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Mixed cabs, double dog dare me
- Thread starter madjazzbass
- Start date
You are mistaken! There are plenty of cabinets loaded with non 15” drivers that excel at fullness and warmth. You just haven’t played them yet.
Find a cabinet that you love and then get a second. It’s the safest route to increase the size of your system.
fixt
Ya fist nothing! The response was to the OP statement that 15s are warmer, fuller than 10s.
I TRIPLE DOG DARE YA! In all seriousness I try to keep my cabs the same when using two together however the 2x10 + 1x15 combo is alright. However for simple bedroom playing a single 1x15 or 2x10 cab should be more then enough if I understand you correctly what you're using it for and you do not live in a mansion where your bedroom is 100 yards wide as it is long.
Well, that's sort of what I said, but not exactly; I said I missed the fullness and warmth of a (good) 15 in speaker but I didn't mention anything about 10's; although 15's ARE warmer than 10's; there, now I said it; cuz you need more than one 10-inch speaker (obviously) to equal the warmth of one 15' speaker.
Well its nothing that hasn't been said here ten thousand times before by a thousand other TB'ers. Mine was just was the latest in a long line of comments, and you happen to catch it. Nothing original in what I said, but I'm glad that you caught version ten thousand and one.
You should take a listen to a Phil Jones or Acme bass cabinet. All the fullness and warmth one could desire. 
Absolutely nothing wrong with using a 1X15 and 2X10s. I would even use it onstage. If it sounds good to you, that's all that matters.
I've found that I don't really miss a 15" while gigging. For the most part I use a single 12" cabinet or a double 12" cabinet. The new 12" cabs perform so well now that they are more than worthy of playing gigs.
D
Deleted member 165050
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Now that's big. Would that even fit in my '94 Cherokee?
Btw don't listen to all this 10 vs 15 stuff, 12s are where it's at. Vertically stacked 12s.
Yeah. Didn’t care for it much. They have quite different characteristics that, for me, did not blend well. The 212 is pretty flat and the 115 is mid focused. Both cabs are better on their own in my opinion. YMMV.
I think this subject gets blown all out of proportion. Nobody says that mixing drivers sizes can’t work, just that getting them to play well with each other is more tricky. If someone has a cabinet that they love and need more, an identical cabinet to the one that they have works every time. When you have to buy the second cabinet it becomes harder to try things out. If the pairing doesn’t work or is not what the person is hoping, there’s the hassle of returning stuff.
The 4x10 + 1x15 debacle is simply that the average 15 cannot keep up with the more efficient and powerful 4x10. It is a constant limiting factor. Same goes for the 4x10 plus 1x18 pairing.
The pairing of a 2x10 and a 4x10 only works well if the 2x10 has twice the impedance of the 4x10. This leads to a balanced system where all the drivers in either box are being given the same amount of power. If the two have the same impedance the 2x10 will limit the abilities of the 4x10. Could well be that the 4x10 would be louder on it’s own. How the system sounds is another matter. Impedance will be 2.67Ω or 5.33Ω depending on the cabinets used.
2x10 plus 1x15 works on a power level as they can take about the same. Again the sound of the pairing is a crap shoot.
Yes there are exceptions but for the average Jill or Joe matching cabs is a logical path to follow.
Mixing impedances is another thing that needs to be understood. A 4Ω load in parallel with an 8Ω one will mean that the 4Ω cab will take twice the power of the 8Ω one. In series it’s the opposite as the 8Ω load will “drop” twice the voltage of the 4Ω one. Thus take twice the power.
Sorry, I seem to have been running on quite a bit with my thoughts.
Happy Thanksgiving to all!
The 4x10 + 1x15 debacle is simply that the average 15 cannot keep up with the more efficient and powerful 4x10. It is a constant limiting factor. Same goes for the 4x10 plus 1x18 pairing.
The pairing of a 2x10 and a 4x10 only works well if the 2x10 has twice the impedance of the 4x10. This leads to a balanced system where all the drivers in either box are being given the same amount of power. If the two have the same impedance the 2x10 will limit the abilities of the 4x10. Could well be that the 4x10 would be louder on it’s own. How the system sounds is another matter. Impedance will be 2.67Ω or 5.33Ω depending on the cabinets used.
2x10 plus 1x15 works on a power level as they can take about the same. Again the sound of the pairing is a crap shoot.
Yes there are exceptions but for the average Jill or Joe matching cabs is a logical path to follow.
Mixing impedances is another thing that needs to be understood. A 4Ω load in parallel with an 8Ω one will mean that the 4Ω cab will take twice the power of the 8Ω one. In series it’s the opposite as the 8Ω load will “drop” twice the voltage of the 4Ω one. Thus take twice the power.
Sorry, I seem to have been running on quite a bit with my thoughts.
Happy Thanksgiving to all!
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Sometimes mixed cabs works; sometimes it doesn’t. When one picks up cabs at random and mixes them, I’d say there’s a better chance of it performing less than optimally. I recommend one tries the mix, as well as twins of the cabs separately for comparison, before they buy. Then get what sounds best.
WHAT???????!!!!!!!!!???????? 
Mixing cabs????
OP: "you are under arrest. You have the right to remain silent."
Sincerely,
The Mixing Cabs Police
(All kidding aside: just based on my own personal experience, I have always found greater happiness when using matching cabs. YMMV.)
Mixing cabs????
OP: "you are under arrest. You have the right to remain silent."
Sincerely,
The Mixing Cabs Police
(All kidding aside: just based on my own personal experience, I have always found greater happiness when using matching cabs. YMMV.)
It's always best to learn from other peoples mistakes but sometimes you need to find out on your own
