 3-way is not very natural sounding at all. I've felt like that since I got my cab and still feel that way. If you feed a CD or mic the bass into it, it sounds very harsh and way too bright. It is the complete opposite of some muddy cabs I've heard but it sure ain't natural-sounding to me. I think with the neo 8 that having the mid-range is a mistake if you're looking for a flat response. It would be interesting to hear an LDS 1x8 2-way. I would have liked to try one of Ralf Patterson's 2x8s but at 42 lbs, that's way too heavy for me.

I'm hanging out to see what becomes of the NM-208 but it's good to know the UL-110 is worth a look.