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Double Bass Micro heads and Speakons

fdeck

fdeck

Supporting Member
Commercial User
Mar 20, 2004
18,688
21,466
Madison WI
sites.google.com
Disclosures
HPF Technology LLC
#1
This is the first time that I have been disinclined to review a new gear purchase, because there is nothing for me to say. The Micro300 head just works. I am extremely pleased.

However...

I think it's time for switching to Speakons. Based on gleanings from various sources, I conclude that all of the new micro heads have bridged outputs, meaning that they work like stereo power amps in bridge mode. Some have outputs that are not ground referenced. All of this makes a lot of sense from a design standpoint, but it means that a 1/4 inch speaker plug now carries potential on both the tip and the sleeve, all the time.

I just changed my DIY cab to a Speakon jack, and made a new cable. It took all of an hour. There is a Speakon jack with a large flange, that is seemingly made for direct mounting on a speaker. Other options include buying a Speakon compatible jack plate from Parts Express.

One more comment about micro heads. The Micro300 weighs about the same as a 25-foot extension cord. All of a sudden, the weight of a bag full of accessories begins to add up. I have conducted a nonscientific experiment (consisting of playing about 10 gigs) and have found that a 14-foot standard power cord from Tiger Direct was sufficient in each situation.

Okay, have I been neurotic enough for one day? :smug:
 
#2
I just field tested a Micro 300 on a couple gigs this weekend w. a Wizzy 10 and it is a cool little pup..one gig was trio without drummer and the other an 8 piece swing band.
I had to push on the bigger group as expected, but still had some headroom and was amazed at the punch and clarity. No problem being heard or filling the room...I feel this is a new wave in bass amps and this combo is a great small, high end product. I can see a lot of possibilities and it is very musical.
The Speakon stuff is also very good and may contribute to the over all sound, I'm not to much of a gear head w. specs, but the ol' ear is my judge and jury.. I was really very impressed w. this rig, lots of fun and cool lookin'..
 
#4
fingers said:
Ok. Your argument is compelling... I think. I'm just not smart enough to understand.

I know it's been asked before but...

Is there a sound difference?
Click to expand...
I have tried both Speakon and 1/4-inch phone plug equipped speaker cables, and found no audible difference in sound. Speakon connectors, which are relatively new on the scene, are technically superior to 1/4-inch phone plugs, which were never intended for use in high-power audio applications. Many years ago, when phone plugs were first adopted for musical instrument amplification use in the USA, there weren't many choices in connectors, and phone plugs were commonly available and relatively cheap.

While Speakon connectors are clearly superior technically (higher current capacity, lower resistance contacts, completely insulated/isolated contacts, self locking, etc.) I still prefer phone plugs for my own use. Just old and set in my ways I guess. ;)
 
#5
+1

For us URB'ists who are typically running low power levels, there should be no audible or performance difference. The selling point of the Speakon is that all of the contacts are "touch proof." Basically, it minimizes the chance of freak accidents. It also eliminates the temporary short circuit when you pull the plug out.

I certainly appreciate the appeal of 1/4 inch plugs. I would have held out forever, had I not gotten a head with a bridged output. One suggestion -- at least a partial improvement -- is to put some shrink tubing around the body of the 1/4 inch plug.

I promise not to be a fascist about this. But I would say that if there were not already a long history of 1/4 inch plugs for speakers, no engineer would agree to it today.

(A concern that I have not proven) If you use the beloved GK MicroBass speaker with a micro head, you may have a problem if the speaker case touches the case of the head.
 
#6
One other small detail. The 1/4 jack has a hole in it. Small of course but a hole nonetheless. On the back of a speaker the jack has to be in it's own airtight container or the hole tends to port the speaker. I don't notice it on the EA stuff I use but when I put a 1/4 jack on my old SVT years ago it whistled like a teakettle until I changed to a speakon on it.

I went to speakons years ago and didn't really want to go back to a 1/4 until I got a WWU which only has 1/4" jacks. As such I had to make some special cables to use my speakon jacked speakers with it. That amp has to have it's own proprietary cables. that's a pita.

I like speakons. 1/4" has just enough issues to make them obsolete. Speakons are idiot proof.
 
#8
fdeck said:
Another nice feature of Speakons. I can tell at a glance if I remembered to throw a speaker cable into my gig bag.
Click to expand...

yeah, but if by chance you forget that bag no one in the band is gonna have Speakon cable to lend you. :help:

By contrast someone will almost always have a 1/4 cable to use in a pinch.

I switch gear/rigs back and forth btwn our two family cars so much that I have to keep duplicate wire bags w/ Speakon/Speakon and Speakon /1/4" (for the WW) speaker cables in both cars at all times for fear of being w/o a Speakon cable at a gig.

BG
 
#9
I was gonna ask aren't there connections that will accept 1/4" or Speakon, kinda like combo input jacks that will accept 1/4" or XLR? Then I found this on Bob G's site:

"There is also a flavor of Speakon jack that will accept a ¼ inch phone plug or Speakon connector ... EA used them briefly, but they are not airtight and therefore can leak and even whistle, making them impractical in most high quality speaker cabinets."​
So much for that idea.
 
#10
I wrote a Invalid Link Removedthat has a lot of details on their benefits. They rock IMHO.

One plus that will save a lot of the less savvy out there-- I can't tell you how many times I've seen folks using (20-24 gauge) instrument cables as speaker cables in high wattage systems. Not to mention calls from players getting hum, only to discover that they're using unshielded speaker cables as instrument cables.
 
#12
bolo said:
I was gonna ask aren't there connections that will accept 1/4" or Speakon, kinda like combo input jacks that will accept 1/4" or XLR? Then I found this on Bob G's site:

"There is also a flavor of Speakon jack that will accept a ¼ inch phone plug or Speakon connector ... EA used them briefly, but they are not airtight and therefore can leak and even whistle, making them impractical in most high quality speaker cabinets."​
So much for that idea.
Click to expand...

Acme uses the combo speakons and I changed out my speaker connections in my acmes to the combos and have not had a problem. I saw the above quote and was a little worried so I emailed Andy at Acme and this is what he said.

Hi Alan,

I had some samples of the early leaky ones, and like EA, found them to be nearly unusable. I had actually planned to devise an enclosure around them because they were so cool.

Lo and behold, Neutrik read my mind, and untroduced an airtight version, which I use. Thank God. The ones they're making now are really great, and absolutely airtight.

Please pass the word, as applicable.
 

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