I just tried cutting the low mid just the tiniest bit on my 700 and man, everything just snapped into focus. And I’ve always boosted the low mid a touch. Thanks for that idea!
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The Reiner rig killed last night.... as always!
- Jun 29, 2006
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- 3,214
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- President, CEO, CFO, CIO, Chief Engineer, Technician, Janitor - Reiner Amplification
With this band the third set always gets loud. You can guess which band. 
Sealed 6x10 weighing in at -- get this -- 64 pounds. Mad scientist JGR is getting even better now that he has assistants in his workshop!
Another gig report. This is one of my favorite dirt pedal combos: MBD1 for the phatness, Gasoline for the mids, B7K for the highs. This was a mostly-blues duo gig so B7K was mostly off. Low volume, the single Wunderkab was way more than enough, but of course it sounds great at low volume too.
- Jun 29, 2006
- 5,148
- 3,214
- Disclosures
- President, CEO, CFO, CIO, Chief Engineer, Technician, Janitor - Reiner Amplification
Ken, I read quite a few of your posts, especially the ones with photos.....you need to get a pedalboard lol! Unless I missed it.
BTW, I’m finding with the Gasoline I don’t use my “dirt” pedal (Pork Loin) at all anymore. The Gasoline with the gain about 7:00 where the breakup is just beginning combined with my Mesa D-800+’s input gain around 1000.....awesome low, touch sensitive overdrive.
BTW, I’m finding with the Gasoline I don’t use my “dirt” pedal (Pork Loin) at all anymore. The Gasoline with the gain about 7:00 where the breakup is just beginning combined with my Mesa D-800+’s input gain around 1000.....awesome low, touch sensitive overdrive.
Well, I play a lot of gigs where there's barely room for a single pedal, let alone a pedalboard. The bigger problem is that I'm so fickle that I never use the same group of pedals from gig to gig. I've got over a dozen dirts and comps that I like, and no, I don't want a pedalboard that large.
I'd like to get a small board eventually (for 3-4 pedals plus my ISO-5), but I need to decide whether to deal with the usual velcro, or the Templeboards system -- both of which mean that I'll have to attach something to every pedal I plan to gig -- or go with a clamp/tie-down system. Sigh.
Two Sundays ago I visited JGR. My delayed response is mainly because of overtime hours spent at work, and I've also had to prep for some sub gigs. Anyway: it's always a great hang with Jonathan and the family, but this is TalkBass and there was a lot going on in his Skunkworks lab.
Item #1: the Saturn V. I'd heard the videos he posted of the final version, but it was fun to A/B Saturn V with my VHF700 in person. They are certainly similar, but JGR tweaked the Saturn front end for a bit more "heft" in the lows and clarity on top. There are a few other changes such as features added/removed, adjustments to EQ points, etc. The tonal differences aren't night and day, and JGR demonstrated that the Bright switch on the 700 would get me in the ballpark of the Saturn's clarity. I've been perfectly happy with the VHF, and rarely use Bright because I often use dirt. That said, the REAL difference between the two amps happened when cranking the Saturn V into a cab that could handle its output. Which brings me to....
Item #2: JGR's sealed 6x10. WHAT A MONSTER. As noted previously in this thread it uses ceramic drivers but weighs only 64 pounds. Compared tonally to my NV610, the JGR610 has a bit more on top and down below (that was confirmed by an A/B with JGR's NV412). I can't really speak to volume differences between NV610 and JGR610, but Jonathan cranked Saturn V through his 610 and it seemed to shake the foundation... unbefreakinlievable! That's credit to both Saturn V and JGR610. It actually reminded me of when I was able to crank my old CA9 through the NV610
Item #3: Gasoline V2. I didn't bold it because JGR said he wasn't staying in the pedal business, this was just something he did for fun. I call it Gasoline V2 because it has a similar layout and features (e.g. 3-position tone switch) of the original Gasoline, but it's noticeably different: it's more of a bright box (voiced from hi mids thru treble) and has less gain and mid punch. It was definitely fun to use: had sizzle that could be reminiscent of SABDDI Presence or B7K Hi Mid, but without mid cut.
There are a few other items possibly coming down the pike. He's kicking around ideas for new speaker cabs... possibly a sealed 4x10 for those like me who (sadly) have little use for a 610; he might also update his tall 2x10 cabs. He found a soft-dome mid that he might use in place of the tweeter in his Wunderkabs (etc) -- but the tweeter on the Wunder sounds really great, not "plinky" or anything, and the differences between those two drivers are subtle. @JGR, please let me know what I'm forgetting!
Item #1: the Saturn V. I'd heard the videos he posted of the final version, but it was fun to A/B Saturn V with my VHF700 in person. They are certainly similar, but JGR tweaked the Saturn front end for a bit more "heft" in the lows and clarity on top. There are a few other changes such as features added/removed, adjustments to EQ points, etc. The tonal differences aren't night and day, and JGR demonstrated that the Bright switch on the 700 would get me in the ballpark of the Saturn's clarity. I've been perfectly happy with the VHF, and rarely use Bright because I often use dirt. That said, the REAL difference between the two amps happened when cranking the Saturn V into a cab that could handle its output. Which brings me to....
