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Phil Jones Bass Owners' Club

#1,081
Greetings and hello! Here's where I'm at: working NYC busker. Schtick: multilayered looped bass parts through a Boss GT-10B--->Micro Cube. Current setup vs. subway platform=limiting circumstances for my income and the sounds I'd like to make. Bottom line.....well....I believe I'm ready to take the plunge and join your esteemed, lofty ranks.

Questions, to wit:
-How long will a Briefcase's battery run for at a higher volume? I've heard everything from one hour to twenty.
-How long to recharge said battery? Lifespan?
-Is the 100-watt rating realistic?
-When does this year's 150-watt version come out, and do any of you have experience with it in regards to the above two queries?

Any guidance from y'all would be greatly appreciated. Thanks and take care!
 
#1,082
Hi again PJB friends. I am selling a pair of Phil Jones Pure Sound AAD W-10 Compact PA Speakers. I wanted to let you know first and I also would like to know where I should list PA speakers here on talkbass. I just listed them on evilbay but I'd rather sell them here.

And yes, they are really, really great. Thanks for the help!

IMG_0954_zps55b806e2.jpg
 
#1,084
#1,086
dickfitts said:
Greetings and hello! Here's where I'm at: working NYC busker. Schtick: multilayered looped bass parts through a Boss GT-10B--->Micro Cube. Current setup vs. subway platform=limiting circumstances for my income and the sounds I'd like to make. Bottom line.....well....I believe I'm ready to take the plunge and join your esteemed, lofty ranks.

Questions, to wit:
-How long will a Briefcase's battery run for at a higher volume? I've heard everything from one hour to twenty.
-How long to recharge said battery? Lifespan?
-Is the 100-watt rating realistic?
-When does this year's 150-watt version come out, and do any of you have experience with it in regards to the above two queries?

Any guidance from y'all would be greatly appreciated. Thanks and take care!
Click to expand...


Sorry I don't have any experience with the briefcase. Hopefully someone will chime in with answers.

I'm wondering if anyone can tell me how long the Double Four is able to run off a laptop battery? Anyone with direct experience?

Thanks in advance!
 
#1,087
#1,088
whirledpeas said:
Sorry I don't have any experience with the briefcase. Hopefully someone will chime in with answers.

I'm wondering if anyone can tell me how long the Double Four is able to run off a laptop battery? Anyone with direct experience?

Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...

No direct experience, but someone on Facebook has done 4hr outdoor gigs with his battery-powered Double Four. He turns it off between sets, but still, that's over 3 hours of actual playing time without any problems. Don't know beyond that.
 
#1,089
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#1,090
I visited the Phil Jones Bass showroom in Clifton NJ to have Mike check a faulty compressor in my Super Flightcase. Of course, as Murphy's Law would have it, my compressor behaved itself there and neither of us could hear the problem.

I tried a few of their other amps while I was there.

I have to say the Double Four sounded pretty damn good for its size. It can't handle any real volume without breaking up. But for in-home practice, it put out a surprisingly satisfying tone. I suspect there may be some baked-in "smiley face" eq to compensate for the teeny box.

I tried the Bass Cub, too. I had bought one of these before and immediately returned it for lack of power. But this Bass Cub in his showroom sounded more powerful. Makes me think there was something wrong with mine. I would've kept this one. I thought the Bass Cub was more boxy sounding than the Double Four.

The Briefcase wasn't a good match for my bright Musicman Sterling bass. Seemed to be all honky upper mids with no meat. Probably sounds good with a deep P bass. But it made my Musicman sound like a Telecaster guitar.

Strange that all these amps are said to replicate the true sound of the instrument without coloration and yet all sound different.

I liked the Roadcase. Would like to try it with a real band to hear how it holds up. In theory, this stuff should hold up. But in real life, the drummer is too loud; the guitarist is definitely too loud, and my impression is PJB stuff doesn't compete with "too loud" very well. You can only use it with very responsible players.
 
#1,091
jtroska said:
I visited the Phil Jones Bass showroom in Clifton NJ to have Mike check a faulty compressor in my Super Flightcase. Of course, as Murphy's Law would have it, my compressor behaved itself there and neither of us could hear the problem.

I tried a few of their other amps while I was there.

