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New setup ideas

heavyhitter

heavyhitter

Jan 24, 2008
246
0
#1
I been playing for about 13 years. I always had just a BXR 100 and a small Crate pratice amp. Since I always just jammed out alone at home this was more than enough. I work with a guy and he is in a "band" (that is if you will call it a band). They have 3 guitarist and a solid drummer. I played with 2 of the guitarist and we hit it off well and we play the same music. My BXR is about to die and I will need some more power to keep up with 3 guitars and a drummer. I really dont think we will be gigging, but more a garage band at parties etc. I want to get a small but decent stack going.

I bought a Markbass Little Mark 250 head.

Im considering an Ashdown MAG 115 and MAG 210T. This is what I am thinking about getting. My heart is kinda set on it.

Also for consideration is G-K Backline 115 BLX-II and 210BLX-II.

A small size and small budget is has to do with my choices and I want something loud but not earth shattering. Also a baby stack will hopefully cure my REALLY BAD BOUT OF GAS. I think that getting 2 10's and 1 15 with give me alot more lows, but will I be better with a single 4 10? Comments and suggestions are welcome ans appreciated.
 
#2
i can't comment on the cabs you mentioned. Honestly, cabinet designs vary so much it's impossible to say if a 410 will have more lows than a 210 and a 1x15 unless you had the cabs in front of you.

i'm assuming your amp puts out 250 watts at 4 ohms unless it has a very wierd name. To keep up with a band i'd consider that a bit low but not impossible. I'd go with a couple of 8 ohm cabs so you can bring one to practice and small gigs and both to larger ones but that's me. You can also fit a couple of smaller cabs in a car eaisier than one big one. the two cabs will be a bigger in total size but they'll fit through more car doors and in tighter spaces than one big cab will - trust me. ;)

I'd suggest you try a bunch out and preferably bring your bass and head along when you do so you can really hear what the whole thing sounds like.
 
#3
Yes the Little Mark is 250RMS @ 4ohm.
I considered 4x10's but they seem to usually all have a frequency response of like 60hz and up. An open E if I recall is like 41HZ so Id be missing alot of bottom end wouldnt I?
 
#5
heavyhitter said:
Yes the Little Mark is 250RMS @ 4ohm.
I considered 4x10's but they seem to usually all have a frequency response of like 60hz and up. An open E if I recall is like 41HZ so Id be missing alot of bottom end wouldnt I?
Click to expand...

Don't worry about the published frequency response or power handling for that matter. Ivan Mike's advice is good. Take your amp with you and try it out with anything you're thinking of buying. Unless you're positive one cabinet will do it for you in all situations, go the two, 8 ohm cabinet route. If you get one cabinet, make it a 4 ohm.

With some amps 250 watts can be enough. I used a GK 400 RB at 200 watts into 4 ohms for 10 years and had plenty of clean volume and a good sound. The key was picking the right cabinets and I did that by renting what I thought would do it and trying them out in a real gig situation. I was right and was very happy.
 
#7
The good news is that you've got your head. Easy enough to take it with you to go and try out some cabs. If you aren't restricted by size and your vehicle can haul it, I think that a 4x10 can certainly cover most situations. If that's your one cab though, it might be too big for some settings like a practice and you might have trouble coming up with a 4 ohm option that you like.

You can go lots of routes with a pair of cabs and the 2x10/1x15 setup you're thinking of can be great. Trust your ears and try it out. I had to go with smaller cabs when I got a smaller car, but it just meant going from a 4x10 to a pair of 2x10's and these cabs deliver plenty of sound for me. Having gigged with this different cab setup for a while, I can honestly say that I'm better off now because the two cabs create a 4 ohm load together (my 4x10 was an 8 ohm) and I can also configure them in different ways if I need to.

I'm a basic 4-string player and I get lots of lows from this rig - sometimes I'll even cut them a little on my eq when I turn up. For a smaller sort of jam, you can enjoy the option of hauling only one cab, too.
 

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