Official Barefaced Bass Cab Club

[Tim1]

I believe that regardless of using the same 10" drivers the Two10 and One10 are different animals. Note that Two10 has two differently voiced drivers, as described in a demo video. I would not describe One10 as "recorded" bass tone but the opposite, rather a "live setting" bass tone. It is robust, a bit overdriven in the mids and with tamed highs. I listened to Two10 demo and to my ears it sounds more mid-scooped than One10, I think the difference is the enclosure size.

+1 This is a very good point, although I am not sure whether they are two different drivers or there is a crossover cutting the highs to one, I suppose either way the effect will be much the same. Plus you have the larger cabinet. I would be interested to know whether in fact Alex does use a crossover to achieve the desired result and the speakers are identical.

 

[HaphAsSard]

+1 This is a very good point, although I am not sure whether they are two different drivers or there is a crossover cutting the highs to one, I suppose either way the effect will be much the same. Plus you have the larger cabinet. I would be interested to know whether in fact Alex does use a crossover to achieve the desired result and the speakers are identical.

Yep, it's all there on the Link Removed:

Barefaced line array
Both drivers in the Two10 work in unison to produce big bass and punchy mids but to improve dispersion only one has treble output - just like a PA line array.

It might seem counter-intuitive but the dispersion of a wave source is inversely proportion to the size of the source vs the wavelength - so side by side 10" drivers can have good dispersion through the lows and lower mids but once you get into the higher mids and treble the lateral dispersion narrows drastically. By only letting higher mids and treble come from one speakers we get much better dispersion through those frequencies so you have more consistent tone around the stage and venue. Not something you'll notice in a shop but something that can feel life changing on noisy gigs.

It's the same ".5" trick they first adopted on the 69er, and now on the Four, Six and Eight 10.

 

[anton72]

Yep, it's all there on the Link Removed:
It's the same ".5" trick they first adopted on the 69er, and now on the Four, Six and Eight 10.

I wonder if function of a stack of two One10 cabs equals one Two10 in terms of dispersion? Should the lower one treble/hi mid be isolated? Or is it different story because they are two separate enclosures?

 

[HaphAsSard]

I wonder if function of a stack of two One10 cabs equals one Two10 in terms of dispersion? Should the lower one treble/hi mid be isolated? Or is it different story because they are two separate enclosures?

If you're on a stage there should be no difference for the audience. Dispersion on the vertical plan, if the player is standing in front of the (small) 2x One 10 stack (as opposed to the Two 10 cab), should be a little worse. On the other hand with the two 110 cab solution there may be a slice of mids (say, 500 to 1000 Hz) where you might get useful reinforcements in individual frequencies besides weakenings in others. Also, if you find a way to safely tilt them back and point them directly at your head (they're so light that it shouldn't be too difficult to devise an ad hoc contraption) you'd possibly have more mids at your disposal, which you may choose not to cut in some difficult band mixes or rooms.

EDIT - I should add that:
- I'm no expert, I only play one on TB (until I remind myself to point out to others I'm not one);
- power requirement for mids is not high. If one has a Two 10, and needs more mids, all it takes is boosting them at the amp or the (active) bass.

 

[Plutonium244]

I believe that regardless of using the same 10" drivers the Two10 and One10 are different animals. Note that Two10 has two differently voiced drivers, as described in a demo video. I would not describe One10 as "recorded" bass tone but the opposite, rather a "live setting" bass tone. It is robust, a bit overdriven in the mids and with tamed highs. I listened to Two10 demo and to my ears it sounds more mid-scooped than One10, I think the difference is the enclosure size.

I agree with anton72's sizing-up... to me, the One10 or Four10 (and I assume Two10 though I don't have one) are not "recorded" tone but live, real-world butt-kicking tone (to use a scientific term). I have in the past summed up the difference in tone (Four10/BB2) as follows, even before this particular discussion came up: "For the Four10, when I hear it, I think "this is how I would want to hear the bass sound coming out of a cab at a bar/club/venue". When I hear the Big Baby cab, I think, "this is how I would want to hear my bass sound on a recording/CD being played on a stereo or PA."

