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Double Bass Looking for suggestions for small rigs (very small)

#21
They are like USD 350 here in Ottawa. I don't know why they are so cheap. A vocalist friend has one that I have tested through. I originally recommended an EON 10 to her and she went to the store and they said well this is cheaper, lighter, and sounds as good. The bass sounds great through it.

Make sure you look at the Opera 110, not the mobile one. There is one with wireless that I think you must have looked at. The one I'm talking about does not have wireless.

Click on Product as the top then Loudspeaker on the side and then Opera 110 and Twin 128 in the middle.
 
#22
Originally posted by adrian_cho
The bass sounds great through it.

Click on Product as the top then Loudspeaker on the side and then Opera 110 and Twin 128 in the middle.
Click to expand...

Wow! Let me know if you ever get to play through the Twin 128. I love the sound of 8" speakers (they tend to produce less "artificial bottom end" for DB to my ears), and the notion of a powered 208 box of that size and weight is very attractive.
 
#24
My vocalist friend got hers from Steve's Music here in Ottawa. I think they have stores in Montreal and elsewhere too. Does DB Technologies have dealers listed on the website perhaps? I did not know about this company at all and I can only guess that the prices are low because they are trying to break into the North American company. The product seems to be very high-quality.
 
#25
Yes I would like to try out the twin. I checked prices on a UK site and it's not much more. I've not tried a bass through an 8" speaker but I agree with you about "artificial low-end". As I've said, I feel my bass already has plenty of low end and I find most bass amps (even the AI Coda that I just sold) just combine to make the sound too bass heavy.
 
#26
Adrian, I remembered to check that out AFTER I posted here. And yes, there is a Canadian distributor: an outfit called ADI out of Montreal. Their price appears to be about US$500, both for the 110 and the 128.

This unit looks to be just what I'm looking for, basically the same reasons as Adrian. It just seems to be enough sound reinforcement.

How sturdy/roadworthy are these units? I guess if they have to go into a case, you're negating the weight advantage.
 
#27
I just called Steve's Music in Ottawa and the 110 is $459 and the Twin 128 is $550. These are Canadian dollar prices of course. USD 500 seems way off. The 110 seems very sturdy. The shell is some kind of heavy duty plastic similar to many other amps like the Eon. My friend carries hers in a hockey bag with other stuff and I figure that's what I would do to. Of course for her, she mounts it on a pole stand but I figure I would just stick it on the floor. You can sit upright or have it on its side at a 45 degree tilt.
 
#28
Damon, I looked at the ADI price list. They look like Canadian dollar prices to me and I would expect they would publish only retail (and not dealer) prices on the net so the Steve prices, assuming discounting seem about right. You might even be able to find it cheaper somewhere. You could ask ADI for dealers near you. I see they also have soft cases for the speakers too.
 
#29
Originally posted by adrian_cho
I've not tried a bass through an 8" speaker but I agree with you about "artificial low-end". As I've said, I feel my bass already has plenty of low end and I find most bass amps (even the AI Coda that I just sold) just combine to make the sound too bass heavy.
Click to expand...

I've been using 8"speakers exclusively on straight-ahead acoustic jazz for a while now, and to me there's no comparison with larger speakers - they are simply cleaner, hands down (IMO, of course). I still use 12's for louder and doubling situations, but 8's always sound less colored to me.
 
#30
i checked the db opera 110: it has not enough power to handle an upright. it sounds o.k. when you´re not playing loud, but in this situation you don`t need an amplification. the fbt maxx2a is much better, more power but small and lightweight. Invalid Link Removed
 
#31
Whether it has enough power and whether one needs amplification is a matter of opinion. I've played with my AMT mic into the Opera 110 and I can get it plenty loud enough for any purpose I can imagine except perhaps a big band. Any other situation I would plug into the house and the Opera would be just a monitor. It's all subjective. What one person thinks is loud may not be very loud for someone else.

The problem with the MaxX 2A is it weighs 28 lbs. I may as well have stayed with my Coda which has more power for less weight at least in the Series II configuration.

The Jolly 8R A with a biamped 80+20 W and 8" + 1" at 12 lbs however is very interesting. The Jolly 8B A is the same size with the same speakers but has 150 + 50 W and weighs 18 lbs. Their website failed when I tried to fill out their form to find a dealer in Canada. Didn't look like the distribution was very extensive from a web search. I found one online Italian site (promusic.net) that said the 8RA was USD 306 and the 8BA was USD 373.
 
#32
I'm suprised no one has mentioned the GK micro bass extension cab, it weighs around ten lbs ans has a pretty good sound, only abour three hundred bucks. i use it on my duo gigs with and can still get compliments on my sound, my only complaint is it rattles sometimes when cranked, but i'm probably using it to much power with it. i've looked at slightly biggeer cabs, bergantino and aguilars, but they don't sound better enought to justify the weight; if gonna get my cart out, i just take my berg 2x10- it sounds awesome.
 
#34
I use my glockenklang soul with it, i just keep the volume down so i don't blow it. If size is your main issue, the AI clarus works well to, that's what i originally had it coupled with- you could carry your amp in one hand, and your bass in the other. A friend of my mine without a car in NYC turned me onto that. Like i said, i use this cab only for quiet gigs or rehearsals, i've given up on the idea that i can get the sound i want from something small, it's seems to defy physics to me. I'm not really into the whole playing without an amp guys, i like jazz with a little more bump- it's not 1954!
 
#35
Guys, I know you don't want an electric sound so the GK combo may be out as a one box solution but if the GK extension speaker is acceptable along with the AI Clarus head, I had Mooradian make me a bag for my GK combo that has back pack straps on it. I put the amp on my back, and wheel my bass around on a Gains wheel. Go anywhere, anytime, in and out of subways, up and down stairs, you name it, it goes.

For the amp, the AI has its own little bag that you can either sling over your shoulder or maybe even put it in your bass bag.
 
#39
This was supposed to happen last week. The local Steve's Music store was supposed to get me a Twin 128 from Montreal but they screwed up and got a 110 instead. The truck only comes every Thursday apparently. So hopefully this Thursday I will have a Twin 128 and will then test it against the 110 and see what it is like for natural reproduction, low end, etc.

I can definitely say however that having played through the 110 that I will be buying one of these units (either the 110 or the Twin 128). I haven't found anything else that comes near them for price, weight and clarity. And the build quality seems excellent.

I will let you know more soon.
 

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