Bought the 12" CMD 121P Combo yesterday. They said it should arrive at my house within 3-5 business days. Should I have just bought the LMII head and seperate cab? Or will this combo be fine for now until I buy the added 15" speaker?
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Official Markbass Club Pt. 2
- Thread starter JimmyM
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It really depends on usage. I like my 121P as I could take the combo to practices and bar gigs, in the front seat of my Mazda3. Sounds just fine. Others like to have a 2x10 or 2x12 as their main cabinet so then it makes sense to have separate amp/cab.
skeptikal, I have the 121p and add the 121h cab for larger stages. It matches the combo size beautifully (unlike the 115 which is larger than the combo) and the two 12" cabs have incredible low end and perfect balance to my ears. I'd add the 121h as a ext cab rather than the 115. I couldn't be happier with the 121p combo and 121h cab combination for live work. I use my Ampeg 1965 B15N for recording purposes.
Bebop,
How does the 121H's tone compare to the combo??
I have the same combo and am wondering what to pair with it for bigger gigs.
Andrew
How does the 121H's tone compare to the combo??
I have the same combo and am wondering what to pair with it for bigger gigs.
Andrew
RACK EARS!! I have RACK EARS!! OMGOMGOMGOMG!
Only took 9 1/2 weeks.... there is a pun in there somewhere its just too hot to think right now.
One Markbass F1 Rack Ear Kit in my hot little hands!
No more bath towel!
I must say I'm impressed with how beefy these things are. They are in danger of weighing more than the amp...haha.
Only took 9 1/2 weeks.... there is a pun in there somewhere its just too hot to think right now.
One Markbass F1 Rack Ear Kit in my hot little hands!
No more bath towel!I must say I'm impressed with how beefy these things are. They are in danger of weighing more than the amp...haha.
Close but not quite the same...
Paired with my LMII my UL115 is MUCH prettier sounding than my 1212R, but in terms of pure in-your-face volume, my 1212R wipes the floor with the UL115. If I know I need to be really loud, like playing outside, I go with my 1212R. 80% of the time though I stick with the UL115. Even though its 8 ohm, its plenty loud for my 3 piece roots rock band. Also, it does fill out the lowend better than the 1212R can. BUt the price is cut ability. In my 3 piece I am not worried about cut. However, I just joined a classic rock covers group with 2 guitarists and 3 vocalists and I can guarantee the 1212R will perform better in that group because of its cutting ability.
Tottaly agree with all of that.
I also was using a UL115 for a while with my MB heads. Its a nice, full range full sounding cab and probably the best 1x15 ive ever used. Did a few bigger gigs with it and the low end is nicer than the 1212L but yes, for more kick and a bit more volume the 1210R would come out.
Now i have the 1212L instead of the UL212 i tend to have more growl and the lower notes do seem ot be more solid compared to my UL cabs so im happy for now.
I also was using a UL115 for a while with my MB heads. Its a nice, full range full sounding cab and probably the best 1x15 ive ever used. Did a few bigger gigs with it and the low end is nicer than the 1212L but yes, for more kick and a bit more volume the 1210R would come out.
Now i have the 1212L instead of the UL212 i tend to have more growl and the lower notes do seem ot be more solid compared to my UL cabs so im happy for now.
Sorry for the unsolicited advice but...
Having demo'd both combos in the store I feel the 121H is a much better unit. Its louder and fuller sounding. There is definitely shared tonal characteristics between the two, but the 121H is the clear winner IMO. I could easily see doing gigs with that 121H combo. To be honest, after reading all the glowing reports of the cmd 121p, I was a bit underwhelmed. Does it sound great? Yes, absolutely, but I would *never* expect that combo to work for me. Just not loud enough. And I don't play that loud. It IS loud for its size, but its tiny. If you pair it with another cab you'd be good to go. However, unless you are playing very small venues or acoustic singer/songwriter stuff, its not enough on its own to produce realistic volume. Its not the amp, I have one and its loud as hell. Its the enclosure. I think if the cmd 121p is used appropriately its an excellent combo. Just dont expect it to be more than it is.
Just trying to be honest here.
Wow, you guys must play super-loud if the 121P isn't enough. I can get mine cranking pretty darn loud.
In the store, I had it at about 2:00 on the master and 1:00 on the gain. Set flat, filters off. I could tell right away its not loud enough for us. Maybe it would be better on the gig? I also prefer a larger 'wall of sound' behind me. I have played a gig with a UL112 and my LMII and it was fine, but not ideal.
I also dont like pushing my gear to its limits.
YMMV
I also dont like pushing my gear to its limits.
