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Official Barefaced Bass Cab Club
- Thread starter Stumbo
- Start date
On TB we call that "being there for you!"
So, playing a gig last weekend and I wasn't happy with the sound. It was a bit dirtier and there wasn't as much of it as I was used to. Figured it was my bass, so I popped it into passive mode and asked my soundguy for more in my ears. About 30 seconds later, he's standing in front of me, pointing at my cab. I turn to look, and the bottom speaker in my BTII isn't moving! Tried a different speaker cord, no love. So I unplugged the cab and just went direct the rest of the show. Emailed Alex the next day, and he asked me to do the 9v test and take off the grill and pull the driver to see whassup. I did, and this is what I found-
I guess we found the problem! I sent the pic to Alex, and I'm just waiting to hear back. I did learn a couple of things...
1. These cabs are RIDICULOUSLY well-built! It took some effort to pull the cab apart. It looks as nice on the inside as it does on the outside. I'm just afraid it won't be as sturdy when I put it back together, lol!
2. Its only been a few days, but I miss this cab. Having said that, the new Genzler BA cabs are amazing(I have a BA 410), but I want this cab up and running again, asap...lol!
I guess we found the problem! I sent the pic to Alex, and I'm just waiting to hear back. I did learn a couple of things...
1. These cabs are RIDICULOUSLY well-built! It took some effort to pull the cab apart. It looks as nice on the inside as it does on the outside. I'm just afraid it won't be as sturdy when I put it back together, lol!
2. Its only been a few days, but I miss this cab. Having said that, the new Genzler BA cabs are amazing(I have a BA 410), but I want this cab up and running again, asap...lol!
Bummer on the speaker failure! How does the BTII (when right) compare to the BA410-3?
Lemme try to put this in words-
The BTII is definitely a bigger sounding cab and There's a bit more bottom end. The Genzler is better at dispersing the sound and the mids and highs are a bit cleaner. Not that the Barefaced is bad, but Jeff Genzler is on to something with the BA cabs. I feel like, outputwise, they are pretty even, so I should be pretty happy bouncing back and forth between the two. Slightly different EQing and either cab will make any bass player happy as a clam!
It sounds like a cliche, but they really are just two different versions of awesome...;-)
Very true. They are hard to find and, when they do pop up, they don't usually last long.
I was really lucky and a couple of kind souls in this thread (@monsterthompson and @Plutonium244) referred a seller directly to me before he (another kind soul, @gl1234) actually posted a for sale ad. They didn't know it at the time, but I had already bought from gl1234 before and I was more than happy to do business with him again!
I was really lucky and a couple of kind souls in this thread (@monsterthompson and @Plutonium244) referred a seller directly to me before he (another kind soul, @gl1234) actually posted a for sale ad. They didn't know it at the time, but I had already bought from gl1234 before and I was more than happy to do business with him again!
This past weekend I finally got over to guitar center to get another Neutrik cable and hook up both cabs to my Mesa M9... and the results were unbelievably good!
For over a year, I've been playing in various live situations with just the M9 and the BB2. In any indoor situation, it cut through the mix just fine and had more than enough power. But the one aspect I was having trouble dialing in was a bit of warmth in the lower mids for stuff like blues and older styles of music. The Mesa Carbine profile tends to be hi-fi and clear to begin with, but because of its voices and EQ capabilities, you can pretty much get where you want.
The SM2 on its own is really warm sounding, still punchy but without that snappy sizzle on the top end. I can totally see bringing it by itself to a small jazz/fusion gig.
So what I figured was I could combine the BB2 and the SM2 to get that outdoor volume you sometimes need and the full 600W of the M9. At best case because there's so much speaker surface area being covered, the amp isn't working as hard. When I combined the two cabs, the tone was punchy and clear with an added warmth in the sound. I really love this combination!
Whoa, almost 400 pages and I've never really done research on these cabs. I've read many reviews, but I don't know anything other than they sound amazing. Who wants to give me the down and dirty on the 4x10 cabs? I'm more of a wood and strings guy, not a wood and speakers guy.
I highly recommend reading all of the great material on Barefaced's website. The information delves as deep as you want to go and you will come away feeling a lot better educated on that aspect of your gear. That really helped me before making my first purchase years ago.
Edit: Also, if you're not exactly sure which cabinet is the best for your playing style and situation, the team over there is extremely helpful in guiding you towards the right cabinet to get the job done and they won't oversell you. These things are really loud for their size. A Barefaced 4x10 is going to be a hell of a lot louder and cleaner than a comparable, conventional design.
The 10" driver cabs are their "voiced" cabs with a more traditional/conventional sound. The 12" driver cabs are meant to be more flat/neutral sounding. The 10" cabs are designed to break up a little when pushed. They sound lovely. I've owned the 110 and 210 versions. I'm sure the 410 is a beast.
Don't let the unusual resistance (Ohms) ratings throw you.
