I've sent an email to Markbass and still waiting for a reply. I feel the piezo should produce NO sound with the volume turned completely off and nothing plugged into the inputs.
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Markbass mini CMD 121P problem
- Thread starter bass4u
- Start date
In all honesty that sounds like a bad ground inside the amp. Kind of like a ground loop situation. As long as there is any power going to the tweet, it will make that hiss noise if the ground is bad or not solid.
Peter Murray
Commercial User
- Dec 13, 2005
- 627
- 80
- Disclosures
- Marketing and artist relations for Xvive (ex-Markbass, ex-Supro, ex-Pigtronix)
I just plugged in my Mini CMD 121P and cranked it, with no bass plugged in. There was a very faint hiss. Not sure if you were hearing more or not. The sound I heard was completely acceptable and would never be heard either live or recorded with a microphone right up to the speaker.
Often people critique cabinets and combos in a sterile environment... but remember--these are designed to sound great when used with a band. If they don't work well in that context they're useless. I have yet to hear anyone say that our cabs or combos sound hissy in a live or rehearsal context. What I DO hear is how well they cut through the mix, in a musical, true-to-the-source way. So what may seem like over-aggressive highs and high-mids ends up being just right in context.
I also know this from about 5 years of gigging with all kinds of Markbass rigs.
Could there be a problem? Maybe... if the hiss is more pronounced than what I hear... but it could also be bad power.
If you just don't like tweeters, you could try the CMD 151 Jeff Berlin signature combo.
Cheers,
Peter
Mine as well. When I turn it on, it hisses fairly loudly for a second or two the quiets down to a very quiet hiss. But keep in mind, I'm listening in a very quiet room. It wouldn't be audible in most situations.
Yup, the VLE control is great for that. I use my LMII head with an Avatar 1x12 cab, keep the tweeter on full, and dial in VLE to taste. Same sound as playing with the attenuator, but I don't have to reach around the back of the cab to do it.
Peter the issue I'm having with the combo is the fact that the piezo hisses even with the volumes turned OFF. Playing live, the hiss is NOT an issue. could you check out if your combo hisses even with the volumes off. I still haven't received a response from Markbass.....I guess they are all on holiday in Italy.
Reading this thread I run over and turned on my cmd121p to check. As the amp went on I noticed a little hiss that had decreased in about 3 seconds. After that there was still a hiss present but very very faint. I have to put my ear over the tweeter to hear it. The room was very quite. I don't think this would be noticed when micing the amp.
Since this bothers you I believe you hear more then I do. I use a 230V version, maybe there is a power issue here. Since all the amps you tried in the shop react the same, I have no suggestions for you
Regarding micing the cab, I would try using a dynamic microphone placed 1/2 feet away from the lower left side of the 12" cone - opposite to the tweeter. You can try to add another mic (another channel) on the back of the cab for low frequencies BTW.
Since this bothers you I believe you hear more then I do. I use a 230V version, maybe there is a power issue here. Since all the amps you tried in the shop react the same, I have no suggestions for you
Regarding micing the cab, I would try using a dynamic microphone placed 1/2 feet away from the lower left side of the 12" cone - opposite to the tweeter. You can try to add another mic (another channel) on the back of the cab for low frequencies BTW.
