Low Down Sound Club V3

[guy n. cognito]

All this talk about waiting.......here's a sample of what your waiting for:

Used my LDS 15/6 at an outdoor gig this weekend. I was running the B1500 near full tilt and the 15/6 took everything I threw at it.

 

[Bluesy Soul]

Used my LDS 15/6 at an outdoor gig this weekend. I was running the B1500 near full tilt and the 15/6 took everything I threw at it.

Good to hear!

I have an outdoor gig next Sunday and another the following Friday evening, and I'm taking Blondie (fEarful-design 15/6 from Don). I was trying to decide whether to power it with my Eden-VT300 (300 watts, all tube) or my Genz-Benz Shuttle 9.0 (500 watts @ 8 ohms). Now that I think of it, it's a good opportunity to try each one at an outdoor venue; so that's what I'll do.

Did you find yourself ever wishing you had a second 15/6?

 

[bass4worship]

I just pick up my first LDS 8x8x1 cab in a trade on TB, this cab is awesome for 8" driver's. I got to use it at church today (where is will be staying, to heavy to move lbs) and boy was I a happy camper. I was using two BRX210 cabs but this just blew them away. Every note rang out nice and clear and this cab you can feel the bass under your feet, nice and tight sound.

I just wish it's wasn't so heavy I would gig out with it but my back say no.

 

[Craig_S]

Used my LDS 15/6 at an outdoor gig this weekend. I was running the B1500 near full tilt and the 15/6 took everything I threw at it.

You had to run a 700 watt @ 8ohm amp at full tilt to hear yourself? That's scary. Nice setup, though.

If I run my 350 watt @ 8ohm amp at 12:00 it's almost too loud.

 

[N. Kentucky Bass]

You had to run a 700 watt @ 8ohm amp at full tilt to hear yourself? That's scary. Nice setup, though.

If I run my 350 watt @ 8ohm amp at 12:00 it's almost too loud.

It sounds a LOT louder in the audience than on stage. The extra headroom, however, gives the sound a "girthier" feel. Don't leave home without the extra watts!

 

[::::BASSIST::::]

You had to run a 700 watt @ 8ohm amp at full tilt to hear yourself? That's scary. Nice setup, though.

If I run my 350 watt @ 8ohm amp at 12:00 it's almost too loud.

One thing to keep in mind is that because these 15/6 cabs produce alot of deep lows you need quite a bit of wattage/headroom to get them up to band volume. That's been my experience anyway.

 

[dannster]

He has family there also, but I think Seattle is the goal.

I approve!

 

[Craig_S]

I just did an outdoor show with my MarkBass setup (SA450 and 104HF). I had no issues standing 5' to 15' from the rig. I've used 10" speakers forever, just for that reason.

As far as the deep lows are concerned, EQ-ing for the stage will usually help with that. The deep lows, normally, aren't needed in an outdoor situation with an adequate FOH system. Maybe the OP should cut some of the lows?

It sounds a LOT louder in the audience than on stage. The extra headroom, however, gives the sound a "girthier" feel. Don't leave home without the extra watts!

I don't need the extra watts. Girth comes from the mains, well enough. My setup will shake the stage on it's own, though. Don't get me wrong.

EDIT: I have yet to use my LDS 410 outdoors. I'm sure it will do the job, though.

 

[rpsands]

One thing to keep in mind is that because these 15/6 cabs produce alot of deep lows you need quite a bit of wattage/headroom to get them up to band volume. That's been my experience anyway.

Ridiculous. The sensitivity of an average 3x10 cabinet is nothing to scoff at. I can keep up with a 50w 2x12 combo and a drumkit no problem with just the MB500 or F1 and 15/6.

It's not as sensitive as a 4x10, especially in the mids, but neither is it the weight.

 

[::::BASSIST::::]

Ridiculous. The sensitivity of an average 3x10 cabinet is nothing to scoff at. I can keep up with a 50w 2x12 combo and a drumkit no problem with just the MB500 or F1 and 15/6.

