What is your actual weight limit for the cab?
Are you gonna be putting it in a road case?
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Lightweight touring rig - Help
- Thread starter Mualk
- Start date
What is your actual weight limit for the cab?
Are you gonna be putting it in a road case?
I'd underscore the Genzler 410 bass array. Lightweight, efficient, great dispersion, a solution for the beaming endemic to side by side 410's.
And the Genzler head is very cool as well. The current generation of class D heads is very good with lots of options. I own the Genzler but also like the Trickfish, Bergantino, Mesa as well... all good choices.
The TH500 is a great amp. Pair it with a nice 212 cab or something similar and you should be good.
Lot's of good amp choices. I personally would stay away from Markbass.
Get an amp that's a been out a few years and has a good reputation... like the TH500 or a Streamliner. Both amps are killer, and can be had for cheep since they are "old".
Lot's of good amp choices. I personally would stay away from Markbass.
Get an amp that's a been out a few years and has a good reputation... like the TH500 or a Streamliner. Both amps are killer, and can be had for cheep since they are "old".
I'm running:
Mesa Boogie D800 Head (800 W) - 5 lbs-ish
AccuGroove El Whappo bass cab (15", 12", 6", 2 tweeters) 58lbs.
It's more than enough volume but I like the headroom and my back loves me for this lightweight rig.
Mesa Boogie D800 Head (800 W) - 5 lbs-ish
AccuGroove El Whappo bass cab (15", 12", 6", 2 tweeters) 58lbs.
It's more than enough volume but I like the headroom and my back loves me for this lightweight rig.
If you have the budget, the Genzler cabs are pretty cool. You could pair a Genzler 410 with a Genz Benz ShuttleMax 9 and have an insane rig for about $2k, and the whole thing would weigh less than 65 or 70 pounds and sound awesome and should get crazy loud.
For maybe slightly less money, you could look at the recent Mesa stuff that people seem to love. I haven't had a chance to try any of it yet, but I trust that it's high quality so if the sound is something you like it would be hard to go wrong.
On a more modest budget, I think a GK NEO 410 would be hard to beat for the cab. And then there are a zillion light and inexpensive mid powered heads these days. I don't care much for the GK MBs or Ampeg PFs, but they are certainly popular and plentiful. The Genz Benz heads (Shuttle series or Streamliner) are pretty awesome and generally underpriced for what you get. My ShuttleMax 9.2 is great and very versatile (the "Max" adds a FET preamp channel to the tube pre channel of the regular Shuttle series). I think the 9.2 does 500 or 600w into 8 ohms and 900 into 4. Plenty of power to get you going for a rock band in venues of that size.
Also, don't get hung up on "new", that's BS. Good is good. Marketing departments always want to make the new stuff sound more appealing and like the old stuff that's discontinued is horrible, but that's RARELY the case, especially in MI amplification (people are still using 60 year old Vox AC30 designs, Marshalls, Fender Twins, not to mention P and J basses, etc... strats, teles, les pauls, on and on and on).
For maybe slightly less money, you could look at the recent Mesa stuff that people seem to love. I haven't had a chance to try any of it yet, but I trust that it's high quality so if the sound is something you like it would be hard to go wrong.
On a more modest budget, I think a GK NEO 410 would be hard to beat for the cab. And then there are a zillion light and inexpensive mid powered heads these days. I don't care much for the GK MBs or Ampeg PFs, but they are certainly popular and plentiful. The Genz Benz heads (Shuttle series or Streamliner) are pretty awesome and generally underpriced for what you get. My ShuttleMax 9.2 is great and very versatile (the "Max" adds a FET preamp channel to the tube pre channel of the regular Shuttle series). I think the 9.2 does 500 or 600w into 8 ohms and 900 into 4. Plenty of power to get you going for a rock band in venues of that size.
Also, don't get hung up on "new", that's BS. Good is good. Marketing departments always want to make the new stuff sound more appealing and like the old stuff that's discontinued is horrible, but that's RARELY the case, especially in MI amplification (people are still using 60 year old Vox AC30 designs, Marshalls, Fender Twins, not to mention P and J basses, etc... strats, teles, les pauls, on and on and on).
Hey @Mualk, you should check out DNA. I have both a DNS-410 and a DNS-210 speaker cab. I got the DNS-210 cab because it's all I need for most gigs. I use my DNS410 now for large venues, outdoor venues, and outdoor Festivals. My DNS-410 will beat out any 810 that I've heard. First of all it is the clearest most articulate cab I've used as well as being full with a tight bottom end and crazy loud. It's max SPL is 137db and you don't want to be anywhere near it at those levels. It was my be-all, end-all cab. I could play anywhere with it.