YMMV
Same here, I don't know if a CMD 121P would be good for a metal band, but for all the other jobs I've done with it, a single 121P has done just fine and the 2x10 cab I've dragged to gigs have been sitting in the back of my car... If 300W plus possible PA support is not enough, it has to be a huge venue or something similar.
I went to the local GC today and tried the 121p and the Berlin combos. Nice but I agree not loud enough for my needs. Plus the 121p farted a bit and the Berlin was a bit bigger sounding but not really any louder. I already own an LMII and use it all the time with my Dr.Bass cabs. I was shooting for a smaller-ish combo to appease my lazy self for toting a racked LMII, my Dr. 1260 and my bass to reheasals and jams which really isn't that bad.
I might contact Dr. Bass to construct a airhead moded 1260 for me to rack my LMII. I'd probably go with a 4ohm neo model as I'd only use it by itself.
I might contact Dr. Bass to construct a airhead moded 1260 for me to rack my LMII. I'd probably go with a 4ohm neo model as I'd only use it by itself.
I'm going to take a better pic of my all MB rig (CMD 102P + 104HF) than I put on the last MB Club thread so you guys can see how cool it looks. By the way, I love the cab. I've played through the 410 UL, the 410 Berg, and some other not as expensive brands and I like the cut and upper midrange slice of the 104HF much better. I haven't tried many of the other MB cabs, but this one is very well designed and matched to the LMII with 2 more tens. I love this rig!
Ah see, that may be the difference. With PA support the 121p would probably be loud enough... if I could have a monitor jacked up with bass in front and the 121p behind... but then that's sort of like having two drivers. For my gigs I have never been totally satisfied with ANY cab with a SINGLE 12... A UL112 is pretty dang close though. I prefer the fullness of my UL115 over the UL112.
But then again I am pretty picky about my bass tone. I want to have a cab behind me that has some 'presence'. The 121p wont do that for me. The 121H and the cmd 102 combos will.
Ya, I understand that. Multiple drivers always sound better to me, and single 12"s definitely don't thump like single 15"s. But I got my combo for a single purpose, which is to have a great amp that's small and powerful and sounds great. I get that out of it, but yeah, it's definitely no match for a bigger cab.
Well, I have been going through amps like crazy this summer.
I fired up my old Pearce BC1 and though it sounds great, keeps giving me issues.
I picked up a SVTII-P which has promise, but is making some noises that I need to follow up on.
I was in the Local GC this weekend and tried the LM-II. The sound was great, plenty loud and they meade me a good deal on the last model they had in stock (the floor model). My roadie (wifey
) was impressed with how light the box was so I pulled the trigger.
I brought it home and set it up on my Goliath II and it shakes the walls with everything set flat and the master at 9 o'clock.
I got a set of rack ears with the head also, but I was wondering if anyone uses the bag from MarkBass? Putting the head in my rack seems to defeat the purpose of the smaller lighter head. If not the Markbass bag, how does everyone move their heads without risk of damage in the car or at the gig?
Also, I see how to change the DI and effects loop. I was wondering the pro's and con's of the loop in series or paralell.
Sorry if all this was in the last thread, but I could not find it.
Thanks
Rick (Now I got to change my signature again...)
Oh yeah, can I get a number?
I fired up my old Pearce BC1 and though it sounds great, keeps giving me issues.
I picked up a SVTII-P which has promise, but is making some noises that I need to follow up on.
I was in the Local GC this weekend and tried the LM-II. The sound was great, plenty loud and they meade me a good deal on the last model they had in stock (the floor model). My roadie (wifey
) was impressed with how light the box was so I pulled the trigger.I brought it home and set it up on my Goliath II and it shakes the walls with everything set flat and the master at 9 o'clock.
I got a set of rack ears with the head also, but I was wondering if anyone uses the bag from MarkBass? Putting the head in my rack seems to defeat the purpose of the smaller lighter head. If not the Markbass bag, how does everyone move their heads without risk of damage in the car or at the gig?
Also, I see how to change the DI and effects loop. I was wondering the pro's and con's of the loop in series or paralell.
Sorry if all this was in the last thread, but I could not find it.
Thanks
Rick (Now I got to change my signature again...)
Oh yeah, can I get a number?
No prob, it's a bit much to filter through if you have specific questions.
As I recall...
I think the bags are ok, but there are lots of choices as well. I like the Gigskinz one, and yeah, no reason to have the bag if you'll rack.
It's a pro/con depending on how you like to run your effects. Most loops are series, so it's default of parallel might seem odd, but all it means is there's "50%" of your sound that is passed through and remixed with whatever happens in the effects chain on the other side. I think this only matters to effects you DON'T typically use any blending on... maybe like a compressor/limiter, but you can just serialize those by putting it before the amp. Or you can switch the loop. Either way.
Absolutely.
MBCM #157 pbass2go!
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