It's not as sensitive as a 4x10, especially in the mids, but neither is it the weight.

Actually its not "ridiculous" thank you very much.

It has been *my* experience. My LMII is *barely* loud enough (350w at 8 ohms) with this cab. Even though I love that amp I had to move away from it with this cab. I'm using 1000w at 8 ohms with a peavey DPC1000 and that does the trick.

Maybe my tone goals are different then yours? I play a shortscale bass (stambaugh) with flatwound strings and I subdue the highs and high-mids while accenting the upper bass. I also use a VT Bass which adds alot of thickness. The result is a thick, punchy tone with very little in the way of high end content.

Please dont jump to conclusions so soon.

 

[Craig_S]

All I know is people play concert stages all over the world using nothing more than a 300 watt head and a 8-10 cabinet. If one needs 1000 watts, on the average festival stage or "band shell" trailer, something is wrong.

 

[banditcosmo]

Actually its not "ridiculous" thank you very much.

It has been *my* experience. My LMII is *barely* loud enough (350w at 8 ohms) with this cab. Even though I love that amp I had to move away from it with this cab. I'm using 1000w at 8 ohms with a peavey DPC1000 and that does the trick.

Maybe my tone goals are different then yours? I play a shortscale bass (stambaugh) with flatwound strings and I subdue the highs and high-mids while accenting the upper bass. I also use a VT Bass which adds alot of thickness. The result is a thick, punchy tone with very little in the way of high end content.

Please dont jump to conclusions so soon.

I thought you were using a Carvin head ? I was thinking of getting a BX1500 to use with my LDS cab. Did you not like the Carvin ?

 

[::::BASSIST::::]

I thought you were using a Carvin head ? I was thinking of getting a BX1500 to use with my LDS cab. Did you not like the Carvin ?

Yeah, I like the bx1500 alot. Light, loud and lots of features. However, I am such a sucker for the VT Bass I just can't leave it out of my signal chain. Using the VT Bass to drive my peavey DPC 1000 and using a Boss PQ3B Semi-Parametric EQ gets me a pretty similar vibe of the BX1500 + VT Bass. The DPC 1000 is only 2LBS more than the bx1500 and its also worth less (about $300). Add to that the DPC is more versatile in that I can use it do drive a PA. So essentially I have decided that with the 15/6 I am just going to use my VT Bass + peavey DPC 1000 and sell the BX1500. The one thing I don't like about the bx1500 is there are so many "volume" controls. Drive, Master, Poweramp 1 (which is another level control when using the amp bridged at 8 ohms) plus the VT Bass's level and drive. That gives me about 5 "volume" controls and I just find it not ideal to futz around with. I do really like the BX1500 though. Its really nice.

Add to all that I have a pair of LDS custom 112s coming (which Don says will be less than 30LBS each). I also just bought a markbass F1 and intend to use it with those 112s for a stellar, lightweight rig that I'll likely use on the majority of my gigs. Depending on what those LDS custom 112s can do volume wise, I may end up selling my 15/6. However, I'll likely keep it for really loud gigs or when one cab just works better. Just last month I had to walk about 10 blocks in downtown Vancouver and I am so glad I had my 15/6. Turns out I really needed to crank the volume and needed a 'large' cab (ie substandard PA support). The 15/6 worked perfectly as it got the job done and was super easy to just roll down the sidewalk on my hand cart.

 

[::::BASSIST::::]

All I know is people play concert stages all over the world using nothing more than a 300 watt head and a 8-10 cabinet. If one needs 1000 watts, on the average festival stage or "band shell" trailer, something is wrong.

Well, from my experience an 810 is a very loud cab. More drivers = more volume. Plus they are voiced much differently with more mids than a 15/6. And yes it is louder than an LDS 15/6. I have a/b'd my 15/6 with an Ampeg 810 at a rehearsal studio and can say so with a certainty. Naturally, the 15/6 is much easier to move and given the choice between the two I would always opt for the 15/6 unless I had roadies.