The cabs are premium priced. If you can afford them, you'll likely find they tend to be lighter and louder than most conventional cabs with similar configurations.
If you email Alex at Barefaced, he'll shoot straight. His response will likely be brief, but on point. He has fielded a ton of questions over the years, and he knows his craft.
alexclaber
Commercial User
You could do that or you could just email us directly and I'll save you a lot of reading! There's a ton of stuff that needs updating on the site (we have a new one in progress) and I've got much better at asking succinct questions and quickly matching player to cab(s).
They sure are nice. I'm kind of tempted to sell my 8x10. I was originally wanting a 6x10, but I think I want to invest in two nice 4x10 cabs.
scottfeldstein
Roots and fifths and a little extra.
So I haven't even attempted to read the 399 pages of this discussion, but hopefully this hasn't been asked too many times before.
I have my heart set on a pair of Fearless 112 or 115 cabs. Maybe next year or the year after. But I have been to the Barefaced website and I understand that they are also doing "next level" engineering over there. The kind of wizardry that can make a 12/6 almost get to 410 volumes - with enough watts.
So here's my question. It's not like I'm going to save any money going Barefaced. Their prices seem to be within a stones throw of any of the Fearless builders out there. Why would I choose Barefaced over Fearless?
I have my heart set on a pair of Fearless 112 or 115 cabs. Maybe next year or the year after. But I have been to the Barefaced website and I understand that they are also doing "next level" engineering over there. The kind of wizardry that can make a 12/6 almost get to 410 volumes - with enough watts.
So here's my question. It's not like I'm going to save any money going Barefaced. Their prices seem to be within a stones throw of any of the Fearless builders out there. Why would I choose Barefaced over Fearless?
I had a Fearless/full, built by someone who is no longer an authorized builder. Aside from my issues I had related to the builder, here are my thoughts:
- The form factor. I'm assuming you'd be after a BB2 from Barefaced, if you are interested in a Fearless/ful. I find the BB2 an easier haul than the 115. I haven't experienced a setting where the extra driver size on the 115 made me wish I had it over the 12" BF driver.
- Crossover design. The BF execution is nice, and adjustable. I forget if the crossover on the Fear cabs can be done manually. The BF adjustment isn't a "tweeter volume" but instead changes the crossover frequency.
- Sound - Both cabs makers call their boxes flat/neutral/etc. To my ears there is some midrange scoop in the 115 relative to the BB2. I've heard others claim they've heard it, also. It isn't radical, but it isn't nonexistent.
I've had good luck with the Super Compact, if you have no need for much content over 4k. It is smaller, lighter, and cheaper. The SC isn't as deep and loud as the BB2, but that's due to the smaller cabinet (same 12" driver).
Alex and his BF crew have been helpful and responsive. However, if you want to work with a builder in a time zone that you can call at a reasonable hour, then a Fearless/ful design might be a better choice. There are also several TB members in the greenboy community, and they can be quite helpful if you have any issues. I'd say, if you have a significant issue, then having a US-based builder and community is an attraction point. That said, I've not seen much in this thread about users needing to send cabs in for repair, and Alex has customers world-wide. I'm sure he's figured out how to handle customer service, short of sending a cabinet overseas to the factory.
scottfeldstein
Roots and fifths and a little extra.
Thanks for the thoughtful reply! It sounds like crossover differences, slightly different voicing, possibly luggability... but it does seem like both groups are doing the "super cab" stuff I'm after. It's good to know I have choices! I should watch what BF is doing more closely.
So, as usual, I'd like to shoutout to Alex and the rest of the Barefaced team. I mentioned a bit ago that one of the drivers in my BTII stopped working. After prying the grill off and finding out one of the lead wires on the bottom driver had come apart, Alex shipped me another driver today. It'll be here tomorrow! That is some good service right there. Thanks, guys! Your help in this matter is greatly appreciated!
I'll ship the defective driver off to be examined, but I'll have my BTII up and running tomorrow night. My drummer had a family thing out of town pop up, so we have this weekend off now. I'm kinda glad, because it gives me a chance to get this cab running, clean and re-set up my basses, and do a complete pedalboard overhaul. Not making any money this weekend, but I'll still be working my @$$ off, LOL!
I'll ship the defective driver off to be examined, but I'll have my BTII up and running tomorrow night. My drummer had a family thing out of town pop up, so we have this weekend off now. I'm kinda glad, because it gives me a chance to get this cab running, clean and re-set up my basses, and do a complete pedalboard overhaul. Not making any money this weekend, but I'll still be working my @$$ off, LOL!
Yeah man. I've had 5 (still have 2 of them) Barefaced cabs and they are leauges above mass produced cabs. However, so are lots of brands these days. I think a Barefaced cab would be obviously special in a group of Ampeg, GK and Ashdown cabs, I'm not so sure it would stand out next to Fearless, Audiokinesis, etc.
