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Official Barefaced Bass Cab Club

#3,541
Plutonium244 said:
And now, you stand corrected, Alex. The following is from October 23rd, a little over 2 weeks ago. Yes, you can use it sideways without a sock in it (I did not say it could not be used sideways without a sock), but you did in fact say that you "can" stuff a sock in it. Nevertheless, it does bear repeating, as you did, that sideways is perfectly fine as-is; no sock required. And I look forward to your articles about getting the best out of Barefaced cabs, that should be interesting.

Here ya go:

Official Barefaced Bass Cab Club


"The Two10 (and indeed all the 10CR designs) are quite tweakable on the low frequency tightness front - with the port firing into free air they're biggest and least tight in the lows, with the port firing onto a boundary (usually the floor), they're a bit leaner and tighter. Then there's the option of entirely plugging the port (a tightly rolled up sock or T-shirt or closed cell foam plug) which tighten them up even more.

And there's also the option of plugging the port with something porous, so open cell foam or a loose plug of more open weave fabric (part of a retired woollen jumper?) so make the port aperiodic, so it becomes a leaky sealed box. And if the port is aperiodic you have the option of using the free air or boundary positioning of the port as well. Depending on how the port is damped this could actually sound tighter than a completely plugged port.

Lots of choices!"
Click to expand...

See quoted post from a few hours ago:

alexclaber said:
Yes, you can choose to plug the port on any of the Hybrid Resonator cabs (all the 10CR ones) though few owners do. Likewise you could even plug one or two of the port sections on any of the 12XN cabs to lower the tuning frequency (but I don't know of anyone doing that).

The One10, Two10, Super Midget, Super Compact and Big Baby 2 can be used either way around depending on your tonal, aesthetic and practical needs. The Two10 has the biggest tonal change when you rotate it, then the One10, Super Compact, Big Baby 2 and Super Midget. The default configuration is the one that keeps the badge the right way around.
Click to expand...

If you're going to be pernickety about exactly what I've said, you could at least get the year right. That quote you found about stuffing the port was from October 2015! ;)

Right from the launch of the Hybrid Resonator cabs I've said that stuffing the port is an option if you want leaner lows - not many do though. But that doesn't affect my statements about being able to rotate any of our smaller cabs for different purposes.
 
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#3,547
Plutonium244 said:
I would certainly think so, it'd be very much like my SM + BB2 except maybe with slightly less native bottom end (due to BB2 being a bigger box) but 1) some people may not want that much bottom and 2) a slight nudge on the bass knob will fully compensate for that. I got all the bass I wanted and more out of the SM. A previous poster just noted that the Big Twin has the "everywhere but nowhere" sound which I have called "sounds liked you have PA support for bass when you don't" effect. Two SM's would provide that too, I think. My only knock on 2 SM's-- and it is a minor/petty one-- would simply be that two SM's stacked still aren't that tall, since they are, well, midgets. Still, they'd be taller than one BB2 which I didn't find to be "too short" to do what I wanted.
Click to expand...
Even though Alex seems not to be a fan, I like to get my cab (cabs) up off the floor by 6 to 12 inches.
I like a very tight bottom [ ;) ], so the bit of elevation seems to help the low end & gets the mids & highs closer to my ears for stage monitoring.
I could also use the SM pair as part of a home audio system.
 
#3,549
monsterthompson said:
My attempt at this lead me to believe Alex has giant socks. I ended up using a shop rag, and it blew right out of the port.
Click to expand...

My feet are normal sized but our factory is not that warm in the winter and our previous business unit had an even more sub-arctic microclimate, hence my collection of ski socks! ;) Bear in mind that even on the south coast of England we're further north than the US/Canada border!
 
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#3,550
alexclaber said:
My feet are normal sized but our factory is not that warm in the winter and our previous business unit had an even more sub-arctic microclimate, hence my collection of ski socks! ;) Bear in mind that even on the south coast of England we're further north than the US/Canada border!
Click to expand...

As a British expat I can confirm that everywhere along the US/Can border is a damn sight colder than Brighton is in the winter :P
 
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#3,551
Waltsdog said:
As a British expat I can confirm that everywhere along the US/Can border is a damn sight colder than Brighton is in the winter :p
Click to expand...

We did get snowed in one winter though! ;) And the old business unit rarely went above 10 deg C (that's 50 deg F) in the colder months - we used to work in these strange outfits that were like a cross between overalls and ski suits and I always had one of these underneath:
Special 6 Shirt

And often one of these over the top when doing static work:
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
 
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#3,554
As posted earlier, played an outside gig with the SM and BB2 with a Mesa 800. Really liked it, many compliments
At rehearsal last night, ran the SM with the SL 900 and liked it
Am doing an outside gig Sunday will run the SM/BB2 with the SL 900 and see how that works
Still trying to dial in my sound with the Magellan 800
For my sound, (old school) I have really been happy when I pull back the horn(s). Not that that it is harsh, just meets my needs
 
#3,555
I'm currently considering selling off my Two10, as it is overkill for my needs. I've hesitated, so far, because I do like the voicing, which isn't that of my BB2. However, I'm finding that the BB2 is responsive enough, that with the right low gain OD, and a dab of compressor, I can get close to what I like about the Two10. Of course, I can't make the Two10 act more like the BB2. I don't really need the money or the space right now, though both would be nice. Of course, I've now got 4 basses, all of which are quite different, and each has strengths and weaknesses with each cab.