Also, though my amp is 1000w that is not to say I am using all of them. Add to that 1000w is really not all that louder than 300w. Yes, it is louder for sure, but its not WAY louder. I was actually surprised when I discovered that a number of years ago.

 

[lomo]

Did you find yourself ever wishing you had a second 15/6?

I can only imagine wanting another 15/6 on a very large stage, in an open field with no PA, but I will never play in such a situation, so 1 is just fine!

 

[guy n. cognito]

You had to run a 700 watt @ 8ohm amp at full tilt to hear yourself? That's scary. Nice setup, though.

If I run my 350 watt @ 8ohm amp at 12:00 it's almost too loud.

Well, my comment probably needs a bit of context....

This was a private party gig in the backyard of a very large home on a lake. In front of the stage is 3 acres of unobstructed flat land leading to the lake. Our stage was only about 10 feet deep, so I was standing right on top of my cab all night. For this gig, we had to use our own PA. Our rythym guitard owns the PA. He doesn't own subs and, quite honestly, doesn't really know how to run the thing properly. Despite running some pretty heavy duty Peavey cabs, he is terrified of blowing his speakers. Therefore, he rarely wants me to run through the board. Even when I do, like this weekend, he keeps the volume way down, reduces the pre-eq gain and cuts lows. He and I get into an argument every single time we have to run through his PA, because he doesn't want to listen to my advice.

Due to this, my amp and cab has to do more that just carry the stage; it has to carry the crowd, too. In this case, the crowd was spread over 3 acres of wide open space. Anyone that has played these types of venues before knows that it takes a lot of power to create volume. That is why I had to run near-full-out all night.

Was it loud on stage? Yep, but not as loud as you'd think. I would shake my house off the foundation if I played at that volume in my practice room, but outdoors it didn't seem that loud at all.

Not ridiculous, if you know what you are talking about. But leave it to certain TBers to debate a single off-handed comment all night.......

 

[guy n. cognito]

There's something else you have to keep in mind. A single woofer is just that, A single woofer. Even the best woofer in the best cab will only do so much.

 

[guy n. cognito]

Did you find yourself ever wishing you had a second 15/6?

Quite honestly, no. The form factor of the fEarful design 15/6 is great to run as a single cab, but it too tall for my taste if I were to stack them. I don't play big stages and my guitards don't use full stacks, so it would look a bit silly.

 

[Craig_S]

I'm positive the 15/6 sounds great, and I'm sure you fellows know what you're doing. It just seems like a lot of power. I have played many stages in many situations. Many gigs have been outdoors. I have never needed more than 350 watts.

guy n. cognito: Your guitardist needs to understand his cabinets are made to handle full range operation. Tell him to buy a compressor/limiter, if he's so worried. Behringer sells them pretty cheap.

P.S. Your bass is gorgeous.

 

[guy n. cognito]

I'm positive the 15/6 sounds great, and I'm sure you fellows know what you're doing. It just seems like a lot of power. I have played many stages in many situations. Many gigs have been outdoors. I have never needed more than 350 watts.

guy n. cognito: Your guitardist needs to understand his cabinets are made to handle full range operation. Tell him to buy a compressor/limiter, if he's so worried. Behringer sells them pretty cheap.

P.S. Your bass is gorgeous.

I would agree that, with proper PA support, minimal wattage is necessary. What many forget, however, is that some of us rarely have proper PA support. There are many times that I have to carry an entire room without support.

The guitard and I have gone round and round about this topic. I've told him that his speakers are capable of near-full-range-operation (needs subs) and that they are more than capable of handling my signal. I run a limiter in my signal before my head, so I've explained to him that I won't be sending him any large spikes. He still doesn't like it. The funny thing.......he has no issue running the drums........oh well.