I think anton also hits on the head w/ the difference between a One10 and the larger BF 10" cabs (such as my Four10): The One10 is much more mid present than the Four10. With the Four10 I don't need to cut mids; with the One10 I cut quite a lot of mids, maybe boost a little bass (the cab takes EQ direction very well and a user would do well to discard the "just run it flat becasue that's the way the cab is designed to sound" metality. It's made to take eq, including some healthy mid-cut (for my preferences); I don't need to EQ the Four10 much at all, the mids are not as pronounced as the One10.

 

[lomo]

The One10 is much more mid present than the Four10. With the Four10 I don't need to cut mids; with the One10 I cut quite a lot of mids, maybe boost a little bass (the cab takes EQ direction very well and a user would do well to discard the "just run it flat becasue that's the way the cab is designed to sound" metality. It's made to take eq, including some healthy mid-cut (for my preferences); I don't need to EQ the Four10 much at all, the mids are not as pronounced as the One10.

+100. I don't have the 410,, but the comparison between the One10 and my larger boxes is spot on.

 

[Tim1]

I guess "recorded" tone is very subjective and means different things to different people. When I referenced Tom's comment to me it is that slightly grindy compression you get when a tube amp hits its sweet spot, and the Four 10 (and I suppose the Two 10) just seems to have this built in. I love it! I guess I relate it to "recorded" tone as in my experience it is similar to what an engineer can do to the bass mix in a studio - certainly it does not lack balls. I suppose it depends what kind of music you listen to ....or what engineer you have worked with

 

[anton72]

I agree with anton72's sizing-up... to me, the One10 or Four10 (and I assume Two10 though I don't have one) are not "recorded" tone but live, real-world butt-kicking tone (to use a scientific term). I have in the past summed up the difference in tone (Four10/BB2) as follows, even before this particular discussion came up: "For the Four10, when I hear it, I think "this is how I would want to hear the bass sound coming out of a cab at a bar/club/venue". When I hear the Big Baby cab, I think, "this is how I would want to hear my bass sound on a recording/CD being played on a stereo or PA."

I think anton also hits on the head w/ the difference between a One10 and the larger BF 10" cabs (such as my Four10): The One10 is much more mid present than the Four10. With the Four10 I don't need to cut mids; with the One10 I cut quite a lot of mids, maybe boost a little bass (the cab takes EQ direction very well and a user would do well to discard the "just run it flat becasue that's the way the cab is designed to sound" metality. It's made to take eq, including some healthy mid-cut (for my preferences); I don't need to EQ the Four10 much at all, the mids are not as pronounced as the One10.

+1 to all you mentioned about EQing this cab. Spot on. It is very interactive.

 

[tombowlus]

FWIW, my reference to the "recorded bass tone" aspect of the Two10 was in response to Speyer's use of the term "recorded bass" tone and it was in comparison to the CN210. These are certainly subjective terms, but I guess the point I was making is that it has a great "sit in the mix" quality (as you may hear in some well-recorded albums, and as you may hear in some well-mixed live settings). Either way, I would certainly give a +1 to the "butt-kicking tone" description!

 

[smeet]

OK, my wife didn't hear the FedEx guy knocking, so they didn't deliver the Four10.
But I think I can pick it up from their office on the way home.

+1 to all you mentioned about EQing this cab. Spot on. It is very interactive.

+1. I'll have to report back on the Four10, but my impression from trying @monsterthompson's Two10 was that I was able to get some different sounds by cutting bass or boosting treble. by doing both, I was actually able to quickly get a sound that was a lot like my Ampeg 212AV. That's impressive as the two don't sound much alike, and the Ampeg has a tweeter. The Ampeg on the other hand can hardly be eq'd at all - it sounds great, but it sounds that way no matter what I do with the eq.