I have to say the Double Four sounded pretty damn good for its size. It can't handle any real volume without breaking up. But for in-home practice, it put out a surprisingly satisfying tone. I suspect there may be some baked-in "smiley face" eq to compensate for the teeny box.

I tried the Bass Cub, too. I had bought one of these before and immediately returned it for lack of power. But this Bass Cub in his showroom sounded more powerful. Makes me think there was something wrong with mine. I would've kept this one. I thought the Bass Cub was more boxy sounding than the Double Four.

The Briefcase wasn't a good match for my bright Musicman Sterling bass. Seemed to be all honky upper mids with no meat. Probably sounds good with a deep P bass. But it made my Musicman sound like a Telecaster guitar.

Strange that all these amps are said to replicate the true sound of the instrument without coloration and yet all sound different.

I liked the Roadcase. Would like to try it with a real band to hear how it holds up. In theory, this stuff should hold up. But in real life, the drummer is too loud; the guitarist is definitely too loud, and my impression is PJB stuff doesn't compete with "too loud" very well. You can only use it with very responsible players.
Click to expand...

Biggest thing is that the Pirahna speakers and Neo speakers DO sound different. The Neos remind me more of what a traditional speaker would sound like whereas the Pirahnas are the punchier cousin of them. The new ones (along with the passive radiator) in the Double Four really bridge the gap between the two kinds. I haven't had a chance to play one yet, but I'm really looking forward to hearing what the new tech in the Briefcase Ultimate does.

One thing I have noticed with PJB stuff is there are two things folk coming from other amps need to learn (and I was one of those as well). First, you can dime the volume and the amp will be fine. How many times have we had amps that when you turn the master up past noon, it starts breaking up? Secondly, the PJB sound isn't so much a felt sound (as in, stand in front and have it vibrate your pant legs) more than a heard sound.

Both of those things take a bit of adjusting, as I was coming from using a GK 700rb and Aguilar GS112 that would rattle walls to using a PJB Suitcase w/4B cab. I couldn't feel myself as much, but suddenly everyone could hear me a lot better.

As for MY real life, I play in large groups with musicians that understand volume. Used my D600 and 4B cab with an 8 piece motown band and the volume was at 10 o'clock, and we had plenty of stage volume. I used the Double Four with a 37 piece studio orchestra, and was told to turn down on a couple of occasions. Before I sold it, I used the Briefcase on a large number of gigs that have had musicians come up during set breaks with dropped jaws, wondering about the sound.

It's all about using the right amp for the right situation. I just find that PJB stuff allows me to cover a lot more ground with a lot less amp.
 
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#1,092
One Bad Monkey said:
As for MY real life, I play in large groups with musicians that understand volume..
Click to expand...


I envy you. I never had that luxury. I'm in a band now that rehearses in a space the size of a two-car garage. And the guitarist insists on two Marshall half stacks. Two.

One day I want to get to rehearsal early and try my Super Flightcase with just the drummer before the Marshalls get fired up. My drummer actually DOES understand proper stage volume, believe it or not. And he understands a variety of music styles that don't all require Spinal Tap extremes.

I don't know which Briefcase I plugged into. I didn't even know there were different models until I got home and looked through the product brochure Mike gave me.
 
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#1,093
jtroska said:
I envy you. I never had that luxury. I'm in a band now that rehearses in a space the size of a two-car garage. And the guitarist insists on two Marshall half stacks. Two.

One day I want to get to rehearsal early and try my Super Flightcase with just the drummer before the Marshalls get fired up. My drummer actually DOES understand proper stage volume, believe it or not. And he understands a variety of music styles that don't all require Spinal Tap extremes.

I don't know which Briefcase I plugged into. I didn't even know there were different models until I got home and looked through the product brochure Mike gave me.
Click to expand...

If this had been posted in the band management forum, this would be the fix suggested: Use the super flight case directed at you and the drummer. Run a cable between the preamp out and a 2K watt power amp, plug it into an 810 (maybe a Mesa) and put that between you and the guitarist, aimed straight at him. The 810 will act as a sound barrier and insulate you and the drummer and will also drown out the guitarist with his full stack.

:)

Seriously though, it is surprising how much volume and presence can be had from PJB gear. I want a 4b to go along with my suitcase, but it's had to justify it given how loud the suitcase already gets.
 

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