Then I took it into a small brew pub and I thought the owner's eyes would explode. He pointed over to a little Peavey 112 combo and made me use that. I told him mine played very well at low levels too and he just continued pointing at that 112 combo. So that's what I used. Eventually I bought an Eden EX-112 and ran it with one of my amps. Then I bought a second one and used it at medium-sized venues. One night we played outside in front of that small brew pub and I used my DNS-410. It sounded so much better than a single 112 did there even though that Eden 112 sounded night and day better than the Peavey.
So I bought myself a DNS-210 and sure enough it has the same sonic characteristics as my DNS-410 but in a smaller size. This small cab though handles 700-watts rms (both mechanically and thermally) and has a max SPL of 134db. Again, much louder than you'd want to use it. It's not cheap though. Street price seems to vary between $799 and $899. Occasionally you can find one used for around $500 or $600.
I power mine with my Eden WT500/800 which I run bridged at 800-watts rms into 8 ohms. I'll never get close to putting 700-watts into it though let alone enough to hurt it. It's just a very loud cab. I'm saving gig money now to get the DNA-800 amp, which is an 800-watt rms class D amp that weighs all of 4.8-lbs. Street price is ~$799.
Sound is really great, the amp has plenty of bells and whistles including a nice adjustable compressor and it's light. Here's a Bass Musician Magazine video that goes over the features of the DNA-800. He's running it through the DNS-210 so that's what they sound like together. If you want to hear more about the DNS-210, just back up the video to the start. I've cued it up where he starts talking about the amp.
Thank you much!! All of my cases come from Keal Cases, and the owner Paul was adamant that this was the right choice. There have been a couple times that I would have liked a live-in case for whatever reason, but it's incredibly handy having the case I went with when I need an extra table to keep gear or a place to put my six packs of...soda...
A good list of the usual suspects. Lots of choices.
Not much mention of Demeter amps; which is a bit odd, since a surprising number of headline act bassists use them on the road. I remain completely satisfied with mine.
Aahh.I would prefer this... but not entirely up to me
Yes, it is a luxury not always available.
Are you talking road cases? That adds a lot of weight and bulk - especially for the cab.
I like stuff in hard cases, especially for road work, but never worried about having the cab in a case.
You could do a 3U rack for your amp - what ever Pre along with a light weight power amp. That's easy, and super functional.
I used to go out on trips with this... (TH 500, tuner, DI box, all cables and some other stuff in a case) and my Berg CN212 in a padded cover. Bass in a SKB HSC.
Talk about light weight and an easy schlep.
JMO: Since it's going in roadcases I'd be less concerned with the overall cab weight and more about getting the right cab for job. The difference in transporting a 55lb vs 78lb 4x10 cab in a road case on wheels is minimal. At the gig it gets pushed 95% of the transport distance. The other 5% you get help from another person up steps or onto the stage.
TBH, a larger cab (610, 412, 810) can sometimes be easier to transport than a smaller one (even in a roadcase) because of the ease in tilting (into a van, onto a stage, etc.).
Regarding 'which' amp you should get, it's difficult to make a helpful suggestion without knowing your tonal goals. You looking for a clean sound? Do you want overdrive built in? Switchable? What are your EQ needs - HPF, multi-band parametric, etc.?
I tend to prefer a clean amp signal and get any effects from a pedalboard. My main amp is an Aguilar TH500. It lives in an SKB 3i series case, similar to the Pelican style cases. The Aggie has a nice OD and tonal shaping but I don't really use it.
Cabs are all over the place too. Even if you just consider 4x10's. Personally, I've never played an Ampeg 4x10 that I liked (the 810's usually get the job done). But lots of players love and use them. The Hartke 410XL (not the Hydrive) is an old design and a heavy, budget model in today's market. I've played few recently after having not for years and was very impressed by the sound considering the value. The best 410 I ever played (but didn't own) was the Bergantino HD410. Sounded deep and thick with sweet high mids and highs. A discontinued model now, not sure how the HDN series stacks up.
I think the most trick all-in-one solution was posted here, with the cab, amp and accessories transported together. Gotta consider whether that fits your transportability needs on a gig by gig basis.
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WD800 (7lbs + Rack and wireless 24lbs total) Subway 215 cabinet 55lbs.
I only played one once in a store setting so I can't offer a valid comparison.
But check the used market, there are probably some decent deals out there.
What is your budget for cab and roadcase?
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