I honestly could get by with a SM for 75% of my needs. Right now, I don't jam with a drummer very often; just a few times a year. I left my previous project, where the BB2 was a great fit. If it weren't for the occasional drummer jams, I'd consider a SM/One10 arsenal, for the tonal variety.

Going through this thought process and evaluation, I found the addition of the Dunwich ODB pedal gives me some of that "One10 voicing" when using the BB2, particularly with some EQ dabs. It's an OCD pedal clone, with a 3-band EQ and two clipping modes. I've poked a Horizon compressor at the end of my signal chain, on a light setting, so I can get some of that feeling of pushing the amp, even at low volume. My head also has a dark/normal/bright switch, and the dark mode with the crossover dialed down on the BB2 helps. Anyone else here find a "formula" for making the neutral 12" G3 cabs sound closer to the 10" cabs?
 
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#3,556
monsterthompson said:
Anyone else here find a "formula" for making the neutral 12" G3 cabs sound closer to the 10" cabs?
Click to expand...

I went through the same angst. I loved my SM for its clarity and volume for its tiny size, but over time I found myself gravitating to the tone of my One10. I added front end processors and gritty amps to my SM to get more of a One10 tone; ultimately I decided to go all-in on the inherent 10" tone, selling my SM and replacing it with a second One10.
 
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#3,557
JxBass said:
I went through the same angst. I loved my SM for its clarity and volume for its tiny size, but over time I found myself gravitating to the tone of my One10. I added front end processors and gritty amps to my SM to get more of a One10 tone; ultimately I decided to go all-in on the inherent 10" tone, selling my SM and replacing it with a second One10.
Click to expand...

I get that. There have been a few times when I thought I had a 10" sound out of the 12" cab, only to plug into the 10" and hear that I didn't quite get there. I think the "grit" boxes help, but don't quite do the trick. There's a little something extra from the compressor that rounds out the tone. I've actually got three compressors right now (Accountant, Horizon, and Smoothie), and the Horizon can be really squishy with a slow, swelling attack, but it can also get "tube" like, and the right, subtle settings seem to give some of that 10" cab punch. Compressors also tend to round off the highs a little, along with taming the deeper lows, which is part of the voice of the 10" cab. The OVNILab review even mentions the fat low-mids of this particular unit, which might line up the neutral 12" with the 10" voicing, also.
 
#3,558
monsterthompson said:
I get that. There have been a few times when I thought I had a 10" sound out of the 12" cab, only to plug into the 10" and hear that I didn't quite get there. I think the "grit" boxes help, but don't quite do the trick. There's a little something extra from the compressor that rounds out the tone. I've actually got three compressors right now (Accountant, Horizon, and Smoothie), and the Horizon can be really squishy with a slow, swelling attack, but it can also get "tube" like, and the right, subtle settings seem to give some of that 10" cab punch. Compressors also tend to round off the highs a little, along with taming the deeper lows, which is part of the voice of the 10" cab. The OVNILab review even mentions the fat low-mids of this particular unit, which might line up the neutral 12" with the 10" voicing, also.
Click to expand...

So much angst in these review comments! The irony to me is the SM owned by MonsterT was then owned by JxBass and is now my cab.

I don't know why this reminds me of an Elvis story. He was in the army and a reporter asked, "Elvis, what kind of girl do you like?" And without hesitation Elvis responded, "Female, Sir."
 
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#3,560
Such a small world :)

Not really that much angst here. I'm an accountant and have a minimalist mentality, so I hate having gear I don't use. I'm obsessed with right-sizing things, right now :) I also get distracted with tone hunting and knob turning, so having fewer available options helps me focus on making music over just searching for sounds. I do like knowing how things work and being able to discuss my impressions with other users. I'm (fortunately) not financially burdened by owning the stuff I do have, and I'd probably just sell it to buy different stuff.

Honestly, much of my gear churn is inspiring. I hear things in a different way, which inspires me to play differently, which yields new ideas. Right now, I feel the BB2 meets most of my cab needs and wants. Right now, pedals and software and recording hold my interest. I'd probably end up with a new mic and a pedal if I flipped my cab. I'd have enough to also snag a One10 so I could mic that for those sounds, and the BB2 would cover me for louder stuff.

Really, I will flip when/if I'm ready, and I'm fine with that. Truly, I posted this train of thought to see what others have done, if anything to mimic the 10" drivers when using the 12" drivers. I thought I'd share my formula, so those on the fence between the two might find another route to "have both."
 
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