 

[monsterthompson]

Man, I'm happy to have the best of both worlds. The BB2 and Two10 are great for changing my mind. Today, I was listening to a bunch of Sasquatch (think Soundgarden meets Clutch and The Sword in a dark alley), so I decided to tweak my tone. I have recently added a new Steve Harris pickup to my P and loaded it with Chromes. The lab ended up exploding with this combo:


... and yes, that is the Enabler engaged with 100% bass roll-off but with the Deep switch thrown up and the Blower boosted in the lows.


It is nice to tweak EQ and gain and technique, and hear the results.

 

[monsterthompson]

I finally played through my One10 today. With an MB800 and with an MBF800. It seems very 'middy'...not sure what I expected but it sounds nothing like the SuperTwin at all. Not even a little bit.

I bought it used but the previous owner said it hasn't been broken in yet and I believe it. The closest cab to it soundwise is the Ampeg 210AV, which I don't really care for because it's so...'middy'.

Further thoughts will be shared after it breaks in and after a gig, it may Totally Slay after it gets used to making low notes!

Don't forget to try aiming the port sideways, if you haven't already done so. That will change the vibe of the cab.

 

[Tim1]

I shall have to spend some time playing with the eq more on my Four 10 then. It just sounded so good the other day with the Orange AD200 and a P bass that I wasn't tempted to fiddle. Something else to look forward to this weekend

 

[middy]

Another great gig with my Super Compact! Outdoors playing to only a couple dozen people, but it was plenty loud enough to keep up with our enthusiastic drummer.
The cool thing with these cabs is that they sit in the mix so well and are easy for everyone to hear without being too loud. Plus, they respond to eq so well. I just roll up the contour on my GK 700RB halfway for a perfect scooped rock tone with a pick, and roll it off for finger style, which can be bright or mellow depending on my technique.

 

[P_Robyn]

With all the interest in BFB cabs, thought this should get started.

Anyone who is an owner or a fan, post away.

Discussions, pics, potential buyers, and looky-loos. All are welcome!

Remember, no pics or it didn't happen.

New Barefaced owner here. I bought a Barefaced Big Twin 2 from @kimmyt a few weeks ago.
Thanks, man! Really loving this cab with my new Mesa Subway D-800.

Phil Robyn

 

[boristhespider7]

How are the one10's with the port blocked? I read somewhere that Alex said you can stuff a rag in there or something and experiment with it sealed. Anyone tried this?

 

[tallboybass]

How are the one10's with the port blocked? I read somewhere that Alex said you can stuff a rag in there or something and experiment with it sealed. Anyone tried this?

Well I accidentally did when playing my unbroken-in One10 vertically on a deep pile carpet. See my post on the previous page...didn't work too well.

 

[jnewmark]

Would anyone , who has played through both, care to discuss the difference in tone, output, etc, between the 210 and the Super Midget ?

 

[monsterthompson]

Would anyone , who has played through both, care to discuss the difference in tone, output, etc, between the 210 and the Super Midget ?

I've probably posted something more detailed in this thread already. I'll see if I can find it.
210 is going to present louder and bigger in the bass. Alex says the 210 and SC are comparable in volume, and I found the SC a bit louder and lower than the SM. The SM is going to be more flat and neutral with the option to roll back the tweeter. The 210 is voiced with what feels to me like a bump around the high-lows to low-mids. There's a scoop somewhere above that and a roll off in the highs. To me, the roll off in the highs seems to make the mids more present in a pleasing way.

Pushed with my band, the 210 holds up and I even find myself cutting the bass eq. I tried the SM with the same band of players and it wasn't quite enough, though it stacked nicely with a 110 or a SC under it.

I stil have moments of temptation to get two SM cabs and sell off my BB2 to finance that. However, I'm pretty sufficiently outfitted.

 

[anton72]

Guys to whom it may be interesting how One10 sounds with TH350 I've just recorded a short demo with my new bass.