Item #2: JGR's sealed 6x10. WHAT A MONSTER. As noted previously in this thread it uses ceramic drivers but weighs only 64 pounds. Compared tonally to my NV610, the JGR610 has a bit more on top and down below (that was confirmed by an A/B with JGR's NV412). I can't really speak to volume differences between NV610 and JGR610, but Jonathan cranked Saturn V through his 610 and it seemed to shake the foundation... unbefreakinlievable! That's credit to both Saturn V and JGR610. It actually reminded me of when I was able to crank my old CA9 through the NV610
Item #3: Gasoline V2. I didn't bold it because JGR said he wasn't staying in the pedal business, this was just something he did for fun. I call it Gasoline V2 because it has a similar layout and features (e.g. 3-position tone switch) of the original Gasoline, but it's noticeably different: it's more of a bright box (voiced from hi mids thru treble) and has less gain and mid punch. It was definitely fun to use: had sizzle that could be reminiscent of SABDDI Presence or B7K Hi Mid, but without mid cut.
There are a few other items possibly coming down the pike. He's kicking around ideas for new speaker cabs... possibly a sealed 4x10 for those like me who (sadly) have little use for a 610; he might also update his tall 2x10 cabs. He found a soft-dome mid that he might use in place of the tweeter in his Wunderkabs (etc) -- but the tweeter on the Wunder sounds really great, not "plinky" or anything, and the differences between those two drivers are subtle. @JGR, please let me know what I'm forgetting!
- May 20, 2000
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A ceramic speaker 610 that weighs the same as the Barefaced neo 610 is pretty attractive.
Off center 410 like Bergantino does? or a verticle 410 column...like EA once did?
I am very interested to see what that looks like
P.S. Forgot to give more props to JGR's Wunderkab 1x12. It's my secret weapon: a single 1x12 has plenty of volume (and booty!) to keep up with guitar, drums, organ, vocals at small to mid-size bars, and a pair of 'em has covered gigs that I only thought possible with something like six tens (NV610; pair of HG310).
Anecdote: I play in a band where the keyboardist/BL sings lead on 1/3 of the songs. He's a baritone and is REALLY fussy about bass guitar volume onstage -- never mind that he brings a Hammond B3 and Leslies to big gigs. And he judges bass cabs with his eyes, not his ears. Obviously my NV610 freaked him out when I brought it (outdoor venues only). He never liked any of my 1x12 stacks. He didn't even like my Reiner sealed 2x12 either, though it was smaller in size. A single Berg HG310 is a small cab, but once he saw the rear-firing speaker he freaked out about that too, even though I assured him that low frequencies were omnidirectional so I could hear them too, and IF I'M TOO LOUD THEN JUST TELL ME AND I WILL TURN DOWN. All that said: since I've been using a single 1x12 Wunderkab at the small to mid-size gigs, he hasn't said anything... not a peep! As I said: secret weapon.
I still love my Reiner sealed 2x12, but it's safer for me to bring Wunders to new venues (which I've been playing a lot of for the past year) because I have the option of using only one, and a pair will get louder than the 2x12 so I'm covered for larger gigs.
Anecdote: I play in a band where the keyboardist/BL sings lead on 1/3 of the songs. He's a baritone and is REALLY fussy about bass guitar volume onstage -- never mind that he brings a Hammond B3 and Leslies to big gigs. And he judges bass cabs with his eyes, not his ears. Obviously my NV610 freaked him out when I brought it (outdoor venues only). He never liked any of my 1x12 stacks. He didn't even like my Reiner sealed 2x12 either, though it was smaller in size. A single Berg HG310 is a small cab, but once he saw the rear-firing speaker he freaked out about that too, even though I assured him that low frequencies were omnidirectional so I could hear them too, and IF I'M TOO LOUD THEN JUST TELL ME AND I WILL TURN DOWN. All that said: since I've been using a single 1x12 Wunderkab at the small to mid-size gigs, he hasn't said anything... not a peep! As I said: secret weapon.
I still love my Reiner sealed 2x12, but it's safer for me to bring Wunders to new venues (which I've been playing a lot of for the past year) because I have the option of using only one, and a pair will get louder than the 2x12 so I'm covered for larger gigs.
Pretty sure @JGR would have told me if it was a vertical 4x10. I'm guessing a non-offset config like his sealed 6x10, but he can confirm.
I think JGR might still have a vertical 3x10 on the drawing board somewhere!
Interesting how we all hear things differently. Much as I love the VHF700, for me it was like the Saturn V snapped into focus on exactly what I was hoping for. So balanced, great mids and eq, and that feeling of power.
I think we're hearing the same thing, I just failed to explain well. In that A/B, Saturn V sounded more hi fi than VHF. And the additional headroom was palpable when cranking up that 610!
Also forgot to mention: there's some crossover magic happening in the sealed 6x10. @JGR, is it possible to explain without giving away secrets?
- Jun 29, 2006
- 5,148
- 3,214
- Disclosures
- President, CEO, CFO, CIO, Chief Engineer, Technician, Janitor - Reiner Amplification
Hey Ken, great having you here as always. Wish we had had more time!
When we really blasted the Saturn V to clipping, we were running into ~2 ohms because it was through the 610 and the NV412 - I don’t like pushing it to full output into just the NV412 because I can hear the speakers getting unhappy, and I don’t want to destroy that lovely cab!
I got additional parts in the week after your visit and reworked the 610 crossover - cab sounds 100% better now! Transient response/punch is greatly improved, as is the midrange texture and top end clarity.
I also got in another value Gain pot for the OD pedal - let’s call it the Angry Box - after you left and I think it’s pretty well dialed in. Not sure what I want to do with it going forward but I am digging it.
We also played the little 110 proto with the updated hybrid reflex alignment - that one I’d like to do in a 210 format.
The current tweeter on the 112 is switchable but I’m thinking of ditching it for the soft dome mid you heard which would be always on.
